Thank you to Lillian Parks for sharing this story with us:  

I was just an ordinary girl. I never would have expected to meet Jesus on my deathbed at only 16 years old. I was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer at 13. One afternoon, I felt a terrible pain in my chest. I had been on the list for a lung transplant for awhile. my parents had paid all their savings and more just to keep me alive, even though the survival rate was so low. We rushed to the hospital.

The nurses wheeled me into the operating room. I felt so weak and frail, my breaths coming in short, painful gasps. The harsh fluorescent lights glared down on me as I stared up at the sterile white ceiling. I was terrified, but tried to put on a brave face for my parents. They held my hands, telling me everything would be okay, but I could see the fear and desperation in their tear-filled eyes.

As the anesthesia started to take effect, I felt myself drifting off into a deep, dark abyss. But then suddenly, a warm, bright light enveloped me. And there, standing before me, was the most beautiful, radiant being I had ever seen. It was God himself, smiling at me with pure love and compassion.

“My child,” he said, his voice like a soothing melody. “You have struggled and suffered so much in your short life. But I am here to tell you that it’s time to let go of what’s been holding you back and poisoning your body. Your smoking addiction has ravaged your lungs and brought you to the brink of death. But I am giving you a second chance at life with this transplant. Promise me you will honor this gift and never smoke again.”

Tears streamed down my face as I nodded, overwhelmed by his presence and message. He reached out and touched my cheek, filling me with a peace and strength I had never known. Then, in a flash, he was gone and I was waking up in the recovery room, my parents’ relieved faces hovering over me. I knew right then that I had been given a miracle, and vowed in that moment to cherish my new lungs and live life to the fullest, free of cigarettes. It was a long road ahead, but I had God on my side now. And for the first time in years, I could finally breathe again.