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1. Introduction to NDE Visions of the Future
Near-death experiencers have received visions of the future, both personal and apocalyptic. Some were told the future is not predetermined because humans have the power to change it by enlightening the awareness of enough people to change current trends. In this respect, an apocalyptic prophecy that doesn’t occur is a prophecy that was successful. An apocalyptic prophecy that occurs is a failure. The reason that God does not intervene to prevent them from happening, is because to do so, would interfere directly with human spiritual and physical development. An example of this principle can be found when environmentalists refuse to interfere with nature so that evolution can continue unabated.
An example of the future being changed can be found in the NDE account of Karen Schaeffer. During her NDE, she was shown the future of her children, as it would happen, if she decided to remain in heaven. She was told that if she returned to life, the future she saw would not happen. Her decision was to return and, therefore, the future she saw did not happen.
Although God does not wish these apocalyptic prophecies to occur, God will allow them to occur for the purpose of instructing humanity. These apocalyptic prophecies are remarkably consistent. In general, they describe visions of global war and/or natural disasters of unimaginable capacity that threaten civilization. Experiencers were revealed the reason these catastrophes happen. It is because humanity is not in tune with nature because of war and environmental transgressions. For more information on prophecies yet to happen, read the NDEs and the Future web page.
2. Important NDE Visions of the Future Which Have Occurred
In 1975, the following prophecies were given to Dannion Brinkley (www.dannion.com) during his NDE.
a. Ronald Reagan
An actor will become president whose initials are R. R. and will project the image of being a cowboy to the rest of the world.
Shortly after his NDE in 1975, Brinkley told Dr. Raymond Moody that perhaps this person was Robert Redford. It turned out to be Ronald Reagan. This demonstrates that experiencers can receive visions of the future, but they may not be able to interpret them.
b. The Middle East
In the area of the Middle East, anger and hatred will reach a boiling point. Religion will play a large role in these problems, as will the economy. Israel will become isolated from the rest of the world. Saudi Arabia will give money to countries, such as North Korea, and make deals and shake hands. (Dannion Brinkley)
c. The Chernobyl Disaster
In 1986, a nuclear explosion of a massive cement structure, near a river in Russia, will occur. Hundreds of people will die. This disaster has something to do with the word Wormwood.
The Russian word, Chernobyl, literally means Wormwood, a type of plant. The nuclear explosion Brinkley foresaw was the Chernobyl explosion of the nuclear reactor in Russia.
d. The Collapse of the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union will collapse because of economic problems. The Russian people will lose faith in communism. Great food shortages will happen. The Russian mafia will gain much power. Soviet-style communism will die. The Being of Light told Brinkley the following:
“Watch the Soviet Union. How the Russian people go, so goes the world. What happens to Russia is the basis for everything that will happen to the economy of the free world.”
The collapse of the Soviet Union occurred in 1989 due to economic problems which created great food shortages of food and a stronger influence of the Russian mafia.
e. Desert Storm War
In 1990, a great desert war will be fought. Armies will race toward one another and lightning-like explosions will occur.
The U.S. military operation called Desert Storm occurred in 1990 where the U.S. army squashed the Iraqi army for occupying Kuwait.
f. Middle East Chemical Weapons
Missiles with chemical warheads will occupy the desert of the Middle East. There will be worldwide fear of the intentions of the Arab nations that have them.
It is common knowledge today that chemical weapons exist in Middle East. One point of great interest is the Being of Light’s warning given to Brinkley:
“If you follow what you have been taught and keep living the same way you have lived the last 30 years, all of this will surely be upon you. If you change, you can avoid the coming war. If you follow this dogma, the world by the year 2004 will not be the same one you now know. But it can still be changed and you can help change it.” – The Being of Light to Dannion Brinkley
g. A Virus Creating Computer Chips
A biological engineer from the Middle East will find a way to alter DNA and create a biological virus that will be used in the manufacture of computer chips.”
A technological breakthrough occurred in 1998 when two Israeli researchers at the Israel Institute of Technology discovered a process in which strands of DNA are incorporated into a working electronic component.
h. The New York Terrorist Attack
On September 1st, ten days before the New York terrorist attacks, Brinkley announced that the world is on the verge of a:
“spiritual awakening which calls for deep self-examination.”
Brinkley called for a global Day of Truth to occur on September 17, 2001, where people could:
“… take time before this date to personally examine our own lives and priorities as citizens of Earth in this time of transition. This is a wake-up call. For it is only as we are willing to see and to embrace all of our deeply human fragmented realities that the light of grace can shine upon us.”
Something certainly awoke Brinkley to make this announcement and it is reasonable to assume it was the September 11 terrorist attack. Brinkley isn’t the only experiencers who received a vision of this terrorist attack.
Another near-death experiencer, Ned Dougherty, received similar visions of the future during his NDE. One of Ned’s visions was published in his book, Fast Lane to Heaven, six months before September 11th which states:
“A major terrorist attack may befall New York City or Washington, DC, severely impacting the way we live in the United States.”
3. Dannion Brinkley’s Near-Death Experience
In 1975, Dannion Brinkley was talking on the phone during a thunderstorm. A bolt of lightning hit the phone line, sending thousands of volts of electricity into his head and down his body. His heart stopped, and he died, but in the process, he had an NDE. When Brinkley revived in the morgue after twenty-eight minutes of death, he had an incredible story to tell. The following is a description of his NDE from his book Saved by the Light with Paul Perry.
The next sound Dannion heard resembled a freight train barreling into his ear at the speed of light. Jolts of electricity surged through his body, and every cell felt as though it were immersed in battery acid. The nails in his shoes were fused to the floorboards so that when he was thrown into the air, his feet were yanked out of them. He saw the ceiling pass before his face and, for a brief, surreal moment, couldn’t comprehend what force could produce such searing pain and suspend him in midair above his own bed. What lasted only a split second seemed to stretch into an eternity.
Then, from that immense agony, he suddenly found himself surrounded by an overwhelming sense of peace and tranquility – a serenity he had never known before and has not experienced since. It was like bathing in divine calm. Although he had no idea what had happened, even amid the peace, he was filled with curiosity: Where was he?
He began to look around, rotating in midair. Below him lay his own body, sprawled across the bed. His shoes were still smoking, and the telephone in his hand had melted. He saw Sandy rush into the room, her expression dazed and horrified, like a parent discovering their child face-down in a swimming pool.
Tommy arrived in under ten minutes, having heard the explosion through the phone line and realizing something was terribly wrong. From above, he watched as Tommy held his lifeless body and cursed the delay of the ambulance, which could now be heard approaching. Hovering about fifteen feet above the scene, he looked down at Sandy, Tommy, and himself as the paramedics loaded his body onto a stretcher and wheeled it out.
From his elevated vantage point, he saw the rain pouring down, drenching both his own face and the backs of the EMTs. The perspective felt detached – like that of a television camera. Without pain or emotion, he observed his body begin to twitch and convulse. Looking toward the front of the ambulance, he noticed a tunnel forming – a spiraling vortex opening like the eye of a hurricane, approaching him rather than the other way around.
There was the sound of chimes as the tunnel spun toward him and eventually enveloped him. All else vanished – no Sandy crying, no EMTs trying to revive his body, no frantic radio communications with the hospital. Only the tunnel remained, and the hauntingly beautiful sound of seven chimes ringing in perfect rhythmic succession.
He gazed into the darkness ahead and saw a light. Instinctively, he began moving toward it – swiftly, without the use of legs. The light grew ever brighter until it dispelled all darkness and left him standing in a paradise of radiant brilliance. Though it was the most intense light he had ever seen, it caused no discomfort. Unlike the pain of stepping into sunlight from a dark room, this light was gentle and welcoming.
To his right, a silver form emerged like a silhouette through mist. As it approached, he was overwhelmed by a feeling of pure, unconditional love – an all-encompassing sense of acceptance that surpassed the love of a mother, a lover, or a best friend multiplied a thousand times over. As the Being of Light drew closer, this love intensified until it became nearly unbearable in its pleasure.
The Being stood directly before him. Gazing into its essence, he saw prisms of color – like a body composed of thousands of tiny diamonds, each emitting every hue of the rainbow.
In the Being’s presence, he felt a profound familiarity, as if this entity had experienced every emotion he had ever felt – from his first breath to the moment he was struck by lightning. He sensed that no one could love him more deeply, or embody more empathy, encouragement, and nonjudgmental compassion, than this being.
Then the Being of Light enveloped him, and his life unfolded before him – a full review in which he relived every moment, feeling the emotions and consequences of his actions as though they were happening again. It was as if a dam had burst, and every memory stored in his mind rushed forward.
At the end of this review, he entered a phase of reflection, evaluating what he had seen. Shame overcame him. He realized how selfish his life had been. He rarely reached out to others, almost never smiled out of brotherly love, and hadn’t given freely to those in need. His life had been centered around himself. He felt deeply unworthy.
Looking at the Being of Light, he braced for judgment, expecting a cosmic rebuke. He had reviewed his life and seen a person he considered truly worthless.
But instead of condemnation, the Being touched him, filling him with a love and joy comparable only to the unconditional affection of a grandfather for his grandchild.
“Who you are is the difference that God makes,” the Being conveyed telepathically. “And that difference is love.”
Though no words were spoken, the message was clear – transmitted directly into his consciousness. To this day, he wasn’t certain what the phrase precisely meant, but he knew it to be profound.
He was again given a moment to reflect. How much love had he given? How much had he received? From what he had just witnessed, he saw that for every good deed, there were many more acts of indifference or selfishness. If guilt had weight, he thought, he would have weighed five hundred pounds.
Yet as the Being of Light began to withdraw, he felt his guilt lifting. Though painful, his reflection had granted him insight – knowledge he could now use to change. He heard the Being’s voice in his mind again:
“Humans are powerful spiritual beings, meant to bring good into the world. This good doesn’t often appear in grand gestures, but in small acts of kindness between people. These little things matter most, because they are spontaneous and reveal who you truly are.”
He was overcome with joy. He had discovered the secret to improving humanity: the love and goodness one has at life’s end equals the love and goodness they gave throughout life. It really was that simple.
“My life will be better now that I know the secret,” he said to the Being of Light.
But in that moment, he realized he wasn’t returning. His life had ended. He had been struck by lightning. He was dead.
Together, like wingless birds, they glided into a city of cathedrals – structures made entirely of crystalline material that glowed with inner light. He was awestruck. The entire place pulsed with energy. He knew it was a place of learning – not to reflect on his life’s value, but to receive instruction.
Inside one of the great halls, the Being of Light was no longer beside him. Rows of benches filled the radiant chamber, and he sat down, searching for his spiritual guide.
Suddenly, a group of Beings of Light appeared behind the podium – thirteen of them, standing shoulder to shoulder. They emanated warmth, kindness, and wisdom.
He realized, perhaps through telepathic awareness, that each being represented a different human emotional or psychological quality. One was intense and passionate, another artistic and sensitive. Some were energetic, others loyal or contemplative. In human terms, they resembled the archetypes of the zodiac, but spiritually they transcended any such classification. Their presence radiated emotion so vividly that he could feel it directly.
More certain than ever, he knew this was a school – a place of profound, experiential learning. There were no books, no rote memorization. In the presence of these Beings, he didn’t just learn; he became knowledge itself. He could ask any question and instantly understand the answer. It was like being a droplet immersed in the ocean of universal wisdom, or a beam of light absorbing the knowledge of all light.
One by one, the Beings approached. Each time, a box the size of a videotape emerged from the Being’s chest and zoomed toward his face. The first time, he flinched – expecting impact – but just before reaching him, the box opened to reveal a small screen displaying a future world event.
As he watched, he was drawn into the screen, experiencing the event as if he were there. This occurred twelve times. Each time, he stood amidst scenes that, though he didn’t yet know it, would later prove to be world-altering.
Dannion is then given prophetic visions, then returns to his body.
