| Good Morning Everyone, Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you” Our Bible verse for today: “Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and who depend on horses! They trust in the abundance of chariots and in the large number of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel and they do not seek the Lord.” Isaiah 31:1 (CSB) Out thought for today: “Don’t rely on Egypt” In the days of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah Egypt was a regional powerhouse that other nations needed to be wary of. Egypt was also a prosperous nation with vast resources they were willing to share with others – if the price was right. Sometimes that price was counted in gold and silver, but other times it was measured in treaties, alliances, and political loyalties. Egypt cunningly used their strategic, military, and economic power as they pressured and manipulated other countries for their own advantage. And there was strong incentive for those other countries (including Israel) to allow themselves to be manipulated and drawn into unholy alliances with Egypt. The economic rewards could be significant. Does any of this sound familiar? Does the Egypt of yesteryear sound a lot like the China of today? What Egypt did then is what China does now. They use their economic, military, and manufacturing power to draw other nations in unholy alliances and to manipulate them into highly dependent relationships. Such as, for example, the way we here in the USA today now depend on China for over 85% of our pharmaceuticals, as well as for large percentages of critical minerals and raw materials. We have also allowed China to hold huge amounts (many billions of dollars) of our nation’s debt; and to purchase full ownership of U.S. businesses and properties. We have become yoked to China in some dangerous ways and all the while, they have shown conclusively that they are not our friend and they do not have our best interests in mind. They have even recently threatened to slow down or even cut-off our supply of medicines and other important manufactured goods. This has become such a source of concern for our nation, that President Trump and members of Congress are now openly talking about the critical need to quickly begin “decoupling” from China in terms of our dependence on them for vital supplies such as medicine. This can be one of the good changes for our nation that comes out of this COVID 19 pandemic. This current dust-up with China has opened our eyes to the dangerous and vulnerable situation we have allowed ourselves to get into. There are some good things that can come out of this bad situation for our nation. Decoupling our economy and supply chain from China could be one of them. God has blessed us as a nation with great resources, with tremendous manufacturing capacity, and with an innovative spirit for solving difficult problems. Just as the nation of Israel should not have been relying on Egypt for such things, we should not be relying on China. They are not our friends. God Bless, Pastor Jim |
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