{"id":16280,"date":"2026-09-05T09:46:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T14:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/?p=16280"},"modified":"2026-09-08T09:56:33","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T14:56:33","slug":"heaven-is-my-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/16280\/heaven-is-my-home\/","title":{"rendered":"Heaven Is My Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hi John,<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, I was looking for a certain Bible verse that I had typed in my phone notes, and I came across this testimony that I had written down a couple of years ago. I read it to Tina this morning and it blessed me all over again, so I wanted to share it!\u00a0 I have told part of this testimony in a meeting, but there are parts that I haven\u2019t shared and I felt they were worth sharing.\u00a0 What a wonderful visitation this was from the Lord!\u00a0 This is what I wrote:<\/span><\/p>\n

February 24, 2004<\/span><\/p>\n

Tonight, I had a wonderful experience with Jesus and I want to write it out so I won\u2019t forget it!<\/p>\n

I read a “Random Thought” before bed titled \u201cWithout God\u201d.*\u00a0 In it, Pastor John described what it means to worship God in vain.\u00a0 He wrote that we can worship God by invitation only and that worshipping any other way is in vain.\u00a0 God\u2019s mercy calls us and then we respond, and we should be ready when that happens.\u00a0 Stay available!\u00a0 By the time I got to the end of the reading, I was feeling that invitation from Jesus, and I couldn\u2019t wait to turn out my light and get still.\u00a0 I was lying on my back in the dark with my eyes opened and I was looking around my bedroom as if I might see Jesus standing there.\u00a0 I whispered, \u201cI don\u2019t know why I am looking around this room for you because you are not that far away.\u00a0 I can feel you right here close to me.\u201d \u00a0He felt much closer than my ceiling or the walls.<\/p>\n

I was not expecting at all what the Spirit then spoke to me.\u00a0 He said, \u201cYou know when Pastor John was warning you all about having that deep Pentecostal worry?\u00a0 That was for you.”\u00a0 When he said that, I put my hand over my mouth and let out a little gasp because \u00a0I immediately knew what he was talking about.<\/p>\n

Let me explain.\u00a0 During the previous Sunday meeting and again on the Monday morning by the fire, Pastor John had warned us about not getting under that \u201cheavy, gloomy, old-line Pentecostal worry\u201d, where we worry about Jesus seeing something bad in our heart.\u00a0 He reminded us instead to be anxious for nothing, and assured us that if there was something God needed to show us, he would do it.\u00a0 We just needed to be available to hear it.\u00a0 And in the meantime, be happy!<\/p>\n

When he told us those things on Sunday, I thought it was very good advice, but I honestly did not think that kind of worry applied to me.\u00a0 Generally speaking, I am not a big worrier.\u00a0 But lying in my bed last night, the spirit immediately brought an example of that kind of worrying to my mind.\u00a0 It was this: \u00a0I worry sometimes about not making it to heaven.\u00a0 I don\u2019t dwell on it, but now and again when I do think about it, I just have a hard time imagining myself making it in.\u00a0 Instead, I picture myself standing at the gate and they let me know they found something in my heart that I hadn\u2019t known was there, or they tell me something I\u2019ve done that I forgot to ask forgiveness for.\u00a0 It feels silly to me as I write this, but it\u2019s true.\u00a0 And it makes no sense because I am not walking around with a guilty conscience.\u00a0 Recently, Ben and I read in 1Corinthians were Paul says he knew nothing against himself, but Jesus is the judge.\u00a0 I stopped and told Ben that\u2019s how I feel.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know of anything I\u2019ve done, but Jesus is the judge.\u00a0 When praising God at our last Saturday night meeting, I had the thought as I looked up at my hands when praising God, \u201cClean hands; clean heart!\u201d \u00a0I felt like I was praising God with clean hands and a clean heart and it felt so good!\u00a0 So, why I have this fear about not making it into heaven, I don\u2019t even know.\u00a0 It really does not make any sense.\u00a0 It really is one of those baseless Pentecostal worries.<\/p>\n

But lying in my bed last night, the spirit told me that what Pastor John said about the Pentecostal worry was for me, and I knew exactly what he meant.\u00a0 He said to me, \u201cI want you to stop that!\u00a0 From now on, I want you to think of heaven as your home.\u201d \u00a0He added, \u201cYou just keep loving me and you will be fine.”\u00a0 Wow!!\u00a0 That was so big to me!!\u00a0 I covered my face with my hands and just cried and said, \u201cOh God!\u201d<\/p>\n

The God of this universe told me that heaven is my HOME!\u00a0 I felt such a relief from a burden that I didn\u2019t even realize I had been carrying!\u00a0 I told him I would never forget this.\u00a0 And then quickly changed that to, \u201cPlease don\u2019t ever let me forget this!\u201d<\/p>\n

He also pointed out an example of me with my grandchildren and how much I enjoy them when we are together.\u00a0 Reminding me much I love to love up on them and watch them playing and having a good time, carefree and uninhibited.\u00a0 And then he asked me, \u201cHow would you feel if your grandchildren were afraid of you, or they were constantly worried you were going to punish them at any moment?\u201d \u00a0I thought how sad that would make me feel for them because my intentions towards them are only good and loving.\u00a0 He was driving home Pastor John\u2019s point about not getting under that worry thing and just be happy!<\/p>\n

It was the sweetest time with Jesus.\u00a0 Finally, as I was lying there in the dark thinking about sitting around the fire at PJ\u2019s earlier that day, I saw myself in my usual seat and I pictured everyone else in their seats and Pastor John sitting on the couch with Barbara where he usually sits.\u00a0 I was imagining him talking to us, telling us wonderful things and us there listening to and hanging on to his every word (as usually happens).\u00a0 The Spirit interrupted my thoughts and said so tenderly, \u201cI love your pastor.”\u00a0 I told him through tears, \u201cI do, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s now after 3:00 am and I have to wake up at 6:00 am to go to work.\u00a0 Not sure if I am going to make it!\u00a0 :).\u00a0 But I am having a hard time sleeping after hearing from the King himself telling me to think of heaven as my home!\u00a0 That\u2019s so big!\u00a0 I hope I never have another worry about making it in.\u00a0 Oh Jesus!\u00a0 I love you so much!!\u00a0 I read in 1Corinthinans 16:22 tonight, \u201cIf anyone feels no affection for the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed.\u201d \u00a0I thought, \u201cWhat??\u00a0 How could anyone not feel affection for you, Jesus?\u201d \u00a0Just the idea of that made me feel offended!<\/p>\n

He also reminded me tonight to love the people he\u2019s put in my life.\u00a0 And I asked him, \u201cEven if they don\u2019t love you?\u201d \u00a0He said, \u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0 I told him, \u201cI feel offended that they don\u2019t love you.”\u00a0 (Thinking about family members with the holy Ghost who have turned their backs on Jesus). He said, \u201cBe kind to them for your own sake.”\u00a0 I understood what he meant.\u00a0 I thought about Galatians 6:10, \u201cSo then, as we have opportunity, let us do good toward all men, but especially toward those of the household of faith.\u201d \u00a0That kind of life leaves no room for regrets.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a correction.\u00a0 I feel Jesus is pleased with the way I have treated them.<\/p>\n

I am so thankful for that visit from Jesus and his wonderful instructions to me for living, but it\u2019s not lost on me that the wonderful experience I had was a direct result of your teaching us, John.\u00a0 I loved that part of my testimony when the Spirit said to me, \u201cI love your pastor.”\u00a0 It brought tears to my eyes just typing it again.\u00a0 I read earlier today when Paul wrote, \u201cTo me, the least of all saints, was this grace given, to preach among the Gentiles the incomprehensible richness of Christ.” That\u2019s what you\u2019ve been given to do, Pastor John, \u201cPreach the incomprehensible richness of Christ\u201d to us sheep.\u00a0 And you\u2019ve done such a wonderful job getting that richness to us!\u00a0 I love it!\u00a0 If it goes in and becomes us, then it leads to these kinds of wonderful experiences with Jesus.\u00a0 Whew!\u00a0 It\u2019s just so rich!!<\/span><\/p>\n

And finally, I read this in Philippians 3:20-21 and just had to smile:\u00a0 “Our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we earnestly await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body into the likeness of his glorious body by the operation of the power by which he is able to subdue all things to himself.”\u00a0 Wow! \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With much love and thankfulness!<\/span><\/p>\n

Lee Ann<\/span><\/p>\n

*<\/span>Going to Jesus.com – Without God<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi John, Today, I was looking for a certain Bible verse that I had typed in my phone notes, and I came across this testimony that I had written down a couple of years ago. I read it to Tina this morning and it blessed me all over again, so I wanted to share it!\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16280","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-netmail"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16280"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16280"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16280\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16283,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16280\/revisions\/16283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16280"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16280"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16280"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}