Exploding, Dying,and What :: By Daymond Duck
On Aug. 13, 2026, Alex Newman (The Liberty Sentinel) and Steve Deace (Steve Deace Show-Podcast; Blaze Media) discussed “Why Christianity Is Exploding Under Persecution—While Dying In The West.” Part of what they said:
- Christianity is fading across the free West—but exploding under persecution in China and Iran.
- They asked why—and what it means for the future of Christianity and Western civilization.
They continued:
- Across Europe and America, churches are closing, pews are emptying, and Christianity is rapidly losing ground. But behind the walls of some of the world’s most repressive regimes, something very different is happening.
- In Communist China and Islamic Iran—where following Christ can mean surveillance, arrest, imprisonment, or worse—underground Christian churches are reportedly exploding.
- Why is Christianity flourishing where believers are persecuted, while fading in nations blessed with unprecedented freedom, wealth, and access to the Gospel?
- Dramatic changes are reshaping Christianity around the world.
- Underground churches are booming in China and Iran, Islam is growing across Europe, and the Soviet KGB has infiltrated the Russian Orthodox Church.
- But some of the toughest questions are reserved for America.
Concerning why this is happening, they said:
- It goes far deeper than shrinking attendance, hostile politicians, or cultural decline.
- Too many churches have failed at one of their most fundamental missions: making disciples capable of understanding, defending, and passing on a biblical worldview.
Concerning what it means for the future of Christianity and Western civilization, they said:
- Christianity is thriving under persecution abroad while struggling amid freedom and abundance at home.
- The decisive battlefield is the next generation.
- The battle over who will shape America’s children, and the legacy of Charlie Kirk.
- Americans and Christians can no longer avoid: What exactly are we trying to conserve?
- If Christianity and Western civilization are going to survive, winning the next election won’t be enough.
- Churches will have to recover serious discipleship, biblical foundations, and Christian education—and once again learn how to pass a civilization and a faith from one generation to the next.
Here is a link to a video of the entire conversation.
Here are some recent reports that seem to indicate that the end of the age is near:
One, concerning an increase in the frequency and intensity of natural disasters: on Aug. 11, 2026, it was reported that Europe is currently in the midst of a historic drought.
Many rivers and streams in several nations are facing critical, never-before-seen conditions, and several nuclear reactors have had to be shut down due to low flow rates.
More: Five days of heavy rain on (Aug. 11-16) left 7 people dead in Indiana.
More: On Aug. 15. 2026, a 7.7 earthquake struck a remote, mostly uninhabited area of Indonesia. At least 47 people are known to be dead. The quake flattened at least 157 houses and damaged nearly 200 more, but the area is mountainous and remote, and it will take a while to assess the situation.
More: On Aug. 15, 2026, a highly unusual midsummer storm swept across parts of Israel, bringing heavy rain to Jerusalem, shattering August rainfall records near the capital, and sending floodwaters through a Judean Desert stream in what meteorologists described as an unprecedented summer event.
Update: On Aug. 14, 2026, it was reported that a low water level in the Danube River has forced Romania to shut down its last operating nuclear reactor while Hungary struggles to keep the only one of its four Paks reactors still operating online.
Update: On Aug. 15, 2026, the 7.7 Indonesia earthquake was followed by a 6.4 earthquake. Authorities said dozens more residents were injured and warned that the death toll would almost certainly rise.
Two, concerning wars and rumors of wars: on Aug. 14, 2026, William Koening (White House Correspondent) reported the following in Koenig’s Eye View:
- An Israeli military officer was in our home this week.
- He told us that on June 24, 2025—at the end of the June 13–24 Twelve-Day War— 52 Israeli fighter jets were already en route to Tehran when President Trump demanded that they turn around.
- According to the officer, the intended targets included Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior officials of the Iranian regime.
- Trump publicly ordered Israel not to drop the bombs and to bring its pilots home.
- Following an exceptionally firm conversation between Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel canceled strikes against numerous targets and limited its response to a single radar installation outside Tehran.
- No one can prove what would have happened had Israel been given another two weeks.
- Nevertheless, it is entirely possible that Iran’s command structure, missile program, nuclear infrastructure, and regime leadership would have suffered such extensive damage that the much larger war of 2026 might never have been necessary.
- During the 2025 campaign, Israel had already demonstrated extensive freedom of action over Iran while striking senior military leaders, nuclear facilities, missile installations, and other strategic targets.
- The pattern is painfully familiar.
- In 2006, Israel’s war with Hezbollah ended under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for the cessation of hostilities, the removal of armed groups from southern Lebanon, and the disarmament of militias.
- Hezbollah was never fully disarmed and eventually rebuilt an even larger military arsenal.
- In 2014, the ceasefire ending seven weeks of war in Gaza deferred Israel’s demand for the disarmament of Hamas to future negotiations.
- That disarmament never occurred.
- In 2025, Israel again entered a ceasefire arrangement in Gaza, and Israeli hostages and bodies were released while Hamas retained its weapons and continued resisting demands for complete disarmament.
- Then, on June 24, 2025, President Trump stopped Israel’s much broader retaliation against Iran.
- And now Israel is once again being pressured to stop before its enemies are decisively defeated: to withdraw in Gaza before Hamas is fully disarmed, to leave southern Lebanon before Hezbollah is dismantled, and to restrain military action against Iran before the regime’s ability to threaten Israel has been eliminated.
- Current American-backed proposals tie Israeli withdrawals to a phased disarmament process, but Netanyahu has insisted that Israel cannot withdraw merely on the basis of promises that Hamas and Hezbollah will eventually surrender their weapons.
- A separate report now reinforces this recurring pattern.
- In an Israel Hayom column published in Israel on August 15, 2026, Amit Segal reported that a senior Israeli government official—also a senior Likud figure—said Israel had recently been only hours away from a massive operation that would have “destroyed the remnants of the regime” before Trump stopped it at the last moment.
- That report concerns an August 2026 operation, not the June 2025 mission described by the officer who visited our home. They were two separate incidents—but they point to the same conclusion: Once again, Israel was stopped.
- Fully recognizing the prophetic significance of these events, we should not overlook the recurring pattern.
- Israel is repeatedly permitted to weaken its enemies, but it is then prevented by the nations from fully removing the threat.
- The result is not lasting peace.
- The enemies survive, regroup, rearm, and eventually return.
- International guarantees repeatedly fail.
- Ultimately, Israel’s survival will not come from Washington, Europe, the United Nations, or any other earthly power.
- It will come from the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Three, concerning the U.S.-Iranian War: on Aug. 16, 2026, in the Washington Times, Tom Howell Jr. reported that Pres. Trump recently said:
- That Iran is reeling from his pivot from military might to economic pressure, so he plans to maintain the U.S. naval blockade on the country’s ports for the foreseeable future.
- Iran’s soldiers are no longer paid, and that Iranian leadership was “uncertain — at best.”
- That they have No Money — Their country is ‘shot.’ All they have is fake news and 300% INFLATION, and getting worse!
- That Iran is all talk and no action, the Bully of the Middle East No Longer.
- Praise be to Allah!”
More: On Aug. 16, 2026, the terrorist Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) responded:
- These statements are not made in a vacuum.
- They follow a long pattern of anti-Muslim rhetoric and policies that have dehumanized Muslims at home and abroad.
- For Türkiye, a predominantly Muslim nation and a key NATO ally, Trump’s language raises concerns about rising Islamophobia in Western political discourse.
- Ankara has consistently called for respect toward all religious beliefs and has urged world leaders to avoid inflammatory rhetoric that could further inflame tensions.
- As the US-Israeli war on Iran continues into its sixth week, Türkiye continues to advocate for diplomacy and an immediate ceasefire, warning that language which mocks or targets religious communities only deepens divisions and hinders peace efforts.
Four, concerning the Gog of Magog War: on Aug. 15, 2026 Marty Breedon (Marty’s 2-Minute Warning) wrote:
- We know that according to Ezekiel 38 & 39, Russia, Turkey and Iran will one day soon come against Israel.
- And there are ASTONISHING prophetic moves being made by all parties involved and mentioned in these chapters.
- We also have this sobering prophetic warning: Isaiah 17:1: The burden against Damascus.
- “Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city, And it will be a ruinous heap.”
- Just this week, Russia and Syria reached a new agreement concerning Russia’s two major Syrian bases—Tartus and Hmeimim.
- Russia will retain military personnel there, although parts of those installations are being converted to joint training centers/civilian-controlled facilities.
- Russia appears to be trying to reestablish a military/security role in southern Syria, including patrols and possibly observation positions near the Israeli Syrian frontier.
- There are now credible INTEL reports that Russia has established a new and very sophisticated Military base, LESS THAN 5 MILES FROM THE ISRAELI BORDER!!!
- As I often say, all the right players are now in their rightful positions, and Bible prophecy is being fulfilled before our eyes like no generation HAS EVER SEEN!
Five, concerning the ashes of a red heifer and a rebuilt Temple: on Aug. 16, 2026, it was reported that:
- A third red heifer has been born in Israel this season.
- The newest calf was born in the Jordan Valley and was recently examined alongside two other candidates being raised in the Galilee and Golan Heights.
- Rabbis reportedly found no visible blemishes, injuries, or off-colored hairs during an initial inspection.
- None of the three animals is yet eligible. They must mature while remaining free of disqualifying defects, and rabbis are continuing to study several complex questions of Jewish law.
- The developments do not establish a prophetic timetable, but they are another reason for believers to remain watchful.
(My opinion: The Jews will get permission to rebuild the Temple when the Antichrist confirms the covenant for seven years of peace in the Middle East. That will be after the Rapture.)
Six, concerning the Mark of the Beast: on Aug. 17, the Prophecy News Watch (PNW) staff reported that:
- AI is being used to create false identities (face scans, ID cards, passwords, PIN numbers, etc.) of people.
- Faces can be generated, voices can be cloned, documents can be fabricated, etc.
- Now, governments and banking institutions have a solution: Your body may become your identity credential.
- Mexico’s banking regulator has expanded biometric requirements for financial institutions, requiring facial biometrics alongside existing fingerprint verification and giving banks just 90 days to implement liveness detection designed to distinguish an actual person from photographs, videos or artificial replicas.
- This is not simply Mexico’s problem.
- Financial institutions around the world are increasingly confronting deepfakes, synthetic identities and cross-platform attacks, driving interest in continuous and networked biometric verification (fingerprint scans, face scans, Iris scans, etc.).
- You can change a stolen password. You cannot change your face.
(My opinion: The Mark of the Beast will begin to be enforced globally at the middle of the Tribulation Period.)
Seven, concerning the U.S, Iran war: on Aug. 7, 2026, Iran gave the U.S. 3-4 weeks to meet its demands.
- $300 billion in reconstruction funds.
- Full release of Iran’s frozen assets of up to $120 billion.
- Lifting of the U.S. naval blockade.
- End to the war across all fronts, including Gaza and Lebanon.
- Accepting Iran’s permanent control of the Strait of Hormuz, including up to 7% of transit fees.
- The lifting of all US sanctions on Iranian oil, petrochemical products, and gas.
Eight, on Aug. 17, 2025, Pres. Trump posted an AI-generated video on social media of him and Pres. George Washington riding horses.
Pres. Washington is riding a white horse, and Pres. Trump is riding a black horse.
In the Book of Rev., the rider on the white horse is the Antichrist, and the rider on the black horse is economic collapse and famine (Rev. 6:1-6).
(My opinion: This is strange. I don’t understand why he did it.)
Here is a link to see a picture.
Nine, concerning Islam and the decline of America: on Aug. 17, 2026, RAIR reported that Illinois Islamic Scholar Sheikh Kifah Mustapha called for Muslims during Friday prayer to seek positions within the police, federal agencies, fire departments, the Pentagon, the White House, and the Senate to “change the world” for Islam.
This cleric has terrorist ties and is linked to CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood.
(My opinion: many Muslims are not coming to America to seek a new life. Many are coming here to take over America.)
Ten, concerning the coming global economic collapse early in the Tribulation Period: on Aug. 19, 2026, the total Debt of the United States of America reached $40,047,425,768,420.22 today (up $60.8 billion in one day).
Here are some day-to-day reports on what is happening in the U.S.-Iran war:
Thurs. Day 166 (Aug. 13, 2026) (Day 114 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (74 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- Israel carried out a second preemptive airstrike in Gaza in two days, targeting a Hamas terror cell in Khan Yunis that Israeli military officials said was preparing an attack against Israeli forces.
Fri. Day 167 (Aug. 14, 2026) (Day 115 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (75 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remains well below normal.
- Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Ca) said, “This (the U.S.-Iran war) has been a sticky conflict, because Iran doesn’t have an off-ramp. And they don’t have an off-ramp because they don’t want one. They are exactly what they’ve been for nearly half a century, a terrorist expansion-based ideological country. And until those leaders change or are changed, we’re probably not going to see meaningful negotiations in spite of Pres. Trump’s leadership.”
Sat. Day 168 (Aug. 15, 2026) (Day 116 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (76 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- Iran called on the U.S. to accept defeat.
- Trump blasted Tehran as “very evil” and told Americans to prepare for continued high fuel prices as a result of the war.
- Hezbollah violated the ceasefire in Lebanon by attacking Israeli soldiers in the security zone south of the Litani River. Three Israeli soldiers were seriously injured. Israel retaliated by attacking Hezbollah’s headquarters in Lebanon.
- Residents of northern Israel have been alerted: The IDF will carry out strikes in southern Lebanon tonight, and explosions are expected to be heard.
- The U.S.-Iran Ceasefire and Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will officially expire tomorrow. Pres. Trump unexpectedly went to Camp David for a few hours. Sec. of State Marco Rubio went to CENTCOM Headquarters in Florida. They did not say why.
Sun. Day 169 (Aug. 16, 2026) (Day 117 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (77 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- The Commander of the Iranian Armed Forces: Any Iranian who kills an American soldier or captures an American soldier will receive a reward of $30,000. Women who kill or capture a U.S. soldier will get $60,000.
- US envoy Jared Kushner, former British prime minister Tony Blair, and Gazan Board of Peace (BoP) Director-General Nikolay Mladenov met with a Hamas delegation in Cairo to discuss the implementation of the BoP’s 15-point roadmap for the Gaza Strip. Jared Kushner told Hamas that Washington wants “real efforts and not just words” from Hamas on disarmament.
Mon. Day 170 (Aug. 17, 2026) (Day 118 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (78 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the United States meets Tehran’s demands, including lifting a naval blockade. Iran’s rulers used the MoU to quietly prepare for a broader and potentially prolonged Middle East war.
- Trump has again threatened to bomb Oman if it “gets in the way” of his effort to end the US-Israel war on Iran.
- The 60-day window established in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the United States and Iran in June expired today. During that period, the two sides were supposed to try to reach a broader and final agreement. Al Arabiya reported that the US and Iran have agreed to extend the 60-day ceasefire.
- Arab intelligence officials and others familiar with Iran’s military preparations reported that Tehran’s leadership viewed a June 17 memorandum of understanding with the Trump administration not as the beginning of lasting peace, but with deep suspicion — fearing Washington might be buying time before launching another major attack.
- Syria was on the verge of allowing Turkey to deploy troops at a Syrian military airbase at Aleppo. Israel had warned Syria that it would not tolerate threats to its security, but Syria ignored it. Israel attacked the base.
Tues. Day 171 (Aug. 18, 2026) (Day 119 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (79 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- I didn’t record anything.
Wed. Day 172 (Aug. 19, 2026) (Day 120 of Trump’s latest ceasefire extension) (80 days from the day Pres. Trump said he will declare total victory over Iran)
- The UAE suspended financial transactions and trade with Iran after attacks on Emirati-owned tankers and Tehran’s refusal of talks with Washington.
Finally, are you Rapture Ready?
If you want to be rapture ready and go to heaven, you must be born again (John 3:3). God loves you, and if you have not done so, sincerely admit that you are a sinner; believe that Jesus is the virgin-born, sinless Son of God, who died for the sins of the world, was buried, and raised from the dead; ask Him to forgive your sins, cleanse you, come into your heart and be your Saviour; then tell someone that you have done this.