The Headlines Keep Coming
You open your phone and another alert flashes. War in the Middle East. Earthquakes in a new place. A politician says something that sounds like the beast. An AI breakthrough that feels too intelligent. Every week there is a fresh reason to think the curtains are about to close.
It is tempting to refresh the feed, to watch every video, to search for the exact prophecy that matches. Many believers do. They feel a mix of alertness and exhaustion. Alert because they want to be ready. Exhausted because the news never stops.
But this is not what Jesus meant when he said to watch.
Watching Without Scrolling
In the parable of the ten virgins, all ten slept while the bridegroom delayed. When the cry came, half had no oil. The point was not that they failed to scan the horizon. The point was that they did not prepare. Readiness is not nervous scanning. It is steady faithfulness.
Jesus said in Matthew 24 that no one knows the day or hour. He did not say we should try harder to figure it out. He said to be ready. There is a difference between readiness and anxiety. Anxiety looks at the news and feels a knot in the stomach. Readiness looks at the news and says, “I have done what I can. The rest is in God’s hands.”
If you want to explore this further, read about the parables of the ten virgins and readiness and the difference between readiness and anxiety.
The Trap of Date-Setting
Every few years a new date appears. A calculation. A pattern in the feasts. A tweet from someone with a large platform. It gets shared, debated, believed. Then the date passes, and a new explanation is offered.
Date-setting always fails because it misunderstands prophecy. Prophecy is not a calendar. It is a warning and a comfort. A warning to wake up. A comfort that God is not caught off guard. When you attach a date, you turn a promise into a puzzle to be solved. You miss the heart.
Remember the early believers. They lived with urgency but without a timeline. They wrote letters, sold possessions, and preached in season and out. They did not know when the Lord would return, but they knew he would. That was enough.
For more on why date-setting is a distraction, see why date-setting always fails.
How a Letter Anchors You
There is something about writing a letter that cuts through the noise. When you sit down to write to someone you love, you stop scrolling. You stop comparing headlines to Revelation. You think about what you actually believe and what you want to leave behind.
The news makes you feel like the end is near. A letter makes you act like it. You take the urgency and turn it into words. You say the thing you have been postponing. You apologize. You bless. You point to Christ.
This is active preparation. Not passive watching. You are not just waiting for the end. You are using the time you have to leave something that will outlast you.
Consider the case for writing it now, not later. And think about who deserves a letter from you.
A Practical Step for the Next Headline
The next time a headline makes your pulse quicken, do not open the comments section. Open a document. Write one paragraph to your spouse or your child or your sibling. Tell them you love them. Tell them why you believe. Tell them you will see them again.
It does not have to be long. It does not have to be perfect. It has to be honest. The news may be a distraction, but your letter will be a gift they open long after the headlines are forgotten.
The End Will Come
Jesus will return. The rapture will happen. The tribulation, judgment, and new creation will follow. That is certain. But the hour is not for us to know. Our job is to be found faithful. And faithful people write letters.
You do not have to predict the future. You only have to prepare for it. Write the letter. Seal it. Trust God with the rest.
Write your first letter free — it takes one sitting, and it is one of the few things you can do with the urgency the headlines stir in you.