"Iraq"nophobia

Zephaniah 2:15 "This is the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none beside me: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand."

This verse is making reference to the Assyrian city of Nineveh; that judgment is at hand. As you can see, they had a haughty attitude that took comfort in their physical ability to defend themselves against all that were around them. "I am, and there is none beside me." They adhered to a heart felt feeling of invincibility; an illusion that cannot deliver in the day of trying. Every great empire that has ever risen on the earth experienced a span of time in which the illusion of invincibility encompassed them. The Egyptians seemed unbeatable when the children of israel were in bondage to them. The Babylonian Empire experienced it as did Medeo-Persia, followed by the empire of Alexander. The Romans took empire building to a new level; constructing roads to all points of the empire to grant easy access to the far-flung provinces and establishing a western-style of governance that is a model to this day. To view the Roman Empire at the peak of their power one could ask "who can make war with them?" They were the lone superpower of their time and were never defeated by a larger empire. Their demise came in the form of hundreds of little invasions as barbarous tribes poured across their borders. This was further complicated by an increasingly shallow mindset on the part of their citizens, for whom pleasure became their foremost ambition. Eat, drink, and be merry. (Or sex, drugs, and rock and roll.) The Romans, along with all of these past empires eventually came to pass. Despite each one having a space of time in which they seemed "unbeatable," all of them were eventually brought down.

Daniel 2:20-22 "Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding. He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him."

Psalm 113:4 "The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens." Something to think on. You look into the universe and see the billions upon billions of galaxies; each containing an average of a hundred billion stars. Gods glory, which has no beginning and no ending is above all of it. Our God truly is an AWESOME GOD.

I write this because the United States; at least those that you talk to seem to believe that we're simply "too big and powerful" to fall. For those who live in this country, the idea of America being brought down is simply "negative communications from the doom and gloomers" or else it's "conspiracy talk from the black helicopter crowd." This illusion goes on, even with the evidence of a nation in decline all around us. Outsourcing has reached every industry, effecting both white collar and blue collar workers , our borders are incredibally porous which means that we really have no idea of who'se here or what they're up to, our middle class is under assault from every angle, the nations of the world are becoming increasingly hostile toward us, and we have a host of of emerging threats, too numerous to mention, that could trigger an economic disaster." Here's a thought. Suppose that a nuclear air burst brought down our entire array of electronic systems. This country would come to a complete standstill and pandemonium would become the order of the day. With the proliferation of nuclear capabilities, this isn't necessarily just a senario for a Tom Clancy novel. (Truly we have no continuing city here)

In 2003, the United States sent forces into Iraq, most believing that it was simply another theater in the global "war on Terror" Most expected a nearly effortless victory as our troops rolled into Baghdad with the cheers of jubilant citizens "grateful for liberation" ringing in their ears. As President Bush stood on an aircraft carrier and declared an end to major combat operations, it seemed as though things were really "going our way." Most expected Iraq to transition quickly into a western-style democracy. Today, we are mired along the banks of the Euphrates in a situation that almost none of us could have imagined just three and a half years ago, that being a civil war with no end in sight. To further add fuel to the fire, a host of other nations have their hands in the cookie jar as they desire to thwart the efforts of the United States in pursuit of their own agenda. And so we find ourselves in a nonwinning situation. If we keep our troops there, our casualties will continue to mount. If we pull them out, who knows what would happen as there would be no resemblance of a stablizing force in this volatle region of the world.

We are quickly approaching the end of the age and every event that transpires, regardless of how insignificant, is, taking place in accordance with this very fact. This places increased relevance on this war in Iraq; a situation which, as mentioned in earlier posts, has the eagle nation of Daniel chapter seven bogged down along the banks of the Euphrates. The real tragedy is that thousands of people are losing their lives as this conflict rages on with no end in sight. Souls for whom Jesus gave his life are going into eternity, never to pass this way again. Along with those who are being lost, there's a growing list of those suffering life altering injuries; physical and mental. I remember one morning hearing a lady tell about her husband who was in the national guard. He was an engineer for a foreign auto manufacturer with plants in the US. They flew him from plant to plant as he could remedy problems that nobody else could solve. While on duty in Iraq, the vehicle that he was riding in ran into a crater left by an ordinance and he suffered severe head trauma. This man now has to struggle to fold laundry. He's giving his all to recover as much as he can, but his life has been forever altered by a conflict that, each day, adds more names to its register of victims.

Last nights posting on Grace County (www.timbob.wordpress.com) is entitled "Priceless Souls" Every soul is an eternal being in that they will live forever. If a soul goes into eternity without Jesus, they will spend eternity separated from the God who created all that is. Like so many others in previous eras, we, as a nation, tend to take action without considering this. When civilian lives are lost, we call it "collateral damage." In the eyes of God, nobody is collateral damage. Each one is made in his image. We get so caught up with vain philosophies and the pursuit of vain glory that we lose sight of this very basic thing. This doesn't mean to lay down and let your enemies run over you; it just means that motives and consequences need to be thouroughly examined prior to engagement. In the case of Iraq, there was already a desire to depose Saddam (Saddam was a murderous dictator by the way; this must be completly understood) and when the attacks of September 11, 2001 transpired, a "window of opportunity" was made available to fulfil this desire. Today, in November of 2006, Iraqs future is very much "up in the air" and the shift in political power in Washington will almost certainly lead to a timetable of withdrawl. In other words, those who are lined up against us need only to lay low for a few months longer. Again, the situation in Iraq really has no "good answer" to it. My prayer is that individual transformations will take place as the gospel is presented. Jesus Christ alone is able to transform a person into a new creation.

Well I need to close for now. Things are turmultuous; not only in Iraq but all across the world. It simply means that scripture is being fulfilled and you can expect things to get a whole lot more turbulant in the days to come. Do I say that because I like to talk about depressing things? Not at all. I mention it because it's true and I pray that you'll be alert to what's coming. That you'll examine yourself and see where you are in your relationship with Jesus. When it's all said and done, this will be the ONLY thing that matters. If you don't know him, there's no time like the present to come to him; to invite him into your heart and ask forgiveness for your sins. All of us have sinned; don't let the devil tell you that you're beyond hope. If you're reading this (and you obviously are) you are not beyond hope. I will close this out with some verses concerning this very fact.

I John 1:7-9 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

John 6:37 "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."

I Timothy 1:15 "This is a faithful saying worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief."

Revelation 3:20 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me."