Roundtable Discussion

Another bank has failed.

Republic Bank had about $6 billion in total assets and $4 billion in total deposits, as of Jan. 31, 2024. The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund related to the failure of Republic Bank will be $667 million.

Why does this keep happening?

What does it portend for the system as a whole?

Now also…

What’s going on with the Yen? It hit its lowest point in 34 years this past week. Many speculate the Japanese government had enough and intervened early Monday, aggressively buying Yen. Since they don’t announce their movement in Yen, it remains murky. Some believe the government is signaling a ceiling of 160 Yen/Dollar.

Why is this happening? 

It has to do with the policy of the BOJ which may be poised to raise rates from 0% in the near future and that the Federal Reserve is now no longer planning to cut rates from 5.25%. The yield difference creates tension and downward pressure on the value of Yen/Dollar.

Watch CNBC video on US Japan yield differential causing Yen weakness

Why is this a problem?

As in 2007, if the BOJ raises rates or the Japanese government makes decisions based on pride rather than sound policy, it could trigger another global asset value crisis (2008 was a collapse in mortgage-related debt value). See more below.Relevant Articles

Regulators Seize Republic First – NYT Article

BOJ Intervenes Monday – WSJ Article
Background Discussions

Banking System Risks – April 2024

Bank of Japan (BOJ) raises raises rates for first time in 15 years – March 2024Prophetic Perspectives

1. First Republic failed and now Republic First fails. Coincidence?

How about this? When we put our “Republic” first – ie ahead of God and what Jesus said about true religion – are we in danger of failing? Similar to the phrase “America First”. Mmm…

2. Government of Japan makes aggressive Yen intervention move to hit carry trade based on national pride in Japan and to protect the Yen. This is a very similar dynamic we saw in the beginning of 2007 and portends the danger of another financial crisis we saw in 2008/9.

“It is difficult to ignore the bad effects that these violent and abnormal movements [in currencies] will cause for the nation’s economy”

– Masato Kanda, finance ministry’s top currency official

Yen stats:

– 11% drop against dollar since beginning of year

– Volatility over the weekend of 2% swings highly unusual for major currency

3. Commodity prices are starting to take off again

Like the Yen BOJ issue, the recent price spikes in all commodities is very similar to what we saw in 2008. Additionally, inflation is not cooling as expected. It remains stubbornly high (4%) vs. the planned inflation of the Fed (2%). One reason for this is housing remains at an near all time high both for purchase and for rent.

Source: IMF Primary Commodity Prices. Note: 2016=100

4. Housing prices remain at all-time highs both in rental rates and price

WSJ: Wall Street has spent billions buying homes

WHAT TO DO?

We talk about solutions.

We talk about the Storehouse strategy.

We also talk about practical preparation steps you can take (lending as investment, cash, metals, land).

Background Discussions:

Banking Crisis March 2023
Banking Crisis Over? May 2023
Pennies on the Dollar? August 2023

Roundtable Discussion

Important Terms to Understand

– Federal Reserve System aka “The Fed” – Was commissioned by Congress in 1913. The Fed acts as the US “Central Bank”, but does its operations via 12 regional Fed Reserve banks. Run by the “Board of Governors”, who’s members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. 

– Federal Reserve Banks – 12 private regional banks (not part of the US government) that is owned by its member banks. All US Treasury (part of the US Government) activity that relates to printing and coining money, does so as “Federal Reserve Notes” (a debt instrument). Regulates US Commercial banks, but also secondarily regulates all other banks, thrifts, or credit unions, whether state or federally chartered. Any depository institution is ultimately regulated by “The Fed”.

– FDIC – Federal Depository Insurance Corporation (US Government Corporation) established as part of Glass-Stegal act of 1933

– NCUA – National Credit Union Association – regulates Federal Credit Unions (US Government entity)

– NCUIF – National Credit Union Insurance Fund – like the FDIC for credit unions

– Credit Union – “affinity” banks that are either State or Federally regulated and are member owned (cooperatives)

– State Chartered Bank

– Thrift / Savings and Loan – mortgage banks regulated through the OCC

– OCC – Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (part of UST that regulates banks)

– OTS – Office of Thrift Supervision (government agency regulating thrifts)

– Non-Banks – Finance companies that loan money usually funded through the capital markets  (Wall Street) and are not regulated as banks because they do not take deposits which are insured

– Insured deposits – all deposits of traditional banks are insured through one agency or another 

– Loan underwriting standards – all loans of traditional banks must be written according to the underwriting standards of the banks regulator, ultimately the Fed

***Key takeaway – any “bank” in the US that takes deposits, and separately makes loans based on its own decisions is ultimately regulated under The Federal Reserve System, whether directly or indirectly.

Current risks to the US Banking System

– The inherent 10-1 leverage built into our fractional reserve banking system means that if the value of the bank’s loan portfolio goes down by roughly 10%, the bank becomes insolvent.

– Commercial lending exposure to commercial real estate. CRE has steeply declined in value since offices became less occupied during and post COVID-19 with the work-at-home and work-remote trend. While some returning to the office has lessened vacancy rates, there has been an unforeseen step-wise change in demand, which has not snapped back, which now has put loans made to various office buildings at risk of default post any further governmental COVID relief/stimulus monies. Read article here: Mezzanine Lending – Commercial Real Estate in Trouble and here: US Commercial Real Estate Weakness

– Electronic transfers causing runs on the banks – See Fed Now discussion and Banking Crisis discussion

– Interest rate exposure – See Banking Crisis Over discussion

– Exposure to the US Dollar which is a fiat-currency (nothing backing it) – See Break-Away Bridges discussion

Prophetic words about the US Banking / Financial System

David Wilkerson’s “Bank Holiday” Prophecy
David Wilkerson’s “America’s Last Call” book

John Paul Jackson’s Coming Perfect Storm prophecy
JPJ Prophetic Headlines – “Too Big to Fail Fails” – B of A Nationalized; “Funds will Dry Up” – US Govt / Fed

Rick Joyner / Bob Jones Economic Earthquake Prophecy
Bob Jones Perfect Storm

John Mulinde – The Foundations Have Been Broken

What’s the answer? How do we prepare?

Why don’t we just create a Christian Bank or Credit Union?

The Storehouse Vision

Not your usual “bank”

Here is an AI generated summary of our website that I thought was actually pretty good:

Storehouse: A Christian Community Economic Network

• The Storehouse vision aims to create local Christian communities that facilitate economic relationships based on biblical principles.
• It involves forming a “Storehouse Community” where members exchange goods and services, support each other, and invest in local businesses, reducing reliance on traditional banks and financial markets.
• The community promotes “in-sourcing” by encouraging local production and exchange, and establishes a “savings club” to lend to those in need and support Kingdom initiatives.
• Coming out of Babylon and divorcing Baal are seen as forms of repentance, freeing individuals from cultural distractions and temptations that hinder Kingdom principles.
• The Storehouse Community acts as a “bank” for its members, providing non-recourse, no-interest loans to help people in financial need and promote economic productivity.

Roundtable Discussion – Bank of Japan ends negative rates and Francis Scott Key bridge collapses

Bank of Japan

We have our eye on this latest BOJ rate hike which happened last week and ended the last central bank to scrap negative yields (institutions get paid interest to borrow). Why? Because it portends a setup like we had in 2007, whereby the BOJ raises rates prematurely again. Because the Yen carry trade is still “on” in the hedge fund macro world.

Bloomberg article: What the End of Japan’s Negative Interest Rates Means

Background Discussions:

Watch Japan
Watch BOJ
Japanese Earthquake 2024

A Sign?

Breaking News – Francis Scott Key bridge collapses in Baltimore

Container ship name: Dali (named after Salvador Dali, the Spanish surrealism artist)

The ship belongs to Singapore-based Grace Ocean Pte Ltd, which is owned by a Hong Kong group, and was carrying containers on behalf of Danish shipping giant Maersk. Synergy Marine, the Singapore company that operates the Dali.

Francis Scott Key – Author of our national anthem – The Star Spangled Banner

Prophetic Take

Bridge collapse

The Civil War was fought in the state of Maryland. The FSK bridge actually bridges the North to the South in so far as slavery was concerned (South Maryland held the most slaves and was the most sympathetic toward the Confederacy).

The container ship represents commerce and consumerism and economy. Is it a sign of that our outsized consumerism and 24/7 greed for increased commerce lead to collapsing the fragile unity we have today among races, religions and political ideology in the USA?

The fragility of things…apparently dirty fuel was what caused the engines of the container ship to fail, and thus the propulsion and electricity to also fail. The margins for error both in the ship size, and in the bridge construction ended up in complete collapse of the bridge. It reminds me of the World Trade towers collapsing in NYC – how the total collapse was surprising. In the same way, you can see through video how the entire span of the bridge failed when the ship struct just one stanchion of the bridge. Fragile. Likewise, is our peace and unity between parties and factions very fragile and can be brought down by the smallest of calamities? And if we had a big fissure, how bad could it get?

Is this bridge collapsing a sign of coming civil war?

Rick Joyner had a dream about a coming second civil war in the US. You can read it here: https://a.co/d/aAqW6iH. One of the things mentioned on page 36 is this:

In 1987, I was shown in a prophetic experience that we had been turning to the left as a nation for a long time. I was also shown a coming sharp turn to the left. I was not shown whether this was good or bad, just that it would happen. I was then shown a reaction to this and a turn back to the right. I saw that we would never again make a sharp turn to the left, but there was a danger we would go too far to the right.

Rick Joyner, Second American Revolutionary War, page 36

In fact, Fort Carroll – a hexagonal fort build between 1848-1852 was built by none other than Robert E. Lee, then a Colonel in the US Army.

Dali

Ship named after Salvador Dali the surrealism artist – are we in a period of surrealism when it comes to economic strength? Market highs? Optimism is low, but yet everything is at peak valuations – real estate, bitcoin, gold, stocks, etc.

Dali is a hunting goddess in Georgian mythology. Are we in the age of the gods (Johnathan Cahn’s book – Return of the gods) – which is to say the worship of false gods? Are we in the age of the hunter to bring God’s people back to Him through times of difficulty (and God’s people back to Israel according to Jeremiah 16:16)?

Jeremiah Johnson’s Prophetic Take:

The body of Christ is called to be “bridge builders” according to John 17:

I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

John 17:23

And a house divided cannot stand…

Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand

Matthew 12:25

Roundtable Discussion – How do we Alleviate Poverty?

We explore together how Jesus addresses poverty in the context of His Kingdom. This is why we pursue the Storehouse Vision, which is the gospel being preached, and the Kingdom of God coming to the earth as it is in heaven. https://newbreed.co/storehouse/

Background Discussions

Systemic Poverty
Homes for Hope
Shakan Global Mission
Needs not my Own
Mully
New England Center for the Abolition of Poverty

For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good

Mark 14:7

No one among them was poor

Acts 4:34

But there will be no poor among you

Deut 15:4

Contradiction of scripture?
Or a conditional promise?
How do we get there from here?

Some discussion Questions

If we just had enough money, would that solve the problem?
If we just redistributed the world’s money, would that solve the problem?
Is poverty a state of mind?
Is poverty inherited?
Is poverty a curse?

Does my poverty get alleviated based on your generosity? or God’s help?

Understanding “The Way”

Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime

– Author Unknown

Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

– Jesus Matt 7:9-11

Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, gazed into heaven, and gave thanks to God. He broke the bread and the two fish and distributed them to his disciples to serve the people—and the food was multiplied in front of their eyes!

Mark 6:41

Scriptures Referenced in Call

Philippians 4

The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself

Proverbs 11:25

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others

Philippians 2:3-4

Great resources on the subject of how to address poverty from a biblical standpoint:

Roundtable Discussion

And why God judges nations for it…

Background reading/listening: Systemic Greed

Biblical Definition of Greed

Did you know that Sodom’s greatest sin wasn’t necessarily homosexuality?

The sins of Sodom according to Ezekiel 16 were:

1. Haughtiness
2. Pride
3. Accumulating material wealth
4. Not helping the poor
5. Idleness – taking one’s ease

All five of which are really an expanded definition of Greed.

Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had arrogance, were overfed, unconcerned, and had an abundance of idleness; neither did help the poor and needy. And they were haughty and did detestable things before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit

Ezekiel 16:49-50

My friend Allan Parker, who argues human rights cases before the US Supreme Court, teaches the following wherever he goes:

Allan Parker, President, The Justice Foundation

According to the bible, four sins bring national destruction:

1. Forsaking God;
2. Shedding Innocent Blood;
3. Sexual Immorality; and
4. Greed

Culture’s Definition of Greed

We often have a certain notion of what greed means. We usually narrow it down to those dastardly characters in movies or fiction that represent a handful or small minority of people. Certainly we are not like them! And certainly our whole society isn’t like that!

Mr. Potter

Mr. Monopoly

Gordon Gekko

Yet, what are the parallels to today’s society and culture compared with Sodom and Gommorrah?

In the last days… men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power… always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth

2 Timothy 3:1-8

Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah

1 Jude 11

Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality

Revelation 3:12-14

Greed has a close affiliation and is part of another spirit – Mammon. And another sister spirit is Fear. A third is envy. When these forces get wrapped around the unholy desire for money, we need to watch out. Whenever we have an unnatural desire for money for anything – survival, food, luxury, pleasure – literally anything. When we listen to animated voices whispering – you need to get after some more income, those bills are coming due!

No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money

Matthew 6:24

The opposite spirit to greed is contentment with what God provides.

But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world

1 Timothy 6:6–7

Mentioned on the podcast…

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

Luke 12:16-21

Mully Movie (post and podcast)

10 Days Contentment Devotional

Redeeming the Time – Chuck Pierce (book)

Other Reference Materials

Roundtable Discussion –
What is the Storehouse Network?

[By way of background, you can read what the Storehouse is all about clicking there.]

This week, as part 9 of our “How to” build a Storehouse, we will delve into: what is the Storehouse Network? How does it work? Is it operational? Up and running?

We will discuss how storehouses interact with each other relationally, such as the one in New England (NECAP.net) and the one in Florida (Manatee County Storehouse) recently worked with a home church Storehouse in Deerfield, MA, and how God was working in wonderful ways.

For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened; but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality. As it is written…

2 Corinthians 8:13-15

…he who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack 

Exodus 16:18

Characteristics of the Storehouse Network

• Decentralized
• Relational
• Resilient
• Autonomous
• Global
• Resources set aside and made ready
• Part of the John 17 Unity movement
• Holy Spirit led and empowered

Other Case Studies

1. 10 Days of Prayer Film Project – Florida Storehouse and Global Storehouse $10k loan and $5k gift
2. Seeding the Jinja Uganda Storehouse from the Global Storehouse

Terminology

Storehouse Community – those individuals (believers) who are part of the local Storehouse and who also are also 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

Storehouse Network – the global network of interconnected Storehouses

Bridge Loan – financing another Storehouse’s short-term needs

Storehouses Network embrace the “fishes and loves” way of God’s provision

Other How to Storehouse? Steps

Part 1 – Seeding Storehouses
Part 2 – Why a Storehouse?
Part 3 – Needs Not My Own
Part 4 – Starting a Storehouse
Part 5 – Storehouse Governance and Structure
Part 6 – Storehouse Q&A
Part 7 – Breakaway Bridges
Part 8 – Stock Market Alternative

‭‭

For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister

Hebrews‬ ‭6:10‬