The Pain in Spain

The other dominoes in Europe are getting set up to fall.  Now it's really just about where the spotlight decides to focus.  If you look hard at Greece, it looks bad.  If you look hard at Italy, it looks bad.  If you look at Spain, it looks bad.

(Reuters) - Spaniards say they see only more hardship ahead after a parliamentary election on Sunday that is expected to bring in a new government charged with combating an economic crisis.

A gloomy mood hung over the country on Saturday, with little apparent excitement for the election.

High unemployment, cuts in public spending, and fears that Spain could become the next euro zone country to need a rescue package for its debt problems have sapped morale and dominated the election campaigns.

Lines of people formed in central Madrid on Saturday morning -- not in anticipation of polling stations opening, but to buy tickets for the national Christmas lottery, known as El Gordo, which could make them instant millionaires.

"We're going to buy lottery tickets to see if we win, that's the only way things will change," said Ana Maria Gomez, 42-year-old housewife. "Everyone is very pessimistic, there's no work there's no hope."

The government sold bonds on Thursday with a yield of almost 7 percent -- a level of borrowing cost that led to bail-outs in other euro zone countries.

Here;  http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/19/us-spain-election-idUSTRE7AI0H120111119

What happens to a society where there is no hope?  Do they look inward and say to themselves, "as a society we have been lazy, have slacked on education, have been financially irresponsible and now we are going to need to pull up our pants and spend the next 20 years working hard to get back into good economic shape."

Hardly.

What humans do is blame others for their poor choices.  Look for the Spaniards to first get mad at their government...then when they realize that doesn't do any good, look for them to get mad at some financial institutions for loaning them too much money that they now can't pay back...and when that doesn't change anything, look for them to get mad at an outside source.  It will either be some other country or some other people group.

Look what happened in Germany in post WW1.   They were financially without hope and eventually they turned their anger against the Jews....and the rest is now a nasty piece of history.

Now let's watch what America does.  We have borrowed way too much money from outside sources and now we are blaming China for our economic woes by saying they are manipulating their currency...and tensions are rising between the USA and China as Obama goes into their turf and begins to announce a buildup of US military presence.

What Happens if Euro Fails?

If the Euro fails (which is getting more likely with each passing week), what would be the outcome?

Here is a great article by David Brooks in the New York Times.  The article is titled,

THE TECHNOCRATIC NIGHTMARE

During the first half of the 1990s, I lived in Brussels and wrote about the European Union, among other subjects, for The Wall Street Journal. This was the heyday of European integration. Helmut Kohl, François Mitterrand and Jacques Delors were in power, negotiating the Maastricht Treaty and organizing the common currency.
       
There was a lot of excitement among the civil servants who saw themselves as the architects of a new Europe. But there were some oddities.

The European leaders would come together for a summit and issue a joint communiqué. But then if you sampled the coverage in each of the national medias, you felt as though you were reading about 12 entirely different events.

Europe was unifying legalistically and economically, but there was no common language or common conversation. At one meeting, leaders embraced “federalism,” but that word meant one thing in Britain and another thing in Germany.

But now the inherent flaws are undermining the project. The nations of Europe have been running different kinds of economies and different kinds of democracies, reflecting their diverse histories, values and cultures. If you jam diverse economic cultures into a single currency, you’re bound to get an explosion.  

And the final curse is that while building Europe in this way was a mistake, Europeans cannot now simply reverse course. If the euro was immediately dissolved, the Deutschmark would surge, nearly every other currency would plummet and the imbalances would create a global catastrophe.

In the short term, the European Central Bank, the stable European nations and even the U.S. will have to take extremely big and painful action to stabilize the situation. But, after that, it’ll be a time for chastening. It’ll be time to discard the technocratic mind-set that created this inherently flawed architecture and build a Europe that reflects the organic realities of those diverse societies.   

See it here;  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/18/opinion/brooks-the-technocratic-nightmare.html

I think it interesting how he uses the phrase, "the final curse" when describing how the Europeans can't simply reverse course.  It makes me wonder if that curse is coming because Europe has cursed Israel?  He says that if the Euro dissolved it would create a "global catastrophe".  And next he says that even the USA will have to take a big and painful step to stabilize the Euro.....wow.....WHERE WILL WE GET THAT MONEY?? 

Friends...with all that is going on in the world and with the Muslims on the warpath and the Chinese and Russians jockeying for new control of the world while holding it's purse strings.....do we really have the gumption, the where-with-all and time to rebuild Europe?  

To me, this is simply one more situation on planet earth where the facts are UNSUSTAINABLE.  Euro Land is going to come apart....we don't know exactly when, but it will come apart. 

More evidence that a NEW GLOBAL CURRENCY is on the horizon.             

Stage is Set for Nuclear War

We would sure agree with Congresswoman Bachmann that the stage is being set...we hope it is being set for the return of Christ...and we hope that we won't be around to witness the carnage that is being prepared.

Check out the headlines from a few days ago;

Bachmann: Stage set for nuclear war against Israel 

 SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann says developments in the Middle East are setting the stage for nuclear war against Israel.      

In a Republican debate Saturday, Bachmann warned that Iran's attempt to develop a nuclear weapon is part of a regional push against Israel. She said Iran is working with countries like Syria and groups like Hamas to push its agenda.

That means "the table is being set for worldwide nuclear war against Israel," she said.

Bachmann criticized President Barack Obama's approach to managing the U.S. relationship with the Jewish state.

Here;  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45272981/ns/politics/t/bachmann-stage-set-nuclear-war-against-israel/

A "worldwide nuclear war against Israel".....that sounds really serious.  Of course we do know that the Bible says the day is coming when the world will gather against Israel and with one mind they will seek to destroy her that the name of Israel will be remembered no more.

Of course the media will ridicule Bachmann for her statements, and while I have my doubts about her becoming president...she actually does understand the role of Israel and Bible prophecy.

False Christs

Have you guys heard that the White House was shot a few days ago and the shots broke a few windows?  Well it turns out they have arrested the guy who did it.  Now here is the interesting part....HE CLAIMS HE IS JESUS and the OBAMA IS THE ANTICHRIST.

(CBS News)
An Idaho man charged with trying to kill President Obama claims he is the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez was arraigned Thursday in Pittsburgh. He allegedly fired nine shots at the White House last Friday with an assault rifle.

One bullet hit a window in the 2nd floor living quarters. The president wasn't there, and no one was hurt.

Ortega's car was found abandoned nearby shortly after the shooting; an assault rifle with a scope and nine spent shell casings were found inside.

Ortega-Hernandez has been quoted as calling Mr. Obama the "Antichrist."

Here;  http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-500202_162-57327426/accused-white-house-shooter-says-hes-jesus/

Remember what Jesus told us about the last days?...many will come using his name claiming to be the Christ.

Hezbollah Preparing for War

Lebanon is on Israel's norther border.  If you read it's history you will discover that it used to be the "Paris of the Middle East" not so long ago.  That was before the Militant Muslims showed up and attempted to rid the nation of anything that wasn't "Muslim"...and of course try to get Shariah law into the land.  Civil wars have been the result.

Today the terrorist organization Hezbollah pretty much rules the roost.  They get their funding and marching orders from Iran and according to this article they are getting ready for war with Israel.

Hizbullah has canceled leaves and is preparing for war, according to the Kuwaiti newspaper As-Seyassah.

“Hizbullah cancelled the vacations of all its militants, summoned thousands of its members and gave orders to its prominent officials to remain unseen in case a war broke out,” the daily said.

It added that the terrorist army and political party put its combat units, including missile units, on extreme alert. The newspaper also reported that the IDF is aware of Hizbullah’s preparations and has increased reconnaissance flights over southern Lebanon.

Nasrallah last month threatened that Hizbullah missiles would strike metropolitan Tel Aviv in the next war, if and when it comes. He also said that ground forces would force their way into northern Israel for the first time since the War of Independence in 1948.

"The next war will be completely different," former Northern Command Maj. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, told UPI. "Hizbullah will be better prepared. So will we."

Here;  http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/149767#.TsKuuPKwU2E

Did you guys catch the sentence that Hezbollah was cancelling the vacations of it's militants?  I never thought about that....but I guess even terrorists take vacations.

The rumors of a major war continue to build, and as the General said....this war WILL be different than the rest.

Print Some More

In our previous post, we asked who was out there who could save the European Union.  This next article claims that now the Germans are asking Britain to pony up to save the Euro....even though they aren't in the European Union.

And if that doesn't work....they are asking the European Central Bank to simply print the money if they can't raise it.

That ought to go well.

The German government believes Britain should be part of a Europe-wide tax on financial transactions, the proceeds of which could help prop up the single currency.

However, David Cameron and George Osborne have blocked the tax, with the Chancellor claiming it is a “bullet aimed at the heart of London”.

Ministers have instead called on the Germans to allow the European Central Bank (ECB) effectively to print money to rescue beleaguered economies.

The Prime Minister will travel to Berlin on Friday for what are expected to be tense negotiations with Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, over the crisis.

A senior figure in the party headed by Mrs Merkel attacked Britain as relations between the two countries deteriorated in the wake of the single currency crisis.

Here;  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cameron/8892920/European-Union-debt-crisis-Britain-must-help-rescue-eurozone-say-Germans.html

Let's also remember that the UK is effectively broke themselves...so not sure how they are going to ride into the rescue.  They recently mothballed their last aircraft carrier because they simply can't afford to float it any more.

Interesting how quickly the nations that curse Israel can come apart.

I wonder if this could happen in America too?

Also notice how it is said the the relationship between Germany and Britain is deteriorating.

Nation WILL rise against nation....that's a promise. 

Alarming Speed

Today we are told that the European debt crisis is rolling across the continent at "alarming speed."

The European debt crisis is rolling across the continent at alarming speed, proving that almost no country is immune to the contagion unleashed by Greece and Italy as confidence in the region’s ability to reduce its debt loads evaporates.

Yields on the 10-year bonds of France, Belgium, Spain and Austria all soared to record euro zone highs on Tuesday in spite of fresh data showing that the German economy is still expanding and despite the tentative launch of caretaker governments in Rome and Athens with mandates for economic reform.

The mass selloff drove up the debt yields of countries that had been considered havens, including Finland and the Netherlands. “Global financial markets are facing a key pivotal point,” analysts at Barclays Capital said in a Tuesday research note. “A further escalation of the European debt crisis is putting at risk the nascent stabilization of global growth.”

Here;  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/european/mass-bond-selloff-takes-europe-from-bad-to-worse/article2237398/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Report%20On%20Business&utm_content=2237398

Who can possibly solve this crisis of confidence as investors start wondering where they can keep their cash safe?  Will banks fail?  Will governments start defaulting?  How far will it spread?

Who knows??  What we do know is that unrest will grow if people start losing their life's savings.  Make no mistake....this WILL happen.  It has to happen in order to usher in the one-world financial system that the Antichrist so desperately wants.

Iran to Have Five Nukes by April 2012

Holy twenty twelve!!  How many things can we have being predicted for 2012??  Plus they all seem to be calamitous, like solar storms knocking out power grids, Mayan calendars ending, Maitreya is said to be returning, the Jewish electrician who had a near death experience in 1967 and was told by the "elders" while he was dead that a nuclear attack was coming for Israel in 2012, planetary alignments are said to be happening in 2012 that ONLY happen every 26,000 years and that could throw us off our alignment, the magnetic poles appear to be ready to switch north for south as early as 2012, and also don't forget planet Niabiru (also called planet x) which many are claiming will swoop into our solar system and drastically change things on earth.

Wow!  And I'm quite sure I forgot many more things being predicted for 2012....but let's throw in one more ominous headline for 2012 that is in the news today.

Iran will have five nukes by April 2012. Only 2-3 months left for military option 

According to the briefing given to a closed meeting of Jewish leaders in New York Sunday, Nov. 13, the window of opportunity for stopping Iran attaining a nuclear weapon is closing fast, debkafile's sources report. It will shut down altogether after late March 2012. The intelligence reaching US President Barak Obama is that by April, Iran will already have five nuclear bombs or warheads and military action then would generate a dangerous level of radioactive contamination across the Gulf region, the main source of the world's energy.

Sunday, too, President Barack Obama said the sanctions against Iran had taken an "enormous bite" out of its economy. He also said that the "US is united with Russian and Chinese leaders in ensuring Iran does not develop an atomic weapon and unleash an arms race across the Middle East."

The Jewish leaders meeting Sunday were informed that the Obama administration had intelligence data that the US and Israel have no more than a couple of months left for striking down Iran's military weapons development by force. This will not longer be viable after Iran is armed with five nuclear bombs or warheads.

Here;  http://www.debka.com/article/21481/

Jesus asked folks how it was that they could look at the sky and understand it was going to rain or how they could look at the fig tree and proclaim what season it was but yet couldn't see what SPIRTUAL SEASON it was.  In the same way, how can anyone look at the news rumbling across our headlines multiple times per day and not understand that something BIG is about to happen....and many watchers believe the next BIG thing on the horizon is the rapture of the church.

And all God's people said....AMEN!

Election Distraction

This morning all the news shows have the video of the Herman Cain meltdown.  Before that it was the Rick Perry meltdown, before that the Bachmann meltdown and now the the lime light has shifted to Newt Gingrich,  and I'm sure his meltdown moment is soon coming.

And so it goes in the Republican nomination fight.

Friends, do we REALLY believe that a man is going to be able to stand up and save this country?  Yes, I agree that Obama has been worse than I thought he would be....but is there REALLY a Republican out there some place that is going to be able to come into power and wave his magic wand and fix all the unsustainable problems that we have?  The answer is, "no". 

Furthermore, I believe what we are witnessing is a huge distraction delivered by the Evil One.  I believe he wants the Bible believing church to get their hopes caught up in the idea that if ONLY we could defeat Obama, THEN we can turn the USA back on the right course.  And by believing this deception, we then take our eyes off the one true thing that DOES have the power to sustain this country.  Pastor Greg Laurie's devotion today sums it up well...

"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

A lot of times, we Christians have more focus on who is in the White House than on what is happening in God's house.

In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God looked at a nation that was having problems and pointed His finger at His people. He said, "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

It is not a political answer this country needs; it is a spiritual answer. And the only real answer is a spiritual awakening. A revival must hit America.

God says, "If My people. . . ." If we want to turn around a nation, then God's people need to live as they should. The first-century church turned their world upside down. And what do we know about them? We know they were a Bible-teaching, gospel-preaching, praying, obedient church. So the question arises, is that where we are today?

Sadly, I think the answer is no. In a time when we need to engage our culture with the one truth that has any hope of transforming it, many among us have turned away from the answer.

One pastor wrote a book questioning the biblical teaching on hell. Another pastor recently said that he thinks we should no longer use the terminology "saved" or "born again" in our preaching because our culture doesn't understand that. And a popular Christian blogger has questioned the whole idea of evangelism.

There has never been a time when it is more significant for us to warn people about the reality of hell and tell them they need to be saved and born again. And yes, we need to do it through evangelism.

AMEN PASTOR LAURIE!!  So let's all ask ourselves an honest question...are we spending more time  devoted to watching the Republican nomination play out than we are spending time on eternal things?  Are we spending more time sending around political emails than we are on snatching lost souls from the fire??  Are we loving our lost liberal neighbors or are we driving them away from The Truth of Christ by antagonizing them with "Hate Obama" rhetoric? 

Bottom line....are we DOING what the Master told us to do??

The Tsunami of Diseases

Here in the United States we have an epic problem with obesity.  We have taken the blessing that the Lord gave us of ample food and we have turned it into gluttony...which the Bible mentions as a serious sin.

Of course we also realize that obesity is VERY expensive on our health care costs as a nation.  Obese people need more new knees, have more back problems and also suffer a high rate of diabetes.  Diabetes is a very expensive malady to have because it costs an enormous amount of money to treat.

With that as a backdrop, this news headline today simply adds to the unsustainable problems that this nation is facing.

Unless Americans quickly make dramatic changes in their lifestyles, half of the adult population will develop diabetes or prediabetes by 2020, according to a new prediction from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

If Americans don't put the brakes on their free-wheeling diets, the numbers of people with elevated blood sugar levels will skyrocket from 93.8 million (approximately 28 million with diabetes and an additional 66 million more with prediabetes) to 135 million in 2020. That will unleash a tsunami of disease that will wreak havoc, causing a flood of diabetes-related damage on the body including cardiovascular and kidney disease. And it's not just adults that are at risk.

In addition, diabetes is becoming one of the most common chronic diseases in children and adolescents. According to the American Diabetes Association, one in every four children is currently diagnosed with diabetes. Dr. Joel Zonszein, professor of clinical medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, believes that unless healthy lifestyle changes are made early in life, diabetes could become an epidemic of tsunami-like proportions.

Here;  http://www.newsmaxhealth.com/headline_health/CDC_warning_diabetes_tsun/2011/11/09/416387.html?s=al&promo_code=D80A-1

Isn't it interesting how Satan perverts everything?  God says that sex is good and a blessing preserved for marriage....Satan explodes into into something filthy and addicts the nation to porn.

God blesses us with freedom from persecution....Satan comes along and makes us so apathetic and complacent that we seldom use our freedom to spread the Gospel.

God blesses us with ample food to sustain us so that we can complete our mission of spreading the Gospel....Satan strikes us with an epidemic of obesity that tears down our bodies and puts us out of balance because of a food addiction.

Isn't it interesting.....

Expect No Peace While Mankind is in Charge

Over the years this blog has sent you to the MEMRI website a handful of times.  The site monitors Middle East media such as TV stations, newspapers and speeches.  We reference yet another video from them below. 

It's hard to comprehend the Satanic hatred that has been brewing for the Jews ever since God called out Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to work His plan of salvation through.  But as you watch this video coming out of Gaza that was just broadcast last week....you will see that peace will not be happening anytime soon in the Middle East.  The only way it is going to happen is when the Prince of Peace shows up to establish His Millennial reign.

Notice during the video that the speaker demands the Jews get out of Jerusalem...or they will be thrown out.  It is no small coincidence that God named Jerusalem as His set apart city....and that Satan desperately wants that city for his own purposes.  Whatever God calls as "His"....Satan wants it.  Whatever Christ calls as "His"....Satan wants it.

That's one reason, amongst many, that Satan wants the Jews dead and gone and also wants the Christian church (the Bride of Christ) turned into a worthless bowl of jelly with no guts, no heart, no testimony, no urgency and no cares.  How many people in your specific church are on fire for the Word of God?

Check out this short video here: http://www.memri.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/3190.htm

Hat tip to Tom F.

Is Israel Behind Deadly Blast in Iran

A few days ago we posted about the massive explosion in Iran at a military base.  One source was reporting that the explosion happened when scientists were attempting to attach a nuclear warhead to a missile.  Of course we don't know that to be true, but if it is then Iran is a lot further along in it's nuclear weapons program than all of us football fans are aware of.

And of course we have Netanyahu coming out and saying exactly that.... Iran IS A LOT CLOSER to a bomb than people think.

Iran is closer to assembling a nuclear bomb than "people think," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday, following a the publication of a report by the United Nations' nuclear watchdog on Tehran's nuclear program.         

Commenting on the Iranian nuclear program on Sunday, Netanyahu said that "international [diplomatic] efforts did not prevent Iran from advancing toward a nuclear bomb, and it may get there sooner than people think."

"The IAEA report includes only the evidence provable at a court of law, but the reality is that there are many more things that we are seeing beyond what the report states," Netanyahu added.

Here;  http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/netanyahu-iran-is-closer-to-a-nuclear-bomb-than-people-think-1.395368

So that was all yesterday's news.  Now today's news has a headline wondering if Israel was somehow behind the explosion that rocked Iran and killed tens of people.

Intel Source: Israel Behind Deadly Explosion at Iran Missile Base

Israeli newspapers on Sunday were thick with innuendo, the front pages of the three largest dailies dominated by variations on the headline "Mysterious Explosion in Iranian Missile Base." Turn the page, and the mystery is answered with a wink. "Who Is Responsible for Attacks on the Iranian Army?" asks Maariv, and the paper lists without further comment a half-dozen other violent setbacks to Iran's nuclear and military nexus. For Israeli readers, the coy implication is that their own government was behind Saturday's massive blast just outside Tehran. It is an assumption a Western intelligence source insists is correct: the Mossad — the Israeli agency charged with covert operations — did it. "Don't believe the Iranians that it was an accident," the official tells TIME, adding that other sabotage is being planned to impede the Iranian ability to develop and deliver a nuclear weapon. "There are more bullets in the magazine," the official says.

The powerful blast or series of blasts — reports described an initial explosion followed by a much larger one — devastated a missile base in the gritty urban sprawl to the west of the Iranian capital. The base housed Shahab missiles, which, at their longest range, can reach Israel. Last week's report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran had experimented with removing the conventional warhead on the Shahab-3 and replacing it with one that would hold a nuclear device. Iran says the explosion was an accident that came while troops were transferring ammunition out of the depot "toward the appropriate site."
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2099376,00.html#ixzz1dgeG2Gly

One thing that we know for sure is that the rumors keep growing regarding Israel and Iran.  If this above article proves to be true and Israel was behind some explosion that sets back Iran's nuclear program...then that's great!  Maybe Israel can continue sending computer viruses and blowing up sensative locations all in a covert way, then maybe they can avoid the full out military assault that would be so sure to alarm the rest of the world?

Israel Won't Inform Obama Before Strike

It appears that the "special relationship" between Israel and USA has been coming apart...and if this article is true, then I would say it has officially fractured.  Israel must know that talking to Iran isn't going to accomplish one thing and have now realized it will be up to them alone to attempt to stop Iran from going nuclear and holding the free world hostage.

ISRAEL has refused to reassure President Barack Obama that it would warn him of a pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, raising fears that it may be planning an attack as early as the next northern summer.

The US leader was rebuffed when he demanded private guarantees that a strike would not go ahead without White House notification, suggesting that Israel no longer plans to ''seek Washington's permission'', sources said.

The disclosure, by insiders briefed on a secret meeting between America's most senior defence chief and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, comes amid concerns that Iran's progress towards nuclear weapons means Israel has lost hope for a diplomatic solution.

Officially, his brief was restricted to the Middle East peace process, but the most important part of his mission was a private meeting with Mr Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak. Once all but a handful of trusted staff had left the room, Mr Panetta conveyed an urgent message from Mr Obama. The President, Mr Panetta said, wanted an unshakable guarantee that Israel would not carry out a unilateral military strike against Iran's nuclear installations without first seeking Washington's clearance.

The two Israelis were notably evasive in their response, according to sources both in Israel and America.

''They did not suggest that military action was being planned or was imminent, but neither did they give any assurances that Israel would first seek Washington's permission, or even inform the White House in advance that a mission was under way,'' one said.

Alarmed by Mr Netanyahu's noncommittal response, Mr Obama reportedly ordered the US intelligence services to step up monitoring of Israel to glean clues of its intentions.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/israel-refuses-to-alert-us-over-iran-attack-20111113-1ndq4.html#ixzz1db0qaIvU

So now we have gone from having a special telephone between the two countries to having Obama tell our CIA to watch Israel very closely to see if we can "glean clues".

Holy deterioration!!  That sure all fell apart fast.  It shouldn't surprise us because we know that Israel will be all alone in the Last Days...but I was hoping we would be tight with Israel up until the rapture doomed America.

Stay tuned to see how this story ends.