OK never mind… I didn’t.
Wonder how ol’ Harry Camping is feeling about how it all went down? Turns out he’s just like me and really crappy at math… which is totally understandable when you’re adding up the days since Noah’s great flood, multiplied by the total number of pages in the bible and divided by the number of times the word “donkey” appears in the New Testament. Camping now claims Judgement Day really was on Saturday and in five month’s time the world will be destroyed and the chosen will rise to the heavens. He says there’s no need for further warnings since the “judgement” has occurred… so for the next five months he’ll play hymns on his radio station and wait it out.
Ummmmmm….. does this mean we can do anything we want for the next five months ’cause God already made up his mind about who’s going to heaven and who isn’t? What if someone he already picked does something horrible in the next few months like say… oh I don’t know… key some one’s car or put poison in their drink?
Over the last few months Camping’s followers have sold their homes, quit their jobs, ploughed through life savings, put the dog down, purged and splurged and gave tons of money to help spread the word of doom, gloom and eternal salvation. For those who believed the world was ending… Saturday came and went, Sunday they woke in a blur and Monday left them speechless. Today, they’re facing reality and are asked to believe Camping messed up the math a second time and show patience as they wait things out a few more months. Where are they going to live if they sold it all! And what about the dog?
The world did not end.
Natural disasters occur and tragic events happen in people’s lives on a daily basis. Tragedy, heartache, stress… wanting to believe in someone so bad that you totally feel duped when you find out they’re a fraud… it’s part of life. Part of living. Part of hope, faith, trust… part of being human. How we rise to the occasion… that’s what makes us stronger, better people. Those of us who love deep… hurt deeper… but that doesn’t mean we stop loving.
On Saturday, while 6pm came and went in every single time zone around the world and earthquakes didn’t destroy the earth… many folks faced horrific, life altering events. Someone was diagnosed with cancer, some one’s spouse betrayed them, someone lost everything they held dear… a great number of everyday events changed the lives of many people on Saturday just like they did the day before and they’ll do tomorrow but the thing is… the world did not end… even if they think it did… even if they wanted it to.
Harold Camping is a false profit feeding off the goodness of others. Or maybe he just sucks at math… only time will tell. In the meantime… there’s a great world out there to enjoy. For every single person whose faith is being tested, whether you were duped my Mr. Camping or suffering a personal loss, in time you’ll believe that the world we live in did not end… nor is it going to.
Live your best life… be good people… enjoy this amazing adventure… love.
For someone who once believed the world had ended… that there was nothing worth living for… I was wrong. Just like Mr. Camping.
And ironically, we both suck at math!