"Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt." - Exodus 22:21
As I write this on August 24, 2025, the world feels increasingly unrecognizable from just a few years ago. What we're witnessing isn't just political turbulence or natural variation in global events—it's a convergence of crises that bears an unsettling resemblance to the prophetic warnings found throughout Scripture about the treatment of strangers and the vulnerable.
The Death of Digital Anonymity
The internet as a space for free expression is rapidly disappearing. Under the guise of "child protection," governments worldwide are implementing systems that will fundamentally end online anonymity:
The UK's Chilling Example
In Britain, the situation has already reached dystopian levels. Police are making over 30 arrests per day for "offensive" online posts—12,183 arrests in 2023 alone, representing a 58% increase since before the pandemic. These arrests target messages that cause "annoyance," "inconvenience," or "anxiety"—standards so vague they could criminalize virtually any controversial opinion.
The most disturbing aspect? Most cases never result in conviction, yet people's lives are destroyed through arrest, detention, and reputational damage simply for expressing dissenting views online.
Coming to America
The United States isn't far behind. Nearly half of U.S. states have passed age verification laws requiring users to submit government IDs, undergo facial scanning, or provide biometric data to access social media platforms. These laws, marketed as protecting children, create a comprehensive surveillance system where every online interaction is tied to a real identity.
Federal legislation pending in Congress would expand these requirements nationwide, with bills like the MATURE Act requiring government ID uploads for social media access, and the Kids Online Safety Act funding government studies on device-level age verification systems.
The Systematic Destruction of Aid to the Vulnerable
While surveillance expands, aid to those most in need is being systematically eliminated:
USAID Gutted
The Trump administration has terminated over 90% of USAID contracts, cutting $60 billion in foreign assistance. This isn't just budget trimming—it's the deliberate dismantling of programs that experts estimate have saved over 90 million lives in the past two decades.
The human cost is staggering:
- Over 360,000 people have already died from lack of food and medication due to funding cuts
- If current cuts continue, an estimated 14 million additional people could die by 2030
- 500 tonnes of high-energy biscuits intended to feed 27,000 starving children were incinerated rather than distributed
Domestic Safety Net Under Attack
Despite promises to protect Medicare and Medicaid, the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" cuts $1.1 trillion from healthcare spending over the next decade. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this will leave 11.8 million more Americans without health insurance by 2034.
Rural hospitals—already operating on razor-thin margins—face particular devastation, with over 300 currently at "immediate risk" of closure.
Natural Disasters as the "New Normal"
Meanwhile, the physical world is becoming increasingly unstable:
Unprecedented Global Costs
Natural disasters now cost over $2.3 trillion annually when all impacts are included—nearly ten times the reported direct losses. The frequency and intensity of extreme weather events continue to rise at an alarming rate.
American Catastrophe
In 2025 alone, the United States has witnessed:
- The deadliest inland flooding since 1976 in Central Texas, killing at least 80 people including 28 children
- Over 100 tornadoes in just two days in March
- Unprecedented flooding that made entire communities uninhabitable
- Wildfire destruction reaching historic levels
Yet as disasters multiply, the very systems designed to help survivors are being dismantled.
The Biblical Pattern
The Hebrew prophets understood something we seem to have forgotten: how a society treats its most vulnerable—the stranger, the widow, the orphan, the poor—directly impacts its own stability and survival.
When Isaiah warns that "justice is turned back, and righteousness stands at a distance; for truth stumbles in the public square" (Isaiah 59:14), he's describing a society where moral foundations have collapsed. When Amos calls for justice to "roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream" (Amos 5:24), he's pointing to the connection between social justice and divine blessing.
The story of Sodom isn't primarily about sexual behavior—it's about a society that became so corrupted it would violate the sacred obligation to protect vulnerable visitors. Ezekiel makes this explicit: "This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy" (Ezekiel 16:49).
The Antichrist Pattern
For those familiar with biblical prophecy, the current trajectory is deeply unsettling. The convergence we're witnessing matches the pattern Scripture describes for the end times:
- A leader who deceives many - claiming to protect while destroying, promising prosperity while impoverishing
- The implementation of a surveillance system - where no one can "buy or sell" without identification in "the system" (Revelation 13:17)
- The persecution of those who speak truth - arrestingpeople for their words and thoughts
- The abandonment of care for the vulnerable - while claiming righteousness
- Increasing natural disasters as judgment unfolds
What Can Be Done?
If these observations trouble you, you're not alone. But despair isn't the answer. Throughout history, God's people have been called to be lights in dark times:
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Speak truth while you still can - Document what's happening. Share factual information. Don't be silenced by fear.
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Care for the vulnerable in your sphere - If global aid is being cut, increase local aid. Support immigrants, the poor, the sick in your community.
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Prepare spiritually and practically - These trends are likely to accelerate. Build community, develop resilience, and deepen your relationship with God.
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Remember that this too shall pass - Biblical prophecy isn't fatalistic. It's a warning that can still lead to repentance and change.
Conclusion
We're living through a convergence of crises that should concern anyone who values human dignity, freedom of expression, and care for the vulnerable. The systematic elimination of aid to those who need it most, combined with the rise of comprehensive surveillance systems and increasing natural disasters, creates a perfect storm of suffering.
But perhaps that's precisely the point. Perhaps these are the labor pains that lead to something better. Perhaps this is the darkness that comes before the dawn.
The question isn't whether these trends are real—the data makes that clear. The question is whether we'll have the courage to speak truth about them, and the compassion to care for those caught in their wake.
"Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me." - Matthew 25:45
Written on August 24, 2025, in the hope that documenting these patterns might help others see them clearly—and perhaps, in seeing them, find the courage to choose a different path.
