As I have observed, there are many fear-generating circumstances in our world. North Korea continues to arm itself as the world quietly looks away. The Middle East is a boiling cauldron of war, terror, and hate that is now spilling over to places like Africa, Europe, and our own shores. Christians, in particular, are being slaughtered en-masse throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Our economy continues to slide and struggle due to bad decisions made by power brokers who are more interested in special interests than the interests of the people they were sent to Washington to serve. Our government seems to play catch-up rather than give the expected leadership to our troubled world.
And exactly where are our leaders during these crises? They are at the UN harassing business leaders about the dangers of carbon and climate change.
Their “non-crisis” (the earth has been cooling for the last 18 years) has brought together our President, John Kerry, and every kook in the world to bemoan this non-danger. The earth has been through many crises and, without exception, they were catastrophic natural events — not controlled or contributed to by man:
Volcanoes – A single volcano, Mount St. Helens put out more pollution in one day than all the smoke-stacks in America since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution (1760-1850). With a force that was estimated to be 500 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II, the volcano erupted for 9 hours, had an initial blast that was heard 700 miles away, and killed everything for 230 square miles, including approximately 11 million animals and 4 billion feet of timber. 57 human lives were lost.
In 1883, the volcano at Krakatoa (Indonesia) erupted with 13,000 times the strength of the atomic bomb. Furthermore, when the volcano at Thera (Greece) erupted 3,500 years ago (nearly 3,300 years before the beginning of the Industrial Revolution), it is estimated to have been four to five times stronger than Krakatoa.
Earthquakes – Along with related natural events such as tsunamis, earthquakes are unpredictable, strike without warning, and leave mass devastation and casualties in their wake. The 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake generated a tsunami that struck the coasts of 14 countries, including Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Over 230,000 people lost their lives.
Storms – Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, and Andrew are just a few of the hurricanes that have devastated areas of the United States. The Halloween Nor’easter of 1991, nicknamed The Perfect Storm, cost over $200 million in damages and killed 13 people. In comparison, Hurricane Katrina, considered the costliest hurricane in U.S. history, killed in excess of 1,800 people, and cost an estimated $108 billion in damages.
Asteroids – We hear more and more of asteroids passing close to Earth. In fact, a number of asteroids have hit the Earth in the past, causing major devastation. One instance in 1490 saw 10,000 people killed in the Chinese town of Ch’ing-yang when an asteroid broke apart overhead.
One has but to read the pages of Scripture to understand that God Almighty controls the times, seasons, weather, winds, oceans, and celestial bodies. While we are to be good stewards of the earth He has given us, we have no more control over the climate, weather, or natural catastrophes than we have over the earth spinning around the sun, and it is sheer arrogance to think we do. Climate change is the least of our world’s “man-made” issues.
What should be of grave concern to the people of the world is the growing threat of Islamic groups such as ISIS. As this plague moves across the Middle East, killing at will all who stand in their path, we have leadership that refuses to identify the root problem: Islamic ideology. When a known Islamic Army officer screams “Allahu Akbar!” while shooting and killing unarmed army personnel, our leaders call it “workplace violence.” When an Islamic worker posts a quote from the Quran on his Facebook page, stating, “I will instill terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers; smite ye about their necks“, then proceeds to behead a co-worker in Oklahoma, our leaders call it “workplace violence”.
However, when an unstable young man kills students at Sandy Hook Elementary, the commission investigating it calls for a crackdown on HOMESCHOOLERS???
Just since 2001, tens of thousands of people around the world (many of whom are Christians) have been killed in the name of Islam. Yet, our government is going to crack down on homeschoolers because one former homeschool student kills 27 people?
Folks… I’ve said it before: It’s time to WAKE UP! In ISIS, we face a growing threat to the whole world. Should Iraq and Syria fall, an already unstable region will spin out of control. Do you understand that, should Pakistan fall to ISIS, these terrorists will have nuclear weapons at their disposal?
Isn’t it time for our leaders to get out in front of this, and stop ignoring a “clear and present danger” simply because it does not fit into their talking points, their political correctness, or their social calendar?
But even more important: Isn’t it time for we, the Church, to stand up, speak up, and pray up?
Personally, I think it is.
The Heart of Abba - Ron Phillips 