Hi sosick, I lean towards what you're saying too. Certainly there is no "end of the world". There is only an end to things as we know it and a complete renewal. The new heavens and the new earth. But we do not know when this will be.

The only things that will be destroyed is no doubt a pretty big portion of those living on the earth (similar to sodom and gommorah). We were warned and sin continues and grows over time. But those who are right with God, do not have anything to fear.

I feel ok either way. God's in charge! Whether anything significant happens in 2012 or not, is not going to impact the way I live my life. For all of us, it already is the end times because we're our lives are really very short in comparison with eternity. And our life is merely a preparation for the next.

Dates have always been set in the past and we've had a lot of red faces because of this. Though 2012 could well be a different senario, it sure looks interesting, but I'm not exactly obsessed, just curious.

One thing is sure, the signs of the times have never been so prevalent as they are now. JEsus told us to observe them and so we should. We may not know the day or the hour of His return, but we can be pretty sure that the bible is not mistaken at giving is strong hints and those hints are being played out in our day and age so blatantly, that one would need to be blind not to see.

It maybe just a matter of time and who knows how much longer there is. Better to be prepared in our own lives regardless.