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1. Introduction To Missions and the NDE
Near-death experiences (NDEs) challenge the idea that life is random or meaningless. NDErs often return convinced that they were sent back because of an important “mission” still remaining for them to finish. NDE testimonies show our mission is a purposeful plan developed by us in spirit realms before birth, lived out in life on Earth through free will and destiny, and reviewed in the light when this life ends. This sense of mission is revealed in many ways: through encounters with a Being of Light, Jesus Christ, a “presence”, angelic beings, spirit guides, departed loved ones, a Council of Elders, an inner voice, or even vivid memories of existence before birth or between lives. The details may differ, but the core message is that every soul comes to Earth for spiritual growth that matters not only personally, but collectively and divinely.
Many of the NDE testimonies referenced in this article are drawn from firsthand accounts generously shared on the Near-Death Experience Research Foundation (NDERF.org) website. I gratefully acknowledge NDERF and its founders, Dr. Jeffrey Long and Jody Long, for their decades of dedication to collecting, preserving, and publishing the world’s most comprehensive archives of NDE testimonies. Their ongoing research and stewardship of these testimonies make it possible for readers, researchers, and NDErs alike to deepen their understanding of the profound insights reported during NDEs.
2. Mission Information Revealed Through NDEs
a. Mission Information Revealed by God
RaNelle Wallace learned everyone promised God before birth to accomplish our mission to bring about goodness on Earth: “[Before birth] we raised our right arms, just as we might in a court of law, and we made a sacred covenant with God that we would do all in our power to accomplish our missions on Earth. And I felt the tremendous honor of making this covenant before our Heavenly Father. We vowed, in effect, to become partners with him in bringing about goodness on Earth. We promised to use our time and energies and talents to help bring about the savior’s full purposes, to help bring our brothers and sisters back to him and to our Father again.”
Analisa D. learned from God that everyone has a mission: “I am intensely grateful to God for letting me glimpse the afterlife and to know that we are all here on a mission, each and everyone of us. It is as though God’s love is coursing through me and I have the ability to give so much love to people. It is wonderful!”
God assured William Si he will return after completing his mission: “I have a promise made to me by the Creator, the moment my mission in this existence is over, I will leave immediately and I don’t care how I go out. I just want to go home.”
God told Elzada O. her mission was not finished: “I remember God telling me something that my mission on Earth was not finished. In other words it wasn’t my time.”
Rahmaan was told his mission wasn’t finished: “The Light pointed to me and reminded me of my responsibilities and told me that I have to finish my mission on Earth.”
Virginie R. was told by God about her mission: “It was God talking to me, as he said that I had to go back to my family, that I would give birth to six children, and that I still had a mission to accomplish.”
Rebecca P. learned from God that part of her mission is to care for her lover: “Given the choice to stay or return to my body by the Creator Spirit… THE LOVE… I chose to return only because as was verified to me my work was not completed – part of which was a friend (my lesbian lover) who needed me greatly and was suffering terribly by my sudden passing… God only cares about the purity of our love for one another… Deliberate hurting is the path to hell… Major violations of the LOVE.”
Read more about God and the NDE.
b. Mission Information Revealed by the Being of Light
Some NDErs describe encountering a Being of Light who gives them a life review where their mission is revealed in profound detail. Other NDErs learn from the Being of Light that their mission cannot be revealed. Either way, the NDEr usually forgets the details of their mission upon returning to earthly life.
During her life review, Lynnclaire Dennis was informed by the Being of Light of her mission in life – a rare occurrence in NDEs – because often the NDEr is told they cannot know it or that they will be made to forget it upon return. In Lynnclaire’s case, a Being of Light she refers to as “The Presence” revealed to her a special mission she was to perform: “Lynnclaire, you will be a catalyst for change, for love. You will bring forth, hold, and honor remembrance. You will bring to conscious awareness the realms, realities, and remnants in order that the spirit may remember the dance.” Her NDE encounter with the Light, which she refers to as “The Pattern”, led to a scientific discovery involving the topology of the Light.
The Being of Light told Lisa M. during her life review that her mission is to learn and practice love, and to help others: Lisa encountered a radiant male Being of Light who radiated unearthly, unconditional love. The Being revealed her entire life in a single, instantaneous vision and gently reminded her of her true purpose: to grow in love and compassion, to express these qualities on Earth, and to help others however she could.
Joon O. learned from the Being of Light that her mission is to help a lot of people: “He (Being of Light) said, ‘It’s not your time to come here yet. Go back there and help a lot of people, and then come back!’… I had to return to this world with a specific mission: Help lots of people!”
Bill W. learned from the Being of Light that his mission is to help children and make a difference: “After my healing, I knew that my mission was to work with children… I knew I was to open up a Dungeons & Dragons den to help children. I could only come back if I made a difference in someone else’s life.”
Read more about the Being of Light and the NDE.
c. Mission Information Revealed by Jesus Christ
Betty Eadie wanted to know the purpose of life so, Jesus Christ showed her that we took part in the creation of the Earth: “I wanted to learn the purpose of life on the Earth. Why are we here? As I basked in the love of Jesus Christ, I couldn’t imagine why any spirit would voluntarily leave this wonderful paradise and all it offered – worlds to explore and ideas to create and knowledge to gain. Why would anyone want to come here? In answer, I remembered the creation of the Earth. I actually experienced it as if it were being reenacted before my eyes. This was important. Jesus wanted me to internalize this knowledge. He wanted me to know how I felt when the creation occurred. And the only way to do that was for me to view it again and feel what I had felt before. All people as spirits in the pre-mortal world took part in the creation of the Earth.”
Rosa M. learned from Jesus her mission is to help people: “As for the mission Jesus told me about, over the years I realized that I do have the ability to help people.”
Tiffany Snow learned from Jesus her mission is to heal, teach, and help others manifest their God-given gifts with power and love: Tiffany Snow received the gifts of healing and psychic ability during his NDE. She discovered her mission in life is to heal, teach, and help others manifest their God-given gifts with power and love in their own lives.”
Jesus told Lariza GWT that she has a mission: “Jesus told me, ‘GO BACK. It is not your time. You have to go back because I gave you a mission. You’re already a MOM!’”
Heather S. learned from Jesus she has a mission: “He (Jesus) told me I wasn’t supposed to be there yet, that he had a mission for me.”
Jesus gave twelve-year old child, Carol Vengroff, her mission: “I was told it was not my time to stay and that I was being sent back to my twelve-year-old body. I was given information and a mission.”
Jesus told John F. his mission was incomplete and that he would know it when the time comes: “Soon I saw Jesus standing in front of me. He asked me what I wanted of him. I told him I had learned I would have to return to Earth and I did not want to leave this heavenly place. He explained to me that I had not yet performed his wishes that he had set forth for me in my lifetime. I asked him what some wishes of his were and he did not answer me. He said I would know at the right time, sometime in my future.”
Laura M. was told by Jesus her mission is not completed and her NDE was needed to help complete it: “He (Jesus) spoke to me, telling me that it was not my time and that I needed to return to my body, to complete my life’s mission… ‘Why me,’ I asked, ‘what made me so special that I was allowed to have this happen to me?’ ‘Nothing,’ He said, ‘love falls on everyone equally; everyone is special. This was just something you needed to accomplish your chosen life mission.'”
Betty Eadie was told by Jesus that it wasn’t her time to die suggesting she has a mission in life: “He (Jesus) said, ‘Your death was premature, it is not yet your time.’ No words ever spoken have penetrated me more than these. Until then, I had felt no purpose in life; I had simply ambled along looking for love and goodness but never really knowing if my actions were right. Now, within his words, I felt a mission, a purpose; I didn’t know what it was, but I knew that my life on Earth had not been meaningless. It was not yet my time. My time would come when my mission, my purpose, my meaning in this life was accomplished.”
Ned Dougherty experienced a life review in which he found himself being the sole judge. Afterwards, a Being of Light whom Dougherty identified as “the Lady of Light” (Mary, the mother of Jesus) revealed to him his own personal future of creating a “Mission of Angels” as well as prophecies regarding the future of the world.
Read more about Jesus Christ and the NDE.
d. Mission Information Revealed by Angels
Sarah Powell was beaten by an intruder in her home resulting in an NDE. In heaven, she was told by her guardian angel that she was brought to heaven to rest and gain the courage and energy to go on and finish her mission.
An angel told Steven D. that he promised before birth to complete his mission: “I was told why I was in his (an angel’s) presence and I had a choice to go home, or come back to my body and serve on a mission for the Lord. I was told I had made a promise before I was ever born to serve the Lord… I was cautioned and warned to keep my mission between the Lord and me. The Lord called me to serve. The Lord would assist me in completing my mission, if I obeyed Him.”
Roy Mills revealed that, before birth, angels helped us choose our life experiences: “The angels in heaven showed us what we needed to grow spiritually and worked with us in choosing life experiences that would teach us the things we needed to learn. They would give us choices from which to choose our life’s experiences. But any experience chosen would teach us the lessons we needed to learn in that area of our spiritual growth.”
Angels told Timothy P. that life is a mission to complete before going to heaven: “I went to heaven through the tunnel and spoke with angels that told me my work on Earth here is not complete and that I must go back. They told me that life is a mission that we must all complete before we can go to the Heavenly Kingdom.”
Timothy Peak was told by angels that life is a mission to complete before heaven: “They (angels) told me that life is a mission that we must all complete before we can go to the Heavenly Kingdom. They told me that I would be protected as long as I do the Heavenly Fathers work. I didnt know what that was at that time.”
Dr. Fabio was given a new mission now that his previous mission was completed: “He (Archangel Michael) informed me that my Earth mission had concluded and that the celestial beings were pleased to receive me… Archangel Raphael explained that having already completed my earthly mission, in order to return I would be entrusted with a new mission revealed over time.”
Marta M. is told by her guardian angel that she completed her mission but returned anyway: “The only thing is that I always put myself down, thought I never did enough and he talked to me like I was a very good person, that I’ve done much good and I accomplished my mission.”
Marta Y.‘s guardian angel said her mission is to help others: ‘Like all other beings, you are living in order to accomplish a mission, and you are not doing this. You must change you way of living, you are supposed to help many other beings, and you are not doing so.”
Angels told Mark his mission was not yet complete: “My three angels, still perplexed as to how to get me back to my body – did not like my response of, ‘I don’t want to go back down there; it is painful.’ ‘You must! Your mission is not yet complete!'”
Read more about Angels and the NDE.
e. Mission Information Revealed by Spirit Guides
According to Edgar Cayce who gained information from a spirit guide in heaven’s Hall of Records, “Each soul enters with a mission. We all have a mission to perform.”
During Betty Eadie‘s NDE, her spirit guides show her a man lying in a drunken stupor on the sidewalk and asked her what she sees. Betty replied that she sees “a drunken bum lying in his wallow.” Her guides then tell Betty, “Now we will show you who he really is.” The man’s spirit was revealed to Betty, and she saw “a magnificent man, full of light. Love emanated from his being, and I understood that he was greatly admired in the heavens. This great being came to Earth as a teacher to remind people of the need to help others.”
The NDEr and psychic Arthur Ford was told by a spirit guide his mission was to bridge the material world with the spiritual world: Arthur Ford encountered a spirit guide named Fletcher who would later become his main spirit guide during his work as a medium. Fletcher communicated to Ford that his earthly work was not yet complete – that he had a mission to fulfill involving the bridging of the material and spiritual worlds.
Lorenzo Dow Young pleaded with his spirit guide to remain in the light and was told he hadn’t fulfilled his mission: He was “permitted only to visit these ‘heavenly cities,’ for I had not filled my mission in yonder world; therefore I must return and take my body.”
Sammy learned his mission from a higher “entity” spirit guide but couldn’t remember his mission: “I spoke with someone here. We talked for hours about why we are all here and my plans for this life is. At that time, I knew it all, the whole meaning of life and what it is all about. I cannot remember any of it except the last sentence… ‘Then it’s decided, you’re going back.'”
Romy was told she would know her mission in time: “He (a spirit guide) said that I had a mission to accomplish and that I would know in time about it.”
Read more about Spirit Guides and the NDE.
f. Mission Information Revealed by Deceased Loved Ones
Ned Dougherty’s NDE caused him to undergo a radical life transformation in which he gave up his nightclub business, and party lifestyle, and embraced his hitherto neglected Catholic religion. His NDE gave him a conscious awareness of his mission in life which was to embark upon charitable and missionary work. His deceased friend revealed to Ned he had a mission: “You have a mission ahead of you in your life, and this experience will guide you on that mission.”
A deceased loved one told One Soldier his mission: “Your mission is to help others and to protect them. You will learn more about your mission as you go along, but for now you need to go back. This is your home and you will return, but for now you need to go back and discover your mission in full.”
Fena D. learned from deceased loved ones that she has a mission, but not what it is: “I believe that I was not supposed to die. The spirits indicated that I had more things to do and they were counting on me to do them. What…I don’t know. I keep asking for direction. If I am supposed to live, then what is the mission that I am supposed to accomplish. In difficult times after the attempt, I keep asking for signs, for direction.”
Sylvia R. learned she can stay in the afterlife after completing her mission: “She (a deceased neighbor) told me that my mission on Earth was not completed and that I would have to go back. I protested and begged to stay to no avail. She said I would be ‘allowed’ to stay the next time… We do not die until we achieve what we were instructed to do before we were born.”
RaNelle Wallace‘s deceased grandmother said her mission wasn’t complete: “I sensed my grandmother’s awareness that time was growing short. ‘You must go,’ she said. ‘Your mission isn’t complete.'”
Linda M. was told by her deceased father that her mission was incomplete: “I was told telepathically that I had to go back and complete my mission… I know that I am a spiritual being, and whatever I do in my lifetime will be reflected back to me in a life review. I want to be proud of my mission when its completed.”
Sinnaeve learned his mission was not over: “My grandfather said, ‘You still have a lot to accomplish here on Earth and your earthly mission is not over. The time has not yet come to join me’… We all have several missions that are intended for us and which we have to put into practice during our earthly life.”
Read more about the Homecoming with Deceased Loved Ones and the NDE.
g. Mission Information Revealed By a Voice
Voices told Madeleine S. her purpose is to have as much fun as possible: “They (voices) said, ‘Madeleine, the purpose of your life is, among other things, to try to have as much fun as possible, forget the sad things that happened and laugh and smile as much as you possibly can. Everything is going to be all right for you. Humor is very important.”
A Voice told Malena S. she has three missions: “I did not want to go back, but this VOICE was so powerful that it was impossible not to obey the order, ‘You must return to life. You still have three missions to complete.'”
A voice was about to reveal to Omar C. his mission, but it remained unknown upon return: “As soon as the thought of leaving came, the same voice said, ‘Your next mission is…’ Then, confusion and anguish set in. I wondered, what is the mission in this life? I still don’t know!”
A voice told Beatrice W. her mission is not fulfilled: “[A voice said] ‘You still have to fulfill your work’ was still reverberating for a while and I wondered what was meant by this. It was like a mission given to me. As I didn’t get an answer and I still continued a few times to get over the invisible border, but to no avail.”
A voice told George E. his mission was not accomplished: “A friendly ‘voice’ told me that I couldn’t stay because ‘it was not my time yet’ and I had a mission on Earth waiting to be accomplished.”
Robert I. learned from a voice that his mission was not complete: “I asked if I could stay and a voice boomed, ‘Your mission is not complete. You cannot stay’… I really wonder exactly just WHAT my mission is!”
h. Mission Information Revealed by Pre-Birth Memory In NDE
Dr. Craig Lundahl stated, “We cannot dwell in the higher spiritual realms until we have perfectly qualified for it by a change of heart and mind, a significant amount of preparation, and by completing our mission.”
Betty Eadie learned how to discover your mission: “To discover our mission in life we must see challenges as opportunities for growth and then face them head on. Each challenge measures our strengths and progress. Even when trials cause pain or sorrow, we must look for new lessons in the pain and ask God for the power to learn and to grow from it. Suffering focuses our attention on what matters most, and with God’s help, we can strengthen our spirits by learning patience, tolerance and love. These lessons learned, we become co-navigators with God. But when unlearned, we go into the eddies, spinning around, making little progress, even blaming God for our unremitting suffering.”
When Sandra Rogers asked Jesus why she could not take all the knowledge back with her, she was told that it would result in her appearing and being considered “abnormal” to the rest of society. She then realized that people such as the mentally retarded are special people who know much more than they are able to express. Hardships are necessary for the growth of our soul.
Laurelynn Martin learned we forget our missions to have human experiences: “We have chosen to forget most of our knowledge in order to come to Earth and have human experiences.”
Darlene Holman learned we forget our mission to learn more effectively and faster. We come here to learn, teach, or both: “We had to take a vow not to remember anything. Then it had to pass through a gray misty-looking curtain. The reason is for us to learn more effectively and faster. The most important reason for us coming to Earth is to either learn or teach. Most times both. All the bad things we go through here is either for our own learning or someone else’s.”
David Goines learned missions are forgotten to rediscover spiritual ideals in the physical for learning: “The reason we need to experience a separation of our total reality when we took on a physical body is because in order for us to appreciate, benefit, and learn all we can from our physical life, we must re-discover what we knew before – in physical ways. Through our physical life we must discover how to return to God. By the good that we do to each other here, by the ways we improve our minds, and by the ways that we learn to cope with a physical body and physical life, we earn our right of safe passage back to God; and in doing so, we honor God. It is God’s love that sends us on the journey and it is our love for God that will allow us to return to God’s loving arms.”
3. Missions Are Diverse and Often Not What We Expect
Some NDErs discover their mission is to share their NDE testimony with others. Some NDErs learn their mission is hidden in every day life – in their particular profession or in the influence they have on those around them. These testimonies reveal that missions are deeply personal and profoundly interconnected. A mission may center on inner spiritual growth, on healing from trauma in order to help others, on raising children, caring for family, or simply spreading love in ordinary circumstances. What seems small from an earthly perspective may be shown to have vast consequences in a larger spiritual reality. Altogether, these testimonies portray earthly missions as varied and relational, yet they are all based on the same mission to grow in love and to allow that love to ripple outward in ways seen and unseen.
a. Missions About Sharing NDE With the World
Ashley M. learned her mission to share her NDE with others and to teach about God: “I was then told that I would need to come back to Earth. I didn’t want to come back and I fought it. But, I was told my mission was to speak to the world about my experience and to teach that God is love and our purpose here is to show love and kindness to everyone.”
JoAnn M. learned that a person’s mission is the reason why most people are sent back. She also learned her mission is to love and help others to not fear death: “He told me that mission is the reason why most people are sent back… [but] part of that mission would be to let people know that death is not to be feared and the transition is a glorious one… My mission, I later found out, was to come back and love, to help people not fear death.”
Steven L. was told that nobody but him can complete mission to share his NDE and tell everyone they are love: “They (light beings) said, ‘…You have a mission to do on the Earth and you must do it. No one else can do it but you’… My mission is basically to share my story down here on the Earth, to tell everybody that they are love too.”
Juliet Nightingale learned NDErs have a special mission to help humanity realize there is no death: “One might wonder why so many of us have been brought back… This is mainly due to the fact that we were needed to fulfill and complete something significant in our own lives…as well as to honor a special mission to help humanity finally come to the realization that there is indeed no death. We simply ‘move on’ and continue to evolve in our journey back toward the Light.”
The Being of Light told Guenter Wagner that his mission is to tell others about his NDE and become a special kind of teacher.
Jesus told George Ritchie that he had 45 years to accomplish his mission in life. When Dr. Ritchie was revived, he had no idea what he was supposed to accomplish within 45 years. Years afterward, his NDE attracted the attention of Dr. Raymond Moody. It was Ritchie’s NDE that inspired Moody to begin his ground-breaking research into NDEs and become “the father” of the NDE. In 1985, Ritchie published his NDE testimony which was 42 years after his NDE occurred.
According to the NDEr, Tony, a Higher Being gave him the exact date of his death. He was told that his mission in life would be to bear witness to his NDE. Over a year after Tony’s death, Pat found a small piece of paper in one of her husband’s desk drawers. Written on it was, “Return date: August 29,” the date that corresponded exactly with the day he had died.
Clark B. learned his mission is to share his NDE and help people not fear death: “I believe God has missions for people. I also believe we who have had NDEs are messengers from God to let people know not to fear death and to conduct their life as if they were to die the next day. In effect, live a good life so that you know you will go the right way.”
Shalom G. was told his mission is to share his NDE with others, otherwise, they couldn’t complete their missions: “I met my guardian angels. I asked them, ‘Can I go home now, my body is a mess?’ They then replied, ‘NO, you have still not completely your missions and purposes in life yet, you will heal and then share this information with others’… However if I did not return, many people would miss their connections, in order to complete their missions and purposes in life.”
Dr. Bell C. learned NDErs’ most important mission is to share their NDE: “If every man who comes back from death is meant to carry a special mission, then I believe that my most important mission is to share my miracle recovery story, because miracle is not exclusive to me, but equally shared by everyone on this planet. I am merely a selected story teller.”
Don Brubaker was given a mission by God to share his NDE: “‘Have no fear, my son,’ the voice said with a certain resounding nobility, ‘for I am with you. I have chosen you to write about the experiences you will go through.’ It was too unreal. I had never been given to believe in ‘missions from God’ and the like anyway. And yet here was a voice that I knew was God‘s telling me I had been selected for this nightmare!… ‘You will tell others about me, Don,’ the voice of God said, out of nowhere. ‘That is your mission. That is why you are going through these experiences.'”
Brad Steiger learned his mission is to share knowledge learned from his NDE: Steiger felt he had been shown a plan of the universe, and that he had a mission which is “to testify to others that the human spirit is eternal and that we are not alone in the cosmic scheme of things.”
Susie P. learned her mission is to share her NDE with others: “I have a mission in this life, to write about the experience. I am a published author and this is why I had this experience so I could share it with others.”
Robert Tremblay learned his mission is to share NDE with others: “One of my callings was to share this experience with my family and others and I consider that mission now complete.”
Melissa H. learned her mission involves telling others about her NDE: “I had a mission to tell others about what God was doing, did in my life, what he showed me, about Truth, and sin and good and evil.”
Nanci Danison was given the mission of sharing her NDE with others: “I did not want to be a failure at the mission Source gave me to tell everyone what I had experienced and learned in the afterlife in 1994.”
Ana Cecilia G. was instructed that her mission is to share her NDE with others: “I know that it was an evolved being, much higher, it instructed me with much love and much peace, about my mission or special function…I know I have to share that which I have experienced. I can’t stop from sharing that life occurs after death. That it’s not true that we will be judged finally and that it will limit the fullness of our existence. I feel that I have a purpose in sharing how it is, through the means of great pain, one can be positive and optimistic.”
Jack was told by the Being of Light to tell others about his NDE: “I was shown many things, many of which I was not permitted to bring back with me for some reason. I remember being told that I was dead before my time. Then I was told, ‘TELL THEM! TELL THEM! TELL THEM!’ three times. I was told that I was but one who would reveal the glory. Then I was told, ‘Jack! You must go back. You have not finished your mission on Earth.’ I was not told what I was to tell them.”
V.P. learned his mission to share his understanding of God: “I’ve found a much deeper understanding of God’s love and guidance. Which seems to have become my “mission” in this life – sharing those realities with others.”
Suzanne Boehm learned her mission to share with others that God exists: “It is now my mission to share that God, Source, The One, The Higher, the Transcendent, or whatever one wants to call the Creator, the Spirit really exists. He is not a figment of our imagination. He is real.”
Laurence B. learned his mission is to help other’s know they have a mission: “It was more like I knew everything, that my life has served a purpose and that I had a mission. I did not know many of the details but had a strong drive to seek and know… I knew the purpose of life and that I had a mission to help others to know this.”
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b. Missions Are Deeply Personal
Laetitia V. learned that personal development is key to performing mission: “Personal development is the key to evolve and to be in accordance with your mission of life, chosen before the incarnation.”
Thomas Sawyer learned part of our mission is true self-realization: “One of our goals in this world is true self-realization – knowing that we are a soul, a part of God, yet also the Whole.”
Betty Eadie learned we chose our profession in life before birth based upon our mission: “Before we were born, we choose our stations in life based upon the objectives of completing our missions.”
Muriel N. was given a mission to help battered women: “I was given a mission with battered women because unfortunately, I was one of those women abused by their husbands.”
Christina G. learned her mission to help guides others who suffered as a child: “I was shown that I had suffered as a child to use my experiences to help guide others. That is what my mission on Earth in this life is for.”
NDE researcher William J. Serdahely says helping others is often our mission: “NDErs… say that what they learned during their NDEs was the importance of love and loving others, often phrased as unconditional love; and helping others often said to be a mission or a purpose yet to be fulfilled.”
Estelle D. learned her mission of unity with others had yet to be discovered: “I think my mission is to tell what I have lived through, but also practise my faith in God, and the need to live in harmony with one another that I call the mission of unity… I understood that I had a mission. But, I had to discover it.”
Brandy L. learned her mission is to help others: “It has widened my sphere of knowledge to know things, to be a better person with a mission of helping those less fortunate, to be stronger to accept the difficulties and to come through everything with huge faith and love.”
Ramona C. believes her mission prepares her for the next phase of existence: “I believe I have a mission. I just don’t know what it is. I felt like [my] experience was personal (concerned with my growth) but I don’t know how to identify what I am supposed to be learning to prepare me for the next phase of existence.”
RaNelle Wallace learned that God will bring us Home if life is too much to handle: “God never gives us more challenges in life than we can handle. Rather than jeopardize our spiritual progression or cause more suffering than can be endured, God will bring us home where we can continue progressing.”
c. Missions Are Rooted In Relationships
According to Edgar Cayce, in some cases the parents are the only reason for some souls to incarnate. Such a child will be devoted to them and remain close to them. The child then completes its mission by dying so the child’s death can teach the parents very valuable lessons in life and of spirit. In other cases, the parents are only used as a means for which the child can leave home and go about its business in completing its mission.
Sandra Rogers learned that some souls choose to die as a child to teach love: “Some souls choose to be born for a short period of time and die as a baby or child. The purpose for this is to teach others important lessons. To love a child who is born less than perfect is an important lesson.”
George Anderson says a child’s death is a fulfillment of their mission for parents to learn important lessons: “Some parents lose a child tragically in an accident. That child was fulfilling his or her mission. The parent was fulfilling his or her mission also. The parents are in that circumstance to learn a lesson. Maybe the lesson was patience, love, acceptance, understanding, or comfort of others. It can be a number of things.”
Hazeliene M. learned her mission is to raise children and help poor people: “As a single mother/parent I have to love my children unconditionally. My mission is to raise them up in a proper manner and help poor people.”
Nilda P. learned her mission is to prepare her daughters for life and teach: “I thought of my twin daughters, fifteen years old by that time, and I said, ‘My mission is not accomplished.’ He (a voice) asked, ‘What is missing?’ I answered: ‘I still need to prepare my daughters for life, they need me.’ Then, He said, ‘Go! Carry out your mission, teach what you had learned.'”
Judi C. learned from Jesus that she has a mission to raise her children: “I was in such peace, the Lord laughed, not at me, but somehow with me. I just knew he was conveying to me that I had a purpose for HIM… Because I do have a mission in life for the Lord… Then he said, ‘I need you to raise your two sons.'”
M.B.‘s mission is to give birth to a child: “I also had the sensation that I had a mission: to bring my child into the world even if it cost me my own life. I was congratulated for having brought him to Earth, despite so much suffering.”
Patti returned to life because her mission involved her children: “The next memory I have was standing again outside the light in the delivery room and saying, ‘I choose to live,’ which I presume was a decision to come back to Earth, for my mission was unfinished… of returning to my body because of the children.”
Renate learned her mission involves raising her children: “He (an angel) told me it would be better if I returned because of the children, since they didn’t have anybody else who would take care of them as well as me. The spirit world would need me to complete a mission for them while back on Earth… Since then I have a constant homesickness for that place but know that I will return there once my mission is complete.”
Beverly Brodsky learned her mission to become a mother: “Since then I have married and become a mother, which I understand to be part of my mission… When our mission is complete, we remove the coat and take on our glorious form, complete with the full spiritual understanding we vainly seek during our Earth days.”
Graca P. learned her mission involves family duties: “[The light said] ‘You have to go back. Your husband needs you and your son too!’… ‘They don’t need me! Let me stay!’… ‘You have to go back! You have duties to fulfill! Your mission has not yet ended!’ ‘Mission? What mission?'”
Rachelle G. chose to return to life because of loved ones and unfulfilled mission: “I took renewed strength and thought about my five month old baby and my boyfriend, two people I love so and visualized my son growing up without me. I said, ‘No. I don’t want to stay.’ I also felt that I had a purpose, a mission that was not yet fulfilled in this life. This was not a work I had to finish, but rather a stage that I had to complete in this life, a form of spiritual growth.”
Carlos V. learned how to accomplish his mission concerning relationships: “I experienced a transformation, more exalted/sublime than being in this dimension – I knew how to accomplish my mission, how to be more alert in my relationships, with manners, and how to work harder on de-attachment and dependence.”
d. Missions Are Centered on Spiritual Growth
Edgar Cayce stated that Jesus’ mission was to demonstrate to humanity how self-sacrifice and self-denial can overcome selfish desires and how it leads to our complete restoration with God’s nature within us.
Lynn learned souls choose to be born with disabilities for soul growth and to stay compassionate: “Souls choose to be born with physical disabilities for the purpose of soul growth and to stay compassionate.”
Eric M. felt his mission is to do good and reject evil: “[I experienced] a feeling that there is a mission to do good on Earth and to discard and reject evil or protect yourself against it.”
Steffan H. has a mission to get to the light: “I felt like I had to get to it because I needed it. I don’t know why, but it was my entire life wrapped up into one mission – I needed to get to this beautiful light.”
Edgar Cayce stated that one of the reasons for the physical realm is to test our spiritual ideals to see if they are real. If a soul has a spiritual ideal and desires to know if it actually possesses that ideal, the soul can come to Earth to be tested after applying this ideal in a physical life. The Earth is a good school for overcoming certain weaknesses in ways that only a body of flesh can. We apply ourselves here on Earth to see if those weaknesses are truly overcome. Here we can learn for sure whether we have really changed. Only by becoming subject to the physical influences of the flesh and the laws of this physical realm can a soul know for certain if they really possess that spiritual ideal.
Read more about Spirituality and the NDE.
e. Missions Are Small In Scale But Vast In Spiritual Impact
NDE researcher Dr. Rosalie Newsome stated that NDErs commonly report shifts in basic values and attitudes, toward intensified compassion and a sense of unconditional love, spirituality, and a sense of mission, and away from materialism and competitiveness. Some researchers have suggested that these attitudinal shifts represent a new stage in human evolution, which will produce major social change.
M.B. learned his mission is to be an “antenna” to help souls evolve: “She (a Being of Light) said my mission was to be an antenna. I was to just drop little bombs of good-intentioned art, love, truth and spirituality in the world and that I have a gift to help souls evolve.”
Laura M. learns her mission is unique to her and has universal impact: “He (the Light) spoke to me, telling me that it was not my time and that I needed to return to my body, to complete my life’s mission… I had chosen to come to Earth to complete a certain mission. The mission was unique to me but also had a universal impact.”
Attila P. learned completing his mission would prevent the destruction of the harmony of the world: “The [heavenly] judge thought for a while and said: ‘But you have a mission.’ In this moment, I saw all the people (of my era?) with their unique destinies as a great mosaic, and my destiny was intertwined in that mosaic. The harmony of all these destinies together was amazing. I knew that if my own destiny failed then the harmony of the whole would be destroyed. I knew that I had to fulfill my destiny.”
Anna A. was shown the Earth’s future without borders as connected to her mission: “Then he asked again, with such a divine voice, an actual, physical voice, ‘Look again. What do you see NOW?’ Suddenly, I saw what the voice saw, ‘I see our planet and there are no borders dividing countries. The borders are gone!!’ He said, ‘This is why you’re going back. You have a mission’… I do, at times, get nostalgic trying to figure out what ‘the mission’ was.”
Denny B. was gives reasons to return to life to complete mission which is to raise daughters and bring light to Earth: “A leader (guardian angel) among them stood and asked me directly, ‘You have free will, and the choice to stay or return to Earth is yours.’ I said, ‘I have a daughter that must know who I am, and also Earth is in a lot of darkness right now. They need as many people with good heartedness within them alive and on Earth right now. For these reasons I would like to return and complete my mission.’”
Lisa B. learned her mission is bigger than life: “[I had] a sense of oneness, of purpose much bigger than the here and now. Spiritual identity. I feel like a spiritual being who is on a human mission.”
Kavis had an overwhelming feeling that she has a mission: “I could feel the peace, happiness radiating towards me but felt this overwhelming feeling that I had a mission or something to complete that was greater than my own peace.”
Tasks as modest as raising a child with love, helping a discouraged person, expressing kindness in dark places, or learning a specific soul lesson can be described as missions of enormous importance in the spiritual realm. Some NDErs say they were shown that seemingly ordinary moments such as a comforting word, an act of patience, or a moment of forgiveness were actually the fulfillment of important spiritual objectives.
4. The Life Review Often Highlights the Mission
After a life review the NDEr may be given a reason why they must return. Usually, they are told by some heavenly being something like, “Your mission is not fulfilled” or some variation of this.
NDE researcher Dr. William J. Serdahely states that missions involve service to others, love, and spirituality: “After the life review, the NDEr decides to return to his or her body, or may be instructed to do so by a deceased relative or spirit entity. The return to the body is often necessitated by a strong sense of a mission that is yet to be fulfilled. One returns to be of service to others, to be more loving, to be more tolerant and compassionate, and/or to seek knowledge of a spiritual nature. This part of the NDE helps to answer the question “what shall be my life goals?” A decrease in the goals of materialism, fame, and power are often new directions for the NDEr. One answer to the question “what is the meaning of human life?” then, is supplied to us by NDErs who now recognize that meaning comes from being more loving, helping others more, and being more forgiving.”
Ned Dougherty learned the purpose of the life review is to evaluate your life in terms of your mission: “I became aware that the purpose of the review was for me to evaluate my life in terms of my intended mission as a human, to review my life in a manner that permitted me to focus on the areas that provided the most important experiences in terms of my spiritual growth and development.”
Betty Eadie was given a life review which revealed her mission wasn’t complete. She was shown her mission which compelled her to return to life. After her life review, she was told her mission in life was not complete and she must return to life. Betty steadfastly refused. Jesus decided to reveal Betty’s mission in life with the condition that if she decided to return to Earth, the memory of her mission would be removed. She agreed to this and was shown her mission. Immediately, she agreed to go back. Betty found herself back in the hospital where it all began. Her mission in life was completely removed from her memory.
An eight-year old girl, Glauco S., learned her mission wasn’t done after seeing a future involving her death in a life review: “I started to think about my mother and I could feel her pain when she heard the news that all her sons died. I knew my angel was showing me this because it wasn’t my time. My mission wasn’t done. What mission? I still don’t know.”
Janna W. received a hint concerning her mission from her flash-forward life review: “[I received] scenes from my personal future. It is all in a blur but it did seem to hint at my life’s mission.”
Norma C. learned her mission from a life review: “My past flashed before me, out of my control. I was meant to go back and try my best at being the best I could be; there was more there for me – I had a mission.”
RaNelle Wallace was shown in her life review how she had a special mission which she failed to complete. She was asked by a church leader to visit a particular woman to check up on her occasionally to see if she needed help. Because the woman was filled with such negativity and bitterness, RaNelle never went to see her. She didn’t think she could handle her attitude. Now, she saw that the opportunity to help her had been orchestrated by Higher Powers and that she was just the person the woman needed at the time. Now, RaNelle felt the woman’s sadness and disappointment because she did not complete this mission. It was a responsibility that would have been a benefit to RaNelle as well.
David Oakford’s life review began by witnessing the initial circumstances that occurred before being born that resulted in him being the person he was. The spirit beings asked David how and why he picked these particular parents. David didn’t know where it came from but he told them what they wanted to know. They agreed with him. David picked his parents to help them on their path as well as to achieve his own learning. When his life review was over, the spirit beings asked Oakford questions concerning what he saw and how he felt about his life up to then. He hesitated when they asked him whether he affected others more positively than negatively. He told them that he could have done a better job, but he was not finished with his mission. Because of this, David told them he wanted to go back and finish his mission. The spirit beings agreed.
Sheila EP learned from her life review that it wouldn’t be beneficial to know her mission: “I must have seen that I did not complete whatever mission or task that I had come to my life to accomplish… It seems as if it would not be beneficial for my mission/task for me to know or remember everything in my review.”
Read more about the Life Review and the NDE.
5. Missions Are Linked with Pre-Existence
a. Accounts of the Council of Elders
NDErs often describe being brought before a council of light beings, a “Council of Elders” often numbering twelve, whose love and authority transcend earthly understanding. These Elders appear as divine mentors – beings who help souls evaluate how well they have expressed love and fulfilled their mission.
Jesus led Betty Eadie before a Council of Elders who decided to reveal to Betty her mission in order to convince her to return to Earth: “I was led to a room, which was exquisitely built and appointed. I entered and saw a group of men seated around the long side of a kidney-shaped table. I was led to stand in front of them within the indented portion of the table. One thing struck me almost immediately; there were twelve men here – men – but no women. The men radiated love for me, and I felt instantly at peace with them. They leaned together to consult with each other. Then one of them spoke to me. He said that I had died prematurely and must return to Earth. I felt them saying it was important that I return to Earth, that I had a mission to fulfill, but I resisted it in my heart. This was my home, and I felt that nothing they could say would ever convince me to leave it. The men conferred again and asked me if I wanted to review my life … I felt the love of the council come over me.”
NDEr and psychic Sylvia Browne revealed that the Council of Elders prepare souls for their next reincarnation: “Another beautiful structure is the Hall of Justice where people go before a Council of Elders who are highly advanced spokespersons of God who help us decide how we are to progress further into the spirit realm. At some point, people recognize the need for even further advancement and therefore choose to return to Earth to gain this spiritual advancement. With the help of a spirit guide, they decide on an incarnation which will meet their goals. They then proceed to the Hall of Justice where they meet once again with the Council of Elders. Here, the Council prepares people for their next incarnation. When they are ready to incarnate, their family and friends are gathered together to bid farewell.”
Read more about the Council of Elders and the NDE.
b. Pre-Birth Planning Experiences
William Sillyman learned that before birth all souls were shown their mission along with various non-predestinated paths: “What I was shown was that each one of us, including Hitler, have all been shown what our “mission” on this Earth would entail. We saw all that would occur during our life. However, we were also shown various paths that we could take during the course of our life. None of these paths are predestined. But instead, we (not God) put specific signposts along the way to trigger decisions that we should make.”
David Goines learned everyone promised to return to God with the knowledge and experience gained in life: “We made a promise to God to accept the opportunities, challenges and responsibilities of a physical life, to make the most of this opportunity for ourselves and God, to return to God with the knowledge and experience gained such that likewise, God could be enhanced by the experience. By doing good, improving our minds, and learning to cope with physical reality, our love for God will bring us back to Him.”
Chantal L. agreed before birth to complete her mission, but forgot it upon return: “I also remembered having agreed to accomplish a mission. I came to Earth to accomplish a mission. All of a sudden, I realized that I had not accomplished this mission. My joy and serenity turned into anguish: I had failed to accomplish this mission…. I came back from a heavenly state to accomplish this mission and I forgot what it is shortly after re-entering my body!”
Chantal T. realized she knew all about her mission before being born: “I knew everything then. I recalled I knew all about the life that expected me even before I was born. I must even say that when she talked about my mission, I knew I had myself decided about my life and I knew the most minute details of it.”
Galadriel K. learned everyone has a mission and a plan in pre-existence: “As spirits we come here (Earth) with a mission or goal in mind and a plan mostly in place.”
RaNelle Wallace learned that fulfilling her mission would determine the success of others completing their mission. When she refused to return to life, she was shown her son who had yet to be born: “Then I understood that my refusal to go back to Earth was causing his sadness. I belonged on Earth for him, I understood, and I immediately felt guilt for my selfishness. His name was Nathaniel, and he hadn’t been born on Earth yet. He said that if I didn’t go back, his own mission would be hindered. Then he showed me his mission, and I saw that I was to open doors for him, to help him, to encourage him. ‘I will complete as much of my mission as I can,’ he said, ‘but I will never fulfill it without you. I need you.'” Years later, RaNelle gave birth to a boy she named Nathaniel.
Read more about Pre-Existence and the NDE.
6. Missions Are Linked to Reincarnation
The following testimonies describe the profound connection between mission and reincarnation: how missions may carry over from one life to the next, how incomplete tasks can draw a soul back into the world, and how even the assistance we receive – or do not receive – may be linked to the spiritual progress created across many lifetimes.
According to Edgar Cayce, “The coming into the Earth has been and is, for the evolution or evolving of the soul unto its awareness.” Cayce revealed that the mission of every soul is to work on one or several facets of the soul’s karma (which can be thought of as the soul’s memory of its prior actions). A soul does not choose a mission which is more than the soul can handle or which is too much for the personality assigned to or chosen by the soul. Some souls can freely choose their own conditions in which to be born and complete their missions. Other souls who have made too many mistakes in past lives and who have become dangerously influenced by worldly desires, are incarnated into conditions chosen by law of karma at a time and under circumstances best suited to help them with their karmic debt. Their mission is seldom perfectly fulfilled because of the such a soul’s large amount of negative karma. Their mission is sometimes badly neglected.
Reincarnation researcher Amber Wells states: “Our own desire to grow and learn leads us to be born in the physical realm.”
Arthur Yensen says we chose our life and how much karma (past life consequences) we would settle: “We choose the life we are going to live and how much karma we are going to meet and settle.”
Dr. Frank Oski learned that life is a cycle of improvements and handicapped children’s mission is to teach love: “The angel (I don’t know what else to call her) said that life is an endless cycle of improvements and that humans are not perfect yet. She said that most people have this secret revealed to them when they die, but that handicapped children often know this and endure their problems without complaining because they know that their burdens will pass. Some of these children, she said, have even been given the challenge of teaching the rest of us how to love. ‘It stretches our own humanity to love a child who is less than perfect,’ said the angel. ‘And that is an important lesson for us.'”
Edgar Cayce revealed that some people decide to be born into favorable conditions and some people decide to be born into unfavorable conditions. The choice has to do with satisfying divine justice and karma.
Reincarnation researcher Amber Wells states: “We progress at our own rate to reach the light. If we do things that take us away from the light, then we are perpetuating our time here.”
Cesar G. learned his mission is to help others, but is given the option to reincarnate: “My deepest desire was to assist others on planet Earth, and that my mission was not finish yet. Then, God said, ‘Then, it looks like you need to return. It is your decision to either stay here, go back in your body or go back in different body.”
Cara was given the choice to return to life or reincarnate later: “I also knew that if I didn’t come back at this time, in this body, I would return to the Earth school in another body, to finish what I was here to do… I have always remembered why I am here, and followed through on the mission to the best of my ability at any given time.”
Edgar Cayce revealed that when planning our life before birth, we do not deal with the details. Instead, we have before us our relationships to others and to situations. But some people have squandered their opportunities to such a degree that they are not completely free in their choices. Cayce revealed that the purpose for our Earth lives includes the opportunity to pay and receive karmic debts from family members. We plan to connect once again with members of our soul family on Earth because of our love for them.
David Oakford learned reincarnation allows us correct past life mistakes: “If we choose to clean up the mess we create on Earth, we will not contribute to the mess of others and this will contribute to the healing of the Earth. Reincarnation is the process which allows us to return to Earth to ‘clean up our mess.'”
Karen Brannon learned not finishing your mission leads to reincarnation: “I knew that reincarnation is the natural fact of life, and now, I had the knowingness that if I chose to stay, I would have to reincarnate to Earth again later. At the time, that was unacceptable to me. I didn’t understand then that Earth is a boot camp and school for soul’s spiritual education, and as such, it’s tough. Nevertheless, I knew that I had to return and finish whatever mission I had to do here.”
Edgar Cayce revealed that God’s plan for the soul is a cycle of experience that is unlimited in scope and duration. Through this evolutionary cycle, the soul will come to know the creation in all its aspects at the discretion of the will. The cycle would be completed when the desire of the will was no longer different from the Thought of God. The consciousness of the soul would then merge with its spiritual consciousness of its identity with God. Then the soul will return to its source as the companion it was intended to be. As a companion, the soul would remain conscious of its separate individuality and would be aware of its own free will as it now acted as a part of God, but not diverting its mind because it was in agreement with God’s influence on the mind of the soul. Until this state of at-onement was reached, the soul would not be a companion in the true sense of the word.
Catherine Ann M. learned that receiving help to complete a mission is because of karma from past lives: “I experienced a brief communication on the matter. Such as, an agreement that I had not achieved my mission yet… And other individual’s lives end, before they complete their divine mission. Why some people have helpers, who save them from death. Whereas others do not receive that assistance. I’ve been told this is because of good karma, acquired from past lives.”
Marie-Pierre C. learned her mission is to go into the future with her son and prepare for reincarnation: “I know that they made me come back, as my son of 7 years at the time, has to experience an ‘important’ future, and it is my mission to go with him…. then to ‘elevate’ myself spiritually for my next lives.”
Bryan D. learned of past lives where her mission was incomplete: “I started thinking, ‘I need to go back, I need to finish my mission on Earth, as Bryan! Wait, what is my mission exactly? I tried to recall, to no avail. I hadn’t ever remembered any sort of mission in Bryan form, but quickly the desire to finish some sort of incomplete mission was becoming extremely important to me as a Spirit… I knew that I had had many successes with other missions prior, in other forms as well. I was also slightly saddened, as I also remembered that I also had a few ‘incomplete missions’ throughout time.”
Read more about Reincarnation and the NDE.
7. Missions Are Linked to Love
Helen D. learned humanity’s mission is to love: “They said there is no right or wrong religion. It is what is in your heart that counts. They also said that our purpose on this Earth is to love. After my review, they told me I had to go back my mission in life was not complete.”
Debbie P. learned humanity’s mission is to give unconditional love: “[I received] absolute understanding that our mission while on Earth is to give universal love, completely and unconditionally to all life and all creation.”
Francois D. learned humanity’s mission is to learn to love: “I take very seriously my new ‘mission’ to love the world. As it seems to me that that’s what we are here for – to learn to love.”
Sherry Gideons learned humanity’s mission is to help others rise to a higher love: “We came to this physical realm to live the human experience and help each other rise to the higher level of love.”
Christian Andreason learned humanity has a mission to learn love by seeking God (love) within others: “I saw that before each of us are sent forth into our various missions, we are brought into a vast Cathedral of Light known as, ‘the Throne Room of God.’ In this room resides the very essence of all Creation, the Being those of us who are Jewish or Christian know and call ‘Father God.’ This Being is the author of all that exists and he is tremendously pleased with all that has come forth from his light. Because our souls are covered by what is known as a ‘veil of forgetfulness,’ we are made to seek God out in ways that hopefully has us seeking him in each other. Each of us carries the light of the Creator within us and it is through this experience we call ‘life in a flesh’ that helps us to better understand the Creator and develop the inner light he placed within us by practicing love. A time will come soon enough where we will be back in the loving arms of God and it will be a very joyous time for us all. But first we must work at accomplishing the thing he sent us here to learn… LOVE!”
Betty Eadie remembered Jesus’ mission was to teach love: “His (Jesus’) mission was to come into the world to teach love. This knowledge was more like remembering.”
Jesus told Guy S. that his mission in life is to “find out about all aspects of love.”
Jesus told Vicki Umipeg that she had to return to life to learn and teach more about loving and forgiving: “Telepathically, he (Jesus) communicated to her: ‘It’s not your time to be here yet and you have to go back.’ Vicki reacts, understandably enough, with extreme disappointment and protests vehemently, ‘No, I want to stay with you.’ But the Being reassures her that she will come back, but for now, she ‘has to go back and learn and teach more about loving and forgiving.’”
Kimberly Clark-Sharp revealed life is for learning and missions have to do with love: “We are here to learn. Our mission in life has to do with love.”
Jan Price learned our mission has to do with love: “Our missions mainly have to do with love, but the purpose of life is also to experience joy, gain spiritual understanding and self-awareness, play with the joyful abandon of a child, absorb ourselves in the delight of each moment, let go of obligation and duty, and live for the pure joy of being.”
Howard Storm learned his mission is to love people: “They never gave me a direct mission or purpose. Could I build a shrine or cathedral for God? They said those monuments were for humanity. They wanted me to live my life to love people not things.”
Betty Eadie learned everyone has a personal mission to love and be loved: “Each one of us came to Earth on a personal mission to be loved or to give love. We are to learn the value and price of love. Other parts of our mission include learning patience, humility, self-discipline, and other virtues. These attributes are parts of love.”
NDE researcher Nora Spurgin states that a central part of our mission is continued spiritual growth through love and service: “A central aspect of our eternal existence is continued spiritual growth through love and service. We can spend what seems like an eternity before incarnating in the flesh. During that period in the spirit world, soul growth can be attained there as well.”
Vincent Tolman learned that missions are to learn and share love: “Our mission in life is to learn love and share it.” Tolman decided to return to life after learning his life still held purpose and that he had not fulfilled his mission.
Beth Hammond was told to teach humanity that love is what is important: “I heard a voice say, ‘Be not afraid child. It is not your time. You are not through on Earth. Everything has a purpose and you will have to complete yours before you return. Mankind is doing things the wrong way. Go back and teach humankind that LOVE is what is important. Love one another justly. Help those who cannot help themselves. Teach one another compassion, undying love and respect. My creatures on Earth, large and small, are here for a purpose. They know everything here on Earth. They know everything from the beginning of time till the end of time. They have no fear of death. Mankind needs to learn from my creatures. They are here to teach us what is important in life. If you have no love and respect for my creatures whom you have seen. How can you respect me and love me whom you have not seen? Go back and tell the four corners of the Earth what is truly important, not which religion.”
NDEs often lead individuals to return with a mission to live more lovingly, indicating that love is not just the way to heaven but also the purpose of life itself. This aligns with many spiritual teachings that advocate for love, compassion, and forgiveness as the means to spiritual elevation. P.M.H. Atwater in her research on NDEs, noted that many NDErs feel compelled to change their life to one of service and love, seeing this transformation as a direct path to the spiritual realms they experienced.
Barbara S. learned humanity’s mission is to love and gain knowledge: “I was told that we (mankind) are here to learn how to love and gain knowledge. I didn’t feel when I was told this that it was just my mission but all of us.”
Maria S.V. was told her mission is to be in love with a man: “It (the light) said to me that I should go back. But I refused to go. So it began to tell me all the events that will come to my life. It even told me that I never have been in love with a man on Earth and that I should come back now so I can do that. It kept saying, ‘you have a mission to accomplish and too many things to do.'”
Anna P. learned humanity’s mission is to make the world better for God: “We each have our own goal and mission. But, we are all united by a single goal to make the world better for the Good of the Universe.”
Stefania B. speculates that humanity’s mission is to return to God voluntarily: “The supreme being spoke to me as if I had known very well what my mission was and why we were carrying out all this human experience. At that moment, I knew it very clearly, it seemed that we had planned it together, now I can only guess… But we are conditioned to undergo these human experiences for a purpose and to say it while in this form would only be speculating. Our mission is to return to the Source voluntarily.”
Read more about Love and the NDE.
8. Free Will and a Pre-Determined Mission
NDErs frequently describe a balance between predestination and free will. The soul arrives on Earth with a pre-determined mission, yet the soul remains entirely free in how – or even whether – to fulfill it. These testimonies show that life is not a predetermined event, but is a range of possibilities, shaped by decisions we make moment to moment.
Edgar Cayce revealed that God does nothing to curb human freedom. However humans act, it is within God’s reality. By whatever path, humans return to God.
Dot learned we have free will on how to complete our mission: “A higher power is showing us a mission to do. We are looking in the table. It’s Earth in there. The higher power shows us two ways to accomplish our mission: one of which he prefers us to do, the other one he isn’t crazy about, but it seems that the main thing he is interested in is whether we will we do it the way he asks, yes or no. We have free choice.”
David Goines learned missions are forgotten to make choices of free will: “Before going through the veil, we chose our own physical body. We must forget these memories because in order to experience a physical life, we must experience the physical things, be physically challenged, make choices of free will, and make mistakes so that we can learn from them in ways that only a physical life could impart. If we retained all of our prior knowledge, we might not bother to experience the physical life for its fulfillment – we might decide to skip the pain and thus miss the pleasure.”
Hal learned missions are forgotten so our choices are not predictable and not violate our free will: “If we were born with our pre-birth knowledge intact, our resulting choices would be predictable and would be a violation of our free will. Free will is a highly important power given to us by God. Almost all of our choices must be made according to it.”
Robert N. learned humanity’s mission is to get closer to God amid the dangers of free will: “We are sent to Earth to learn and overcome and to bring us closer to GOD. The simplest tasks are so very difficult. Learning kindness, love, humility, patience, giving and other basic tasks so often fall short on Earth. It is the danger of free will that hurts our mission of knowledge on Earth.”
Because of free will, NDErs often say there are many possible paths to fulfilling a mission – not just one.
9. The Nature of Missions In NDEs
If the NDE is just a hallucination, how do a great many NDErs report being told the same thing, “Your mission has not been completed,” or some slight variation of this? Are they all hallucinating identical responses? For many people, it is easier to believe that NDEs are a real afterlife experience and not a mass hallucination. It refutes all biological explanations for the NDE.
Louise B. learned everyone has a mission: “I have a mission to complete, as any of us has.”
Zoe C. also learned everyone has a mission: “I became certain that death is sure to happen anytime, that there is afterlife, that everyone has a mission on Earth and that we must live our life to the fullest with our loved ones.”
Patricia C. learned everyone has a mission of carrying out a plan of perfection and harmony: “Life is part of a plan, an Order that is Perfection and Harmony. And human beings have received the mission of carrying out this Order.”
Yazmine S. learned everyone’s mission is to get to the Light: “I did feel I had a mission, and it was to get to the Great Presence, the most brilliant clear light of the whole experience. But it was every single being’s mission in this universe, so we are all together in our ultimate destination.”
Diana R. learned her mission is why she was born: “I was told why I was born and my mission or reason for being and then told that my work wasn’t done yet and that I had to go back.”
Sue D. learned only we can complete our mission: “He (a voice) said I had to go back because my mission wasn’t over yet… We, and only we, can do the work to complete our mission.”
Mel W. also learned only he can fulfill his mission: “I was told that I had a great mission to fulfill and that if I didn’t return, nobody else could fulfill it. Whether I was shown what this was or not, I can’t recall.”
Lily learned that death means completing your mission: “What I learned from it was that death is simply a soul being done with a mission in physical world as if a soul “forks it in” (our lingo for done with day’s mission) and leaves physical world.”
June S. reluctantly returned to life because she learned she is obligated to accomplish her unknown mission: “The presences gave me a strong feeling of validation and that I will remember that even if I am alone, they will be waiting for me when I complete the mission… I accept that I must return to the ambulance not because I want to but because I am obligated to for some purpose.”
Chuck B. learned missions are an unpleasant assignment in the World-School: “I was aware that being on Earth was a mission, not the end-all reason for being… [I learned] the knowledge that Earth was a classroom and that the mission was just an unpleasant assignment.”
Gracie T. learned she has a mission but is unknown: “Then almost instantly, I felt like I was given a job to complete, or a mission to fulfill, but I couldn’t tell you what that was.”
Alice U. returned to life before her mission was revealed: “I was brought back abruptly to this life, this realm, and I felt really pissed off about it, like I was just about to receive some profound knowledge or my life’s mission and the nurses brought me back.”
Michael L. was given a mission and reason for living: “That event (NDE) changed my life so drastically. It gave me such a grand mission and a reason to go on living, which eventually became the focus for the rest of my life.”
RaNelle Wallace learned completing our mission affects everyone else: “If one of us were to fail in his or her mission, all of us would be hurt in some way. If one succeeded, we would all benefit. It was as if we were part of a puzzle with millions of pieces. It was put together perfectly, but if one piece were removed, we all would be lacking and would not be content until that piece was found and returned to its rightful place.”
Jorge R. learned that accomplishing our mission readies us for the afterlife: “I want to communicate to the entire world that we should be more spiritual and prepare ourselves in life to accomplish our missions and in that way be more completely ready for the trip which awaits us when we abandon our containers called bodies.”
Gail K. learned she must complete her mission to return to the light: “[I experienced] a dimensional feeling of purity, brightness, love, forgiveness, as well as a heightened sense of a ‘mission’ that I was supposed to accomplish here before I could go ‘home‘ to the bright light again.”
Fena D. learned that spirits are counting upon her to accomplish her mission: “I believe that I was not supposed to die. The spirits indicated that I had more things to do and they were counting on me to do them. What, I don’t know. I keep asking for direction. If I am supposed to live, then what is the mission that I am supposed to accomplish?”
Diane Goble was assured she would be given knowledge to help her with her mission: “The only communication I remembered is that it wasn’t my time to go, I had more work to do in this life, and if I chose to go back, I would be given access to knowledge that would help me with my mission.”
Ned Dougherty learned he must be positive to perform his mission. His deceased friend told Ned, “There are no negative thoughts here, only positive affirmations. They cannot hear you; they will not hear you when you speak or think in negativity. You must be positive to perform your mission.”
The Void is a spiritual dimension that exists in the afterlife and within us. During our lives, we may fill this Void with many things such as: love, hatred, happiness, sadness, knowledge, ignorance, family, just to name a few. And when we die, we may actually “step” into this spiritual dimension we have filled. Whatever we fill the Void within us with, at death, we enter into it. Perhaps this is one good reason why the most important aspect of our missions in life have to do with love. Realizing, filling and cultivating divine love within our Void and sharing this love with others during our life will create a heavenly paradise that will be manifested in death.
10. Religions and the Mission
According to Edgar Cayce, Jesus Christ knew he had to die on the cross to fulfill his mission. His mission was to demonstrate to humanity how to practice unconditional love through self-sacrifice in devotion to others and by overcoming self so that our divine nature can be manifested.
The Bible states that Jesus Christ’s mission in life is to save the world: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17)
Jesus informed George Ritchie how to attain heaven and create heaven on Earth through love: Jesus said to Ritchie, “It is left to humanity which direction they shall choose. I came to this planet to show you, through the life I led, how to love. Without our Father you can do nothing, neither could I.” Ritchie learned Jesus’ commission wasn’t just to teach and show us how to reach heaven through love, but rather how to create heaven on Earth.
Edgar Cayce revealed that the Christ spirit reincarnated as various metaphysical and biblical personalities to set a pattern for humanity: “The Christ spirit incarnated as Amilius, Adam, Enoch, Melchizedek, then took on flesh to teach and lead. After several more incarnations such as Joseph (prince of Egypt), the Christ spirit realized it was necessary to set a pattern for humanity and to show the way back to God (love). Thus, the Master spirit assumed the mission of through his final incarnation as Jesus.” Someday, it is written that Jesus will incarnate again at his so-called “Second Coming” to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
The early Christian Church suppressed pre-existence and reincarnation for the same reason NDErs forget their mission – to focus more on the current life. Whether reincarnation is true or not, NDE testimonies reveal that it is the life we are currently living that is more important. This may be one of the reasons that pre-existence and reincarnation was suppressed by the early Church. Forgetting an existence before birth is also an important revelation from NDEs. Accordingly, people are required to forget their prior existence in order to not dwell on the ‘mission’ they are to accomplish in life. It is also the reason why NDErs are made to forget details of their pre-existent life when they return to life. Focusing on the life we are living also ensures that we are not so heavenly minded, we are no earthly good.
Betty Eadie learned special people with important missions have been placed in all religions: “We have no right to criticize any church or religion in any way. They are all precious in God’s sight. Very special people with important missions have been placed in all religions that they might touch others.”
NDEs share a uniquely significant place within Mormon theology. Unlike many religious traditions where the afterlife is shrouded in mystery or interpreted metaphorically, Mormon theology offers a remarkably detailed cosmology of pre-mortal existence, the soul given a mission in life, a variety of afterlife realms based upon degrees of the soul’s glory, and the soul’s eternal progression toward the Light. For this reason, many Mormons view NDEs as direct glimpses into a cosmology their faith already affirms.
MaErija was chosen by God for a mission to save children from abortion: “God since that day choose me for a purpose, he gave me a mission to save innocent children from the killing (abortion), for the injustice, for the cruelty.”
Robyn had an abortion resulting in an NDE where she learned her abortion was necessary to fulfill her mission to help save humanity: “I am incarnate to usher in the new paradigm for this beautiful planet. I am new here. I have no karma, and that is why I was not supposed to bear that child. The child would have weighed me down to this place energetically. It was an experience set up for my NDE, which enabled me to remember my mission. If I choose to have a child, I can, but I still want my creation in this lifetime to be helping to save humanity.”
Read more about Religion and the NDE.
11. Suicide and the Mission
David J. attempted suicide and found himself surrounded by spirit guides. A deep sense of failure and depression overcame him – feelings he believed were tied to his unfinished mission in life and the way he had arrived there.
The Being of Light warned Don C. that suicide prevents people from returning to heaven, but that completing their mission would allow them to return to heaven: The Being told Don C. it wasn’t his time to return home – he still had a mission to fulfill on Earth. Though the path ahead would be filled with hardship and he might again feel suicidal, Don was warned that choosing suicide would prevent him from returning to that peaceful realm. Despite the challenges, the Being assured him he would be protected and guided. If he endured and completed his mission, he would one day be welcomed home.
Kyah attempted suicide and learned if she aborted her mission she would be reincarnated: “He (God) told me that I had a choice to abort the mission but that would mean I’d have to relive the whole first part of my life all over again because consciousness is erased in birth. I thought, ‘That wasn’t fair.’ But, that information made my choice more difficult.”
Sandra Rogers attempted suicide and also learned if she aborted her mission she would be reincarnated. The Being of Light (Jesus) gave her the choice of remaining in the light, with the provision that she reincarnate and experience once again all that brought her to suicide; or she could return to life and live out the rest of her life. Sandra chose to return to life. She states: “From the point of view of our conscious mind, life’s not fair, but our spirit being knows there’s a purpose to our dilemmas: to experience in order to gain knowledge.”
Steve B. learned his mission is to clear misconceptions about suicide: “At any rate, life’s mission wasn’t fulfilled yet, and I was afforded the opportunity to come back to this world in order to carry out my life’s purpose. And, as a part of that purpose I have to clear up any and all misconceptions on this situation being an attempted suicide.”
Ashli attempted suicide and encountered God and Jesus. God spoke to Ashli with love, telling her He was proud and that her journey was nearly complete. They urged her to finish her mission, promising eternal love and peace in return.
Pascal C. attempted suicide and a voice said he’ll know his mission in due time: A voice tells him, “You can’t decide yourself the time when you leave. You have a mission to fulfill. No way they will let you leave that world this way. You have to go back and do what you have to do”… “Tell me what this mission is”… “You’ll understand in due time, no answer would content you. Let time act, be strong, and don’t doubt and you will know. Answers will be given in due time, but it is up to you to capture them. Nothing is given for free to the knowledge keeper.”
Read more about Suicide and the NDE.
12. Second Chances At Completing Mission
Flora S. was given a second chance at life because of her mission: “I was given a second chance for a reason. I feel I am on some kind of a mission that I must fulfill.”
Dharam S. was given a second chance to complete his mission to share how wonderful God and life is: “I felt like God had given me a second chance and it was my mission to spread the word about how wonderful God is and how wonderful life is.”
Jean T. was given a second chance to complete her mission to do good and guide her son: “The spirit makes me understand that they are giving me a second chance and that I have to do good. They send me back telling me that I have to guide my son until he is grown up. My mission and to do good the spirit gives me the real meaning of the word(s) doing good.”
Sherry G. was given a second chance to complete her mission to be a healer and leader: “I was then told that I was being given the choice to stay or to be given a second chance to complete my purpose. I was told that my purpose was a big mission… I was told that I was meant to lead that I was a healer sent to Earth to pave the way for others to live.”
Fernando S. was given a second chance to complete his mission: “I believe I was given a second chance at life in order for me to accomplish my mission through an existence that I knew it would be neither easy nor simple.”
Christina G. was given a second chance to complete her mission: “I was shown that I had suffered as a child to use my experiences to help guide others. That is what my mission on Earth in this life is for… I wake up with gratitude every day for the second chance I was given.”
William C. was given a second chance to complete his mission: “I felt like I had been given a second chance. I felt like I had a special experience and it was important that I share it as much as possible.”
M.B. was given a second chance to complete her mission to give birth to a child: “Afterwards, a voice asked me, ‘You can choose to die or return to live on the Earth. Which do you choose?’ I hesitated for a few seconds because life on Earth seemed far too painful. There was even a countdown. Time was running out and I realized that if I didn’t decide rapidly, I wouldn’t have a second chance to return to Earth…. I also had the sensation that I had a mission: to bring my child into the world even if it cost me my own life. I was congratulated for having brought him to Earth, despite so much suffering.”
13. Conclusion
Altogether, the testimonies in this article reveal that earthly life is not an accident but a profoundly planned journey. Whether the mission is large in impact or subtle, public or hidden, NDE testimonies affirm that each soul’s mission is unique. No one else can complete the mission assigned to them. Every act of kindness, every moment of spiritual growth, every choice of love contributes to a larger spiritual matrix in ways far beyond what the physical world can measure.
