Have you ever watched a group of children play Hide and Seek? Most of you probably remember playing this little game yourself when you were younger. You probably recall counting to ten and then shouting out ”Ready or not....Here I come!” Well, today our Gospel passage has the same message:

Ready or not…..here I come. In today’s reading, Jesus gives us fair warning of the things that will happen when the end is near. And on that day, He will come “to judge the living and the dead”. Ready or not...... At first, this passage from Mark seems to be full of gloom and doom. But Jesus does not give us these warnings to frighten us. Rather, He says these things to convince us to be vigilant and to mend our ways.

We like to know how the story ends though, don't we? Have you ever skipped to the last pages of a book to see how it will turn out, because you just couldn't wait? Sure you have. How many of you ever asked a child this question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Even on job interviews, we are asked “Where do you see yourself in five -to-ten years?” We like to speculate about what will happen in our own life stories. Why? Well, probably because we want to be in control and we want to plan for the future. But, the bottom line of the Gospel message today is that we cannot ever truly know the answer to questions about the future. For each of us there will come a day that will be our last. And ultimately there will come a day that will end our world. But Jesus tells us not to fret about this. He says the only one who knows when that day will come is the Father. Even Christ himself does not know the answer.

Jesus's message to us today is not to fixate upon the hour or the day. Focus only on TODAY. Focus on what you can do to become closer to God and closer to your neighbor. Focus on reconciling with your enemies, people you have argued with. Mend those family squabbles and cross the aisle to forgiveness where it is necessary. Don't be concerned about the future but live every day as if it were going to be your last. We all know people who were with us at this time last year, but sadly, are no longer here. (Talk more about this)

In conclusion, I will repeat what I said before. We should not despair or be frightened when we think about the end times. We are in the hands of a truly loving God, and that in itself gives us hope. God is there for each of us, to lead us out of the darkness and into the light.