—Dad's Heavenly Homegoing!10/94

—By MariaMaria #232 DFO 2945

Dearest Precious Family,

1. WE HAVE SOME UNEXPECTED NEWS for you, which on the one hand is one of the most thrilling things that could have happened, but on the other, may at first be difficult & saddening. Our Beloved Father, Grandpa, King & Prophet is now safe in the arms of Jesus, & freed from the weights of this evil World, having gone to his glorious reward. He left us peacefully in his sleep, as he had always wanted, with some of his children gathered around his bedside.

2. Dad had been feeling quite well since his last sickness, & was getting stronger, thanks to your prayers & the Lord strengthening him. He had even been able to eat potatoes & gravy, & get some exercise. So the Lord had wonderfully answered your prayers. Then just recently Dad suddenly became quite ill, & we were all praying for him. By a miracle, we were able to get a sweet doctor to come & visit us the night before Dad's Homegoing‚ & he prescribed some vitamins & some lab tests. Dad went to sleep soon afterwards, waking later for two hours, during which time he was able to drink some chocolate milkshakes‚ which he enjoyed very much. Afterwards, he fell asleep again, & after six hours I felt that he should have more nourishment‚ so attempted, with one of our helpers, to awaken him. However, we were unable to do so‚ & began a continual prayer vigil‚ as we were concerned that his rapid‚ shallow breathing for hours at a time would be too much for his heart.

3. We had been praying for some hours when his breathing changed & slowed, which we initially were hoping was a good sign. However, as we watched his breathing & felt his weakening heartbeat, after a short period of not breathing, we saw him take one last little breath or sigh, & he was gone.

4. By this time, everyone in our Home had gathered to anoint him with oil, & as we began to pray, we asked the Lord to bring him back if that was His Will. But as we were praying & weeping, we began to get different verses & visions, all signifying that he had gone to be with Jesus: "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints."—Psa.116:15. "Into Thy hands I commit my spirit, O Lord."—Psa. 31:5; Luke 23:46. Three people received visions of his spirit hovering above the bed, happy & free. Someone also had a vision of him having gone through to the Other Side, now younger & extremely happy.

5. Earlier, I had gotten‚ "Whom have I in Heaven but Thee? There is none on Earth that I desire beside Thee. My flesh & my heart faileth: but Thou art the strength of my heart, & my portion for ever."—Psa.73:25,26.

6. Several saw Dad so happy & excited, as though he were saying, "There is now no limit to what I can do!—Free at last!"

7. I had been lying beside Dad, praying for him not long before he left us, & I told the Lord‚ as I had the last time he was so gravely ill, that I wanted him to be happy & I didn't want him to have to endure the many afflictions & difficulties of old age & illness & the troubles of the World unless the Lord knew it was absolutely necessary for him to remain here on Earth for the Family.

8. He had been doing so well & getting so much stronger recently, so I realised that the Lord was very capable of doing whichever—either keeping Dad & further strengthening him, or taking him to be with Him where he would be happier & stronger & freer than ever possible here. Just a couple of days earlier he had said, "I wonder if there's anything more I can do to help the Family?" Now, from Heaven, he has his heart's desire to be an even greater blessing to us, his Family, whom he loved so dearly, & he can do all the things that he wants to do in order to help us during this important time in ours & the World's history!

9. So it is a thrilling new life that has opened up for him!—And for us! Now he will be able to be rewarded for all his years of sacrificial love & labour, & be able to do all that he has ever dreamed of to help us usher in God's glorious Kingdom here on Earth, praise the Lord!

10. For us, Dad's graduation will bring Heaven so much closer & make the goal much more reachable, & strengthen our resolve to keep pressing ahead till our turn comes.

11. And won't Dad & Libby have some wonderful times working on & planning together how to get us all to love our brothers & sisters more & love the lost more? Won't they have wonderful times working on all the goals that they had in common—loving others & healing weary & war-torn hearts—and even going over a little bit of past history when Libby lived with us for a short time in 1978 when we needed extra support staff because of the leadership meetings we were holding. What a wonderful girl she was then & what a beautiful Heavenly spirit she is now.

12. I am so glad that she, along with Aaron, Abner, Phoebe & many of his other precious children, are there to welcome Dad, the ones who understand him best & appreciate him most.—Not to mention the joyous reunion he is having with his own dear mother & father, as well as with Dr. Koger & a host of others who loved him & have been helping him.—Including, of course‚ his faithful helper Abrahim.

13. And though we may have to wait for a short while before we're reunited with Dad & our loved ones in that Heavenly City, I know that he is going to be so proud of us for sticking to our jobs & doing our best for Jesus & for him until God calls us each Home in His perfect timing for us‚ when we've finished the course & the work He has given us to do. Hallelujah for Heaven!

14. God gets His greatest victories out of seeming defeats‚ & though the Enemy attacked Dad with sickness, your prayers overcame the Evil One in the most wonderful‚ marvellous healing miracle of all, the ultimate healing & the ultimate miracle! The Enemy pushed Dad right to the edge & thought to put him out of action, but instead, the Lord snatched him away, forever out of the Enemy's reach, & put him into greater action than he has ever known!

15. So let's have a Victory Celebration & praise the Lord for His goodness & mercy & love for our wonderful King & beloved Prophet! Let's have a Happy Homegoing Celebration & shout the victory!

16. Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal. "O Death, where is thy sting, O grave‚ where is thy victory? Death is swallowed up in victory. Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Therefore‚ my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmoveable‚ always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord!"—1Cor.15:54-58. Praise the Lord! He is no longer here!—He has risen & is now safe with Jesus, & closer to you than ever before possible! Thank You Jesus!

17. I'm sure that Dad wants you to be happy & to thank the Lord & rejoice with him, at this, the happiest day of his life!—His victory over all pain, affliction, sorrow, & all the burdens of this life, plus his joyful reunion with Jesus, & his freedom to now do all he'd like to in the realm of the Spirit. Of course, there will be some tears at first, & it takes a little time to get over the shock, but let Dad's many words on the next life & Heaven fill you with joy as you go to them for comfort.

18. So praise the Lord! I love you all & want you to rejoice in Dad's victory & be happy for him. His happiness greatly outweighs the little sorrow that we feel with his not being present with us in the physical anymore. This should make us more Heavenly minded & more tuned in to the Spirit so we can hear Dad's counsel & direction when he gives it to us.

19. Keep your eyes upon the goal & the victory in your soul‚ & keep going for Jesus & Dad—who are going to be depending on you more than ever now to do the job! God bless & keep us all in His care.

Love & prayers,

Mama

20. P.S. Following are some messages straight to you from Heaven received by folks in one of our Units as they gathered together after hearing the above announcement of Dad's Homegoing. I know that this wonderful glimpse into Dad's New World will give you the assurance & encouragement you need, & that after you hear these prophecies you will have no cause for sorrow.

Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family