Sound The Midnight Cry

“Virus Infecting Global Financial Systems”

Everywhere you turn, the news seems to be focused on COVID-19—the newest version of a coronavirus. The World Health Organization (WHO) has now released a statement raising the coronavirus assessment to its highest level.

“We are on the highest level of alert or highest level of risk assessment in terms of spread and in terms of impact” said Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO’s health emergencies program. 

While the organization states that they are not trying to cause panic, they were merely saying, “This is a reality check for every government on the planet: wake up, get ready, this virus may be on its way and you need to be ready. You have a duty to your citizens; you have a duty to the world to be ready.”

While the focus of “infections” is in regard to people, the virus is beginning to cause hemorrhaging in the global financial world. The coronavirus outbreak has sapped financial markets, emptied shops and businesses and put major sites and events off limits. As of this writing, the major stock indices for the U.S. is down over 3600 points this week alone.

Major concern has come to the forefront as China is facing an implosion in its retail and financial sectors due to the virus. A recent report revealed that 85% of China’s small businesses which employ 80% of China’s workforce, will run out of money in less than 90 days. A third of those companies will be out of cash in less than 30 days. Should this happen, not only will China’s economy collapse, but China’s $40 trillion financial system will disintegrate, as it is suddenly flooded with trillions in bad loans.

There is a growing chorus calling for the Chinese government to step in and prevent this from happening with whatever means possible. The reason is simple: These smaller employers account for 99.8% of registered companies in China and contribute more than 60% of gross domestic product and more than 50% of tax revenue for the Chinese government. 

A recent Bloomberg headline read, “Millions of Chinese Firms Face Collapse If Banks Don’t Act Fast”. The article highlighted and described the dilemma of Brigita, a director at one of China’s largest car dealers.

Her firm’s 100 outlets have been closed for about a month because of the coronavirus, cash reserves are shrinking, and banks are hesitant to extend deadlines on billions of yuan in debt coming due over the next few months, not to mention other creditors. 

In this day of globalism, nations have been forced to rely on production centers on the other side of the world for a vast majority of our goods. When China shuts down, the US economy loses almost 20% of its supply chain. When you add in virus impacted Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam, you can add another 10% to 15% on top of that. Retailers in the US represent around 70% of GDP. Cut off the supply chain in Asia and retailers lose a vast array of goods to sell. Even if the virus never spreads throughout the U.S., its economy is essentially shut down.

So, it’s not surprising to see a call by a former Federal Reserve Governor come out today saying that he expects to see coordinated Central Bank action in response to the virus outbreak.

So, what does this have to do with bible prophecy? These events and responses are setting the stage for global elitist and national leaders to form the coming one-world government. It gives them the reason to form an infrastructure to bring this about at some future time as this virus event shows the ineptness of divided governments to deal with cataclysmic events.

Jesus said that when we saw these things beginning to take place, know that the time is coming for His return. It’s time for Christians to declare to the world, “Jesus is coming soon—are you ready?”

“What Is Going On?”

Being the oldest of seven kids in my family, there were many times the noise level would get to the place where we would usually hear, “What is going on”? In other words, “What’s the reason for all this noise?” which was usually followed by, “Go outside, NOW!”

I recently posted a link on my FB page to an article by Michael Snyder, “10 Plagues That Are Hitting Our Planet Simultaneously”. For those that haven’t read it, I’ll try to hit the highlights for you with additional info since then.

#1 Armies Of Locusts – I wrote about this last week. Since then, these hordes of locust have reached from all the way to China. In fact, an article this week showed the Chinese government released 100,000 ducks to fight “worst locust attack in decades.”

#2 Extremely Bizarre Weather Patterns – It is almost as if virtually all of the old rules have suddenly been thrown out the window.  An all-time record 209 mph wind gust just hit California, and other storms are occurring internationally.

#3 Unprecedented Flooding – We are seeing unusual flooding all over the world right now, and the flooding that is devastating the southern U.S. at this moment is being called “unprecedented”…

#4 Major Earthquakes – Major earthquakes are happening with such frequency; some in very unusual places.

#5 Unusual Volcanic Eruptions – Seismic activity has been rising all over the globe, including the most powerful eruption of Mount Merapi in 90 years.

#6 The Coronavirus – Unless you’ve been living under a rock, everyone is aware of this event. Today, news reports are coming out of Iran and Lebanon that an outbreak is not taking place with deaths already attributed to the virus. WHO officials are calling this new outbreak, “very worrisome”.

#7 The African Swine Fever – “Pig Ebola” has already wiped out millions upon millions of pigs in China, and it has now spread to more than 40 other countries. 

#8 The H1N1 Swine Flu – Unlike the African Swine Fever, the H1N1 Swine Flu can actually kill humans. It has already killed more people outside of China than the coronavirus outbreak has.

#9 The H5N1 Bird Flu – This strain of the bird flu caused a massive global scare a number of years ago, and now it is experiencing a stunning resurgence.  China has had to kill thousands of chickens so far, and experts are warning that this outbreak could be just getting started.

#10 The H5N8 Bird Flu – This strain is different from the H5N1 bird flu, but many believe that it is even more frightening. Experts were really surprised when it recently made an appearance in Germany.

All of these things are events of nature, yet they are having an impact upon the economies of nations. If you add to this the unrealized action of the Federal Reserve of their pumping daily, literal billions of dollars into the U.S. monetary system, you realize that something big is going on.

When you step back and realize that all this is happening at one time, I can hear that voice from the other room when I was a kid yelling, “What’s going on?”

To those that study bible prophecy, we already know what this is about. When Jesus’ disciples asked what the signs of The End of Days would be, he told them that earthquakes, pestilence and famine and the impact of those events would be the signs pointing to the fulfillment of the prophecies of old.

So, to the question, “What’s going on?” in the world—Jesus is coming soon. The question for every person is, “Are you ready for His return?”

“The Locust Connection”

As a kid growing up, one of my favorite TV shows was “Death Valley Days”. Probably due to the fact that as a child I witnessed firsthand Death Valley.

I remember one of the TV episodes that had to do with a swarm of locust. It was the first time I had ever heard of them and I remember watching with intense interest what seemed to be an invasion as it descended upon the fields of the farmers. I’ll admit after that, every time I saw a large grasshopper, I wondered if it was really a locust and were there more coming our way.

Presently, what is happening in east Africa and across much of the Middle East right now is hard to fathom. It’s been called a plague of “Biblical proportions”; 360 billion locusts are eating everything in sight. UN officials are warning that this scourge could get many times worse in the months ahead.  

For those who may not know, desert locusts can travel up to 93 miles a day and each one can consume the equivalent of its own weight in food every 24 hours. These insatiable insects are traveling in absolutely gigantic swarms that are up to 40 miles wide as they continue to push into new areas.  If urgent action is not taken on a massive scale, millions upon millions of people could soon have next to nothing to eat.

The government of Pakistan just declared a national emergency because of these locusts. Videos show millions of the insects sweeping through Saudi Arabia with swarms so thick at times that they have completely blocked out the sun.

East Africa remains the hardest hit region, and officials are warning that a horrible famine could rapidly develop as a result of this plague. These swarms of locust threaten to trigger a humanitarian crisis, the UN has warned. The horde of billions of insects has already laid waste to farmland across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, caused damage in Dijibouti and Eritrea, posing an unprecedented threat to food security.

To try to understand the immensity of this problem, this swarm of locusts outnumbers the entire population of the earth by a margin of 45 to 1.

The Food and Agriculture Organization, an agency of the UN stated, "A swarm the size of Rome can eat enough food in one day as everybody in Kenya." And some of these swarms are actually bigger than the city of Rome.

According to Scientific American, the breeding cycles over the next couple of months could increase the swarms in size twentyfold, with each successive generation and could reach India by June.

These locusts are going to create a famine, and the more they eat the worse the famine will become.

At this point the only viable way to combat these swarms is to spray them, and the UN is desperately asking for financial help to aid in that effort. Otherwise, officials claim that the number of locusts could get 500 times larger over the next few months.

The Bible states that some of the “birth pains” pointing to the Last Days includes “pestilence and famine”. The world is already dealing with the Wuhan coronavirus (pestilence) and now comes “the locust connection” leaving famine in its wake.

There can be little doubt for those that study bible prophecy to see that these and other things happening (increase in earthquakes and volcanic eruptions) are pointing to the fulfillment of biblical prophecies. And with them is the return of Jesus Christ to planet earth!

Are you ready for when He returns?

"The Problem With Hindsight"

The adage that "hindsight is 2020" is understandable in that anyone (almost anyone) can look backwards, see what happened and learn something from it.

At the same time, it is almost prophetic regarding the state of the Western World. I believe that the year 2020 will be a watershed moment for not only for nations, but for the Christian Church. Let me explain what I mean by that.

A watershed moment is defined as a turning point, the exact moment that changes the direction of an activity or situation. It is often a dividing point from which things will never be the same. Though it is often considered momentous, a watershed moment is often only recognized in hindsight.

Having lived long enough, I can look back at what used to be acceptable or recognized as a cultural standard. Many years later, through political choices, court decisions and civil movements, those standards have changed.

But there comes a time when one steps across the line; and once that happens, there's no going back. It's the literal version of opening Pandora's Box.

This week, something on that scale has happened in the UK. This moment has the potential to impact far beyond its shores that could change the Christian Church and Western democracy for years to come.

The history of Western culture in the nations of Europe and North America were shaped by the strong influence of Christianity. However, over the past several decades, the erosion of the standards that those nations were founded upon is finally taking its toll. And hindsight will eventually show that without a divine intervention, will ultimately be there downfall.

I believe that we witnessed one of those major shifts this past week in the United Kingdom. Yes, the news reported that they finally left the EU; but I'm referring to the less reported headlines that Evangelist Franklin Graham, son of the late Billy Graham, was first banned from the Liverpool ACC, then Sheffield and then like the icing on a cake, from the Glasgow SEC.

How and why did this happen? Did the government forbid him to come? Did anti-Christian activists protest his tour to hold outdoor meetings to preach the Gospel? No. The Rev Bryan Kerr, a Church of Scotland minister in Lanark, said "Graham's views...and many more like them, are not shared by all Christians as Mr. Graham would have people believe. Franklin Graham isn't the voice of Christianity." He then went on to organize a petition seeking to get Graham banned.

The London Times also just reported that Larry Stockstill, a Louisiana evangelist, has been banned from speaking at the Usher hall in Edinburgh this June. Why? Because he described same-sex relationships as "deeply grievous" and abortion as "demonic".

And lest anyone thinks that only American preachers are being targeted, The Times reported that Edinburgh banned Gavin Calver, the chief executive of the UK Evangelical Alliance. He was barred because he refused to preach at a same-sex wedding.

A.W. Tozer wrote 65 years ago: "The church goes along with everything and stands against nothing - until she is convinced that it is the safe and popular thing to do..."

The implications for Bible believing Christians are profound. If you profess that you actually believe the Bible and follows Jesus Christ, you now have a target on your back.

'Soft' persecution of the Church is now the UK State's position--now. And how long before it finds a foothold in North America? What will the Church do then?

The time to decide is now--not in hindsight!