Prophecy Update Newsletter
March 13, 2017
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Double Time - Pete Garcia - http://www.omegaletter.com/articles/articles.asp?ArticleID=8404
The three most dreaded words in the Army are, double time, March! For those not familiar with military drill and ceremony commands, this just means start running. Military folk has a far greater appreciation for and sensitivity to time in a way that most civilians cannot fully appreciate. For instance, if you're not ten minutes early to an event, you're late. If you have a formation at 0600 (depending on the level of formation-Division, Brigade, Battalion, Company) that really means you have to be there at 0530 (at the latest). Deployments? I think we invented the phrase "hurry up and wait." Operationally speaking, success or failure is measured in successfully executing whatever it is you're doing at approximately T-Hour +/- 30 seconds. This becomes especially critical for those of us in MEDEVAC where we would get a mission over a radio, get dressed, get the mission briefing details, and get the aircraft ready, and launch within 15 minutes (or less)...at any time, day or night. But I think the most significant differential between military and civilians, centers around lost time. If deployments have instilled anything in me in relation to time, it is to take advantage of the time you have with those you love. With your progeny, you will leave them as babies and come back to find toddlers. If you leave them as toddlers, you come back to kids. Leave them as kids, and you come back to tweens. Time tends to go by very fast when you're leaving every other year. Assessment But our God is the God of time. God created time when He put the firmament in place for man to use. (Gen. 1:14) Even more so, is the reality that because He created time, He is outside of the time-space continuum. Being outside of time, or rather, not constrained by it, means that He can see the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:9-10) and already knows how this all plays out. Thus, when Jesus predicted the Temple would be destroyed (Matt. 23:37-24:3), He had already seen it happen and thus could declare with absolute certainty of its impending destruction. Of particular interest in His discourse on the Mt. of Olives, is the Parable of the Fig Tree. In this He says... "Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. (Matt. 24:32) Numerous allusions and examples in both the Old and New Testament have alluded to the nation of Israel, as a fig tree. But only in one sense is this true as the late, great Clarence Larkin notes: § THE VINE is a symbol of Israel's Spiritual privileges. § THE FIG-TREE is a symbol of Israel's National privileges. § THE OLIVE TREE is a symbol of Israel's Religious privileges So, it is in our time, that we have been privileged to see the fruits of the early Zionist movement bearing forth a nation, albeit not a particularly religious or spiritual one. (Ezek. 37:11) 33 So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near-at the doors! (24:33) Not only have we seen the nation of Israel restored to the table of nations, but considering all the other signs in conjunction to this, we who are watching sense this with ever greater intensity that the Lord is truly at the door! 34 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. Now to the truly puzzling part of the study. This generation will by no means pass away....to which scholar, student, preacher, and skeptic has either asked, tried to explain, or simply shrugged off at the conundrum the Bible presents-how long is a generation? Some say 30 years; other say 50. Some point to the part of the passage that says by no means pass away, as pertaining to the lifespan of a person. (Ps. 90:10) Remember, before the 13th century, there were no chapter and verses in the Bible. The text that Matthew would have written originally would have all flowed together, so let us continue. 36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. Clearly, Jesus knew that the timing surrounding His Second Coming was still far off into the future. He told His disciples to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations, and that takes time. (Matt. 28:19-20) As mentioned in last week's brief, God uses time for many reasons, but one, in particular, is so that His enemy (Satan) cannot attempt to thwart God's plans. I know what you're saying in that God is God and Satan is not. He is simply a created being. Consider 1 Corinthians 2:6-8 However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. While God reveals things to His servants, prophets, and apostles, He hides His purposes from the enemy to frustrate any attempt at changing the narrative. Satan didn't know that Christ came to die. Neither will he know exactly when Christ is returning for His Bride the Church at the Rapture. Also consider that God reveals things, not all at once, but incrementally, on a 'need to know basis,' at the appropriate time, to the appropriate audience. The Rapture of the Church is not in view in the Olivet Discourse. Rather, the OD is a broad-brush overview, with a couple of specifics (v. 15 for example) to show the overall flow of events. Skeptics have long argued that there have always been wars, earthquakes, pestilences, etc. to be dismissive of Christ's words here. But what they miss, is that Christ shows these things to be increasing like birth pangs, in size, frequency, and intensity. Also, none of the disciples at this point (on the Mt. of Olives), Christ had not yet died and risen again, they had yet received the Holy Spirit's permanent indwelling at Pentecost, and the church was not in view. Remember some of them were asking in Acts 1:6-7 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. Back to the OD, Jesus chose to keep it fairly generalized because Satan (or one of his minions) could have been ease dropping in on this conversation. Remember, this is a day before the Last Supper, so Judas Iscariot was still in their company. But Jesus continues; 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. I won't belabor the point pertaining to the days of Noah and Lot, only to say, that what Jesus hones in on, is the normalcy of everyday life. People weren't thinking about sudden destruction, and they were just going about their business of wickedness as if things would just continue forever. But speaking to the rapidity of which this will happen, when it happens, Christ continues... Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Conclusion Fair to say that given this warning, every generation for the past two thousand years has had cause to think they might be that generation. Only ours is the first generation since Christ uttered those words that have had Israel back in her land as a nation again. And things have been on overdrive (double time!) ever since. Our generation is the only one in which Israel has control of Jerusalem again. Is Israel the super-sign by which last-days prophecy hangs onto? I believe it is because the Bible teaches that. (Gen. 13:15, 17:7-8; Isaiah 2, 11; Daniel 2, 9:24-27; Ezekiel 36-39; Zechariah 12, 14; Amos 9) I know many orthodox Jews do not believe coincidence or happenstance to be kosher. So, is it coincidence that we have just lived through the last three Jubilees and watched God do amazing things pertaining to this tiny nation at each of the overlapping 50-year marks? Interesting also that Jubilees begins with a trumpet blast on the Day of Atonement. 1897 (First Zionist Congress) until 1947 (UN approves Israel's statehood) = 50 (1 Jubilee) 1917 (Balfour Declaration) until 1967 (Jews recapture Jerusalem in Six Day War) = 50 years (1 Jubilee) 1967 (Jerusalem) until 2017 (temple???) = 50 years (1 Jubilee) Some might argue that we could make the numbers mean whatever we want them to mean. Well, you really can't, unless you're into revisionist history. And we don't know what this year will bring, but if the pattern holds true, there are high hopes that this might yet be the year we see some significant prophetic movement. Consider the accompanying signs: 1. Trump (pro-Israel) was elected against all odds 2. Geopolitical alignment of Russia, Turkey, and Iran 3. Massive natural gas and mineral finds in Israel 4. Increase in natural and man-caused disasters 5. Technological breakthroughs in information, data collection, and weapons 6. Rapid development of genetic engineering 7. Collapse of the Christian-west, massive evangelism in the east again 8. Worldwide economic turmoil 9. Hostility towards all things Christian and Jewish 10. Population explosion in third world countries 11. Increase in supernatural phenomenon 12. Political instability due to war, terrorism, and violence Seriously, the list could go on and on, but for brevity's sake, I'll keep it to just these twelve. From the time Noah exited the ark, until the 19th century, man was limited to the speed of horse. And in just these last 120 years, mankind has rapidly advanced on every front to feats never thought imaginable. I think those of us within the prophetic ranks have our priorities misaligned at times when talking to skeptics and naysayers. The argument these days shouldn't be us proving to them that we are in the last days, it should be them proving to us-we aren't. Maranatha! 
Are We Almost There? - By Daymond Duck - http://www.raptureready.com/2017/03/12/are-we-almost-there/
The Bible uses terms (last days; latter times; latter years; time of the end; etc.) that mean different things when put in context, but some people take them out of context and use them like they mean the same thing. They don't always mean the same thing. Put another way: When someone is talking about the last days it is important to ask "last days of what" (last days of the week, the month, the year, the Church Age, the Tribulation period, the Millennium, last days of what, etc.). One passage about the last days may refer to Israel during the Millennium (Isa. 2:1-5) and another passage may refer to the Church Age just prior to the Millennium (Heb. 1:2; II Tim. 3:1; James 5:3; II Pet. 3:3). The idea that the last days refers to the Church Age comes from Barnabus, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, the Jewish Talmud and, according to some, the Bible. Some Christians believe that history will be divided into one week of God-days or seven 1,000 year periods (seven God-days; Psa. 90:4; II Pet. 3:8; Heb. 4:4-6; Rev. 20:7). They believe 4,000 years (4 God-days) passed from Adam to Jesus. They believe the last 3,000 years (the last 3 God-days) started with Jesus (Heb. 1:2). These would include 2,000 years (2 God-days or days 5 and 6) of the Church Age and 1,000 years of rest (1 God-day; day 7; also called the Millennium; Heb. 4:4-10). The point to notice is that the Church Age covers 2 of the last 3 days of a 7,000 (7 God-day) year period of history. Through the prophet Joel God said, "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come" (Joel 2:28-31). This prophecy can be briefly divided into two promises: One promise to pour out the Holy Spirit (it shall come to pass, but no time set) and another promise to show wonders in the sky and on the earth before the Tribulation period. The first promise was fulfilled after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. When the day of Pentecost was fully come 120 believers were gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem. The sound of a rushing mighty wind filled the room, cloven tongues like as of fire sat upon everyone, they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and they began to speak with other tongues (Acts 2:1-4). Word of this great miracle quickly spread. A large crowd gathered. The 120 were accused of being drunk. Peter stood and preached. Peter said, "these are not drunken, as ye suppose" (Acts 2:15). "This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel." Peter tied the sound of wind, tongues of fire and speaking in tongues to the last days and the first promise in Joel's prophecy. God had fulfilled the first promise in Joel's prophecy by pouring out the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:17-18). The Church had begun. Half of the prophecy (the first promise) was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost and it is now history. The other half of the prophecy (the second promise) wasn't fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, but it will be fulfilled before the Tribulation period. In a sense, Peter was saying only part of Joel's prophecy has been fulfilled, but that does not mean that the other part won't be fulfilled. The rest of it (the wonders in the sky and the signs on earth; every jot and tittle of what Joel said) will be fulfilled before the Tribulation period. We should not overlook this because the Rapture and the end of the Church Age will take place before the Tribulation period. This is not a prediction, but the first part of Joel's prophecy marked the beginning of the Church Age and it is very possible that the last part of Joel's prophecy marked the end of the Church Age. And all of it could happen as the world is nearing the end of 6,000 (6 God-days) years of history and before the seventh God-day (Millennium) begins. Concerning the wonder in the sky, the Revelation 12 sign will be in place on Sept. 23, 2017. Concerning blood, fire and smoke on earth, the sun being darkened and the moon turning into blood the Middle East is bathed in war, there is an unusual high number of volcanoes erupting with fire and smoke, there was a tetrad of blood moons in 2014 and 2015, there will be a total eclipse of the sun on Aug. 21, 2017 and if one of the super volcanoes should erupt we are told that darkness could cover part of the earth for 6 months. Are we almost there? No one knows the day or the hour of the Rapture, but it is easy for some to believe that we could be on the brink of something big. Prophecy Plus Ministries, Inc. Daymond & Rachel Duck [email protected] 
Netanyahu On Purim: Like Ancient Persia, Modern Iran Will Fail To Destroy Jews - by Deborah Danan - http://www.breitbart.com
Just as the Persians failed to wipe out the Jewish nation some 2,500 years ago, the Iranians of today will also fail, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday night on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Purim. The prime minister made his remarks before the reading of the Scroll of Esther at the central synagogue in Caesarea, the Jerusalem Post reported. He turned to the children surrounding him in costumes traditionally worn on Purim and asked them: "What is the holiday about, what do we celebrate, what do we remember, what did they try to do to us then?" Several children replied, "To kill us." "Where?" Netanyahu asked. "In Persia," they answered. "Did they succeed?" the prime minister asked. "No," one child said, "the opposite happened." "It didn't happen, the opposite happened," Netanyahu repeated. "Also, today they want to destroy us from Persia; they will not succeed." His comment was met with applause from the congregation. On Thursday, Netanyahu compared the Islamic Republic to ancient Persia in his comments to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "I thank you for your good wishes on Purim," the prime minister told Putin. "Some 2,500 years ago in ancient Persia, there was an attempt to wipe out the Jews, which did not succeed, and which we commemorate with this holiday." Today, Netanyahu said, Iran - the heir of the Persians - has simil ar designs: to wipe out the state of the Jews. "They say this clearly, and it is etched on their ballistic missiles," he said. However, Putin seemed to shoot down the analogy, saying the Purim story took place "in the fifth century B.C." "We now live in a different world. Let us talk about that now," Putin said. In his speech to a special joint session of the U.S. Congress in March 2015, Netanyahu famously evoked the Purim story when explaining the threat posed by the nuclear deal signed by then-president Barack Obama. "We're an ancient people," he said. "In our nearly 4,000 years of history, many have tried repeatedly to destroy the Jewish people. Tomorrow night, on the Jewish holiday of Purim, we'll read the Book of Esther. We'll read of a powerful Persian viceroy named Haman, who plotted to destroy the Jewish people some 2,500 years ago. But a courageous Jewish woman, Queen Esther, exposed the plot and gave for the Jewish people the right to defend themselves against their enemies. The plot was foiled. Our people were saved." He continued by saying that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, Haman's modern-day heir, had similar plans for the Jewish nation. "But I can guarantee you this," he said, "the days when the Jewish people remained passive in the face of genocidal enemies - those days are over." 
Iran FM says Netanyahu faking history and Jewish faith - https://www.yahoo.com/news/iran-fm-says-netanyahu-faking-history-jewish-faith-092936454.html
Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif accused Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu of ignorance about history and the Jewish faith on Monday after he said ancient Persian rulers tried to destroy the Jews. In a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Netanyahu said Persia had made "an attempt to destroy the Jewish people that did not succeed" some 2,500 years ago, an event commemorated by the Jewish holiday of Purim over the weekend. Zarif responded overnight on Twitter, calling Netanyahu's comments "bigoted lies" and saying Iran had saved the Jews on three occasions in history. "Netanyahu resorting to fake history and falsifying Torah. Force of habit," he tweeted. He linked to longer comments in which he said the Israeli premier "distorts the realities of today, but also distorts the past -- including Jewish scripture". "The Book of Esther tells how Xerxes I saved Jews from a plot hatched by Haman the Agagite, which is marked on this very day. "Again, during the time of Cyrus the Great, an Iranian king saved the Jews -- this time from captivity in Babylon; and during the Second World War, when Jews were being slaughtered in Europe, Iran gladly took them in," Zarif wrote. Netanyahu had sought to link ancient history to the present day, saying Iran was again seeking "to destroy the state of the Jews". Putin tried to return the conversation to the present day, saying the events described took place "in the fifth century B.C. We now live in a different world. Let us talk about that now." Ever since the Islamic revolution of 1979, Iran has been implacable in its opposition to Israel and has provided extensive support to Palestinian militant groups. Iranian officials say they oppose the state not the people, and underline that Iran has its own Jewish community. 
Watchman Warning: Leaks and Floods - By Hal Lindsey - http://www.hallindsey.com/ww-3-12-2017/
It has becoming more and more obvious that the CIA documents recently released by WikiLeaks are genuine. The documents discuss the agency's use of computer programs designed to breach the security of smartphones, smart TVs, computers, and the rapidly expanding category known as "the internet of things." The CIA apparently has a team dedicated to Apple products, and another working on programs that will allow them to take control of self-driving cars. None of this is surprising. We task them with keeping track of enemies and hunting down terrorists who hide in the shadows. When it comes to ISIS, al-Qaeda, North Korea, Iran, Russia, or China, my concern is that we have too little information. Most of us agree that we want that kind of surveillance. But such tools can also be turned inward. When Stalin ran the Soviet Union, he had secret police, wiretaps, and communities full of government informants. He had spies everywhere. But he had nothing compared with what's available today. A 21st century totalitarian could monitor every aspect of its citizens' lives. I don't mean people sitting in dark rooms watching you watch television. There aren't enough people to do that. For the next totalitarians, computers will serve as watchdogs. Machines will monitor activity, and flag anything that seems suspicious. That's when the secret police move in. For students of prophecy, this is another reminder to do as Jesus said, and discern the times we're living in. (Matthew 16:3) The Bible tells of a future world government that will take advantage of intrusive new technology. (I discuss the Antichrist and his coming government on this week's Hal Lindsey Report.) The U.S. Constitution guarantees certain rights. But those guarantees are only as reliable as the people in the government who enforce them. Some of the worst governments in the world have constitutions supposedly guaranteeing rights like those in our Bill of Rights. The law stands between you and wholesale government surveillance. But sometimes the surveillance tools of our spy agencies are not used in a lawful manner. In 2013, CNN reported, "The National Security Agency's internal watchdog detailed a dozen instances in the past decade in which its employees intentionally misused the agency's surveillance power, in some cases to snoop on their love interests." If intelligence operatives are willing to illegally examine the lives of their exes, what else are they willing to do off-the-record and off-the-books - and for whom? On the old Andy Griffith Show, Deputy Barney Fife sometimes carried a key chain with keys to all the businesses in Mayberry. He spoke of the trust those business owners showed by giving him that responsibility. That bit of fiction reflects a real-world reality. We give Police and Fire Departments keys to gated communities and to major businesses. They need access so that in an emergency, they can move quickly to protect us. The FBI, CIA, NSA, and other intelligence agencies have the keys to our living rooms, bedrooms, medical files, computers, cars, bank accounts, phones, and even some refrigerators. They can instantly access data that will tell them our tastes and opinions, as well as the names of our friends and what we talk about. We allow them such keys to empower them to protect us. In other words, we know they have powerful surveillance tools. We know they can break into computers and other connected devices, but it's okay because we trust them. I'm convinced that up to now, most of the people manning their posts in the agencies I mentioned are men and women of the highest caliber. We're right to trust them. A disaster prevented is rarely celebrated or even noticed. But the truth is, these people may well have saved my life or yours in the years since 9-11. Here's the problem. I said "most." I didn't say "all." With such vast power, "most of the people" in the agencies are not enough. A few bad actors can wreak havoc in our digital world. The leaks springing show that our nation's intelligence community includes people who are willing to put their personal politics above the nation's security. For an example, look at the WikiLeaks leak. This leak is comparable to a newspaper that publishes troop movements during a war. The cyber weapons WikiLeaks disclosed are some of the most powerful and essential armaments ever created. WikiLeaks told friend and foe alike all about them and how America deploys them. This is a far bigger story than most of the media is telling. In 1597, Sir Francis Bacon said, "Knowledge is power." That statement was never more true than today. Knowledge is the key battlefield of our era, and this battle is being fought with the zeroes and ones of computer code. What kind of American would intentionally diminish his country's ability to fight the battle of our times? The leak came from a person, or a group of people, entrusted with our nation's top secrets. And they either gave those secrets away or sold them. In recent weeks, we've learned of leak after leak from the intelligence community. Many were intended to harm Donald Trump and his administration. But he is President Trump now. When he's wrong, he should be criticized just like any other President. But if members of his own government engage in attempts to bring him down through well-timed and well-placed illegal leaks of government intelligence, they are not just harming the President. They are harming the country. All administrations deal with leaks, but this is a flood of information flowing into the public domain in ways designed to sabotage the government of the United States. A spiritual battle is being waged over this country. This is a good time to remember the scriptural admonition of 1 Timothy 2:2, and "pray for those in authority." Only the LORD can protect us from these new forms of power. So stay very close to Him. 
My Review of "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" Over the last 35 years, I have literally read hundreds of books on Bible Prophecy and End Time signs. I especially enjoy books on the Rapture, and I have read almost every Rapture-related book published. In all those years, devouring thousands of pages, and millions of words, I have not read a better book on the Rapture than, Rapture Ready...Or Not? Terry James might be physically blind, but he is spiritually sharp and well discerning beyond most authors. In "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" Terry has nailed the pre-trib Rapture, and removed any doubt what so ever about the Church going through the Tribulation. With great insight and Godly discernment, Terry explains with simple, yet profound words, why and how that he has come to believe the ways he does about the Rapture, the Tribulation, and the End Times scenario. I think after reading "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" you too will believe as Terry does, and be Ready for the Rapture like never before! - Randy Thomas - Publisher / Editor - Prophecy Update For more information and or to get your copy of "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" use this link: http://www.raptureready.com/terry/book35.html 
Ides of March-Here Comes the Greater Depression - By Alan Franklin - http://www.raptureready.com/2017/03/12/ides-of-march-here-comes-the-greater-depression/
March 15 is an interesting date. It marked the allegedly prophesied assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC It could also herald the coming financial earthquake I have been expecting for years. Mid-March 2017 is packed with "interesting" events. On March 15, America runs out of money when the country hits its $20 trillion debt ceiling. On March 15, Britain's bid to leave the EU starts with the triggering of Article 50 - the way for a nation to exit the EU - the Revived Roman Empire. Interestingly, Caesar's March 15 death marked a turning point in Roman history, sparking the transition from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire. On March 15, the Netherlands holds the first European election of the year and anti-immigration politicians will make a big impact. The French and German elections follow on later, and both countries also have uneasy electorates... Geert Wilders' patriotic anti-Islam, anti EU party, The Party for Freedom, is riding a growing wave of populism and appears on track to win the most seats the Dutch election, according to some polls. Wilders and backers are a threat to the EU'S 'liberal' ideas as Mr. Wilders has pledged to close the Netherlands' borders, shut down mosques and leave the euro and EU if he gets into power. However, he is unlikely to win a majority in Parliament to put this into practice. For now. The same applies to Marie Le Pen in France, another patriotic politician striking a chord with a people sick of being swamped with hordes of mostly Islamic young men. On March 17-18, the world's top 20 nations - the G20 - send their finance ministers and central bankers to a meeting to discuss the parlous state of the world's finances. Around the same time the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to launch the first of what may be a series of rate rises. Countries from France to Italy, Greece to - yes, China - have severe financial problems based on too much debt. China's housing speculative bubble could pop at any time and it is no surprise that money has been flooding out of the country. So what's all the doom and gloom about Alan, you may ask. After all, I have been predicting the final financial meltdown and the crash of cash since 2006 (see our book, Goodbye America, Goodbye Britain). Well, what I didn't expect was the mega creation of "funny money," created out of thin air by the world's central banks when the financial troubles started in 2008. I was in America watching it happen on hotel TVs and saw the wall of worry that hit those who watched their pension pots melting away in a day. Then came the "wonderful" idea of creating money out of nothing... This staved off the inevitable mega crash and made it a lot worse longer term by allowing people, firms and many organizations to speculate using cheap borrowed money, pumping up asset prices to ridiculous heights. I believe asset prices in all classes are now near the top and have acted accordingly in a personal capacity. (I manage our own pension fund with long term success.) I can read balance sheets: one of our many media jobs which we did contemporaneously was publishing a nationwide business newspaper for 16 years and we know about cash flow. Remember, in days, the world's biggest economy faces going broke... Further, I do not believe that the world's economies - especially America's - are in the rosy shape many "experts" claim. You can make unemployment statistics look great by leaving out all those who have given up trying for jobs as there aren't many that pay good wages. The U.S. stock market, the world's biggest, is at its highest point in history - shades of 1929! This doesn't mean the coming crash will definitely happen in the next month or two. But the cracks are there for those with eyes to see... We do not usually give financial advice other than to try to get out of debt, but we feel that the stock market collapse could now be quite close. Yet the market is at a record high. This is economic insanity. I think gold will be one of the few safe assets and expect it to appreciate rapidly in the next year. That is why we allow just one advertisement on our website - Bullion Vault, a firm we have researched and trust. So if people ask me how to put, say, ten percent of their investable assets into gold, that's where I direct them for fair prices and low charges. Respected commentators, like the co-hosts of my favorite program, Squawkbox on CNBC, are guardedly pointing out the potential problems... Steve Sedgewick said on March 2 that the average American credit card bill is now over $16,000 and that consumer debt is back up to levels we haven't seen since 2008. (This includes mortgages, car loans, credit cards, etc.) Steve said people are now buying stocks at incredibly elevated levels. He advised people to take a pause if they are buying stocks at the moment and said he did not like where it (market euphoria) was leading, as in 1999 and 2007. His co-presenter Geoff Cutmore added: "Beware the ides of March. We've got to look for catalysts that crack the momentum." He referred to a high tech firm which has just come to the market valued at $24 billion, and said he struggled to understand that. Steve said he was worried because he was hearing the same kind of language he heard in 1999 and around 2006-2007. People were saying valuations don't matter, debt levels don't matter. Things I grew up with don't seem to matter anymore. Crises that were around in 2007,8,9,10,11 are still there. Debt levels are still there; Greece is in a terrible situation; also France is in an awful situation. Geoff said he hated sounding negative but central banks had sprayed cash all over the global economy to try and help the recovery and that means all of the gains that were achieved were on the back of significantly higher levels of liquidity. ("Funny money" in my terms.) Headlines on the show were:
Here, my comment is: The stock market runs on two emotions - hope (or greed!) and fear. We are having some building work done at our house, and the builders all have an expression when you talk to them. They answer your questions and finish up with: "It's all good!" (That's hope.) I expect that to be short-lived. On March 15 the debt ceiling of $20 trillion kicks in on an unsuspecting world. This is $20 trillion: 20,000,000,000,000. That's like New York's downtown skyscrapers being built with $100 bills... When America's borrowing has to stop- by law - the country will have to rub by on $200 billion cash. This runs out by the summer. Then comes fear. Congress may well - quite rightly - resist increasing Uncle Sam's credit card limit even more. Here's what the wise old bird Ronald Reagan worried about. He said: "Can we, who man the ship of state, deny it is somewhat out of control? Our national debt is approaching $1 trillion." He was concerned about a debt one twentieth the size of today's! That's not even counting the tens of trillions of unfunded liabilities. So forget tax cuts, forget healthcare reform, forget blowing a trillion of mystery money on bridges and roads. It won't happen. It CANNOT happen, in my opinion. The dollar can't stay credible in the world if trillions are endlessly created. Paper money is only worth what people believe it to be worth. Worth remembering! The U.S. dollar is, for now, the world's reserve currency with it being used for most worldwide financial transactions. So what happens Stateside reverberates worldwide. The builders had better enjoy the happy sunlit uplands before the deep dive into the final countdown starts. The End Times clock is ticking. To quote the title of one of Dave Reagan's annual conferences: "We are living on borrowed time." The emphasis is on the borrowing... 
Daily Jot: Everybody's a Nazi if they disagree with the left - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com
Don't confuse liberals, progressives or communists with the facts. They don't win or lose arguments on facts. These are a breed of humankind who are in word against bullying, xenophobia, misogyny, homophobia, Islamophobia, paranoia, bigotry, and hate, but in deed they exercise those very traits against anyone who disagrees with them by hurling personal insults and labeling. Their latest post-election rages include calling people who disagree with them Nazis or a Hitler, especially if they are losing an argument. If you are really good with your facts, you may not even get a label before you advance to being a Nazi or a Hitler. These people are emotional, they care little about facts and are quick to label you. They are also the first to say that they don't believe much of the Bible, if at all, yet they will sure quote scripture to you out of context. How many times have you heard them say on TV, "don't judge us" or "who are you to judge me?" They don't want to be judged for their stands on transgendered bathrooms or abortion, but they are quick to judge those who disagree with them as Nazis. Last June 1, for example, the leftist flagship The Daily KOS, wrote a headline, "Jeff Sessions endorses Nazi style fascism." He was being labeled because he was one of the few members of Congress who recognized that Islamic terrorists could be among those coming to America through the ex-"president's" immigration plan. As early as March 3, 2016, the progressive Huffington Post wrote: "Donald Trump's ascent to the top of the Republican presidential candidate heap has been increasingly likened to the rise of Adolf Hitler, as both men have used racist rhetoric and blamed select groups of minorities for many of the country's problems. On Saturday, that comparison became even more apparent when footage surfaced of Trump at a rally in Orlando, Florida, that was eerily reminiscent of 1930s Nazi rallies." Noted at the end of the story: "Editor's note: Donald Trump is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist, birther and bully who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims--1.6 billion members of an entire religion--from entering the U.S." Leftist Bill Maher compared Trump's speeches with Hitler's in an attempt to show how both men were alike. These are just a couple of examples of what has become so commonplace in the national dialogue of the extreme left. The recent women's march on Washington, DC could provide many more examples where ignorant celebrities who's trade is to sling a good line, repeatedly insulted those who disagree with them with disrespect and vulgarity. Nothing in modern history compares with atrocities Hitler and the Nazis did to humankind. Romans 2:3 says, "And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God?" We don't have to judge because in the end, God will be the judge. It's sad that our national dialogue is so disrespectful and hateful and is generated by those who claim to be the opposite. What ever happened to civility and disagreeing without being disagreeable? 
Daily Devotion: The Decision Everyone Must Make - Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org
Pilate said to them, "What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" -Matthew 27:22 Indecision is something we all experience. What should I wear? What should I do in this situation? Sometimes indecision has significant consequences, and sometimes it doesn't. When you're indecisive, you try to live in two worlds. You try to appease everyone. That's what Pontius Pilate tried to do. And in Matthew 27, we see how his indecision led to the most significant of consequences. He wanted other people to be pleased with his decision. He wanted everyone to get along. As a result, he was unwilling to decide what was really right. Pilate didn't realize what was actually happening. In reality, it was not Jesus standing before Pilate; it was Pilate standing before Jesus. Pilate was on trial, and he missed a golden opportunity to believe, a golden opportunity to trust in this One who had come to die for all humanity. Pilate had to decide for himself and answer a question that everyone eventually must come to grips with: "What then shall I do with Jesus?" He heard many voices that day. He heard the voice of the multitude saying, "Let Him be crucified!" He heard the voice of his wife saying, "Have nothing to do with that just Man." He surely must have heard the voice of his own conscience attesting to the innocence of Jesus. And he heard the voice of Jesus Himself. Sadly, Pilate listened to the wrong voice. It was a decision he no doubt regretted for the rest of his life. Every one of us must come to grips with what we will do with Jesus. Yet, like Pilate, so many people let others do their thinking for them. They let others make their decision for them. And in the end, they pay with everything. I hope you won't let that happen to you. 
FROM THE HEART
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