How to Have a Bad Day Step 20: Live Like There's No Tomorrow

Ever noticed how people react differently when they think the world’s ending? Some stockpile beans, some max out credit cards, some start bucket lists, and others just binge Netflix “because what’s the point?”

There's always a disaster on the horizon to keep us distracted and every generation has had its “end of the world” story. Here’s just a few of the fears I’ve lived through:

• 1970s – Cold War, nuclear war threat, global cooling. (yeah that was a thing)

• 1980s – Arms race, Reagan vs. USSR, AIDS panic, 1987 crash

• 1990s – Gulf War, Oklahoma City bombing, Y2K panic (that was a big one!)

• 2000s – 9/11, War on Terror, 2008 crash

• 2010s – ISIS, cyber-surveillance, climate panic, political unrest everywhere (and 2012 was supposed to be the end, remember?)

• 2020s – COVID, Russia-Ukraine war, AI fears, etc, etc, etc.

Every decade had its apocalypse. Fear sells and controls. It also shapes how people live, save, parent, and dream. When people believe life (or the world) could collapse at any moment wisdom takes a back seat to indulgence, apathy, and despair.

The church has not been immune to this doomsday thinking either. They just have their own twists on it. Instead of praying, “Thy kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven,” many have fastened their seatbelts and await evacuation: “Keep looking up—we’re getting outta this hell hole any day now.”

This is why today’s post comes after the “Resent Aging” blogs. The same spirit that convinces people to abandon purpose and legacy also whispers, “The end is near—don’t bother building for tomorrow.”

Please Hear Me Out

I hesitated to write about this topic. It’s controversial, and like I described in Step 16, I know it's going to shake some world views. It did ours so I know what it feels like. But it has to be included in this series, because this idea of history coming to an end any day shaped so many of my own bad-day attitudes. For as long as I can remember, I was told "the world is going to be destroyed", "humanity is going to collapse" and "Jesus was coming at any moment.” No reason to plan school, career, or children. What was the point in thinking long term?

But here’s what Dwaine and I have discovered: Before the 1800s, the church thought differently as a whole. Christians were actively pushing back darkness and building for future generations because they believed God’s kingdom was advancing like the stone in Daniel that fills the whole earth. It had tremendous influence and was full of purpose and hope for the future.

Then came a shift: Phrases like “This world is not our home,” “It’s all going to burn,” “Don’t polish the brass on a sinking ship” became our Sunday mantras. The church stopped advancing, retreated in fear, and looked for an escape. They put their light under a bushel and we know what happens to fire without oxygen — and that's what happened to their influence. (Side note: I will be writing more on this topic at a later date outside of this series so stay tuned!)

Once we started digging into history and simply taking Jesus at His word, everything shifted. The heaviness lifted. Our days grew lighter. Hope returned. And we’re not the only ones. All over the world, people are throwing off the idea that darkness is stronger than light and rediscovering the Church’s original mandate—the one we abandoned when this doomsday idea derailed us.

Jesus Has Made the World a Better Place

Here’s a brisk tour of how the world is a better place since Jesus came and established His kingdom here:

From its earliest days, Christianity proclaimed the equal worth of every life—infant, female, foreigner, disabled—and lived it out by rescuing abandoned children and creating cultures of care. By the 4th century, Christians built the first hospital-like institutions, and through monasteries, convents, and later faith-based movements, they shaped nursing, hospice, and modern health care.

The church preserved learning through monasteries, birthed universities, spread literacy through Sunday Schools and global missions, and seeded entire national literatures through Bible translation. Many founders of science were devout believers, and Christian ethics influenced law, marriage, and human rights.

Social reform, from abolishing infanticide, gladiatorial games, and slavery, to campaigns against child labor and prison abuse, was largely fueled by Christian conviction. Women gained education, protection, and leadership roles through the church, and later led reforms in healthcare and social justice.

In warfare and politics, Christian thought sought to restrain violence and empower peace movements, shaping civil rights and nonviolent resistance.

Missionaries didn’t just preach the gospel—they laid the foundations of culture. They created alphabets, built schools, and established community structures that opened the door for literacy and civic participation. Their vision stretched beyond their own lifetimes, believing their efforts would echo through generations.

David Livingstone is a powerful example. He mapped vast regions of Africa, not for personal glory, but to clear the path for future missionaries. Tireless and faithful to the end, he labored knowing he might never see the full fruit of his work—yet confident that his sacrifice would multiply long after he was gone.

The story is not without failure: complicity in slavery, colonialism, abuse, and injustice are real. Yet, many of the fiercest critics and reformers emerged from within Christianity itself, appealing to Jesus’ teaching to correct the church’s abuses.

In short: despite contradictions, Christianity has been one of the most powerful forces for human dignity, learning, healing, reform, and community the world has ever known.

Make Yourself at Home. He's Not Finished.

I know things look bad. I watch the news too—probably more than I should. It makes me sad, frustrated, and angry at times, but it doesn’t shake me, and it doesn’t fill me with anxiety. Why? Because I can see it all through the lens of what is true.

Jesus is already victorious. He said, “Take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). The war is won. The battles we see are just the last gasps of an enemy who knows he's loosing his grip.

The Kingdom is now. Jesus declared, “The kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1:15). Paul affirmed, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13). That’s not future tense—it’s already happened.

He reigns today. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” (Matthew 28:18). Not “will be given”—has been given. He rules over presidents, prime ministers, empires, and economies. “He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet” (1 Corinthians 15:25). This is still going on. Believe what HE has said. Not what His enemies are telling you. Their only power is in believing their lies.

The earth belongs to Him—and to us in Him. “The meek shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.”  That means our future isn’t evacuation—it’s inheritance.

Darkness doesn’t get the last word. John wrote, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5). Isaiah prophesied, “Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end” (Isaiah 9:7). The Kingdom is ever-expanding, not retreating.

We are not powerless. Paul said, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). That means we don’t endure life like victims—we advance as heirs.

So yes, I see the headlines. But behind every headline is a bigger headline: “Jesus Christ reigns.” The news and some pulpits and YouTube preachers might predict doom, but Jesus didn't and still doesn't. And His is the only voice I care about.

Final Note

History rises and falls like a stock chart: peaks and drops, ups and downs. But zoom out, and you'll see the line since Christ’s resurrection trends upward. The earth is the Lord’s, and His light keeps spreading. Dark pockets remain, yes, but rebellious gangs don’t define the whole city and it definitely doesn't mean the gang leader is Mayor. It just means God’s people must reclaim the streets. And on a global scale, that’s what His Kingdom is doing.

Here’s the truth: Jesus is King now. His Kingdom is advancing now. And believe it or not, He has already overcome the world (His words, not mine). We’re not waiting to escape. We’re called to roll up our sleeves and get busy.

So the real question isn’t, “What if the world ends tomorrow? ”It’s, “What if Christ’s kingdom keeps expanding until the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth like the waters cover the sea?” (Habakkuk 2:14)

We are not here to bow out—we are here to build. Not to escape, but to establish. As for me and my house, we will live and labor as though our legacy will ripple through dozens of generations yet to come.

Because if His reign truly has no end, then our task is clear: build, plant, teach, and pass on hope—so those who come after us can have not just a good day, but a great one.