With just a snippet of information, I knew the future. Holding the unopened envelope up to the bright sun, two letters written by an ultrasound technician – “rl” – became visible, and just like that, I knew the gender of our baby. My still-pregnant wife questioned what exactly I thought I was doing … since I apparently forgot our conversation from several minutes earlier about not finding out the baby’s gender.
Once I glimpsed the contents of the envelope, I knew a daughter was coming into our lives. But precisely when she would arrive remained somewhat of a mystery. Doctors took into account gestational information, used high-tech gadgets to peer into my wife’s womb, listened to the strength of the heartbeat, and then announced the date they predicted our daughter to arrive. But despite all that brain power and technology, any family can tell you how often babies are actually born on their due dates.
Listening to the preacher who emphatically predicted Jesus’s return on May 21, 2011, I couldn’t help but draw parallels. He knew one snippet of information: Jesus is coming back to Earth (Revelation 19, Acts 1:1-11, 1 Thessalonians 4:16). Then using various calculations and estimations, he supposedly peered into the Scriptures and predicted the date Jesus would arrive.
Predicted due dates are notoriously slippery things, gestationally and spiritually. Gestationally, they rarely pinpoint the exact date of birth, often missing the mark by days, weeks, and even months. We had been told throughout our pregnancy to expect a baby in October. Our daughter arrived in August – a month and a half early.
Spiritually, predicting the date of Jesus’s return is so slippery, it’s like trying to walk upright using roller skates on a steeply-pitched sheet of smooth ice covered with grease-coated banana peels. “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36, my emphasis).
Instead of focusing on and trying to figure out the specific date of His return, we are told to continually “be ready, because the son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him” (Matthew 24:44), kind of like a baby arriving abruptly.
How are you getting ready for His return?
Sean,
Your posts are Becoming like Friday’s for me; something I look forward to, can’t wait for it to come, am glad when it arrives and helps put away any troubles from the week.
This weeks has me reflecting on my own daughters birth and how quickly they have grown up and how unprepared I was. Hopefully I can be better prepared for the second coming.
Thank You for sharing your thought. I am looking forward to next week!