The End of the Big Easy?
Anyone with half a heart cannot help but feel deep compassion for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The pictures of unthinkable devastation seen along the Gulf Coast can only leave you speechless and with mouth agape. In the United States, we have comfortably believed that such devastation and utter destruction are seen only in other countries or in movies like The Day After Tomorrow or Armageddon. Those events just do not happen here.
The suddenness of the destruction makes you sit back and wonder. Early on Saturday, the hurricane was a Category 3, but as Sunday morning dawned, there was news of Katrina’s change to a Category 5 – a category seen only a handful of times in US history. The word weather forecasters used was “catastrophic” and the news was that Katrina was bearing down on the US city least able to withstand such a strike – New Orleans, the Big Easy – a city built in a washtub. The people living along the Gulf had at most twenty-four hours to prepare for the hit. Many took the news and the warnings to evacuate to heart and fled. They were able to discern the reality of the situation. They saw the facts – and they acted. Their lives were more important than their property. Sadly, too many chose not to believe the clear evidence of what was ahead. One surviving lady said she had endured Hurricane Betsy in 1965. Since she survived that, she just knew she could survive this one. As she sought to get out of the city Tuesday morning, she said “We were wrong.”
Many have heard other warnings that suddenly are beginning to become too much like reality. The words spoken in past millennia by Bible prophets from Moses to Jesus Christ to the Apostle John are now, in the 21st century, very descriptive of the world we find ourselves living in. Some 3500 years ago, the real God who created the heavens and the earth took a beaten-down, slave people and offered them the chance to be a special people, representatives of the living God. They were to be a model nation living the right way and receiving rewards for it. These people, the Israelites, were offered benefits no other nation had ever enjoyed – peace, good weather, happy families, and material wealth – if they would adhere to their Creator’s rules. After centuries of slavery, they willingly agreed to the terms of the agreement.
As subsequent generations were born and then died, the chosen people went from obedience to disobedience, from plenty to captivity. Finally, the majority of them disappeared and became “lost.” Time after time they rejected the one who blessed them and traded Him in for the gods of the nations around them. They forgot His Sabbaths and instead were enthralled with the celebrations of abject paganism. Mystery religions and a panoply of the gods of nature became more exciting and representative of “the way” to do things. Gods who sanctioned their hungers and cravings were definitely better than one who prohibited those behaviors. Gods who provided temple prostitutes – male and female – were seen as being more in tune with humanity’s needs. Those who encouraged the sacrifice of babies were enlightened. And social structures that separated man into the haves, the elite, and the have-nots, were to be coveted.
Today, we have continued in the tradition of our ancient forbears by rejecting the true God and following after false ones. And it seems that we, now, are the ones who must live at the end of man’s tenure and who will reap the full bounty of reward for generations of idol worship and Sabbath breaking. Four years ago our nation received a wake-up call with the terrorist attacks of 911. Initially there seemed to be a wind of change. Some seemed to be trying to do better. But that did not last long.
The summer of 2004 marked the 228th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. A full dozen (12) 19-year time cycles have passed since the symbolic beginning of this nation. Since that time - in the last year – the news reports in this country have seemingly continued to worsen. There is the continuing threat of more terrorism, this time with suitcase nuclear weapons. The budget deficit is growing uncontrollably - mostly due to the War in Iraq, a war that has found no weapons of mass destruction, but has provided immense profits to the military-industrial leaders. Our southern border is open to any illegal who wants to cross and our leadership is unwilling to stop the flow. Our politicians preach free-market global economics as the way to prosperity for all, but only the rich are getting richer. China supplies us with all the cheap “Wal-Mart” goods, and now they want to own our companies. The oil companies are making money hand over fist as prices have skyrocketed over 60% since last fall. The disciples of greed and immoral behavior seem to be controlling all that is going on in our country. As a result, red lights of warning have begun to flash all over this country.
And now Katrina is the latest trumpet blast to sound a warning to the American people. The economic burdens caused by this storm will be devastating. Untold thousands have lost their homes, their communities and their source of livelihood. The psychological and emotional trauma experienced by the victims will likely result in increased aberrant behavior. Already, the city of New Orleans is experiencing looting, shooting at police, and the beginnings of social anarchy. The effects of this storm are to be felt by us all. Experts are predicting that gas prices will hit an unheard of $4.00 a gallon soon all over. Shortages in petroleum supplies are likely to follow, especially if we are hit by more storms or other attacks. We have not yet felt the full impact of rising gas prices. Over the next several months, the lifestyles of the average American will likely change dramatically.
The economic deprivation caused by the situation in New Orleans may end up being the least worry. If it takes weeks or months to stanch the flow of water into the city, disease epidemics are likely to rise and spread. Cholera and typhoid are already being forecast. Social unrest caused by refugees from affected cities is likely to put burdens on law enforcement and citizens alike. If the attitude of looters becomes widespread – “We are just getting what’s due us.” – then none will be safe in their homes.
It is interesting that this storm hit two areas of our country noted for wildly immoral behavior. The Mississippi Gulf Coast cities are noted for their gambling casinos. The Big Easy is noted for every form of licentious behavior imaginable. Voodoo practice has made this city a haven for demonic activity.
Great cities in the past, like Tyre and Sidon, have been destroyed by man or swallowed by the sea. Sodom and surrounding cities were wiped out because of their sins.
Ezekiel 16:49-50
49 Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit.
Gulfport, Mississippi appears to have been nearly totally destroyed. It is too early to tell if New Orleans will cease to exist as a habitable city. At the least, the city will be changed forever.
The loudest sound from the Gulf on August 29, 2005 was not the howl of hurricane-force winds. It was the sound of a trumpet – a trumpet blasting a warning message to Americans urging us to “Wake up before it’s too late.” If we do not heed the warning, we can know for sure that in the months ahead, we will see news reports of similar disasters in places like Reno, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Hopefully, we will hear the trumpet.
The suddenness of the destruction makes you sit back and wonder. Early on Saturday, the hurricane was a Category 3, but as Sunday morning dawned, there was news of Katrina’s change to a Category 5 – a category seen only a handful of times in US history. The word weather forecasters used was “catastrophic” and the news was that Katrina was bearing down on the US city least able to withstand such a strike – New Orleans, the Big Easy – a city built in a washtub. The people living along the Gulf had at most twenty-four hours to prepare for the hit. Many took the news and the warnings to evacuate to heart and fled. They were able to discern the reality of the situation. They saw the facts – and they acted. Their lives were more important than their property. Sadly, too many chose not to believe the clear evidence of what was ahead. One surviving lady said she had endured Hurricane Betsy in 1965. Since she survived that, she just knew she could survive this one. As she sought to get out of the city Tuesday morning, she said “We were wrong.”
Many have heard other warnings that suddenly are beginning to become too much like reality. The words spoken in past millennia by Bible prophets from Moses to Jesus Christ to the Apostle John are now, in the 21st century, very descriptive of the world we find ourselves living in. Some 3500 years ago, the real God who created the heavens and the earth took a beaten-down, slave people and offered them the chance to be a special people, representatives of the living God. They were to be a model nation living the right way and receiving rewards for it. These people, the Israelites, were offered benefits no other nation had ever enjoyed – peace, good weather, happy families, and material wealth – if they would adhere to their Creator’s rules. After centuries of slavery, they willingly agreed to the terms of the agreement.
As subsequent generations were born and then died, the chosen people went from obedience to disobedience, from plenty to captivity. Finally, the majority of them disappeared and became “lost.” Time after time they rejected the one who blessed them and traded Him in for the gods of the nations around them. They forgot His Sabbaths and instead were enthralled with the celebrations of abject paganism. Mystery religions and a panoply of the gods of nature became more exciting and representative of “the way” to do things. Gods who sanctioned their hungers and cravings were definitely better than one who prohibited those behaviors. Gods who provided temple prostitutes – male and female – were seen as being more in tune with humanity’s needs. Those who encouraged the sacrifice of babies were enlightened. And social structures that separated man into the haves, the elite, and the have-nots, were to be coveted.
Today, we have continued in the tradition of our ancient forbears by rejecting the true God and following after false ones. And it seems that we, now, are the ones who must live at the end of man’s tenure and who will reap the full bounty of reward for generations of idol worship and Sabbath breaking. Four years ago our nation received a wake-up call with the terrorist attacks of 911. Initially there seemed to be a wind of change. Some seemed to be trying to do better. But that did not last long.
The summer of 2004 marked the 228th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. A full dozen (12) 19-year time cycles have passed since the symbolic beginning of this nation. Since that time - in the last year – the news reports in this country have seemingly continued to worsen. There is the continuing threat of more terrorism, this time with suitcase nuclear weapons. The budget deficit is growing uncontrollably - mostly due to the War in Iraq, a war that has found no weapons of mass destruction, but has provided immense profits to the military-industrial leaders. Our southern border is open to any illegal who wants to cross and our leadership is unwilling to stop the flow. Our politicians preach free-market global economics as the way to prosperity for all, but only the rich are getting richer. China supplies us with all the cheap “Wal-Mart” goods, and now they want to own our companies. The oil companies are making money hand over fist as prices have skyrocketed over 60% since last fall. The disciples of greed and immoral behavior seem to be controlling all that is going on in our country. As a result, red lights of warning have begun to flash all over this country.
And now Katrina is the latest trumpet blast to sound a warning to the American people. The economic burdens caused by this storm will be devastating. Untold thousands have lost their homes, their communities and their source of livelihood. The psychological and emotional trauma experienced by the victims will likely result in increased aberrant behavior. Already, the city of New Orleans is experiencing looting, shooting at police, and the beginnings of social anarchy. The effects of this storm are to be felt by us all. Experts are predicting that gas prices will hit an unheard of $4.00 a gallon soon all over. Shortages in petroleum supplies are likely to follow, especially if we are hit by more storms or other attacks. We have not yet felt the full impact of rising gas prices. Over the next several months, the lifestyles of the average American will likely change dramatically.
The economic deprivation caused by the situation in New Orleans may end up being the least worry. If it takes weeks or months to stanch the flow of water into the city, disease epidemics are likely to rise and spread. Cholera and typhoid are already being forecast. Social unrest caused by refugees from affected cities is likely to put burdens on law enforcement and citizens alike. If the attitude of looters becomes widespread – “We are just getting what’s due us.” – then none will be safe in their homes.
It is interesting that this storm hit two areas of our country noted for wildly immoral behavior. The Mississippi Gulf Coast cities are noted for their gambling casinos. The Big Easy is noted for every form of licentious behavior imaginable. Voodoo practice has made this city a haven for demonic activity.
Great cities in the past, like Tyre and Sidon, have been destroyed by man or swallowed by the sea. Sodom and surrounding cities were wiped out because of their sins.
Ezekiel 16:49-50
49 Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit.
Gulfport, Mississippi appears to have been nearly totally destroyed. It is too early to tell if New Orleans will cease to exist as a habitable city. At the least, the city will be changed forever.
The loudest sound from the Gulf on August 29, 2005 was not the howl of hurricane-force winds. It was the sound of a trumpet – a trumpet blasting a warning message to Americans urging us to “Wake up before it’s too late.” If we do not heed the warning, we can know for sure that in the months ahead, we will see news reports of similar disasters in places like Reno, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Hopefully, we will hear the trumpet.
posted by Manuel at 5:23 PM
1 Comments:
Good insight sir - as usual.
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