You are seated now, blind and exposed, back against the podium. The weight of it is punishing as silence presses on your chest. 

So what is this? Why am I still alive when this feels like death?!

Where is the way out of here? How does truth help me? What becomes of my life?

You are tired and weak. The chamber is suffocating. There is nothing for you to do but breathe your last breath.

Gasp… Gasp… Gasp—

As you slowly exhale your last breath… your book closes; overcome by fear _{(1 John 4:18)}, its agony _{(Acts 2:24)}, and you see death spreading _{(Romans 5:12)}: …to dust you will return; you’ve become adrift in the abode of the dead recoiled in unimaginable pain, aware of your shared response to God _{(Genesis 3:12)} and impending judgment _{(Revelation 20:12-13)}. No cry is heard, although you experience and hear wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Then light floods your eyes; you wake up on the ground next to the podium, still in the chamber, but through the lens of the ceiling, you see the glory of heaven and the Helper. The Helper then says, “Come and see.“

All of your senses are heightened and hyper, alert, and ready. You rise to your feet and are filled with a feeling not described in words, but if a word were to describe it: love _{(1 John 4:19)}.