North Korea is causing international consternation, Europe is covered in confusion and the outlook for the Middle East seems bleak. Can Isaiah 24 shed any light on the world this week?

In every region of the world there is increasing tension and growing conflict. In the Far East North Korea has launched an intercontinental ballistic missile soon after testing what they claim to be a hydrogen bomb. Even China is expressing concern at their inability to restrain the renegade state thirsting for war.

In the Middle East the civil war in Syria has entered a new and highly dangerous stage with the Russian bombing of Aleppo. And the whole of Europe is covered in confusion through the mounting migration crisis triggering both economic and social instability.

Failed Peace Talks

The UN-brokered peace talks bringing together the warring parties in Syria broke down after only three days. This was seemingly the result of the Russian bombing of Aleppo which is said to have infringed UN Resolution 2254 mandating the talks, which required an end to air-strikes and the provision of humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones.

In every region of the world there is increasing tension and growing conflict. But what is God doing?

The Russians, in support of Bashar al-Assad's forces, are attacking the so-called 'moderate rebels' who have been trained by the USA and supplied with American arms to overthrow Assad. This is increasingly drawing the Western powers into conflict with Russia and the Iranian/Iraqi alliance which is supporting Assad. Also in the midst of this confused conflict there is the Islamic State which is against them all – pursuing its own radical Islamist objectives.

Migrants attempt to cross from Macedonia into Serbia.America and Europe

With America now fully involved in an internal battle for the White House between such unlikely contenders as Trump and Sanders (not the Colonel!) on opposite wings of the political chicken, there is unlikely to be any firm foreign policy initiative coming from Washington as Obama free-wheels through his final year.

Meanwhile, the crisis in Europe intensifies as the social backlash grows against the 1,000,000-plus migrants who poured into the EU last year as people react to incidents such as the Cologne sex attacks. Today some 400,000 Syrians are trying to get into Turkey after fleeing the bombing of Aleppo and the advance of the Syrian government army.

The migrant crisis in the Middle East is rapidly becoming a vast humanitarian disaster, with Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan all saying they cannot cope with any more refugees and the European Union desperately trying to organise its border defences and establish 'Fortress Europe'.

But God...

But what is God doing in all this mess? Is God no longer in control of the nations as the Lord of history? Isaiah claimed the opposite, saying that God holds the nations "in his hands as a drop in a bucket" and that he "brings princes to nought and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing" (Isa 40:15, 23). Did this just refer to a bygone era - has God now withdrawn his power over the nations, leaving them to work out their own salvation?

Is God no longer in control of the nations as the Lord of history? Far from it! He still holds the nations in his hands as a drop in a bucket.

The Bible actually prophesies a time of intense instability throughout the world. Whether God simply allows it or actually initiates an era of vast conflict between nations and instability in the world of nature with earthquakes, hurricanes and storms, is not made clear. But there are three passages in the Bible where a great shaking of everything – the natural order of creation and the nations – is foretold. Isaiah 2:12-22 speaks of God "humbling the arrogance and pride of human beings". It says "The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted and they will be humbled." That was probably written in the eighth century BC.

Haggai, writing two centuries later in 520 BC, was more specific in stating that God would "shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land". He would "shake all nations" (Hag 2:6-7). Written over 500 years later, about AD 90, Hebrews 12:26 says that the great shaking of everything will be a prelude to God establishing his kingdom on earth.

The Little Apocalypse

There is another passage of Scripture that is rarely read in church and is usually neglected by biblical scholars because its message is too difficult to handle. It is found in Isaiah 24, which scholars traditionally have referred to as 'The Little Apocalypse' because its language is extreme. It speaks of the whole earth being shaken and split asunder which former generations of biblical scholars have always classified as symbolic. It was never imagined that there ever could be a force capable of shaking the whole of the earth.

Today we know different. The splitting of the atom and the production of hydrogen bombs has caused us to revise our biblical theology. We now know that among the nations there are sufficient nuclear weapons to destroy the world if they were all detonated at the same time and in the same region in an international conflict.

Isaiah 24 speaks of the whole earth being split and shaken by human sin. Until modern advances in weaponry, there was never a force capable of such a thing - but there is now.

This could literally fulfil the prophecies of Isaiah 24:

The earth is broken up, the earth is split asunder, the earth is thoroughly shaken. The earth reels like a drunkard, it sways like a hut in the wind; so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion that it falls – never to rise again.

The reason this will happen is given in Isaiah 24:5-6.

The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore the earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.

But is this a warning of the inevitable – or of what COULD happen? Is there still time for human beings to heed the warning and change the course of history?

Hope for the Future

The Bible also speaks of a time of peace. Isaiah 2, which foretells a day of judgment quoted above, begins with a beautiful picture of the word of the Lord going out from Jerusalem. It foresees swords beaten into ploughshares and nations no longer training for war.

The New Testament is full of hope for the future – that hope is founded on the return of Jesus to judge the nations and to bring a time of peace and justice which is what Hebrews 12 refers to as "the kingdom of God". Jesus himself spoke of this in Matthew 24 saying that there would be a great conflict among the nations, followed by a cosmic shaking which will be a prelude to his Second Coming.

These eschatological passages of Scripture often draw vastly different interpretations – but they nevertheless show that God is still the Lord of history! He holds the nations in his hands. He has allowed us free will to run the affairs of the nations until the time he intervenes through the Second Coming of Jesus.

How near that is, nobody knows; but the Bible says that he will come when least expected. That may be much sooner than anyone anticipates!

Clifford Hill looks at questions of trust surrounding the recent Russian plane crash, noting similarities between today's threats and life in the time of Jeremiah.

The human tragedies behind the crash of the Russian passenger airliner over the Sinai Desert are incalculable. The loss of all 224 people on board plunged the whole city of St Petersburg into mourning as most of the returning holidaymakers came from there.

Tourists Stranded

The knock-on effect in the cancellation of returning flights for British tourists stranded in Sharm el-Sheikh is a small inconvenience in comparison with the terrible loss of life suffered by the Russian people.

Was the British Government right in suspending flights to and from Sharm el-Sheikh? The Egyptian Government was understandably furious because of the effect upon its tourism industry, which is the strongest part of its economy. But any government's first commitment is to the safety of its own citizens, so the UK has surely been right in taking steps to ensure the safety of flights home for the thousands of British holidaymakers who were potentially at risk.

Questions of Trust

Tributes outside Pulkovo airport, St Petersburg.All of this raises major questions of trust. We all put our trust in others every time we leave our own home. If we are travelling by bus or train or boarding an aircraft, we put our trust in the driver or the pilot. But even when we drive our own car on the road we are dependent upon other motorists obeying the rules and not endangering our lives. We have to trust other people every day in a multitude of circumstances.

We all also know that there are risks involved in travelling today. If terrorists are determined to get a bomb on board an aeroplane they will find a way of doing it - even if it is simply paying a crooked bag-handler working at the airport.

Trust is at the heart of all our human relationships; from travelling in safety to business transactions. Businessmen need to be able to trust the word of those with whom they are signing contracts or the whole economic activity of society would be impaired. Even in simple everyday things there has to be trust. If we cannot trust the shopkeeper to sell us healthy food or trustworthy goods, life would come to a standstill.

Trust Breakdown

If trust breaks down the whole life of the community breaks down. But that was the situation in Jerusalem in the time of the prophet Jeremiah (around 600 BC, a turbulent period in history). In chapter 9 he describes the breakdown of trust. He says,

Beware of your friends; do not trust your brothers. For every brother is a deceiver, and every friend a slanderer. Friend deceives friend, and no one speaks the truth (Jer 9:4-5).

Jeremiah warns the citizens of Jerusalem: "You live in the midst of deception". The dire scene that he describes has some similarity to the situation facing us today. On the international front there was a growing threat of terrorism and at home there had been a catastrophic collapse of faith and morality.

Jeremiah describes a scene much like our own today, with a domestic collapse of faith and an international threat of terrorism.

The Assyrian Empire based at Nineveh (which today is called Mosul and is the capital of the Islamic State) had just been overthrown by Nebuchadnezzar (609 BC), the ruthless dictator of the rising Babylonian Empire. The Assyrians had been a byword for cruelty and the Babylonians were already outdoing them. Their army was on the move through Syria and threatening the tiny state of Judah and its capital Jerusalem.

Both the political and religious authorities assured the people that there was nothing to worry about because God was on their side! They said that as long as the Temple stood in Jerusalem, God would never allow an enemy to enter the gates of the City because it was his special shrine. Jeremiah could see everywhere lies and deception, greed and corruption, immorality and injustice. He publicly proclaimed that God would not defend the City so long as it was full of evil and faithlessness. He said,

From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain, prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace', 'Peace', they say, when there is no peace. (Jer 8:10).

In Jeremiah's time, the authorities assured the people that God would protect them – but Jeremiah proclaimed that they were deceiving themselves.

Urgent Warnings

As the Babylonian merciless murderers drew closer, burning and raping cities and even destroying the countryside on their way towards Jerusalem, Jeremiah's warnings became even more urgent. He told the people that they were putting their trust in a building created by human hands instead of the God of Creation who had made a covenant with their forefathers which they were now breaking. As anxiety increased among the people, instead of turning to God in repentance, they turned to different forms of idolatry and divination.

Recent research shows that less than half the population in Britain now believe in Jesus and only about 10% are regular churchgoers.¹ This means that we are not only abandoning our heritage of Christian faith that has protected this nation for hundreds of years, but it means that there are fewer people of faith praying for the nation and ensuring a covering of protection over the land at the very time when the threat of terrorism is rising.

In modern Britain, our Christian heritage is being abandoned, leaving less and less people to pray for the protection of the nation.

In Jeremiah's day his warnings went unheeded. In 587 BC the army of terrorists broke through the walls of Jerusalem and ran amok through the City tearing down the Temple and all the great buildings, slaughtering the people as they went from street to street. An eyewitness wrote,

The Kings of the earth did not believe nor did any of the world's people, that enemies and foes could enter the gates of Jerusalem. But it happened because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests, who shed within her the blood of the righteous (Lam 4:12).

Real Wisdom

This should be a strong warning to us. Where do we put our trust? Is it in politicians; or bankers and brokers; or social reformers; or educationalists; or philosophers? But these are just fallible human beings and what we are facing are no less than demonic spiritual forces that cannot be overcome with physical force or human wisdom.

The threats we face today cannot be overcome with physical force or human wisdom. So in what - or whom - will we place our trust?

As Jeremiah said of the people in Jerusalem, "Since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what kind of wisdom do they have?" (8:9) In Britain today we face a similar question – what kind of wisdom do we have as we face the rising tide of destruction that threatens us? If God would allow it to happen to Jerusalem, why do we think it cannot happen to us in Britain? Surely our only hope is to re-discover the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ whom as a nation we have so wilfully and stupidly abandoned.

Weighed in the Balance

The warning signs are everywhere to be seen. The writing is on the wall for Britain and the nations of Europe that have despised their great Christian heritage. We are being weighed in the balance as God is slowly withdrawing his covering of protection. The midnight hour approaches for Britain and Europe.

Will there be repentance and turning before catastrophe strikes? That is still a question. We may not have long to wait for the answer. But what are we doing to warn our families and friends and others to help save our nation?

References

1 Jesus 'not a real person' many believe. BBC News, 31 October 2015.

"Thank God for ISIS!" This extraordinary statement by an Egyptian leader shocked delegates at a recent international Christian conference...

He went on to explain that thousands of Muslims are turning to Christianity in reaction to the atrocities committed by the Islamic State.

All over the Middle East similar things are happening among Muslims as they see the chaos created by militant Islam and the turmoil that has spread across the whole region. It is not only Christians, Yazidis, Kurds and Shia Muslims who are suffering, but also members of the Sunni Arab community.

In Iraq, the militant Sunni jihadis led by al-Baghdadi regard all who oppose them as enemies - including fellow Sunnis. They especially hate Shia Muslims, whom they view as infidels. They see them as a fifth column at the heart of Islam that must be wiped out. The deepening Sunni-Shia rift in Iraq and the similar sectarian civil war in Syria has enabled the Islamic State to attract rebellious Sunnis from around the world.

Russian Fighters

Putin himself estimates that some 5,000-7,000 people from Russia and former Soviet countries have joined the Islamic State,¹ which is one of the major reasons why Russia has decided to join the Baghdad-based 'Intelligence Alliance', in partnership with Iran/Iraq and Syria. Their objective is to share information about the Islamic State so that a co-ordinated attack can be launched.

This has wrong-footed the USA, which has been backing so-called 'moderate' Islamic groups opposed to Assad in Syria. In a failed $500 million programme, the US had been supplying weapons and training to these groups which are now being attacked by Russian bombers. Most of the fighters with American weapons are said to have deserted to the Islamic State.²

The Wrong Weapons

But will Russia and her new allies be any more successful in combating radical Islam than the USA, NATO and others who have tried to wipe out ISIS?

The plain fact is – they are using the wrong weapons. The Islamic State will never be defeated by military power! Militant Islam is driven by a spiritual force which can only be overcome by a more powerful spirit. This moves the whole conflict into a realm of spiritual warfare of which the rulers of the nations have no understanding.

The militant Islamist fighters are driven by a spirit of hatred that is blind and unresponsive to normal rational thought processes. This spirit of blind hatred goes right back to Muhammad and the fearful atrocities he committed against his enemies, especially Jews and Christians. The historical accounts of his activities in and around Medina and Mecca are being replicated by the Islamic State in the name of the god of Islam.

Militant Islam cannot be overcome with human weapons, for it is driven by a spirit of hatred that can only be overcome by a more powerful spirit.

This is what is being increasingly recognised by those who have been brought up in the Islamic faith - such as President Sisi of Egypt, who in a New Year 2015 message called upon Muslim scholars to examine their scriptures and historical documents to determine what is happening in the Muslim world. This is something that only they can do.

Action Points for Christians

But is there anything that Christians can do? In the first place we can spread the whole situation before God in our prayers and seek to understand what God himself is doing in the Middle East and in other parts of the world (such as Indonesia, where millions of Muslims are becoming Christians).

The second thing we can do is in our Bible study groups, look at the way God has acted in the past. For example, when a united Arab army invaded Israel during the reign of King Jehoshaphat he recognised that the tiny army of Judah was no match for them and called for a time of prayer and fasting. He led the nation in prayer, "We have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you" (2 Chron 20:12). This prayer of faith was answered by a prophetic word: "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours but God's."

It is this kind of faith that is needed today, plus the discernment to see what God is doing so that we can pray into the situation with understanding. There is no doubt that God is at work among Muslims, opening eyes that were blind and enabling them to understand the spiritual power behind Islam that enslaves their women and drives the men to the most appalling acts of barbarism and savagery.

Christians need both faith and discernment to understand what God is doing. It can help to look at the way he has acted in similar circumstances in the past.

Heavenly Agenda

As the Egyptian Christian leader implied in his somewhat shocking statement quoted at the beginning of this article, God is actually using these atrocities to release those who are bound by spiritual evil.

Angela Merkel, who is said by those who know her to be a Bible-believing Christian, has got it right in welcoming migrants from the Middle East who are escaping war and terrorism. As a politician she has been incredibly bold in the face of considerable opposition, even from her own party. If Europeans are prepared to take the risk of Jihadi fighters being amongst the migrants and welcome them with love and generosity in the name of Jesus, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus will touch their hearts and there will be a mighty harvest for the Kingdom among the multitude coming into Europe.

It may even be that God will use this migration to turn the hearts of the European nations, who have so largely abandoned the word of God and despised the precious spiritual heritage of their forefathers.

Possible Revival

Only God can turn the tide of secular humanism that has already brought the nations of Europe to the brink of disaster. But God's purposes are always for salvation rather than judgement and in his mercy he is longing to use the tragic situation in the Middle East to trigger a mighty spiritual revival in Europe that could change the history of the world.

God is longing to use the tragic situation in the Middle East to trigger a mighty spiritual revival.

We are on the edge of a cusp which could tip either way – into disaster or into a glorious fresh spiritual awakening bringing Kingdom values into the life of the Western nations. The way we react to the migrant crisis may well determine the future history of the world.

References

1 Biryukov, A. Putin Says Thousands from Russia, CIS Joined Islamic State. Bloomberg Business, 16 October 2015.

2 Middle East Eye, 28 September 2015.

Charles Gardner looks at the dangerous scenario unfolding in the Middle East and its implications for Israel.

The stage is being set for what could turn into an almighty battle in the Middle East. What are the implications for peace in the region - and especially for Israel, already surrounded by sworn enemies before Russia entered the toxic fray? We are now witnessing an extremely dangerous situation which could erupt into a major conflict that could even trigger World War III.

David and Goliath

The entire scenario needs to be seen through a biblical lens. With such a focus, we should be in no doubt that this is a spiritual battle as much as a physical reality.

Through the natural lens it may well appear as yet another young David facing up to the seemingly impossible task of slaying the nine-foot Philistine giant Goliath. But David, through whose line Jesus traces his ancestry, never saw it that way: "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." (1 Sam 17:45)

David became the greatest king Israel ever had: today's re-born nation would do well to adopt their hero's total faith and trust in God.

David became the greatest king Israel ever had: today's re-born nation would do well to adopt their hero's total faith and trust in God.

Spiritual Awakening

True, today's Israeli society is as secular as Britain's in many ways. But Jesus said that nation would rise against nation and Israel would be threatened. The prophets foretold that before Messiah's return there will be a great spiritual awakening among God's people, whose hearts will melt as they recognise the One who declared his everlasting love with outstretched arms. The stage is now set for this great unveiling.

It is heartening to know that Prime Minister Netanyahu is a convinced Bible believer. A recent survey has revealed that an impressive 95% of Israelis have a Bible in their homes. The Jewish people may very soon welcome their Messiah. But the onus is not only on them. The Gentiles have a big responsibility to help in this mission through sharing love, support and the Gospel message.

Russia, Assad and Abbas

Meanwhile, Russia's presence in the region is intended to prop up the Assad regime, a key ally of Iran which has made no secret of its intention to wipe Israel off the map. Tensions in Israel itself are almost at boiling point, with seven children orphaned in recent attacks on innocent Jews. And now Jew-hatred is being exported to Europe, where many of the refugees fleeing Muslim countries will have experienced decades of anti-Semitism promoted through schools, newspapers and social networks. Worse still, some refugees will undoubtedly turn out to be IS fighters in disguise.

Tensions in Israel are at boiling point because of recent attacks. We stand in hope of the great spiritual awakening of Jews to the Messiah Jesus, foretold in Scripture.

Against this background the world continues to witness the deceit and hypocrisy of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas who, at the UN, compared Israel to apartheid South Africa and Nazi Germany, and declared that the PA no longer considered itself bound by the 1993 Oslo Accords.¹ As bestselling author Jack Engelhard wrote last week, "The entire world is arming itself against radical Islam, and it was to support radical Islam that Mahmoud Abbas came to the United Nations."²

The word of God says: "The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head." (Ob 1:15)

Persecution and Revival

Also in the Middle Eastern firing line are Christians, who worship Jesus, their Jewish Messiah. I have just received a shocking report (from California-based Assist News Service) of the beheading and crucifixion of a dozen indigenous Christian workers near Aleppo in Syria.³

Supported by US-based Christian Aid Mission, they had opportunities to escape, but chose to stay in order to provide aid and comfort in the name of Jesus amidst the carnage. All were ex-Muslims who refused to renounce Christ, and were badly brutalised before being executed, with the two women among them publicly raped. Yet they prayed throughout their ordeal. And in the midst of such unspeakable horror, the region's underground church has mushroomed since June 2014.

In the midst of unspeakable persecution of both Christians and Jews, Syria's underground church is mushrooming.

One former IS fighter fled to Jordan where he intended to kill Christian aid workers. But something stopped him from following through with his plan and that night he saw Jesus in a dream. He subsequently received Christ with tears, and now he's helping in the church. A spokesman said: "In the past we used to pray to have one person from a Muslim background come to the Lord. Now there are so many we can barely handle all the work among them."⁴

Jews and Christians are in it together because they share their Messiah - who is clearly coming soon, judging by the many signs of his imminent return. It's time to stand with the God of Israel and the Israel of God!

Charles Gardner is author of 'Israel the Chosen', available from Amazon; and 'Peace in Jerusalem', available from olivepresspublisher.com

References

1 Not that the PA has ever kept the agreement anyway, as though their former leader Yasser Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on the basis of dropping Israel's destruction from its charter, this never happened!

2 Engelhard, J. Op-Ed: Mahmoud Abbas - You Are Not That Important. Israel National News, Thursday 1 October 2015.

3 Christian Aid Mission. Eleven Christian Workers in Syria Crucified, Beheaded. Assist Christian News, Monday 5 October 2015.

4 Ibid.

As Russian planes bomb Syria and clouds continue to gather over the Middle East, Clifford Hill asks: are we one step closer to the fulfilment of Ezekiel 38?

Once again Putin has outmanoeuvred Obama. At their meeting in Washington earlier this week, Putin offered the involvement of Russian forces in the fight against the Islamic State. Obama welcomed it! He didn't spot Putin's ploy!

Just Who is Russia Attacking?

Within 48 hours of their meeting, Russian forces piled into Syria with air-to-air missiles and SA-22 anti-aircraft batteries. But the Islamic State has no air force! So whose planes would Russia be shooting down? The only planes flying over Syria are American and French. No wonder the Russians delivered a one-hour warning to the American embassy in Baghdad telling them not to fly any missions.

Russia then launched air attacks upon the area occupied by Syrian rebels trained by the USA and supplied with American weapons in their fight against Assad. So what Obama agreed to do was the slaughter of those whom America has been supporting. Russia is now free to roam the skies over Syria in support of Assad without any commitment to destroying the Islamic State.

Obama accepted Putin's offer of military action against IS – and has unwittingly given Russia control over Syrian airspace.

International Alliances

This conflict is about far more than a disagreement about Assad's ability to rule: it is about strategic control of the entire Middle East. At the same time as launching the recent airstrikes, Russia has joined an intelligence-gathering centre in Baghdad set up by Iraq, Iran and Syria which effectively establishes a Shi'ite Muslim alliance over the whole Middle East from Iran to the Mediterranean Sea. When they have settled their battle for supremacy over the Sunni Muslims they will turn to their final objective – the destruction of Israel.

Russia knows that they only have another 16 months of Obama's weak presidency so now is the time to strike and establish their power base in the region. Meanwhile, anti-Assad rebel groups have their own international backers – including Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia as well as the US, the UK and France. Syria's civil war is fast threatening to become a proxy war – and could potentially escalate even beyond this.

The Shi-ite Muslim alliance being established over the Middle East has a final goal: and it's not victory over the Sunnis. It's the destruction of Israel.

Threat to Israel

The threat to Israel grows daily and becomes increasingly like the biblical scenario which was revealed to the prophet Ezekiel in chapters 38 and 39 which speaks of an alliance between Iraq and Iran plus the North African states of Sudan and Libya, and the involvement of the Azerbaijan area of Russia (Eze 38:5-6), all gathering to attack Israel.

The big question facing us is this: is Ezekiel's prophecy inevitable? Or has it been sent by God as a warning of what could happen if we do nothing when violent men who care nothing for human life, armed with weapons of mass destruction, come together threatening the peace of the world?

We welcome your comments!

Two important prophecies that speak of the role of believing women in Britain's future: one from a Russian bishop in 1911, and the other from an Asian Christian, given at the 1986 Mount Carmel gathering.

The 1911 Prophecy: Background

Mother Barbara, Valentina Niolaevna Zoegkova, was born in Moscow on January 2 1889, the fourth child of extremely pious parents. Her father, Nicholas Alexeevitch, was chief director of one of the biggest banks in Russia, yet throughout his life he dedicated himself to defending the interests of the church and to serving its people.

From her birth, Valentina was surrounded by the intensely spiritual. Her family were often visited by 'starets' (holy men) and other Russian religious figures. This kind of contact filled her with an intense desire to consecrate herself to the Church and in her early youth she was blessed for missionary work and monachism by her spiritual father, Bishop Arseny of Moscow.

One starets who regularly visited her parents' home was Bishop Aristocoli, from Mount Athos. Ten days before his death, Aristocoli spend some time in discussion with Valentina, outlining her own future and that of a Russia already under a revolutionary yoke.

"You have received the gift of speaking and writing about what is useful for the soul, especially in our times", said Aristocoli. "Your inclination to monastic life will find its fulfilment, but far from here. You will live in one country, then will go further - to Palestine, to Jerusalem, and you will live there for a long, long time. In Jerusalem is the Holy Land, where much work and activities exist. You will live under different powers, but do not fear anything. You will always be under the protection of a right and just hierarchy.

Many sufferings will come to the world. Many people will perish. But it is not yet the end of the world; the time and the hour are known only by God. God's army- the powers of angels -will battle with Satan's army. In Russia people will suffer. It will be a worldwide sorrow from the evil spirits who put to trial all believers in God. Many will be killed. God knows who he must take, and who to leave. But Russia's fate is in God's hands and she will rise again. It will be a great miracle of renewal after great sufferings, sent to her with purifying aims. Light from the Orient will shine on the whole world and God will forgive in answer to suffering and repentance. This is very important- to have a conscience about one's sins; everyone and all are siners and all must repent."

The starets said much more to Valentina, foreseeing the establishing of a convent in Palestine and the building of a school, all of which eventually came to pass.

The 1911 Prophecy

Shortly before his death, Bishop Aristocoli passed this prophecy onto Mother Barbara.

Tell the women they must belong absolutely to God.They must believe in the great things that are happening and that God is doing on the earth. They must prepare their souls, their children and their husbands. And they will have very much work to do for God. Oh, what a great work the women will have to do in the end time, and the men will follow them.

Not one country will be without trial - do not be frightened of anything you will hear. An evil will shortly take Russia and wherever this evil comes, rivers of blood will flow. This evil will take the whole world and wherever it goes, rivers of blood will flow because of it. It is not the Russian soul, but an imposition on the Russian soul. It is not an ideology, or a philosophy, but a spirit from hell.

In the last days Germany will be divided in two. France will just be nothing. Italy will be judged by natural disasters. Britain will lose her empire and all her colonies and will come to almost total ruin, but will be saved by praying women. America will feed the world, but will finally collapse. Russia and China will destroy each other. Finally, Russia will be free and from her, believers will go forth and turn many from the nations to God.

The 1986 Prophecy: Background

On Mount Carmel, March 1986, an Asian man shared a prophetic insight with a woman from Britain. He had visited Britain only on the one occasion of his journey to Israel for the Carmel gathering, and knew little or nothing of the state of the church. As he stepped over the threshold of the conference centre on Mount Carmel, he was aware of a strong anointing from God and was given a vision concerning Britain.

The 1986 Prophecy

He saw a large church with a number of people in it. As he looked he saw that the men were asleep on their benches- and scattered around the church were women standing with arms uplifted crying to God.

He asked the Lord, 'What is this?'

God said 'I am showing you the true situation in the church in Britain. The men are asleep and not aware of what is going on, but I have my handmaidens who are seeking my face and who are understanding my heart and I am using my handmaidens for the nation.'

He then asked the Lord for a scripture to confirm the vision and the interpretation and was immediately given Judges 4:4: The situation in Israel at that time was bad and God chose a woman, Deborah, to judge Israel. She knew God's ways and was receiving messages for the people. Then, when she saw that the time for confrontation had come, she called for the man who was commander-in-chief of the army (she respected him and reverenced God's order). He would not go without her, so she went with him and because of this the victory would be the Lord's, but the honour would go to the women. Jaal hammered in the nail that killed Sisera, captain of the enemy forces. God used women who both knew his ways and waged warfare and gained the final victory.

God's call comes to his handmaidens of Britain to stand strong, to seek his face, to know his ways and to wage warfare. He says 'I am with you, be strong and of a good courage.' They will be persecuted from within the churches, but the time will come when those same people will come and ask them to show them the way in the battle and to go with them. The Lord will be victorious through the church but the honour will go to his handmaidens. 'When my people take a firm stand then I will reveal my glory through them'.

Zechariah 4:7 - the mountains will become a plain - we have nothing to fear.