Crushing Inflation in Venezuela/Powerful STDs Strike Back—​​​​​​​In Britain

Crushing Inflation in Venezuela

Earlier this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted a 13,000 percent annualized inflation rate in Venezuela (Washington Post, July 24, 2018), yet its recent revision makes its earlier prediction seem miniscule. Experts now predict an unbelievable inflation rate of one million percent by the end of the year—a figure some local economists believe is far too low! These scary predictions harken back to the Weimar Republic in Germany prior to World War II and images of people carrying money in wheelbarrows! As a result, two million people will leave Venezuela this year—more than six percent of the population.
Just two years ago, in this nation that was once the richest in South America, cannibalism occurred in one Venezuelan prison, with prisoners killing each other for food (Reuters, October 17, 2016). How might the current financial crisis impact conditions in prisons and society? Several years ago in Zimbabwe, the government switched its currency to the U.S. dollar in order to quell hyperinflation. However, Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro, is unlikely to follow that example—yet the country is running out of options (Washington Post, July 24, 2018).
Venezuela is an example of the impact that self-focused leaders can have on a nation. It could also be a glimpse into the future of Israelite-descended nations. Ezekiel wrote “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them” (Ezekiel 34:2–4). Few realize these ancient prophecies have an application today. For more prophetic insights, read or listen to Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ’s Return.



Powerful STDs Strike Back—​​​​​​​In Britain

Like many sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in their early state, Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) usually has no symptoms. This means an infected person can unknowingly transmit his or her disease to other sexual partners (BBC, July 11, 2018). The disease causes pain, fever, and bleeding, and even leads to infertility. Medical professionals are watching this bacteria mutate and develop immunity to certain antibiotics, rendering it untreatable in some cases.
The number of STD infections is increasing in many nations around the globe as high risk sexual activities are promoted as normal behavior. Public health agencies know these diseases are preventable but opt to make condom use their only advisable prevention choice. Rather than focusing on changing behaviors that cause MG and all other STDs, medical professionals are opting for politically correct solutions, which are nothing more than “band aids” that do not address the cause of the problem.
However, the Bible contains a true and lasting solution to the problem. This biblical solution totally removes the risk of infection and, if followed faithfully, could eradicate STDs entirely. God’s solution to the STD crisis plaguing humanity today is to confine sexual relations to a monogamous marriage between one man and one woman (Genesis 2:24; Exodus 20:14). This simple, time-tested behavior totally prevents exposure to these potentially deadly infectious agents and puts an end to their spread. Although our modern society balks at these effective laws for living, the Bible provides simple, easy-to-follow rules for life that can eliminate these diseases and their consequences. Imagine a world where no one is sick or dying from an STD. This can be the result of keeping just one of God’s Ten Commandments. To better understand the powerful effects of these ancient and currently applicable biblical instructions, read or listen to our booklet The Ten Commandments.