As a Christian, for decades I have been hearing about the pending return of Christ. At least twice in my lifetime, that coming again has been forecast, and both times obviously was incorrect. When those times approached, I felt pretty sure those forecasts were misguided in nature, but still I pondered the "what-if" scenario; was I ready or not if by chance they were correct. Though the Bible says that not even Jesus knows when the Father will send Him back to bring His Church home to Heaven, still hearing these people so certain of that time made me both curious and cautious in saying whether or not these prophets of the pending return of Christ were wise, crazy, fanatics, or just publicity seekers. In the end, I told myself that I was ready, and actually prayed that the forecasters would be correct.
But now, as I think about that, I question the wisdom of that prayer. Not from a selfish standpoint, however, but because of the state of many of my countrymen and actual friends and loved ones that I now know were not then, and are not now ready for that coming event. I feel like I have failed to be the best I could be for Christ, and I am ashamed and disappointed in that failure. I am one of the millions of Christians who took the "let someone else..." or "I am not goid enough to..." position, and will regret that probably forever as I do now. My friends, acquaintants and loved ones have been deceived by Satan and this evil world, and had Christ come then, I am certain would have been condemned to hell for all eternity.
I guess the reality of that has hit home because I personally have friends and loved ones that I know do not believe that Christ is the only way to Heaven, that the Bible was written not by prophets and the disciples of Christ, but by men simply trying to improve their position in history, or that the translations are in error, or that a loving God would not condemn a "good person" to hell. And I am not ready to accept their fate yet; I am still praying that God will be merciful and open their eyes to see the truth. And I am convinced that Jesus IS the only way to Heaven, that one can never be "good" enough to earn one's way to heaven, and that the Bible IS God's words and instructions to us and is truth!
I say that NOT from pride, but because of evidence that God has shown through others, through the inspiration of His word, and through God's own speaking to me on two different occasions clearly. I cannot deny God's truth, His existence, His sovereignty, and His love because I have experienced it first hand, and have seen too many instances where He has revealed Himself to the world in undeniable ways.
So God, personally, I will say that I long to see Jesus come and save this world, and should You choose to call me home, I am ready and long to lay any jewels in my crown at your feet and thank You for your sacrifice and love for me that You would go through what Jesus did so that a miserable sinner such as I might know the redemptive love and freedom that You gave through Christ. But for the love of others, for the burning desire in my heart to not see ANYONE and especially those that I love and care for so very much suffer the indescribable misery of eternal punishment in hell separated from you, in Your infinite mercy, forgive my selfish desires . Please let me stay here long enough to hopefully share my faith in ways that honor you and open the eyes of those I know and love personally, and those You love and would allow me to share my faith in a way that helps them see the loving God that I see as my sovereign God, the only God, and Jesus as my Savior and Messiah. This is my prayer. AMEN
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