THE SECOND COMING - 2007 MAY BE THE YEAR

Are you ready? I read a piece recently on USATODAY.com where, among other dire predictions, 1 in 4 or 25% of Americans are convinced that 2007 will be the year that Jesus returns to earth. In a spiritual way, this must have been the source of inspiration for naming this blog "The Second Coming".

It is a phrase with an extremely powerful religious connotation referring to the Christian and Islamic belief that Jesus Christ will return to fulfill Messianic prophecy. It is a concept not to be taken lightly, as it would mean a complete change in the system of things as we know it. It's heavy stuff. We are talking about resurrection of the dead, an everlasting judgement that will banish sinners to the pits of hell and deliver to "born again" believers the promised land and the establishing of God's Kingdom on Earth.

As I pondered the piece, I could not help but wonder how many of the over 70 Million Americans who believe in Jesus' return in 2007 really understand the profound implications. Something tells me that if they did, there would be a much greater sense of urgency (or apathy) among us and we would all be affected in one way or another and know for certain that something unprecedented is on the horizon.

This is not to say that from a religious standpoint that there aren't many ominous signs that Bible Prophecy is being fulfilled...that the "end of times" is  near, but to me, on a person to person basis, the 1 in 4 prediction comes as a big surprise because it certainly feels like business as usual. Although, come to think of it, 2007 is really a little early considering I have a few things that must be completed. A few more years would definitely be more ideal!

In all seriousness though, The Second Coming of Christ has such a powerful meaning that, metaphorically the phrase - "the second coming" - should and is being used (by a few) to bring across a different message to all of us. When I initially thought about my Blog, I had thoughts of sharing powerful experiences about technology, religion, politics, sports, people, life...powerful experiences of rebirth, renewals, second chances...of "second comings".

My idea was not only to find an effective way of entertaining readers, but to do so across a wide variety of subject areas in an informative way. I visited the blog - Shandy King (Obsessive Compulsive Entrepreneur) - recently that reminds me of my approach. While not focused on "the second coming" theme, the author aims to cover topics, in an interesting way across Politics, Religion, Science, and the Internet and has apparently done very well.     

I hope to meet with some of the same success and providing the "real second coming" does not happen in 2007 as I am sure it won't, my goal over the coming months and hopefully years will be to continue to share experiences that are a source of inspiration to all.

In leadership discussions, the interesting concept of "stimulus and response" is often advanced. Well, I do hope that my Blog - The Second Coming, in many ways, will be the stimulus...the spark that uplifts someone, that rekindles a burning desire, that creates a "thousand successes"...that creates success stories that can continue to be a source of inspiration to us all.