Bible Prophecy, Signs of the Times and Gog and Magog Updates with Articles in the News
Economic Decline In Real Time:
It isn’t just a coincidence that so many people are bitterly complaining about the cost of living these days. The truth is that most of the country is experiencing very real pain. The reason why “affordability” has become the number one issue for U.S. voters is because most of the population is being absolutely crushed by the rising cost of living.
Just look at how much you are paying for electricity compared to five years ago. And just look at how much you are paying for food compared to five years ago. Housing costs have risen to absurd heights, property taxes have become absolutely insane in many areas of the country, and health insurance premiums have more than doubled for millions of Americans.
Of course it isn’t an accident that this has happened. Our politicians have borrowed and spent 28 trillion dollars that we did not have since Barack Obama first entered the White House in January 2009, and I warned that all of this money would create rampant inflation.
On top of that, the Federal Reserve has pumped trillions of dollars that were created out of thin air into the financial system since 2008. That has helped the stock market hit record highs, but it has been one of the factors that has made the cost of living unbearable for the rest of us.
The very foolish decisions that our leaders have been making have had dramatic consequences.
Our standard of living is crumbling right in front of our eyes, and now a brand new report is telling us that 92 percent of employed Americans have been forced to cut back on spending…
For millions of Americans, staying financially afloat now means difficult trade-offs. As the price of everyday necessities continues to rise faster than wages, new data shows workers are cutting back wherever they can – often at the expense of savings, overall financial security and even essential needs.
That is the picture emerging from Resume Now’s 2026 Cost-of-Living Crunch Report, a national survey of 1,011 employed Americans, which has found that only 17 percent of Americans feel financially secure enough to cover essentials and save money. Nearly two-thirds of respondents cited everyday essentials as their biggest financial burden. What’s more, a remarkable 92 percent said they have cut back on spending, including on items many would previously have considered non-negotiable.
Please notice that only “employed Americans” were asked about the cost of living.
More than 100 million U.S. adults are not working at all.
For those that do not regularly follow my work, yes that is an accurate number. The vast majority of U.S. adults that are not working are considered to be “not in the labor force” by the federal government.
Another survey that was conducted at the end of December found that 70 percent of Americans consider the cost of living where they live to be “not very affordable” or “not affordable at all”…
American consumers aren’t feeling great about the economy or their own financial situation, with the phrase “affordability crisis” dominating headlines and political campaigns over the last few months.
The majority — 70% — of Americans surveyed in a Marist poll of over 1,400 adults taken in December, say that the cost of living in their area is not very affordable, or not affordable at all, for the average family.
This is the result of decades of incredibly bad economic policy.
When Christian Music Goes Mainstream: The Risk Of Redefinition
As the Grammy Awards approach once again, one undeniable truth is echoing through the music industry: Christian music is no longer confined to Christian radio, Christian bookstores, or Sunday morning playlists.
It is breaking through–streaming charts, stadiums, and even the Billboard Hot 100–at a pace not seen in over a decade. According to Luminate’s 2025 Midyear Report, while overall music streaming has slowed, Christian and gospel music are rising. That alone should give the Church pause–not in fear, but in discernment.
On one hand, this moment is extraordinary. For the first time in 11 years, two contemporary Christian songs–Forrest Frank’s “Your Way’s Better” and Brandon Lake’s “Hard Fought Hallelujah” featuring Jelly Roll–cracked the all-genre Top 40. Artists like Lake, Elevation Worship, and Lauren Daigle are filling arenas and stadiums. Younger listeners–especially millennials and Gen Z–are tuning in, many encountering gospel-centered lyrics in spaces they never would have sought out on their own. In a fractured, anxious culture, songs that point beyond the self toward God are resonating deeply.
This is, without question, a gift.
Christian music has long carried the Great Commission in melody. When Scripture-soaked lyrics reach people who might never open a Bible or step inside a church, the gospel seed is being planted. Even artists with complicated personal stories, like Jelly Roll, openly acknowledge that something real is happening–that the message of Christ is being “re-presented” in a way people can hear. Hope is breaking through despair. Truth is interrupting noise. That should not be dismissed lightly.
Yet alongside this genuine revival moment comes a growing and deeply troubling confusion: what, exactly, is being defined as “Christian” or “gospel” music?
Industry leaders now argue that Christian music is defined purely by lyrics, not by theology, belief, or obedience. If a song contains Christian language, it qualifies. If it sounds hopeful or spiritual, it belongs. The result is a genre so broad that it risks becoming hollow–using the language of worship while divorcing it from the God worship demands allegiance to.
That tension came into sharp focus at last year’s Grammy Awards, when the Harlem Gospel Travelers were nominated for Best Roots Gospel Album. The group is openly LGBTQ+, and one member, Ifedayo Gatling, identifies as nonbinary–becoming the first person with that identity nominated in the gospel category. The music industry celebrated the moment as a milestone for representation. Many Christians, however, saw something far more alarming.
This was not simply about talent or musical excellence. It was about definition.
Gospel music is not merely a style. It is not a vibe. It is not a cultural artifact to be reshaped by the spirit of the age. Gospel means “good news”–specifically, the good news of repentance, redemption, and submission to Jesus Christ as Lord. When artists openly reject biblical teaching on sin while being elevated as representatives of gospel worship, the message is no longer being broadened; it is being rewritten.
This is where the blurring of lines becomes dangerous.
If secular artists sing songs with Christian lyrics, are those songs Christian? Sometimes, perhaps–God can use imperfect vessels, and truth spoken is still truth. Scripture itself reminds us that the Word does not return void. But Christian music has never been solely about words. It has always been about witness. Worship is not performance; it is proclamation shaped by obedience.
When the Pews Are Silent: Heartbreaking Stats On Abortion & Churchgoers
When was the last time your pastor addressed the issue of abortion and the sanctity of human life from the pulpit?
A recent study from Family Research Council and the Cultural Research Center revealed something shocking and heartbreaking: “Nearly one-in-five churchgoers have paid for, encouraged or chosen to have an abortion themselves.” One in five (19%) have participated somehow in purposefully ending the life of a vulnerable child.
The study of American churchgoers found that:
43% “characterized themselves as ‘pro-life’ on the issue of abortion” (a huge decrease from 63% just three years ago!)
35% “considered themselves ‘pro-choice’”
8% “lean toward pro-choice but could be convinced otherwise”
7% “lean toward pro-life but could be convinced otherwise”
In other words, a large percentage of churchgoers do not have a biblical worldview when it comes to the sanctity of human life. Rather, these churchgoers have simply adopted the culture’s view (from the secular, thus anti-Christian, worldview) that children are a choice and their lives can be ended at the convenience of the parents–and 19% have acted on it!
And this isn’t just a problem in progressive or liberal churches, as you might expect. According to the official report, “There was no significant correlation between being born again, how often one attends church, or how frequently one reads the Bible and the likelihood of having had an abortion.”
Part of this problem is the silence of churches on this life-and-death issue. The study found:
12% said abortion is talked about “once every few years”
Only 41% of respondents “estimated that their church preached or taught about abortion in the weekend worship services several times a year”
23% “said their church never teaches about abortion”
13% “said such instruction was provided once a year”
So less than half of churches are actually teaching on abortion throughout the year. No wonder so many Christians are confused on the issue or simply have no idea what the Bible teaches about it (and that the Bible is very clear on it!). But this isn’t some minor side issue. The lives of children made in the image of God are quite literally at stake, and the church is called by God to be salt and light in this culture. How can the church shine light on this issue and work together to end this barbarous practice if Christians themselves don’t know what to think?
If you’re a pastor, I implore you to teach on this issue from the pulpit. Sanctity of Human Life Sunday is coming up soon (January 25, 2026) and provides a great opportunity to do so, but don’t limit it to just once a year–this vital teaching must be included throughout the year, woven into sermons as you faithfully preach through the Word of God and instruct your flock in a biblical worldview.
If you’re a parent, are you talking about this issue with your children? Are you raising them with a biblical worldview when it comes to the sanctity of human life? Ultimately, it’s your job to instruct your children in God’s truth. Are you taking that seriously? Or are you just assuming your children think biblically on this topic? Never assume that–it’s your job to ensure you have fulfilled your responsibility to teach the things of God to the children God has blessed you with.
This issue isn’t confusing or biblically difficult–God’s Word is clear: Life begins at fertilization, and taking that life is murder, and it is wrong. But for those of the one in five who have participated in an abortion but have repented of their sin, there is forgiveness in Christ.
US orders senior personnel out of Mideast base as Iran doubles down on threats
A number of senior officers stationed at an American air base in the Middle East have been instructed to leave, multiple diplomats claimed in a report Wednesday, as Iran doubles down on threats to strike American bases in the region if the US intervenes militarily to aid the protest movement in the Islamic Republic.
On Wednesday, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran has warned countries across the Middle East that host American military forces that bases in their territory which are used by the US could be struck if President Donald Trump orders attacks on regime forces in Iran.
“Tehran has told regional countries, from Saudi Arabia and UAE to Turkey, that US bases in those countries will be attacked if the US targets Iran… asking these countries to prevent Washington from attacking Iran,” the official said.
In a separate report by Reuters, three diplomats were cited saying that a number of officers at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar – the largest American military facility in the Middle East, which also serves as the forward headquarters for US Central Command’s air operations – have been ordered to depart.
The Al Udeid Air Base, which houses some 10,000 American service members, was targeted by Iranian ballistic missiles last June following American airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
There were no injuries or damage in the missile attack.
A day earlier, Trump announced that he had canceled planned meetings between US and Iranian officials over the deadly crackdown against anti-regime protests.
On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that communications between himself and White House special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff have been suspended, after the two reportedly corresponded over the weekend.
Israeli media outlets reported Wednesday that the Wing of Zion, the official air transport for the prime minister and president of Israel, had left Israeli airspace, departing Nevatim Air Force Base in southern Israel, and flying northwest over the Mediterranean toward Greece.
The Wing of Zion later touched down in Crete.
Israeli officials downplayed the plane’s departure, claiming it was part of a routine training exercise.
The Wing of Zion also departed Israel shortly before the beginning of the 12-day war with Iran in June.