<b><i>Recession Starts Taking Toll: Will it lead to another crash?</i></b>
<br>
<b><i>Worries are building that today’s sagging economy may be on the brink
of collapse.</i></b>
<br>
U.S. News & World Report
<p>
<b><i>Running Short of Cash: ~The United States and its allies scramble to
head off a global financial disaster…Finance ministers from the United
States, Britain, France, Japan and West Germany met last week near
Frankfurt to find a way to avert a global economic collapse.</i></b>
<br>
Newsweek
<p>
As you all know, these sentiments have been expressed many times over
by the media in the last few months. Many are even comparing our
current financial situation to the Great Depression.
<p>
It may surprise you, however, to learn that the two quotes above were
from November of 1974 and December of 1982 respectively. They were made
by the Fear mongers in the 70s and 80s who were predicting financial
collapse. It did not come to pass then, and this current financial
situation is also not the beginning of the end.
<p>
Let me quote a few statistics that you probably won’t hear from our
media. Unemployment rose to 24.75% in 1933. In time, that improved, but
even during Ronald Reagan’s first term in the latter part of 1982, the
unemployment rate rose to 10.8%. Yet the rest of the 1980s were some of
the strongest economic years of growth this country has ever had. Today
the current unemployment rate is about 6%-7%. Amazingly, that means
93%-94% of Americans are still working.
<p>
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell from a peak of 381.17 in October
of 1929 to a low of 41.22 on July 8, 1932 - a decline of 85%. The Dow did
not return to its peak for more than 22 years. From 1929 through 1933,
about 10,000 out of the 25,000 banks in the United States disappeared
(source: Business and Media Institute). It’s nothing like that today.
<p>
There were no federally insured deposits during the Great Depression,
but today the FDIC guarantee is up to $250,000 per account. That simply
means there will be no runs on the banks as there were during the Great 
Depression.
<p>
The mortgage foreclosure rate during the Great Depression was 50%. In
August of 2008 the national foreclosure rate was 4.4%. It may be higher
now, but it’s not even close to what it was then. The truth, even
though it may be painful, is that we have needed a major adjustment
from the unsound lending practices of the last few decades. 
<p>
For
example, illegal aliens and others who had no way to pay back their
loans were receiving sub-prime home loans with government guarantees.
That’s just wrong!
<p>
Marvin Goodfriend, who is a professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon
University’s Tepper School of Business in Pittsburgh, speaking on
National Public Radio, said that there is no real threat of another
Great Depression. That depression lasted nearly ten years. He sees this
turning around in the next few months. On a scale of 1-10, with the
Great Depression being a 10, he sees this current situation as a 3 or
4.
<p>
All of this is to say, <b>The Sky Is Not Falling</b>. Chicken Little is out
there again, predicting the worst, and I’m amazed at how many people
are buying into this. I kind of expect this from the Unbelievers , but
many Christians are just as worried as those who don’t have the
promises of the Lord .
<p>
Do you remember the Y2K scare? The Unbelievers weren’t too moved by
this, but Christians predicted this was the beginning of the
tribulation. I had a pastor friend who advocated that his members move
out into the country, buy a year’s supply of food, and use guns to
protect themselves. I know some people who were so stressed, they lost
their marriages over that scare.
<p>
Or how about the bird flu? I was in Scotland in October of 2005 when
one of the leading experts of the British Health Care system said there
was no question about if the bird flu would infect humans and cause a
pandemic, but only when. 
<p>
Then he said that it might be one year or at
the most two years, but he stated emphatically that one-third of the
world’s population would die by October of 2007. In October of 2007 I
read in USA Today that there had been a total of twelve human deaths
worldwide from the bird flu. Although it’s sad that anyone died from
that, it’s a far cry from a pandemic.
<p>
Can you see a trend or pattern here? The world likes to exaggerate
(literally lie) and present the worst-case scenarios because bad news
sells. I can’t do much about the world, but I would like to use my
influence to affect Believe rs. We are not to let our Heart s be
troubled:
<br>
<b><i>Let not your Heart be troubled: ye Believe in God , Believe also in me</i></b>
(John 14:1).
<p>
Isaac went through hard times. There was a famine in the land (Gen.
26:1). Isaac was a stranger in that land. He didn’t own any property.
But the Philistines around him panicked. They didn’t work their fields.
What was the use? But Isaac saw it as an opportunity and took advantage
of their idle fields.
<p>
Genesis 26:12 says,
<br>
<b><i>Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an
hundredfold: and the Lord Blessed him.</i></b>
<p>
This happened during a drought! What was he doing sowing Seed when they
were in a drought? He was believing God ! That’s what we should do.
<p>
And since there was a drought, others hadn’t planted, and therefore
food was in short supply. Isaac got premium prices for his crops. The
next few verses go on to tell how Isaac became so prosperous that
Abimelech, the king of Gerar, came to him and asked him to leave
because he was more prosperous than that whole nation.
<p>
In Genesis 26:14 and 16 reads,
<br>
<b><i>For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and Great 
store of servants: and the Philistines envied him…And Abimelech said
unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.</i></b>
<p>
This is the news Believe rs should be listening to. We have promises
from the Lord that He will provide our needs according to His riches IN
Glory by Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19). We aren’t limited by this world’s
economy! Let those who only trust in money panic. In God we trust (Ps.
91:2, 118:8-9; Isa. 12:2, 26:4; and Nah. 1:7). We should be rejoicing.
<p>
I’m not saying you shouldn’t make adjustments. If you bought into this
world’s philosophy, getting all you can and getting it by mortgaging
your future, then come to your senses, and follow the principles of
God ’s Word. Even if you haven’t been burned, you’ve learned a valuable
lesson, and now you can go forward with a new focus on the Lord as your
source.
<p>
And let me point out the obvious: This is not a time to cut back on
your sowing. You will only reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7). This is a time
to Believe God as never before. This is our Great est hour. We can
demonstrate to the world, as Isaac did, that there is a God in heaven
who Blesses His people, even in the worst times.
<p>
With this in mind, I am announcing another building program. We have
run out of space for meetings at our Colorado Springs facility. So, in
this time when others are drawing back, I am believing God . It is too
soon to give you all the details, but I’ve met with our builder and
have talked to neighboring businesses about acquiring their land. Here
we grow again.
<p>
Some will say this is the worst possible time to expand, but I’m not
marching to the drumbeat of the world. I know this is what the Lord is
leading me to do, and the response we are receiving to this message
confirms it. The world is hungry for the message of God ’s unconditional
love and grace.
<p>
We are setting personal records in every category of Ministry : phone
calls, website contacts, mail, and teaching material orders are all at
record numbers. We are even beginning to receive applications for
Charis Bible College’s fall term - next year! More growth is coming, and
now is the time to prepare.
<p>
Many of you have partnered with us in this Ministry , and I Believe 
God ’s Blessing on us extends to you. You can claim Prosperity and
Blessings because you have been planting Seed in good ground. Jamie and
I are believing with you for a hundredfold return.
<p>
Most importantly, <b><i>let not your Heart be troubled - Believe in God </i></b> (John
14:1).
<p>
Be sure to tune in to the Gospel Truth television programs December
15-26. I will be teaching on this very subject in my new series, In God We Trust . I think it will be a timely Faith builder.
<p>
-- Andrew Wommack<br>
Capitalization of keywords by Randy Lucas