A Time Of Deception And Spiritual Darkness!

Volume XXXV Issue V May 2016

Last Trumpet Ministries, PO Box 806, Beaver Dam, WI 53916

Phone: 920-887-2626 Internet: http://www.lasttrumpetministries.org

"Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness."

Ephesians 4:18-19

"The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"

Matthew 6:22-23

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."

Ephesians 6:10-13



In this issue of the Last Trumpet Newsletter, we will shine a light on the deep spiritual darkness of this world and the pervasive corruption that accompanies this darkness. The world as we know it today is filled with secrecy, intrigue, and deception. Of course, the political realm, especially in the United States, is firmly entrenched in deception. A recent article published by the New York Times in December 2015 even makes the declaration "All Politicians Lie, Some Lie More Than Others" in its headline. (1) One such politician who lies often is none other than our current but soon to be outgoing president, Barack Obama. According to a website known as Politifact, Obama has managed to keep only 45 percent of his promises. (2) Oddly enough, this same website implied that presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is the most honest candidate running for president in the 2016 election after studying about ninety of his remarks and determining that he only made dishonest statements, which were categorized as either half true, mostly false, or false, 50 percent of the time. (3)

It is not only the political system that has a tendency to be dishonest. The mainstream news media is often slanted, and the news that is fed to the American people is in many cases manipulated if not entirely untrue. For example, former NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams became the focus of a highly publicized scandal last year when it was revealed that he had lied about his experiences covering the war in Iraq. This prompted a six-month suspension and a demotion from NBC News, a decision that was announced by NBC News President Deborah Turness who wrote in February 2015, "While on Nightly News on Friday, January 30, 2015, Brian misrepresented events which occurred while he was covering the Iraq War in 2003. It then became clear that on other occasions Brian had done the same while telling that story in other venues. This was wrong and completely inappropriate for someone in Brian's position." (4)

Back in September 2012, it was reported that a former CNN investigative reporter by the name of Amber Lyon was pressured to insert false statements in her coverage of a 2011 report regarding the unrest in the Middle Eastern country of Bahrain. "I couldn't believe CNN was making me put what I knew to be government lies into my reporting," Lyon said. (5)





In September 2014, it was reported by the Washington Post that the staff at the White House in Washington, D.C., routinely censors reports written by members of the White House press pool. In numerous cases these reports are returned to their authors to be modified and are not distributed to the mainstream media until they meet the stringent requirements of the Obama Administration. "I don't know why the White House tries to be an editor or middleman," complained reporter Jennifer Bendery. (6)

Evidence also exists which indicates that the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA, has strong ties to the mainstream media and has used these connections to manipulate and control the news that is disseminated to the public. In fact, reporter Carl Bernstein, who is most famous for exposing former American President Richard Nixon and the Watergate Scandal, wrote a lengthy article in 1977 which chronicles the CIA's connection to the media. According to the article, the CIA had recruited more than four hundred American journalists to do their bidding since 1953. Some of these reporters were actually on the CIA's payroll and would carry out assignments for the agency while working abroad. Numerous news outlets had, and probably still have, strong ties to the CIA, including the New York Times, CBS News, as well as the magazines Time and Newsweek. (7) The CIA's propaganda campaign, which was known as "Operation Mockingbird," came under scrutiny in the 1970s, prompting newly installed Director of the CIA, George H. W. Bush (who would later go on to become President of the United States in 1989), to announce a new policy. "Effective immediately, the CIA will not enter into any paid or contract partnership with any full-time or part-time news correspondent accredited by any U.S. news service, newspaper, periodical, radio, or television network or station," Bush said in February 1976. He did note, however, that voluntary cooperation between journalists and the CIA would still be permitted. (8) Regardless of whether or not it is publicized, this strong connection between the CIA and the mainstream media probably still exists today.

By now it should be obvious that dishonesty is rampant in our world. Politicians often lie, and there is always the possibility that what we hear on the news could be manipulated or even fabricated. In reality, the only source of absolute truth that I know of is God. Thankfully, He has promised to impart His Spirit of truth to His people. In John 14:16-18 we read, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you."

Google And The Obama Administration - Working Hand In Hand!

For many years I have heard it suggested that the technology giant known as Google is a government front. Considering the fact that this company controls so much information, it is certainly an interesting theory. While this may or may not be the case, one thing is certain, Google does work very closely with the Obama Administration. According to an article published in April 2016, representatives from Google are often visiting the White House in Washington, D.C. In fact, since January 2009 and October 2015, Google staff members visited the White House 427 times, a number that far exceeds other technology companies. (9) It is also interesting to note nearly 250 men and women within that same time period have either gone from Google to working for the government or gone from the government to working for Google. (10) One such man is Mikey Dickerson, who was an engineer at Google for a time. When the launch of the Obamacare website known as healthcare.gov was marred by glitches and failures at its launch in October 2013, it was Dickerson who was called upon to fix the website. He then went on to lead the newly formed U.S. Digital Service, which is a new agency tasked with fixing government technology. (11)

It seems that Google has become a de facto extension of the government. Considering the significant inroads Google has made into the lives of people around the world, this development could have serious ramifications. Google is not only the world's most popular search engine, but it also produces the Android operating system, which runs on millions of smartphones. As such, Google is constantly collecting and processing personal data, and that data could easily find itself in the hands of the government. More importantly, if a time should come when an attempt to launch a global one world government is made, much of the technology on which the system will run could very well be designed by Google, even as their potential fleets of driverless automobiles populate our roads and highways.

A Historic Climate Change Agreement!

As we had expected in the month of April, climate change and global warming has again made its way into the headlines. On April 22, 2016, a day which was celebrated as "Earth Day," an important meeting took place at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. At this event, representatives from 175 countries signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, an agenda which was first drafted in December 2015 at a meeting in Paris, France. The nations who signed the accord have all agreed to take steps to keep global warming from rising above two degrees Celsius. At this event more warnings were issued which claim that the planet we now occupy is on the verge of destruction and ruin. "Climate change threatens our life, our Earth as well as our education," said 16 year-old Gertrude Clement of Tazania at the United Nations meeting. "You might think we are too young to know about the risks and realities of climate change but we see it [in] our daily lives. As young people the future is ours, but this is not the future we want for ourselves." (12)

It is certainly true that many parts of the world have suffered from serious conditions such as drought and famine. Many natural disasters have also occurred over the years. For the most part, such events are usually blamed on climate change. Yet, we know that drought and famine have long been problems that plague the planet we live on, and we even find stories of such conditions in the Bible. The Scriptures also warn that such conditions would be common in the days leading up to the return of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Perhaps we should consider the possibility that these calamities cannot be stopped by manmade agreements. In such a case, our best option would be crying out to God for mercy, but many people in this world are unwilling to do so.

In recent days, efforts have been made to silence those who question the official story on climate change. Such efforts include a coalition of 17 attorney generals from the states of California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington State, as well as the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, who have agreed to target and possibly prosecute or fine corporations which deny the effects of climate change. (13) According to their reasoning, such prosecution would not be a violation of First Amendment rights, which are supposed to guarantee freedom of speech, because such people and corporations are committing fraud by contradicting established science. This development calls to mind a speech given by former American Vice President Al Gore in March 2015 wherein he called for climate change deniers in political positions to be ostracized. "We need to put a price on denial in politics," Gore stated. He later went on to say, "We have the denial industry cranked up constantly. In addition to 99 percent of the scientists and all the professional scientific organizations, Mother Nature is weighing in." (14)

The fact of the matter is that there have been many predictions made regarding global warming and climate change over the years. It was Al Gore himself who predicted back in 2006 that the earth would "reach the point of no return" in ten years' time if "drastic measures" were not taken to curb climate change. (15) Of course, those ten years have now come and gone, and if Al Gore is to be believed, that means it is already too late. However, such predictions are nothing new. For example, a biologist from Harvard University by the name of Dr. George Wald predicted all the way back in 1970 that civilization would end in fifteen to thirty years "unless immediate action is taken against problems facing mankind." (16)

In a rather odd twist, scientists are now complaining that there is a lack of urgency amongst the American populace regarding climate change because global warming has actually made weather conditions nicer in the United States. "Virtually all Americans are now experiencing the much milder winters that they typically prefer, and these mild winters have not been offset by markedly more uncomfortable summers or other negative changes," wrote political scientist Patrick Egan of New York University and Megan Mullin, a professor of environmental politics at Duke University, in a new study. (17) In an interview, Professor Mullin was quoted as saying, "We've received warmer winters without paying the price for hotter summers. But when you look forward… that's going to shift, and Americans will experience weather, by their current preferences, they're going to think of as worse." (18)

I have stated numerous times in the past that I believe the real motivation behind the climate change agenda is to control the people and establish a one world government. This is one of the reasons that the United Nations is so involved with this movement. Even religious figures, such as Pope Francis, have gotten involved, demanding that action be taken to stop climate change. Here let it be noted that Council on Foreign Relations president Richard N. Haass admitted in 2006 that the climate change agenda will be used to revoke the sovereignty of the world's nations and establish a globalist society. "Some governments are prepared to give up elements of sovereignty to address the threat of global climate change. Under one such arrangement, the Kyoto Protocol, which runs through 2012, signatories agree to cap specific emissions. What is needed now is a successor arrangement in which a larger number of governments, including the United States, China, and India, accept emission limits or adopt common standards because they recognize that they would be worse off if no country did. All this suggests that sovereignty must be redefined if states are to cope with globalization," Haass wrote in an article posted on the official Council on Foreign Relations website. (19) In similar fashion, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Christiana Figueres has expressed a hope that their climate change agenda will change the world. "It is the most inspiring job in the world because what we are doing here is we are inspiring government, private sector, and civil society to [make] the biggest transformation that they have ever undertaken. The Industrial Revolution was also a transformation, but it wasn't a guided transformation from a centralized policy perspective. This is a centralized transformation that is taking place because governments have decided that they need to listen to science. So it's a very, very, different transformation and one that is going to make the life of everyone on the planet very different," declared Figueres on November 21, 2012. (20)

Dark Forces At Work In The United States!

For as long as there has been sin in this world, there have been people who do Satan's bidding. This was a problem in ancient times, and it is once again a problem in modern times. Dark forces are at work in the United States of America today, and there is no effort being made to hide this fact. In 2013 a new religion emerged in the United States. The group calls itself the "Satanic Temple" and made headlines in 2015 as it attempted to place a monument dedicated to Satan on the grounds of the State Capitol building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The group argued that the placement of their monument must be allowed because a monument featuring the Ten Commandments from the Bible had already been placed on the Oklahoma Capitol grounds. (21) In the end, the Ten Commandments monument was removed to prevent the Satanists from attempting to place their statue of the satanic horned creature known as Baphomet. Since that time, this organization has not receded quietly into obscurity.

Sadly, this group has been performing satanic rituals all over the country, and they have had great success recruiting new members by way of a recently released horror film known as "The Witch." I have not seen this demonic film, but reading a plot description of it was disturbing enough. In recent weeks, the Satanic Temple has collaborated with the studio that produced the film and even held a four-city promotional tour that they called "The Sabbat Cycle." On this tour, the group would view a screening of the film and then perform satanic rituals with a stated goal of inspiring a "satanic revolution." Amazingly enough, the group has grown substantially since its inception. There are now 17 chapters throughout the United States and about 100,000 members who belong to the Satanic Temple. (22)

Members of this group seem determined to cause strife wherever they can. Such is the case at the Delta County school district in the state of Colorado, which was forced to begin distributing satanic and atheistic literature to children in April 2016 after the district received complaints from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, or FFRF, in response to the distribution of Gideon Bibles on school grounds. "The Delta County School District could have resolved the issue by not allowing religious groups inside their schools. But since it has chosen to be obdurate, it's left us with no option than to respond to their religious propagandizing," said FFRF co-president Dan Barker. The material being distributed is published by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, the Western Colorado Atheists and Freethinkers, and the Satanic Temple. (23)

As the children of God, we do not have to be afraid of these people, their demons, and their evil deeds. The truth is they want us to be afraid of them, and the devil wants us to forget about the spiritual strength that God has given us. However, I John 4:4 assures us, "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."

Earth - A Planet Constantly Rumbling!

Earthquakes have always been a topic of great interest for the Christian people. In particular, earthquakes are often associated with the end times because they were specifically mentioned by our Lord Jesus Christ in His warning found in Matthew, chapter 24. In Matthew 24:7-8, Jesus tells us, "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." Additionally, earthquakes are also associated with the apocalyptic imagery of the Book of Revelation. As such, it is no wonder that we take notice when a significant earthquake occurs.

In my studies of earthquakes over the course of the last several years, I have noticed that the scientific community often tends to send mixed signals. In some cases, news headlines will declare that "the big one" is imminent while other scientists will say we should not worry and everything is fine. Yet, the world we live in today is shaking constantly. As an example, I am writing this newsletter on April 26, 2016. On this morning, 73 earthquakes have already occurred. In the past seven days, 608 earthquakes have occurred. In the past month, 2,948 earthquakes have occurred. Since this year of 2016 began, 50,167 earthquakes have occurred. (24) "Earthquakes in divers places" could not be a more accurate description of what is happening in our world.

April 2016 has been a month of great seismic activity. Sadly, this activity has led to the loss of life in some cases. On April 14, 2016, an earthquake measuring 6.5 in magnitude struck the southern region of a Japanese island known as Kyushu. This powerful quake claimed the lives of nine people and injured 800 more, but this was not the end of the story. In a short period of time following this quake, more than 100 aftershocks occurred before another major earthquake struck the same area again on April 16, 2016. The second quake was worse than the first, measuring 7.3 in magnitude. At least 34 people were killed and an estimated 1,500 people were injured. Remarkably, these powerful earthquakes have also led to numerous landslides and have ripped open the island in some places. According to a report by The Guardian, one such landslide even tore open a mountainside in a village called Minamiaso. (25)

Government officials in Japan are especially on edge because of these recent earthquakes. There is great worry that a catastrophic earthquake will soon strike the city of Tokyo, which is Japan's capital and largest city. This concern has prompted the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to publish a 300-page book on earthquake preparedness which is now being distributed to the public. According to experts, such an earthquake has a 70 percent chance of striking Tokyo within the next 30 years. (26)

April 16, 2016, was also a devastating day for the South American nation of Ecuador. On this day a powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck near the town of Muisne. This horrific event resulted in the death of at least 646 people, injured 12,500 more, and destroyed nearly 7,000 buildings. (27)

Meanwhile, the San Francisco Bay area in the American state of California has also been rumbling. According to one report, there have been nearly 800 earthquakes within a 100 mile radius of San Francisco within the last year. The 3.2 magnitude surface quake which struck on April 23, 2016, was the strongest within that period. (28) Mark Benthien, who is Director of Outreach at the Southern California Earthquake Center has warned that a far more powerful quake could strike the area at any time. "We certainly can have large earthquakes at any time. There's… no information we have that would say one is imminent. But we have expectations for up to an earthquake the size of the Ecuador earthquake… on the San Andreas Fault [in Southern California] and it could happen today… or it may not happen for 50 years. But we expect it to happen," Benthien said. (29)

In closing, it is certainly evident that we live in a day of great deception and spiritual darkness. However, I find great encouragement in the words of the Apostle Paul found in Ephesians 6:10-13 which tells us, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." If you have not yet repented of your sins and dedicated your life to God, I encourage you to do so now. In so doing, you will find that God gives us the strength to withstand the dark forces at work in our world today.

Thank you all for your generous support of this ministry. We appreciate your kindness. Please note that we have had some difficulty this month in receiving donations through PayPal on our website. We are hoping this functionality will be restored soon. We apologize to those of you who have been inconvenienced. As usual, we are here to pray for your needs, whether great or small. We always give every prayer request we receive individual attention. Grace and peace be unto you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.


Samuel David Meyer


Acknowledgements

01. The New York Times, December 11, 2015, By Angie Drobnic Holan, http://nytimes.com.
02. Politifact's Obameter, http://politifact.com.
03. Politifact, April 19, 2016, By Chris Nichols, http://politifact.com.
04. NBC News, February 10, 2015, By Maggie Steenland, http://nbcnews.com.
05. The Guardian, September 4, 2012, By Glenn Greenwald, http://theguardian.com.
06. The Washington Post, September 23, 2014, By Paul Farhi, http://washingtonpost.com.
07. Rolling Stone Magazine, October 20, 1977, By Carl Bernstein, http://carlbernstein.com.
08. Wikipedia, Operation Mockingbird, http://wikipedia.org.
09. The Intercept, April 22, 2016, By David Dayen, http://theintercept.com.
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid.
12. CNN, April 22, 2016, By John D. Sutter, New York, NY, http://cnn.com.
13. The Daily Signal,. April 4, 2016, By Hans von Spakovsky and Cole Wintheiser, http://dailysignal.com.
14. The Chicago Tribune, March 13, 2015, By John Carpenter, Austin, TX, http://chicagotribune.com.
15. National Review, January 27, 2016, By David French, http://nationalreview.com.
16. The Daily Caller, April 22, 2016, By Andrew Follett, http://dailycaller.com.
17. Los Angeles Times, April 20, 2016, By Sean Greene, http://latimes.com.
18. Ibid.
19. The Council on Foreign Relations, February 17, 2006, By Richard N. Haass, http://cfr.org.
20. The Guardian, November 21, 2012, By Elizabeth Kolbert, http://theguardian.com.
21. Tulsa World, July 23, 2015, By Barbara Hoberock, Oklahoma City, OK, http://tulsaworld.com.
22. The Conversation, April 19, 2016, By Joseph P. Laycock, http://theconversation.com.
23. Christian Post, March 24, 2016, By Michael Gryboski, http://christianpost.com.
24. Earthquake Track, April 26, 2016, http://earthquaketrack.com.
25. The Guardian, April 16, 2016, By Richard Smart and Jamie Grierson, http://theguardian.com.
26. Bloomberg News, April 26, 2016, By Finbarr Flynn and Katsuyo Kuwako, http://bloomberg.com.
27. Reuters News Service, April 23, 2016, By Julia Semmes Cobb and Diego Ore, Quito, Ecuador.
28. Superstation95 - 95.1 FM, April 23, 2016, By Newsroom, http://superstation95.com.
29. ABC News, April 18, 2016, By Emily Shapiro, http://abcnews.go.com.

To learn more about the history of our ministry and our founder, Pastor David J. Meyer, please visit http://pastormeyer.org.

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