Embraced by the Light by Betty J. Eadie Review

Hello everyone! In my last blog I mentioned the text Embraced by the Light by Betty J. Eadie. I wanted to take some time to provide an overview and quotes from this book, as it has made a profound change in my outlook on this life and the next. I have read and reread this book over 5 times, adding notes as I went along. I no longer fear what waits for us after we die because Betty has provided the most complete near-death experience ever. She went into the hospital for a routine operation and in the early hours of one morning she passed from this life to the next. She explains her journey and her meeting with Jesus Christ. I am going to include several excerpts from the text along with some of my personal feelings. I've found they help give me strength while I deal with my bipolar and other perils in this life.

When she first passed Betty was greeted by men in robes enveloped in bright brilliant light. "They had been with me for "eternities," they said." "Eternity to me had always been in the future, but these beings said they had been with me for eternities in the past." "I saw that death was actually a "rebirth" into a greater life of understanding and knowledge that streaked forward and backward through time." p.31-32

She passed into a dark mass which turned into a tunnel where she felt other people and animals. She felt a sense of well being and calmness and sensed that some "didn't have the desire, or simply didn't know how to proceed. But there was no fear." "I had never felt greater tranquility in my life." p.38-39

As she emerged from the tunnel she came before Jesus, whose entire body was enveloped with golden light and halos. "And as our lights merged, I felt as if I had stepped into his countenance, and I felt an utter explosion of love. It was the most unconditional love I have ever felt, and as I saw his arms open to receive me I went to him and received his complete embrace and said over and over, "I'm home. I'm home. I'm finally home." p.41

She was told it was not yet her time. "My time would come when my mission, my purpose, my meaning in this life was accomplished." p.43

As she came up with questions they were all answered, however she hasn't been able to recall all of her experiences while in heaven. She believes that if she had been blessed with all those memories she simply would not have been able to successfully fulfill her life's journey, for she would always pine for what she had experienced.

"Why didn't God give us only one church, one pure religion? The answer came to me with the purest of understanding. Each of us, i was told, is at a different level of spiritual development and understanding. Each person is therefore prepared for a different level of spiritual knowledge. All religions upon the Earth are necessary because there are people who need what they teach. People in one religion may not have a complete understanding of the Lord's gospel and never will have while in that religion. But that religion is used as a stepping stone to further knowledge. Each church fulfills spiritual needs that perhaps others cannot fill. No one church can fulfill everybody's needs at every level. As an individual raises his level of understanding about God and his own eternal progress, he might feel discontented with the teachings of his present church and seek a different philosophy or religion to fill that void. When this occurs he has reached another level of understanding and will long for further truth and knowledge, and for another opportunity to grow." p.45-46

"In order to grasp this truth, we need to listen to the Spirit and let go of our egos." p.46

When Betty asked why anyone would want to leave this wonderful paradise and go to Earth, in answer she actually 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. All people as spirits in the pre-mortal world took part in the creation of the Earth. We were thrilled to be part of it. We were with God, and we knew that hew created us, that we were his very own children. He was pleased with our development and was filled with absolute love for each one of us. Also, Jesus Christ was there. I understood, to my surprise, that Jesus was a separate being from God , with His own divine purpose, and I knew that God was out mutual Father. ...the Father explained that coming to Earth for a time would further our spiritual growth. Each spirit who has come to Earth 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. We assisted God in the development of plants and animal life that would be here. Everything was created of spirit matter before it was created physically. ...I was told by the Savior that the spirit creation could be compared to one of our photographic prints; the spirit creation would be like a sharp, brilliant print and the Earth would be like its dark negative. This Earth is only a shadow of the beauty and glory of the spirit creation, but it is what we needed for our growth." p.47-48

"I saw that in the pre-mortal world we knew about and even chose our missions in life. I understood that our stations in life are based upon the objectives of those missions. Through divine knowledge we knew what many of our tests and experiences would be, and we prepared accordingly. We bonded with others-family members and friends-to help us complete our missions. ...We were given agency to act for ourselves here. Our own actions determine the course of our lives, and we can alter or redirect our lives at any time. I understood that this was crucial; God made the promise that he wouldn't intervene in our lives unless we asked Him." p.49

"I was gratified to see that the Earth is only a temporary place for our schooling and that sin is not our true nature. ...Although our spirit bodies are full of light, truth, and love, they must battle constantly to overcome the flesh, and this strengthens them. ...Whatever we become here in mortality is meaningless unless it is done for the benefit of others. Our gifts and talents are given to us to help us serve. And in serving others we grow spiritually." p.49-50

"Above all, I was shown that love is supreme." p.51

This next passage seems to refer to quantum physics, which falls in line with the book The Secret and the documentary What the Bleep Do We Know? "Within our universe are both positive and negative energies, and both types of energy are essential to creation and growth. These energies have intelligence-they do our will. They are willing servants. God has absolute power over both energies. Positive energy is basically just what we would think it is: light, goodness, kindness, love, patience, charity, hope and so on. And negative energy is just what we would think it is: darkness, hatred, fear (Satan's greatest tool), unkindness, intolerance, selfishness, despair, discouragement, and so on. Positive and negative energies work in opposition to each other. And when we internalize these energies, they become our servants. Positive attracts positive, and negative attracts negative. ... Simply by thinking positive thoughts and speaking positive words we attract positive energy. I saw that this is the case. I saw different energies around different people. I saw how a person's words can actually affect the energy field around them. The very words themselves-the vibrations in the air-attract one type of energy or another. A person's desires have a similar effect. There is power in our thoughts. We create our own surroundings by the thoughts we think. Physically, this may take a period of time, but spiritually it is instantaneous." p57-58.

"Love is supreme. Love must govern. ...First, we must love the Creator. ...Then we must love ourselves. ...Then, we must love all others as ourselves." p.59-60

"...fear is the opposite of love and is Satan's greatest tool. Since I feared God, I could not truly love him, and in not loving Him, I couldn't love myself or others purely either." p.61

I'm going to end with the knowledge Betty gained about illness because for me, it helps me understand why I have bipolar.  "To my surprise I saw that most of us has selected the illnesses we would suffer, and for some, the illness that would end our lives. Sometimes healing does not come immediately, or at all, because of our need for growth. All experience is for our own good, and sometimes it takes what we would consider negative experience to help develop our spirits. We were very willing, even anxious, as spirits to accept all of our ailments, illness, and accidents here to help better ourselves spiritually. I understood that in the spirit world our Earth time is meaningless. The pain we experience on Earth is just a moment, just a split second of consciousness in the spirit world, and we are very willing to endure it." p.67

In the future I will continue citing this text until I cover it in its entirety(147pages), but I'm getting a backache sitting in front of the computer, lol.

I hope Betty's experiences can help you as they've helped me deal with the life I was given, bipolar and all. Here's a link to Betty's website: http://www.embracedbythelight.com/  Stayed tuned next week for my conclusion of her book.