Soon coming future events, or just someones imagination?

So there is this person who shares with me some times about the Lord. Its nothing bad but lately I have noticed that much of what is shared seems to point to one kind of conspiracy theory or another. Not necessarily the tin foil wearing hat kind of stuff but info about how to prepare for government take over, coming destruction, and persecution of sorts. The theme shared seems to be always along the same line, "the government is lying to us, things are not as they seem and we need to prepare." This person is a christian I believe but sometimes the things they send seems so alarmist that I am not sure how to respond to them. Some of the things sent seem like there is fear motivating it. I am not saying that bad stuff isn't coming but I wonder if we really need to be focused so much on this or not? How does this kind of stuff glorify the Lord? any thoughts?

rdg

rdg,

I am not sure I can answer your question, but there is this thing that one cannot believe everything you hear. What the news media tells you and what is are not necessarily the one and same. Some things are just too complex that defies a simple article. Or, some writers are too lazy to do a thorough job in checking out the facts. I have experienced this when traveling in the north. People find out where I live and they immediately jump on you, hold you responsible for the problem of race relationships in the south. This gets wearisome. People are fed lies all the time and some seem to thrive on believing them because of prejudice.

About the situation you described - I am aware of it as well. Scripture teaches us that if a prophet from the LORD foretells something it will come to pass 100% of the time. If not, he is a false prophet and you are not to regard him at all.

You have people who seem to thrive on paranoia, trusting nobody...(Just read how some are suggesting the tornado in OK was caused by HAARP). However, a lot of distrust is being earned by many lying and the issue comes is who can be believed? The challenge comes to us that we need to be ever so diligent in being truthful in our reporting. Some people who are honest seem to have a problem getting their facts straight because they are not listening well, can't hear well or because they forget important details. This is human nature.

How does one respond? I suggest one needs to learn to be discerning and this comes from God. It requires at the onset a heart that loves truth that will pursue it. The Holy Spirit will teach you lots if you listen to His nudging and red flags.

My thoughts...You have more?

ginnyrose, I don't think this person believes themselves a prophet. They have not claimed to be one so I don't want to imply that they are. Its more about the things that are shared, its not encouraging and as far as I can tell does nothing to direct anyone to Jesus? I know that there are tough times out there, but I wonder if focusing on things like government conspiracy, and government control really does much to help those looking for Jesus. I guess it seems like a distraction to me and I wonder if it is to others as well?

I do agree with you, we need to be honest in reporting, we need to be careful not to exaggerate.(I notice lots of people do this to make the event sound more then what it actually is) I guess my concern is with this kind of topics always being put out there how does that reflect on Christians?

rdg

I think right now people in America are pretty fearful about what they see coming to this country. The mainstream news is reporting some of the very things you mentioned, so the populous naturally are fixated on those subjects. There is a law of physics that says for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. be patient with your friend and sow the promises of God back at them when they have spoken of things that they are fearful of, remind them that even the Hebrew people were prosperous while in captivity. There is change coming to this country, but there is No Change In our God, "Jesus the same......always".

In terms of the fear that is produced by this, I remember a message by David Wilkerson where he was addressing the things he foresaw happening in America. In response to how we should prepare for these things, his answer was "Abide in Christ." This is all we need. We can trust Him to lead us and take care of us.

I think I need to take a step back from this person for a time. So much of what is being shared just seems to come from a motivation of fear and worry. I want to take some time and pray about this more and how I might speak to them.

rdg