Dear Friends and Fellow Minnesotans,
In these turbulent times, many of you have reached out to me—pressing, with earnest hearts, for my thoughts on the “last days.” As a man of deep faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and one who has humbly studied the sacred texts of many faiths, I welcome these conversations. They remind us that our shared search for meaning is at the heart of what it means to be human, to lead, and to serve.
But let me share with you a moment from Scripture that has shaped my own reflections on this eternal question. Picture the Garden of Gethsemane, that shadowed hour before the cross. Jesus, carrying the weight of the world, turns to His closest disciples and pleads: “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He returns, only to find them asleep—exhausted by sorrow, lulled by uncertainty. With a mix of compassion and gentle rebuke, He asks, “Could you not watch with me for one hour?” (Matthew 26:40).
To me, this scene is a profound mirror to our own days—the “last days” or any days, really. It whispers a truth we all feel in our bones: the end, whenever it comes, arrives unannounced, like a thief in the night. We don’t know the hour. But oh, what we do in the hours we do have? That is everything.
The disciples’ slumber wasn’t malice; it was the drift of fear, the temptation to withdraw when the shadows lengthen. Yet Jesus calls them—and us—to awaken. Not to frantic speculation or paralyzing dread, but to vigilant purpose. In the face of the unknown, we are not to squander our days in pessimism or perpetual procrastination, huddled in worry over what might be. No—we are to rise, to watch, to work. To carry on the sacred labor of love, justice, and stewardship that God entrusts to us all.
As your candidate for Governor in 2026, this is the vision I hold for Minnesota: a state where we don’t just endure the storms but build arks of opportunity amid them. Where faith fuels action—feeding the hungry, healing the broken, lifting the overlooked—not idle prophecies. Where we pray and plow the fields, worship and work the polls, hope and harness our hands to mend what’s frayed.
So, my friends, let’s not sleep through this hour. Let’s watch together, work together, and walk toward a brighter dawn—not because we’ve cracked the code of the cosmos, but because in every moment, we’re called to make it count. That’s the faith that moves mountains. That’s the legacy we’ll leave.
With gratitude and resolve,
Phillip C. Parrish
Candidate for Governor of Minnesota 2026
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