Tough Times Will Come but There is Our God

When times are hard in the world as Christians, we need to continue to believe that God is with us and that He wants to bless us.  I have been reading much about the generation that I am a part of as of late.  I am a part of Gen X - born between 1965 and 1980.  I was born in 1972.  It puts me firmly in the middle of that group.

I don’t think we faced near what other generations have faced.  My grandparent’s generation was born in the 1920’s and lived through the great depression and World War II.  That would have been a difficult season to have lived and yet when I look at my grandparents lives, there was something about who they were that I admired, and that I wanted for my own life.  I believe it was the grace and blessing of Jesus.

And yet, our generation has faced some incredible storms.  We are seeing things happen in our times that are shifting nations.  I think of 911.  You pretty much must be around 30 years old now to even remember that event, but that event really defined my life in 2001.  I was just starting in my government jobs after university.  Up to that point I don’t think we really thought that much about Terrorism.  Sure, we heard about planes being hijacked but that was about it.  Terrorism seemed far away and confined to the middle east.

Technology has given rise to new risks in our times.  The ability that we have to instantly communicate with people all over the world has changed the world in ways that are hard to quantify.  It is hard for any one person to control the media anymore.  People have access to the internet which has meant we see things quicker and many times in an unedited manner.  Think of 911.  We watched that as a live event.  Think of ISIS and how they murdered people and it could be seen minutes later on our phones and computers.

Technology has changed a great deal in our lifetimes.  It changed the way we received and processed information.  When I was a boy, we didn’t have computers.  I was 23 before I went onto the internet.  I can still remember watching the old dial tv sets.  We got our news at 5pm or 10pm or we got it through newspapers that came to the house.  Information was not instantaneous. 

Our first tv was black and white even though there were colour TVs in existence.  Cable TV was invented when we were in our teens and if you could afford it, you could watch all the latest videos on the music TV station.  We became known as the MTV generation. Every Saturday morning, we watched cartoons and, in the afternoon, listened to American Top 40 with Casey Casem.  That was a long time ago, but that was advanced for that time. 

We didn’t have a lot of money, so lived without.  There was not much debt accumulation in those days.  My parents didn’t have a credit card.  If they wanted to buy something they waited till they had the money or sometimes, they would put it on layaway at the store -  meaning you paid a little bit at a time until you could bring it home.  They were different times.  Now debt is one of the worse things we wrestle with as a society and may end up destroying our times.

I am glad that I lived through the times that I lived through.  In 2008 we had the great Recession.  The world just seemed to collapse at that time in many ways, especially in the USA, but even in Canada jobs started to be harder to get.  When I finished University, I had my choice in jobs.  The late 90’s and early 2000’s saw a hiring boom, especially if you were skilled in computers and technology, which I was.

I have been fortunate in many ways.  Times have always been challenging for people.  Our memory of the tough times is limited to what we experienced or from stories of what our family experienced before us.  People who read history have heard of tough times that were experienced by others.  Poverty has been common throughout humanity’s history. 

God is good.  I guess the reason my family lived the way they did in relative blessing is because of Jesus.  He was alive in their hearts.   The peace that comes from living in Him is not something that you can measure by human standards.  It helps you to bare and overcome all things (John 16:33).  His spirit in you will give you a perspective that does not match what the world is living.  Even though Terrorism is present you will feel peace.  Even though people are losing homes and back accounts you know you will be fine.  Even when food is so expensive you don’t know how you will feed your family God will assure you that He is there (2 Thessalonians 3:16).

I have lived through some interesting times, but I have learned to lean into the everlasting arms (Deuteronomy 33:27).  Come what may I will be fine.  I do sense a new day of trouble that is coming.  It isn’t something that I want to even admit out loud, but I have had some dreams in the last years which have caused me to pray and seek God in new ways.

Just before the high inflation became a virus on the land back in 2021/22, I was given a warning by the Holy Spirit.  I heard him speak clearly about how inflation was going to hit the land.  I even called my bank to talk to them about it, but the gentleman I spoke with thought I was worrying too much.  He said we have had stable interest rates for 40 years and therefore, there was no reason to worry.  I made some decisions with my finances then that helped me to weather the storm that came. 

When God warns, He protects.  I feel there is a season of war upon us.  I don’t know what that looks like.  We have seen a war in Europe and in the Middle East, but I do feel that I have seen that more is coming.  I wouldn’t even be able to tell you how to prepare.  Just know that when things happen God will get you through.  I pray for you today that God will prepare you in advance for anything that might happen.

If God warns it is a call to prayer.  I would suggest to you that it isn’t always going to stop what happens, but it can help you to get through it.  It can help build communities that know how to get through together.

The one thing that I can say is that no matter what I have faced in my life God was there.  Not only did he protect me He blessed me in those difficult times.  When others were losing, I was blessed.  When others couldn’t get jobs, I had a job.  When others were losing homes, I got a home.  Even when the world shut down during Covid it didn’t hurt us financially.  God took care of us.  This is my testimony.  It is my boast in the Lord that you can trust Him.  I pray for you that you will have wisdom to weather whatever comes into the earth.  God is dealing with mankind and bringing them to the place of humility where they will seek Him once again.  He has always done this.  He always will.