Paul Washer’s Near Death Experience: Paul Washer’s once had a heart attack and learned firsthand that life is a vapor. You can read his account at Banner of Truth. The following are key points from the article.
According to Washer,
Without warning, I fell to the kitchen floor unconscious. I remember nothing that happened thereafter until five days later when I found myself in a hospital room. I asked what happened, and someone said, ‘You died three times.’ My heart had stopped and had been resuscitated on three separate occasions.
As you might imagine with someone as intense as Paul Washer (or anyone for that matter), the experience led to deep reflection. If he had died and/or stayed dead, what would he have changed, and what would he now change given that God spared his life. Washer identified three things.
The first one was love
He writes that he regretted not loving more. He doesn’t mean the sentimental sort of love, but a Christ-like servant love for family, other Christians, the unbelieving world and even his enemies. Interestingly, Washer didn’t regret not preaching enough on the streets, or not studying enough. He regretted not spending more time with his daughter.
Intercessory prayer
He goes on to say that studying had never been difficult for him. On the other hand, for him, intercessory prayer is work: it is war against his flesh, the clock and the devil. Washer says his flesh hates intercessory prayer, fastings, and night watches. So does mine. He notes,
But it is in the prayer closet and in the night watches that darkness is beaten back, that Christ gains ground in the heart, that souls are redeemed, and that battles are won…May God help me and you spend our days on the earth in believing, persevering, and prevailing intercessory prayer!
Third is focus
Washer’s third point is a specifically personal one, and will not apply to his readers. This is where he reveals his heart for the HeartCry Ministry. He humbly asks for prayer,
‘Why am I here surrounded by so many outstanding teachers instead of [being] in some remote jungle or mountain range where there are so few, if any?’ Please pray for me and the HeartCry staff that we might ‘burn’ and ‘burn out’ for the unreached and for those who labor with so little.
While his personal focus will not apply to most of us, note that his heart is for the unreached. And he brings us back to the second point – intercessory prayer. This gives us all something to think about in our own lives.
Does my heart burn for the lost? Am I praying for them and the ministries?
Maranatha!
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