The State of the World

The article below reveals the status of freedom in the world, and the bad news is, we can observe a continual loss of freedom as authoritarian regimes grow throughout. This shouldn't be surprising as we realize the road is being paved to the Tribulation:

Freedom in decline worldwide: US report

Global freedom declined for a fifth straight year in 2010 as authoritarian regimes dug in worldwide and crime and unrest plagued democracies like Mexico, a US watchdog said Thursday.

In "Freedom in the World 2011" the Washington-based Freedom House said it had documented the longest continuous period of decline since it began compiling the annual index nearly 40 years ago. Authoritarian regimes like those in China, Egypt, Iran, Russia, and Venezuela continued to step up repressive measures with little significant resistance from the democratic world," it said.

The recent decline "threatens gains dating to the post-Cold War era in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the former Soviet bloc.

"The report classifies countries as free, partly free or not free based on individuals' ability to exercise political and civil rights, taking into account political systems and other factors like war and crime.

After detailing the situation in several specific regions of the world, we see the conclusions reached on this ongoing situation:

The Middle East and North Africa continued to lead the world in lack of freedom following a "multi-year decline from an already-low democratic baseline," the group said.

"This should be a wake-up call for all of the world's democracies," said Freedom House director David Kramer, who served as assistant secretary of state for democracy and human rights under former president George W. Bush.

"Our adversaries are not just engaging in widespread repression, they are doing so with unprecedented aggressiveness and self-confidence, and the democratic community is not rising to the challenge."

It is amazing - just how much of this road is being paved. Years ago, for a prophecy watcher, it seemed that the antichrist would have to completely transform the world into his vision of a world governance under his authoritarian regime. That seemed impossible. Now, in these last days, rather than having to completely transform the world into his vision, it appears that he will walk into a situation already prepared.

And we watch this transformation before our very eyes. Its both surreal, somewhat scary, yet exhilarating at the same time. Exhilarating because we know what awaits us...We know our fate. Jesus gave us the signs of this generation, as did many biblical prophets, and we are immersed in these signs.

We should be so grateful - to God - for giving us comfort and security through the prophetic scriptures which serve as our guide in these dark days. As the apostle Paul stated, its our source of hope and encouragement. As the apostle Peter stated, its our shining light in a dark place.

Indeed.