History records the invasions of countries whose citizens were caught unprepared, invasions that brought devastating consequences that lingered for lifetimes. My father came from Poland and saw his country become one such victim.

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On Sept. 1, 1939, at 4:45 a.m., Hitler’s National Socialist German Workers’ Party (the Nazis), launched its blitzkrieg (“lightning war”) on an unprepared Poland. Some 1.5 million troops stormed that nation by land, air, and sea.

The Polish people were overwhelmed. German tanks steamrolled into the country; the Luftwaffe bombarded homes and trains, and Poles were mowed down with vicious machine-gun fire. Cities were torched as women and children screamed hysterically. In a month, Poland fell as Hitler gleefully celebrated victory and World War II exploded with its death and destruction.

While ministering in Poland I stood near the shoreline and pondered what it must have been like when an unsuspecting people paid a terrible price for not being prepared.

The prudent man sees danger and hides himself, but the fool goes on and suffers for it (Proverbs 22:3).

Israel at War

Recently, my wife and I saw the film Golda, starring Helen Mirren in the role of the 70-year-old Golda Meir, Israel’s prime minister when Israel was caught unprepared for a vicious attack with the potential of her country being completely destroyed. Millions of lives hung in the balance during the 19 days of the Yom Kippur War of 1973. She once said: “Not being beautiful was my blessing — it forced me to develop my inner resources.” She employed those resources to miraculously lead Israel to victory as they pledged “Never Again.”

And yet, on the 50th anniversary of that war, Islamic terrorists, financed by Iran (which has sworn to “wipe Israel off the map”) launched its horrifying bombardment with over 6,000 missiles. The attackers came by land, sea, and air to kill over 1,100 Jewish men, women, and children and to wound thousands more in a barbaric, demonically inspired assault.

After Donald Trump neutralized ISIS and Taliban jihadists, Biden extended an olive branch to Iran, the gorilla in the room, pledging $6 billion to them for a flimsy agreement not to develop their nuclear capability. This comes after he avoided Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the UN, refused to host him at the White House, and when the surprise attack began, his State Department issued an initial “Israel should not retaliate” statement. (Sen. Ted Cruz denounced that statement, so the White House walked it back!)

Israel is now at war, having taken off the gloves knowing that it must bring about the total destruction of the military and leadership of Hamas, reduce their launching site of Gaza to rubble, retake the territory, go door to door attempting to rescue every hostage, capture every weapon and kill every jihadist who resists.

The morning after this event, called “Israel’s 9/11,” The Times of Israel and observers worldwide looked on questioning how the intelligence failure and colossal lack of preparedness caught Israel with its Iron Dome off guard once again.

Time of Preparation

The Biden administration’s open borders has brought 8 million unvetted illegals into America. Over 100 on our Terrorist Watchlist were caught, but hundreds more slipped in. These have formed sleeper cells that are readying for a future coordinated surprise attack. It’s not a matter of if, but when. Alert!

God is a God of preparation, especially regarding the end of times and the Second Coming of Jesus! He prepares us by telling us specific signs, many occurring today. In His personal example, Jesus said: “I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2). He taught the parable of ten virgins (see Matthew 25:1–13) in which five were foolish but five were wise because they were prepared. God preserved in sacred Scripture how Egypt was saved amid a horrible famine because Joseph prepared the people (see Genesis 41:1–15).

Concerning the times and the seasons brothers, you have no need that I write to you. For you know perfectly, that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. When they say “peace and safety!” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness, so that this day should overtake you as a thief (1 Thessalonians 5:1–4).

Do we understand that God placed us in a new era where things are getting more serious and dangerous each day? It’s time to throw a grenade at ignorance, passivity and silence, learn lessons from history and hear “what the Spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 2:29). It’s time to awaken and prepare for some climactic end-times events! God is waking up His people to what’s unfolding on our watch and telling us to learn from the lessons of history.

Those who fail to learn the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them.

That’s why I’ve done a series of commentaries for those of us resolving to be “non-dummies” in this time of unprecedented shaking. We’ve tackled “The End Times;” “The Dangers of Deception;” and “Exposing Progressivism.” Ahead, we’ll examine “The Seduction of Socialism.”

3 Must-Reads

Readers are leaders, so, to those wanting to be informed influencers in this pivotal time of preparation, I highly recommend these three resources to keep you on the cutting edge.

1. Letter to the American Church, by Eric Metaxas author of Bonhoffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, is, in my humble opinion, the book of the decade! “This book is like a bucket of cold water thrown into the face of a sleeping church,” states Erwin Lutzer on the cover. The parallels of the 1930s German church with the American Church is a chilling, prophetic warning we must heed.
2. Live Not By Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents, by Rod Dreher, explains how totalitarianism today isn’t based on violent takeover but psychological manipulation. The author is called “a breathless messenger sounding an alarm” laying out how to discern and resist the progressive socialism steadily taking over our society.
3. Killing the Witches: The Horror of Salem, Massachusetts, by journalist and historian Bill O’Reilly places us with the Pilgrims on the Mayflower in 1620. We’re catapulted into one of the most frightening episodes in our history where individuals who spoke contrary to cultural “authorities” were systematically removed without due process. The witch hunts we witness are being replicated today in shocking similarity through the “cancel culture.”

Here’s the deal: Non-dummies sense in their spirits that we’re living in perilous times but also in days of great opportunity to advance the gospel! Let’s be ready as events unfold and God reveals His strategies to those who are humble, praying, engaged, informed, and staying prepared. Let’s learn lessons as the Polish people did from what happened to them 75 years ago, and what Israel experienced 50 years ago and is now experiencing once again. For us in America with Pearl Harbor and 9/11 as wake-up calls, heaven forbid we push the snooze alarm and go back to sleep. We can’t, there’s too much at stake in what may be the closing days before Jesus returns.

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Larry Tomczak is a cultural commentator of 46 years, an IFA board member, a bestselling author, and a public-policy adviser with Liberty Counsel. His innovative video/book, BULLSEYE, develops informed influencers in 30 days (see www.bullseyechallenge.com). Hear his weekly podcast here. Photo Credit: DNY59/Getty Images Signature.