Monday morning my sister, Morgan, sent me this link to an article/broadcast on NPR, titled "The End is Near." Apparently, Harold Camping, an 86-year-old has predicted that Judgement Day will occur...
TOMORROW...?
Crap.
Over the past 5 days I have done some serious thinking. What if it happens... am I ready? Besides, it's gotta happen sometime, right? Why not tomorrow?
Now, my issue isn't with dying or the world ending per-say. It's with how the world will end. According to the bible, it is a very scary event. One that I wish to not witness. Surely the God I know wouldn't allow me, a sweet, innocent little girl witness this event...
I couldn't stop thinking about death, dying, heaven, hell, the end of the world, the whole sha-bang. I know... you're probably thinking: dramatic much, Mallory? But when was the last time you seriously thought about it? If ever? Everything sounds far too dramatic. Far too extreme. And to be honest, far too scary... for such a loving, peaceful, forgivable God that we all know and love. I mean... think about it: What if the words in the bible are literal and true?
What if when the world ends it will be horror above all horror?
Do those who don't believe really go to hell?
What about teenagers who are simply in a rebellious phase?
What about the mean people in the world that do terribly mean thing who simply weren't given enough love from their parents?
It really doesn't seem fair to leave anyone behind. I feel like the God I love would allow everyone into Heaven. Some people weren't given the same opportunities like... wonderful parents, sufficient resources, support system... etc.
God must take all of this into account, right?
I really hope.
I concluded these thoughts are occurring because of two reasons:
For this reason, I met with my friend, mentor, and youth leader, Brenda Applegate, who is laid-back enough to understand where I'm coming from and competent enough to help me work through these uncertainties.
1) I have far too much time on my hands right now (no job... no school... no kids...)
2) My relationship with God has drifted since the last time I thought about a rapture.
Which I must say would probably be around the age of ummmm... 5!
For this reason, I met with my friend, mentor, and youth leader, Brenda Applegate, who is laid-back enough to understand where I'm coming from and competent enough to help me work through these uncertainties.
So... what I know... now:
1) God is Just
He knows all hearts, all things. He has the ability to measure someones heart in a way we cannot conceptualize. Everything will be justified. It will be fair. It will be very fair. No need to worry about that.
2) God is in the world... right now.
He witnesses and feels the temptations, pressures, choices, and decisions you make. Every day. He's there. He's a current, present God. Not just a God from ancient, unthinkable, olden-times.
I learned a lot more than that in the past few days but those are the main things. I am not scared or worried anymore that I will witness the rapture. I have faith that God will not make me witness it. I hope. Most importantly, I learned I've got a relationship to work on. But, that's fine. I've got nothing but time... I guess I might as well invest some time into my eternity.
I know this blog post was a bit heavy but you know what, sometimes we need to do some deep thinking... organize our thoughts and re-prioritize.
Thanks everyone for reading.
