AT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR

THANKSGIVING IS OVER; and now it is time to start the Christmas season. I am one of those funny people who thinks we should celebrate one holiday at a time.  July 4th; Labor Day; Halloween; Thanksgiving and then Christmas. While decorations and a tree can be put up shortly after Thanksgiving, to do so before the Thanksgiving turkey is even cooked is pushing it a little.  Christmas carols after Thanksgiving is good, but start off slow and then build up. Even a steady diet of carols can get a little bit annoying at times.
But with this season, this year, there is a lot of doom and gloom across the globe. The latest shooting in Paris and then in San Bernadino, not to mention all the ones before them, and you just have to wonder what is going on.  Is this the escalation of evil that has been long predicted? The evil that will spread across the earth in the last days. Some will arguably say it is. Others not so much. Me, well I think it is an escalation. I think the end of the world as we know it is getting close.  But as awful as these shootings are, as awful as the increasing threat of the ISIS band is, much as the bulk of the world would like to see a return to sense and sensibility, I don't really think that is going to happen. Not any time soon, any way.
And as for the end of the world.  Well, the world is not going to come to a crashing halt with a grinding of gears and a smoking engine. Although there may be some smoke involved, the world will "end" with the 2nd coming of the Lord and sin, including the many wars and contentions will cease and the world will be a place of peace for many centuries.  Will this happen in my lifetime?
Probably not. In the lifetime of my children? Possibly. My Grandchildren and great Grandchildren? I would say most definitely it will happen in their lifetime. But with all that is happening at this time, all across the world, with world leaders pointing fingers at their neighbors, and while they paw the ground, throw dust across their backs and bellow like a couple of old bulls getting ready to fight, we must all remember the real reason for this season of the year. We should keep in mind that we are celebrating the birth of Christ, who came to earth, lived and died, as a perfect being, and in so doing, offered each of us the opportunity to return to that home from whence we came.  We should always remember that no matter how much pawing and dusting the world does, we need to always be mindful of what we are truly here for and what we are trying to accomplish on a personal level.
AND THAT'S THE VIEW FROM THE DITCH BANK