1 Timothy 5:8 (KJV) But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.
I am a student of Bible Prophecy. I say that because I know how the end of the story plays out and also who wins. With that said, I do not believe in a utopian world promoted by many out there. Man left to his own devices will always seek the greediest, most hedonistic, selfish path possible.
That is why we who have accepted Christ as our personal savior pick up our cross and follow Him daily.
Knowing that we are in fact living in the last days of the last days, I believe that today's Western world is more vulnerable to both natural and man-made catastrophes than at any time in our past.
The science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke once said:
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
This statement is commonly known as Clarke's Third Law.
We now live in a world that is so completely immersed in advanced technology that we depend upon it for our very survival. Most of the actions that we depend upon for our everyday activities -- from flipping a switch to make the lights come on to obtaining all of our food supplies at a nearby supermarket.
If one would have viewed modern technology a mere 200 years ago, it would consider magic and may have even been burned at the stake.
I often get asked "why are you always talking about being prepared?"
Our civilization has become very vulnerable. We forget where our food originates from and many believe that it comes from the "magic place" called Wal-Mart. In fact if Wal-Mart did not exist, there are times that I wonder if modern man would have been able to survive.
Because I am a student of Bible Prophecy, I know that this world is not going to get better, but in fact things will get worse.
But if I were to set aside what I know from God's Word and what it speaks of in these last days, there are still several big picture factors to consider that work or and possibly even working together in a dangerous way, especially here in the US.
Economics: The U.S. national debt is a long-term threat to the nation's economy and current levels of government spending are unsustainable. Across the ocean and we see most of Europe is no better. In fact due to recent developments many nations in the European Union are in far worse shape. Greece, Portugal, Italy instantly come to mind. Still, governments spend like ther e is no tomorrow and that the coffers of cash are unending. They forget the future generations who will be strapped with this buren and will not be able to repay these debts.
To say it plainly, our nation is in serious danger of bankrupting itself.
Compounding this issue is our dwindling manufacturing , which is laying off people daily. Due to this and other establishments laying off, the tax bases are also dwindling. Not to mention aging infrastructure, declining educational system, and our absolute dependence on foreign oil. Which thanks to the lack of serious response by our current administration, it will probably become much worse. It would not surprise me to find out that much of this lack of response is planned so that the government can seize the oil companies much like they did the banks and auto industries.
In the U.S. and abroad, legislatures seems determined to spend us into oblivion all in the name of "peace and safety."
The outcome - no money
Resources: Whether you believe if the Peak Oil theory is correct or not, fossil fuels are becoming more difficult to extract and will become more expensive over time. Again I point to our Gulf oil "crisis."
The U.S. cannot be energy independent given current oil and gas reserves. We need to invest in our own energy solutions and start producing once again. But will we? The powers that be say that we will not.
China and India's populations are growing and so are their energy needs. Alternate energy sources cannot fill the void, at least not right now. It will still take several decades to "ramp up" these infrastructures. Unfortunately, modern civilization is based on access to cheap fossil fuels, and world governments seem to be oblivious to the need to prepare (e.g., start building hundred of wind turbines, nuclear reactors, solar array farms, etc, now) for the future.
The outcome - dwindling energy solutions at a very high cost playing catch up.
Demographics: The "baby boomer" generation is rapidly aging, and coming into retirement. This means there will be less workers, paying less taxes. Our retirees "nest egg" has been robbed multiple times by wall street, inflation, and constant rising taxes. Because of this the "baby boomers" are forced to dip into resources, that were set aside to help support their golden years. But more and more of these people's resources are gone. This issue also compounds the economic problems above.
Tack on illegal immigration which often in cases do not contribute to the tax system and we see an even stronger strain on the welfare system of today.
International Threats: U.S. status as a super power is being challenged by China, the Middle East, and quite possibly even Russia. Those nations and others, however, will also face demographic and resource issues that will make them competitors for trade and scarce recourse, increasing the potential for conflict with our own country. Muslim Terrorist factions actors such as Al Qaeda and the like will continue to be a challenge as Islam grows worldwide with the push for a global caliphate ensues. And just recently NASA has released a report that all countries remain vulnerable to the threat of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) due to out of the ordinary projected solar storms. Toss in the fact that EMP can also be caused by terrorist / manmade events and one can see the vulnerability.
Wild Cards: This includes natural disasters, plagues and pandemics, earthquakes, asteroids, etc. – all those things completely beyond the control of humans that could wreak havoc upon civilization by destroying key infrastructure, cities and populations.
Society has faced many of these issues in the past, the difference being that contemporary Western civilization has become dependent upon the "magic" of technology to a degree unsurpassed in history. This is our own "Achilles heel" or weakness. While there is a level of redundancy that provides some robustness, there is point when failures in one systems that will cause a cascading effect that will result in failures of other related systems.
We have lost many of the vital non-technical skills our grandparents generation had. How to raise chickens, milk goats, make cheese, even mend our own clothes. Our society has become more dependent on the "magic" of technology. And if this technology is taken down. The possible effect of large scale catastrophes is magnified by the probability of cascade failures in those technologies.
Now this is the worst case scenario. Personally I believe that what we will see in this nation in severe depression far worse than that of the depression of the 1930s. The reason it will be worse is due to the factors I named above.
Our industrial complex is basically gone, knowledge of lost skills is basically gone, our financial resources are basically gone .
Our hope lies within what we as Americans can do for our own family. But we as husbands, fathers and leaders of our family must never forget, that our true hope lies in the saving Grace of our heavenly Father who will see us through the good times and in the bad.
God has given us strong hands to work with and brains to think with. He is not some welfare agent in the sky. He is not going to rain pennies from heaven nor allow $20.00 bill trees to grow in our back yard.
What He will do is bless our efforts if we work now to plan ahead. He is not going to raise up a vegetable garden over night. But if we get out and till the land, plant the seeds and nurture our efforts, He will bless that effort with a bountiful harvest.
God's Word tells us to "occupy till He returns." We need to be doing that. Why you may ask?
1 Peter 3:15 (KJV) But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
It is for the sake of the Gospel that we must be ready always in good times and in bad. If we are not ready for the hard times ahead, how can we have the freedom to share the blessed hope of our Lord and Savior? There will be many who will be on their hands and knees just searching for that next scrap of food. Will people like them have the time to share the gospel? No they will not nor will they be in any position to do so.
That is why it is vitally important that we are busy at the task at hand and "be ready always" to share the gospel in good times and in bad.
We do this not only for the sake of our own families, but for those who we will be able to help.
Think about it. If you know that your neighbor down the road is hurting and in need and you are able to provide some beans, rice, maybe a dozen eggs, don't you think that they would be more open to hearing God's plan of Salvation? Don’t you think that because you are different and had the foresight to look ahead that you might have a higher degree of credibility than one who has fallen on hard times?
Knowing all of this; looking out upon the horizon, this is why I prepare.
I see a great need for bible believing Christians to be ready to share the Gospel. They are not going to hear about God's true love for them from the sugar coated charlatans who claim the title "pastor." What these people are in reality is mere hirelings who are fleecing the flocks.
So we need to be ready to fulfill the task at hand.
Mark 16:15 (KJV) And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
The time to prepare is now, while we still have the time and resources at hand.
When Christ returns, it is my desire to have Him find me hard at work for the sake of the kingdom.
I don’t know about you, but I want to hear those words…" Enter my kingdom my good and faithful servant."
What will you be doing when Christ returns?
What words will He speak to you?
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