A little girl who fell through a tree and survived the terrifying 30-foot drop shares that she had a divine encounter with Jesus in heaven during the ordeal and experienced a miraculous healing that left doctors and her family stunned.
Struggling Through Years of Illness
In 2011, Annabel Beam was just 9 years old when she fell 30 feet inside a hollow cottonwood tree while playing outside with her sisters.
At the time of the accident, Annabel was battling a rare and debilitating digestive condition known as pseudo obstruction motility disorder and antral hypomotility disorder, which caused her stomach to stop moving food through her system.
Her mother, Christy Beam, explained, “She was on 10 medications given about four to six hours throughout the day every day.”
Leading specialists from Dallas Children’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital had confirmed her condition.
Despite their constant prayers for healing, Christy shared, “Every report from the doctor was one more…disappointing,” and their faith was stretched thin through the relentless struggles.
A Miraculous Survival and Experience
That day, Annabel had just returned from a tough hospital stay in Boston where she had told her mom, “I just want to die and go to heaven and be with Jesus where there’s no more pain.”
So when she decided to try climbing trees with her sisters again, it felt like a glimmer of hope. But everything changed in an instant.
The branch she sat on began to break, and she slipped into what looked like a nook — but was really a hidden hollow — and fell straight down inside the tree. “She remembers hitting her head three times on the way down,” Christy said.
Annabel was trapped inside the tree for nearly five hours, and rescue workers feared the worst. “We just want to prepare you,” paramedics warned Christy.
“We’ve never had a child fall 30 feet and not suffer paralysis or broken bones.” Yet Annabel came out with no serious injuries, only scratches and bruises. That’s when the real miracle became clear.
The very next day, she told her parents something incredible.
“She just plainly said to me the next day, ‘You know, mommy, I went to heaven when I was in that tree,'” Christy recalled.
Annabel described sitting on Jesus’s lap, asking to stay with Him, but Jesus told her, “I know you do, but I have plans for you on earth that you cannot fulfill in heaven. But when the firefighters get you out, Annabel, there will be nothing wrong with you.”
A Healing That Left Doctors Speechless
At first, Christy wondered if her daughter’s head injury had caused confusion. Yet, as Annabel described her experience with calm certainty, sharing details little by little over two weeks, it became clear that something extraordinary had happened.
Christy reflected, “There is no way this child made it up. The words that she used, her disposition, her attitude… it was very much like, you can believe it or not, I don’t care, I lived it.”
Not only did Annabel survive the fall without any fractures or paralysis, but her debilitating digestive condition also disappeared. Her mother noticed changes immediately: “Her tummy…began to go flat” while they were still in the emergency room.
After being closely monitored and running multiple tests, doctors could not find any medical explanation for her recovery. Over the next two weeks, Christy gradually reduced Annabel’s medications as her daughter showed no signs of pain or digestive issues.
Their family doctor in Austin confirmed, “Mom, I sure am glad she fell in that tree ‘cause she has amazing bowel sounds and I can’t find anything wrong,” and renowned Boston specialist Dr. Samuel Nurko was similarly astonished.
Christy later shared, “She is the only child on record to have ever been healed fully from pseudo obstruction motility disorder and antral hypomotility disorder.”
Facing Critics and Standing Firm in Faith
While their story was later shared through the book and movie ‘Miracles from Heaven’, the journey was not without challenges. Christy recalled facing criticism and accusations, even from some within the church.
One pastor warned his congregation against believing their story, calling it “blasphemy.”
Christy said, “I was hurt, I was deeply hurt,” but affirmed their family’s only motive: “100% that is the only reason that we ever came forward with this — to inspire people’s faith.”
Today, Annabel Beam is thriving. She graduated from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas with a degree in psychology and a minor in sociology, with hopes of becoming a child life specialist at Cook Children’s Hospital, where her healing journey began.
Through everything, Christy said, their family’s faith has been deepened beyond words: “When things come along in life…I just trust you [God]. And if it doesn’t end the way I want it to end, I still trust you.”
Trusting God Through Every Season
Annabel’s story is a powerful reminder that God still performs miracles today. Even when our prayers seem unanswered, even when the night feels endless, we can trust that God sees, God hears, and God acts in ways we can’t always understand.
No matter what you are facing today, know that our God is mighty to save, heal, and redeem. His love never fails.
Let us keep believing, keep trusting, and keep looking to Him for every miracle we need in our lives. And let us pray for every family still waiting for their own miracle — trusting that nothing is impossible with God.
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