I don't think you are in the least bit interested in whether prayer to Jesus is fruitless or not but you are really interested in argueing for nonsense you have not deeply researched or thought about. [/QUOTE]
Actually, both are taught. At the first event, Jesus catches up His followers meeting them in the clouds and taking them up to be with Him, but He does not physically reveal Himself to the earth. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thessalonians 4:17 At a later time He will return with believers to the earth to physical appear and reign. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them: “Behold, the Lord is coming with myriads of His holy ones to execute judgment on everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of every ungodly act of wickedness and every harsh word spoken against Him by ungodly sinners.” Jude 1:14, 15 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— 3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. 6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious. 11 In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean. 12 He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth. Isaiah 11:1-12 One reason some Christians think both of these events are close to happening is that they are connected to the second regathering of Israelites from being scattered among other nations. The first time happened at the return from the Babylonian captivity. We are beginning to see the second regathering, and from the passage in Isaiah, it appears God will continue to regather them after the Messiah is physically on the earth. One interesting article that I posted on ET somewhere once before breaks down how the prophecies in Daniel described the timeframe that the Messiah was to be killed but not for Himself. This coincides with the time that Jesus was on the earth. 25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. 26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself Daniel 9:25, 26 https://jewsforjesus.org/learn/the-messianic-time-table-according-to-daniel-the-prophet/ The start of the 70 sevens Daniel 9:25a Daniel was clearly told when the 70 sevens would begin their countdown. Gabriel said, "Know therefore and discern, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem.…" The 70 sevens would begin with a decree involving the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem. Not everything in Persian chronology is as clear as we would like to have it, and there are still some gaps in our knowledge of history. But from what biblical and historical records we do have, there are four possible answers to the question of which decree the passage refers to. One thing is certain: by the year 444 B.C.E., the countdown of the 70 sevens had begun. One is the decree of Cyrus, issued somewhere between 538-536 B.C.E., which concerned the rebuilding of the Temple (2 Chronicles 36:22-23, Ezra 1:1-4, 6:1-5) and of the city of Jerusalem (Isaiah 44:28, Ezra 6:6-12), issued in the year 521 B.C.E.; it was a reaffirmation of the decree of Cyrus. A third possibility is the decree of Artaxerxes to Ezra (Ezra 7:11-26) issued in 458 B.C.E., which contained permission to proceed with the temple service. The last option is the decree of Artaxerxes to Nehemiah (Nehemiah 2:1-8), issued in the year 444 B.C.E. This decree specifically concerned the rebuilding of the walls around Jerusalem. Of these four possibilities, only the first and fourth are valid in fulfilling the wording Gabriel gave to Daniel. It goes beyond the purpose of this article to deal with the various arguments of either option, but one thing is certain: by the year 444 B.C.E., the countdown of the 70 sevens had begun. The first 69 sevens Daniel 9:25b The 70 sevens are divided into three separate units—seven sevens, 62 sevens and one seven. During the first time period (49 years) Jerusalem would be "built again, with street and moat, even in troublous times." The second block of time (62 sevens, a total of 434 years) immediately followed the first for a total of 69 sevens, or 483 years. It is at this point that we are told what the ending point is of the 69 sevens: "unto Messiah the Prince." As clearly as Daniel could have stated it, he taught that 483 years after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem had been issued, Messiah would be here on earth. The obvious conclusion is this: If Messiah was not on earth 483 years after a decree was issued to rebuild Jerusalem, then Daniel was a false prophet and his book has no business being in the Hebrew Scriptures. But if Daniel was correct and his prophecy was fulfilled, then who was the Messiah of whom he spoke?
That's the crux I'm attempting to explain. If you wish to con someone: Make your thoughts difficult to comprehend, vague, contradictory, couch in words with double meanings, complicate, make it difficult to prove or disprove, hide evidence, make false statements, offer promises too good to believe, offer hope, market, put on slick presentation..... Sound familiar?
One of the hardest things in life is admitting we stuffed up. Try stealing something then returning it, nearly impossible to do.
If they were contradictory teachings, then I would see your point, but they are complimentary. Jesus snatches believers out of the world to keep them from experiencing His judgment for 7 years. Then Jesus returns with them and rules physically on the earth, as many passages teach. This is what the Jews expect for their Messiah, and this will certainly be fulfilled.
One of Trump's biggest failings; he only wants to be surrounded by 'yes men'. The church is exactly that way, will only tolerate 'yes men' in their ranks.
I think trading for Christians would be very healthy. It would constantly remind them how frequently and easy it is being wrong.
One can pray, meditate, sing hymns, gather with other brethren, praise the Lord, speak in tongues, have laying on of hands, tithe, think wholesome thoughts, go on fasting..... It won't make one iota of difference, your trading will still be wrong, will give zero edge. So if you're so often wrong in trading despite all the above, why do you think you are right in your religous beliefs? (Actually fasting may help, not because of religion, but it appears to sharpen the mind).