Yesterday, as soon as I woke up, I was taken on a journey around and beyond the world. There was no time to pray. Whilst it was happening, I was able to write down what I saw and understood, which has never happened to me before. I had no sense of time passing or of movement, and no awareness of my body or its surroundings.
The experience ended as soon as I had written down the last few words. I don’t know how long it lasted – perhaps an hour or two. Then I became aware of my body, and was very surprised to find myself in bed in my holiday flat, feeling truly awed and astonished by all I had seen. I might easily have thought I had simply been dreaming, except for all I had written down during my journey. Here is the essence of what I wrote:
I am God, and not a man – the Holy One among you (Hosea 11:9; NIV).
God is neither male nor female,
Black nor white, not straight or gay,
Not Orthodox, or Catholic,
Or Protestant: God is The Way.
God is not Christian, Hindu, Jewish,
Muslim, Buddhist, Jain, or Sikh,
Nor any other great world faith,
For God is light, and love, and peace.
God is Spirit, here, within us all –
The grace that sets us free.
God’s truth, consuming fire, and strength
Are pearls beyond all price, to me.
The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant’s search for fine pearls. When one pearl of great value was found, the merchant went back and sold everything else and bought it (Matthew 13:45-6; TIB).