Watch and Be Ready
“A prudent person foresees the danger ahead and takes precautions;
the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.”
(Prov. 22:3; 27:12 NLT)
Hello Saints,
The Lord Bless you!
“The sky is falling” uttered Chicken Little, believing the end was near when an acorn fell on his head. It took decades for Noah to build the Ark, preaching during that time of impending doom to those who witnessed his righteousness and obedience to the warning of the coming flood (2Pet. 2:5). Joseph, after being warned in a dream, stored up grain for seven years to preserve the Egyptians and the surrounding regions during seven years of famine. We definitely don’t want to be “Chicken Littles” who misinterpret the signs by thinking the world is ending at any moment. On the other hand, we certainly don’t want to ignore the credible voices warning of looming difficult days ahead. God, after all, is in the habit of warning His people; read your Bible: “Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). We surely don’t want to miss the heart of Jesus’ teaching in the end times narrative found in Matthew 24 and 25, in which Jesus warns/prophecies of difficult days in the future, indeed “there will be great tribulation” (24:21). Jesus even references the people who lived during Noah’s days, living life as if the flood was not going to happen (24:37-39). “Watch” and “Be Ready” are Jesus’s words to His disciples (24:42-44). In that tone and spirit, Jesus gives the illustration of the 10 virgins – 5 who were ready (had oil in their lamps), and 5 virgins who were negligent in keeping oil enough for the day of Christ’s return (25:1-13). We have so spiritualized this passage and many prophetic passages, that we have perhaps missed the basic message of having the necessities to last through the difficult days ahead until the Lord returns….Just saying!
So, let’s get practical. Unless you have chosen to stop watching/listening to the news, and I don’t blame you, you have certainly heard of the 6.3 Billion dollars of cryptocurrency stolen by computer hackers on October 29. Or, maybe you have heard of how hackers have just recently forced refrigeration units into ‘defrost’ mode, across many countries in Europe, and even American military bases, resulting in massive food spoilage, equipment damage and small fires. The attack even jeopardized the cold rooms at blood storage facilities. Now friends, you would have to be living under a rock to not see that, because of the computerization of the world, AI and man’s propensity for evil, the whole planet, and anything that has a computer driving it, is susceptible to attack. Hacking of sensitive data is a regular occurrence nowadays; Artificial Intelligence is fooling millions with its deceptively fake videos and is a powerful tool in the hands of criminals who, under satan’s control want to steal, kill and destroy. It would appear that governments across the world have realized their vulnerability and have recently sounded the alarm. Countries across Europe, the Netherlands, Poland, the United States, Japan, Taiwan and Canada have issued alerts to their people to stockpile supplies to last a minimum of 72 hours, 1 week or more. The United Kingdom has launched a “Be Ready” campaign urging its citizens to stockpile food, water, batteries, flashlights, physical cash, etc. to survive at least 3 days on ‘self-sufficiency’. Cyber-attacks, threats of war, cataclysmic weather events, infrastructure failures are just some of the clear and present dangers listed in the “Be Ready” campaign. Christian influencers I and many of us watch are also encouraging emergency preparedness for what lies ahead. Canada has its own website, updated this year, so people can prepare themselves: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/policing/emergencies/preparedness/get-prepared/emergency-kits/get-kit.html
Now, I am not writing all this to alarm you, cause fear or make any kind of prophetic declarations. I am simply encouraging you, as the scripture already does to “Watch and be ready”. We have certainly seen with the fake pandemic or ‘scamdemic’ how quickly a country can shut down, and life as we know it can change. I absolutely agree that God will see us through all of it, and He promises to supply all of our needs. Now, maybe you are more faith-filled than I am and can trust God for every single little detail to be provided, like gas tanks miraculously filled when the pumps don’t work anymore, or cash appearing out of nowhere to buy food when the banks are closed because of cyber attacks. God bless you! But I do believe there is enough evidence in scripture for us to take a proactive stance and prepare for what is ahead. I do also believe that God is revealing things to His prophets to prepare His people, to not only survive, but to be a blessing to others in their circle of influence. Now, I could be totally wrong and deceived along with all my brothers and sisters in the Lord across the globe who are sounding the alarm. My heart however, is to encourage you to at least consider and pray about what might be taking place and how God would have you respond, and to use scripture as your guide to take action or not. But, regardless of what is happening, we are living in such a volatile age where in a moment anything can happen, that we should at least be watchful and ready for anything, especially spiritually ready to meet our soon coming Savior!
The candor of the wisest person who ever lived comes to mind, advising us to be ready: “Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and be wise! Even though they have no prince, governor, or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.” (Prov. 6:6-8 NLT)
Peace!
"Advancing the Kingdom of God by releasing Spirit-filled followers to serve Jesus in freedom and joy."
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