Precious Metals, Pecan Pies, and Economic Turmoil

By Contributing Writer, Leah Smith

Do not fret because of evildoers, be not envious toward wrongdoers.  For they will wither quickly like the grass and fade like the green herb. Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. (Psalm 37: 1-3)

Recently, much of my time has been spent thinking about how to prepare for the new year. The thought of what is to come, good or bad, has me thinking of how we can best prepare our families for whatever God has in store for the nation.

There’s much talk about an even bigger financial collapse in the near future that will make 2008 look like a joke. It’s the kind of thing that makes any mother and wife squeamish as our sense of security and safety could be taken away from us at any time.

Articles come out on a daily basis about how you need to hunker down, get all the food, guns, and ammo you can acquire and possibly even move out of the city! That is a scary thought. What kind of chaos could possibly ensue that has everyone freaking out like this? These thoughts tend to grip me tightly as fear attempts to choke me. I pursue the Word of God and find hope.

To be sure, God is judging the world as we speak. The economic collapse that is happening around the globe is historical and is beginning to have repercussions on local communities (or soon will).  What happens when an economy fails?

Well, for one, if banks go bankrupt it means they don’t have any cash. You’ll go to take out your money (probably everyone at once too) and there will be nothing to give. Then we will have to deal with how to survive without cash. An interesting scenario. And as scary as the thought is, it could be a huge blessing in disguise. Let me explain.

 

God’s Way Versus The World’s Way

You see, the current economic system we have (both in Canada and the US) is not based on the Bible at all. It’s a Satanic counterfeit scam that the world has operated on for quite some time. Paper money? In actuality, it’s worth just as much as any pretend board game paper money.

Back in the olden days when people carried around gold and silver (real currencies), sometimes they would get robbed or just wanted to store their gold at a bank. The banks would give them paper receipts that qualified as “proof” that they really had money in the bank. They could then use those receipts in everyday transactions instead of the real gold.

 

The problem?

While this worked temporarily, the banks realized they could invest their client’s gold without them knowing (after all, who was looking in the vaults?) and make a profit. Fast forward several decades, and now all we have is paper receipts, and no actual gold in the banks anymore. But the paper receipts still aren’t worth anything.

Fast forward to the present, and now we have mostly digital money and less paper receipts. Digital money is just like paper money: It’s just pretend. It’s only numbers. It counts for nothing that is actually valuable–and that’s what money is: an exchangeable medium of valuable goods.

Gold and silver are rare, so that makes them valuable. If we all thought pecan pies were rare, we could exchange those, but as it turns out, precious metals are the most rare and sought after. I was also surprised when I discovered precious metals are the most biblical forms of money. My favorite Christian economist, Gary North, wrote:

Precious metals, then as now, were considered valuable economic resources. Well over 350 references to gold appear in Strong’s Concordance, and about the same number of references to silver. Even in Genesis 2:11, prior to the fall of man, we read of the wonders of “the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold,” and the next verse informs us that “the gold of that land is good…”Abram’s wealth was counted in “cattle, in silver, and in gold” (Gen.13:2).

Gold played an important role in worship, whether godly (Ex. 25; 26; 28; 37) or pagan (Ex. 20:23; 32). The glories of the judgments of God are compared to fine gold; they exceed the value of gold, gold apparently being the most commonly understood commodity of historic value (Ps. 19:9-10). Similarly, godly wisdom is compared favorably with gold, and is said to be even more desirable (Prov. 3: 14; 8: 10, 18, 19). Both silver and gold functioned internationally as money. Benhadad, king of Syria, when he besieged Israel, sent messengers to Ahab announcing Syria’s sovereignty over Israel’s gold and silver (I Kings 20:3}. Payment was made by the king of Syria to the king of Israel when he wanted the leprosy of Naaman, his commander, cured (II Kings 5:5). There is no question that gold and silver were the money of Israel and Judah (II Kings 12, esp. vs. 13). [1]

Keep this in mind during the US presidential primaries. Vote for someone who believes in sound money–money backed by real gold. Money that isn’t based on fraud or the federal reserve. This would be a giant step in the right direction for returning to God’s plan for biblical economics in the world.

 

The Good News Is…

So what do we do with that information now, knowing our entire money system is counterfeit, unstable, and will eventually collapse? We start thinking about God’s economic system. Yes, He has one. We’ve been operating on the Devil’s system for so long we haven’t even thought to ask questions.

Well you know what?

Satan’s system is failing.

It was doomed to fail from the beginning because it was based on theft and counterfeiting. If the whole world’s satanic economic system fails, this is a good thing! An intense, potentially scary time–yes–but could also be the most amazing opportunity Christians have had in centuries to become leaders and offer biblical solutions that the world can turn to.

We will also have the opportunity to witness like never before.

In the meantime, we do need to prepare our families for this “system fail” while God judges the nations. It’s always good idea to be prepared for earthquakes, hurricanes or any kind of natural disaster. Start with that.

Then move on to more self-sufficiency. Plant a little kitchen garden. Buy food in bulk and store it properly. Buy cloth diapers (I finally caved in and got some myself!) Become skilled in a trade (and better yet – teach your children skills and trades!) like sewing, first aid, or herbal medicine. Acquire some real assets (not real estate, but something hard like gold or silver).

And remember Noah.  God gave him plenty of time to prepare and made sure he was safe while He judged the earth. We want to do the same and be prepared to get on the boat and protect our families. God will preserve His people since we are the means in which He chooses to preach the gospel and disciple the nations.

 

What Happens to the Bad Guys?

I often have a hard time thinking of all the “what if” scenarios.  Fear just happens to be my personal thorn. I’ve struggled with it since I was a teenager. The difference now is that I can see a much bigger picture of what God is accomplishing in history.

The above verse I quoted says we should not fret or worry because of evildoers. Big bad men who are trying to take over the world or who are messing up our money system will whither like grass. They will only live 80 years max, if God even grants them that long of a life. Eventually they will die. They won’t be here forever, and then a new generation has a chance to either follow God’s ways or man’s ways yet again.

Here is Our Chance

And while it may be tempting at times to want to hunker down, disconnect your internet and move out of the city, the Psalm also tells us to “dwell in the land”. We can do things more wisely, but don’t fear putting down roots and engaging in your community.

God tells us to “cultivate faithfulness”. When I read that line, I instantly think of my children. We are literally “cultivating” or fostering the growth of biblical thinking in our children–or not. Because evangelism in the world first starts with evangelism in the home. When our little seedlings grow to more maturity, they will start to think and reason on a more complex level–and this is where our faithfulness will start to bear fruit.

Our children are God’s future history-makers. When times get rough and it looks like the sky is falling, it’s really God’s way of tearing down the enemies strongholds so He can raise up His Church. The question is: Will we know how to lead? Will we have biblical solutions to offer? Are we ready for responsibility?

If you are interested in becoming more familiar with what the Bible says about money and economics, I would encourage you to start HERE with some short lessons. If you’re an adventurous reader, THIS free book will rock your world.

There’s nothing more dangerous to the Devil than moms and wives who understand how the world really works – and what we can do to change it!

Lets not grow weary when we see the world system collapse, but instead rejoice that God is triumphing over His enemies, and that Satan’s schemes are once again failing. Our faith will be tested, and the fruit of that which we have been cultivating in our homes for years will finally have the chance to go forth and disciple entire nations.

Be encouraged. God is on the move.

1. Quoted in An Introduction to Biblical Economics, by Gary North (The Craig Press, 1973)

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