25 October 2013

Greetings from Tyler,

You would be hard pressed to come up with a derogatory adjective that has not already been applied to America’s lunge toward socialist health care.  Although mandated under penalty of fine, the “product,” whatever that might be is all but universally unavailable to most who have attempted to inquire.  Meanwhile, private businesses are cancelling employees’ insurance coverage, insurance companies are cancelling policies by the millions, and it appears that those who work for a living are the ones being left in the lurch.  Target dates have passed, about a billion dollars has been squandered, further deadlines approach and millions are wondering, “What in the world?”

While our domestic population is lost in confusion, the rest of the world is beginning to react to evidence that the NSA has apparently been targeting the personal and professional communications of the leaders of western nations.  Germans believe that Prime Minister Angela Merckel’s cell phone has been monitored by the agency, and they are not amused.  It seems that there are no limits to this agency’s reach, and a host of nations are up in arms.  The headline today indicates that Germany, France, Italy, Brazil and Mexico intend to ask the United Nations to take action against the United States.

Is there something else the current administration can do to tick everybody off?  Far from having a rehabilitation of respect and admiration for the United States around the world, many of our friends and allies around the world are badly disillusioned to say the least.  So much so that the threat is that the U.S. will be hauled before the United Nations for violating their privacy and sovereignty.  That should be interesting.

The other aspect of American foreign relations that was reported earlier in the week, in time for treatment in the current monthly letter, is the news that Saudi Arabia is breaking off diplomatic relations with the United States.  The other wealthy and moderate gulf kingdoms may well follow suit, so miffed are they at the fact that our president had a chummy phone conversation with the new Iranian prime minister, hopeful that Iran will be cooperative with nuclear investigators so that the U.S. can call a halt to the pesky sanctions that have hobbled Iran’s economy over recent years.  Between that and respect lost over the threats to retaliate against Iran’s ally Syria for the suspected use of chemical weapons, it reached critical mass with the Saudis, and they’ve had enough.

It is getting hard to keep up with the great number of pivotal nations that have been slighted, dismissed and offended by policies and actions of American leadership.  Not only Israel, but every nominally moderate Arab regime in the Middle East as well.

Turning to Europe, they’re dismayed by the news that not only have their leaders been targeted, but the private information and communications of their populations have also been compromised by U.S. agencies.

On top of that, the whole world now knows beyond any doubt that the United States is literally destroying its ability, economically and diplomatically, to be a stabilizing force on the world stage.  And that is exactly why the monumental sequence of events foretold by Bible prophecy play out without any mention of the United States.

The prophecies that apply to us are the ones that predict punishments for having abandoned all contact with God and His laws.

No malevolent nation on earth could have inflicted the ignominy we’re beginning to experience as the result of leadership which governs with an intent to break down every pillar of our “Judeo/Christian” heritage.  The examples are rife everywhere you look.  The pride of our economic and military power is being smashed in every conceivable way.  As we are beginning to see already, the world will go its own way without the influence of a great God-fearing nation to provide a stabilizing counterbalance to the forces of evil.

Here in Tyler, we are completely up to date with our responsibilities.  Everything requested has been sent out, and the next monthly letter is printed with the first batch having already been mailed.  Response has been excellent, and we are organizationally stable, healthy, and happy.  We’re just wondering what further outrage will be perpetrated that will require the response of a Work that is here to witness and warn.  But we’re going to try not to worry about it too much for the next 24 hours.  God’s weekly Sabbath has arrived.

Mark Armstrong