I’m praying that you are ready; I want you to handle tribulation with aplomb. Think about it.
You remember the shortages in connection with the COVID restrictions? That was intentional; certain bigshots admitted that they were trying to destroy the economy. Some businesses never recovered. Right where I live today several businesses were shut down and never reopened. A few new ones opened up in their places, but overall, the market for some consumer goods and services is smaller now.
Some of you may not remember the longshoremen’s strike not long after that. Had it run into a month, it would have been worse than the COVID shutdowns because we are still entirely too dependent on imports. The strike ended after a few days, but there is still no contract, just a truce. What would it take to renew the strike?
Once again, my whole point is to ask you to do some research. What would you consume if the only supply was only local? I recommend that you do whatever you can to shift your habits to emphasize the local supply. Don’t make too many radical decisions at once; simply look into it. Be aware of what it might look like.
Trump’s tariffs will hit a lot of things you wouldn’t expect. I realize that, in part, he is trying to encourage bringing industrial production back home to the US, but we aren’t there yet. It will take time; we spent decades off-shoring that stuff in the first place.
Nor is this merely a question of imports from off-shore, but there are already major problems with interstate supply within the US. That Hurricane Helene? She tore up a lot of peach and pecan groves. It takes several years to get new trees back to production stage, usually five years at a minimum. If you live in an area where pecans and peaches are not locally grown, you might want to take that into account as the prices will go up more than just the inflation rate.
The American consumer market is fragile, riding along on a knife’s edge. It won’t take much to break something. This is not about prepping or survivalism. Yes, you could stock up on some items, but my point is more at making you aware and resilient, less dependent on human provision. Be ready to adapt. Invest time and resources into yourself so that you can be ready to keep the gospel message alive during the coming testing.
Seek the Lord’s face on these questions.
