by Don Piper
“A friend handed me this book at about midnight, and come two or three in the morning, I was still reading. It’s a wonderful and inspiring story that brightens your perspective, giving you a sense of security, clarity, and warmth.”
—DONALD MILLER, AUTHOR, BLUE LIKE JAZZ
“Don Piper’s ninety minutes in heaven changed his life and his perspective. Reading his book will give you the assurance that God is faithful to bring you through even the most horrific of circumstances. May his eyewitness account of the hope that lies before you change your perspective of this life as well!”
—MICHAEL CARTER, CBN CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
“Captivating and well written, this book holds your attention and often holds your heart. Don tells his story, his experience that all Christians long to hear. His experience will lift your spirit and soften your pain.”
—RON HILL, PASTOR, THE FELLOWSHIP OF SAN ANTONIO
90
MINUTES IN
HEAVEN
A TRUE STORY
of DEATH & LIFE
DON PIPER
WITH CECIL MURPHEY
© 2004 by Don Piper
Published by Revell
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
E-book edition created 2009
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
ISBN 978-1-4412-0000-6
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture marked NIV is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
To the prayer warriors . . .
You prayed; I’m here!
Contents
A Word from the Publisher
Acknowledgments
Prologue
1. The Accident
2. My Time in Heaven
3. Heavenly Music
4. From Heaven to Earth
5. Earth to Hospital
6. The Recovery Begins
7. Decisions and Challenges
8. Pain and Adjustments
9. Endless Adjustments
10. More Miracles
11. Back to Church
12. Opening Up
13. The Clasping Hand
14. The New Normal
15. Touching Lives
16. Finding Purpose
17. Longing for Home
18. The Why Questions
Notes
A WORD FROM
THE PUBLISHER
Publishers look for any business principle that takes the risk out of our publishing decisions. Linking books with readers can be a baffling enterprise, so we welcome any trustworthy guidance. When my grandfather, Herman Baker, founded Baker Book House many years ago, he built his company around publishing the works of classical Christian writers. Their works had endured through the ages, so they presented minimal financial risk. This approach had other practical benefits as well. Authors such as Martin Luther, my grandfather reminded us, didn’t demand a royalty advance from his company treasurer. A long-departed author was never overdue with a manuscript, and he wouldn’t contact our office for weekly updates on how his book was selling. Living authors, whatever their virtues, are prone to these habits and to many other human foibles that distracted our company founder. My father, Richard Baker, later summarized this business strategy well: “Dead authors are the easiest people to publish.”
In spite of his taste for classics, Herman Baker did establish and savor friendships with many living authors. Martin Luther might not complain about your marketing plan, but you can’t enjoy lunch with him either.
With the introduction of author Don Piper to our company, we inadvertently discovered a unique author who fits in both categories. Don suffered a traumatic death during an auto accident in 1989, but he also visits our offices occasionally to meet with our staff and, yes, enjoy a meal with us. Don is the liveliest dead author we’ve ever encountered.
When the proposal for 90 Minutes in Heaven appeared before our publication board, it was met with understandable caution. The company division that hosted this opportunity, Revell, had a limited tradition of publishing such testimonies. However, these books appeared well before Baker and Revell began publishing together. Therefore, the people around the table on that morning in 2003 had no background to prepare them for Don Piper’s claims. We hadn’t personally witnessed his accident or shared his experience in heaven firsthand. Such a testimony cannot be proved or disproved; it can only be accepted or ignored.
Our decision to publish 90 Minutes in Heaven was strengthened by related factors. First, we were impressed with the personal character of Don Piper. We were influenced by Don’s credentials and lifelong dedication as a pastor of God’s Word, before and after the incident. In his denominational community and within our publication board, Don was not surrounded by people who are easily influenced by modern miraculous claims. We soon recognized that Don was not releasing his story to gain personal wealth. At the onset, our company investment was modest by any standard. Don mentioned later that he wrote the book to save him the time of verbally repeating the story. He hoped to pass along a few copies to his closest relatives.
Most significantly, Don’s testimony does not expand on or contradict any scriptural teachings on the afterlife. Any statement along the lines of “I have talked with Jesus face-to-face, and he told me to tell you that . . .” would have immediately removed Don’s testimony from consideration. We decided to proceed, based on these observations and on the strength of the testimony. We started with a cautious first printing of 8,000 copies. We knew from experience that similar recovery stories often fell entirely between the cracks.
But Don’s story was capable of so much more than he, or we, had anticipated. Don speaks to thousands and thousands each year, and at the current pace of book sales, our cautious first printing quantity would be depleted in merely two days.
90 Minutes in Heaven required nearly a year to circulate broadly, but when it did, the reception for Don’s story took a different path than we anticipated. The book was initially overlooked by Christian book retailers, a reaction explained by the same cautious skepticism that we initially felt. However, it soon developed a readership beyond merely curious observers of miracles and wonders. 90 Minutes in Heaven is widely embraced by people who face personal suffering. It offers comfort during end-of-life burdens. It serves elderly people and the family members who care for them. Most significantly, people who have recently lost a loved one use 90 Minutes in Heaven as an encouraging report on the whereabouts of those they have lost. The book relates a joyous vision of the afterlife that is unique and rare.
Don Piper’s story provides comfort to a troubled community, even as we understand that our worldly suffering will not soon abate. For instance, Don tells us that the injuries from his crash leave him with few pain-free intervals each day, even after many years of medical treatment. In spite of his physical limitations, however, Don maintains a vigorous travel and speaking schedule that would exhaust even people who have never had a semitruck roll across their lap. His eagerness to spread this message energizes him beyond the usual limits of h
uman endurance.
Don’s testimony reminds us that our human pain is not the final word. His book 90 Minutes in Heaven generates a message of hope that our anxious planet simply can’t ignore. We hope for glorious things to come, and we carry a faith for things unseen. In this spirit, we offer his story to you, our readers.
Dwight Baker
President
Baker Publishing Group
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I wrote this book in self-defense. In the years since 1989 I have seldom satisfied anyone with quick answers or brief encounters retelling my experiences. On radio, on TV, in newspapers, and from countless pulpits and other speaking engagements, I have generally left more unanswered questions than satisfactory responses. People consistently have wanted to know more . . . always more. I wrote three different manuscripts about this experience to satisfy inquiring minds. None of them satisfied me. That’s when I prevailed upon one of America’s distinguished authors to partner with me to write a book that would answer the most compelling issues concerning my death and life. Cecil Murphey, author of very successful biographies of such luminaries as Franklin Graham, Truett Cathey, B. J. Thomas, Dino Karsanakas, and Dr. Ben Carson, gave me the perspective I wanted to write the book I needed to write. You’re holding it now.
Cec has become a devoted friend, confidant, and mentor. Indeed, one of the blessings of writing this book has been to know Cec Murphey. His passion for this project is felt on every page. Thank you, Cec! You are deeply appreciated. Likewise, the Knight Agency’s Deidre Knight’s belief in this project is much appreciated. And Dr. Vicki Crumpton of Baker Publishing Group is a person I have grown to admire. Her dedication to seeing this story in print is cherished.
I want to thank the staff of both Memorial Hermann Medical Center’s Trauma Unit and St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston for their devotion to the healing arts. Special thanks to Dr. Thomas Greider, my orthopedic surgeon since that fateful night of January 18, 1989.
Precious people of God from many churches have allowed me to serve them. Not only were their prayers crucial to my survival but their presence has been a blessing to my ministry. Deep gratitude goes to South Park Baptist Church of Alvin, Texas, God’s great prayer warriors. I would like to acknowledge the special contributions of First Baptist Church, Airline Baptist Church, and Barksdale Baptist Church, all of Bossier City, Louisiana. My father in the ministry, Dr. Damon V . Vaughn, former pastor of the first two of those churches is owed an immeasurable debt.
For standing faithfully with me in the days since my accident I express undying love for the First Baptist Church of Rosharon, Texas, along with Hunters’ Glen and Murphy Road Baptist Church of Plano, Texas. Since 1996 I have called First Baptist Church of Pasadena, Texas, my place of service. Your support for this project has been sweet and unwavering. Thank you all for your patience, forbearance, prayers, and love.
To Anita Onerecker and her late husband, Dick, thank you for allowing God to use you so dramatically. To all my friends, brothers and sisters in Christ, who prayed so passionately, I thank you. Only God knows your sacrifices and kindnesses. Most of all, I thank my friends of many years, Cliff McArdle and David Gentiles, true gifts from God. Whether day or night, convenient or imposition, expedient or sacrificial, you have always been faithful. And thank you all for encouraging me to see this book to fruition.
Finally, I want to express profound gratitude to my wife’s parents, Eldon and Ethel Pentecost, and my own parents, Ralph and Billie Piper, for their incalculable sacrifices and faithful support. To my three children, Nicole, Chris, and Joe, I say . . . God has given me children so much better than I could have ever deserved. I am highly blessed. How can I say thank you for all you have meant to me, even more so since that Wednesday so long ago? And to my wife of thirty years, Eva, no one should ever have had to do the things you’ve had to do for me. But you did them, faithfully, compassionately, and without hesitation. Of all my family and friends, only Eva comes closest to really knowing how painful this journey has been each day, for she has endured it with me. Eva, you are a gift from God.
Lord, you know I haven’t always understood the whys of what has happened, but I’ve never stopped trusting you. I pray, Abba Father, that this humble effort to tell my story pleases you and blesses many. Amen.
DON PIPER
FEBRUARY 2004
Don with sons Chris and Joe in 1982.
PROLOGUE
I died on January 18, 1989.
Paramedics reached the scene of the accident within minutes. They found no pulse and declared me dead. They covered me with a tarp so that onlookers wouldn’t stare at me while they attended to the injuries of the others. I was completely unaware of the paramedics or anyone else around me.
Immediately after I died, I went straight to heaven.
While I was in heaven, a Baptist preacher came on the accident scene. Even though he knew I was dead, he rushed to my lifeless body and prayed for me. Despite the scoffing of the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs), he refused to stop praying.
At least ninety minutes after the EMTs pronounced me dead, God answered that man’s prayers.
I returned to earth.
This is my story.
1
THE ACCIDENT
That is why we can say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper,
so I will not be afraid.
hat can mere mortals do to me?”
HEBREWS 13:6
The Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT) holds annual statewide conferences. In January 1989, they chose the north shore of Lake Livingston where the Union Baptist Association, composed of all Baptist churches in the greater Houston area, operates a large conference center called Trinity Pines. The conference focused on church growth, and I went because I was seriously considering starting a new church.
The conference started on Monday and was scheduled to end with lunch on Wednesday. On Tuesday night, I joined a BGCT executive and friend named J. V . Thomas for a long walk. J. V . had become a walker after his heart attack, so we exercised together the last night of the conference.
Months earlier, I had begun thinking that it was time for me to start a new congregation. Before embarking on such a venture, I wanted as much information as I could get. I knew that J.V . had as much experience and knowledge about new church development as anyone in the BGCT. Because he had started many successful churches in the state, most of us recognized him as the expert. As we walked together that night, we talked about my starting a new church, when to do it, and where to plant it. I wanted to know the hardships as well as the pitfalls to avoid. He answered my seemingly endless questions and raised issues I hadn’t thought about.
We walked and talked for about an hour. Despite the cold, rainy weather, we had a wonderful time together. J. V . remembers that time well.
So do I, but for a different reason: It would be the last time I would ever walk normally.
On Wednesday morning the weather worsened. A steady rain fell. Had the temperature been only a few degrees colder, we couldn’t have traveled, because everything would have been frozen.
The morning meetings started on time. The final speaker did something Baptist preachers almost never do—he finished early. Instead of lunch, the staff at Trinity Pines served us brunch at about ten thirty. I had packed the night before, so everything was stowed in my red 1986 Ford Escort.
As soon as we finished brunch, I said good-bye to all my friends and got into my car to drive back to the church where I was on staff, South Park Baptist Church in Alvin, a Houston bedroom community.
When I started the engine, I remembered that only three weeks earlier I had received a traffic ticket for not wearing a seat belt. I had been on my way to preach for a pastor friend who was going to have throat surgery. A Texas trooper had caught me. That ticket still lay on the passenger seat, reminding me to pay it as soon as I returned to Alvin. Until I received the ticket, I had not usually worn a seat belt,
but after that I changed my ways.
When I looked at that ticket I thought, I don’t want to be stopped again. So I carefully fastened my seat belt. That small act would be a crucial decision.
There were two ways to get back to Houston and on to Alvin. As soon as I reached the gates of Trinity Pines, I had to choose either to drive through Livingston and down Highway 59 or to head west to Huntsville and hit I-45, often called the Gulf Freeway. Each choice is probably about the same distance. Every other time to and from Trinity Pines I had driven Highway 59. That morning I decided to take the Gulf Freeway.
I was relieved that we had been able to leave early. It was only a few minutes after 11:00, so I could get back to the church by 2:00. The senior minister had led a group to the Holy Land and left me responsible for our midweek service at South Park Church. He had also asked me to preach for the next two Sundays. That night was a prayer meeting, which required little preparation, but I needed to work on my sermon for the following Sunday morning.
Before I left Alvin, I had written a draft for the first sermon titled “I Believe in a Great God.” As I drove, I planned to glance over the sermon and evaluate what I had written so far.
Many times since then I’ve thought about my decision to take the Gulf Freeway. It’s amazing how we pay no attention to simple decisions at the time they’re made. Yet I would remind myself that even the smallest decisions often hold significant consequences. This was one of those choices.
I pulled out of Trinity Pines, turned right, and headed down Texas Highway 19. That would take me to Huntsville and intersect with I-45, leading to Houston. I didn’t have to drive far before I reached Lake Livingston, a man-made lake, created by damming the Trinity River. What was once a riverbed is now a large, beautiful lake. Spanning Lake Livingston is a two-lane highway whose roadbed has been built up above the level of the lake. The road has no shoulders, making it extremely narrow. I would have to drive across a long expanse of water on that narrow road until I reached the other side. I had no premonitions about the trip, although I was aware of the road’s lack of shoulders.
