A Matter of Perspective

Extreme cold warning… Huge fires burning out of control… Wars… Peace talks… Drought… Flooding… Earthquakes… Mass killings… Planes crashing…

It’s a scary world we live in—there’s no way to sugarcoat it. Things have been frightening, and they’re only getting worse.

In all likelihood, they will continue to worsen. Why?

I always come back to two things I firmly believe:

1. These are preparations—birthing pains—for the second coming of Jesus.

2. People are feeling hopeless. And when people are without hope, they do desperate things.

I won’t get into a theological discussion about the second coming. It’s coming, and we need to be ready. That’s my firm belief, and I’m not here to argue about it.

What I will talk about is the growing sense of hopelessness.

People seem to have shorter fuses—myself included. It’s something I need to work on. I snap and throw mini tantrums, and I owe an apology to my coworkers, who often bear the brunt of my outbursts. I’m going to start using an essential oil blend to help enhance my calm.

I know some of you might be thinking I already seem calm, but trust me—I have my moments.

When people feel hopeless, they become trapped by their emotions. I wouldn’t say I’m without hope, but big changes have been happening in my life, and I’m sure that plays a role. Still, that’s no excuse for bad behavior.

We need to take ownership of our actions instead of blaming them on everything else. Rather than seeking ways to hurt the world for our problems, we should be looking for ways to help the world and the people in it.

We are living in scary times, and we need to help each other get through them.

It’s easy to look out only for ourselves and a few people close to us. But we need to extend that care to others, too—especially those who are less fortunate or carrying burdens we may know nothing about.

We can’t help everyone, but we can help the people in our circles. Trust me—someone you know right now is hurting and needs you.

Maybe they need someone to listen and really hear them. Maybe they need a little financial help, food or a ride somewhere.

Do what you can, when you can, for whom you can.

We can make each other a little happier, a little healthier, a little better.

That’s what we can do.