Jesus is Coming. Look Busy!

There has been an obsession lately with end times, and I don't blame the faithful. After all, it looks like we may be entering them. From bombs here to natural disasters there, it seems like we are just one hellfire away from Jesus showing up on a white stallion or rapturing the faithful.

But while Revelation seems to describe our times, it has also described many times in history. Also consider another important piece regarding end times; this one is found, not in Revelation, but in the book of Matthew: "but of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only" (Matthew 24:36.) In other words, no human can predict when Christ will appear, so why are we constantly trying to do so?

After all, we were not put on this earth to stare at the sky but to better ourselves and the world around us. Therefore, if we can't predict when Jesus is coming, and we have things we need to do, shouldn't we be "looking busy" instead of "looking up?"

A priest was once asked while gardening: "If you knew you were going to die in ten minutes, what would you do?"

Unperturbed, he looked back at his plants and said: "I'd try to finish this row."

The priest was busy and used to being busy. He felt ready to meet God because he had spent his life bettering himself and this earth. So, he was calm at the prospect of being called home. Furthermore, he wanted to be able to say: "Look I planted a beautiful garden just before I died. I knew You were coming so I wanted to be busy."

I know that "Jesus is coming, look busy" first appeared on a bumper sticker, but maybe we should take the phrase more seriously. If Jesus is coming, maybe we should all be more focused on being busy, and if He does happen to show up, we'll have something to show for our time on this earth. We'll have works to match our faith, which the Bible clearly promotes. (James 2:14-26)