Rapture or... Return

In 1988, I was twenty-four years old and stationed in Pusan, South Korea. An avid reader by nature, I found myself caught up in the excitement surrounding a little book that had just been released, called 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988 by Edgar Whisenant. As I sat at my desk, I closed the book, I didn’t question it.
I was only about two years into my walk with Christ, still young in faith and hungry for truth. What I had just read didn’t feel like speculation to me—it felt certain.
The arguments were compelling. The charts appeared convincing. The Scriptures presented in support of it-fit together perfectly (I thought). As I read page after page, anticipation grew inside me. I wasn’t merely intrigued--I believed it. Completely.
If Jesus was truly returning within days, how could I stay silent?
Fueled by that conviction, I felt an overwhelming burden to warn others. I got up from my desk and went to find a dear friend of mine who happened to have access to a printer. I sat down and quickly wrote out a message—something urgent, something direct:
“Get your life in order. Our Lord Jesus is returning within the week.”
She graciously printed over a 100 copies for me and with a sense of holy urgency, I went from door to door, in my dormitory, slipping those pages underneath each one, believing I was helping prepare people for what was about to happen.
Then the weekend came…and went.
Monday passed. Tuesday passed.
By Wednesday morning, my emotions had shifted from urgent expectation to absolute mortification. Embarrassment washed over me as the reality set in—everyone was still here! The Lord had not returned! I didn’t need to tell anyone what I had done; word had already spread.
I was spiritually crushed in a way only a young believer can be when zeal out-runs understanding.
That morning, my favorite chaplain came to see me. He had heard what had happened and kindly asked if he could take me to lunch.
What began as a simple conversation turned into something much more. That lunch became the starting point of a six-month Bible study— that would challenge assumptions I had never thought to question and shape my understanding of Scripture in ways I couldn’t have imagined at the time.
I was 24. He was around 40—and I remember thinking he was so old.

Now, I smile at the thought, and nearly 40 years later, find myself sitting down to finally write the book that has been steadily forming in my mind for decades.

My prayer is that what you read here will do for you what that faithful chaplain did for me—open your eyes, not to speculation or fear, but to the truth of Scripture. Not built on dates or predictions, but on the unshakable foundation of God’s Word.