Fear and Hope
By Sunil T, Nepal
I could not sleep for the entire year when I was studying in Grade 10. I was gripped with fear as I was sitting for my School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examinations that year. It would be a test of my years of learning. I feared I would flunk the examinations as I had not been an attentive student. As a result, I had recurring nightmares about exams.
Similarly, fear about the end times had plagued the minds of many people. There have been speculations about the impending doom happening in 2012*. Due to the rumours concerning this dire catastrophe, some people have fallen victim to despair and are troubled about whether it would happen or not. This rumour has robbed the happiness of some people to an extent that they cannot sleep at night. Somebody even said that, “2012 is the prophesised year of end times” and the earth will be destroyed then. However, as Christian, we know that no man can specify the actual date. For Jesus said, “No-one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only Father” (Matthew 24:36).
While we may not know the exact date, our Lord Jesus has taught us what will take place during the end times (Matthew 24). Hence, we do not need to fret over any man-made predictions or imaginations because as Christian, we could rely on His revealed will (God’s Word) to discern reality.
We are told that in those days, there will be great tribulations. But, we need not fear for God has promised us: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do no give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27).
Meanwhile, as we wait for our Lord’s return, we must remain careful and alert, for He will come at a time when we least expect it (Luke 12:40).
Next:
1. How can you get ready for the Lord’s return?
2. Can you give answers to the questions that people ask about your hope and faith?(1 Peter 3:15)
* December 21 or December 23, 2012, is said to be the end-date of a 5,125-year-long cycle in the Mayan Long Count calendar. This view has been promulgated by History Channel which, beginning in 2006, aired “Decoding the Past: Mayan Doomsday Prophecy”, based loosely on John Major Jenkins’ theories but with a tone he characterized as “45 minutes of unabashed doomsday hype and the worst kind of inane sensationalism.” Discovery Channel also aired 2012 Apocalypse in 2009, suggesting that massive solar storms, flipping of the magnetic poles, earthquakes, super volcanoes, and more may occur in 2012. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon)
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Loading ...ODJ: postcard secrets
Finally, I confessed all my sins to You and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And You forgave me! All my guilt is gone (v.5).
READ: Psalm 32
Some years back, Frank Warren handed out 400 blank postcards bearing his address to strangers and asked them to send their untold secrets to him. Warren began receiving confessions like: “I haven’t spoken to my dad in 10 years, and it kills me every day” and “Everyone who knew me before 9/11 now believes I’m dead.” Today, Warren’s Post-Secret project receives over 1,000 postcard secrets every week.
Since then a plethora of online confessionals have followed. Many of the confessions posted are fabricated. But many are heartfelt—like the woman who confessed to cheating on her boyfriend and then wrote: “I’m sorry. I don’t believe in a god, but I feel I need to finally tell someone the truth, even if it is just the Internet.”
The human soul longs to confess its guilt. Three thousand years ago, King David wrote in a song: “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long” (Psalm 32:3). We don’t know what sin was on his mind, but we know how he felt before he came clean: “Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat” (v.4).
David finally confessed his sin to God and discovered the power of divine pardon. “And You forgave me!” he sings heavenward in relief. “All my guilt is gone” (v.5).
Confessing our wrongs on a postcard or Web site may be partially therapeutic, but it doesn’t go far enough. It’s not just confession we need, but cleansing. The Internet doesn’t “hear” our confession. A postcard can’t “pardon” our sin. But the personal God of the universe can do both.
“Therefore,” David sings on, “let all the godly pray to You while there is still time” (v.6). Confess and be clean, for the God of forgiveness is listening.
—Sheridan Voysey
What sin is weighing heavily on your heart today? Why?
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODB: what brings happiness?
March 4, 2010
READ: Ecclesiastes 2:1-11
All was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun. —Ecclesiastes 2:11
After studying the effect of the post-World War II economic boom in Japan, Richard Easterlin concluded that monetary growth does not always bring more satisfaction. More recently, economists Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers conducted surveys in more than 100 nations and concluded that life satisfaction is highest in the richest countries.
So who’s right? Let’s check with the writer of Ecclesiastes. He should know! He was a truly rich man (2:8). He had the means to try everything in this world—and he did! He gave himself to pleasure (vv.1-3), grand projects (vv.4-8), entertainment (v.8), and hard work (vv.10-11). But he concluded that it was all “vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun” (v.11).
Lasting satisfaction doesn’t come from possessing tangible things like savings accounts and material goods. Recent events have shown that these things can suddenly lose value. To find true happiness, we have to find it in Someone who is not from “under the sun.” And that is our Savior, Jesus.
Hymnwriter Floyd Hawkins wrote: “I’ve discovered the way of gladness, I’ve discovered the way of joy, I’ve discovered relief from sadness. . . . When I found Jesus, my Lord.” Only He can give joy that is full (John 15:11). — C. P. Hia
To know happiness, get to know Jesus.
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