It is not unusual for near-death experiencers returning from clinical death to report having received information concerning their pre-existence before they were conceived in the world. Some experiencers report of learning how they chose various aspects of their lives to be predestined before they were born. Some of the choices people have reported having chosen before birth include the selection of their birth parents, choosing their mission in life, and even choosing how they will die. This knowledge received by near-death experiencers of the past and future shows how some things in life are predestined while other things are not. It shows how free will and predestination both exist and work hand in hand. It means we choose our destiny in life before our birth into the world to live it. Because reincarnation is a concept found in many cultures and religions, the metaphor of life as a river which we chose before we were our birth, shows up in many of these cultures and religions. There are many aspects to a river which make it an excellent analogy to help us understand where we came from, where we're going, who we are, why we're here, and what life is all about. The following discussion will attempt to do just that.

Table of Contents

A.  Life is a river flowing back to the Sea

If our experience as a human is analogous to a journey down a river, then our experience as a spirit is analogous to the entire water cycle. Each of us is like a raindrop which fell from a cloud and ultimately entered into a river for the journey back from where it came - the sea. Then the cycle is repeated.

In the same way that a drop of water is a part of the sea and contains within itself the nature of the sea itself, so our spirit is a part of God containing within it the Whole of God itself. This concept of a something being both a part and the Whole is called in science terminology a fractal.

By becoming a droplet in the water cycle, we can experience wonderful adventures which ultimately help us to understand ourselves and the sea even more. Which river of life we choose to travel down is up to us. Once we begin the journey, we are partly at the mercy of the river and the course it takes us. How we chose to flow down the river is our decision.

This river which represents the course of our life that leads us back to God is an archetype that is familiar to us. Perhaps this is one of the reasons we feel drawn to rivers and why we regarded them as sacred. In ancient cultures, religions and even in near-death experiences, this archetype of life being a river appears. On the river, we are always moving forward from a source and toward an end. Life starts out as a small creek and grows into large river with rapids, forks, tributaries, rocks, and sometimes floods. Rivers have a history and are evolving. The river of life can take us to a variety of destinations on shore. There are many decisions and choices to make while traveling the river. Sometimes we have no choice at all but submit to the mercy of the river. At times we can relax and go with the flow. Other times we can shoot the rapids. We can row our boats gently down the stream. But if we just remain on the shore, we will never reach our destination and goal. Wisdom means knowing the best course of action to take as we travel down the river.

  Someone once asked Deepak Chopra, the famous endrocrinologist and spiritual guru, about the predetermination aspect of this analogy of life being a river. They asked him, "Does this mean that we are born into a pre-determined destiny and if so, why even bother cultivating free will or striving to be faithful?" His answer was:

So the future is not fixed in stone but consists of probabilities based on current choices and trends. This answer from Deepak Chopra is another way of saying we choose our destinies.

B.  We chose our river and its destiny before we were born

  A long time ago, I read Betty Eadie's book "The Ripple Effect" and read the best analogy of "life as a river" I have ever read. It concerns how we choose our destinies before our birth and how it is analogous to standing on top of a very high mountain and looking down upon a vast system of rivers and choosing which river to undertake. From the vantage point of being on top of a mountain, we can get a good view all the rivers from their beginning to their end. As in life, each river has a number of forks and branches to choose from. Some rivers are more challenging while others are less challenging. Some rivers are very dangerous and can lead to disaster. But no matter which river of life we choose before our birth, the river will always carry us back to the sea. This means we are all predestined to eventually return to God. But once we begin our journey down the river of our choosing, we have many choices which are not predetermined.

  Here is the excerpt from Betty's book describing the analogy:

Betty then addresses how people shouldn't mistakenly believe that the circumstances of their youth can set an unchangeable course for their river of life. She states:

She also describes how our past can be a springboard and a resource for accomplishment and the betterment of others. She does this by quoting from a letter someone wrote to her:

This testimony from Betty agrees with the testimony of many other people who have also had a near-death experience as you will see below.

C.  A near-death experience describes the river system

  The following NDE testimony comes from PMH Atwater's website. If you haven't checked out her website and all the articles she has there, you are missing out on a wealth of information.

This NDE testimony involves one of P.M.H. Atwater's research subjects who is a man named Ken who was involved in a car accident which resulted in a NDE. P.M.H. Atwater calls his NDE "The River of Life" for a good reason as you will see. As Ken was dying on a gurney he moved through a tunnel and into light. He could observe his body and his surroundings and feels euphoric but he learns that he must return. When he asked the light that he be allowed to stay, he is shown a vision of a heavenly river:

Ken's vision of a heavenly river made up of drops of water representing human experiences is an excellent description of our one-ness which many near-death experiencers bring back with them. In this instance, the heavenly river represents God and each drop is a human lifetime. A drop of water is both a part of the river and within itself is the nature of the Whole River itself. Our spirit is an individualized part of the Whole (God) and yet within it is the Whole itself (the fractal concept again). Near-death experiencers describe experiencing this one-ness when they merge fully into the light during their NDE. The drop of water merges once again with the sea to become the Whole Sea again.

  Perhaps a better analogy of how our spirit can exist both a part of God and yet the Whole of God is to think of our spirit as a "thought" in the Mind of God. The "thought" leaves the Mind of God to experience individuality as a human being. As a human being, our spirit is an individualized "thought" in the Mind of God but also retains its one-ness as the Whole Mind of God. When our human life is over, our "thought" returns to the Wholeness and merges into it where all the other thoughts are. The question however is this: When the thought returns to the Mind of God does it lose its individuality once it merges back into the Mind? According to Edgar Cayce, the answer is "no." The reason thoughts began leaving the Mind of God to begin with was to learn individuality while maintaining Wholeness at the same time. Otherwise, thoughts would remain as a thought in the Mind and forever by controlled by the Mind and never know individuality. (Edgar Cayce)

D.  Traveling down the river of life

  Ken discusses his NDE and his interpretation of it:

"I believe my actual physical existence resides in the river of life as its natural form when not present in this reality or life. As a drop taken from a cup of water and then returned, so the individual drop exists, yet is part of the whole. I believe there is a retained knowledge of life experience that becomes part of collective knowledge yet remains intact as a unit. There is no body in the sense we know one, no love, hate, or any emotion as we know it. In a perfect existence devoid of need or want, all needs and wants, positive and negative, do not exist. The one-ness I perceived was what is referred to as God. We are of God and God is of us. The purpose of our physical existence and life is to provide every possible variation of action so an omniscient knowledge base can exist.

"There is no heaven and hell, as we perceive it. There is no punishment for wrong behaviors, nor rewards for right behaviors. There is no judgment process. This is the reason people anguish over why God would let that happen. All experience, good, bad, mixed, is part of omniscient knowledge. In our present life, we have control over our lives to create perfectly unique combinations of experience, memory, and knowledge. Some people have memory of past lives or deja vu because of our connection to the river of life. The collective knowledge knows what brings feelings of well-being, peace, and happiness as well as what brings turmoil and pain. Our reward for moving in the direction of peace and contentment is the experience we create will have more positive feelings associated with it. I note here also that no matter how horrible the action and horrible the experience, all experience must exist to make up omniscient knowledge. This is why there is no precognition. The collective knowledge is so vast, likely results can be predicted. Thus, premonition is not magic, but informed estimation. In a sense we create our own hell here in this life when we take actions which bring pain and turmoil into our lives. We can also create an existence closer to the perfect peace of after-death existence by living in such a way as to bring peace and harmony into our lives.

"There is no love in the river of life, as we know love here in this existence. Since there is no want or need and a feeling of total peace, there is a sense of perfect love in the existence. There is also not a sense of desire to be with someone nor is there anyone to be with. All are part of the whole which is the common denominator of the universal existence we call God. In that sense we are God and God is we.

"I did not wish to relate my experience for a long time. I felt very comfortable with this. It was a right action. A situation occurred 2 years later and I was suddenly compelled to tell a person. The feeling surrounding that was right also. Since that time I have come to rely on this intuition. It guides me in much of my decision making. I know when I am to tell a person about the experience when this right feeling becomes very strong. Likewise, when I logically think I should tell someone and the feeling is wrong, I do not hesitate to heed the intuition. I do not feel compelled to tell everyone about my experience. In fact, I still feel the need to be careful about whom I tell. My father developed a fear of death as he got older. I considered telling him to comfort his fears. My intuition told me not to and I heeded that feeling. At the instant of my father's death I was many miles away in route to the hospital where he lay very ill. I felt a brief return of that very peaceful feeling, devoid of want or need and I felt perfectly calm and happy. I looked at my watch. When I arrived at the hospital, the time I looked at my watch coincided exactly with the time my father died. Three years after that, I felt an overwhelming desire to tell my experience to a friend of mine at church. I also wanted to get her thoughts on sharing my experience with terminally ill patients and their families. She was head of a hospice agency. Talking to this person was an intense right feeling and I had an unexplained sense of urgency. When I related my experience the young lady cried and told me how I relieved fears and feelings of loss and grieving with the recent death of her mother. I had suggested I share my experience with terminally ill patients, but expressed concern about doing so would be a double edged sword attacking their belief systems already in place. She concurred and said the conflict may be more harmful than helpful." (Dr. PMH Atwater)

E.  Choose your river and its destiny wisely

  Ken's NDE fits perfectly into the whole picture of a river being a metaphor for life. Each one of us comes from the sea. Our true nature has always been the sea. Our journey began as a droplet of water from the sea, we experience land and the river, and then we return to become completely one with the sea again. Should we decide to experience the cycle again we merely become another raindrop pulled from the sea and the process is repeated.

  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. (Nora Spurgin)

  We came to this physical realm to live the human experience and help each other rise to the higher level of love.  (Sherry Gideon)

  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. (Betty Eadie)

  Our own desire to grow and learn leads us to be born in the physical realm. (Amber Wells)

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

  The ideal place to grow spiritually is on Earth because of the influence of a physical body. The opportunity for the full range of love (child's love, marital love, and parental love) is ideally available while one is on Earth. Love which has been misused or misdirected is also best corrected in the physical. On Earth, there is the full range of physical and spiritual senses with which to act and communicate. (Nora Spurgin)

  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. (Thomas Sawyer)

  Our desire for soul growth in this world arises from a desire to be close to God. In the spirit world, there is an ever-increasing unity with the love of God. This is also our goal for soul growth in the physical world. (Nora Spurgin)

  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. (David Goines)

  Souls choose to be born with physical disabilities for the purpose of soul growth and to stay compassionate. (Lynn)

  There are many rewards for choosing to be born with a disability. (Mary Ellen)

  Souls who choose to be born mentally retarded are special souls who have retained more than a normal amount of their pre-birth memories and who know much more than they are able to express. Such hardships are necessary for soul growth. (Sandra Rogers)

  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. (Dr. Frank Oski)

  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. (George Anderson)

  We are born to face trials and gain the experience of a physical life. (RaNelle Wallace)

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

During our journey on the river of life, we are given many choices and opportunities along the way. But life on the river also involves situations beyond our control. At some point we may experience being unjustly mistreated or killed. Horrible things can happen. Incredible pain and catastrophe may happen to us. This causes us to ask why all the suffering? What does it mean? This is the question which has plagued humanity perhaps since the beginning of time. Western civilization knows it as the "problem of evil." How could a good God allow such evil to happen to us? This is also the same question put in different words which has plagued the East as the "problem of suffering."

F.  The river according to Edgar Cayce

Why do good people suffer? I discovered the answer to this question many years ago when I read a book about the life of Edgar Cayce appropriately called "There is a River." Cayce discovered by accident at a young age that he could easily put himself into a particular state of self-hypnosis which is normally very difficult for most people. While in a deep trance, he could leave his body and travel through the tunnel toward the light and obtain information from the so-called "Hall of Records" in heaven. Once a woman came to Cayce requesting guidance about a very dangerous surgical procedure she was soon to have. She wanted to know if she was doing the right thing to have the surgery. While in a trance, Cayce came up with the answer.

The woman and the doctors who were planning to perform the surgery had met once before in a past life. In that past life, she was a heretic who was tortured and killed during the Inquisition. The Inquisitors who tortured and killed her then were now the doctors planning to save her life. Cayce told her to go ahead with the surgery because the doctors are paying a karmic debt owed to her for their transgressions against her. Surprisingly, Cayce guaranteed that the surgery would be successful. And it was.

So the woman and the doctors were acting on one level of consciousness as doctors and patient. But on a higher level of consciousness, they were acting as former Inquisitors saving the life of a woman they once tortured and killed.

But this insight raises a few questions? Did the Holocaust victims, for example, choose to be slaughtered or did they have a choice? Did Hitler have a choice to be a creative force or a monstrous force? If only we had the foresight to see farther down the river to see what lies ahead of us in our journey, we could avoid all catastrophes and our lives would be much better. Because NDEs and quantum physics suggests the future is based on probabilities rather than certainties, the river of life is not mechanical or deterministic. We are not "crash test dummies" on a fixed course for catastrophe. Nor does anyone force us on the river of life. NDE insights suggest we freely chose the river we're on before the journey even began. This brings us to the real question to ask:

A similar question is, "Why do people choose to float down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon when death is possible?" The challenge? The danger? The fun? The experience? To test themselves? To discover? Reach a goal? In other words, does anyone go to the Colorado River seeking adventure while knowing they are going to die doing it?

G.  Our river of suffering and death serves a purpose

Our purpose for returning to Earth is to learn important lessons of love, to clean up the mess we left from previous lives, and to attain soul growth through the evolution of body and soul. People who choose to be born into a life of extreme suffering through handicaps, have decided to attain greater soul growth in a single lifetime than most people. There is also evidence that such people are actually more spiritually evolved than most, who have chosen a difficult life in order to also teach and help others attain soul growth. Even in the Bible, this principle can be found. When the disciples asked Jesus why a man is born blind, his answer was to glorify God. I have found this principle in near-death experiences as well. Here is an example:

  "I wanted to talk with Jesus. I had a very important question to ask him. A beam of light, different from yet similar to the first one, covered me. I knew this light was Christ. I leaned against it for one moment and then asked my question. "Dear Jesus, is it true that you gave me this heart condition so that I would have a cross to carry like you did?" (Sister Agnes, my sixth-grade teacher, had told me that my heart condition was my cross to bear from Christ.) I heard the voice of Christ vibrate through me as he said, "No, this heart condition of yours is not a cross from me for you to bear. This heart condition is a challenge to help you grow and stay compassionate. Now, go back." (Lynn)

  "Jesus was "pleading my case." There was no conflict or argument here; Jesus' understanding was accepted without dispute because he had all the facts. He was the perfect judge. He knew precisely where I stood in relation to my need for mercy and the universe's need for justice. Now I could see that all the suffering in my mortal life would be temporary, and that it was actually for my good. Our sufferings on Earth need not be futile. Out of the most tragic of circumstances springs human growth." (Angie Fenimore)

  "Telepathically, he [Jesus] communicates to her: "Isn't it wonderful? Everything is beautiful here, and it fits together. And you'll find that. But you can't stay here now. 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." (Vicki Umipeg)

  "When I was 7 years old I had a NDE as a result of measles complicated with encephalitis that resulted in a vicious high fever of 108 degrees, resulting going into a 3 day coma. I am deaf, and during the NDE experience I saw a white being and said I didn't want to go back to Earth because facing a lifetime of deafness was too hard for me. The being talked me out of it and said there would be many rewards for me on the earthly realm. So I went back! The rewards did happen and continues on. I still face many difficult challenges and obstacles on a daily basis though." (Mary Ellen)

  "When she asked 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." Also: "Hardships are necessary for the growth of our soul." (Sandra Rogers)

  "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.'" (Dr. Frank Oski)

  "Between lives, with the great knowledge of our oversouls, we choose the next life we are going to live and how much karma we are going to meet and settle. For example, if you abused animals, or people, in one life your oversoul would probably cause you to reincarnate into a situation where you'd get abused to make you realize the misery you've caused others." (Arthur Yensen)

  "Most of us have selected the illnesses we would suffer. Some of us have selected the illness that will end our lives. Our deaths are often calculated to help us and others grow spiritually." (Kevin Williams)

  "The reason we are made to forget any pre-birth memories is so that we might more fully experience the physical things, be physically challenged, make choices out of free will, so we can make mistakes so that we can learn from them in ways only a physical life can impart. If we retained these pre-birth memories, we might not bother to experience physical life for its fulfillment. We might decide to skip the pain and thus miss the pleasure." (Kevin Williams)

  All the suffering in our lives is actually for our good. Out of the most tragic of circumstances springs human growth. (Angie Fenimore)

  Souls who choose to be born mentally retarded are special souls who have retained more than a normal amount of their pre-birth memories and who know much more than they are able to express. Such hardships are necessary for soul growth. (Sandra Rogers)

  Souls choose to be born with physical disabilities for the purpose of soul growth and to stay compassionate. (Lynn)

  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. (Dr. Frank Oski)

  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. (George Anderson)

  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. (RaNelle Wallace)

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

  We choose the life we are going to live and how much karma we are going to meet and settle. (Arthur Yensen)

  We are born to face trials and gain the experience of a physical life. (RaNelle Wallace)

  Life's supposed to be hard. We can't skip over the hard parts. We must earn what we receive. (Angie Fenimore)

  Howard Storm was given the following insights from beings of light after his life review when he was fearful of returning to Earth life and afraid he would make mistakes again: Mistakes are an acceptable part of being human. We are here to make all the mistakes we want because it is through our mistakes that we learn. As long as we try to do what we know to be right, we will be on the right path. If we make a mistake, we should fully recognize it as a mistake, then put it behind us and simply try not to make the same mistake again. The important thing is to try our best, keep our standards of goodness and truth, and not compromise them to win people's approval. God loves us just the way we are, mistakes and all. When we make a mistake, we should ask for forgiveness. After that, it would be an insult if we don't accept that we are forgiven. We shouldn't continue going around with a sense of guilt, and we should try not to repeat our mistakes. We should learn from our mistakes. God wants us to do what we want to do. That means making choices - and there isn't necessarily any right choice. There is a spectrum of possibilities, and we should make the best choice from those possibilities. If we do that, we will receive help from the Other Side. (Rev. Howard Storm)

  Destructive Earth changes are a reflection of all the social upheaval and violence happening all over the world at the moment. (Margot Grey)

  Environmentalists often refuse to interfere with nature so that evolution can continue unabated. This is the same reason why God does not interfere with our evolution. (Dannion Brinkley)

  God made a promise not to intervene in our lives unless asked. (Betty Eadie)

  God does nothing to curb human freedom. However humans act, it is within God's reality. By whatever path, humans return to God. (Edgar Cayce)

  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. (Amber Wells)

  It is best to kick our bad habits while in the world. It is easier while in physical form to break those shackles than it is to undo them on the other side, where no temptations are put in our way. There is no reward for behaving correctly while in spirit, because there is nothing to tempt us otherwise. The hard school is in the physical one, and it is here that we must meet and overcome the temptations. (Ruth Montgomery)

  Any habit-forming pleasure, and they are endless, traps us into the cycle of rebirth over and over, until our appetites are finally put aside while we are in the flesh. (Ruth Montgomery)

  Every act of destruction of God's environment on Earth multiplies into destructive forces of nature - earthquakes, floods, pestilence, nuclear destruction and nuclear waste. (Archangel Michael to Ned Dougherty)

H.  Would retaining the knowledge of our destiny be beneficial?

There are other good reasons why we come here to take on suffering and death. Some religions provide good reasons:

Buddhism:  In the East, the question is about "the problem of suffering”. Why do good people suffer? The answer according to Buddhism is that people suffer because of their attachments to worldly desires. Every act has a consequence called “karma” which basically means that “when we do unto others, we do unto ourselves”. Karma is the process of self-realization. The goal is to become so enlightened that all our negative karma is gone and we do not need to reincarnate to take on more karma and suffering. According to Buddhists, Buddha took on suffering in order that others attain enlightenment.

Christianity: In the West, the question is about "the problem of evil". Why does God allow evil to exist? According to the Bible, Jesus suffered at the hands of the unjust because suffering leads to perfection (Heb. 2:10). It is through suffering that our soul learns and becomes perfected. During Biblical times, people believed that all things occurred through the will and predetermination of God. According to the Bible, people in those days did not believe in "free will" or "chance" or "accidents". For example, they believed that even the outcome of a toss of the dice is determine by the will of God (Prov. 16:33, Acts 1:24-26). They believed that the evil actions of human beings are a part of God's predetermined will and they are turned into goodness. The crucifixion of Christ was viewed as the worst evil that ever happened; yet, they also believed it to be God's greatest display of divine love, goodness, and forgiveness. The Bible reveals that Christ's crucifixion by evil men was planned from eternity by God (Acts 2:22-23, Acts 4:27-28). They believed evil existed only by God's permission and that God has the forces of evil under his complete control. For example, the story of Job describes how Satan's actions are in accordance with the will of God; that is, evil can only happen if God allows it to happen. In essence, the Bible reveals that nothing can thwart the will of the Almighty and this suggest that human beings do not have “free will”.

However, there are a multitude of near-death experiences revealing how human beings DO have a "free will" and it is a divine trait given to us by God. Our free will is then incorporated into the will of God - we are not robots.

But would having the foresight of Jesus make our situation in life any better? Such foresight would allow us to avoid suffering if we chose to do so. But consider this: If you were ever in Jesus’ situation, would you allow yourself to undergo the torment of crucifixion when you could chose not to? Evidently, even Jesus wrestled with this dilemma. I must admit that I would never choose to be crucified – at least not in this life. Because life is a test; and because we don’t know the answers beforehand; having the foresight of Jesus would not help me in this instance.

Consider what life would be like in a world where mistakes are not permitted? It should be noted here that there is anecdotal evidence from near-death experiences that heaven is such a world where mistakes are not permitted to happen. This suggests that having the ability to choose right from wrong – as opposed to automatically choosing right all the time – may not be so desirable after all.

NDE insights suggest that we are souls who volunteered who chose to forget our higher knowledge. We enter the world knowing we are about to enter a realm where we are ignorance of our true selves and our missions in life for the sake of a higher purpose. We chose to forget who we are, forget where we came from, forget where we are going, and forget what the journey is about so that we can accomplish a higher purpose. But why?

I.  Why we choose to forget our destiny

  Briefly, here are some good reasons from NDE insights:

When we are outside of our physical bodies (as when we are dreaming or dying or having a near-death experiences), we are a soul whose awareness expands to a point where we are able to hold on to these memories and our higher knowledge (the light). But while we are in our physical bodies and conscious, our soul mind plays a more subliminal role as our subconscious minds. Our spirit mind is even farther removed from our conscious awareness.

For millions of years, the human body has been evolving. Our bodies evolved from the Earth. Our souls evolved from the stars and our experiences outside of our body. Our spirits do not evolve because as spirits we are already perfectly one with God (the Whole).

But at this point in history, our bodies and minds have not yet evolved to the point where we are fully "awake" as human beings. That is, humanity in general has not yet brought their higher minds fully into their conscious minds. This is evident from what near-death experiencers are telling us from the higher knowledge they learn about during their NDE. This is evident from the mystical traditions found in many ancient religions. This is also becoming evident from quantum physics. As scientists understand the universe more and more, the more they learn how reality is all in the mind.

I am convinced that until we as humans evolve into a world of beings who can walk on water and love unconditionally, we will continue to come to this physical realm. It may be as simple as that. Therefore, part of our mission is to bring this higher knowledge we have known before we were born and incorporate it into our lives. Then we will no longer be the cave men and women we are trying to evolve away from.

Osama Bin Laden and his men are not sitting in a cave for nothing. In a very real and higher sense, the terrorist attack in New York City was really a cry for help from the militant Islamic fundamentalists. They need our help to make their lives better and bring them into the twenty-first century. Perhaps the rest of the world needs to change as well. We have only one world. And we are all one people. Our lives and futures are tied together. We need to help them - even if they want to kill us. End of sermon.

NDE insights reveal we come here and choose to forget our higher knowledge so we can learn more effectively and faster due to the limitations that only a physical body can achieve. We choose to forget so we can focus more on physical reality and complete our missions in life better. We choose to forget because we don't want to be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good. If we retained all of our prior knowledge, we may try to avoid the pain, thereby avoiding any gain. We choose to forget so that we can make decisions out of free will without being completely influenced by our higher knowledge. Any other way would be equivalent to a student being given the answers before taking a test. It is not a good way to learn.

We choose to forget because it allows us to make mistakes out of free will for the purpose of learning and growing. Forgetting our higher knowledge helps us to appreciate, benefit, and learn all we can from our physical life through re-discovering this higher knowledge - now in physical ways. Through forgetting our higher knowledge, we can understand physical life better by re-discovering how to return to God. And re-discovering these things is not enough. We must incorporate and embody this knowledge into our daily activities. It helps us to make an effort to remember these things and re-discover our true selves as spiritual beings and that our spirits are one with God.

We forget our higher knowledge so that we are able to succeed as normal human beings advancing our spirits. If we retained all our pre-birth knowledge, we would seem abnormal to the rest of society. But souls do assume bodies that are retarded or crippled because they have decided to assume some of this higher knowledge in order to teach those around them lessons in love. We forget who we are because we want to do everything humanly possible to fulfill our missions for humanity and God. We forget these things so we can make the most of the human experience for ourselves and God. We are spirits having a human experience. When we return to spirit, everyone benefits from our human experience.

We also forget who were are to prevent unpleasant and harmful past-life memories from completely influencing our lives. Imagine having a past-life memory of being Adolf Hitler. Such a past-life memory would make it very difficult to function with these memories and would seriously impede the opportunities to correct the past-life mistakes of being Hitler. We forget because we want to help God create a human heaven on Earth which only humans can build with the help of the spirit of unconditional love.

  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. (Darlene Holman)

  David Goines' NDE:  Humans have a mental and spirit body. 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. We promised God that upon accepting the opportunity, challenges and responsibility of a physical life, we would make the most of this opportunity for ourselves and God, return to God with the knowledge and experience gained so that God will be enhanced by our experience.

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. (David Goines)

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

  We mustn't wait to find our heaven in the clouds. We must find it here because it exists here and will be whatever we make it and whatever we are willing to accept of it. (Tina)

  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. (Hal)

  We have chosen to forget most of our knowledge in order to come to Earth and have human experiences. (Laurelynn Martin)

J.  Our higher purpose within the river experience

Do we really want to know? Consider what Dr. George Rodonaia and PMH Atwater have to say about it:

  "The point is to live the questions now, and perhaps without knowing it, someday we will live into the answers. Live the questions and the universe will open up its eyes to you." (Dr. George Rodonaia)

  "The drama of creation is unbounded and is neither limited by our perception of it, nor by our ability or inability to comprehend it. This drama is as stupendous as it is terrifying, as awesome as it is wonderful, as miraculous as it is mysterious, as beautiful as it is the ultimate act of all-consuming love. To witness even a glimpse of such glory, to know the Real Truth of it, leaves a mark so deep and so profound you are forever uplifted and transformed." (Dr. PMH Atwater)

According to information obtained from the human experience with the universe in the realms of science, religion, metaphysics, and near-death experiences, the universe is waiting right now for us to open our eyes and see the answer that will help us attain our goals on the River of Life. From what I can gather, the story resembles a modified version of the parable of the prodigal son who left his father to experience life on his own and to discover new worlds.

As a soul, we come to this world to have a life experience as a human being. Everyone has been doing this for millions of years. We are bringing God into this garden called Earth. We are bringing light into darkness and peace into chaos. We come to help our loved ones within our soul group and humanity in general evolve and learn lessons that only a human experience can give.

Millions of years of ago, the human experience began when souls, like pilgrims and prodigals, began exploring the universe. We came to Earth and began influencing and eventually inhabiting the bodies of a particular species of humanoid. Through evolution we influenced these creatures to come out of the trees create societies. Throughout the course of human evolution, as a soul, we could come here and have a human experience, fulfill whatever mission we came to do, then death would free us to return as a soul back to where we came from which is our true home in non-physical realms.

Living in this world is analogous to experiencing on-the-job training. We come here to attain growth as a soul (an individualized aspect of spirit). As a spirit, we are already perfectly one with God. But with every human body and life we experienced on Earth over the millennia, we create a different soul body to be the vehicle for our spirit as it experiences the world in the vehicle of a human body. At the physical level, our body is conscious. At the soul level, our mind is subconscious. At the spirit level, we are superconscious. We are multi-dimensional and exist in three different worlds at the same time. There are many abodes and many dimensions. We are working our way back up "Jacob's ladder" of success toward the goal of perfected individuality as a soul to go along with our already perfect Wholeness as a spirit. We are evolving into an individualized version of the Whole which is "God" consciousness.

As a human being, we seem like such a small creation in an infinite universe, but this is really only an illusion. As individuals, we are the human and soul part of God. We are extensions of thought in the Mind of God (the collective Whole). We are bringing this higher universal consciousness into this tiny world called Earth while at the same time we are developing individual consciousness. We are the Mind of God becoming human. We are the body, mind and spirit of God evolving into a perfect individual-divine unity. We have examples of this human-divine unity in the lives of Jesus and Buddha and others. The goal in human evolution is for us to attain a human-divine consciousness which can overcome the limitations of the body, walk on water if we choose, or even live forever on this planet as a human if we choose to. We are powerful spiritual beings with a oneness of the Whole and the wholeness of the One. On a higher level, we are gods just as Jesus said. This is another way of saying we are "godlings" or "children." We are growing up to be like our Parents. The core of our being, our spirit, is perfect love and perfect "God consciousness." We travel this River of Life to bring the "kingdom of God" to this world.

K.  The river of "God-realization"

  When Mellen-Thomas Benedict entered into the light during his NDE, the light responded to him by saying:

"This is the RIVER OF LIFE. Drink of this manna water to your heart's content."

When he did said that it was ecstatic. He asked the light to see the whole universe and beyond. The light told him that he could "go with the Stream." He was then carried through the light at the end of the tunnel. While in the light, Mellen-Thomas learned our higher purpose. Here are some of his and other NDE experiencers insights:

  Creation is God exploring God's Self through every way imaginable, in an ongoing, infinite exploration through every one of us. Through every piece of hair on your head, through every leaf on every tree, through every atom, God is exploring God's Self. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

  The interesting point was that I went into the void, I came back with this understanding that God is not there. God is here. That's what it is all about. So this constant search of the human race to go out and find God ... God gave everything to us, everything is here - this is where it's at. And what we are into now is God's exploration of God through us. People are so busy trying to become God that they ought to realize that we are already God and God is becoming us. That's what it is really about. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

  In this expanded state, I discovered that creation is about absolute pure consciousness, or God, coming into the experience of life as we know it. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

  "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." (David Goines)

  Our life in this world is a preparation for a fuller, freer and richer spirit world. It can be compared to life in the womb being a preparation for a fuller, freer and richer existence in the physical world. (Nora Spurgin)

  The conquering of self is truly greater than were one to conquer many worlds. (Edgar Cayce)

  Everyone who passes through this world must learn their final lessons in this world, where our free will is called into play in a fashion different from existence in other realms of reality. (Edgar Cayce)

  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." (David Oakford)

  Everyone's gain or loss affects everyone else to some degree because we are all connected. (Dr. PMH Atwater)

  In order to return to God we have to come to ourselves and realize that our lower nature is leading us down the road of materialism and of living only for ourselves. This causes us to turn away from God and our divine destiny. This caused us to forget who we are and it caused our spiritual death. (Dr. George Ritchie)

M.  There are a multitude of rivers to choose from

We choose our destiny. Before we were born, we had an opportunity to see all the possibilities for our life. Using an analogy, it is like standing on a mountain top looking at a large river below. We saw all the possibilities like a person can see all the branches and tributaries of the river. Our mission is to float this "river" of life. All the branches (opportunities) eventually return to the river (our mission) and to the sea (God). Returning to the sea is predestined, but how we decide to float the river it is based on our own free will.

  Everyone assisted in planning the conditions on Earth, including the laws of mortality which would govern us. These included the laws of physics as we know them, the limitations of our bodies, and spiritual powers that we would be able to access. (Betty Eadie)

  A heavenly process exists in the spirit realm that is designed to help us choose our destiny. (Dr. Allen Kellehear)

  The heavenly process determines the number of destinies a soul can choose from. This process is an astrological process. This astrological process is connected to the various realms of the afterlife. (Edgar Cayce)

  A cosmic matrix of rainbow light exists around the Earth. This matrix provides souls with a number of earthly destinies from which to choose from. Then, before we are born into the world, we are required to forget these memories. (Plato)

  We choose the life we are going to live and how much karma we are going to meet and settle. (Arthur Yensen)

  Before we were born, we choose our stations in life based upon the objectives of completing our missions. (Betty Eadie)

  We choose which body we to enter before birth. (Sandra Rogers)

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

  Because our spirits remember the plan we chose for this life, we are often drawn to people or situations that impact us in important ways. This is often the force behind 'chance' encounters. I was told there are no coincidences. However, making the most of these opportunities is up to us as we exercise our free will. (Betty Eadie)

  The decision to be born into this physical world is not an easy one. Our souls left a world of total wisdom, where they exist in a blissful state of freedom, for the physical and mental demands of a physical body. (Dr. Michael Newton)

  The rejuvenation of our energy and personal assessment of our soul takes longer for some souls than others, but eventually the soul is motivated to start the process of being born. While our spiritual environment is hard to leave, as souls we also remember the physical pleasures of life on Earth with fondness and even nostalgia. We feel the pull of having a physical expression for our identity. (Dr. Michael Newton)

  Dr. Michael Newton: Training sessions with our counselors and peer groups have provided a collaborative spiritual effort to prepare us for life in the flesh. Our souls takes action based upon three primary decisions:  

  Once the decision has been made, we are directed to the place of life selection. We then consider when and where we want to go on Earth before making a decision on who they will be in life. We then entered a heavenly building which resembles a movie theater to allow us to see ourselves in the future, playing different roles in various settings. In this place of life selection, our souls preview the life span of more than one human being within the same time cycle. When we leave this area, most souls are inclined toward one leading candidate presented to us for soul occupation. However, our spiritual advisors give us ample opportunity to reflect upon all we have seen in the future before making a final decision. (Dr. Michael Newton)

  After we completed our consultations with guides and peers about the many physical and psychological ramifications of entering the physical realm, the decision to come was made. Afterward, we underwent a significant amount of preparation in a place called the recognition class. This heavenly class is where we prepare ourselves for entry into the physical realm in a manner that is similar to cramming for a final exam. (Dr. Michael Newton)

  One of the last requirements before being born is that we went before the Council of Elders. The Elders reinforce the significance of our goals for life. Once we were ready for entering the physical realm, we were like battle-hardened veterans girding ourselves for combat. This was our last chance for us to enjoy the omniscience of knowing just who we are before we adapt to a physical body. (Dr. Michael Newton)

  We are given teachings, training, and anything we need to help us prepare for entering the physical realm. We choose our own pace and need not be hurried through the realms of the next dimensions. It may take what might feel like eons of time before our soul knows what is best for our development while in the flesh. (Betty Bethards)

  As part of our training, we are allowed to watch people on Earth to see how they handle situations in life. When we are ready, we can choose to be shown our past lives. If we don't believe in reincarnation it may take a long period of time before we are able to deal with this. Reviewing our past lives helps us recognize all the strengths we have built and all the karmic debts we have created which must be dissolved. (Betty Bethards)

  After integrating the knowledge learned from our past lives, we have reached a state of total objectivity. We feel no remorse or condemnation, but see it as merely a review of why situations occurred and had to be worked through. (Betty Bethards)

  When we made the decision to enter the physical realm for soul growth, we first planned with the members of our soul family the karmic considerations because our relationship with them is vital to what we desired to accomplish in earthly life. (Edgar Cayce)

  There was a vast amount of planning that was done before we were born. When planning for entering into the physical realm, we do not have physical details before us. Instead we have before us relationships to others, to situations, and to those forces which have prepared us. (Edgar Cayce)

  God not only prepares us to do his will, he also gives us all that we need to do it. He sends to our path the right people when we need them, whether we realize it or not. (Betty Eadie)

  In our decision-making process about the life we currently lead, we dealt largely with two factors:  

  Any habit-forming pleasure can traps them into the cycle of reincarnation over and over, until their appetites are finally put aside while they are in the flesh. This is a lesson for those souls who would like to break the cycle of reincarnation. (Ruth Montgomery)

N.  We are all on a mission from God

Information gleaned from many near-death accounts provides us with a wealth of information concerning concepts such as destiny, predestination, free will, missions and how they relate to our lives. Here are some of them:

  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. (Edgar Cayce)

  Our stations in life are based upon the objectives of completing our missions. We bonded with family and friends to help us in completing them. (Betty Eadie)

  We are here to learn. Our mission in life has to do with love. (Kimberly Clark Sharp)

  The fact that we are born here shows that we are on the path to developing an individual consciousness. Ultimately, we will find God within ourselves because this is our true identity. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

  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. (Hal)

  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. (Jan Price)