At the present time, the world is focused on the almost immeasurable crisis in Haiti. Cries are going out to the four corners of the earth; cries of help financially for food, water, rescue equipment, military and medical personnel and most of all--prayers. Anyone with any sense of compassion is responding, as they should.
I'm always amazed how in a crisis such as this one, the way people 'hear' the cries and respond to the need. It makes one feel good inside to know that people are willing to help when the need arises.
All of this has caused me to wonder why people can 'see' this type of need so quickly yet when other problems loom on the horizon, they fail to see or heed the warnings of what is coming.
It reminds me of the joke where to guys are standing on the side of the road holding a sign that says, “The end is near”. As a car speeds by ignoring their warning, one guy turns to his friend and says, “Maybe we should have said 'The Bridge is out'”.
Sometimes the signs around us are so confusing that rather than try to understand them, we simply ignore them and speed along with our lives. But just like the car that finds out too late that the bridge is out, people fail to see the inevitable until it is too late.
Every day I scan news events to ‘see’ what is happening in the light of bible prophecy. Regardless of what anyone may choose to believe, the Bible is as current (or more so) than you daily newspaper, evening news report or even “The Drudge Report”.
As one reads the Scriptures, we must ask God to open our ears and eyes so that we can hear and see with understanding. This is what Jesus told the people of his day when He said, “He that has ears to hear, let him hear.” The Apostle John in the Book of Revelations recorded the Spirit of God saying to each of the seven churches, “He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
For us today, the question is not “Does God still talk?” but rather, “Is anyone listening?” This was crossed my mind as I read an article posted two days ago titled, “Sovereign Debt Crisis Coming As Recovery Stalls – U.S. states in serious trouble”. Like the sign saying “the end is near” this headline garnered no airtime by the mainstream media. However, it like many others that keep popping up more and more frequently, are trying to warn anyone that will listen that “the bridge is out” and we need to stop.
Articles documenting the fiscal crisis brewing in the US, UK, Greece, Ireland, Spain, Japan, as well as the highly touted China have become almost a daily occurrence. My concern is that like the boy that cried “wolf” so often that people no longer considered him serious, these continual warnings have caused us to yawn each time we hear one.
Americans have a tendency to shrug off warnings that pertain to ‘other’ nations—after all, we’re the United States. So they close their eyes and cover their ears and never hear the warnings that a fiscal crisis is hitting almost every state in The Union. California alone has a whopping 56% deficit as a percent of its General Fund Budget.
An episode of “60 Minutes” addressed the current U.S. fiscal problems with one of the most respected investment fund managers Whitney Tilson. He gave a glimpse into what is coming very soon that will make the financial shock of 2008 look like a walk in the park. The first part of that video can be seen below.
In January of 1990, my wife and I were visiting an acquaintance in Guatemala. One afternoon in a time of prayer, the Holy Spirit revealed to me in a rather startling way, several things that were coming to the United States. For the last 19 years, I have been telling people about that experience as opportunities have allowed me to do so. One of the areas made clear to me was that a financial collapse was coming worldwide. I saw it beginning in Asia and spreading through Europe as well as South America upward. Eventually I saw it hitting the U.S. as I watched a financial meltdown happen over New York City. So when I ‘see’ and ‘hear’ news events such as these, I take note and try to understand what is happening in the light of biblical prophecy.
Now I know that there will be those that say I’m a full of gloom and doom to which I would say, “No so!” After all, if the bridge is out, the bridge is out—plain and simple. To know that it is out and not to warn others is not a doomsday message—it is simply the truth. The truth may hurt but it’s definitely better than the alternative.
So I will continue to speak out and try to garner people’s attention whenever and wherever I can. The message is anything but calamity but rather about the surety there is in having a relationship with Jesus Christ—the one who knows the end before we know the beginning. It is about having the direction of the Holy Spirit whom Jesus sent to us that would “…guide us into all truth…He will tell you things to come.” John 16:13
So let those that have ears to hear, let them ‘see and hear’ with spiritual understanding. The end is near—Jesus is coming soon!
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