"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.

The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire,

and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

since everything will be destroyed in this way,

what kind of people ought you to be?

You ought to live holy and godly lives"

II Peter 3:10-11

I grew up in a small church family, where the book of Revelation seemed to be studied every Wednesday night for most of my life.  I know that's probably not what really happened, but looking back, those are the Bible studies I remember most clearly.

Riding home from evening services in the back seat of the car, I was often afraid to look out the window.

Looking up at the night sky scared me.

"What if He came while I was looking up?" was a looming thought in my young mind.

I'm not sure why I had so much fear about the end times, but I did.

So this morning, when I read the words above, it occurred to me that, FINALLY, I am not scared of passages like these.

God coming like a thief, the heavens disappearing, the earth being destroyed by fire and laid bare, everything wasted away..........

I'm not afraid of these future events........

No, this kind of prophecy finally brings Hope, of all things, because I totally understand.

THIS WORLD IS NOT OUR HOME!!!

Everything we do here, everything we work for here, everything we stress about here, everything we strive to do here,

it'll all be wiped away in a second.

Kings, princes, the wealthiest of men and women........

will be brought to the same level as the poorest of souls.

All that will matter is what we have done for Christ.

Sunday was Faith Promise Sunday at the church I attend.

We watched a video in which we learned of all the places in the world where the Gospel has not yet been shared.

As I saw the eyes of children in poverty, of men and women with hollow eyes, I asked myself, "What can I do for these people?"

I thought of the grieving moms and dads who do not know of the hope of Heaven, and I knew that somehow I'm suppose to reach them.