A life journey group member made a statement last night, "All these earthquakes lately and weird weather.... should we be looking for something to happen? Like Jesus coming?" and we all chuckled with her as the answer came to the surface, "We should always be looking for that".

But do we really live with that mindset? Too often I let the things of life, the schedules for the day, the demands on my time to cloud the reality that Jesus is coming back any moment. Do you ever struggle with life's important things blurring the most important thing of all?

The disciples struggled in the opposite direction. After Jesus had ascended to heaven the disciples just stood there, waiting for him to come right back. And an angel said, “Guys, what are you doing? He said he would come back to get you, but in the mean time you need to get busy with the work of reaching this world. He will come back, but in the waiting time, get busy.”

I don’t know for certain if all these strange things going on in our world are ‘sign of the times’. But I do know this, with every second that goes by Christ is closer to coming for us, his church. Until he appears to take us, let’s be about the work of reaching the world for him.

In the recent days following the Haiti earthquake we have witnessed an outpouring of love from believers toward those in need. Having served 12 years in missions myself it warms my heart to see the church in America rise up in the midst of a crisis of this magnitude. The outpouring of love and support has been wonderful.

But not all in the church have been this gracious. A friend asked me recently if I heard Pat Robertson's comment on the earthquake. Even before he told me what it was, I felt my heart quake inside of me. I just knew this wasn't going to be a good thing. Sad to say I was right.

When he told me that Robertson had said this earthquake was the judgment of God on Haiti, my heart sank. I know that Haiti is a dark place. I have friends who worked in that country for years. They wrestled against the evil that is so prevalent in Haiti. I have no doubt that it is a dark place. But to say that this earthquake is the hand of God to wipe out Haiti, is just going too far.

How does this paint a picture of the love of God in an equitable manner?  Let’s talk about dark for a moment. Yesterday I was driving down the road and saw a car with an Ichthus fish on the trunk and a ‘twilight’ sticker in the window. A symbol of Christianity on the same vehicle as a symbol of vampire worship. Tell me if that's not a dark statement concerning the church in America.

Let’s be discerning in what we say. We live in a fallen world and things go wrong. Disasters happen. Floods come. I know a dear couple who love God and yet they lost a child in child birth. Does that mean they are evil, or cursed as Robertson said about Haiti? No, it means we live in a world where things go wrong.

As Christians, let us be careful to not pronounce judgment on things, when we can’t see every side of a situation. God’s heart grieves over the loss of life in Haiti. He will bring something good out of it, because his word says he will. But our role is to love and help and pray; not to pronounce judgment on Haiti, when America is just as far from God.

Let us be proactive in loving those who are hurting, in prayer for those who lost everything, that they will turn to Jesus.

Let’s be wise in our words.

You know that song - it's the most wonderful time of the year! And it is! It is wonderful that this time of year draws us close together: close to family; close to friends. It can bring out the best in people, and the worst.

As your out shopping, be sure to take your faith with you. Too many people struggle with even a greater sense of selfishness, and it gets reflected in the actions we see. So, take a great attitude with you and share it with those you meet.

While you're out, don't forget to get yourself the kind of Christmas present that you'll really enjoy. What's that? A January mailbox without an abundance of credit card bills. This year let's all be responsible in our spending. Let's face it, those expensive toys are only a replacement for what our families, spouse and kids really want - you and your time.

This year give them your presence, more than your presents! But remember, if you don't get them anything at all this year, don't tell them it was my idea!