Category: north korea

Posted in chemical weapons Syria, earthquakes, north korea

USA bad, puppies good: two postcards for sale in North Korea; earthquakes, Syria chemical weapons

Posted on by elizabethprata

Don’t forget about North Korea. They still hate us.

Photo by David Guttenfelder, National Geographic

The scare of earlier this month seems to have died down. Only it hasn’t, it just isn’t being reported all that much. Goodness, the US media has the attention span of a gnat. Look, North Korea! Over there, Lindsey Lohan! Wait, the White House Correspondent’s Dinner! Oy.

North Korea is still busy moving missiles, reports the UK Guardian.

“North Korea has moved two short-range missile launchers to its east coast, apparently indicating it is going ahead with preparations for a test launch, a South Korean news agency reported. Seoul and its allies have been expecting some sort of missile launch during weeks of heightened hostility on the Korean peninsula.”

Sooo, China ordered more troops to the border of North Korea.

“China is reportedly beefing up its military presence on the North Korean border amid heightening tensions in the region. The troop mobilisation is said to be taking place along with deployment of dozens of tanks in the strategically important border region with North Korea, which is separated by the Yalu River. The Chinese military is on high alert over the ongoing tensions in the Korean Peninsula.”

Just thought I’d let you all know that it is still going on over there. Lindsey Lohan notwithstanding.

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This week there has been some reporting from main stream news outlets that Syria has used chemical weapons. However, those reports started leaking out a month ago. I reported on Israel’s claim that chemical weapons were used in Syria back on March 19. Israel’s claim got a huge ho-hum from the world. But now that a defected Syrian General is telling the world that he was ordered to use them, the world is being forced to face it. So the UN dips a toe and cautiously investigates. The US and UK are “treading cautiously.“

Ignoring it, is my opinion. They went into Libya pretty fast, as I recall.

Joel C. Rosenberg reports that Israel is closing in on the end of their patience with Iran and their nuclear program. He wrote this week, “Close confidante of Netanyahu warns “it’s now or never” for military strike on Iran: Analysis.” The article opens this way:

“Tzachi Hanegbi — a close, trusted, long-time personal friend and confidante of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – made remarks on Tuesday at a security conference in Tel Aviv that did not make news in the U.S. But they should have. Hanegbi explained that the time for sanctions and diplomacy and covert options to neutralize the Iranian nuclear threat is over, and the time for Israel to use its military option has come. “It’s now or never,” said Hanegbi, ”and the option of never does not exist.”

However later, the guy was told to stay mum on all that. And that is the news from the ‘epicenter’.

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Speaking of earthquakes, I’d noticed that in previous years there had been a huge increase in quakes in the 6.0-6.9 magnitude. Then this year a severe drop-off. Since 2003, quakes in that magnitude had exceeded the United States Geological Survey’s own annual average. See here:

The dearth of 6.0+ quakes has continued into 2013. I had wondered what was up. Apparently I was not the only one who wondered. This article’s title poses quite the interesting conundrum:

A global murmur, then unusual silence
“In the global aftershock zone that followed the major April 2012 Indian Ocean earthquake, seismologists noticed an unusual pattern. The magnitude (M) 8.6 earthquake, a strike-slip event at intraoceanic tectonic plates, caused global seismic rates of M=4.5 to rise for several days, even at distances thousands of kilometers from the mainshock site. However, the rate of M=6.5 seismic activity subsequently dropped to zero for the next 95 days. This period of quiet, without a large quake, has been a rare event in the past century. So why did this period of quiet occur? In his research presentation, Fred Pollitz of the U.S. Geological Survey suggests that the Indian Ocean earthquake caused short-term dynamic stressing of a global faulting system. Across the planet, there are faults that are “close to failure” and ready to rupture. It may be, suggests Pollitz and his colleagues, that a large quake encourages short-term triggering of these close-to-failure faults but also relieves some of the stress that has built up along these faults.”

Aha! We know from the bible that the earth will shake and totter continuously throughout the Tribulation. (Isaiah 24:20, Matthew 24:7). Upcoming earthquakes of increasing magnitude are prophesied to occur. For example, there will be one in Jerusalem that will kill 7,000. (Rev 11:13). A huge one will occur that is predicted in Revelation 6:12 that will submerge all islands and crumble all mountains. In between the earthquakes will continue in diverse places. (Luke 21:11).

All this speaks to the scientist’s notion that the earth’s quake faults are about to fail. It’s because they are.

Pray, live for Christ, and look up, for our Redemption draweth nigh.

Posted in north korea

Is the US amassing B-1 strategic bombers near North Korea? Respected avionationst thinks so

Posted on by elizabethprata

Voice of America journalist Steve Herman tweeted, “Respected aviation blogger on possible movement of USAF B-1 squadron to Guam amid DPRK tension,” and he linked to this article-

U.S. amassing B-1 strategic bombers near North Korea
It seems like Washington has taken Kim Jong Un threat seriously.

After moving two Langley’s F-22 Raptor stealth fighters to Osan airbase, in South Korea, launching a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber on a round-trip training mission over a South Korean’s gunnery range from the Continental U.S., and deploying THAAD anti-ballistic missile defense system to Guam, positioning two guided-missile destroyers in the waters near the Korean peninsula, the Pentagon has decided to strengthen its presence in the region by deploying several B-1 Lancer long range bombers to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam.

But, for the first time in the last few weeks, the deployment of the “Bones” to the Pacific atoll was not made public (at least, not yet), a fact that could be the sign that the U.S. is not only making symbolic moves (as the above mentioned ones), but it is preparing for the worst scenario: an attack on North Korea.

Of course, there is more at the link.

Posted in israel, naming names of false teachers, north korea, writing on the wall

Naming names, where is USS John McCain? Israel surrounded, writing on the wall ain’t what it used to be.

Posted on by elizabethprata

I found a few things I think are interesting. I hope you do too.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz laments the cultural co-opting of the phrase “the writing on the wall.”
Wordplay: The writing on your (Facebook) wall
Today’s ‘writings’ are not what they used to be. There are ‘texts,’ ‘tweets’ and ‘posts,’ and walls are not what they used to be either.
“The key part of the well-known phrase “the writing was on the wall” − which is, according to most lexicons, an idiom that presages “imminent doom or misfortune” − is the verb “to be,” in the past simple ‏(“was”‏) tense. Only by virtue of that “was,” with hindsight, do mere words inscribed on a partition become validated, and acquire the heavy weight of a warning unheeded.” … “But today “writings” are not what they used to be. There are no “writings” anymore per se: There are “texts,” “tweets” and “posts” in our post-writing post-modern age. And walls are not what they used to be either. A “Wall” was once the original Profile space of Facebook users, something they could cover with their own “posts” and keep unblemished by other people’s ‏(friends’ or foes’‏) words.”

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Making a new life after 20 years of false imprisonment

Frank Carrillo was falsely imprisoned in California and after 20 years released after witnesses admitted they had lied. It took 15 years even to get anyone to listen to him. This 3-minute video is a first-person recounting of his journey and how he feels now. He is not bitter he says. Not angry, either. He only wants to finish his education and live a free life.

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Here is a map I found in Facebook (HT Julie Sommerkamp Pence) showing in visual style the breadth of the hostile territory surrounding Israel. Even the white blob is too big, for Israel is truly tiny. Zechariah 12:3 says that “On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.”

They will not prevail.

God will save all Israel (Romans 11:26.) At the end of the Tribulation God will redeem His nation, not just the individual people. Jeremiah 31:31, Jeremiah 32:38). The LORD said it, it will come to pass.

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Here is a Pentagon release on the status of the ships in the Asian theatre of operations:

“Pentagon official on status of USN destroyers in Pacific: “The guided missile destroyers USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) and USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) have arrived at pre-determined positions in the Western Pacific, where they stand poised to respond to any missile threats to our allies or our territory. USS Decatur is finishing a deployment to the 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility and the hope is to not extend her deployment any further. USS Fitzgerald is forward-deployed to Yokosuka,Japan and is fully-capable of taking over for Decatur.”‘

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Naming false teachers? Don’t be so mean! Except … in one book of the bible, Paul named eight. (2 Timothy). From “Naming Names…Is it Biblical?“
1) Phygellus 1:15
2) Hermogenes 1:15
3) Hymenaeus 2:17
4) Philetus 2:17
5) Jannes 3:8
6) Jambres 3:8
7) Demas 4:10 (apostate)
8) Alexander the coppersmith 4:14

“We see clearly here that fighting the good fight and finishing our course involves and includes marking deceivers. Men of God today are mandated to do the same, yet only by the revelation of the Word of God. Marking people is commanded in the Bible (Rom. 16:17-18). If a public leader is teaching people falsehood, he is to be confronted and exposed. The fruit of truly repenting of teaching something that contradicts God’s Word is that the leader will publicly amend his way and doctrine. Naming names must never be done recklessly or out of a personal vendetta, but only according to the Word and in the Spirit for the glory of God and protection of His beloved people.”

Posted in end time, missile, north korea, peace and security, prophecy, south korea

North Korea Loads 2 Missiles Onto Launchers, tells UK to consider evacuating ambassadors from Pyongyang

Posted on by elizabethprata

Here is the latest from Steve Herman on the Korean peninsula, reporting for Voice of America. VOA material is in the public domain.

Report: North Korea Loads 2 Missiles Onto Mobile Launchers
“South Korea’s military is stepping up preparations for anticipated missile launches by North Korea. Meanwhile, the Cabinet minister in Seoul in charge of North-South relations says it is up to Pyongyang to keep in operation the only joint project of the two Koreas.South Korea has dispatched two of its warships, equipped with advanced missile tracking radar, amid rising concern North Korea could soon conduct provocative missile launches.One ship has been placed off the west coast of the Korean peninsula, the other is monitoring the east coast. South Korea’s semi-official news agency, Yonhap – quoting what is described as a top government official – reports North Korea has now placed a second intermediate-range missile on a mobile launcher. The Ministry of National Defense in Seoul on Thursday confirmed the movement of one missile. The Yonhap report says both missiles have now been hidden in a military facility near the east coast.”

Above, North Koreans attend a rally against the United States and South Korea in Nampo, North Korea, April 3, 2013. Reuters via VOA.

“They want to scare the world well enough so that after the missile test or nuclear test when we decide to convene and pass another round of sanctions against them, another round of condemnation, we would think twice, do we really want to bring the escalation by another notch up or not,” said Mansourov. South Korean officials and independent defense analysts speculate Pyongyang may time missile launches to coincide with an April 15 national holiday. That is when North Korea celebrates “The Day of the Sun” to commemorate the birth of its late founder, Kim Il Sung. At the only joint project involving the two Koreas, the Kaesong industrial complex, operations were suspended Friday, which is a national holiday in North Korea. On the two previous days, the North did not allow any cargo trucks or South Korean citizens to enter. The vehicles and the managers of numerous small factories making household goods were not given permits required to cross the border.”

End VOA Report. There is more at the link. Next, in the UK Telegraph we read,

North Korea tells Britain to consider evacuating Pyongyang embassy 
“We can confirm that the British Embassy in Pyongyang received a communication from the North Korean government this morning,” said a spokesman for the Foreign Office. “It said that the North Korean government would be unable to guarantee the safety of embassies and international organisations in the country in the event of conflict from April 10,” he added.”

In the Telegraph article above, the UK spokesman said that Russia also said it had received the same notice. Though we understand that North Korea blusters annually every spring, this time seems different.  As the official is quoted in the Telegraph article, “Unfortunately, the situation (on the Korean peninsula) is not developing in the way that we would like.”

Amen to that.

The world is certainly paying attention. In separate Voice of America tweets (@W7VOA) today, ‘Australian Prime Min. Gillard tells Pres. Park her nation fully supports efforts to cope with North Korean threats and Australia’s heart is with South Korea’ and ‘The Philippines foreign minister tells reporters his country considering offering U.S. use of military bases there if North Korea attacks.’

I don’t know if this is accurate, being from a lay-person in Florida on Twitter, but it seems so, “Thank you to our troops supporting the United Nations Command (S.Korea). Army: 19,755 Navy: 274 Air Force: 8,815 Marines: 242.”

We have focused our attention on our troops in the Arabian deserts so long that we also need to

remember the troops in the Asian sphere; Hawaii, Japan, Guam, South Korea.

However, if the situation is not moving in the direction the officials would like, is it moving in the direction as Jesus would like? Of course. Jesus said that there would be wars and rumors of wars. (Matthew 24:6). He goes on in the first part of verse 24:7 to say, “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.” (Photo caption, Juche Tower Monument to the philosophy of Juche = self-reliance. Wikipedia).

His dialog in Matthew 24 with the Disciples is a Tribulation discussion. Jesus is speaking to them about what will happen to the Jewish people and the world in the future “Time of Jacob’s Trouble.” (Jeremiah 30:7). There will be wars because in Revelation 6:4 we read that peace will be taken from the earth and to the rider of the war horse “he was given a great sword.”

If the rider is to take peace from the earth, peace must have existed upon it prior. This is the peace and safety spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 5:3, that “While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” It is the peace spoken of in Ezekiel 38:8b before the Gog-Magog alliance attacks Israel, “Its people were brought out from the peoples and now dwell securely, all of them.”

In Barnes Notes, we read of the Revelation verse where peace is taken from the earth by the rider on the red horse,

The characteristics of the period referred to by this are:

(a) that peace and tranquility existed before;
(b) that such peace and tranquility were now taken away, and were succeeded by confusion and bloodshed; and,
(c) that the particular form of that confusion was civil discord, producing mutual slaughter: “that they should kill one another.”
(d) The presentation of a sword: and there was given unto him a great sword. As an emblem of what he was to do, or of the period that was referred to by the opening of the seal.
The sword is an emblem of war, of slaughter, of authority Romans 13:4, and is used here as signifying that that period would be characterized by carnage.

I’m interested in the ‘great sword’. Sword is a symbol of war in the bible. This time it is a great sword. In the Greek great means ‘great, in the widest sense.’ A great war tool that brings great carnage…could it be thermo-nuclear? Very likely. But that is then. What about now?

Wars and rumors of wars are nothing new in the Age of Grace. For the past 2000 years, there have been wars and rumors of wars. However the context of these rumors and threats from North Korea if placed within the context of everything else happening, makes the situation more closely aligned, in my opinion, to the coming prophecies in Matthew and Revelation (And Zechariah 10).

All the officials seem to believe that though North Korea’s bluster is annual, this time is different. And that difference is causing them to make troop deployment and war materiel movements based on their collective assessment of the Korean situation being of a more threatening color than previously. If we look at Matthew 24 and Revelation 6 and 1 Thessalonians 5, for there to be such worldwide peace, perhaps it is brought on by war. Perhaps something occurs first to shake the world into shock and push them over the edge into wanting peace at all or any cost. Perhaps this is that moment.

Perhaps not.

But we still watch, wait, and look up for our Redemption.

After relating that there would be wars and rumors of wars, Jesus went on to say, “See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.

How much less should we be alarmed given that we are dwelling in the Age of Grace? Jesus advised the disciples not to be alarmed, and that would be taking place after terrible wars that thrust Israel into the clamor for peace we discussed above, after the rapture, after mystifying cosmic incidents, massive storms… seems pretty alarming! But don’t be alarmed in that context is “Don’t be scared because it is all unfolding exactly as I wish. Have no fear, I am in control.”

We live in a beautiful time. It is a time of Jesus. We read in the bible of the heroes, Moses, Jeremiah, Elijah, David, Daniel, Rahab, Jael…but what of the decades and centuries in between where multitudes of Israelites just lived their lives in regularity an anonymity? There are countless men and women who lived, worshiped the LORD and died, of whom we know nothing. Yet Jesus put us here, now, at a time such as this, when His mightiest works will be shown, prophecies unfold and the rapture occur. We are His ambassadors for that time when we can call people to repentance, share the Gospel, and be His lights in the darkest time as yet.

How great is that? Jesus said how great it is to serve Him:

“If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” (John 12:26).

Posted in north korea, nuclear

What’s Behind North Korea’s Bluster? Korea’s plutonium reactor re-started? US troops ready to respond

Posted on by elizabethprata

This short interview by Voice of America to VOA correspondent Steve Herman, reporting from Korea, is insightful. VOA material is in the public domain, so I have posted the entire piece.

What’s Behind North Korea’s Bluster?
“For the past week, the world has been hearing almost daily threats and belligerent statements from North Korea. While this kind of talk is not new for the government in Pyongyang, the pace and pitch of the recent pronouncements stand out. To help add perspective to these developments, VOA turned to its correspondent in Seoul, Steve Herman, and asked what might be behind Pyongyang’s escalating war of words.”

VOA: “Steve, after the younger Kim took over, there was sort of a long period where we didn’t hear these kinds of statements. What can you tell about why this would be happening now?”

Steve Herman: “Well, that’s a good question. Now there are two things that we can point to that have been going on that would fit into the pattern of how North Korea behaves. One is they always vociferously object to the annual joint military exercises that U.S. and South Korean militaries do.

“Second: the North Koreans have a pattern of testing new South Korean presidents. And we have a new president, who was just recently inaugurated. So we can combine these two together and that would partly explain why we are seeing these sort of provocations so frequently. But a number of diplomats I’ve been speaking with, military officials and people in the intelligence community, concur on something that I also feel, and this is just a hunch.

“We’re missing something. There is a piece of the puzzle that we don’t know. There may be something else going on in Pyongyang. Whether this involves some struggle for power within the military — or something that the North Koreans believe or fear beyond their normal types of concerns, we don’t know for sure.

“We also have to remember that North Korea obviously feels under siege on the diplomatic front with the additional sanctions that have been put into place by the U.N. Security Council, including support, to some degree, for those sanctions from China, which you know, of course, has to be North Korea’s sole significant ally since the demise of the Soviet Union. So as much as some of this is directed at the United States, some of this may also be directed to get something out of China as well.”

​​VOA: “The thought often is in North Korea that the real power lies with the military generals. Do you have any sense of whether or not that’s the case?”

Steve Herman: “I would be very cautious about anyone who jumps to conclusions that Kim Jong Un is ‘not in charge.’ He is the hereditary ruler of North Korea. That has been very important in Korean history. That blood tie to his grandfather is the foundation of the Democratic Peoples of the Republic of Korea and I don’t think we should forget that. The other thing that always must be kept in mind with North Korea: the military comes first in North Korea. Period. Full stop. Even though Kim Jong Un may be only about 30 years old, has spent part of his early days being educated in Europe, but he was the one over his other brothers selected by his father.”

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This is from US-Korea Institute. An agreement brokered by the US in 2007 with NK stipulated that NK would disassemble critical parts of its plutonium production reactor at the Yongbyon nuclear complex. As the link below explains, this agreement may just have been torn up.

Satellite Images Show New Construction at North Korea’s Plutonium Production Reactor; Rapid Restart?
“Commercial satellite imagery shows that new construction activity started at the 5 MWe reactor in the six weeks between the beginning of February and the end of March 2013, prior to the Pyongyang’s announcement earlier this week that it intended to reactivate the facility. While imagery from February 7 shows no activity at the reactor site, March 27 imagery indicates that construction has begun along the roadway and toward the backside of the reactor building.”

Please read the entire piece at the link above. They explain it very well. And there’s pictures 😉

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 U.S. Troops Stand ‘Poised to Respond’ at North Korea Border
“The United States says it stands “poised to respond” at the border of North and South Korea, where U.S. troops are on high alert.  “They have ratcheted  up their bellicose, dangerous rhetoric and some of the actions they’ve taken over the last few weeks present a real and clear danger,” Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said. The U.S. is sending  a missile battery to Guam and two guided missile destroyers are on the border of South Korea, joining Navy warships already poised to shoot down an incoming missile.”

There is a short roundup of the North Korea news and analysis. Follow Steve Herman at Voice of America for good updates, @W7VOA.

Posted in end time, kings from the east, north korea, prophecy

Will North Korea strike the US? Should we fear? No!

Posted on by elizabethprata

Well North Korea certainly seems to be making a permanent job of bluster. Except this time, it may not be bluster.

Lately they have been issuing videos of ridiculous quality which would be laughable if they weren’t so crazy. There have been three in the last month so far. As the UK Telegraph reports on the latest video issued last week,

North Korea ‘defeats’ US troops in new video
“The latest propaganda video to emerge from North Korea depicts paratroopers descending on Seoul in an invasion scenario that it said would see thousands of US citizens living in South Korea taken hostage. … An video released early last month showed New York in flames after an apparent missile attack, and another two weeks later depicted US soldiers and President Barack Obama burning in the flames of a nuclear blast. And earlier this week, another video showed the dome of the US Capitol building in Washington exploding in a fireball.”

Then have come the belligerent threats, backed up by action this time however. Dictator Kim Jong Un has threatened nuclear war on the Korean peninsula, in the Pacific at Guam and Hawaii, and on our shores at the continental US. We sent stealth bombers. He made more threats and declared war and started his missiles to ignite position (or some such). We sent destroyers. Jong Un threatened to re-start nuclear facilities, and China sent troops to its border with Korea. We sent a radar tracking device closer to Korea. Finally the UN stepped in yesterday and said enough is enough, this will end up in a collision course.

I keep reading in the news that NK has no such capability to hit Guam or Hawaii and of course not the US shores. But if they have obtained a sub, they can launch a nuke over the US and with one electro-magnetic pulse, fling us back to pre-industrial age. Or from a container ship, same deal. They are so secretive we really don’t know what they have nor what they will do. Our intelligence has failed us on many a more open nation and there is no reason to think that the times being what they are, that NK will not follow through with igniting something.

For Jesus said…

“And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.” (Matthew 24:6-8).

The Oriental nations do play a role in the last days Tribulation (which the church will be long gone by).

At Bible.org, the opening paragraph to the essay titled “Kings of the East, The Oriental Confederacy” states,

One of the significant developments of the twentieth century is the political and military awakening of the Orient. The great nations of Asia east of the Euphrates River, slumbering for centuries, are now beginning to stir and to become a major factor in the international situation. The geographic immensity and the millions of humanity involved make it inevitable that any future development embracing the entire world must take the Orient into consideration.

Times are such that in the end of the end when the ten-nation conglomerate spoken of in Daniel 2:31-35, 40-45; 7:7-8, 19-24; and Revelation 13:1-2; 17:3, 7, 12-16 comes to fruition it is more than likely one of those will be the Asian peoples. Japan, the Koreas, China and perhaps Mongolia, Tibet etc will have joined forces. That China and North Korea are joined as allies now is a start, and that is a huge percentage of the world’s population. Also is worrisome that two militaristic and insular nations are joined. It is only a matter of time until the rest join in too.

1986 is the last year North Korea released any statistics at all regarding their population, and at that time it stood at almost 20 million. It may be more now due to growth rates or it may be less due to starvation.

China’s population is 1.3 billion.

I personally believe that an electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) burst will be the preferred method to reduce our stature, remove us from the world stage and push us over the edge (if the rapture hasn’t happened first, which will achieve the same result). An EMP over America’s heartland will do much more damage to us than a nuke, which has a more discrete damage area.

But Jesus and the Holy Spirit said many times, fear not!

I was reading Psalm 86 yesterday. It is titled “Great is Your Steadfast Love.” It is a wonderful, wonderful conversation David is having with God. Even though we do not read of God answering back in the Psalm, we know it is a conversation because God is living and active and so is His word. We know He heard David, and we know David’s prayer was answered. Here is something that David asked for which touched me. It is now my second favorite phrase after “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands” (Psalm 100:1)

“Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.”

I fear nothing on this earth. I fear no man, for Jesus who is with me is greater than any man. I fear no event, because the event of the cross is greater than anything man can devise against man.

I want to fear the LORD. It is a good fear, a holy fear. O Lord, unite my heart to fear Your name!

Fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. (Proverbs 9:10). His holiness is fearfully glorious and awesome in its power. We fear Him because He is the Creator with all power, and He also chastens us when we rebel against Him. But we do not have a fearful relationship with Him because we are to endure no judgment from Him. Jesus paid that through enduring God’s wrath at the cross.

O Lord, unite my heart to fear your name!

David’s praise continues in Psalm 86:12-13,

“I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever. For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.”

David knew that despite being pursued by insolent men and a ruthless crowd seeking to take his life, God is “abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (verse15b).

If David can praise His name, glorify Him, seek to fear Him, and depend on Him whilst running from a murderous crowd, we can do the same from the comfort of our homes, which still have not been struck by a bomb or darkened by an EMP. And if you are in the part of the world where you, just like David, indeed are running from a murderous crowd (like Saudi Arabia) or experiencing bombs or rioting, then take heart in David’s plea for mercy to a God who is steadfast and merciful. Fear not, because fear of the LORD is whence our comfort comes. If you fear Him, you need not fear anyone or anything else.

Lord, unite my heart to fear Your name, that is where it all begins … and ends 🙂

Posted in el hierro, hekla, magog, north korea, prophecy

News and prophecy

Posted on by elizabethprata

I read Pastor Jim McClarty’s blog today. He is a pastor I’d recommended back along who has started a blog. He is a good pastor, preaching through the bible verse by verse with precision and verve. Currently they are going through Hebrews, a series I am going to enjoy while at home next week on Spring Break. He is pastor at Grace Christian Assembly in TN.

Here is Pastor Jim’s blog

And …drum roll please….here is Pastor Jim’s review of the History Channel’s The Bible. He reviewed Week 1-3 and I’ll include just a few excerpts.

The critic of the Bible has all the more reason to discount it since the God of this series is cruel and haphazard. And the biblically ignorant folk who watch this will come away with a completely false concept of God, His word, and His interactions with the children of Israel.

Abraham’s act of utter faith was reduced to him arguing with God that he felt he’d been tested enough. What a repugnant program this is.

And you know the producers and pitch men (Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, T.D. Jakes, et. al.) are going to claim that this is a great evangelistic tool. They’ll encourage their listeners to buy the DVD and share it with their friends and family. Apparently, Peter’s description of false prophets didn’t sink in — “And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you.” (2Peter 2:3)

Then again, one accomplishment the producers did achieve was that they managed to take some of the most exciting, compelling stories in human history and make them mind-numbingly boring.

It’s obvious that the writers and producers are systematically eliminating or explaining-away all the accurate prophecy in the Old Testament. The TV version of the prophets merely heard from God, but there’s no hint of accurately foretelling future events.

In His dealings with Peter, the show gave us no sense of Jesus’ divine ability to effectively call people to Himself. And, of course, there was the horrid insertion of words into Jesus’ mouth that He simply never said, like, “Change the world.”

This series is as damaging as anything Rome, the Mormons, or Islam have done in their denial of the historicity, perspicuity, and trustworthiness of the text of the Bible. And the sub-biblical church in America is all excited about it.

OK, here is some news about locusts in Israel:
“But this year is the first time since 2005 that modern-day Israel has had to combat locusts, which can swarm so thickly that drivers can’t see beyond their windshield. But it’s not just Israel. Today the Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Agriculture sprayed pesticides in Hebron, in the southern West Bank. And Egyptian farmers have suffered millions of dollars in damage after a swarm of about 30 million locusts hit Cairo earlier this month.”

And El Hierro is active. After rumbling and spurtling last year, the canary Island volcano is speaking up again. Remember, the Canary Islands volcano is next to the other Canary Island volcano called La Palma, the one that has a massive section of land atop it hanging by a thread, that scientists have said if it ever comes loose would cause a tsunami that’d swamp NYC. Anyway, quakes around El Hierro and nearby sea have been increasing, 229 on Monday, 175 on Wednesday, and 47 in the last few hours. Maybe El Hierro is speaking up to call Hekla.

Hekla is an Icelandic volcano. Yahoo asks, “Is another Icelandic volcano getting ready to erupt?” The Icelandic volcano, Hekla, is causing a bit of worry lately, and News of Iceland is reporting that, as of Tuesday, authorities there have declared a ‘Civil Protection State of Uncertainty’. Hekla is a nearly 1,500 m-tall ‘stratovolcano’ in southern Iceland, that has apparently been called the ‘Gateway to Hell’ by Europeans since the Middle Ages. … While ‘micro-earthquakes’ like these aren’t anything unusual, as millions of them are felt around the world every year, Martin Hensch, an earthquake expert with the Icelandic Met Office told News of Iceland that this “is quite unusual activity in the volcano”.

Perhaps El Hierro in the Canary Islands and Hekla in Iceland are calling Pacaya in Central America. “Hey! Come to the lava party!”

Warn of possible eruption of Pacaya (Google translated)
“Guatemala- In the last hours is a change in the activity cycle of the Pacaya volcano, with increased shallow earthquakes, ash emission and lava flows that did not show up for two years and a half, so that experts warn an eruption at any time.”

The North Koreans cut the last hotline with South Korea amid increasing blowhard rhetoric that is uncomfortably close to possibly not being hyperbole. So we deployed bombers. The North Koreans have definitely ratcheted up the danger.

Russia’s Putin suddenly decided to conduct surprise military exercises at the Black Sea. It involves 36 ships and up to 7,000 troops. Apparently, Putin does not have to give warning of exercises if they contain fewer than 7,000 troops. (Ezekiel 38-39, Russian people and those north of the Black Sea).

Cyprus’s banks are crashing. Emerging economies plan World Bank rival.

An Oklahoma doctor may have infected thousands with HIV. A deadly virus is missing from a TX biolab, FBI is investigating. (Rev 6:8;  Luke 21:11).

There is just a bewildering array of news. It seems that the time is so short.

Precious Lord, take my hand, I am tired. I am weak. I am worn. And He does come! In times of trouble gives a very present help! “The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.” (Psalm 28:7)

Posted in iran, north korea, tribulation, war

North Korea and Iran’s war drums are beating so loud the US responds

Posted on by elizabethprata

“Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am, stuck in the middle with You.”

OK, I took a liberty, changing the intent of the Stealers Wheel’s lyrics to add the capital Y to indicate God in the lyric.

I am concerned in watching the militaristic beating of the war drums to our “left” – North Korea, and to our “right” – Israel and Iran. Yet God is in control, He is in the middle of us. (Matthew 18:20).

Let’s take a look at the situation of North Korea first. Drudge put this up yesterday:

Always crazy, always unpredictable, North Korea is the one nation in the world which may indeed use nuclear weapons as a matter of curse or just for no reason. You never know what they may do, and that is because they are a closed nation. We are cut off from indicators, diplomatic channels, hints or feints. We are shadow boxing with a mirage when it comes to North Korea. They are closed to journalism, economic exchange, and communications. China is their only ally, and even they are getting exasperated with North Korea.

When you close a people off from the world they have no basis or benchmark to determine what reality is. The North Koreans believe that the US is poised to lob a nuke at them and that NK is right to defend themselves by lobbing one first.

The NK leaders, formerly Kim Jong Il and today’s Kim Jong Un, often make inflammatory statements that have no basis in reality. But no matter, they seem intent on striking the US with a nuclear weapon and they just might indeed do it.

Max Fisher at the Washington Post wrote a few days ago, “Here is a partial list of some of North Korea’s terrifying threats and provocations since the United Nations Security Council imposed new sanctions late last week: nullify the 60-year armistice that had ended the Korean War, sever the emergency communication line with South Korea, order frontline troops to prepare to “cut the windpipes” of their enemies, threaten to “wipe out” a South Korean island and pledge “all-out war.” ” Fisher said that NK loves to threaten WWIII (but probably won’t follow through“. Notice the ‘probably.’ I think they will. But I’m just a schmoe blogging in my pajamas. What do I know?

However, more seriously and ominously, the US apparently isn’t taking any chances. This time NK’s threats caused the US to make a response in action. They deployed missiles.

U.S. to bolster missile defenses to counter North Korea threat: Hagel
“(Reuters) – Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced plans on Friday to bolster U.S. missile defenses in response to a growing nuclear threat from North Korea, adding 14 interceptors to a missile defense site in Alaska by 2017 and deploying a radar tracking system in Japan. The decision to add 14 new anti-missile interceptors at Fort Greely in Alaska amounts to a reversal of an Obama administration decision in 2010 to stop expansion of the missile field there at 30 interceptors. The Bush administration had planned to deploy 44 total interceptors. Hagel said the decision to deploy all 44 interceptors came as a result of the growing threats from Iran and particularly North Korea, which tested a third nuclear device last month and launched a rocket that put a satellite in orbit in December.”

A government doesn’t move war materiel for nothing. When you start deploying missiles, it is serious.

Now as to the jokers to the right, Iran is also doing its crazy thing. The nation got daring this week. “An Iranian fighter jet approached a U.S. surveillance drone over the Persian Gulf but broke off its pursuit after the pilot of a U.S. escort plane radioed a verbal warning, the Pentagon said Thursday,” reports HuffPo.

More concerning is the wrangling between Israel and the US. The US says that the nuclear red line for Iran is more than a year away. Israel says it is a matter of weeks (this spring to summer).

Who is right? The mistake is not recoverable. I wrote in February of this year that the bible indicates  more than once that a nuclear war in the Tribulation is likely.

In another war drum beat, The Times of Israel reports that the Intelligence Chief says Syria is ready to use chemical weapons.

I don’t know when war will come. I don’t know from whence it will start. But it will. The bible tells us that in the Tribulation, peace will be taken from the earth. (Revelation 6:3-4; Matthew 24:6). However, I do not know how many wars or battles will take place prior to the removal of the saints in the rapture before the Tribulation begins. We must be prepared.

But that preparation will only last so long. We will be called home soon and whenever that event occurs, blessedly, we will study war no more.

Source

Above, Lesleigh Coyer, 25, of Saginaw, Michigan, lies down in front of the grave of her brother, Ryan Coyer, who served with the U.S. Army in both Iraq and Afghanistan, at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia March 11, 2013. Coyer died of complications from an injury sustained in Afghanistan. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

War is an outward indicator of the state of man’s heart. Man’s heart is wicked and deceitful, who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9). Man’s thoughts and intents are only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5). Unregenerated man is at a state of war with God, all the time. War on earth is the manifestation of all that.

But when Jesus comes, “He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” (Isaiah 2:4)

Cling to that. Man and Savior reconciled, man and nation at peace with themselves and with their Holy God. Hallelujah! (Colossians 1:20).

Posted in damascus, iran, israel, north korea, tribulation

Syria conflict: Many dead in huge Damascus bombing

Posted on by elizabethprata

BBC News reported yesterday,
“A huge car bomb in the Syrian capital Damascus has sent smoke billowing across the capital’s skyline.

“Syrian media and pan-Arab satellite station al-Jazeera have spoken of deaths and injuries resulting from the blast, which state media have blamed on “terrorists”. Ambulances rushed to the scene near headquarters of the ruling Baath party. The violence comes as Russia and the Arab League say they want to broker direct government-opposition talks. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the violence as “a road to nowhere”.

“The opposition Syrian National Coalition is holding a two-day meeting in Egypt to discuss a framework for a possible solution to the Syrian war. Some 70,000 people have died since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011, the UN says.”

Other estimates have the casualties over the two-year civil war period as high as 90,000.

This photo from Syrian State Media Sana of the bombing shows a tragic story.

When Jesus said in Matthew 24:6 that as a sign of the end there would “be wars and rumors of wars,” that was a statement meant for the Tribulation. The discourse Jesus gave in Matthew 24 was regarding the 7-year Tribulation AKA Time of Jacob’s Trouble. The Tribulation as prophesied in Revelation 6-20 has not begun.

However, it is interesting to note the severity of the current situation both in the Middle East and in the Asian spheres (North Korea vs. South Korea, & China vs. Japan). It is even more interesting to note this in light of the fact that those two regions are specifically mentioned as being participants in the global end time Tribulation wars. (Isaiah 17, Isaiah 19, Psalm 83, Ezekiel 38-39, Rev 16:12, etc)

In Israel, war has taken on a heightened priority. Iran is nearing the red line in which there would be no turning back if they get close enough to developing a nuclear bomb. The red line refers to the moment of no return that Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel would not let Iran cross, when he spoke to the UN in September 2012. He said at that time that Iran would be close to finishing a bomb in the spring.

Israel-watcher Joel C. Rosenberg has more.

Netanyahu warns: IAEA centrifuge report shows Iran nearing nuclear “red line.”
“Iran has begun installing advanced centrifuges at its main uranium enrichment plant, a UN nuclear report said on Thursday,” according to Reuters and the Jerusalem Post. “In response, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that Iran is closer today than ever before to obtaining the necessary enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb. … Netanyahu termed the report “very grave,” and said it proved that Iran is moving swiftly toward the red line he set out at the UN in September. He said during that address that Iran must be stopped before it crosses that line, something he said at the time could happen as early as the spring.”

Several weeks ago, North Korea released a video that seemed to show an American city, likely New York, in flames due to a NK nuke. They have released another video, this time, depicting Obama on fire from flames in a nuclear blast. It is a crude response to the world condemnation for North Korea’s latest nuclear test. It does, however, remind us that our most potent enemy perhaps is North Korea.

Two weeks ago, I wrote about Iran’s boast that claimed they were already nuclear. In that piece I said that in my opinion nuclear exchanges will take place during the Tribulation, and showed how several verses from the bible seemed to show us either death from a nuclear war and cleanup from a nuclear war. In the same piece I’d linked to above, Joel Rosenberg write about Iran, NK, Israel, US and nukes, stating,

“This is particularly troublesome in the light of the fact North Korea recently conducted another nuclear warhead test. Guess who was present at the test? The head of Iran’s nuclear program. Did Pyongyang just help Iran test an A-bomb? As I’ve written on my blog, there is growing evidence that Iran and North Korea are working hand in glove in developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Netanyahu warns that the North Korea nuclear bomb test proves that economic sanctions are not enough to stop Iran. …”

As I drove to work today, the car ahead of me was decorated at the back bumper with stickers. One said, “If you’ve seen one nuclear war, you’ve seen them all.”

That sentiment, as darkly humorous as it is, will soon be all too true.

Posted in encouragement, north korea

Dark times calls for Light encouragement

Posted on by elizabethprata

I read a headline on Drudge that absolutely shocked me. I rarely read the news itself anymore, because it is, well, too shocking. I’m reduced to glancing at headlines with one eye closed and the other squinting. This morning it was not enough.

North Korea is experiencing a horrific famine. They have been for a long time. People in that closed nation are resorting to things that the world has only very rarely seen. There is a particularly hideous reported case. (The report itself is smuggled out at risk to citizen journalists, because the nation is so thoroughly authoritarian). The incident of which I am speaking is that there are reports, and not isolated cases, of people so hungry they are digging up corpses to eat them.

In other cases, parents have been murdering their children for food. In one case, a father killed his two kids while the mom was away on a short trip. When she returned, the dad said “we have meat”, but the woman refused to believe it was pork, and suspicious, called the police. They found their teenaged children’s body parts.

I began thinking, and pleading with the Lord to come soon. Because, you see, the times are so terrible. Just when I think I got over Newtown/Sandy Hook shooting, there comes reports of widespread cannibalism in North Korea. What next? I shudder to think.

Then I got to thinking, are times terrible? They are dark, and certainly getting darker by the day, that much is a definite fact. However, before I allow myself to sink into a funk, I think of two things. First, Jesus. And second, what my forbears went through. It is because of the work of Jesus we can be saved. It is because of the work of my forbears in the faith that the faith was handed down to me. I thank each and ever predecessor.

In this case today, I was thinking of Noah. Jesus said that at the time of the flood, Noah was the only righteous man left. Genesis 6:8 says that Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. Noah was blameless in his ways, and righteous. He walked with the LORD. (Genesis 6:9).

This is in contrast to the description of everyone and everything else. “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5). “Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence.” (Genesis 6:11). “And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.”

That’s twice in a row, God saw the earth and when God saw it, it was filled with violence and corruption. God was so grieved at this, He was sorry He made man! (Genesis 6:6).

In order to bring the bible to life for me, I like to think about what the bible is saying and think of what that looks like if it was happening now. In Noah’s day, All men were evil. All flesh was corrupt. All they did was evil and when they were not doing evil they were thinking evil. The only righteous person was Noah. Of his sons, the bible doesn’t say they were righteous or unrighteous. Just that Noah had three sons (Genesis 6:10) and that they and their wives came into the ark with Noah. (Genesis 7:7). We do not know if the sons walked with God. We do not know if the sons were blameless in God’s eyes or if they were allowed into the ark because Noah’s righteousness covered them. I mean, Job used to continually sacrifice on behalf of his children’s sins to cover them. (Job 1:5). Perhaps Noah did also.

In any case, either it was a small band of humans who were righteous and did right in God’s eyes, or it was one person. Either way, that is a lonely, lonely life. Imagine how grieved Noah must have been with all that darkness around him!

When I think of how grieved I am today, the sins of the world piling up… the awful knowledge of what is coming for them…sickness over my own sins… I think of Noah. For many years, 120 certainly, Noah preached God’s righteousness and built the world’s biggest boat (the world’s only boat?) and asked people to join him. He had not one taker. They mocked and they laughed and Noah saw his neighbors and friends go further away from the LORD into their one evilness. How sorrowful he must have been?

Jesus said that right before He returns at the end of the Tribulation the days will have been like Noah’s.

“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. “For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,

Some take that verse to mean that the timing refers to the latter half of the Tribulation when they will have been when they were marrying and drinking and carrying on as normal. Some take the timing to mean just before the rapture, because after the rapture, when the Tribulation begins, nothing is normal.

Either way, I was thinking this morning, just how evil do the days have to get to be actually like they were during Noah’s time? Worse than they are in North Korea? What is worse than eating your children? Not that humankind has never experienced cannibalistic infanticide before. (Lamentations 4:10; Deuteronomy 28:53; Jeremiah 19:9).

We Christians have a lot on our minds. But no matter how heavy our hearts are in their burdens for other people, we need not fear.

Here are some essays encouraging us as to the reality of our position. The darkness is around us, but not in us.

Here are 13 reasons Christians don’t have to be afraid.

Here is an essay about Faith in Crisis

I started with a news reference to a hideous situation in anther country. I end with reminding us to keep our noses to the grindstone and our heads focused on working for Him who is Light. No matter how dark things got for Noah, he nailed his nails and bent his planks one by plodding one. He never stopped working until the LORD said ‘get in the boat and I shall shut the door’. (Genesis 7:13, 16). We should never stop working until the Lord calls us with the trumpet of God and the voice of the archangel and a shout, “Come up here!” Yes it is getting dark. But soon the Light cometh! Noah persevered, let us take comfort in his righteous act as our example. Noah is an heir of righteousness (Hebrews 11:7).

Here is Encouragement for Christian Laborers — J.C. Ryle (1816-1900), “Expository Thoughts on Matthew”

“Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” – Matthew 11:11

“Do we know what it is to work for Christ? Have we ever felt cast down and dispirited, as if we were doing no good, and no one cared for us? Are we ever tempted to feel, when laid aside by sickness, or withdrawn by providence, ‘I have labored in vain, and spent my strength for nought?’ Let us meet such thoughts by the recollection of this passage. Let us remember, there is One who daily records all we do for Him, and sees more beauty in His servants’ work than His servants do themselves. The same tongue which bore testimony to John in prison, will bear testimony to all his people at the last day. He will say, ‘Come, ye blessed of my Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’ And then shall His faithful witnesses discover, to their wonder and surprise, that there never was a word spoken on their Master’s behalf, which does not receive a reward.”

The dead may eat the dead but the living will dine with the eternal Savior at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb! Your reward who is Jesus Christ will come for His bride, and darkness for us will be no more.