Is Heaven Real?: A Near-Death Experience Story Pt. 1 | Ep. 113 with Steve and Elaine Musick
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Heaven isn’t just a distant hope—it may be closer than we think. In this two-part episode of No Grey Areas, we sit down with Steve and Elaine Musick to hear their incredible story of love, faith, and a near-death experience that forever changed their lives. Steve shares what he saw, felt, and heard during his time in a five-week coma—offering a glimpse of heaven that challenges how we view life on earth.
From a childhood of pain to a powerful moment under an oak tree with Jesus, Steve’s journey is one of redemption, identity, and purpose. Whether you’re skeptical, curious, or simply in need of hope, this conversation will surely stir your soul.
No Grey Areas is a motivational podcast with captivating guests centered around how our choices humanize, empower, and define who we become. This podcast is inspired by the cautionary tale, No Grey Areas, written by Joseph Gagliano. Learn more about the truth behind his story involved with sports' biggest scandal at https://www.nogreyareas.com/
Transcript
Host
Imagine experiencing the beauty of heaven only to be told you can't stay. In part one of this two part episode of No Gray Areas podcast. We're joined by Steve and Elaine music with a mind blowing story that will leave you changed. Steve takes us on a journey through his near-death experience, how he got there, what he saw, who we encountered in heaven, how it changed him forever.
::Host
Let's get started.
::Pat McCalla
Steve and Elaine music.
::Pat McCalla
Did I say that right?
::Steve Musick
Yes.
::Pat McCalla
Okay, good. Thank you so much for being on the No Gray Areas podcast. You have an unbelievable story. Audience. I can promise you that you will be moved by
::Steve Musick
this story, that you will,
::Pat McCalla
you'll be motivated and inspired by the story and challenged by this story.
::Pat McCalla
Just to give them a little sneak peek into it. You had a near-death experience, Steve, where you actually went to heaven and had a conversation with Jesus. And I'm going to leave our.
::Pat McCalla
Listeners hanging there. We're going to get to that.
::Pat McCalla
But I want to back
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Hide that fastball.
::Steve Musick
Yeah, yeah, hide that fastball. You
::Pat McCalla
don't want to miss that part of the story, trust me.
::Pat McCalla
But let me back up, though, and just so we can understand a little bit of who you are, your origin stories. So, Stephen, Elaine kind of back up and bring us up to that point when that happens. Because you were
::Steve Musick
22 years old, is that 20,
::Pat McCalla
20 years old. So, yeah. Bring us up to that. Steve, why don't we start with you, tell us a little bit about what your childhood was and, and how that impacted this event that you had when you're in your 20s.
::Steve Musick
So I grew up in a, in a Christian household. But my upbringing and my, my raising would be characterized as, violent and vacant, and, and my brother was non diagnosed bipolar, and he was a gifted, nationally ranked athlete.
::Steve Musick
And so he's an older brother. And for us, I was a we were latchkey kids. And when we got home from school it was terror time.
::Pat McCalla
So the violence was primarily because
::Steve Musick
because of your brother. Brother?
::Steve Musick
And how much older was it?
::Steve Musick
Two years. But it really didn't matter. I mean, he was
::Pat McCalla
growing up two years is
::Steve Musick
a big difference.
::Steve Musick
Huge, huge difference. And and he was,
::Steve Musick
you know, part of part of being a parent of a, of somebody that's non diagnosed bipolar. He's he was a challenge. And so because of his athletic prowess, our living room looked like a shrine to my brother. And being trophies and medals and articles in the newspaper and national magazines and all of that.
::Steve Musick
And I grew up unknown. I didn't show up. I'm like invisible.
::Steve Musick
So I was a I was a brainiac. Spent all my, you know, getting getting in a place where you had to stay after school for me was actually a good thing. I stayed in school and. Hang on, hang out at the library, and I don't have to go home.
::Pat McCalla
This go on all through elementary, junior high and high
::Steve Musick
Elementary, junior high.
::Pat McCalla
So you by the time and we're we're leading up to this story then. But by the time this happens to you when you're 20 or 22, where are you just personally in life like mentally, spiritually, physically.
::Steve Musick
where are you?
::Steve Musick
I'm I'm a dutiful Christian. I accepted Christ at age seven.
::Steve Musick
Was Orthodox Episcopalian. So we did the catechism and was, you know, anointed by the bishop and did that whole thing. But, it was kind of like buying a ticket to a movie. And I got the ticket but never got in to get the show. I didn't really understand the relationship.
::Steve Musick
That's such
::Pat McCalla
a great I that's such a great analogy
::Pat McCalla
dig into that a little bit more. So you're saying you bought it's like you bought a movie to the show, but you never got in the show. What do you mean by that?
::Steve Musick
Well, I,
::Steve Musick
Being a brainiac. I understood all the rules, but but I never I never really understood that there's a relationship as well. So, I bought a ticket, but I never really got to see the show.
::Pat McCalla
So up until this experience that we're going to talk about,
::Pat McCalla
didn't really have a, what we might call an
::Steve Musick
intimate relationship. No. Or with Jesus. No. You were following a checklist of.
::Steve Musick
Rules, right? And one of the reasons.
::Steve Musick
Becomes
::Pat McCalla
for most people. Right?
::Steve Musick
Well, one of the reasons I, I, I subscribed to that was I was hoping that church would give me a respite from life. And it turned out not so much.
::Pat McCalla
yeah. Wow.
::Pat McCalla
So, Elaine, how about you? What? What was your story? Go. You. Colorado.
::Steve Musick
You're Colorado.
::Steve Musick
Born and raised. I'm a third generation native.
::Pat McCalla
Wow. Okay. So, Elaine, are you from
::Elaine Musick
Colorado?
::Elaine Musick
I am, I'm a native as well.
::Pat McCalla
Wow. You guys never. I just did a three week road trip through Colorado with my wife this summer because our in-laws just moved there.
::Pat McCalla
Unbelievable. Incredible. Like the the the million dollar
::Elaine Musick
highway. Oh, yeah. Oh, I was just in there so
::Pat McCalla
I can see why you
::Steve Musick
didn't.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. It's like. Oh, no.
::Pat McCalla
Yeah, it's it's amazing.
::Pat McCalla
So, Elaine, tell us a little bit about your
::Elaine Musick
So, I grew up in a different kind of a household. I'm, the only daughter I had two brothers, both older. So there's between my oldest brother and I. There's ten years, and, my other brother and I were six years. That brother passed away several years ago. Unfortunately. But,
::Elaine Musick
we were a close. A close family were a very small family.
::Elaine Musick
We don't have a lot of, you know, cousins and all that kind of stuff. So, did not have any of that. I did have a church life. I would say, grew up in the Methodist church, but it was really my brothers and I would go to church on Sunday. My parents didn't because my dad was a musician.
::Elaine Musick
He always had a performance or rehearsal on on that day. So my mom would stay and cook and we would go to church and come home and eat, and he would go off and do his, his job. So
::Elaine Musick
it wasn't a highly spiritual, upbringing, but,
::Elaine Musick
my parents were involved in the church as they were growing up.
::Elaine Musick
And were supportive, and it just wasn't a very overt religious or spiritual, relationship, but it was a very happy household. I
::Elaine Musick
thoroughly enjoyed.
::Elaine Musick
It.
::Steve Musick
Absolutely.
::Elaine Musick
Absolutely.
::Pat McCalla
Probably two older brothers and your older one being ten years apart. You were probably really protected.
::Elaine Musick
Yes. Yeah. And it was
::Steve Musick
Oh, and it was
::Elaine Musick
it was truly that whole thing of,
::Elaine Musick
they could tease me. They could, we could have, you know, arguments as, as all kids do. But if anybody else stepped in, they were my biggest protector. Absolutely.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah. And just
::Pat McCalla
like that with a lot of healthy siblings.
::Elaine Musick
Yes.
::Pat McCalla
they have the, the fighting amongst themselves sometimes if it's in a healthy way
::Steve Musick
Like, yeah,
::Pat McCalla
but then it's like a two dogs fighting. You do not want to get in
::Elaine Musick
that. No. Because they both
::Pat McCalla
turn on you.
::Steve Musick
and that's.
::Steve Musick
Exactly.
::Steve Musick
Exactly interesting
::Pat McCalla
though to hear your stories.
::Pat McCalla
I just think of the difference between your story with older brothers who were protective and doing what older brothers should in your story, Steve with an older brother who was abusive and
::Steve Musick
Right.
::Pat McCalla
So you had two different experiences with older brothers.
::Elaine Musick
Very much.
::Pat McCalla
so you you come are you do you know each other? By the time this event happens,
::Steve Musick
Yes.
::Pat McCalla
then I'm pointing at this book.
::Pat McCalla
Our audience
::Steve Musick
Oh yes, I'm
::Pat McCalla
pointing out. I'm pointing.
::Pat McCalla
At the book you.
::Pat McCalla
Wrote, Life After Heaven. So you guys knew each other?
::Steve Musick
Yeah. We went. We met each other in college? Yeah. College.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Okay.
::Pat McCalla
in Colorado.
::Steve Musick
Yes. Yes.
::Steve Musick
University in
::Elaine Musick
Colorado. Go, buffs.
::Steve Musick
Go buffs. And and you know, she lived right down the hall in a coed dorm.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And
::Steve Musick
and wow.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
That's true for your first. It's like it's like.
::Steve Musick
Oh my God I am like in college.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
This is worth the tuition that I'm paying.
::Steve Musick
I'm telling you that's great. Yeah, yeah.
::Pat McCalla
So you guys know when does this happen? This? You've been in college about two years. Then when this
::Steve Musick
I graduated high school at 17. I went to work for a year, saved up enough money for one year of college, and ran out of money right on schedule. Yeah. And so we met first year of college
::Steve Musick
and.
::Steve Musick
Wow.
::Steve Musick
Wow. Yeah. It's like, oh, yes, there was a chance here. Well, I never dated. I was a social dwarf, so I never dated in high school. It didn't. I didn't have a grid for that wasn't very good there.
::Pat McCalla
You probably saved yourself some heartache.
::Steve Musick
Yeah, well, it was it was hard where some girls would warm up to me just so they could get close to my brother, who was a hunk.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And a phenomenal.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. And all that. So.
::Steve Musick
at that time, if you were not enrolled in a, in higher education, you had to register for the draft. And my draft lottery number was 16.
::Steve Musick
And listeners that don't know what that means.
::Steve Musick
It could have been 256,489. Mine was 16. Yeah. And it means you're going.
::Steve Musick
You're going.
::Steve Musick
You're going. No. And so the the choice was you could either, wait and get drafted or you could join. And I made a, made a heartful decision to join the Navy
::Pat McCalla
you recall why
::Steve Musick
having.
::Steve Musick
Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, had never seen the ocean.
::Pat McCalla
So you're like, If I'm going to do this there's going to be some adventure in
::Steve Musick
Yes. And, odds on favorite if, if, if you're going to be in the Navy, you're going to be on an aircraft carrier and you could do a scholarship at sea. I mean, an aircraft carrier is like a
::Steve Musick
traveling city, and you could get almost a complete undergraduate
::Steve Musick
diploma, in your four years enlistment. Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And that's I thought, okay, I'm going to make the best of this.
::Steve Musick
And that was that was sort of my plan.
::Pat McCalla
So where where does your plan go? Stray a little bit.
::Steve Musick
in boot camp. It was really the first time that I could actually be me. I was no longer invisible, and I no longer had the baggage, but I could. I could actually be me.
::Pat McCalla
what's interesting about that, though? Can I interrupt for a moment?
::Steve Musick
Sure.
::Pat McCalla
interesting about what you're saying? Because I have two kids that are in the military. One that was and she's out now and then my son is still in the Marine Corps, that most often people go in the military and they say they feel invisible, right.
::Pat McCalla
Because you're all wearing the
::Steve Musick
same.
::Pat McCalla
You all have the same haircuts.
::Pat McCalla
but you had the opposite because of what you came from. You actually feel like I'm being seen now, like I'm. I'm my own person.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. How interesting.
::Steve Musick
loved it. I mean, I loved it, the second week of boot camp, they sit you in a big conference room and they test you academically. They're they're doing academic, you know, fill in the box. And the in the third week, they there was a group of Navy Seals that said, hey, if you guys want to try out for seals, Aqua Center 6:00
::Steve Musick
be there.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And so I'm, I'm sitting there at lunch eating and I'm thinking,
::Steve Musick
that sounds like fun. I'd like to try that. So there were 900 guys in the battalion.
::Steve Musick
There were 30 guys that showed up at the Aqua Center, one of them, and I'm one of them. And at the end of a two hour gantlet of brutality, there are only three guys left.
::Steve Musick
And I remember clear as a bell, one of the one, one of the seals laid out warm clothes because they throw you in a pool and they make you swim and they go through all. And then the last challenge is they and this is North Chicago in December, fully wet. They throw you out on the grinder and make you run a mile and under six.
::Pat McCalla
Wow.
::Steve Musick
And so we come back in and we're freezing. Oh yeah. We're. Yeah. So there's nice warm clothing. They're utilities. They've all laid out. And all of a sudden these rough hardened seals become, warm, sensitive, real people. And I remember one of the big burly seals yanks me up off of the of the concrete. And he says, you got sand, sailor.
::Steve Musick
He says, now, this is just a token of what it's like in Coronado. But you are eligible. You qualify to become one of us if you make it, and I think you have what it takes, you will join the best family ever.
::Steve Musick
Wow.
::Steve Musick
And what went through me at that time was I never really understood family
::Pat McCalla
Wow.
::Steve Musick
and I was really like that
::Steve Musick
that would be wonderful.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Yeah.
::Steve Musick
So the next week I get called into, but I get called into recruit training headquarters. So the guy in charge there is a captain, a line officer. He's rotated to recruit training and I walk in and I think I must have done something really bad because there's all kinds of gold and stripes and, you know, star Wars, it's like.
::Steve Musick
And I'm standing there in utilities. I mean, I'm just I'm and
::Steve Musick
I stood in front of the yeoman who's the secretary there. And I said, I'm, I'm seaman recruit music. I'm here to see that captain. And she just went like this. She's, you know, she just points. She didn't even say anything. She didn't hardly look up.
::Steve Musick
She was pregnant.
::Steve Musick
So I walked in and and my commanding guy, company commander, he's in the room too. And he's at absolute attention. And I'd never not seen that. Yeah. And so I quickly snapped to attention. And the captain's got my records in front of him. And he looks up at me and he says in a classic Navy line officer way, he says, what in the hell are you doing in recruit training?
::Steve Musick
He said, your test scores are off the charts.
::Steve Musick
And I told him, well, I, you know, went to a year college, ran out of money, but draft lottery number 16, that's how I got here. And then he flips over the page and he goes and seals.
::Steve Musick
He says, I hope you play football. He said, you look like a linebacker to me.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. And he said, I wanted to let you know that after your a school across the the railroad tracks. He said you're not going to the fleet. He said you're going to Annapolis. We have a billet for certain people like you. Yeah. To go to the Naval Academy. So I'm walking.
::Steve Musick
That is I don't you need
::Pat McCalla
to like to to go to Annapolis? Don't you need, like, a senator or signature
::Steve Musick
or in there.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
Yeah, it's it's on her. So I'm walking out of there with my company commander, and and he turns to me and he goes, it's I can't believe I'm doing this. He said, you know, he said, I'm going to end up at some point in time saluting your ass.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And and he looks, it really goes. But for the next eight weeks he said, your ass is mine. You know,
::Steve Musick
And I'm thinking there is a god. Yeah. I, I, I'm now seen I have opportunity, I'm capable, I'm, I'm all of those things. And so I make a phone call to my beloved and I said, I said, you can't believe what just happened.
::Pat McCalla
Are you guys dating at this point? Are you married?
::Steve Musick
No. Dating betrothed.
::Steve Musick
I won the lottery, but I got.
::Steve Musick
You know.
::Steve Musick
Oh yeah, it's like, oh, man, don't let me mess this up.
::Pat McCalla
the way, congrats. Because you told me before we turned the mics on. 47 years of marriage
::Steve Musick
Oh. So. Yeah,
::Pat McCalla
you did. All
::Steve Musick
right.
::Steve Musick
Hey, you know
::Steve Musick
It's a it's a gift. Yeah. I describe her in public as an angel with skin,
::Steve Musick
and she always goes. She goes. No, I'm not, I well, that's my view.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. So.
::Steve Musick
there. There was like almost: ::Steve Musick
And they had Carmen running up and down.
::Steve Musick
And you're in the military, so you get the drill. It's like, okay, you're get inoculated for something.
::Steve Musick
Well, the United States government was panicked about a swine flu epidemic, very similar to what we just went through in in the the Covid.
::Elaine Musick
ago.
::Pat McCalla
Yep.
::Steve Musick
and they created a swine flu vaccine and they needed a test bed
::Steve Musick
for the vaccine.
::Pat McCalla
this is sounding really familiar.
::Steve Musick
And so they inoculated everybody. They inoculated everybody at recruit training, everybody at the school, everybody on state side, everybody on the hospital side, and everybody at Fort Sheridan, which is the soldier fort a little bit south of us.
::Steve Musick
And I had allergic reaction to the swine flu vaccine. And it's the first time since World War two, the Great Lakes Regional Hospital was full to a divert status.
::Steve Musick
I mean, it looked like triage. It was just, there's.
::Steve Musick
A lot of people.
::Steve Musick
It was awful. Yeah, yeah, it was terrible. Now, I was one of the worst.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
So,
::Steve Musick
I recovered out of that, but I never got. Well.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And, a couple of months later, it tells you a little bit about the fortitude that I had a couple of months later. I'm just losing. I'm losing ground. I'm literally drowning in my own fluids.
::Steve Musick
And so I go to the emergency department of the Regional medical Center, and, you know, it's a military hospital. It's a VA hospital.
::Steve Musick
So usually it's like, take a number, take a seat.
::Steve Musick
And wait at.
::Steve Musick
And,
::Steve Musick
the person at the front took one look at me and I'm in a retreat. Them in a treatment area immediately. And they're, they're doing all the normal stuff because I literally am drowning in my own fluids. The, the swine flu just is overwhelming me. And so, they, they started an IV and, you know, the doctor is doing all kinds of stuff ordering.
::Steve Musick
I want this and I want that, and I want this, and I want that. And about half an hour later, a nurse walks in with a huge syringe and she's she's tapping the syringe to get all the air bubbles out of it.
::Steve Musick
I call her Nurse Ratched. Shed.
::Steve Musick
I knew that something was about to come unglued because the song on the radio in the emergency department where I was is playing Evil Woman by ELO.
::Steve Musick
And she's standing.
::Steve Musick
As she's standing there tap of those tickets. So she takes that and she puts it into my IV tube and pushes the plunger all the way in, opens up the IV and, well, it's supposed to be the treatment for the the symptoms that I'm having and the swine flu. It's supposed to dry you out. Well, I'm allergic to the treatment,
::Steve Musick
and they just.
::Steve Musick
I didn't know that. I'm,
::Steve Musick
I'm 20 years old, and I go out. It's last year. I remember
::Host
Hey, we hope you've enjoyed this episode so far. Be sure to like and subscribe to not miss a future podcast! Okay, let's get back to the episode.
::Steve Musick
She did she leans in and she says, this will fix you right up.
::Pat McCalla
As if a
::Steve Musick
woman.
::Steve Musick
As evil one that's flying like.
::Steve Musick
And that song still comes on the radio. Who usually gets change?
::Steve Musick
Yeah. It's like, who gives me the willies just thinking about it?
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
how long were you out when you say you go out. Is that when you went into a coma.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Five weeks.
::Pat McCalla
you go into a coma for five weeks prior to that. You're battling this for months, couple of
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Symptoms of this? Yeah. You in
::Pat McCalla
and out of the hospital
::Steve Musick
No, I was
::Steve Musick
I was still studying in a school. I was
::Pat McCalla
Okay, so you're trying to
::Steve Musick
fight.
::Steve Musick
I'm fighting it.
::Pat McCalla
feeling miserable, and
::Steve Musick
because
::Pat McCalla
body's not handling fluids,
::Steve Musick
I'm a seal. Yeah, yeah. I'm not going to let this thing get me up. Yeah, but at some point in time, you just get overwhelmed.
::Pat McCalla
Elaine, I want to ask you in just a moment, just so kind of catch us up on what you're thinking. So you get this call from him saying, like, hey, they said that, you know, they want to send me to Annapolis and all of this, and then boom,
::Pat McCalla
now he's having all these health issues, and now he's in a coma.
::Pat McCalla
What what are you dealing with or what are you hearing? What's going on with you?
::Elaine Musick
I was in college at that point in time, and, I, I tend to get very focused on things. And my education was exactly where I was at that point in time. And, you know, particularly with boot camp in the, in the military, there's a lot of times when you don't hear anything.
::Elaine Musick
So I had I had no clue and was not really.
::Pat McCalla
Pretexting from a phone days
::Steve Musick
Oh, yeah.
::Steve Musick
Oh, yeah. This this.
::Steve Musick
Is, you know, put your quarters.
::Steve Musick
In there. RPO, you know, it.
::Steve Musick
Could be days or.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
Or
::Pat McCalla
weeks
::Elaine Musick
before. Yeah.
::Elaine Musick
And I didn't really so I didn't really, have any concern over that. You know, it's just it is what it is. And I'll hear from him eventually. And so, you know, I went doing my thing and not knowing at all what was going on.
::Pat McCalla
When did you find out he was in a coma?
::Steve Musick
When he came out of it.
::Pat McCalla
Oh, he was in that coma the whole five weeks. And you didn't know?
::Elaine Musick
No.
::Steve Musick
what?
::Steve Musick
The Navy was overwhelmed. Yeah.
::Steve Musick
they sent my parents a three by five card in a post card, and there were three boxes, and it said the top box was your son. And my name has been killed in action. The second box was is missing in action in the third box, which was checked is has been transferred to Great Lakes Regional Medical Center.
::Steve Musick
And that was it.
::Steve Musick
That's all they.
::Steve Musick
Get. That's all they get.
::Steve Musick
So they know either no information.
::Pat McCalla
What did they do then?
::Steve Musick
My dad was upset. Angry, called everybody that he knew and got nothing.
::Pat McCalla
So they can't even get. So you don't even know he's in the coma?
::Elaine Musick
Not at all.
::Pat McCalla
don't know that you're in a coma.
::Steve Musick
They just know that you're
::Pat McCalla
in this hospital and your dad can't even get any info,
::Steve Musick
right.
::Pat McCalla
when do they finally figure this out?
::Steve Musick
I made a telephone call from the regional medical center. My mom picked up, and I said, well, this is me. And and she was livid.
::Pat McCalla
livid
::Steve Musick
livid Navy.
::Steve Musick
Yes and yes. And that's.
::Steve Musick
My baby.
::Steve Musick
And. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
Who wouldn't be? What? Mom? That's that you woke up to Mama
::Steve Musick
bear.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
during that five week period, though, where you have this experience.
::Steve Musick
Yes. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
And you didn't talk about it for a long time. Is that.
::Steve Musick
correct?
::Steve Musick
Ten years.
::Pat McCalla
So you have this experience where you go to heaven and
::Pat McCalla
you don't tell anybody for ten years? Elaine.
::Elaine Musick
Nope.
::Pat McCalla
You didn't even tell Elaine for ten years.
::Steve Musick
why you.
::Steve Musick
anybody that's been to heaven and not been allowed to stay has a vacancy in life that's hard to fill.
::Pat McCalla
I just got goosebumps when you said that.
::Steve Musick
And when I was there, I thought I was staying. I thought, this is this is the. This is absolutely the best place I've ever been in my life. Safe seeing, cared for. I was in a place of. It's like being inside pure joy. You know, we live in a world that's happy. We're happy and sad. It comes in and out like the tide
::Steve Musick
in heaven.
::Steve Musick
Heaven comes after you and you're inside pure joy. And so the most painful.
::Steve Musick
Well, the most painful words I've ever heard in my life from that day to this were the words of Jesus were sitting outside underneath a gigantic oak tree. And he's got his arm over my shoulder. And
::Steve Musick
we've had five weeks of conversation now.
::Steve Musick
And he turns to me and very surprised to me. He's in in a very forlorn way.
::Steve Musick
This hurt him to say what he said. He said, and you can't stay.
::Steve Musick
And I'm, I'm literally ripped out of heaven. And I wake up in intensive care, isolation.
::Pat McCalla
those were your last words. You remember
::Steve Musick
him saying.
::Steve Musick
Last.
::Steve Musick
Words.
::Steve Musick
She can't stay. And I'm thinking, oh my gosh. So I wake up at 126 pounds.
::Steve Musick
and it looked like somebody had taken a baseball bat to me.
::Steve Musick
You, you had been
::Pat McCalla
basically told by the Navy you could be a Navy Seal if you want to
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
now you're
::Steve Musick
I 120. And I had to learn. I had to learn how to walk again. I had to I mean, it was it was awful. So not only do you lose heaven, but I was it even back where I was when this whole thing started. And
::Steve Musick
I don't know what to make of that. Yeah.
::Steve Musick
what do you do if you're an Orthodox Episcopalian, you go to the priest in confession and you tell them about this great and wonderful experience.
::Steve Musick
What's what's he going to do? Yeah. He, you know, and I thought, I, I'm not going to talk about this until I actually understand it, until I figure it out, because I didn't want people to think I'm weird. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
would you say to skeptic? Because there would be skeptics and maybe even some of our listeners are sitting there. You made me tear up when you start talking about heaven, by the way.
::Elaine Musick
Like, I guess
::Pat McCalla
I
::Steve Musick
can't and I'm going to get into
::Pat McCalla
that. And we're breaking this into two parts.
::Pat McCalla
And
::Steve Musick
or two. We're gonna get
::Pat McCalla
some of the lessons you learned from that. And man, audience, do not miss part two
::Steve Musick
because he had a brief call.
::Pat McCalla
and some of the things that you're going to share just amazing. So it just makes me long, to get there. But then I know you talk about.
::Pat McCalla
This life, though.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. To that.
::Pat McCalla
But let me let me come back to that. And just there, there are skeptics. We may even have some listeners right now going like, yeah, how do you know that wasn't just a dream? How do you know? Or I'll be honest, back in my days, I mean, I did through my 20s, I was teaching full time Bible at a in a, in a Christian school, and I and I remember saying, I'm almost embarrassed to say this, but I remember saying, like, you know, these people that have these, these near-death experience talk about going to heaven, how it happened to Paul.
::Pat McCalla
And he's saying it was too wonderful. He couldn't talk about it. So how can they have these experience and talk about now? I've heard enough of these stories now.
::Pat McCalla
To to realize.
::Pat McCalla
Like, I was putting God in a box with that which is really dangerous
::Steve Musick
to do. Yeah,
::Pat McCalla
but speak to the skeptics, maybe that are listening, that are going, how do you know that wasn't just a dream? Steve?
::Steve Musick
mission of our lives is that heaven is closer than we think and everyone can experience it. So the real story, the real message is that we we continue to have experiences in the here and now that feel very much like heaven.
::Steve Musick
And that's how I know that this was an authentic experience. And
::Steve Musick
we've been at this now for 40 some odd years, and we continue to have experiences with people that feel like the hereafter, and they get it. So,
::Steve Musick
you know, there will be skeptics and, and we've had long conversations with lots and lots of people, and I'm in a place where I just shrug my shoulders and say, you know, we're we're we're about experiencing heaven here.
::Steve Musick
And, and you can change your opinion. You can change your skepticism, by having the experience and, I'm almost to the place where it's part of what Christ, the price that Christ paid on the cross, that we would have the abundant life. And it's the abundant life that that's what we're describing. That's what we're alluding to. Because it's an experience.
::Steve Musick
It's a relationship. And so to step across that line, it's like, everybody can do this, everybody can have it.
::Pat McCalla
So someone who was there and experienced you are saying that when you came back, you have experiences here that mimic what you experienced in heaven.
::Steve Musick
Yes. That are very similar. Yes. That heaven is closer than we think. Yes.
::Pat McCalla
We're going to really unpack that in a second. Because again, this is audience. This is huge. The Bible started coming really alive for me even more. And I and I was a preacher and a teacher for a couple of decades.
::Steve Musick
but it was my
::Pat McCalla
when I really started late 30s, but early 40s when you really start understanding this Kingdom idea.
::Pat McCalla
I mean, Jesus talks about the kingdom over 150 times in the New Testament.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
And then when I realize the story from beginning, the end is about a kingdom. It starts off and it's a perfect kingdom. Heaven and earth are in perfect harmony, and then sin enters and it breaks it. But it. And then when Jesus teaches us to pray, he says, thy kingdom come, thy will be done
::Elaine Musick
on.
::Elaine Musick
Earth.
::Pat McCalla
as it is in heaven.
::Elaine Musick
::Pat McCalla
So right away, it's almost like you're repeating what Jesus said, aren't you? That Jesus saying there are kingdom experiences that you're going to have here, having experienced this year and a half here? And of course, what we're all waiting for is when Jesus comes back someday
::Steve Musick
right?
::Pat McCalla
and that heaven and earth are in perfect harmony, and you got to experience that.
::Pat McCalla
So
::Steve Musick
well.
::Steve Musick
And it's it's important to know that the experiences that we have in the here and now are not heaven to the full.
::Steve Musick
We don't get the full treatment, but it'll do.
::Pat McCalla
You know.
::Steve Musick
It'll do. It's a contrast to the current culture that we live in. And I think the contrast is is meaningful and noteworthy. And I'm also in a place that that says we're not supposed to experience the totality of heaven here until Jesus returns.
::Pat McCalla
We're not supposed
::Steve Musick
Experience the
::Pat McCalla
totality of heaven
::Steve Musick
because that that's the Tower of Babel. That's the trying to create heaven here and and we never we never do that. We anticipate experiences of heaven. We never expect.
::Steve Musick
Expectation is religion. That means I'm in charge and and I can wield this, wand of of majesty anywhere I want. And you don't do that.
::Pat McCalla
that that's what you did. That just is mind blowing. What? You just. We could do a whole podcast on that.
::Steve Musick
We serve at the pleasure.
::Steve Musick
We petition
::Pat McCalla
Anticipation and expectation
::Pat McCalla
and religion. Really an unhealthy religion really leads or is is is based on expectation.
::Steve Musick
Yes. I
::Pat McCalla
can do this checklist of things and then God will do
::Steve Musick
that.
::Steve Musick
It's a formula.
::Pat McCalla
It's a four.
::Steve Musick
and you mentioned earlier about
::Steve Musick
putting the father in a box and the father loathes the idea of being contained in any way, shape or form.
::Pat McCalla
ineffable.
::Steve Musick
So we're in the place that we anticipate. So we are in a, in a biblical way. We have we have we have all of our pots out. We have plenty of oil, and we're available in service. And anytime the father would want to show up and guide us and encourage us in, in his work, we're in.
::Pat McCalla
what a great way to live. Now we can't help but jump into part two of this, but that's okay.
::Steve Musick
We're coming back to this. But
::Pat McCalla
but what a great way to live, to wake up in the morning like you're saying your pots, right? Like you're collecting water, right? Like I'm going to anticipate that maybe today I'm going to have this.
::Pat McCalla
I have an experience. I'm not expecting it. It may not happen, but I'm I'm ready with my pot out
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
To
::Pat McCalla
catch this and not miss that moment if
::Steve Musick
it happens. Right.
::Pat McCalla
What a great way to live.
::Elaine Musick
well.
::Elaine Musick
And part of the anticipation is to be aware and to be looking for it rather than just, you know, because our, our, our lives are busy, you know, life is busy. Where I was thinking about the traffic as we were coming here, you know, things are going like that all the time. And so it's it's it's important to pay attention.
::Elaine Musick
And, and that you know, so it's, it's said anticipating and paying attention and being ready. It's all all three of those different things.
::Elaine Musick
How
::Pat McCalla
does someone pay attention. Like what. What do you like. What would someone do. Let's say for me today you're talking specifically to me right now. Audience. You're listening. And you know you're going to tell Pat how
::Pat McCalla
to prepare for that and to watch for that. What what would I do?
::Elaine Musick
I think there's several different ways of looking at that. If you ever and, and it's amazing when you talk to people and you say, you know, experiencing that moment when when, you know, I mean, you know, that you know, that you know, that God was part of it. People go, I've had that before, and I've, I just didn't I didn't understand how to explain it.
::Elaine Musick
It didn't know. It's like, hang on to that, hang on to that. And that doesn't mean that it's going to show up the same way every time, at all. But you start to get that sense of what it is. So be looking for it. Try not to be distracted. You know, with everywhere you go with everybody that you meet, there's there's a possibility, there's always a possibility.
::Elaine Musick
And so be open to that.
::Pat McCalla
again, I've got to say it again, it's such a great it seems like such a great way to live, to be open and anticipating those possibilities. As you just said, Ellie,
::Steve Musick
We carry it with us everywhere we go now.
::Steve Musick
So we've developed a relationship with our mail carrier, with the lady that drives around in a truck and delivers our mail. And we've developed a friendship and a relationship with her. So I was out working in my front yard and here she comes. Yesterday was a really hard day for her, and you can imagine she's working for the government.
::Steve Musick
And it's not easy working for the government today. And so I dropped what I was doing, went to her and I said, my favorite lady and, and and I could tell
::Steve Musick
it was a rough day and, and I said,
::Steve Musick
it's really hard working for your boss. And she said, tell me about it. And, and I encouraged her to get out of her truck, and I gave her a hug.
::Steve Musick
I said, you're really important to us. You're really valuable to us. And we thank you for your service. We thank you for what you do for us because there's a lot about running our enterprise that we couldn't do. If she doesn't deliver the mail,
::Steve Musick
you know, checks come in the mail, for crying out loud.
::Steve Musick
that's a holy moment. Where's a holy moment? And and she teared up. Clue.
::Pat McCalla
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
I reached her. Yeah. And there's a relationship building there
::Steve Musick
I don't know exactly where that's going. I don't need to know. I'm available for that time. For such a time? Is this that time with her?
::Pat McCalla
weren't and I'm going to go back to your word of lane possibility, if you weren't open to that possibility or had the buckets out, as you said
::Steve Musick
earlier. Yeah,
::Pat McCalla
you might have missed it. You might have just gone down, said hello to the mail lady, gotten your mail and go back. And you didn't even know that you missed a heaven moment
::Elaine Musick
right? That you
::Steve Musick
you could have had.
::Steve Musick
Yeah,
::Pat McCalla
But let me just jump in really quick, and then I want to come back to the story. But I want to help our audience understand again, some of them that that are from a faith based perspective and that grew up in the church, and they heard verses like, you know, Galatians five or talks about the fruit of the spirit.
::Pat McCalla
But for a lot of us in the church world, that became a formula, you know
::Steve Musick
how do you
::Pat McCalla
know if you're walking in the spirit? Well, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control those are the fruit of the spirit, right?
::Pat McCalla
But I love how your story is bringing life to that. I think that that that we've deadened the Bible, didn't we?
::Pat McCalla
Did it where we turn it into the formula. And it's like what you did is you exhibited love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control in that moment with that male lady which brought a piece of heaven.
::Steve Musick
Yes, the kingdom
::Elaine Musick
is. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
every time audience, every time we exhibit those fruits of the spirit love, joy, peace, patience, we're bringing a piece of the king or a piece of heaven.
::Pat McCalla
And like you're saying, it's not the totality of it, but it's a picture of it.
::Steve Musick
Yeah, this is
::Pat McCalla
coming from a guy who got to spend a little time there.
::Steve Musick
we did a teaching, years ago at a seminary, and one of the professors at the seminary was. You could tell he was not exactly happy with our presentation, and and he said so. So what's the difference between the presence of the Holy Spirit and a bubble of the kingdom of heaven?
::Steve Musick
And you could tell he was arms akimbo.
::Steve Musick
You know, it's like, what? What's the difference? And
::Steve Musick
I said, intensity. I mean, we've been in a place where the Holy Spirit, who is God, Holy Spirit, shows up when it's having intensity. The intensity increases by a factor multi. And
::Steve Musick
that's part of the evidence. That's part of how we know it's like, ooh,
::Steve Musick
there's a lot more here than what we were, we were thinking but were available.
::Pat McCalla
Yeah. Yeah.
::Elaine Musick
And part of that is as well as to not be afraid of it,
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Elaine Musick
be afraid of it, of, you know, well, what happens if I go up and I say, how are you doing? And they just, you know, get offended or, you
::Elaine Musick
whatever it is. And yeah, it's kind of like, well, if you do it with the right heart.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah. Love, joy, peace and on and on and on. Then.
::Elaine Musick
Okay,
::Elaine Musick
I'm not responsible for the outcome.
::Pat McCalla
Yeah. Oh that's
::Elaine Musick
I'm responsible for my part.
::Pat McCalla
Responsible to do
::Steve Musick
Process.
::Pat McCalla
put in front of
::Elaine Musick
us. Exactly. What's so
::Pat McCalla
interesting though, Elaine, is I think, and you guys have talked to far more people about their stories just in your journey
::Steve Musick
with them? Yes.
::Pat McCalla
But what I've found with my own life and in some of the stories I've heard from other people, and you guys speak into this, whether this is true or not, I found that most of the time that fear, it doesn't play out.
::Pat McCalla
Most of the time when I was like, well, what if what if I look stupid? What if they get upset? It's hardly ever happened
::Elaine Musick
When
::Pat McCalla
I've stepped forward. It's like it's a actually a really good experience for both
::Elaine Musick
of us.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
And most people I've talked to that way. You've talked to a lot of people about these bubbles.
::Pat McCalla
Do you find the same thing that most of the time it's I mean, sure, we get rejected at times, but that's not the the norm.
::Steve Musick
I think that's true. I think that's true. Yes.
::Elaine Musick
And
::Steve Musick
And again,
::Elaine Musick
I think the motivation behind it where your heart is.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Elaine Musick
With all of that, is huge. So if you're doing it for yourself or you doing it because you think you've really got something to offer, and that's the primary thing.
::Elaine Musick
You know, the motivation here is, is the relationship
::Elaine Musick
between people and with God.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah. It's both.
::Pat McCalla
You know, it's kind of cool. I feel like we're having a bubble
::Elaine Musick
moment here.
::Steve Musick
I really. Amen. I said before
::Pat McCalla
when I got goosebumps when you started describing it, the veil between heaven and earth is so and I haven't. I didn't have your experience, Steve, and neither
::Elaine Musick
Neither did.
::Elaine Musick
I.
::Steve Musick
Amen.
::Steve Musick
But
::Pat McCalla
yet
::Pat McCalla
I know that's true, that that veil is so much thinner than
::Steve Musick
we.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
Yes. And I felt and.
::Steve Musick
Available to us.
::Pat McCalla
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
we realize it takes courage. Yeah. To, to follow the leading and, and, we've, we've developed a philosophy of we don't really care about outcome. Outcome belongs to the father. Now we're passionate about process and we have capacity. We have capacity. By God's grace.
::Steve Musick
To extend love and care in places where you normally wouldn't expect love and care to be extended.
::Steve Musick
And, And we just do those routine. It's worth the risk.
::Steve Musick
it's a courage, but it's worth the risk
::Pat McCalla
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
because occasionally, we get met and amazing things happen, and we're in a place now. We're we're, we're getting serious about telling our story. And the more that we tell it, the more it develops. And that's for chapter two.
::Steve Musick
The second it will, we'll we'll get there. But
::Steve Musick
There's something going on with.
::Steve Musick
This
::Pat McCalla
are a great interview because we keep giving these
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
It's like, yeah.
::Steve Musick
Slide those promos in. Yeah. Get them hooked.
::Pat McCalla
I love that idea about being passionate about the process. And then it goes back to what you said before about not expecting,
::Steve Musick
anticipating. We're
::Pat McCalla
not expecting. And again, what we do so often is when we become focused on the outcome. It's about expectations,
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
but when it's about the process,
::Pat McCalla
it's like, here I am,
::Elaine Musick
And you know sometimes it's it's going to make a difference. Sometimes that process is about us not. And again that's again you're not looking at what the outcome is. It's am I going to be obedient. Am I going to be open? Am I going to be willing. So,
::Elaine Musick
it's a growth thing
::Pat McCalla
for.
::Pat McCalla
Sure. Well let me I want to start with a question for you Steve. And then I'm going to throw my question out for
::Elaine Musick
you okay. Come
::Pat McCalla
back to you after Steve answers this. So Steve, I want to ask you,
::Pat McCalla
where just in the story part of this right now. So I want you just to share a little bit what you saw or felt or heard that have an experience.
::Pat McCalla
I mean, you said it
::Steve Musick
was just amazing
::Pat McCalla
and the beauty of it. So I want you to explain that a little bit. And then Elaine, after he does that, I want to come and say, okay, what was it like for you ten years after this event, when Steve comes and says, hey, guess what.
::Pat McCalla
Happened to me, by the way? I want to hear that story.
::Pat McCalla
So, Steve, first of all, give us a little glimpse of heaven.
::Host
wrapping up this episode. Be sure to leave us a five star review. And if you're watching on YouTube, leave a comment on something you'll take away. All right, let's hop back into the remainder of the episode.
::Steve Musick
when you go to heaven, you are literally transported. You go through a tunnel of light, you get there. It's like going to a different place. When you get there, you literally are pushed out.
::Steve Musick
And, heaven has weight, it has gravity, it has presence. And it's the five senses on steroids. So everything is pungent and smells.
::Steve Musick
Everything is vibrant in, in terms of visual colors.
::Steve Musick
And the.
::Steve Musick
Thing in
::Pat McCalla
a bubble moment again right
::Elaine Musick
I'm telling you, like, I just I love.
::Elaine Musick
Hearing this over and over again.
::Pat McCalla
wait.
::Steve Musick
Well, the thing that's so for me that was really important. And the biggest surprise was the passion. You feel the emotion of heaven, which, as I said earlier, is like being inside pure joy. Me. And for for somebody that was raised in violence, it's the safest place I'd ever been. And it was part of why I'm thinking, I'm liking this, this.
::Steve Musick
I'm liking this, I I'll stay. This is this is good.
::Steve Musick
I don't want to, you know.
::Steve Musick
No.
::Steve Musick
and Jesus is a paradox. He's he's this massively built person that is soft to the touch. You would think that he was a dockworker or a bodybuilder because, I mean, he's just he's he's chiseled. And yet at the same time, he has really soft hands and he he's a tender, but, he's very soft spoken
::Pat McCalla
I love how you said a paradox.
::Steve Musick
Well, because he's, you know, it's kind of like, it's it it's not. He doesn't look like what my the pictures were.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
And it was the experience of being surrounded by heaven and you know, the sun. The sun and oh my gosh, I'd go back tomorrow. I'd go back in a heartbeat.
::Pat McCalla
There was this Jewish idea in the Old Testament right when they were prophesying about the coming of the Messiah. And of course they had it all mixed up, you know, they thought he was going to
::Steve Musick
come serve his
::Pat McCalla
kingdom here on earth and all those things, as is some of us know, if you've been in the church world, but, they talked a lot about shalom, peace,
::Steve Musick
you know, and
::Pat McCalla
peace.
::Pat McCalla
It was a it's a much more in-depth.
::Steve Musick
show. Much
::Pat McCalla
more in-depth word than we get in our English
::Steve Musick
language. Yeah. It was
::Pat McCalla
holistic. It meant physical, emotional, spiritual, all of the things that it incorporated. It was, you know, and then and then the prophets talk about it's the lion laying down with the lamb and the child playing next to the cobra nest.
::Pat McCalla
And I wonder, and you felt that
::Steve Musick
a little bit.
::Steve Musick
Oh, yeah.
::Steve Musick
You talking about like
::Pat McCalla
you had grown up in a violent, not feeling safe staying at school. So you didn't have to go home and deal with that. And now you're feeling this. Shalom. That's probably almost undescribable.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
being inside pure joy.
::Steve Musick
and there's no ebb and flow to it. It just is. It's it's omnipresent
::Steve Musick
and, you felt seen and safe and held.
::Elaine Musick
one of the descriptions that you've given in the past that
::Elaine Musick
other than being inside pure joy, which is always touches my heart. But the other one is you said you felt absolutely held and absolutely free.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
That's a paradox
::Steve Musick
again, is there? It is
::Pat McCalla
to be held. We usually think like he can be a good
::Elaine Musick
thing.
::Steve Musick
Yeah, but if you're.
::Steve Musick
Claustrophobic.
::Pat McCalla
claustrophobic or I'm not free, but you have both of those at the same
::Steve Musick
time. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
Did you have any. I mean, you talked about conversations with Jesus in the last one. You you know, he says you have to go back, right? Those
::Steve Musick
You can't stay.
::Steve Musick
You
::Pat McCalla
can't stay, and you heard, a softness, a tenderness, almost a sorrow for that.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. I'm always.
::Steve Musick
Forlorn.
::Steve Musick
When
::Pat McCalla
people talk about Lazarus.
::Pat McCalla
You know, the story of Lazarus in the New Testament and they're like, oh, that was had to be one of the coolest miracles. And like, not for him.
::Elaine Musick
I had to come
::Pat McCalla
come back like, and you're similar.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Like
::Pat McCalla
why would you need to come back and die a second time?
::Steve Musick
Yeah. And and they don't write very much about Lazarus after that. I mean, he gets that one story in the Bible, and after that it's like, where did he go?
::Steve Musick
it's part of the mystery of Scripture that says, there's a whole bunch in the Bible that's not written about. Yeah,
::Steve Musick
true. Then the last but not written about for
::Pat McCalla
I think that's going to be part of the, the beauty someday of, of when we have plenty of time to just hear everybody's
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
that revelation where it says that the enemy was defeated by the word of their testimony, the blood of their lamb. And we always think of the blood of the lamb.
::Pat McCalla
But there's something about the word of our testimony, our stories.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. So
::Pat McCalla
we get to maybe we'll get to sit down with Lazarus someday. You and Lazarus have a great
::Elaine Musick
time because you
::Steve Musick
Heard a similar.
::Steve Musick
Story about Sarah. Yeah. You got grave clothes. All right. I got an injection. Geez.
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Listening.
::Steve Musick
Let's compare notes here
::Pat McCalla
or whatever.
::Pat McCalla
So
::Pat McCalla
can you tell us about maybe another? Do you do you remember another conversation he had with Jesus? Did you ever talk about your story like what you came from?
::Steve Musick
part of the conversation was, everything is okay. That part, part of my experience in heaven was a life review and the brutality of it, and Jesus was there. It shocked me that Jesus knew all about it. He knew he knew every story. He knew everything that went on. And he made it okay. And and if he would do that for me, he'll do that for everyone.
::Steve Musick
Everyone that's he's on record of going, I'll make it okay. It is okay. And also, things will now be different. I'm giving you marching orders and that's that's for the second chapter.
::Steve Musick
Another promo.
::Steve Musick
Perfect for new.
::Steve Musick
New marching orders.
::Elaine Musick
But wait. There's more.
::Pat McCalla
can I jump into the. I think our audience would love to hear this. Like, so you.
::Pat McCalla
Guys get married? It's ten years.
::Pat McCalla
Later.
::Pat McCalla
And I don't know. I mean, you could set it up. However, he comes.
::Pat McCalla
And tells you, but all of a sudden.
::Pat McCalla
You're privy now to the fact that your husband, in ten years before spent some time in heaven with
::Elaine Musick
Well, it's interesting because, over that ten years, you know, we're we're raising a family. We have three boys that we're we're raising. And so life is busy, and, and I always knew that there was something that it wasn't telling me,
::Elaine Musick
and he couldn't I knew that just I just knew that I knew. And,
::Elaine Musick
It was okay.
::Elaine Musick
I, I don't know how better to say it. It was just it was not a problem for me. And, you know, and then we had three boys growing up, and life is life is a little bit busy,
::Elaine Musick
when he finally told me what occurred to me, what it felt like was, it makes sense.
::Elaine Musick
It just makes sense. And I know that sounds naive. It sounds like I was clueless or something like that, but that is just the truth. It was just right. It's like, okay, I get it now. I really get it. And, you know, he's he's told we've had this conversation multiple times about if I could go back now, I would.
::Elaine Musick
It doesn't mean that he loves me less at all. And although I cannot understand that to the depth that he does, I still get it. And I am okay with that. I don't want him to go, yeah, you're mine. Sorry, but I understand that. So yeah, when he says I'd go back in a heartbeat, he means it, he means it, and I'm okay with that.
::Elaine Musick
So you kind of compile all of that stuff together of, you know, life was busy. He wasn't telling me something. It was okay. And then when he told me, it all made sense, and the fact that he says, I'd go back in a heartbeat. I'm all right with that.
::Elaine Musick
Why,
::Pat McCalla
why would you be okay with that?
::Elaine Musick
Because I've heard and talked to him enough times to understand what it was that he left.
::Pat McCalla
it's almost like you would say, well, if if I experienced what you experienced, I would be saying the
::Elaine Musick
thing. Exactly,
::Pat McCalla
If me, Pat was sitting here and I got to experience what Steve did. I'd be saying I'd go back in a second.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah. As to the best that I can possibly understand, that, you know, and, and, obviously I'm going to have limitations. I haven't had that experience. Most people in this world don't have that experience. But,
::Elaine Musick
part of the beauty of our relationship and what we're working with, with people is to say, I didn't have this experience, but I've learned, just like everybody else can learn, I can experience some of those those bubbles, those moments of heaven.
::Elaine Musick
I can I can anticipate I'm a whole lot less fearful than I used to be, all of those things. So it gives me an insight. It gives me an in and I've had time to do that. And that's that's what I want to share with, with people. That's what we want to share with people.
::Elaine Musick
Yeah.
::Elaine Musick
Because it's wonderful.
::Steve Musick
So when I was, when I was discharged from the Navy, finally as a disabled veteran, honorably discharged disabled veteran, I didn't think I was going to be disabled for very long. I mean, I
::Steve Musick
that's were the mentality still I'll get I'll get through this. Well shoot I was disabled for ten years and and and it took a, it, it took a, an act of God to restore me.
::Steve Musick
And the real question then is what are you going to do now? And,
::Steve Musick
what was beginning to happen in that my kids were starting to grow and I was I didn't have the capability of playing with my kids.
::Pat McCalla
ten years because your
::Steve Musick
Yeah. I didn't have the vital ity. I didn't have the capital. I didn't have what it took.
::Steve Musick
My disability was present and and I couldn't play with my kids. And God heard that prayer.
::Pat McCalla
then you had. You said an act of
::Steve Musick
God.
::Pat McCalla
are we talking like
::Steve Musick
That's chapter.
::Steve Musick
Two. That's
::Pat McCalla
chapter two.
::Steve Musick
Yeah.
::Steve Musick
So you you set it up.
::Steve Musick
Well.
::Steve Musick
Well
::Pat McCalla
Let's wrap up this this session
::Steve Musick
okay.
::Pat McCalla
go to episode two.
::Pat McCalla
Audience you're not going to want to miss
::Steve Musick
that
::Pat McCalla
for sure. Because we're really going to get into you know, so what does this mean for us
::Steve Musick
Yeah. Now
::Pat McCalla
You went to the hereafter. Most of our audience probably believes there is a hereafter.
::Steve Musick
And I think
::Pat McCalla
there are different levels in different places in what they believe, but I think most of our audience will probably say, like, I think there's a hereafter. What is your story have to do with the here and now? And I think that's that's a big part of of why you're telling it and why you're here.
::Pat McCalla
So we want to get there, Elaine. We do. Two truths and a lie.
::Elaine Musick
And I'm going to start with you. And
::Pat McCalla
then, Steve, we'll get you next time. It's a fun way for our audience to get to know you a little bit better. So
::Pat McCalla
we've been listening to your story a little bit. Give me three statements. One will be,
::Pat McCalla
a lie.
::Pat McCalla
Two will be truths. And I'll try to guess the light.
::Elaine Musick
Okay.
::Elaine Musick
I wanted to be an FBI agent.
::Pat McCalla
Okay.
::Elaine Musick
I loved shrimp, and I have held a 2.5ft crocodile.
::Pat McCalla
Oh, man. Okay.
::Pat McCalla
I'm going to go with the FBI. Is true that
::Elaine Musick
That is true.
::Pat McCalla
Okay, good. So I got.
::Pat McCalla
A
::Elaine Musick
a chance here. All right.
::Pat McCalla
okay?
::Pat McCalla
So you want to be an FBI agent?
::Elaine Musick
As a kid? As a kid? As a kid.
::Elaine Musick
It was. Yeah.
::Pat McCalla
Okay.
::Pat McCalla
You know.
::Pat McCalla
What I'm going to say that did you say you love to eat shrimp
::Elaine Musick
every teacher?
::Pat McCalla
shrimp? I'm going to say.
::Pat McCalla
That that is the lie. You actually hate shrimp.
::Elaine Musick
Actually, I can't eat shrimp. I'm allergic to.
::Elaine Musick
Vomit. Okay, so do it. That's the
::Elaine Musick
life. That's a.
::Elaine Musick
Lie. You
::Steve Musick
got.
::Steve Musick
It. Look at this.
::Steve Musick
Oh, my gosh.
::Pat McCalla
I mean, I had a: ::Steve Musick
Yeah. We'll have we'll have
::Steve Musick
to give.
::Steve Musick
Him a good.
::Steve Musick
Gold star.
::Steve Musick
We have a good I didn't get a lot of those in school. So I will be happy to know.
::Pat McCalla
Well, thank you so much.
::Pat McCalla
You're not going away because we're going to take a little break, and then we're going to film episode two. That's going to drop audience later on. Or if you're listening to it. So you're you're going to want to hear absolute episode two right after this. So,
::Pat McCalla
we'll be right back.
::Host
Wow. What a powerful start to this two part conversation. Stephen. Elaine, share the reminder. We all need to hear that heaven is real and closer than we think. Don't forget to listen to part two on our next podcast drop, where we talk about life after Steve return from heaven and the way they're living different. We'll see you next time.
