General Articles

In the War Room of Prayer :: By Alice Johnson Childs

Published on: by RR7

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephesians 6:10-13, KJV).

As I was writing my second novel, the fictional Bible study/prayer group to which several of the main characters belonged called themselves the War Room. I loved the concept of that. It came to my mind based on a small Facebook Bible study and prayer group family to which it has been my honor to belong for many years. Our little group loves the doctrinal truths of the Word, and our members understand the power of prayer. Above all else, that little group is a praying group. It is our War Room.

According to Ephesians 6, we know and understand that spiritual warfare is real.

Genuine warfare is being waged in the spiritual realm, yet that eons-old conflict between Satan, the rebel insurrectionist who leads and directs the “principalities and powers of the air and spiritual wickedness in high places” against God and His holy angels, manifests and is being played out in the temporal realm. Nothing less than the eternal souls of mortal humanity hangs in the balance. During these final hours and minutes of the Dispensation of Grace – the Church Age, the intensity of this warfare is accelerating at an excruciating and almost unendurable pace.

Specifically targeted are we believers, our children, our nation, and our fellow persecuted brethren worldwide. All of us are in the direct line of fire of the Evil One with targets squarely on our backs, metaphorically speaking. We know from scripture that this warfare will grow stronger and more desperate the closer we get to the rapture of the Church and the subsequent Tribulation. Now is the time we must fight; however, we cannot fight this battle any other way except on the knees of our hearts.

We don’t have the option of not being in the battle. We’re in it whether we want to be or not. Every human being lost or saved is in this conflict.

The War Room is really nothing other than our prayer closet whether that is alone or amongst others – in your car as you drive to and from work or run errands, in your kitchen as you cook dinner, in your garage, in your bedroom as you prepare to sleep, or even online among dearly loved fellow believers whom we will not meet face to face until we meet in the air. Whether on Facebook or on every other social media platform where we spread the gospel and gather to virtually worship, share and pray with and for each other and the lost, is our War Room. Anywhere we “plug in through prayer” to the throne room of God becomes our War Room.

The battle is raging. Armor up, and let’s find our War Rooms and pray because this is war, and this war can only be fought on the knees of our hearts.

THE WAR ROOM IN ACTION: PRAYER

Oh, Father God, we cannot rest. The very fabric of this physical world and every civilization within it is crumbling beneath the weight of sin. Everything in every area of our global culture has become totally hostile and supremely wicked.

Lord, as humbly as we know how, we, Your people, come before Your throne of grace, pleading that You might be Merciful and intervene. We know, Father, that as bad as things are now, without Your restraining hand to set a boundary on evil, the depravity and wickedness that has already been unleashed upon this country – the evil that is engulfing the world – would be increased a thousandfold.

Lord, please, we ask that if You will, until You take Your Church home, please delay the complete destruction of this nation that the enemy has already set in motion. Even though we as a nation completely deserve destruction, nevertheless, for the sake of Your gospel and for the sake of those who will be left behind, we ask for mercy until You call for Your bride.

Father, our nation is in distress like never before in its history because now, unlike in the past, the majority of our people are God-haters who do not revere Your name. Lord, please protect us as well as all those who protect and serve us. Father, if it be Your will, expose and bring to light the wicked deeds and evil plans that have been brooded over and set into motion in darkness and wicked secrecy. Father, please shine the light of truth on every single person regardless of who they are or how powerful they may be, who are planning and perpetrating wickedness both in America and across the world.

Lord, bring to light the truth and expose those who are behind these acts of depravity and treason that are even now being perpetrated upon the American people and upon our country, and upon those who have dedicated their lives to protect us. We understand, Lord, that in truth, these acts of treason and rebellion are not directed against us, but against You and against Your holy name. Lord, please intervene and halt the planned bloodshed and destruction of this nation, if it be Your will. Please, Lord, we ask for You to intervene on behalf of Your people who are powerless without You.

Lord, if it be Your will, we ask that You would intervene and remove from power and position all those who have planned and who are perpetrating the evil that engulfs our nation, no matter who they are so that until You come to receive Your bride in the air, we may continue to have the freedom to cry aloud the gospel to the ends of the earth and to stand as watchmen on the walls, warning of the certain judgment that is to shortly come to pass. Lord, if it be Your will, grant us the continued freedom and the worldwide platform to do this for Your namesake, and allow our free access to the internet and the worldwide web to be able to carry out these things for as long as You desire.

Lord, please come to our aid and to the aid of those everywhere who stand for righteousness’ sake. Father, we plead with You to preserve and protect the freedoms that we still have left in America. Preserve us, oh Lord, so that we may continue to have the ability and availability to spread the gospel unrestrained and unrestricted to as many people across the world for as long as we are left here on this planet.

Father, the only refuge we have is You. The only hope we have is You. Outside of You, there is no Hope. We know this, Father, and we bow our hearts before You.

Merciful Lord, as you preserved Noah and his family through the judgment in the flood, as You in Your mercy delivered Lot and his family from Your wrath poured out upon Sodom and Gomorrah, we plead with You to come now and deliver Your people, Your Church – Your world-weary bride, from the destruction that is happening in our country and in other countries all across the world.

Father, we know that You will deliver Your Church from Your great wrath that is rapidly coming upon this God-hating world during the coming hour of Tribulation. We know that You will do this, for You have spoken it in Your Word. Thank You, Lord, that Your Church is not appointed to wrath but to obtain salvation through Jesus Christ. We rest in that blessed hope, Lord Jesus, and we long for Your soon return. Nevertheless, Father, what we are pleading for now is for You to deliver us from the wicked snares and schemes of the enemy of our souls – from every evil behind the destruction that is taking place within this land.

Lord, Your Bride worldwide is trapped and weary. In every country on this vile and wicked earth, our persecuted brethren are suffering horrendously, and those of us who are not suffering in our physical bodies are nevertheless suffering in our hearts and souls. Our spirits are bruised, torn, weary, and aching within us. We long to be freed from the evil that has enshrouded the corpse of this fallen world like a funeral pall. Lord, Your people are so tired of living in this vile and wicked place. Please hear our cry, oh Lord! Come, Almighty God, and deliver us!

Oh, Risen Lord, how we long for Your return! How our hearts buckle underneath the weight of evil that has engulfed our nation and the world!

Abba Father, it is with our deepest and most humble heartfelt gratitude for Your unbounding love for us that we acknowledge Your unfathomable mercy that You have extended towards us – that unsearchable mercy that called us to repentance and made a way for us who are nothing more than wretched sinners worthy of death, to be washed clean in the blood of the Lamb.

Lord, just as You were so gracious towards us, neither do we want to deny anyone else the opportunity to accept the grace that You have extended to them.

But, oh Father, how weary we are of the deliberate violence, the wanton evil, the vile and wretched celebration of everything wicked and profane that now permeates every single nation within this dying world. Merciful Father, we are so tired. Please come soon and avenge Your people and Your holy name! Lord Jesus, COME! Exact holy vengeance upon the wicked, and mete out true justice for Your holy namesake. Like our future brethren who will one day soon be martyred during the coming Tribulation – those whose souls will soon cry out from under the altar before Your throne in Heaven, “HOW LONG, OH LORD, FAITHFUL AND True?” –  we too cry aloud HOW MUCH LONGER, LORD, BEFORE YOU COME FOR YOUR BRIDE?

Lord Jesus, Almighty God, as battle-weary as we are, as sick at heart as we are, as desperate as we are, nevertheless, we bow our hearts and our will to Your infinite wisdom and to Your great mercy that has called us out of darkness and into Your marvelous light. Oh Father, we know that our Lord Jesus Christ is our Advocate before Your throne. We know that Your Holy Spirit within us is constantly making intercession for us in groanings that cannot be uttered. Lord, we thank You for Your abiding presence that upholds us throughout every circumstance we face. We are grateful beyond our ability to express for Your faithfulness and for the truth that, indeed, Your grace is sufficient regardless of whatever horror we may face.

Father, uphold us with Your mighty omnipotent hand. Incline Your ear to the cries of Your people, and if it be Your will to do so, send our Deliverer to take us Home now, before this year, this month, this week, or this day is out.

This world hates You. It hates us too because we wear Your name. We do not belong here. We do not want or desire to have any part of this vile place. It is alien to us, and we are aliens in a hostile land, captives in enemy territory, ambassadors longing to go Home to a place we’ve never been before but for which our souls yearn and long to dwell.

Father, we know that You are beyond wrathful at seeing unborn babies butchered on the altars of narcissism; children abused in every manner possible; those whose little minds and hearts are being brainwashed and indoctrinated with every lie in Satan’s arsenal. In Your holiness, we know that You are past being fed up with seeing the minds and hearts of our children being perverted and their bodies being abused and ravaged. We know that You are past being angry with Your people Israel hated and hurt and Your land of Israel divided. We know that You are full of wrath at Your children being brutalized, hated, reviled, and killed for Your namesake. We know this because we know Your holy nature and character and because we know that You love Israel, who is the apple of Your eye, and Your Church, who is Your beloved bride.

We know that You hate sin, yet Your love is so great, Your mercies so tender, that You wrapped Yourself in human flesh. You died, were buried, and rose again victorious over Sin, Death, and Hell so that You might redeem fallen sinners who, outside of You, have no hope.

Oh, Father God, we are pleading with You now to bring in the last souls who will complete Your bride. Lord, please call them to repentance so that whoever and wherever the last souls are, they can respond to Your saving gospel of grace. We pray that You will draw these ones to You even now, even this very minute, so that your body may be completed. Lord, we long to be in Your presence, casting any crowns we may have earned at Your blessed, nail-scarred feet.

Help us, Lord! Carry us, Lord! Rescue us, Lord! It is in the mighty and matchless name of the sovereign Lord Jesus Christ and for Your eternal glory that we ask these things.

Amen and Amen

www.authoralicechilds.com

7thenovel@gmail.com

 

The Collapsing Global Supply Chain :: By Britt Gillette

Published on: by RR7

On November 11, a record 111 container ships were anchored off the coast of two California ports. This broke the previous record set just 20 days earlier. In response, Joe Biden promised to strengthen the resiliency of the supply chain by moving to 24/7 operations at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The Biden administration is concerned about the Christmas shopping season and public opinion in an era of product shortages and rising inflation. But this is about more than just making sure shelves are fully stocked for Christmas. The problems involving bottlenecks in these ports are a symptom of a much larger systemic breakdown – a breakdown that threatens to collapse the entire global economic system.

A Broken Supply Chain

Despite the optimistic forecasts of politicians, the broken supply chain won’t repair itself anytime soon. Its problems will carry on well into 2022 and beyond. President Biden can push for 24/7 port operations, but he knows this won’t fix the problem. These promises are nothing but a public relations campaign to make voters think he’s “doing something.” Containers cover every square inch of these ports. Before new containers can be offloaded from ships, trucks and trains need to move the existing containers to new locations. The nationwide shortage of truck drivers makes that a tall order.

And the problem isn’t confined to California ports alone. Supply chain problems and shortages plague almost every industry and factory in the world, covering a wide range of products such as bacon, semiconductors, toilet paper, aluminum, pet food, juice boxes, and a host of other items.

Why is this? And what does it mean going forward?

COVID Shock

When COVID first struck in early 2020, the global economy came to an abrupt halt. We’re now experiencing the trauma from that high-speed crash – and the damage is massive. The sudden collapse in global demand led to negative oil futures prices in April 2020. This caused energy producers around the world to cap production. Now that demand is returning, producers can’t simply increase production overnight. So demand has increased much faster than supply. Fast forward to late 2021, and we’re facing the consequences.

Natural gas prices in the United Kingdom are triple what they were just five months ago. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin is holding much of Europe hostage as they’ve allowed themselves to become dependent on his energy supplies. In China, coal generates 50% of the nation’s electricity, and coal is becoming harder and harder to source. All this means one thing – higher energy prices and higher costs for businesses and consumers. It also means energy shortages and rolling blackouts. These energy disruptions result in additional production shutdowns and manufacturing bottlenecks, further compounding global supply chain problems.

The Whole System Could Breakdown

The constant disruptions from COVID shutdowns, energy disruptions, and shortages of key manufacturing inputs create a vicious feedback loop that only makes the problem worse. For example, let’s take the following example:

Widget A + Widget B = Widget C

What happens when an electricity blackout at an overseas factory leads to a shortage of Widget A? The answer is clear. Widget C can’t be made. Since Widget A is a key component necessary to make Widget C, no one can make Widget C. Now the world has a shortage of both Widget A and Widget C. And this too makes the problem worse.

Imagine this scenario:

Widget C + Widget D = Widget E (the key component in manufacturing Widget A)

In this case, Widget E is absolutely necessary to make Widget A, and the world is experiencing a shortage of Widget A. The obvious solution is to produce more Widget A’s. However, since Widget A is necessary to make Widget C, and Widget C is necessary to make Widget E, Widget E can’t be made.

Can you see how the current supply chain disruptions could morph into a catastrophic failure? This type of destabilization could result in widespread shortages of everything, including food. This will lead to massive social unrest. As the old adage says, “Fear not the angry man, but the hungry man.” Hungry people launch revolutions. Because of this, they’re a threat to those in power. So what’s the best way for politicians and heads of state to distract from such problems? History says it’s war. War is often the result of trade disruptions, shortages, and/or resource scarcity. This means we live in extremely dangerous times.

The End-Times Approach

For the moment, these supply chain issues may seem like minor inconveniences in your day-to-day life. But they illustrate just how fragile our global economic system is. Just-in-time delivery provides an efficient, cost-effective global supply chain system when everything works the way it’s supposed to. But when unexpected events take place, the whole system falls apart.

What happens when grocery stores experience more than just a sporadic shortage of specific products? What happens when food itself is in short supply? When that happens, we’ll also find out how fragile society itself is. Imagine if New York City (or any large urban area) ran out of food. How do you think people will react? What do you think politicians will do to divert attention from such a crisis?

The world is already on the verge of a major military conflict. Right now, Russia is gathering troops on the border of Ukraine. China is running daily combat exercises to prepare for an invasion of Taiwan. Israel regularly bombs targets in Syria – a nation where Russia, Turkey, and Iran all have an active military presence.

While people long for a return to “normal,” it won’t happen. We’re in the last waning days of a dying world order. Soon, we’ll have a catastrophic breakdown of the current global system. The world will erupt into war just like Europe did in 1914. When the dust settles from World War III, a new world order will emerge. What will it look like? I believe it will look like the one outlined in Chapters 6 thru 13 of the Book of Revelation.

Why? Because Jesus said so. He said when you see all the signs He and the prophets said to look for, you should look up (Luke 21:28). We see those signs now. Their convergence tells us His return is close at hand. Some of those signs are:

  • Israel Back in the Land (Jeremiah 23:7-8; Ezekiel 39:28; Isaiah 11:12; Psalm 107:3; Ezekiel 20:34; Isaiah 11:11-12)
  • The Jewish People in Control of Jerusalem (Luke 21:24-28)
  • The Gospel Preached Throughout the World (Matthew 24:14)
  • An Increase in Travel and Knowledge (Daniel 12:4)
  • Arrival of the Exponential Curve (Matthew 24:3‐8)
  • Israel Surrounded by Enemies (Psalm 83:4; Psalm 83:12; Ezekiel 11:14‐17; Ezekiel 35:10)
  • Israel’s Exceedingly Great Army (Ezekiel 37:10; Zechariah 12:6; Zechariah 12:8)
  • The Rise of a United Europe (Daniel 2, Daniel 7, Revelation 17)
  • The Rise of a Global Government (Revelation 13:7-17)
  • The State of Mankind (2 Timothy 3:1-4)
  • Denial of the Signs (2 Peter 3:3‐4)
  • And many more…

So what does this mean? It means now is the time to point out these signs to others and warn them of what’s coming. If you’ve been waiting to share the Gospel with someone, don’t wait any longer. Jesus is coming, and He’s coming soon. The signs are all around us.

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Britt Gillette is author of the free ebook Coming to Jesus as well as the books Signs of the Second Coming, Racing Toward Armageddon, and The End Times. Receive his book 7 Signs of the End Times for free when you sign up for his monthly newsletter.