The arrival of the Son of Man isn’t something you go to see. He comes like swift lightning to you! – Matthew 24:27 (The Message)

After Jesus had spent time talking with the religious leaders of the day, pointing out that the way they talked didn’t match how they acted, he left the Temple and walked away with his disciples. As they were sitting on Mount Olivet, he told them that a time was coming when the foundation of their beliefs, the Temple, would become rubble. As most of us would do, the disciples wanted to be prepared. When would this happen? What would be the signs that the time had come?

Jesus told them that the world would go along like it always has, people would be fighting amongst themselves and there would be natural disasters. This is just routine stuff.

The things to be aware of are people who claim to be the Messiah and who draw crowds to themselves. Lying preachers who claim to have the answers to all the questions in the universe are to be avoided. In fact, right after this scripture, Jesus says, “Whenever you see crowds gathering, think of carrion vultures circling, moving in, hovering over a rotting carcass.”

One of the things about Jesus is that he gets straight to the heart of things. While some people will spend days and weeks building up anticipation in what they’re doing, Jesus just starts to settle in and goes to work. There will be no way to miss his arrival on Earth. There will be fireworks in the sky and trumpets will be blaring all over the world.

I believe that everyone was created for a reason – there’s a purpose to our existence and quite often, we have no clue what that purpose is. Some people may have been created to speak eloquently to large crowds, telling them of the good news of Jesus. Some people may have been created to just carry the burdens of daily life, plodding forward each day with determination and good cheer. There is a saying that Christians are supposed to preach the Gospel continuously – using words if necessary. Sometimes the best sermons we receive are watching how others live their lives. Do their words and their actions match? Do they say they want to help others at the same time they diminish the importance of others; or do they really help in concrete and significant ways?

While we’re waiting for the Son of Man to come back, it might not be a bad idea to figure out who we are. It might be good to remember that there is something good in the worst of us and there’s something bad in the best of us. If the words we hear take away hope, it’s better if we don’t listen. Decide on the type of person we want to be and learn how to live into that type of person. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth our while!

Becky Gillette is a former teacher, newspaper reporter, and preacher who seeks to take an original approach to life’s lessons. She has recently published her first book, Jessie’s Corner: Something To Think About, which is now available for purchase. Based on several lesser-known scriptures from the Bible, this is a collection of articles which she wrote for a weekly newspaper.