I Wish
I Wish
By Grant Phillips
There is a poem that’s been around a long time that says:
Star light, star bright,
The first star I see tonight;
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.
It has a nice jingle, but is certainly nothing to be taken seriously. I can assure you I won’t be peering at the sky tonight looking for a bright star and quoting this poem.
A few weeks or so ago I was driving down the road and just began thinking how nice it would be if some things in this world were different. I found myself almost saying out loud, “I wish there were no trash.” (Someone had thrown trash out on the road.) Then other things came to mind, such as:
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were no sicknesses? How about no death, no evil, no blight, no bad tempers, no lying, no crooked politicians, no hurtful words, no pot holes, no hunger, no wars, no jealousy, no hate, no commercials, etc. I suppose we could continue page after page making a list of all the things we could do without.
There is a day coming when it will all be true. None of these things I mentioned, and many I didn’t mention, will exist. It is a period of 1,000 years known as the Millennium. If the Rapture would occur today, it is possible that it could be as close as seven years away. Wow! 1,000 years of total bliss, and then it continues into eternity.
If you really think about it, we really don’t have to put up with all the negativity that comes from a fallen world very long. Yes, it has been going on now for about 6,000 years, but I’ve only been around for a very short time. How about you? My 70 plus years is even less than a drop in the bucket when we look at it from this angle. Hmmm. I feel better already.
As I’ve said, repeatedly, I do not know when Jesus will come back for His bride (Church) and remove us (Rapture) from this earth, but I strongly feel we are in the season of His return. Please don’t ask me to define “season.” Let’s just say I’m getting a crick in my neck looking up.
I do believe He could come in my lifetime, what’s left of it, but I could be wrong. It may be in our children’s lifetime or our grandchildren’s lifetime. I don’t think it will be that long, but then again, I’m not God. So, if I’m not alive for the Rapture, that’s okay. I’ll just pick up my new body and meet you in the air as we travel upwards.
Before we arrive at that glorious 1,000 year period the world, exit the Church, will suffer terribly. As bad as things are now, the Tribulation that follows the Rapture will be seven years of pure hell on earth. I don’t think anyone at that time will be concerned about trash or commercials. It will all be about survival.
There was another time when our first parents were upon the earth (Adam and Eve), when everything was just perfect, and then guess who showed up? This fallen angel called by so many names has really made a mess of things. From the time Adam and Eve fell to temptation, everything has been going south. Now here we are saying, “I wish.” I say “I wish” with tongue in cheek, because I know we also have so much to be grateful for. If you think about it, we could actually use a lot more paper listing all the things we have to be thankful for than the things we wish were different.
God has been very good to us, and it reached a pinnacle upon the cross. One wonders how God could have so much love for us when we have been so very unloving toward Him. Even those of us who are His children, can be very unappreciative at times.
Yes, it would be nice to see good triumph over evil. (That day is coming.) It would be nice to have no more immorality, suffering, fear, evil of any kind. (That day is coming.)
I look back over the years of my life and see a change in society that is so extreme, it is almost unbelievable. No, for many things we face today, it isn’t just “almost,” it is unbelievable. For those who are younger, I guess all I can say is, “You had to be there,” to see the contrast between yesterday and today.
I see and hear things today that would never have been made public when I was a young lad. We see and hear things today that would never have entered the mind of man a mere 70 years ago. It has become so obvious many are realizing that what God said through Isaiah has actually come to pass in our day.
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” (Isaiah 5:20-21)
I have been pleasantly surprised to hear of those who I thought were not paying attention, are actually realizing that society is doing exactly what God said they would do nearly 2,800 years ago.
I believe there are millions of my fellow Americans today who are also saying, “I wish” to all the satanic uprisings we are witnessing today. You too are tired of the satanic garbage that is being dumped on us from every side. “I wish” is being bellowed out to the heavens in exasperation. Amongst our anxiety comes a voice from Heaven reminding us of Jesus’ words:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” (John 14:1-4)