It was difficult enough for Pastor Todd Burpo to deliver his religious sermons before his regular Sunday crowd in hometown Imperial, Nebraska. It was even more difficult to wrestle with his conscience that teetered between right and wrong, especially when the issue involved his four-year-old son, Colton. The Burpos were a typical couple with their beliefs and biases in practically everything except religion. But when their son had to be rushed to the hospital, survived the difficult stomach operation and later started talking about God and Heaven during the time he was being operated on and had an out-of-body experience, the couple faced a different kind of challenge. As Colton recounted the details of his visit with God in Heaven, Todd and Sonja didn’t know how to deal with this turn of events. All these had been written by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent in Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of his Trip to Heaven and Back. And this little piece of non-fiction, which won the best in its category from the New York Times bestsellers in 2010, has been turned into a movie. The process of converting book to film, however, is a more difficult challenge, since one has to be faithful to the book particularly since it is a true-to-life account and will be portraying actual people and events. In the movie, for instance, the couple awaiting the results of Colton’s operation separately find themselves praying to God. Sonja cannot accept the findings of Read More …
