The videos and photos are distressing: wildfires sweeping across large swaths of California. Add to that the massive, planned power outages in an attempt to prevent the sparking of old utility lines and subsequent fires. And then there are the forced evacuations of thousands from their homes and even hospital beds.
It’s not a dystopian film about some horrible future. It is, in fact, what millions are seeing on television and the Internet every day as both Northern California and Southern California are in the path of intense wildfires, some driven by high winds. (So far, we’re happy to report that the Amazing Facts International headquarters in Granite Bay, California, outside of Sacramento, is nowhere near any of the danger zones.)
According to The New York Times, “A brush fire that broke out early Monday morning on the western side of Los Angeles quickly consumed 600 acres, created gridlock on the 405, the nation’s busiest highway, and resulted in mandatory evacuations. But no fatalities were reported by mid-afternoon. The fire, known as the Getty fire, forced officials to seal off main interchanges of the 405 by midmorning. Off-ramps through the Sepulveda Pass, near where the fire started, were closed.”
Disaster Movie Chaos
Surveying the scene in the northern part of the state, USA Today reported, “With its blue skies and bustling tourist traffic, [San Francisco] is doing its best to appear normal. But a closer look reveals a level of chaos more typical of a Hollywood disaster movie.”
And in the pastoral setting of Napa County, refugees from another fire-threatened area found refuge: “Almost 230 people, most from Calistoga, which is under an advisory evacuation, spent the night in Napa County’s three shelters on Sunday night. Come Monday, they were deciding whether or not to extend their stays. Forecasted winds would elevate fire risk again Tuesday night, and experts have warned that fires in eastern Sonoma County could spread quickly toward Calistoga in Napa County.”
Even basketball legend LeBron James had to seek shelter from the fire’s path near Los Angeles. Other residents of the westside of Los Angeles, and the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, also had to evacuate.
Writing at CNN’s website, Tess Taylor, a mother in Berkeley, California, said, “Years ago, I might have thought of October as a month of shopping for pumpkins and Halloween gear. This year, we dutifully checked our supply of air masks, canned chili, checking off the emergency rations we call the ‘apocalypse box.’ It’s not really a joke: We live downwind of a refinery. We have elaborate plans for how to get out if the wrong spark blew our way. Even sitting to write this, I remember how, during the past two years, I reported from the midst of smoke.”
What on Earth Is Happening?
Is this a prelude to God releasing the “four winds of strife” spoken of in Revelation 7:1? “After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree.”
There’s little doubt that serious problems are on the rise throughout the earth. In the “Olivet Discourse” of Jesus, so named because it took place on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, the Savior spoke about a time when “there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven” (Luke 21:11). Are the massive fires sweeping across not only California but also the Amazon rainforest in Brazil and Australia part of these “fearful sights”?
They may be, but we’re not at the end just yet. For one thing, Jesus said, “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matthew 24:36). Also, many other events in the political, religious, and economic landscape have yet to take place. However, such disasters around the planet may hasten what Revelation points to as the system of the antichrist power.
Pastor Doug Batchelor says about the rise in natural disasters and their relation to the end times, “Isaiah said the earth is waxing old like a garment. This whole planet now is bearing the burden of six thousand years of sins. And it is literally convulsing, waiting for the word of deliverance. Not only is sin against God’s plan for our bodies, sin is against God’s plan for the planet. ... So you are seeing in the morals of the world a convulsion taking place. And you are seeing in the weather and the planet a convulsion that’s playing itself out into a spike of natural disasters.”
For those seeking to understand what the Bible says about the rise in natural disasters and how these fit into the prophetic scheme of things, check out our website bibleprophecytruth.com. It will give you the insights you need to understand today’s events—and what they mean for tomorrow!