Scent from Heaven

By Daniel Duvall

Emily Young is accidentally killed while riding her bike home. She finds herself now living in heaven, where she meets those who have gone on before her. She also reunites with loved ones in this newfound paradise. She is overwhelmed and filled with incredible peace and joy as she comes face-to-face with our Savior, Jesus Christ.

In order to attain a sense of closure, Emily is permitted and encouraged to observe life on earth in the aftermath of her most untimely demise. She soon discovers that it is actually her mother who needs to find this closure. Emily watches as her mother struggles with her grief as she tries to make sense of, and come to grips with, her daughter's sudden and unexpected death.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 3, 2022
• ISBN: 9798886541595

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Scent from Heaven

Daniel Duvall

Copyright © 2022 Daniel Duvall

All rights reserved

First Edition

PAGE PUBLISHING

Conneaut Lake, PA

First originally published by Page Publishing 2022

ISBN 979-8-88654-157-1 (pbk)

ISBN 979-8-88654-159-5 (digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Epilogue

About the Author

Also by Daniel Duvall

Armored Angels Alliance

Arontitus and Shimoen

Authentic, Georgia

Prologue

The last thing I remembered, before what I refer to as the great awakening, was riding my bike along Hall Road. It had been nearing dusk, and I was an hour late returning home for supper with Mama. I wasn't looking forward to her unleashing a lecture upon me in which she would admonish me about causing her undue stress and worry. After all, she always said that I was the only one she had in the world, and besides my friends, she was the only one I had in the world.

As I continued my journey down that darkening, dusty road, a growing sense of guilt had begun building inside of me. Part of me felt smothered by Mama's overly protectiveness while a much larger part of me felt a sense of deep appreciation for her unwavering love and devotion toward me. Even when I was at the tender age of twelve, I had to admit that I was truly blessed to have such a kind, loving mother. And now at the age of fifteen, I still felt the same way. As I neared the last turn before my house, I vowed to be more sensitive to her needs and desires from that day forward.

My mind suddenly filled with thoughts of horseback riding in the meadow, eating ice cream on the back porch while watching squirrels chase one another among the elm and walnut trees that grew plentifully in our yard. As I struggled to think of the name of that little girl who moved away from our neighborhood when I was only five years old, I heard the loud, piercing sound of squealing brakes behind me. I quickly turned my head just in time to see a familiar red pickup truck come barreling uncontrollably toward me. As my heart began to pound out of my small chest, I suddenly felt the full blunt of the inevitable collision and then my world turned dark.

Chapter 1

The angels gathered me into their arms in a loving embrace. I knew immediately that my life on earth was over, both abruptly and prematurely. I knew I had a lot of living yet to do on earth. It was disconcerting to come to the realization that my life was through. If not for the great love and sense of overwhelming peace that now flooded my soul, I'm afraid I might have been prone to throwing one of those infamous temper tantrums I had been known to have from time to time throughout my adolescent years.

As the angels all released their embraces, the next thing I noticed was the sweet smell of jasmine. Of course, with my limited experience with the identification of such wonders, I had been informed by one of the angels as to its name. The angel went further to explain that although this scent could be found on earth in certain regions of Asia, this variety, however, was of a singular nature whose fragrance could only be found in heaven.

Intrigued by the pleasant smell, I set about to survey my new surroundings. Just as I had heard in Sunday school, heaven was indeed paved with streets of gold, and there were many mansions in which God was preparing a place for all who had chosen to believe in Him and confessed their sins. It almost took my breath away as I came to realize that this is where eternal life began. Tears of incredible joy cascaded down my cheeks as I drank in the endless wonder and majesty of this heavenly place. I thought my heart was going to burst and then I knew for certain that all that was revealed in the Bible was true, for off in the distance a figure approached. I knew instinctively who it was. A complete sense of calm slowed my heart rate down to a more sensible pace. Although the beat of my heart was no longer an issue, as the figure drew closer, I now felt like my very breath was being sucked from my lungs. I had heard of people having sudden panic attacks. I began to wonder if that was what I was experiencing.

The figure, clothed entirely in a long, flowing white robe, stopped directly in front of me. I stared into His soft brown eyes, which seemed to be smiling upon me. I sensed that I was gazing into eternity itself. Incredible warmth, joy, and peace surrounded Him, and I basked in it all as I felt it envelop me.

I watched as the Son of God, Jesus Christ, stretched out His arms toward me. He was inviting me into His loving embrace. I, without hesitation, accepted His offer as I melted into His arms.

Jesus took my hand in His and led me down a street. Instead of taking in the splendor of my new home, I couldn't take my eyes off my Savior. He oozed with so much love and compassion that I felt overcome with absolute incorruptible joy. He smiled down upon me with complete understanding and acceptance. As He gently squeezed my hand, I felt a spark of what I call electric excitement flow through my spine.

We stopped before a bright, ruby-red door with a golden knob. Jesus merely gazed upon the knob and, I assumed, silently commanded it to turn as the door opened revealing a throne room. I had never in my wildest imaginings ever thought I would see such beauty and majesty. I cannot and will not attempt to describe what I saw in that room for mere words fail to capture its essence.

As we entered the throne room, Jesus led me to the throne where His father sat. I, instinctively and most humbly, knelt before God Almighty thus shielding myself from the blinding brilliance of His great omnipotence.

After a short time passed, Jesus gently lifted me to my feet and placed His hands across my eyes. As He removed His hands, I found I was able to gaze into the eyes of Almighty God and not be thwarted by that bright light that had emanated from Him.

Again, mere words cannot express what I was looking at, or more precisely, who I was looking at. I knew I was looking at age-old eternity, the Creator of the universe, the Father of all whoever existed. I sensed wisdom, kindness, compassion, and most of all, unconditional love in His presence.

My utter and complete sense of awe was increased as I began to hear a chorus of voices coming from somewhere behind me. Jesus, once again, took my hand in His and turned me around as a choir of children varying in ages, ethnicity, and gender approached, each carrying candles. They were singing an unfamiliar yet hauntingly beautiful song of praise to the King of Kings, Lord of Lords.

I closed my gaping mouth after realizing that I had been caught completely awestruck by the sound. Jesus knowingly smiled down upon me as if to proudly say, Beautiful, aren't they?

I noticed as the children sang, never did they take their eyes off God. They sang to Him with such laser-like focus, love, and devotion that it only added to my already growing sense of total admiration toward them.

Jesus ascended the stairs. I watched as He seated Himself beside His Father. With a wave of His arm, one of the angels appeared at my side. This angel bowed humbly before the throne, and when Jesus began to speak, the angel rose slowly.

I heard Jesus say, Gabriel. Take Emily to her room where all shall commence to being revealed to her.

Gabriel nodded in humble assent as he gently grasped my hand and led me out of the throne room of God.

I turned to Gabriel as we started down one of the many shiny streets of gold and said, If you don't mind my asking, Gabriel, what exactly did Jesus mean when He said that all would be revealed to me? I apologize for being such a curious girl, but I'm afraid that curiosity is just a part of my nature. I guess I was just born that way.

Gabriel paused in our walk, knelt in front of me, and then calmly and patiently explained, You are now a new creature, Emily Young. You have been reborn. Your old nature has passed away. You have now been made perfect in Christ Jesus. The origins of your curiosity, as you call it, does not come from the human nature that you were born with while living upon earth. These many questions that you understandably and without doubt most certainly have are more accurately derived from a mere sense of wonderment. When our Lord said that all would be revealed to you, He simply meant that everything that has happened in your life and everything that is yet to transpire on earth in regard to the aftermath of your crossing over will be revealed to you henceforth.

We continued further down the street for a short distance and then we suddenly stopped in front of a door. Nothing surrounded the door, which both surprised and puzzled me simultaneously.

As if reading my mind, Gabriel said with a confident smile, Trust me, Emily.

Silently we stepped through the opened door. What I had found on the other side was nothing short of spectacular. We entered a room, the walls of which were all made of shiny gold blended with fine silver. It left me speechless, to say the least.

Gabriel watched me with mild amusement as I explored this room further. I found a small desk with a chair and vanity mirror. I opened the top drawer and found a gold-embossed hairbrush.

I turned to Gabriel and asked, Is this really my room?

He nodded silently as I turned back toward the mirror.

Suddenly a millisecond of fear, of doubt, and uncertainty entered my mind as I thought, Vanity is a sin.

Gabriel calmly explained, The good Lord has provided mirrors for the believers, so they are well equipped to face themselves whenever the need should arise. They have not been put here so people can admire their own beauty. Vanity is indeed a sin.

I didn't wish to return Gabriel's kindness with engaging him in some theological debate however; it seemed once again that he had been able to read my mind. He placed his hand upon my tense shoulder. Immediately, I felt comforted and peaceful.

He addressed my unasked question by saying, It is true, in God's kingdom there is no more sickness, no more wars. But in His infinite wisdom, the good Lord realizes that from time to time, even believers need time for self-reflection even beyond the boundaries of the fallen world from which they have been delivered.

I took in everything Gabriel was saying to me. He had a way of making once confusing subjects suddenly appear crystal clear. As the fog was drifting away in my mind, I began to comprehend things more easily in order to properly assess my situation.

I sat in front of the mirror, noticed that my hair was in slight disarray. I slowly ran the brush through my hair and all the while felt Gabriel's concerned focus upon me.

I turned to him and asked, Is it vanity that motivates one to look their best?

He answered in the negative and then he asked patiently, Would you care to have your first glimpse of the aftermath following your…crossing over?

I stood up and surveyed the room and noticed something was obviously missing.

Gabriel spoke candidly, You're wondering why there is no bed here in your room. It is simply because no one sleeps in heaven. There is no need for it.

I politely admonished my newfound friend by asking him, "Could you please allow me to think to myself privately? It is very disconcerting to be aware of your ability to discern my every thought. It's also polite to allow someone the luxury of expressing themselves without fear of being interrupted or sidelined. Sometimes people would just merely like to process things quietly before addressing the issue.