WHO REALLY CARES?

A lot of disasters are heard daily on the news but we as humans are all jaded to even the most horrifying of news. We carry on like its business as usual, my humble self included. We have developed such amazing thick skins; it would take more than just a mere bomb blast to jolt us. It’s almost like we’re evolving into a ‘homo-supreme’s or something equally spooky! However after some introspection caused by the current seizure of power across Nigeria, a country forecasted by America to become a failed nation by the year 2015. In this darkness an eerie thought from deep in my subconscious state, creeps into my conscious mind and I ask myself, “What is the world turning to?”

On almost what seems a daily basis, we hear of disasters, genocides, economic failures of Western countries- a trend that was once exclusively the right of a 3rd World country in Africa is gradually becoming a reality for countries like Greece. We hear of stock market crashes, global recession, and multiple coordinated bomb blasts in Afghanistan and Iraq and the reverberations are felt in the Gaza border. We hear of Ugandan genocides and mass rape of women by soldiers. Not to forget the flooding in Pakistan, tsunamis, and mudslides in China. Oh and did I mention the bush fires and heat waves in Russia and earthquakes in Haiti? More so the mainstream media whispers of unconfirmed rumors of nuclear weapons being developed in Iran and North Korea. Like all that’s not enough to cause a heart-attack, we hear of global warming on a daily basis!

I wonder what it would feel like to be a man who enters a coma in 1999 to wake up ten years later and hear all this bad news at once, would he rather wish he had died?
However the rationale behind writing this, is not necessarily to remind you of all of the things that are wrong with our world today as we’re only too aware of it. Nevertheless I write to you because I was wondering whether or not these are the signs of the End Times as predicted in the Bible? Your guess is as good as mine!

A great churches and pastors and prophets that abound on our streets, our T.V sets, and radio stations are yet to begin shouting from the pulpits and rooftops “Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand!” Perhaps we Nigerians are not eager to hear such bad news just yet? Especially since its not been confirmed by CNN. A great number of them keep preaching the Good News when bad news surrounds us. They keep telling the message of prosperity. I confronted a certain pastor the other day on why this is so, and he plainly said, “Oh! That’s not my ministry; we’re into prosperity and faith building”. Man! I was flabbergasted, even though some of you may argue that his reply is the best definition of good intentions. But I thought that was a job for motivational speakers and life coaches! Are the two now so closely intertwined that we can’t tell the difference? But I totally get his point though, after all one must never interrupt a good story with the truth!

And so we mortals trudge on in a single file, blindfolded, hands on the shoulders of the man in front of us, marching along singing “Hosanna” and falling over a cliff into the bottomless pit with our “faith” intact. Open your eyes and see clearly! Take a peek and you’ll soon see that there’s more to life than chasing paper. There’s more to living than rushing to buy the latest fashion trends, hottest new gadget, saving or using your credit cards to own the “baddest” new Mercedes Benz AMG, waiting till its weekend to go out clubbing. Open your eyes! The world may not be coming to an end in 2012 as predicted by the Mayans but who said it couldn’t happen sooner?

Never before in modern day history has so many natural disasters happened at such closely spaced intervals but no one wants to connect the dots. Now before you accuse me of being an alarmist, false prophet or a pessimist; I assure you, I am truly not even close to being so. Actually quite on the contrary I’m quite an optimist and I do believe that switching off my air-conditioner before going to bed would help reduce my carbon foot-print and help the environment and I would gladly support everyone riding bicycles to work if our Senators would lead by example.

But then I recall the gas flaring going on in all the refineries and can still perceive a pungent smell on my vest from the left-over fumes of the Julius Berger truck that was in front of my car earlier today at the traffic jam. Also I faintly recall the number of siren vehicles numbering about 16 in number; big black V8 engineered, fuel-guzzling SUV’s that escorted a single obviously very important man from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport into Abuja City. And then I hear on NN24 that China (The Dragon) is set to build a 100 new factories before 2012, with not a single one of them powered by solar energy or renewable energy and I say to myself, “Who really cares if the world comes to an end?”, and slowly switch back on my air-conditioner.

For more information on the signs of the End Times, read Matthew 24 Verse 6:13. Salvation is personal.

Jon Pol
The writer is a non-conformist and his views are not always “politically correct”. He runs a marketing agency: Jean-Paul and Associates Consultancy (www.jeanpaulconsult.com) and is genuinely interested in people, politics, places and the complexity of the human mind! He’ll like to hear your views on this piece. Follow, stalk or befriend him @ ebukaanichebe.blogspot.com. No, he doesn’t do Twitter (too much to say, but too little space)