Perilous Times Will Come

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come (2 Tim. 3:1)

Moss Patch Newsletter, Volume 9, No. 1
September, 1998

As I gaze upon a peaceful, pastoral scene from my upstairs window, I wonder how long until this peace is broken and “all hell breaks loose.” Actually I’ve been expecting “all hell to break loose” for several years now, as have others of you. And some have become discouraged and disillusioned with the “gloom and doom” preaching and taken a step or two back into the mainstream world of apathetic indifference to Bible prophecy. Although the LORD’s patience with a wicked society seems infinite, we must remember that He would much prefer repentance to the perishing of souls (see 2 Peter 3:9). It seems we are to live our lives in a constant tension between living responsibly, peacefully, and joyfully in this present world and “expecting the other shoe to drop” at any moment. We should hope for the best and prepare for the worst, treasuring the calm before the storm. It is just a good thing that none of us is God. We would have lost our patience a long time ago and unleashed outrage. Although Almighty God would be justified to strike at any time, the cup of His indignation and wrath is apparently not quite full, and in His mercy we have a little more time to prepare for the storm and get things right in our relationships, become more intimate with Him, and enjoy the blessings of the peace and prosperity of the present moment.

Pat and I recently delivered a couple of RV’s to Anchorage, Alaska. What an amazing trip, traveling through Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, the Yukon, and finally Alaska – 3800 miles from home. The journey inspired a prophetic (?) song as I listened to some beautiful music on cassette. The piano and violin seemed to speak words in my head, which I wrote down. Curiously, the name of the instrumental is “The End of August” (Yanni) and the lyrics came at the end of August as we journeyed through the unbelievable beauty of the Yukon on the Alaskan Highway. Some highway—mostly dirt and gravel. I re-named the song, “Teslin” after Teslin, Yukon where the song began to come together. Towns are few and far between in an area where bear, moose, and caribou outnumber humans. It is God’s country—a wilderness of unspoiled forests, mountains, lakes, streams, and waterfalls—the last frontier.

We started out from Indiana through North Dakota, where I was impressed with the vast fields of sunflowers and roadside black-eyed susans in bloom, on through the provinces of Canada, where the people are not happy about their sagging dollar and economy. It felt a bit strange being in a foreign land of kilometers, liters, and washboard roads. The people we spoke with seemed depressed and gloomy about their country’s politics and economy. Somehow, with all our scandals and problems I was very glad to get back on American soil. It just felt too strange in Canada. I can imagine the culture shock visitors from another country would experience here in the USA. It would pale in comparison.

When I wrote down the song lyrics, I did not fully appreciate or understand the significance of the words and how closely they tie in with Bible prophecy. When I got home, continuing in my daily Bible reading, I got to Jeremiah where the song was written many centuries ago. As far as the time being near “when the Autumn arrives with blustery skies” only time will tell. This line was inspired as we traveled near Destruction Bay, Yukon Territory. The trees were in peak foliage, like our October, and a blustery wind had picked up in the gathering dusk causing strong waves on the lake. It seemed ominous, prophetic. When we crossed over the border to Alaska, the thought came to me, “Soon there’ll be no one in this land that’s free. Suddenly destruction will come from the North.” Why did I think, “North?” Just because I was closer to the North Pole than I had ever been before? America has more enemies in the world that are in a more southerly latitude than “North.” When I got home I looked on a globe and discovered that the only potential enemy we have that would come from the North would be Russia. But Russia is friendly towards us, right? Time will tell. With political scandals, a weakened Presidency, global financial crisis, etc., anything could happen. We are very vulnerable right now. When the Spirit of the LORD restrains no longer, “destruction” will come, suddenly. It is time to get away from the clamoring voices of entertainment, friends, family, etc. and get alone with God for an hour a day and listen to what He is saying to His people. Get ready, in whatever way He leads you, especially emotionally and spiritually, so you can “stand your ground.” Jesus/Yeshua must be your “every, every thing,” for soon He will be, for we will have nothing else to hold on to.


Song lyrics in next installment.