The Battles Of Life
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When Joe Biden ran for President of the United States in 2020, he did so with the promise that he would “Build back better.” However, a careful examination of our country’s current condition reveals a straightforward fact; almost nothing has been better since Biden took his seat at the White House in January 2021. As such, there is growing dissatisfaction amongst Republicans, Democrats, and Independents alike. According to a recent poll published by The Associated Press, a whopping 85 percent of respondents said the United States “is headed in the wrong direction.” (27) A paltry 28 percent of respondents approve of Biden’s handling of the economy. (28)
Even as the American people grapple with high gas prices, the worst inflation in decades, a volatile stock market, a slumping housing market, a chaotic cryptocurrency market, and a supply chain crisis that still hasn’t been rectified, it is not difficult to see why so many people are pessimistic about the economy. According to the University of Michigan’s highly regarded consumer survey, consumer sentiment reached a seventy-year low in June 2022. In total, 79 percent of consumers said they expect bad times for business conditions in the upcoming year. (29)
One of the biggest worries for the American people today is inflation. According to the consumer price index, inflation reached a 40-year high in May 2022. (30) It is interesting to note that more than half of all Americans alive today are Millennials or younger. (31) Thus, this is the highest inflation ever seen by more than half of the American population. To maintain their current standard of living, many Americans are turning to credit cards to pay for the things they want and need. According to a June 2022 report, the number of revolving credit accounts and lines of credit increased by 19.6 percent over the same time period last year. The debt owed on credit accounts has topped 1.103 trillion dollars, which is a record high. (32) This reliance on credit cards will likely cause more problems down the road. The average interest rate on credit cards has topped 20 percent. (33)
In an effort to cool inflation, the Federal Reserve has been raising key interest rates in the United States. The central bank implemented a rate hike of 0.75 percent in mid-June 2022, which was the first time the Federal Reserve raised interest rates this much since 1994. (34) As such, interest rates on financial products such as credit cards and mortgages are rising, too. The average interest rate on 30-year mortgages rose to 5.81 percent in late June 2022, which is the highest rate since November 2008. “Fixed mortgage rates have increased by more than two full percentage points since the beginning of the year. The combination of rising rates and high home prices is the likely driver of recent declines in existing home sales,” said Sam Khater who is Chief Economist at Freddie Mac. (35)
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The Wrong Direction
When Joe Biden ran for President of the United States in 2020, he did so with the promise that he would “Build back better.” However, a careful examination of our country’s current condition reveals a straightforward fact; almost nothing has been better since Biden took his seat at the White House in January 2021. As such, there is growing dissatisfaction amongst Republicans, Democrats, and Independents alike. According to a recent poll published by The Associated Press, a whopping 85 percent of respondents said the United States “is headed in the wrong direction.” (27) A paltry 28 percent of respondents approve of Biden’s handling of the economy. (28)
Even as the American people grapple with high gas prices, the worst inflation in decades, a volatile stock market, a slumping housing market, a chaotic cryptocurrency market, and a supply chain crisis that still hasn’t been rectified, it is not difficult to see why so many people are pessimistic about the economy. According to the University of Michigan’s highly regarded consumer survey, consumer sentiment reached a seventy-year low in June 2022. In total, 79 percent of consumers said they expect bad times for business conditions in the upcoming year. (29)
One of the biggest worries for the American people today is inflation. According to the consumer price index, inflation reached a 40-year high in May 2022. (30) It is interesting to note that more than half of all Americans alive today are Millennials or younger. (31) Thus, this is the highest inflation ever seen by more than half of the American population. To maintain their current standard of living, many Americans are turning to credit cards to pay for the things they want and need. According to a June 2022 report, the number of revolving credit accounts and lines of credit increased by 19.6 percent over the same time period last year. The debt owed on credit accounts has topped 1.103 trillion dollars, which is a record high. (32) This reliance on credit cards will likely cause more problems down the road. The average interest rate on credit cards has topped 20 percent. (33)
In an effort to cool inflation, the Federal Reserve has been raising key interest rates in the United States. The central bank implemented a rate hike of 0.75 percent in mid-June 2022, which was the first time the Federal Reserve raised interest rates this much since 1994. (34) As such, interest rates on financial products such as credit cards and mortgages are rising, too. The average interest rate on 30-year mortgages rose to 5.81 percent in late June 2022, which is the highest rate since November 2008. “Fixed mortgage rates have increased by more than two full percentage points since the beginning of the year. The combination of rising rates and high home prices is the likely driver of recent declines in existing home sales,” said Sam Khater who is Chief Economist at Freddie Mac. (35)
The American stock market has seen staggering losses in the preceding weeks. Many of the biggest technology companies have faltered, including Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Google’s parent company Alphabet, Inc., Meta Platforms which owns Facebook, and the famous television streamer known as Netflix. These companies have lost a combined 3.328 trillion dollars in value this year as of June 15, 2022. (36) Meanwhile, the Standard’s and Poor’s stock index had dropped 18 percent this year. It has been fifty years since the S&P performed this poorly halfway through the year. (37) Market forecaster Jim Bianco expects the troubles with the stock market to continue until the Federal Reserve, commonly referred to as “The Fed,” stops hiking interest rates. “The Fed only has one tool to bring in inflation and that is they have to slow demand. We may not like what’s happening, but over in the Eccles Building in Washington, I don’t think they’re too upset with what they’ve seen in the stock market for the last few weeks,” Bianco opined. He later went on to say, “You could raise rates enough and you could butcher the economy and you can have demand fall off a cliff and you can have inflation go down. Now, that’s not the way you or I want it to be done. There’s a high degree of chance that they’re going to wind up going too far and making a bigger mess of this.” (38)
It is generally expected that the Federal Reserve will continue to raise key interest rates until inflation levels off. As such, another interest rate increase in July 2022 is likely. “We can’t fail on this. We really have to get inflation down. We’re going to want to see evidence that it really is coming down before we declare any kind of victory,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said. (39) Powell further admitted that the current inflation crisis could bring more “surprises” in the future. “Inflation has obviously surprised to the upside over the past year, and further surprises could be in store,” Powell admitted. (40) It is safe to say that these would not be happy surprises.
United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who last year called inflation a “small risk” and “manageable,” recently admitted in a CNN interview with Wolf Blitzer that she was wrong. “There have been unanticipated and large shocks to the economy that have boosted energy and food prices. And supply bottlenecks that affected our economy badly that I didn’t, at the time, fully understand,” Yellen confessed. (41) It is hardly reassuring that our nation’s Treasury Secretary did not understand what was causing inflation. It is her job to understand these matters. Neither Yellen nor Powell at the Federal Reserve inspire confidence, and as such, a growing number of Americans are worried that a recession is coming. This heightened anxiety is highlighted in a piece published by NBC News on June 21, 2022, with the headline “Covid anxiety is giving way to economic anxiety.” The report goes on to say “Now the stock market is tumbling, the price of necessities is spiking, and there is talk of an impending recession. The return to normal has been put off again as the economy becomes the new uncertainty and limitation to contend with, and the cause of another bout of collective anxiety.” (42)
One thing I have learned in the twelve years I have written this newsletter is that this fallen world always has a wide assortment of problems and crises that will cause anxiety. We move from one crisis to the next, and there is absolutely no reason to expect that this will ever change until the return of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. However, we survived the Great Recession of 2008, and if another recession comes, I firmly believe our God will bring us through another one, too. As human beings, we have a propensity to worry. Yet, the Apostle Paul instructs in Philippians 4:6-7, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” If you have not yet repented of your sins and dedicated your life to God, I urge you to do so now.
As always, we are thankful for your generous support which allows us to continue this ministry. I hope and pray that Almighty God will richly bless each and every one of you. If you have any prayer needs, we invite you to send them our way. Our intercessors always give each prayer request individual attention. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Samuel David Meyer
This newsletter is made possible by the kind donations of our supporters. If you would like to help us, you may send your contribution to our postal address or donate online at http://lasttrumpetnewsletter.org/donate.
Acknowledgments
27. Associated Press, June 29, 2022, By Associated Press, http://apnews.com.
28. Ibid.
29. CNN, June 28, 2022, By Ramishah Marul, http://cnn.com.
30. Bloomberg News, June 10, 2022, By Olivia Rockeman, http://bloomberg.com.
31. Brookings, July 30, 2022, By William H. Frey, http://brookings.edu.
32. USA Today, June 29, 2022, By David Chang, http://usatoday.com.
33. CNBC, June 22, 2022, By Carmen Reinicke, http://cnbc.com.
34. NBC News, June 15, 2022, By Rob Wile, http://nbcnews.com.
35. Fox Business News, June 28, 2022, By Kelsey Ramirez, http://foxbusiness.com.
36. S&P Global Market Intelligence, June 15, 2022, By Joseph Williams and Darakhshan Nazir, http://spglobal.com.
37. Fox Business News, June 28, 2022, By Suzanne O’Halloran, http://foxbusiness.com.
38. CNBC, June 14, 2022, By Stephanie Landsman, http://cnbc.com.
39. The Wall Street Journal, June 23, 2022, By Nick Timiraos, http://wsj.com.
40. Politico, June 23, 2022, By Victoria Guida, http://politico.com.
41. National Public Radio, June 1, 2022, By Ximena Bustillo, http://npr.org.
42. NBC News, June 27, 2022, By Maggie Mulqueen, http://nbcnews.com.
If you would like to submit a prayer request, you may send email to prayer@ltmmail.org or mail it to our postal address.
Source
It is generally expected that the Federal Reserve will continue to raise key interest rates until inflation levels off. As such, another interest rate increase in July 2022 is likely. “We can’t fail on this. We really have to get inflation down. We’re going to want to see evidence that it really is coming down before we declare any kind of victory,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said. (39) Powell further admitted that the current inflation crisis could bring more “surprises” in the future. “Inflation has obviously surprised to the upside over the past year, and further surprises could be in store,” Powell admitted. (40) It is safe to say that these would not be happy surprises.
United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who last year called inflation a “small risk” and “manageable,” recently admitted in a CNN interview with Wolf Blitzer that she was wrong. “There have been unanticipated and large shocks to the economy that have boosted energy and food prices. And supply bottlenecks that affected our economy badly that I didn’t, at the time, fully understand,” Yellen confessed. (41) It is hardly reassuring that our nation’s Treasury Secretary did not understand what was causing inflation. It is her job to understand these matters. Neither Yellen nor Powell at the Federal Reserve inspire confidence, and as such, a growing number of Americans are worried that a recession is coming. This heightened anxiety is highlighted in a piece published by NBC News on June 21, 2022, with the headline “Covid anxiety is giving way to economic anxiety.” The report goes on to say “Now the stock market is tumbling, the price of necessities is spiking, and there is talk of an impending recession. The return to normal has been put off again as the economy becomes the new uncertainty and limitation to contend with, and the cause of another bout of collective anxiety.” (42)
One thing I have learned in the twelve years I have written this newsletter is that this fallen world always has a wide assortment of problems and crises that will cause anxiety. We move from one crisis to the next, and there is absolutely no reason to expect that this will ever change until the return of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. However, we survived the Great Recession of 2008, and if another recession comes, I firmly believe our God will bring us through another one, too. As human beings, we have a propensity to worry. Yet, the Apostle Paul instructs in Philippians 4:6-7, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” If you have not yet repented of your sins and dedicated your life to God, I urge you to do so now.
As always, we are thankful for your generous support which allows us to continue this ministry. I hope and pray that Almighty God will richly bless each and every one of you. If you have any prayer needs, we invite you to send them our way. Our intercessors always give each prayer request individual attention. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Samuel David Meyer
This newsletter is made possible by the kind donations of our supporters. If you would like to help us, you may send your contribution to our postal address or donate online at http://lasttrumpetnewsletter.org/donate.
Acknowledgments
27. Associated Press, June 29, 2022, By Associated Press, http://apnews.com.
28. Ibid.
29. CNN, June 28, 2022, By Ramishah Marul, http://cnn.com.
30. Bloomberg News, June 10, 2022, By Olivia Rockeman, http://bloomberg.com.
31. Brookings, July 30, 2022, By William H. Frey, http://brookings.edu.
32. USA Today, June 29, 2022, By David Chang, http://usatoday.com.
33. CNBC, June 22, 2022, By Carmen Reinicke, http://cnbc.com.
34. NBC News, June 15, 2022, By Rob Wile, http://nbcnews.com.
35. Fox Business News, June 28, 2022, By Kelsey Ramirez, http://foxbusiness.com.
36. S&P Global Market Intelligence, June 15, 2022, By Joseph Williams and Darakhshan Nazir, http://spglobal.com.
37. Fox Business News, June 28, 2022, By Suzanne O’Halloran, http://foxbusiness.com.
38. CNBC, June 14, 2022, By Stephanie Landsman, http://cnbc.com.
39. The Wall Street Journal, June 23, 2022, By Nick Timiraos, http://wsj.com.
40. Politico, June 23, 2022, By Victoria Guida, http://politico.com.
41. National Public Radio, June 1, 2022, By Ximena Bustillo, http://npr.org.
42. NBC News, June 27, 2022, By Maggie Mulqueen, http://nbcnews.com.
If you would like to submit a prayer request, you may send email to prayer@ltmmail.org or mail it to our postal address.
Source
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