In Defense of Rainbows

If leprechauns really hid gold at the end of rainbows, June would be the month to search.  There seem to be rainbows everywhere.  It used to be that everyone loved rainbows, but now they are divisive and provoke a negative reaction in a large segment of the population.  This is, of course, because our culture has changed the symbolism of the rainbow.  The rainbow is now seen as the symbol for pride.  Not pride in some great accomplishment, but instead, pride in choosing to have sex with people of the same sex, or pride in thinking you are a different gender than you are. 

This new rainbow symbol has caused a lot of controversy.  Target stores have been the subject of boycotts because they are featuring pride displays with LGBTQ+ geared products.  I walked into the Target by my house to see for myself, and sure enough, right near the front was the pride section, with rainbow clothing, dresses for men, and lots of pride slogans.  I was even more surprised when I walked around the store and saw a pride pet supply section with rainbow frisbees, chew toys, and bones.  Presumably, this is for your boy dogs who think they are girl dogs.

Major League Baseball has also made headlines recently.  Last season, five Tampa Bay Rays players caused a stir when they declined to wear rainbow pride logos on their jerseys.  Then, this season, the Los Angeles Dodgers took criticism for celebrating a pride night where they honored the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, an organization that mocks Catholicism in the name of pride in their sins.  (Their motto is “Go forth and sin some more!”)  Now, to avoid further divisiveness and controversy, Major League Baseball has quietly instructed teams to eliminate rainbow pride logos from their Pride Day uniforms. 

While it is frustrating that the meaning of rainbows has been twisted in that way, they should still bring joy and hope.  Rainbows, along with being beautiful, have a very specific meaning.  When we see all of these rainbows, it should be looked at as an opportunity to tell people what they really mean.  The true meaning is found in Genesis 9:8-17.  After a time similar to the times we live in now, where people did what was right in their own eyes, God punished the world with a flood, saving only Noah and his family.  Then God made a promise to Noah that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood.  He set a rainbow in the cloud as a sign of that promise.  That is what rainbows really mean.

This is amazing news for so many reasons!  This not only shows God’s love and mercy, but it gives us a great chance to steer the LGBTQ propaganda back to God.  Not only that, but it destroys another political attack that is being used against us to crush our way of life.  All of you who have heard about “The Great Reset” know that it would ruin our economy and our culture, and the cornerstone of it working is the “climate change” agenda.  They try to scare children that rising temperatures will melt the ice caps, and the oceans will rise and wipe out the planet with a flood.  Since we know about the rainbow and God’s promise that it represents, we also know that there is no chance that this will ever happen.  There is literally a greater chance that the Oakland A’s will win the World Series this year than of rising sea levels causing a global flood.  Paulie Shore has a better chance of being appointed to the Supreme Court than there is of global warming flooding the earth.  I would gladly bet everything I own on this; because God does not break His promises!

The next time you are walking around and see rainbow flags, instead of getting upset, use that opportunity to tell someone about the true symbolism of rainbows.  Remember, we already have the book.  The good guys win in the end.  Stay positive!

Wars and Rumors of Wars

When politicians, activists, and the media try to scare people with theories of the end of the world caused by climate change, you should ignore them.  There are many reasons why.  For one, they have been consistently wrong.  Fifty years ago, they said that global cooling would cause a new ice age.  When that didn’t happen, they said that global warming would flood the planet and drown us all.  When that didn’t happen, they started to blame any bad weather on the very broad label of climate change.  If it snows; climate change.  If it’s hot; climate change.  If there’s a hurricane; climate change.  At least they learned not to go out on a limb. 

Another reason is that, like with Covid, their solutions are far more likely to make people want to die than to stop anybody from actually dying.  Their fix for Covid was lockdowns and mandates, which did not work.  The results were to make people lonely, depressed, fat, suicidal, alcoholic, and jobless.  They also destroyed people’s businesses that they had worked a lifetime to build and ruined a booming economy.  Similarly, their ideas to combat climate change are to take away more liberty and force regulations on us that will destroy our economy and raise energy costs for families everywhere.

If the first two are not good enough for you, the most important reason to ignore these alarmists is that we already know what will eventually happen.  Global warming flooding the planet is guaranteed not to happen because God literally made a promise not to do exactly that.  Genesis 9:11 says, “Thus I establish My covenant with you:  Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”  What’s more, God gives us some details of how the end will happen.  Parts of it are vague or hard to interpret prophecies, but some are pretty specific.  We know, for example, that Jesus will take up His church in the Rapture and this event will lead to a seven-year tribulation period where God will pour out His wrath on the earth for rejecting Him.  This period will include famine, pestilence, disease, death, and other supernatural events, culminating with the Battle of Armageddon.  If you are truly concerned about the end of the world there is only one way to delay it.  Turn to Jesus and repent from sin.

Wars and Rumors of Wars

As the situation in Ukraine heated up, my mind kept turning to a phrase from the Bible; “wars and rumors of wars,” which are supposed to run wild as we near the return of Jesus and the tribulation period.  Could this be a part of that prophecy?  I decided to look into it and was astonished at how so many of the signs of the end match what is happening in the world today.  The passage is found in Matthew 24:3-12.  Listen to this:

Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 

I am starting to think there is a very good chance I will not die of natural causes and will instead make it to the Rapture.  If those verses don’t describe our time, I don’t know what does.  “Wars and rumors of wars” is not just seen with Russia and Ukraine, but with China and Taiwan, North Korea and South Korea, and Iran and Israel among others.  Joe Biden’s weak response and the current lack of American leadership on the world stage only makes global instability and conflict more likely.  Verse 9 talks about Christians being persecuted and hated for being Christians, which is happening as we speak.  “Many will be offended.” (Verse 10) What better describes our culture right now than that?  “Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.” (Verse 11) Could that be talking about the media?  How many people does CNN deceive?  “Lawlessness will abound.” (Verse 12) Crime is on the rise in many of our cities, and some district attorneys like George Gascon in Los Angeles, allow it to go unchecked.  It’s almost as if Jesus knew what was going to happen. 

Ezekiel 38 and 39 provide more insight into the events leading up to the end, and we can see everything lining up in ways that could start the dominos falling.  There we find out that Israel will eventually be attacked “from the far north.” (Ezek. 39:2) Russia surely could fit that bill.  We also know that this attack will involve a coalition of enemies that includes Persia (modern day Iran), Ethiopia, and Libya.  (Ezek. 38:5) These countries are already in the camp that shouts “Death to Israel!”  The pieces are in position on the chess board.

The last two years have also changed the way our world is run.  Using the guise of Covid, the United States allowed around 70 million unverified mail-in ballots to decide who our president is instead of the people of our country.  Even some of my more naïve conservative friends have called me a conspiracy theorist because “Covid is worldwide so this can’t just be about stealing the U.S. election.”  They are right, of course, that this is bigger than just power in the United States (although that is part of it).  This is a worldwide power grab.  Worldwide problems need to be created to take away sovereignty from individual countries and consolidate power into a global system.  This is the same reason for the climate change alarmism, and is all part of what is being called The Great Reset.  It is an attempt to centralize power into a one world government.  That might sound familiar to you if you grew up in church.  Prophecies in the books of Daniel and Revelation suggest that in the end times, power will be consolidated under the antichrist and a one world government. 

Speaking of prophecies from Revelation, almost everybody has heard of the mark of the beast.  “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” (Rev. 13:16-17) Three years ago that would have sounded highly unlikely.  However, for the last two years many of us have been barred from working certain jobs, entering stores and restaurants, traveling on planes or trains, or attending concerts, movies, or sporting events without wearing a mask or showing proof of vaccination.  They are not the actual mark of the beast because they are easy to get around, and the true mark of the beast will not be easily circumvented.  They are also not on our hands or foreheads.  So, while I do not believe that the current mask or vaccine requirements are the mark of the beast, I 100% believe that they are test runs for it and that people are being conditioned to go along with it.  Declining to wear a mask or show proof of vaccination is our moral duty and should help people to decline the mark of the beast in the near future.

Another end times prophecy that I see gaining steam comes early in the tribulation period and is found in Revelation 6:5-6.  It talks about the price of a quart of wheat or three quarts of barley being the equivalent of a full day’s wages.  That sounds to me like out-of-control inflation.  Sound familiar?  With governments creating massive inflation by handing out trillions of dollars and artificially raising minimum wages, our money is now worth less and less.  I won’t be around for the final fulfillment of this prophecy, but our currency is definitely going in the wrong direction.

Some of you might feel anxious and stressed out to be living at this time in world events, but personally, I think it is exciting!  Fortunately, Jesus gives some good news in Matthew 24:14-15. “But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.”  We are here at this time for a reason; to be a witness to all nations.  We should not be silent.  We should not conform.  Now is the time to courageously stand up to the world and tell the truth.  In fact, I have noticed that people are more receptive to hearing about Jesus right now.  Non-religious friends who I have known for years have started to see the light and turn to God.  Others are asking questions.  Through the events of the last few years, wise people are realizing that something is off and that the Bible has the answers.  If you haven’t yet, now is the time to get your ducks in a row and turn to Jesus.  It may not be long before His return, and you do not want to be on the wrong side at the end.