by Michael G. Mickey
(5-12-08)

Tomorrow President Bush is off to the Middle East where he is, once again, going to be pressing Israel to make the concessions necessary for the mythical state of Palestine to be born on Israel's covenant lands during his trip May 13-18.

The question on my mind at this point? At what cost to America will this trip come? And no, I'm not talking about the cost of the jet fuel it will take to carry the president and his entourage to the region; I'm talking about the cost that may come as a direct result of our nation assisting the enemies of God in their never-ending efforts to drive the nation of Israel into the Mediterranean which logic dictates our government, unless blind, deaf and oblivious to reality, has to realize is their end goal regardless of whatever idle talk of peace said enemies of God offhandedly make on the peripherals of these periodic overtures on the part of our government (and the international community) to end the Middle East conflict.

Leading up to the president's visit, the news has been rife with stories suggesting that progress toward peace is being made as well as stories urging the Middle East peace process to be ramped up. Below are several examples:

• Bush has "no illusions" on Mideast breakthrough - Dated April 28, this article states, in part: "U.S. President George W. Bush will try to bolster the faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace process on a May 13-18 trip to the Middle East, but the White House said on Monday he is "under no illusions" of a quick breakthrough."
• Bush: Hopeful for Mideast peace deal by end of term - "Negotiations have bogged down since Bush hosted a conference in Annapolis, Maryland, in November where both sides pledged to try to reach a peace deal by the end of his term" yet President Bush still hopes to secure "a Middle East peace legacy that eluded his predecessors."
• Rice to Israel: Tear down anti-terror roadblocks - "Upon Rice's previous visit to the region last month, she reportedly urged the removal of specific West Bank roadblocks. Within hours of the elimination of one of the barriers, a knife-wielding Palestinian attempted to attack two Jews near the area from which the roadblock had been removed. Israeli lawmakers then charged Rice's demands were responsible for that attempted attack."
• J'lem official: Peace talks making considerable progress - Israel and the Palestinian Authority have reportedly made "considerable progress" toward delineating the border of a future Palestinian state.
• J'lem source: Rice seeks Israel, PA memo this week - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has made both Israel and the Palestinian Authority unhappy of late by asking them to "publish a memorandum of understanding on the progress of their final-status negotiations to date before U.S. President George Bush arrives on a visit next week."
• Blair: Mideast peace process must move faster - Blair's associates, according to the article, have said that "the coming weeks will be critical and will be make or break for the chances of an agreement."

Several things becomes abundantly clear when one looks at these stories:

1. President Bush, following in the footsteps of U.S. presidents before him, is entering the legacy-setting stage of his presidency. He wants to be remembered, as do a thousand other global movers and shakers, as the man who orchestrated the achievement of a long-standing goal of the international community (and the new world order). He wants to be known as the man who brought peace to the Middle East.
2. All direct actions that could actually lead to peace coming to the Middle East are, as always, being dropped into the lap of the Israeli government to achieve, primarily because the so-called President of the Palestinian Authority has about as much authority over the actions of his people, a vast portion of whom are terrorists or terrorist sympathizers, as the business end of a baseball bat has concerning what it strikes when swung.
3. Because President Bush wants Middle East peace to come prior to him leaving office, the pressure on Israel to make it happen is growing by the second, in spite of the fact that absolutely nothing is taking place to make Israel sense it will be safer for its efforts, even if it gives the Palestinians everything they're asking for! Case in point? Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as Israel celebrates its 60th anniversary, is referring to Israel as a stinking corpse doomed to disappear. That's hopeful in light of the fact Iran is assisting Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and all the usual suspects who prevent lasting peace from coming to the Middle East to sabotage every effort made toward peace that leaves Israel in existence in any form whatsoever, right? Hardly.

No matter how one does the math, so to speak, the onus to bring peace to the Middle East rests solely with Israel. As such, there is absolutely no way President Bush can attempt to bring peace to the Middle East without risking the loss of more innocent Israeli lives. Therein lies the problem - and it's a big one!

Paying God's price can be hard

Over the course of the last few weeks we've seen tornadoes tearing up swaths of land, sweeping away the homes and possessions of many hard-working Americans. In a number of instances, the very lives of those in the paths of these storms have been lost as well. There have been earthquakes in the Midwest, Nevada, California and off the cost of Oregon, some of them being downright mysterious in composition, and then there's the ongoing crisis concerning our honeybee population - key to our nation's ability to produce food. Over 36% of our commercial hives have now been lost dating back to last year and the trend is continuing. At a time when our nation desperately needs God's hand of protection upon it, our government, ignoring God's promise of blessing and curse concerning the nation of Israel, is inviting His wrath to fall on us.

What am I saying? The cost of Middle East peace is, ultimately, going to be very high if it isn't right away.

God has said of the nation of Israel, as recorded in Genesis 12:3: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Presently, I can't foresee any sort of peace agreement coming into existence that will achieve anything concrete in the Middle East absent of a confirmation of peace occurring as well. That, as we see in Daniel 9:26-27, will require the advent of the Antichrist to occur leading the world into the Tribulation Period. Having heard nothing to indicate that the seven-year peace covenant that will be required for that to come to pass is in the works, I'm not sure President Bush is going to see his goal of Middle East peace achieved by January of 2009 but that doesn't mean it can't take place. For all I know it may all be in the works as I type these words, being formulated in secret to prevent Israel's enemies from sabotaging it prematurely.

Regardless of where we are on the prophetic timeline, there is going to be a heavy price to be paid by those nations which jeopardize Israel's safety in seeking the peace that is going to lead to the advent of Antichrist and the onset of the Tribulation Period.

America, having been blessed above all nations, needs to consider what the cost of enabling Israel's enemies may be. God may elect to collect those costs at any point He chooses to but watching the news the next few days? It could prove to be quite interesting, particularly because President Bush will be pushing Israel into a corner at a landmark point in its history. On the 14th, Israel will turn 60 years of age since its miraculous rebirth in 1948.

While the entire Christian world should be joyously reflecting on the fulfillment of Bible prophecy that was Israel's rebirth and its present existence against all odds, many of us who sense the lateness of the hour we're presently living in need to be prayerful concerning the peace of Jerusalem and the safety of the United States of America which is going to have its arm in the cookie jar of God's wrath all the way up to the armpit through the 18th.

Have mercy on us, Lord.