Prices Go Up, Up, Up! What Should We Do?
A commentary by Cecil E. Maranville
World News and Prophecy Senior Editor
Each of us is receiving a continuing education
on the intricate part played in the world's economy by the
price of fossil fuel. As it goes higher, so do the costs of a long
list of commodities and services necessary for our own productivity
and survival.
Electricity is up. Gasoline and diesel are up. Fuel
oil is up. Natural gas is up. The cost of coal is up. Prices of
corn, wheat, milk and eggs, as well as all foods made from them
are up. The price of commercial fertilizer, made from petroleum
or natural gas, has also skyrocketed. Some types are up 300 percent
in just a year, with both cost and short supplies keeping farmers
from buying what they need.
As a result, it costs more to grow our
groceries; more to buy our groceries; more to get our groceries;
more to refrigerate our groceries; more to cook our groceries. In
April, the World
Bank reported cost increases for the 36 months before February
2008. The global price of wheat rose 181 percent and the average
global price of all foods increased by 83 percent.
All of this threatens
not only the pocketbook but also life itself for tens
of millions of the world's poor. But it's not merely
the developing world's problem or only a problem for the Western
world. It's a worldwide problem.
What will the average person
do? For some, it's possible to
cut back on leisure spending and redirect their finances to offset
the oil-price-caused increases. For many, it's comes down
to sorting the bills that need to be paid and deciding which ones
have priority.
Another direct consequence of these increased costs
is a shrinking job market, causing some to need charity just to
survive. A businessman in northern Africa wrote us a few days ago,
after reading our booklet, Managing
Your Finances. He is facing bankruptcy
after barely beginning in business. From all appearances, he made
reasonably good decisions, got an education in a field with available
jobs and obtained a small business loan to start up. But the worldwide
tidal wave of the rising cost of living overtook him just at the
wrong time.
Few situations in life are more frightening
than what many will face in the current financial crisis. The following
words capture this raw fear: "I felt weak from fear, and my
lips quivered. My bones seemed to melt, and I stumbled around." The
writer describes a wrecked economy: "Fig trees may no longer
bloom, or vineyards produce grapes; olive trees may be fruitless,
and harvest time a failure; sheep pens may be empty, and cattle
stalls vacant ...."
No harvest and no livestock indicate
not only an immediate shortage but also a continuing one where there
is no grain to eat, no seed for the next crop, no meat to eat and
no breeding stock to produce more animals. This could either represent
a straight agricultural assessment or symbolize the most common
ways people make their living. Either way, the imagery is clear.
Hope of income is gone.
The writer isn't someone from the 21st
century, but from approximately 26 centuries ago! He was the biblical
prophet Habakkuk who had to live through his prophecy's fulfillment.
His message was not only useful for his time but is also useful
instruction for us.
Habakkuk considered God's promises carefully.
This greatly bolstered his confidence, his faith. So his tone changes
as he continues: "...
but I will still celebrate because the LORD God saves me. The LORD
gives me strength. He makes my feet as sure as those of a deer,
and he helps me stand on the mountains" (Habakkuk 3:16-19, Contemporary
English Version).
The above wording symbolizes the prophet's
confidence that he would survive; that God would make it possible
for him to walk securely (like a sure-footed deer) when otherwise
he would have fallen. Godly faith is assurance of support when no
apparent support is visible. It is a godly confidence in the future
when no physical evidence suggests hope (see Hebrews 11:1).
God has
promised to respond the same for us today, if we really trust Him.
In these trying times, should our daily needs seem unattainable,
it is important to remember the encouraging words of Matthew 6:25-34.
Here Jesus promises that if we "... seek first the kingdom
of God and His righteousness ... all these things [the necessities for
survival] shall be added to you" (verse 33).
  For
more details on why we should seek first the
Kingdom of God and how to go about it, simply request or download
our encouraging free booklets: The
Gospel of the Kingdom and You
Can Have Living Faith.
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