America is suffering under a vacuum of leadership. This is not just in government but also in virtually every major center of influence, including the church. In Isaiah chapters three through five, we are told that capricious, immature leaders are the beginning of the judgment of God for the nation that turns from God and falls to the ultimate depravity of calling good evil and evil good, and for dishonoring the honorable while honoring the dishonorable. That is an accurate description of America.

      In 1987 I had a two-and-a-half-day prophetic experience in which I was shown a panorama of coming events that I wrote about in my book titled, The Harvest. Most of what I saw coming has now taken place, but the biggest event of all, the harvest that was at the end of the age, has not. It is now approaching.

         Continuing the theme of how some multilevel marketing groups are using principles of the kingdom more effectively than the church at this time, I do realize that some seem to be building on greed and material attainment more than godliness. I don’t deny this and would never condone it even for business if we are Christians, but this does not negate the truth.

         I am still processing all that came out in our recent Harvest Summit.  At the same time, I have been shown things about our upcoming New Year's Convocation, which I don’t think has ever happened this early before. 2015 may well be the most remarkable year in our history, and we must be prepared for what is unfolding. I am getting a lot about what is going to happen, but even more about how to be prepared.

          Thank you for bearing with last week’s long-winded word. These are crucial times, and the Lord called those “hypocrites” who understood the weather better than the signs of the times (see Luke 12:56). If we are going to be the salt and light we are called to be, we must understand and be engaged in the times. This is why every prophet in Scripture addressed current events, and numerous ones had words for many nations. This is part of what we are called to do but not all of it.

    Since we are now into the holiday season, we should be thankful and enjoy the periods between Thanksgiving and New Year’s when we focus more on family and socializing. This is a good thing. It’s almost like a tithe of the year in which we draw back and focus on relationships. Enjoy it, and get all of the rest you can, because 2011 is going to be one of the most intense years of our lifetime. This also means that it will be one of the most opportune years for those who are prepared.

Years ago, I read a study on alcoholism about how this problem affected different people groups. It was very illuminating. The great surprise was that the group who had the highest percentage of alcoholics was a conservative evangelical denomination that forbids the drinking of any kind of alcohol. Just as surprising was the finding that the people group who had the lowest percentage of alcoholics were the Jews who drink freely.

Response to the Charisma Article

      Hello, I am Rick Joyner. Thank you for joining me for this Special Bulletin on current events. We have been covering over the last few Special Bulletins the Japanese earthquake, what this means, how it was prophesied, along with other consequences. Also, what do we do to be prepared for these times? If these things are coming upon us that were prophesied, what do we do to get ready for them?

         We continue this study with Revelation 7:1:

          “After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the  earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree.”