Suddenly

It’s easy to ignore things you can’t see but it doesn’t make them any less real. Practicing the old adage, ‘out of sight out of mind’ is not only shallow, it is dangerous. Dealing with issues and questions that aren’t in your front yard requires attention, wisdom and discernment. Focusing on what you don’t see can take away from our mindless pursuit of leisure and recreation. BUT…If you wait for the unseen to become flesh on your bone, it may be more perilous….suddenly.

When we were kids in school we read about things we never saw. The Revolutionary War, taxation without representation and the Boston Tea Party. We heard about the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia on the evening news. We heard about students rioting for democracy in Tienanmen Square that led to a massacre. We didn’t see it but we knew it was real.

Suddenly, truckers in Canada lose access to their bank accounts but we haven’t seen it in America; yet. Widespread riots in France, Germany and Scotland have torn the countries apart but that’s on TV. Now, we hear about prison time in England for tweeting your thoughts. There is ample historical precedent for the sudden results that come if we wait quietly for what we cannot see.

America naively thinks it is separated and removed from the problems of the rest of the world. Americans have become prideful thinking they are protected living in a compound surrounded by two oceans and a moat of money. We have forgotten it is the God of Creation and Christian principles that have provided our freedoms. Christians rarely speak and stand up for HIS policies and principles…and the nation suffers.

Suddenly, suffering in America is becoming more widespread than before. Peter wrote a letter to remind Christ-followers they should not be surprised when life gets suddenly difficult. The Bible CONSTANTLY reminds us that we are in the thick of exactly what Jesus experienced.

Peter penned the words…’But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed….For it is time for judgement to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?’ 1 Peter 4:13-17. Christians and America are coming under His judgement.

The topic of seeing what is unseen has become popular and common. There is conversation from mainstream sources about aliens and more talk of the spirit world than anytime in my life. Possibly the most successful venture capitalist of our time, Peter Thiel, was recently speaking about travel at light speed and hypersonic weapons. He mentioned the practicality by referencing angels and demons.

There is ample Biblical evidence for the spiritual world becoming seen. When the unseen becomes seen, it happens suddenly. The birth of Jesus recounts ‘suddenly a multitude of angels’ appearing. In the Old Testament in the book of Daniel…’Suddenly, the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster on the wall…’ In Acts, Peter was freed from prison chains when ‘Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared…’ Search the word, suddenly, in the Bible and remember how commonly it appears in relation to things unseen becoming seen.

Today, Americans are being reminded about the origin of our country and it’s founding Christian principles because the landscape is changing…suddenly. Many Christians live in the world they have built for themselves and forget there is more than what we see. The modern American Christian is more comfortable living by sight and not faith.

The unseen spiritual world has no material limitations and is the basis for EVERYTHING we see. Ephesians 6:12…’For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.’

To be clear, for the person who is more worldly than spiritual, the unseen is flat out scary and dangerous. The unseen can possess your thoughts and actions and make you a different person. The unseen and spiritual is not limited to space and time as we know it, therefore it is multidimensional. The unseen can appear suddenly, then disappear as quickly as it arrived. It does not respect physical walls and can travel from one place to another in an instant.

The unseen is being fleshed out as AI crosses the line from truthful answers to lies and deception. We have been lulled into thinking that data will lead us to the truth….the people we can see and vote for are more important than the unseen policies they promote. Our pride and hubris regarding the seen over the unseen WILL lead to sudden changes. Our nation has become overconfident in mitigating risk with the things we can see…like money, homes with security systems and a few weapons. There are unseen risks that carry greater calamity.

THE question we have to ask EVERY day of the week is….Do we focus on the seen at the expense of the unseen? This is a physical worldly question as well as a spiritual question.

Jesus will return suddenly, like a thief in the night. ‘While people are saying “Peace and safety”, destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a woman…’ 1 Thess. 5:3.

Learn to see the unseen by believing what God teaches through the Old and New Testament. Get in the Book to see what’s coming next. Make sure you aren’t suddenly caught living only by what you can see.