End of the World? My Opinion

Floods, earthquakes, crop failures, economic woes, famine, unemployment, wars, political arrest, civil wars, tornadoes, hurricanes, sickness  ... okay, enough already.  Is this the end of the world? 

I am a Christian and I believe that the Bible is the Word of God.  In the Bible it says no one, including Jesus, knows the date or time of Jesus' second coming or further when the world will end.  Only God knows.  The Bible does tell us to watch and pray.

So - do I live in fear right now?  No.  Do I sell off all of my possessions and sit in a field and wait?  No.

We are obviously living in quite desperate times.  So what is my response?  I think about what Jesus would want me to do.  He wouldn't want me to hide in my bed with the covers over my head.  Instead as things happen and as needs arise, I do what I can to meet those needs.

I sponsor three Compassion International children in impoverished countries, I go to church and pray, I give to my church and other charities.  I give to the food pantry and to the Red Cross and United Way.  I move from fear to the opportunities to help others that surround me. 

I am convinced God doesn't want us to isolate ourselves being fearful.  Instead he wants us to pray and to show love to others by helping those suffering in the world. 

Years ago there was that phrase "What would Jesus Do?"  Well I am convinced Jesus wouldn't be hiding in a hole somewhere.  He would be out there with the people feeding them, comforting them, caring for them and meeting their needs.  What better way to show God's love to others than to help them when they are suffering.  That is what we should focus on.

With that in mind, take up my Random Acts of Kindness Challenge.  Get your focus on helping others and off of fear.  And most important, don't forget to pray.

Random Acts of Kindness Challenge Clarification

I wanted to clarify the Random Acts of Kindness Challenge that I have put forth.  As to giving away $25 in five dollar bills, the idea was to give money to anyone that you came across that you think would need it.  For example, at the grocery store you could pay for your groceries and give the checker a $5.00 bill to help pay for the groceries for the person behind you. 

I know of a special need in a family where the teenager doesn't get any spending money because her dad is unemployed.  I plan to put $5.00 in an envelope to give her - probably will just put it in their mailbox. 

I wasn't necessarily saying that you were to give money to people begging on the street, although that would be fine.  In my mind some Random Acts of Kindness are on the impulse - they aren't planned ahead of time.  You are simply presented with a need. 

I would love to hear what any of you are planning to do, be it giving out money or doing some sort of kindness for someone else.  I think this will be fun and uplifting.

Random Acts of Kindness Challenge





 Random Acts of Kindness Challenge

During the month of March I am challenging everyone to keep five - $5.00 bills in their purses.  Why?  During March when you encounter a person with a need, hand them a $5.00 bill.  Now it's not a lot of money, but right now you can buy a 1/2 gallon of milk, 1 dozen eggs and 1 loaf of white bread with that money.  In other areas of the country or world that might not cover the price of all three, but it will cover the cost of at least two of those items. 

$5.00 is enough to help someone out, perhaps brighten their day and lighten their load and for the majority of us, it won't break our budgets.

For those that are on austerity budgets and to part with $25.00 will place a hardship on them, I would like to challenge you to find 5 people and do a random act of kindness for those 5 people.  Perhaps you could shovel someone's walk or even sweep their sidewalk for them, send a note, buy a carnation or daisy and give it to them, make some popcorn or cookies and deliver them. 

With everything that is going on in the world, we need to focus on helping others.  The majority of us have everything we need as compared to those living in other areas of the world.  

So, get ready to bless other people in March and just perhaps, you will receive a blessing in return.