You know I have a Christian faith, so I'm going to honestly tell you what I think about this.

I believe the answer is all of the above.

Sometimes it is just a coincidence. Sometimes I think there are patterns. The problem with the latter, when it comes to personal faith, is that whilst I feel convinced that it isn't coincidence, I can't offer definitive proof either.

I do believe I have a personal relationship with God. There have been too many strange occurences in my life that I can't explain naturally, and I believe I have experienced the peace and presence of God on multiple occasions. But I have as many questions as I do answers, and don't pretend to have neat three point sermons for everything. I'm also comfortable with not knowing. I actually like the mystery.

Unlike many of my fellow believers, I don't feel a need to prove or defend God. Don't believe me? Think it's all in my head? Chemicals being released through my body? I'm seeing patterns where there aren't any? Fine by me. I'm not going to try and twist your arm in evangelical fervour.

I also believe it is possible for people to sense or detect future events, but often in error or out of context. Example: In late 2019, I sensed a "cloud of death" approaching. I believed it was to do with my work situation, but in truth I now think I might have dectected Covid. By being inward-looking, I drew the wrong conclusion.

Here's another interesting recent example: As you know, a lot of evangelicals in America recently were convinced that Trump would win a second term. They said they had seen visions of what was coming, with the chaos on the Capital, etc. I've read some of these accounts, and the images were accurate, in terms of what ultimately unfolded. However, picking up on something in the ether (for want of a better expression) doesn't mean you can interpret it accurately, so most of the time it's best to keep your mouth shut. As it happened, their political biases and echo chambers led them to erroneous conclusions and just made them look foolish (on top of all the other reasons evangelical Christians often look foolish). They thought they saw a Trump win. They actually saw a Trump defeat.

Anyway, I probably sound like a nutcase now, but I thought I'd give you my honest thoughts on this matter.

As for whether we are actually approaching an End Times scenario/apocalypse, I haven't a bloody clue. People have been saying that for the last two thousand years, but if you study and believe the prophecies in the Bible - and that's a whole different can of worms I won't get into here - then I still think there are several major world events that need to take place first (that isn't to say they couldn't take place soon). Ultimately, anyone who says they know for sure is lying. Even Jesus said he didn't know, when he was on the Earth.

Of course, I have several of my own harbingers of the apocalypse - the rise of social media Influencers, call centres, flat pack furniture, people using mobile phones in cinemas, the horrible remakes of classic films - you get the idea. ;)