When I was about 10 years old, I climbed a big pine tree in our yard. Grabbing the topmost branch, I pulled myself up to gain the highest vantage point possible. Suddenly the tip of the old pine snapped and I came plummeting down, landing flat on my back. The impact knocked the wind out of me. As I lay gasping for breath, I thought I was dying—but I wasn't alarmed. In fact, I can recall thinking, I'm going to heaven. Just before lapsing into unconsciousness, I said, "Father, here I come."

My dad was reading under a tree nearby and heard me come crashing down. Rushing over, he picked me up and carried me into the house. How surprised I was to open my eyes and find myself on the couch instead of in heaven!

That experience taught me at a young age that the Christian can have peace even in the valley of the shadow of death. For believers, "to be absent from the body" is "to be present with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8). As children of God, we can live each day with the assurance that come what may, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.

If you know Christ as your Savior, you too can experience a wonderful peace—even when you are called to walk through the "valley of the shadow" (Psalm 23:4).    — Richard De Haan