Monday, April 17, 2017

Unsettled

On the whole I avoid talking about or considering current events.  I find that in general it tends to make for either breathless blogging (where every next event is "the great plunge") or blogging that is irrelevant in years to come (for example, read any blog in the last eight years that repeatedly predicted martial law).  And ultimately that is hardly what I am hoping to accomplish here.

That said, something feels afoot in the world. 

We have not been this close to an actual outbreak of hostilities with North Korea in all the years I can remember.  Whether you are for or against, we have re-entered the Syrian Civil War.  Turkey has essentially voted itself willingly into a dictatorship.  And acts of violence seem to have become almost common place in the daily news, to the point of not even causing the slightest stir when we read about them.

Or, as that great philosophy collective Aerosmith once said.  "Something's wrong with the world today, I don't know what it is".

In the back of my mind it feels like a threshold has been crossed, the sort of thing that one only realizes has occurred looking back.  The great events of one's lifetime are almost never started in such a way that one looks and says "Ah, this is it".  For the most part they start as small events, perhaps far away, that only resolve into a the great changing event after time has passed.  Like small rills that turn into large rivers, the source is often only guessed and and intuited, not seen fully.

I have honestly started to look at individual events and say "What if this is the last time I ___?  What if this is the last time I speak to _____?"  I would say that I am working to get my house in order - and it is true - but is some ways getting it in order simply means making do with what we have (for better or worse, we finally seem to have turned the corner on the acquisition of things and are starting to move the other way).

There is a rather unreal peace about this entire thing, oddly enough.  In one very real sense I have been confronted (rather visibly, as it were) that He is ultimately in control of everything in my life; in the other, there is an acknowledgement that all of these events are far beyond any ability of mine to influence.  What will come will come; my job is to face it head-on.

All civilizations crumble and die of course, but up to this point we have only had these happen regionally.  For the first time ever, we have the opportunity to observer (perhaps unfortunately firsthand) the decline and fall of a global civilization.  An unsettling thought indeed.

7 comments:

  1. I'm wondering when this "unreal peace" settled upon you, TB. It happened for me about a week and a half ago. As you said; it felt like some invisible line had been crossed, where, spiritually, I realized that there was nothing I could do about the world affairs, and that God was in complete control. It wasn't an "I give up!" moment, but a "Sit back and let Me take it from here" moment. It was a weight lifted from my shoulders. Instinctively, I felt that the relief from the concern over current events freed that much-taxed part of my mind for preparing for what is to come. This feeling of relief was palpable!

    Back in '08, while praying, I "received a message." Count me nuts if you'd like, but I was told "There is coming a time when the world will be brought to its knees. All things now deemed valuable will become worthless, and things once thought worthless will become the most valued. Your survival will rely on how you stand with God. Your value will be based not on material wealth, but on what God-given talents you can bring to the table in your community. Your money will be worthless. Your integrity will be priceless. All people will need to work together. Ethnicity and race will divide some people, but will mean nothing to those of faith. This will ultimately be the strength that overcomes all. All churches will have to work with each other; what “faith” you follow will not be as important as faith itself. The country will survive, emerging from this trial stronger and more unified than ever before." The above is a cut & paste. So profound was this response to prayer, that I immediately wrote it down, so as to maintain accuracy.

    I too feel that whatever is coming is already in motion; as if someone pushed a huge log out into the current of a river, with the log almost imperceptibly picking up not only speed, but brute destructive force. It was something small; something easily passed off as insignificant by most; kinda like the birth of Jesus...

    You're not alone here...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Interesting Pete. I would have to peg it at a week or so - a sense, if you will, of tumblers falling into place prior to a door being opened. It was relieving and worrisome at the same moment.

      I never discount messages. There are far more things, Horatio, than are imagined in our philosophy. Thank you very much for sharing.

      I would be remiss in not sharing my friend Acts2 posting on this matter as well. Different message, but same endpoint: http://act2ministries.blogspot.in/2017/04/the-end-is-here-not-coming-here.html

      And yes, I think whatever is happening is already in motion. I can sense the world moving around me out of the corner of my eye, even if I cannot see it.

      Delete
    2. No disrespect to Act II, but we've both lived long enough to hear countless people claim that "The end of the world is going to happen on (X) date at (X) time," when Jesus Himself said "But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." Matt 24:36 He went on to say "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come." Matt 24:42 Indeed, the world ends for each of us at the time of our passing, regardless of what happens to the rest of the world.

      There are many like us who, whether being told directly or not, KNOW the parts are flying off the machine, and that SOMETHING is going to happen; way too many people to simply dismiss as having tin foil hat syndrome. One needn't be "educated" to see this. One need only be aware.

      Like all prepping, and Jesus was indeed telling us to prepare, the arduous part is not getting prepared, but STAYING prepared.
      Every generation has its struggles, and one can't choose one's place in history. Get prepared, do your best to STAY prepared, and live your life. God didn't put us here to be miserable...

      Delete
    3. I have Pete, I have. I will say for the record that I also know his backstory of how he got here and that he is not one given to carelessly stating something like that. Worst case is in two years we will know one way or the other.

      Awareness, as you say, is key. Turning attention away from our society's drive to entertain and constantly engage in our own form of reality, and one will see that something is not quite right.

      Delete
  2. That is some big thinking TB. I can't say that I'm "up" on current events whatsoever, because I choose ignorance for peace of mind. What ever will happen WILL happen and I have no control over it, so I try not to worry about it. I used to though. Sorry I can't discuss it, but wanted to comment anyway that I appreciate your post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Rain. My problem is I am a student of history, especially the decline and fall of civilizations. I almost cannot help myself. But yes, you are correct: there is little enough any one of us can do.

      Delete
    2. If I may, Rain; If you have no idea of what's going on around you, how can you tell whether you can control something or not? Ignorance is only bliss until you realize that the wall being constructed around you is not a fortress, as you were told, but a prison... Please... be aware...

      Delete

Comments are welcome (and necessary, for good conversation). If you could take the time to be kind and not practice profanity, it would be appreciated. Thanks for posting!