GETTING READY FOR THE END OF THE WORLD

Are you ready for the end?  A recent film titled, ‘Finding a friend for the end of the world’ includes a jilted husband traveling with a neighbor to find a childhood sweetheart with whom to spend the final day on earth.  From my understanding of the end of the world, I don't believe it will be a time for seeking companionship and making new friends with whom to share the 'event'.  
 
Humans have been intrigued with the end time since we were evicted from Paradise for disobeying God.  Countless people claim to know when the last day will come. The ’seer’, Nostradamus warned us centuries ago that the earth would end in 2011.  The Mayan calendar ends on December 21, 2012, so we were warned that that will be the last day for earth's existence.
 
Harold Camping is one of the most prolific predictors of earth’s last day. He has pronounced several dates as the final date for earth, then, when each date passes uneventfully, Camping simply chooses another date, and many of his believers blindly begin preparations for the new date.  
 
Several groups in Europe waited as their chosen doomsday of September 15, 1994 came and went. Others watched October 10, 2010 come and go, yet they believed the next announced dooms day with the same fervor as they believed in all of the previous ones.  I would rather ignore human wisdom (which will fail you every time) and, instead, trust in the only true guidebook, the Bible.
 
The ‘end of the world’ movie indicates that there is value in finding the right person with whom to experience the end of the world.  It’s as though finding the right person to die with is the most important accomplishment one can hope to achieve, perhaps to have the last laugh on life.
 
Sadly, all of man’s calculations and guesses cannot discern when the earth will meet its end.  Jesus Christ, Himself warns us,  “… No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”  Scripture tells us that many people will claim to know exactly when Christ will return, or that He is already on earth.  The Bible tells us that, “...For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other…It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed.”
 
It says nothing about finding new friends, holding ‘going away’ parties, etc.  God chose not to tell even His only Son, so how can a sinful human hope to be given the ‘scoop?’  The Bible tells us that it is more important to be spiritually ready for that day than to try to determine exactly when it will come.
 
The Lord tells us to live each day as if it were our last, and as if each day is the day when He will return.  We are to love others, and share His message of salvation and the free gift of eternal life that Christ offers freely to all who will receive it.
 
A friend recently opined that he doesn’t believe that the ancient Mayans, over 500 years ago, saw the end of the world coming in 2012, but did not forecast the Spaniards coming to destroy them in the 1500’s.
 
The Bible gives us many signs to watch for as the end of this age approaches, and many 'seers' point out signs that the coming of Christ and the end of the world is imminent. I believe I'd rather wait for the unmistakable sign—Jesus coming through the clouds as He promised.  There is no need to worry what the future holds when you know who holds the future.