For me, it’s not enough to say simply that tribulation is coming. In order for me to effectively testify of Christ and His Covenant, I will need to discern whatever I can about how things will happen. To the degree I fail, I trust in divine mercy, but I have a calling to investigate and see the hand of God.
Something I read this morning struck a chord of recognition; it seems a workable explanation — Trump’s Grand Strategy. It would appear that Trump is trying to prepare America for a multipolar world and reassert the old Monroe Doctrine.
All of Trump’s policies, from Panama to Greenland to shutting down the USAID make sense in light of this. Consider:
- Tariffs on Mexico and Canada. These are, in part, about getting them to crack down on illegal migration and drug trafficking across their borders with the U.S. But they are also a signal that both countries are going to be managed more firmly in the U.S. sphere of influence from now on.
- Tariffs on China. In a multipolar world, it doesn’t make sense to continue to outsource crucial manufacturing industries to your largest geopolitical competitor.
- Deportations. It was never in America’s economic interest to tolerate migration of people who consume more in government resources than they pay in taxes. Now it’s not in our geopolitical interest to do so either.
- The Panama Canal. Bringing the Canal back under U.S. ownership is—as with pressure on Canada and Mexico—reasserting America’s Monroe Doctrine. We are moving from globalism back to the Monroe Doctrine.
- Greenland. Buying Greenland is consistent with the Monroe Doctrine, as it is part of North America geographically. Pulling it away from Denmark is also consistent with the Monroe Doctrine as it distances the U.S. from Europe.
- Shutting Down The USAID. This is also consistent with retreating from globalism to the Monroe Doctrine. Under Trump, we’re no longer going to be using NGOs to foment color revolutions in countries like The Ukraine and Georgia.
This analysis gives coherence to the choices Trump appears to be making. We know only what has been reported, and that in itself requires a good bit of discernment.
Unlike the linked article, we have little interest in the investment implications. We still need to notice the economic probabilities, but not for the sake of some investment portfolio. Rather, we should watch and notice how God is working. If we know what humans expect based on their best understanding, we can then discern the things God does in coloring outside those lines.
Our primary aim is to testify of God and His glory.
