Just this past week, a couple of BOJ governors started making public comments leading the international financial community to believe the BOJ would soon start raising rates (short term Japanese interest is -0.10% – yes they will pay people to borrow money in order to stimulate economic growth).
Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said on Thursday Dec 7th he told Prime Minister Fumio Kishida the central bank will scrutinise the strength of domestic demand and next year’s wage outlook in guiding monetary policy.
The remarks came in the wake of those by Deputy Governor Ryozo Himino on Wednesday Dec 6th elaborating on the potential impact an exit from ultra-loose monetary policy could have on the economy.
The BOJ next meets for a rate review on Dec. 18-19, followed by another meeting on Jan. 22-23 when it conducts a quarterly review of its growth and inflation forecasts.
Yen up 6% in month – 2% in a day
Background Reading / Listening
This is another reminder to “Watch Japan” (click for last discussion write up, illustrations and podcast on this topic).
Japan is the country where the “sun rises first”. There is a prophetic understanding of first goes Japan – then goes the USA / ROW (rest of world). See the last write up for more on this by way of background. Bob Jones prophecy and Rick Joyner Alert.
Economic Financial Troubles Coming
In 2008/9 during the financial crisis, I felt the Lord was sharing a few things:
This is not the end of troubles, but the beginning of troubles
Ezekiel 29-32 is a 7-fold judgment of Egypt, Pharaoh, and Pharoah’s pride. They thought they were like God. Just like the tower of Babble in Gen 11. Just like the pride of Nebuchadnezzar. America has a similar pride today, especially in the strength of its financial markets, its currency, its economic power. I felt God speaking through this scripture that so too would America’s economic power be greatly humbled. The scripture speaks of 40 years. Japan has been going through economic trouble for now 34-37 years depending on how you measure it.
Watchmen on the Wall
Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil
1 Thessalonians 5:20-22
Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets
Dec 20th 8-10am – Stephen Burke, The Lord Will Provide ministries will share his perspective on what is going on in Israel, how it relates to a strategic vision he saw, and how this relates to what God is doing on the earth in preparation for His return. You won’t want to miss…
Dec 20th 10am-12pm – Manatee Storehouse Community group. You can join in with this FL community to learn more about the Storehouse from 10am-12pm Dec 20th Wed and hear what is happening in central FL. Gary Crawford, one of our leaders and the Manatee County FL team. This is a Storehouse learning opportunity. Zoom link https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88569625162
Part 2 to “Stock Market Questions“, prompted last week by Maja Corlett (is it gambling?; is it sinful? should we sell our stocks?) Maja’s key follow-up question THIS WEEK is focused on how the Storehouse works. If someone takes money out of the stock market, where can they invest it? And if you want to invest it into a Storehouse, how do you do it?
Specifically: Say that someone sells $10,000 of stock and wants to invest it in a Storehouse. Is it still considered that person’s money and could it be taken out – like for example if that person wanted to bless their whole family and take them to Israel? It’s not like a need but they would need that money in order to do it… Is that looked down upon (in the community) because it was “given” to the storehouse or is it still theirs?
So, our discussion tomorrow will be around how does the Storehouse work? This will also serve as “Part 8” of a “How To” series regarding how to start a Storehouse (see below for other “How to” steps).
We will get into the various types of accounts and investments connected with a Storehouse, generally speaking. We will also speak of how specifical storehouses work, such as the one in New England (NECAP.net) and the one in Florida (Manatee County Storehouse)
Terminology:
Storehouse Community – those individuals (believers) who are part of the local Storehouse and who also are part of the Church unity move in that region
Storehouse Deacons and Elders – those volunteers leading, managing, administering, accounting and overseeing the Storehouse
Storehouse Fund – common pool of capital to support and finance the whole community typically housed in a non-profit. Accepts gifts, but can also receive general investments.
Individual Account – each person in the community has their own Storehouse account individually (like a savings account)
Individual Investment – can lend money to people and into projects as they see fit as a side-by-side investment (as these loans/investments are repaid they are credited to the individual’s accounts based on their share of ownership)
Individual Gifts – can give to people and into projects as they see fit
Storehouses embrace the “fishes and loves” way of God’s provision
Better a little with righteousness than much gain with injustice
Prov 16:8
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
Recently at a New England Storehouse meeting (N.E.C.A.P.), Maja Corlett asked the simple question: Is investing in the stock market gambling? Is it sinful?
It prompted a good conversation. Tomorrow Maja will join us and we will broaden and continue that conversation. Some of our leadership will share their perspective (Gary Crawford, Gregg Healey, others).
We are a learning community led by the Holy Spirit. All questions and perspectives are valid. We will endeavor to share and teach on the New Breed of Business biblical understanding of the stock market as part.
Questions
Investing in the stock market gambling?
Investing in the stock market sinful?
Investing in the stock market wise?
Should I use a financial planner?
If I have a 401k or IRA, what can I invest in other than the markets?
What are the alternatives to investing in the Stock Market?
If we come out of the stock market, should we stop paying taxes?
BYO (Bring Your Own Questions)
Stock Market Fundamentals
When you buy stock, you legally become a partner in that company
When you buy index funds, ETFs, mutual funds you are legally partnering with many companies simultaneously, but it is somewhat obscured by the fact it is one level down in an investment structure
Financial markets are driven up and down by many forces (fundamentals, technical, future growth prospects), but those forces include fear and greed
Companies are either privately owned, or “publicly traded”. If they are publicly traded, they are part of the “stock market”
Investors in the stock markets include: individuals through apps (eg, Robinhood), individuals through stock brokers and financial planners (eg, Morgan Stanley), pension funds, endowments, insurance companies, banks, governments
Premise that the stock market will always go up, sometimes referred to as a buy and hold strategy
Whitewashing moral ethical shortcuts in name of “shareholder’s interests”
Codifying Milton Freedman’s phrase “the business of business is business”
Removal of God and religion from “business” in publicly traded companies
Corporate adoption of secular values and causes fill void – BDS, ESG, Pride, Choice
Biblical Considerations
Free-will / freedom – Gal 5:13
Be careful with who you form partnerships – 2 Cor 6:14-18
Come out of Babylon – Rev 18:4
Do not profit from the poor – Prov 22:16; Ezek 22:29
Rest from labors every seven years – Deut 25:4
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy – Exodus 20:8
Do not charge interest to fellow believers and the poor – Deut 23:19
Commonly Accepted Business Practices
Customer Service departments trained to extract revenue, given little authority to help people
Cell Phone Companies – cut off service; won’t extend credit to the poor; people in financial difficulty
Cable Companies – hidden fees, practices designed to enslave poor and elderly people with large monthly bills
Hospital billing practices
Bank loan interest and fee practices for the poor
Credit card companies practices of capturing people in fees and interest
Pharmaceutical company predatory pricing
Technology companies data ownership legal practices maintaining rights to terminate services / social networks
Stock Market Lingo
Bulls and Bears
Animal Spirits
Fear and Greed
FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
Stock tip
Insider trading
Non-public information
Mutual Funds
ETFs
Long and short
Day Trading
Hedge Funds
Factors to Consider
Have Wall Street and the Stock Market become part of Babylon?
What if the US financial markets are being judged through several more waves of trouble / crashes?
The debt load is growing and is unsustainable
Babylon enslaves people in its economic system
The US pioneered financial markets (capitalism) have becoming more corrupted, yet more widespread, representing 70% plus of the US and Western economies
Revelation 18 is an economic description of this coming judgment and destruction
Revelation 13 points to a day of not being able to buy and sell in the nations of the world unless you pledge yourself to be a member of the system (worship, bow to the statue of Neb/ Antichrist)
Concentration of power
Concentration of wealth
all roads in success in usa funded through VC, PE, individual investors lead to IPO stock market or sale to publicly traded company
Prophetic encounters regarding Investing
“Before I invest in something, I invest in someone”
“Giving + Blessing = Enterprising”
“This is the beginning, not the end” (regarding the 2008 financial crisis)
“I care more about how you make your money, than what you do with it”
Alternative to Stock Market
What are the alternatives to investing in the publicly trading of stocks and financial markets (credit based financial systems)? Read more about the “Storehouse Vision” here.
Roundtable Discussion – Financial Faith 101 with Jonathan Friz
We discuss in 2 parts the Proverbial wisdom surrounding work, wealth, productivity, frugality, generosity, and righteousness (we are calling this “101”). Much of which is focused on having good character. Not taking shortcuts. Working diligently. Helping the poor and the disadvantaged. Also how wisdom is superior to material wealth. And heavenly riches are superior to early wealth.
Then in part 2, we will see how Jesus builds on these truths, taking them further in the department of trusting God with all by Faith, even if it is to our seeming detriment (to make a way for ourselves, to defend ourselves or bring justice). This also includes operating in miracles and wonders in the area of provision. (We are calling this “201” or “301”).
Quick Example:
Foundational 101 Proverbial Wisdom: “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich” (Proverbs 10:4)
Supernatural 201 Faith in God: “Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given unto you as well” (Matthew 6:33)
We discuss wealth. The difference between material wealth and spiritual riches. How material wealth is desirable and can be a good thing. If it is brought by the hand of the Lord and by diligent work, that is a wholesome thing. However, if it comes from worldly, even evil character traits (selfish ambition, profit at the expense of others, idolization, unhealthy material desire, etc.) it can be a corrosive and corrupting thing. Think of Zacchaeus before and after.
The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and he adds no sorrow to it
Contentment – link to NBB Devotional: Secret of God’s Economy (download)
LaRed Workbook – deeper dive educational material based on many scriptures in Proverbs regarding business practices. 40 studies. (courtesy of Gary Crawford)
On today’s discussion we look at the rise of Anti-Semitism globally, and why it is important for the Church to always support the Jewish people and stand by Israel.
How the Hamas attack against Israel is part of a broader strategy to turn people and popular opinion against Israel and against the Jewish people. To use the Palestinian people as not only human shields, but an anti-Semitic foil through the UN and the mainstream media. Ultimately, the terrorist groups of Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthi, and Iran have publicly declared their strategic intent of the elimination of Israel and the extermination of the Jewish people.
We not only need be aware of this, but we can not grow complacent in our support for Israel and the Jewish people. We love both the Palestinian people and the Jewish people and pray that “all would come to the saving knowledge of Christ”. But, we cannot just throw up our hands and say oh well is a 50% / 50% war that’s been going on forever, so let’s just stay out of it. No.
I will bless those who bless you and I will curse him who curse you. And in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed
God’s promises to Abraham – Genesis 12:3
A really good read is Bibi, the auto biography of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It really reveals the terrorist tactics used against Israel and the Jewish people, starting with the death of his own brother Yoni in Uganda on the hijacked El Al aircraft in the 70s.
I would not have you be ignorant of this mystery…Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come… in this way all Israel will be saved
Romans 11:25-26
Mike Bickle teaching on the error of Replacement Theology being baked into most seminaries and seminarians. That Calvin and Luther both embraced this subtle form of replacement theology – that Israel should be treated as a spiritual matter only, no longer a political, physical matter of the Jewish people and the promised land of Israel.
The Fishers and the Hunters
Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks
We hear from Dan Coakley, friend and fellow ex-Wall Streeter. Dan and I met here in Westport, CT in 2008 at the Firehouse (our old offices) and he has an amazing testimony you won’t want to miss.
Dan’s Story
My personal journey and being pursued by the Lord starts after I was on Wall Street in the late 1990s and 2000s. And the sort of lifestyle that entails and all the darkness it brought me into.
(Dan started his Wall Street career at Lehman Brothers in investment banking, then moved into private real estate investment, but prior to that he was a speechwriter in Congress for an elected official after graduating Dartmouth as their #1 tennis player.)
God never gave up on me. He used Gregg and the New Breed of Business Bible study as a lifeline and way back to Him – which kept me connected, even if by a thread, with St. Paul Westport. St. Paul ultimately, years later, played a huge role in both myself and my daughter being saved by Jesus. I really feel God’s main purpose in keeping Gregg and I close and St. Paul in the picture was so I would be able to later bring my daughter to Church as a highschooler, at a time when we both needed Jesus desperately. And through that, and in the years that followed, I was brought so much closer to the Lord in my own relationship with Him (including through a St. Paul mission trip I went on with my daughter this past summer).
I truly have seen miracles happen and many of my prayers answered – including in the recent hiring of a Christian ex-colleague where I work. God’s fingerprints were all over that. It’s still a real challenge for me to fully rely on the Lord. I was always programmed growing up with the value of self-will, self-power and hard work, etc. I really need to have Church and friends and small groups and things like that so I don’t stray too far off the path and become overwhelmed.
(Today, Dan still works in real estate, but he is now focused on affordable housing and trying to make a difference in what he does at work to help people.)
Before going into P12 of our joint study material, we discuss with Grant Berry the worst terrorist attack in the history of modern Israel. Its geo-political consequences. The Abraham Accords. The future of Gaza. Israel and the Church’s prophetic destiny leading up to the Yeshua’s return in the one new man, and prophetic fulfillment of scripture.
Psalm 122
I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Our feet are standing in your gates, Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is built like a city that is closely compacted together. That is where the tribes go up— the tribes of the Lord— to praise the name of the Lord according to the statute given to Israel. There stand the thrones for judgment, the thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.” For the sake of my family and friends, I will say, “Peace be within you.” For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your prosperity.”
Doug has written a good primer to learn more about a biblical worldview of economy and the history of money: I Came to Give (with this link you can sign up and get access to the eBook and Audiobook). Doug has also made available a PDF version of Part 2 of his book. It is called “The Traditions of Men” and is a dive into monetary history from 600 B.C. to present.
Doug is also part of the Storehouse leadership team.
OWNX is based in Lawrence, KS and is a fractional metals platform. This means you can buy and sell precious metals electronically, but you physically own the inventory in a remote depository. You also have the flexibility of taking delivery of your metal to your own physical location, either in the form of bars or coins.
The company was founded in 2008 as Silver Saver, with the recognition that the precious metals market, specifically the silver market lacked transparency, cost efficiency and ease of use, especially for smaller investors/savers. Read more about the history here.
This is a tool you can utilize to build your own regional Storehouse (see Storehouse vision for more on that), either through a non-profit entity, a church or a business entity. You can also use it personally and soon, they are launching a precious metals IRA that is fully integrated into their online platform.
To give you an idea of their value alignment with the Kingdom, when the Dobbs decision was handed down by the SCOTUS last year, they immediately instituted a Child Adoption Policy to show their support for life.
Related Scriptures
And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
Genesis 2:12
And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
Genesis 13:2
And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
Tomorrow Wednesday we gather at 8-10am EST on Zoom. (Feel free to invite others to join us by forwarding this email.)
We will hear from David Qu who lives with his family in Cincinnati Ohio about his journey as a businessman and Christ follower. Having emigrated from China as a young man, worked at A.T. Kerney (renowned management consulting firm) for blue chip publicly traded clients (Ford, Pratt and Whitney, Johnson Controls, etc.), to later start his own business with his wife, dedicated to the Lord focusing on advising middle market private companies with strategic direction and transitions.
David, Angela and I first met in Sweden at the ICCC conference in Stockholm late last year, through Jimmy Wong and Gary Crawford. David was intrigued by the New Breed of Business and my background which in many ways was similar to his own.
Having been on similar yet different faith journeys, we will focus tomorrow’s discussion on what taking such a path is like – leaving corporate America with its steady pay, but restricted freedoms, then pursuing a God given dream by faith of being in business on our own, having the freedom to follow and honor God.
Bio:
I immigrated to the United States at the age of 14 with my parents and started learning English in 9th grade. The first book I read in high school was Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss.
Over the next eight years, I excelled academically, put myself through schools, and graduated with an engineering degree and Chairperson’s award from the #2 public university in the country.
I spent the next two-plus decades of my career working with and for the biggest Fortune 500 companies globally across all facets of businesses. As an engineer, program manager, management consultant, and corporate strategy and M&A executive of multi-billion companies, I traveled the world in all forms of transportation and moved my family of four, four times across continents. Click here to learn more about my professional experiences: https://www.rimonark.com/about/our-team/
My faith journey also started shortly after my arrival to the U.S. I attended a Mennonite church in Virginia throughout my high school and was baptized in my senior year after confessing Jesus died for my sins. From there, I experienced God’s love in college and was baptized in the Spirit at the age of 25. On that journey, I have sought God in multiple denominations of the Christian faith, as well as witness the role of faith in the global marketplace.
When we arrived in Cincinnati on Christmas of 2019, my five-year-old son had lived in six cities and three continents.
The COVID pandemic shifted my perspective and I left the W-2 world. It was more than a career change, but of a different mindset, priorities, and personal identity. It has been a journey of personal awakening, humility, and faith.
Angela Qu
Given my continuous life and professional transitions, I founded Rimonark Advisors with my wife, Angela, who has been my pillar of support and trusted advisor in the communities that we serve while still connected globally.
Rimonark is our vision for our clients (see below link for detailed explanation) – assisting business owners to achieve fruitful, safe, and confident transitions as they grow and sell their businesses. It is also a vision of our family and God’s calling for us.
The OMC Example with Dale Schlafer and Gary Crawford
We interview Dale Schlafer and Gary Crawford about the testimony of what God is uniquely doing in west central Florida, aka the Original Manatee County. This should be both encouraging and exciting to other regions!
Share with others around the world what you see being done here
sense Gregg had in Pine Level, FL January 2021
A good video on the origins of ONE OMC…
What is being done there?
– Regional “Wineskin”- Doesn’t replace denominations, churches or para-ministries- City of Refuge – ONE OMC – Unity – Establishing a “Kingdom” mind-set and culture- Equipping the saints through the 5-Fold ministry- United Prayer (Global Day of Prayer, 10 Days of Prayer)- City Elders representative of the 7-mountains of culture, not just senior pastors- Deans / Deacons representing next gen leadership/// – King’s Station, a “Switzerland” to the church – Integrated with daily life, Monday – Friday- G62 Business incubation / office spaces; financial admin support – Economic development of the city / region (real estate, services, investing) – Lending to those in need such as single moms, families encountering financial difficulty or foreclosure – Vehicles of righteousness; Places of Hope; People of Light
OMC Timeline
– “Fellowship of the Burning Hearts”
– 2010 Pastor’s GDP Confession and Repentance for lack of “Kingdom” focus and attention
Dale Schlafer has served as Cofounder and President of the Center for World Revival & Awakening since 1998. The Center is a worldwide ministry dedicated to building the Kingdom of God by promoting the revival of the church, the awakening of the lost, and the reformation of society. “When Revival is the experience of the church, evangelism becomes the expression of the church. When evangelism is the expression of the church, a changed society will be the evidence of those changed lives,” says Schlafer.
In 2004 the Schlafer’s moved, at the Lord’s direction, from Denver Colorado, where they had lived and ministered for 32 years, to the West coast of Florida. Because they had received a word that this area was to become a “refuge area,” they began gathering people to pray & seek the Lord as to what this meant.
By 2010, 37 congregations cancelled their Sunday worship services at their facilities to come together for worship in a convention center. So many people attended they ran out of chairs! Leaders of para church ministries joined pastors to come to the front and they repented for their sin of sectarianism and competition. The congregation as well acknowledged their sin.
This repentance led to the writing of a document in the ensuing months entitled “Alignment for Assignment.” (see www.ONEOMC.org click resources to find paper). This then launched an entire new direction for the area as we seek to understand how this new paradigm for doing ministry together, without giving up the distinctions of a particular congregation, is accomplished.
In 2010 we also learned more as to what a refuge area is. We sensed that we were to be a safe place where Jews, returning to Israel would find refuge, care and help to get to Israel. Since that time we have connected with people all over the world from Australia, South America & Europe. All of these people have heard the same thing. Something is coming that will propel Jews to return to Israel in enormous numbers. This refuge calling is everything from individuals sensing to build a room, a cabin an underground safe place, to geographical areas sensing that they, like we in Florida, are to be prepared for this ministry of passing Jews on to the next safe place.
Schlafer served for 28 years as a local pastor – twenty two in Denver, Colorado & prior to that six years in New Jersey. He also served as the first chairman of the board of Promise Keepers, a men’s ministry, before joining the staff full time in 1994. This experience along with his years of itinerant revival ministry following his time at Promise Keepers and the recent years in Florida, have given him a unique understanding of The Church, especially the concept of how to do Territorial Church and the use of the Five-Fold ministry gifts.
Schlafer has contributed to numerous books on prayer and men’s ministry. NavPress published his “Revival 101-How Christ Ignites His Church, in 2003.”
The Schlafer’s were married for fifty-three years and have three grown children and four grandchildren.
Gary CrawfordGunnar Olsen
Gunnar Olson (a business reformer) similarly was shown to move to Bradenton, FL from Sweden (of all places)
Preaching the gospel of the Kingdom includes living the Kingdom M-F and discipling in the God’s Economy today
Jesus/Yeshua meets his virgin ONM bride in his second coming, as the Bride longs for the Millennium reality by practicing it earnestly today The Bride having come out of Babylon, as Babylon is judged into the tribulation judgment period
Romans 911 Project and New Breed of Business Joint Study
We will discuss FedNow, what it is exactly, what are the implications of this new payment rail. It’s potential leading toward a future CDBC. Its potential to create a crisis. Its potential to be used during a crisis. We also will discuss FedNow in the context of the Storehouse Vision.
This is Part 2 to last weeks discussion: Pennies on the Dollar. (if you missed last week’s discussion, this would be a good one to join).
(sent to Gary Crawford July 19th, day before FedNow surprise launch day)
Risk: Could be used in a Crisis
SWIFT payment system and ISO 200022
FedNow uses a new (to the Federal Reserve) data format for sending payments through FedNow. In fact, it is the same standard as SWIFT now uses, which is a European based international payment system. They utilize the ISO 200022 message standard and so now, the Fed is going to adopt that standard go forward. That implies it will be very easy to subsume the Federal Reserve dollar system and payments into SWIFT which is closely aligned with Europe, The Euro, and the European Union, being HQed in Belgium and being principally owned as a cooperative corporation by its member banks, which are primarily European (Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Santander, etc.)
Payment System = Buying and Selling
It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
It can be as simple as 10 people coming together and putting $100 each into a coffee can.
The Storehouse Visions intends to have Storehouse Communities and Funds to be separate/independent from the Fed Reserve banking system and the financial markets. This is part of the “Break-Away Bridges” strategy.
Regional Storehouses are already putting into practice the following break-away bridges:
Putting money to work by investing in people and Kingdom projects (eg, loan refinancing, housing, auto financing, 10 Days of Prayer Film, etc.) Ecclesiastes 11. Cast you bread on many waters and it will come back to you.
Holding physical currency instead of keeping everything in the bank.
Not investing money in the financial markets / credit products (stocks, bonds, swaps, money markets)
Storing resources in precious metals through a fractional metals physical ownership platform, such as OWNX.com
Storing resources in grain, food stuffs, tools, other reusable supplies
Investing in community gardens and farms. Growing food locally.
Investing in Community water supply, electrical generation, etc.
Finally, the biggest “hedge” or strength of the Storehouse Vision is the value of the Storehouse Community – i.e., people working together in unity under God for His purposes to help others.
Recently there have been some prophetic warnings about a potential USD / banking crisis and financial markets downturn. We first sent some of these words out a couple of weeks ago via email. Today we discuss them.
Below find two timely prophetic words that are worth listening to and praying into. Something might be up in the near term (into this fall) that could impact US monetary/ financial markets/ banking. Not claiming these voices are accurate, you be the judge. As always, ask the Holy Spirit for 2 or 3 confirming witnesses.
We know in part and we prophesy in part
1 Corinthians 13:9
One of our NB team members Liz Lalama found the Tim Sheets word and said it sounded similar to what we have been preaching and teaching about on the New Breed of Business about God’s people being set free from financial slavery with Egyptian Pharaoh / task master analogies (read Ezekiel 29-32). The Troy Black word just recently came out. I’ve been keeping my eye/ear on him as a young prophetic voice not from the usual streams. He was the one with the “Pennies on the Dollar” vision and word. As I was praying about this, an intercessor friend sent me an email of a video discussing FedNow and I sensed a link.
Do not despise prophecies, but test everything. Hold on to what is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:20
Key Warnings and Takeaways
Here on the New Breed of Business we have been speaking about for over 12 years various waves of difficulty coming. These words point to similar issues coming.
– Be prepared for bank runs / closures where you may not be able to withdraw some/all your money from the bank (eg, David Wilkerson – Bank Holiday; John Paul Jackson – Funds About to Dry Up prophecies). Meaning, don’t blindly keep all of your money in the bank assuming it will always be available. As recent as 1930s, banks were closed in the US. It happened in Cyprus in 2013. When banks were reopened, they paid “pennies on the dollar”. 50 cents on the dollar to be precise. See Forbes article here.
– Be prepared for further USD inflation / devaluation (eg, Chris Reed $50 bill dream; JPJ – Stagflation, Hyperinflation; Shane Warren – $1 hurricane prophecies)
– Be prepared for a large Stock Market “hit”. Meaning, don’t blindly keep all of your money/investments in the markets.
– Be prepared for Bond Market / other credit products meltdown (eg, derivatives)
– Be prepared for a banking crisis (Federal Reserve system) which could trigger not only bank closures and inflation, but revaluation in conjunction with potential issuance of a replacement currency or some type of Federal Reserve Digital Currency (CBDC – Glenn Beck has spoken about this scenario as well as other commentators)
Troy Black key prophetic phrases
“The Pennies on the Dollar”
“Warn My People of It’s Coming”
$20 bills individually rolled up in jars/can
“It would be better to put money in a jar on the counter…”
“It would be better in a safe”
Storehouse Vision
We are asked all the time: What should I do with my money? What should I invest in?
“I will now deal with the oppressors of my people”
“I will move swiftly and with jealous aggression with my First Responders for I’ve heard their cries and I will break the hold of the taskmaster’s rule”
“the disheartening crack of the taskmaster’s whip will no longer be heard by my sons and daughters they will not carry the burden of their oppressors they will not toil for their enemies gain”
“they will not glean empty Fields because they worship me. No, they will own the fields where they have gleaned”
Part 7 of how to create a storehouse series (biblical alternative to babylonian banking), tomorrow we will discuss the concept of “breakaway bridges” and how you can effectively implement them. Part of the discussion will be about precious metals, inflation and Chris Reed’s $50 Bill dream.
Many people want to know how to create a Storehouse (community pooled resource fund), and often the most convenient way of doing so is through a non-profit and use of regular checking accounts for ease of use and compatibility with the various accounting, payment systems and digital platforms. However, then your communities’ resources are being stored in a system that can fail in the future. So how do you make sure your assets aren’t subject to bank failures and inflation?
You deploy the idea of “break away” bridges. That is to say, you don’t store all of your resources in the FDIC / USD / Wall Street basket. So, if those things go away (hyperinflate, become worthless), you continue on.
Quite simply, a break away bridge is like a drawbridge. If a storm washes the bridge out, you’re still fine. You’re not dependent on the bridge but interact with others in peace time and sunny days. This is a bit like the gates concept in Jerusalem, where the gates were open S-F, but closed for sabbath, closed if an enemy was approaching, or if there’s an external threat. You have the capacity to endure through a flood, and even if the bridge gets washed out, you can make it and build the bridge back when the storm passes.
Keith and Sheri married at age 19 while students at NMSU in Las Cruces, NM on July 5, 1975. Sheri graduated with my BS-Edu and began teaching while Keith continued his undergraduate degree. He finished with his BSOE from Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, TX, then his MDiv from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in Mill Valley, CA.
We did youth ministry and pastored in TX, CA, and NM for a total of 42 years. Of those years, we pastored in Reserve, NM from 1986-2021.
The first ten years, Keith served as senior pastor of Reserve Baptist Church, then we served together as the founding pastors of an independent non-denominational church, called Joy Fellowship.
Sheri taught public school in TX and CA, then when we moved to Reserve, Sheri and Keith homeschooled our children through high school. Sheri later worked managing a title insurance company. Keith worked bivocationally in County government, and I eventually got a job in county government as well. They both retired on January 1, 2021.
They have a daughter named Bree (43), who is married to, Jonathan Mooney, the son of our missionaries to Guatemala. (www.bethelministriesinternational.com)
They have Selah (16) and Moses (13) and live in Manchester, CT.
We, also, have a son named Adam (40), married to Danielle (37). They have Ember (15), Jubilee (12) and Ephraim (6). Their family moved from AL to Lubbock, TX last year.
Keith and I moved to Lubbock to caregive my parents who subsequently passed away within 15 months of each other. The LORD has clearly assigned us to a new manifestation of ministry here in TX as intercessors. While we do own our house and property in NM, we now claim Lubbock as home.The Journey
The Riddles share with us their journey out of “Babylon”, and into trusting God as provider. Through radical giving, trusting, faith, perseverance and endurance.
The Journey
We, too, have had cyclical opportunities to experience the release from the Babylonian system. Each time we have grown exponentially in our faith and obedience. I think it truly is a part of GOD’s way of dealing with His children as He liberates and matures us.
When we were led by GOD in 1996 to come out of our denominational system, we chose to leave behind our housing, paycheck, annuities, statewide influence, appointed leadership positions, reputations within our community, etc. We lived as an homeless, unemployed family, with two tween-agers whom I was homeschooling, for three months; but by GOD’s grace we had provision for each day! Keith held a BS-Occupational Educ and MDiv degrees, and I had my BS-Educ with experience in public education, but for reasons only GOD knew, we couldn’t land a local job for those three months.
Why? He was building our trust in Him as our Provider, instead of our denomination. The repeated saying: “Baptist born. Baptist bred. And when I’m gone, I’ll be Baptist dead!” Our denomination had become a type of Babylon for us, although at the time we actually referred to it as Egypt. We had to take every word and thought captive daily so as not to be like the grumbling children of Israel in the desert! We pressed on to be fully free, whatever that looked like for our family, even when other churches in the surrounding states offered Keith positions. As we prayed through each offer, we felt the total shalom of GOD that we were where He wanted us, even if we never enjoyed the prosperity and prestige those positions would have provided.
As our brother Chandrakaut in the video you aired testified, we cannot explain how GOD did it, but we can say we lived in peace, rest and joy…even when it wasn’t overly comfortable in the flesh at times. We had obeyed GOD to remain in our tiny community and start a non-denominational house church called Joy Fellowship. During that time GOD ended our homelessness when Keith was hired to work at several part-time jobs, eventually being hired into an appointed (at-will) position as the Administrator of the Sheriff’s Office.
During that crazy time, GOD miraculously made the way for us to purchase a home on zero dollars down, at a ridiculously low price. If I remember the facts correctly, it was a 1850 sq ft brick house, on six lots, totalling nearly an acre for about $45,000 in 1996. Throughout our married life we had been tithers and generous givers in many ways beyond dollars. It was at that time that the LORD reminded us that He had led us to give away our camping trailer to a homeless family about one year earlier as a seed toward our own need BEFORE we ever knew we had a need!
A few years later, the LORD led us to give away our entire retirement fund to other ministries! Amazingly, it was not a struggle for us because we shared the conviction that it was the voice of the LORD whom we were obeying. We had confidence that where He guided, He provided.
Around a decade later, in the same community (where we still own our house and property) Keith unexpectedly lost that at-will job without notice! By this time our children were away from home, and I had gone to work managing a title company field office. For the following full year we miraculously got by on my tiny $10/hr income, until he was asked to come work in a secure position as the Accounts Payable Clerk for our county. I shake my head in wonder at how many ways GOD blessed us throughout that “skinny cow” year! You have to laugh at the irony that Keith was given a position handling money when we didn’t have any of our own.
Then, several years afterward, I lost MY job when the owner of the title company was arrested in the base city 2.5 hours away from our community for embezzlement!! It came as a complete and total shock since I never knew anything about the day-to-day operations of the company. Again, for over a year, we were hard pressed financially, but experienced miracle after miracle. At the end of that amazing time, GOD opened a job for me in (of all places) the County Treasurer’s Office handling all the money our county received! Again, I find it ironically amusing that we both were in positions of handling money…me incoming funds and Keith outgoing funds.
Long story short…as the years passed, my husband was elected to the position of County Clerk in charge of elections and public records in 2012 and for a second term in 2016 with an increase of salary. At that same time I was promoted to an appointed position as the Chief Deputy Treasurer, with a salary increase as well. We served in those positions until our retirement on January 1, 2020. Still, as public officials our accrued retirement income is very low.
We were brought from our small town in NM to TX due to my aging parents’ medical needs at the end of the first month of our retirement. We are now living in the triple blessing of GOD’s provision! We found ourselves with three of everything from cars to toasters! We’ve given away bedroom sets, tvs, clothes, on and on. As well as, we made a covenant with GOD that we would sow our Lubbock apartment rent into LIFE ministries here in town for the remaining 10 month term of our $1,600/mo lease when we moved into my parents’ home after their deaths. His part was to find us someone to take up the contract, which He did. We completed our part of the covenant this month!
We still have a storehouse of goods, houses, and lands with which we are trusting GOD. It’s all HIS, and we hold very loosely to it. He has taught us that all we have is HIS, not ours. That HE alone is our SOURCE and SUPPLY.
He, also, has taught us that while we were still younger than retirement age we should work with our own hands as a service to Him and a testimony to others. Over the years, He has thrown open doors of opportunity for each of us to speak of the goodness of GOD to others within our community outside Joy Fellowship at our workplaces, at the grocery store, in the bank, at the school…everywhere at any time!
Although we no longer work “with our hands” for a salary, we do serve in many ministry capacities.
One of our retirement passages is Psalm 71:18-19 (NKJV): “O GOD, You have taught me from my youth; and to this day I declare Your wondrous works. Now also when I am old and gray headed, O GOD, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come.”
Just this past Passover here in Lubbock, we were invited by the owners to lead a corporate seder for a large properties development company. The opportunity arose as a case of someone, who knew someone, who knew someone, who knew that we have been celebrating Pesach since 1996 told the owners that we might be willing to do it with their employees. I shake my head in amazement at His ways!
“For [we] are unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power GOD unto salvation for all who believe. First to the Jew, then also to the Greek.”
Romans 1:16
By the way, let me add that although we were trusted to rightly handle the county’s money, we have never held onto much personal money, such as putting it into stocks or other savings funds, so we are inexperienced at personally managing money. Now we have inherited my parents portfolio of stocks and an IRA, money we didn’t work for, nor feel “entitled” to. We do want to handle it with the LORD’s wisdom. We understand that it is currently held within the Babylonian system, but we have continued to have it managed by their trusted financial advisor. We have zero experience with any such things!
Because of the current state of economic affairs, we don’t have the slightest expectation of it ever being of benefit to us unless we hear from GOD. We don’t actively watch the accounts, nor even know what these funds are doing. I suppose the way we are viewing the accounts for now is: If they flourish, they flourish. If they fail, they fail.
Our financial advisor has mentioned at the annual review meeting for this year that we need to add to our investments any funds from the sale of our NM properties as soon as possible, but we don’t bear witness that now is the time to sell our NM holdings. Property is selling for far below market value in our NM community and interest rates are so high that there are few buyers wanting to live in such a remote underdeveloped area. Plus, in truth, we wouldn’t want any earnings from a sale to go into our investment account within the current economic instability.
So, unless we hear differently from the LORD, we will keep travelling 12 hours one-way (with stops) from Lubbock to Reserve several times a year for a week or two to do improvements and to stay up with everything without listing our property for sale.
Moral hazard is a phrase used to describe allowing bad behavior in the financial markets. For example: in capitalism the free market is thought to self-correct greed and fear by the “invisible hand“. But if government or regulators bail-out bad actors, they can be perceived to allow bad behavior, such as greedy investing. A classic example of this was back in the financial crisis when Lehman Brothers was allowed to fail after the regulators bailed out Bear Stearns earlier that year through a forced sale to JPM.
The idea has merit on the surface – set an example by allowing bad actors to “fail”, that way others will think twice before thinking being so greedy. The problem is, it is hypocrisy if the “pot calls the kettle black” which is to say, if market participants punish the greediest, but applaud their slightly less greedy investment structures, that is nothing but hypocrisy
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away
Isaiah 64:6
Hank Paulson during the financial crisis of 2008 was faced with these and many other dilemmas. The day after they allowed Lehman to fail, they had to bail out AIG, which was a far worse problem. WAMU failed. Other banks and financial institutions failed. The cost of attempting to let Lehman fail in the name of moral hazard was TARP and massive, broad based bailing out of the financial system to rebuild confidence.
Other examples of moral hazard arguments are made about Student Loan forgiveness. This is a strange one, because the bible says to forgive all debts every seven years. But many Christians are decrying the government forgiving student loans by saying “what about all the responsible people who didn’t go into debt?”. However, we have to be careful not to embrace envy: “hey, how come they got free money and I didn’t?” At the same time, the only way we can forgive federal student debt is to pay it off with general federal debt. So, its not forgiving debt so much as it is shifting debt. An argument can be made this is better, but… This is our reality right now. We are faced with just a series of bad choices.
Speaker McCarthy’s Dilemma
The Republicans hold a narrow margin in the house right now. Speaker McCarthy’s election is on even thinner ice. Because a block of ultra-conservatives (House Freedom Caucus) put him over the top earlier this year, they also now have a gun held to his political head saying in essence: “if you don’t get the Democrats to agree to spending cuts, we will vote you out”. Back to Moral Hazard, the argument made by such financial hawks are: “if we don’t starting cutting our spending, we are going to go bankrupt as a country”. However, if the US government runs out of money through these negotiations, it may imperil our ability to continue to borrow money as a country. If that happens, the USD could partially fail and be relegated to just another currency. In other words, we risk losing being the world’s reserve and settlement currency. Many dominos could fall.
So is the debit limit brinksmanship liken to letting Lehman fail? Time will tell…
Chicken or Egg?
The last time the nation faced the debit ceiling crisis and not being able to service its debt was back in 2011 and 2013. We have a window into the discussions that were held then. Ben Bernanke explained that the first cuts would come to other government services, not principal and interest payments on the debt. Is that still the case? We will find out. What then will get cut? Social Security would be a political smartbomb. What else could get cut. Would that then create a partial government shutdown? Will the June 15th tax receipts be enough to limp through?
Banking Math
M2 money supply roughly $21Tn
Paper currency and coin in circulation $2Tn.
Bank Leverage is at least 10:1 – meaning $9 is lent out and $1 is held in reserve out of $10 of deposits
Bank reserves roughly $3.2Tn currently
Question: If we had a run on the banks and the financial markets (people pulling out hard cash from banks and money market (read short term bonds), would there be enough currency on hand to satisfy a run? If there is not enough, what then will the regulators do?
We can look to Cyrus and Greece as to how this was handled there in recent times…
Sec Tres Janet Yellen says Federal government likely run out of money June 1Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s is demanding spending cuts in order to keep his speakershipPresident Biden says no negotiation just raise the debt ceiling
Banking System, Federal Debt and Dollar – Sustainable?
