A Louisville pastor who died on the operating table said he saw heaven and even heard the voice of Jesus say it was not his time. The heavenly experience took place in January, when Mike Olsen was undergoing a double lung transplant and bled out after the last clamp was removed, Christian Headlines reported.
Mike had been diagnosed with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis in 2014 and, although he had never been a smoker, the Iona Community Church pastor had to rely on the support of an oxygen tank to breathe. He was put onto the transplant list and his prayers were finally answered this year.
Mike was scheduled for surgery in January but then things took a wrong turn on the operating table. According to a Facebook post, his wife Patti explained that Mike's "body was not being properly oxygenated by his new lungs" and he was placed into a medically induced coma.
Revisiting the traumatic experience, Mike said he saw heaven.
"I saw these swirling lights and I heard this pattern of voices or something," he said, according to Christian Headlines. "And I just realized now what they were saying. They were saying: 'Mike's coming home. Mike's coming home. And then I heard Jesus say: 'It's not his time. He's just here for a visit.'"
Mike said the memories of what happened were coming back to him like a story unfolding.
"I'm realizing I had a genuine supernatural experience with God," he said. "And it really helps me realize the love of God for each one of us."
Now in recovery, Mike told WDRB-TV his new lungs were serving him well.
"I have so much more breath in my lungs as opposed to my diseased lungs, and so it just feels like I haven't felt in years," he said. "I am so grateful for my donor."
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