The news of the moment includes a downgrade of the USA's sterling credit rating, a plummeting stock market, and soaring gold. Tomorrow's futures on the other world markets reveal a continuing downturn on the world markets. The economists like to call such as this a "correction." That softens the blow of depleted retirement funds, annuities, and the like. The media are having a time with this news; theirs are the only ratings going up right now. Meanwhile, Dummy-crats point their finger at the TEA party; Republicans point theirs at the Dems, hoping for their demise next year; and no one looks under the proverbial skirts to see what the problem really is. So I want to take a look at this from another angle. And I may get it wrong; but I don't think so. . . .
While the problem the world now sees is most certainly an economic problem, there is much more to it than that. I won't spend my words analyzing the entire world. I want to speak about the USA; after all, that is where I write this from.
The problem we now face began in the early part of the 20th century, when (with respect to my Canadian and Latin American friends) "America," as we call it, experienced a radical heart shift away from God. We had just experienced a world wide awakening/revival. Hundreds of thousands around the world had been touched by the Holy Spirit and born into the kingdom of God. Then came what scholars labeled as "modernism." Man suddenly decided he was too rational to allow room for adherance to the word of God as the final authority in the affairs of life. The affairs of life, by the way, include everything, including economics, politics, and world relationships. We began a love affair with what would eventually be called humanism.
Fast-forward past WWII. Men came home from war. The nation was in a rebuilding phase. Many of those men, however, had been stung severely by the hornets of war and had become secretly cynical. They barely had time to breathe before we entered the Korean "Conflict." While men and women maintained in a cultural sense the appearance of godliness, in their homes they took off their masks. For too many, their religion was only "cloth deep." It was surface tolerance of the Bible at best.The stage was set for yet another heart shift away from God and biblical principles. The boomer generation was born, but not adequately schooled in the things of God. One of the great battles was forming: evolution v creation. Even pastors and preachers began to doubt the literal six-day creation. It showed up in their teaching. The decline in church attendance began to show as pastors inadvertently cast doubt on the veracity of Scripture by advocating a tolerance to the religion of evolution. In the home, where children were still in the innocence of Andy Griffith and other shows, there was less and less emphasis on spiritual things.
The Boomers began to come of age. Vietnam was escalating. The nation would not stand for it. And the Boomers took to the streets. As those young men and women came of age they demonstrated yet a third heart shift away from God. They cast off the shackles of what they called "organized religion." They were anti-organized everything. Time will not allow to discuss the impact of an increasingly secularized education; but this, too, had a major impact on the heart shift of Americans.
When the Boomers began to have children they continued in their now very secular mindset. Less and less showed interest in the things of God. Sunday became "fun" day. More and more protested they needed their rest. Fewer and fewer showed interest in the things of God. Soon, between the Boomers and the subsequent generations, this nation called the United States of America was post-Christian in its outlook. Tolerance was the watchword. The only things is, this tolerance is the epitome of intolerance for those who stand for all things that conservative Christians do. The lines were made clear. For the most part, America now stood in blindness to the things of God. That's no surprise, since dead men can't see. And those who do not know Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior are spiritually dead, blind, and unfeeling to the things of God.
What does this have to do with the economy? Someone is shouting, "It's the economy, stupid!" And so it does--at least, in part.
I heard the late Keith Green say that when a nation turns its back on God, God may strike that nation in three areas: in their economy, their environment, and with their enemies. The USA has experienced all three since the mid-1990's. The economic woes are just the third blow of three slaps to her face. Unless the churches repent and return, we will see worse. Unless the unsaved repent and believe, we will see worse.
In my next post I will tie this opinion to world relations. Meanwhile, we should pray and repent. . . .
