THE RING IS CLOSING: AMERICA 2040, by M.A. Duncan

 

The peace dividend was spent. Reagan’s gains were lost. And the country that emerged as the lone superpower after the Berlin Wall fell -now had company. Russia and China -who once had a brief border conflict in 1969 -were now allies. The two of them together with Iran now looked to control the Eurasian landmass -with only tiny Israel in their way.

At least Belshazzar never codified depravity or confused genders. But America had been feasting for three decades since its Cold War victory and was now blinded to the point it could not see the writing on the wall. Like Solomon following David, prosperity had proven to be a more subtle and deadly foe. So, when Russian “peacekeepers” poured across the Ukrainian border in early 2022, if we still had food and comfort, and could indulge our entertainments, the need was not felt to repent.

The prophets called it the beginning of a new kingdom age: a time when entire regions would become habitations for the glory of almighty God. And they could have been right, had the necessary requirements been met. But the Lord was after something deeper.

The preaching did not change after Covid. The most notable ministers served up the same offerings. The teenagers fornicated. The twenty somethings shacked up. The offspring of these illegitimate unions were discarded. Alcohol was abused. Homosexuality was not called sin. And that portion of the Gospels which would have brought about a better future -the correct future -was omitted.

Time was allotted for the requisite reflection that would have brought about an awakening. Months of mandates, lockdowns, and restrictions afforded an opportunity for introspection and humility -but this did not occur. And now politically correct messages numbed the congregants’ minds -fed from pastors with egos as bloated as their multimillion-dollar mansions. So, when the Baltic States fell a few years later, exposing more than just the shortcomings of NATO -the need was not felt to repent.

Emboldened by their ally’s successes, China’s assault on Taiwan was unlike anything the world had seen. The mountainous terrain of the island did not lend itself to a D-Day like invasion. So, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had to be more creative. Like the mass of demons unleashed on America’s soul during the 1960’s, waves of synchronized drone swarms overwhelmed the defenses of the island to which Chiang Kai-shek had once fled. Coordinated ballistic missile and cruise missile attacks, including the use of hypersonic missiles, contributed to the softening.

Cyber operations and Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs) degraded spaced based satellite systems: emblematic of the degradation of culture in first-world countries. Airborne paratroopers, along with combat troops ferried by a vast fleet of military civilian vessels then came for the kill.

America could have engaged or opted out, but neither choice mattered. Like Hezekiah showing the Babylonian envoys the treasures of his storehouse, we had been giving away our secrets for decades. The time to stop aggression, at a lesser cost, had long since passed. And our carriers would have been subject to a range of threats: onshore batteries, unmanned underwater vehicles, and A.I. guided torpedoes. He had his reasons, but now a later generation paid the price for Truman’s lack of willingness to kill the dragon in its cradle.

Taiwan, however, was only the beginning. Red China had a long-standing list of unresolved grievances: Vietnam, South Korea, and the crown jewel, Japan. One by one they fell, as the world’s most populous nation became the evil from which it had sought to free itself. And moving into the 2030’s, with a near tangible sense of impending judgment hanging over the American mainland, some felt the need to repent. But the oceans were there to protect us, so there was still space to sin.

In the thirteenth chapter of the Book of Second Kings, the prophet tells the king to strike the ground with the arrows -which the king then does. But he only struck three times. And the prophet was angry with him, because had the king struck the ground five or six times, then Israel’s deliverance would have been complete. Likewise, the outpouring of 2027 was not enough.

The revivals were beautiful. But when they were over, the converts still sent their children to schools where they were indoctrinated with demonically inspired Leftist ideology. The revivals were beautiful. But when they were over, unrighteousness was still voted into office. We did that which was good in the sight of the Lord, but the high places were still largely left in the hands of the enemy. The poison was never fully extracted from the wound.

Spiritual candies like signs and miracles were emphasized, but the meat and vegetables of holiness and consecration were of secondary importance. The people were not taught how to discern where God was, and where the Devil was on the issues of the day. The nominal held thoughts that placed them in league with Hell. And though God played a trump card, the religious forsook that mercy -because they rejected the vessel in which it was offered.

So, as 2040 drew near, the United States prepared for a war in which it would fight without God’s aid.

China now dominated the Asian-Pacific Rim -much as Imperial Japan had done one hundred years prior. From Ho-Chi Minh City in the south, to Hokkaido in the north, the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) roamed freely and governed trade throughout the South and East China Seas. Beijing’s counterpart, Moscow, as it had done during the days of the Warsaw Pact, loomed over Western Europe. And though the Eagle had stood down the Soviet Union -the specter of two nuclear armed giants, was too much.

Both the northern and southern Kingdoms of ancient Israel rebelled against God and were then judged. But the northern Kingdom was worse than its southern brethren. No good kings arose from the ten tribes that made up Israel (aka the northern Kingdom). Whereas, Judah and Benjamin, which made up the southern Kingdom, did have some good kings -Asa, Uzziah, Jehoshaphat, Josiah -to name a few. So, when judgment came, it was in proportion to the evil done by each kingdom.

The northern Kingdom was taken captive by Assyria in 721 B.C., whereas the southern Kingdom was not taken captive until 597 B.C. The northern Kingdom was dispersed throughout history. The southern Kingdom’s captivity lasted exactly seventy years. The northern Kingdom’s judgment therefore came sooner and was final; whereas the southern Kingdom’s judgment came later and was only for a set period.

America would now be judged in the same manner. Nine of the first twelve states to legalize gay marriage were in the North. But the States of the Bible Belt, the Old South, held out longer. The great bastions of learning, the Ivy League, likewise, all in the North, had long since been given over to humanist philosophies and doctrines inspired by devils, abandoning their ancient Christian moorings. But in the South, and fly over country, at least a plurality of the populace still had a fundamental understanding of what made the country great: faith, freedom, and God. So, when judgment came, the North’s judgment came first -and was complete, whereas in the South the judgment was partial.

The Northeastern quadrant of the United States is 2-1/2 times as densely populated as the second most dense region, the South. And Russia rightly calculated, that rather than try to subdue population centers within this region such as New York City or Philadelphia, and rather than face the fallout from an all-out nuclear conflict, it would be easier to conduct a limited tactical nuclear strike -to eliminate those centers while at the same time minimizing the blowback to their own forces.

The pre-emptive wave came in from Russian nuclear-armed subs parked off the Eastern Seaboard. All the main population centers in the Northeast were decimated within moments, and in addition, Chicago. There were multiple impacts over the great Midwest hub. The last three land-based legs of the U.S nuclear arsenal are housed at Malstrom, Minot, and Warren Air Force bases. These were also targeted in the opening wave. Chinese and Russian divisions then crossed the Bering Strait, cut the pipeline, and marched south.

The South was able to maintain limited autonomy, before being subdued and an occupation government installed. And for a time, a zone of protection stood for many miles around Kansas City and its house of prayer. The Plains and the Rockies held out for a while as well. And those who had great faith, and knew their God, stood as a silver lining. But the ministers did not preach repentance, so God was left with no other options but to use foreign powers to bring the country back to Himself.

Had the people of 2020 known the trajectory on which they had been set when the White House was stolen that November, then perhaps they would have fought harder. But the truth was that even the best of us did not know how to contend. And now we would have to learn how to do so, only under much harsher conditions -and in a far more dangerous world.

We still had the bar. We still had our girlfriend or boyfriend to sleep with outside of wedlock. We could still define our gender irrespective of God’s standard. Our video games and the filth that came through the television was still available. Our courts still put their approval on marriage between people of the same gender. And bombs raining down over Kiev did not barely begin to scratch the surface of hearts and minds hardened by sin.

“…this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.” (Jer. 4:18)