Sons of Issachar Newsletter: November 26, 2025
1. A Once-in-recorded-history Volcano and a Fragile Global System
Over the weekend, the long-dormant Hayli Gubbi volcano in Ethiopia’s Afar region erupted for the first time in recorded history, sending ash plumes up to about 9 miles high and blanketing nearby villages with ash. The Guardian notes that ash drifted across the Red Sea toward Yemen and Oman, while Al Jazeera and AP News describe respiratory problems, contaminated water, and stressed livestock in nearby Afar communities. At the same time, Reuters reports dozens of flights canceled or rerouted as ash traveled into key flight corridors over the Middle East and India.
Prophetic lens:
“Blood and fire and columns of smoke” are listed among the signs preceding the day of the Lord (Joel 2:30–31), and Jesus speaks of earthquakes and other disturbances as “the beginning of the birth pains” (Matthew 24:7–8). It’s also interesting with the timing happening so closely with the UN vote around Gaza.
A single volcano in East Africa disrupted flight paths and economies thousands of miles away, underlining how interconnected and fragile the modern world is. When creation groans, the whole system feels it (Romans 8:19–22).
What used to be considered “once in many millennia” events are beginning to feel strangely normal, consistent with intensifying birth pains as the end approaches.
2. Insurance Shock: Disasters, Inflation, and the Squeeze on Households
This week, multiple outlets reported that U.S. homeowners could see insurance premiums jump another 16% over the next two years. A segment from FOX 13 Tampa Bay explains that real-estate analytics firm Cotality projects average increases of about 8% in 2026 and another 8% in 2027, driven by higher rebuilding costs and escalating natural-disaster losses.
Prophetic lens:
Rising premiums, shrinking coverage, and disaster-linked surcharges are part of a broader economic shaking. The more people are squeezed, the more they become vulnerable to centralized “solutions” tied to compliance, which fits the trajectory of Revelation 13:16–17, where the ability to buy and sell becomes a lever of control.
James 5:1–6 rebukes the rich who hoard wealth “in the last days” while workers bear the cost. A system where corporations remain profitable as ordinary families are priced out of basic protections looks very much like that warning.
For believers, this calls for kingdom economics: using what we have to support one another, reducing unnecessary entanglements with fragile systems, and remembering that our security is ultimately in the Lord, not in policies.
3. Pestilence: The “Subclade K” Flu Strain
Health coverage over the last several days has focused on a new H3N2 flu variant dubbed “subclade K.” ABC News reports that subclade K likely explains recent spikes in flu cases in Canada, Japan, and the UK, and that early U.S. data show more than half of H3 samples are this variant. Newsweek notes that hospitalizations in parts of the U.S. are reaching their highest levels in years and that subclade K may partially evade existing immunity. A background analysis from the University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP explains that the current vaccine composition appears mismatched to this specific drifted strain… which is usually the case.
Prophetic lens:
Jesus explicitly includes “pestilences” among last-days signs (Luke 21:11). Post-COVID, rather than returning to stable patterns, we see recurring waves of novel or drifted strains, contested public-health measures, and rising mistrust.
These cycles condition societies for health-based control frameworks—where travel, work, and participation can hinge on health status or compliance, dovetailing with wider technocratic systems.
For the Church, this is a call to sober wisdom: caring for the vulnerable, avoiding division over secondary health debates, and anchoring our ultimate hope not in medicine or policy but in Christ the healer (Exodus 15:26) and our blessed hope (Titus 2:13).
4. “Brain Weapons” and the Battle for the Mind
Several stories this week highlighted warnings from scientists about emerging “brain weapons.” An analysis at ZME Science summarizes research by UK experts Michael Crowley and Malcolm Dando, who warn that advances in neuroscience, CNS-acting chemicals, and AI could enable weapons that deliberately alter consciousness, perception, or mood. Samaa TV similarly reports concerns that neuro-weapons could be used for crowd control, interrogation, or covert manipulation, and calls for urgent international controls. The story has also been picked up in more popular form by the New York Post.
Prophetic lens:
Scripture warns of a time of global deception and strong delusion, when those who reject the truth will be given over to believing “the lie” (2 Thessalonians 2:9–12; Revelation 13:13–14).
When the battlefield moves from propaganda to direct neuro-modulation, resisting deception becomes less about being “well-informed” and more about being spiritually guarded and renewed in mind (Romans 12:2, Philippians 4:7).
These developments sit alongside AI-driven “cognitive warfare,” deepfakes, and algorithmic manipulation, all converging to make the human mind the main theater of conflict—a fitting stage for an antichrist system built on lies. Spend time in your Bible and in prayer to keep yourself grounded in The Truth.
5. AI and the Future of War
On November 19, First Lady Melania Trump addressed Marines at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina and warned that artificial intelligence will alter war more profoundly than any technology since nuclear weapons. Fox News cites her remark: “Technology is changing the art of war… predictably, AI will alter war more profoundly than any technology since nuclear weapons.” Coverage in the New York Post and other outlets echoes the same theme, describing a future of autonomous drones, AI-assisted targeting, and rapid decision loops.
Prophetic lens:
The Bible foresees unprecedented, technologically advanced conflict in the run-up to Christ’s return, including global coalitions and mass destruction (Revelation 16:13–16; Revelation 19:19).
AI-driven, semi-autonomous, and fully autonomous weapons are laying the groundwork for such conflicts—where decisions and reactions may happen too fast for meaningful human moral input.
The same AI infrastructure that makes warfare more efficient also powers surveillance, social scoring, and digital control, reinforcing the kind of comprehensive oversight system implied in Revelation 13.
6. “Fortress Communities”: Elites Building Their Own Arks
A widely shared commentary this week describes how wealthy elites are moving into high-security “fortress communities,” guarded by teams of armed professionals and equipped to ride out social unrest and systemic shocks. One representative piece is Michael Snyder’s article, “The Elite Are Moving Into High Security ‘Fortress Communities’ Guarded By Teams Of Armed Professionals Because They Realize What Is Coming,” on The Economic Collapse Blog. A similar repost appears at MarketSanity.
While these are opinion pieces rather than straight news, they reflect real trends in high-end real estate and private security: wealth seeking insulation from the instability many foresee.
Prophetic lens:
This looks very much like James 5:1–3: “You have laid up treasure in the last days… Your gold and silver have corroded… and their corrosion will be evidence against you.” Building thicker walls does not shield anyone from the judgment of God.
Scripture instead presents the Lord Himself as our fortress (Psalm 46:1–2; Proverbs 18:10) and the church community as a place of mutual care, generosity, and hospitality—not a bunker for the wealthy.
As elites retreat into guarded enclaves, the people of God are called to be cities on a hill (Matthew 5:14–16), offering spiritual refuge, practical help, and a visible contrast to self-protective fear.
7. Potential U.S.–Venezuela Conflict: Troop Buildup and Holiday Leave Cancelled
Over just the last week, the Venezuela crisis has moved from slow-burn to “something could happen any day” territory. The U.S. now has roughly 10,000–15,000 troops, carrier groups, bombers, and special operations assets deployed in and around the southern Caribbean under Operation Southern Spear—described by analysts as the largest U.S. military presence in the region since the 1989 Panama invasion. See, for example, the overview of the 2025 United States naval deployment in the Caribbean.
At the same time, Washington has formally labeled the alleged “Cartel de los Soles”—a loose network of Venezuelan officials accused of drug trafficking—as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, escalating the legal and political justification for action against the Maduro regime. Outlets like Reuters and AP News note that this move widens U.S. authorities for sanctions, prosecutions, and potential operations, even as critics warn it is being used as a pretext for regime change.
Venezuela is responding in full crisis mode. President Nicolás Maduro has held mass rallies in Caracas, dressed in fatigues and brandishing a sword said to have belonged to Simón Bolívar, vowing to defend “every inch” of Venezuela from U.S. “aggression,” as reported by TIME and Sky News. Meanwhile, Cuba and other allies are openly accusing Washington of seeking a “violent overthrow” of the Venezuelan government and warning of “incalculable” regional consequences, according to Reuters and Al Jazeera.
One of the more striking developments—circulating heavily on X—is the report that U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) is restricting or cancelling Thanksgiving and Christmas leave for thousands of troops in the region. NewsNation White House correspondent Kellie Meyer posted that SOUTHCOM is “restricting / limiting leave over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, in preparation for possible land strikes in the next 10 days to two weeks,” a claim amplified by outlets like the Latin Times, Defense One, and the Irish Independent / Telegraph syndication. SOUTHCOM, for its part, has publicly denied a blanket cancellation of leave, telling reporters that service members can still take time off—but the fact that serious outlets are even discussing a holiday leave clampdown tied to possible land operations underscores how close to the edge things feel.
Civilian life is already being disrupted. Following a U.S. FAA warning about heightened military activity and potential risks to aircraft over Venezuela, multiple airlines—including major Latin American and European carriers—have temporarily halted flights to Caracas, as reported by AP News and recapped by several international outlets. This not only isolates Venezuela further but also impacts ordinary families, missionaries, business people, and the large diaspora who rely on those routes.
Prophetic lens:
Jesus warned that in the last days there would be “wars and rumors of wars”, nations rising against nations, and kingdoms against kingdoms (Matthew 24:6–7). What we are watching now is a rumor of war on America’s doorstep—open talk of land strikes, terror designations, and massive deployments in the Western Hemisphere.
The justification framework is familiar: narco-terrorism + “failed state” + protection of regional security. However, Scripture repeatedly warns about powerful empires using noble-sounding narratives while pursuing their own interests and sometimes taking things beyond God’s point. (Habakkuk 1:6–11, Jeremiah 51:20, Isaiah 10:5-6).
If this escalates into a wider conflict in South America, it could reshape alliances, energy flows, migration, and internal politics in the U.S.—all of which fit into the larger picture of global shaking leading toward the kind of coercive, centralized power we see in Revelation 13.
For the Church, this is a moment to:
Stay alert, not numb, as events unfold in our own hemisphere.
Pray for believers in Venezuela, neighboring nations, and among U.S. forces, that they would stand firm in Christ regardless of what their governments do.
Remember that our ultimate allegiance is to the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), not to any earthly administration—whether in Washington, Caracas, or Havana.
How Then Should We Live This Week?
Across just the last few days, we see:
Creation groaning through “impossible” volcanic events.
Economic systems shifting risk and cost onto ordinary households.
Pestilence evolving and circulating in ways that fuel control and fear.
New tools capable of hacking brains and automating warfare.
Elites quietly fortifying themselves against a future they expect to be turbulent.
None of this is random. It aligns with the trajectory laid out in passages like Matthew 24, Luke 21, 2 Thessalonians 2, and Revelation 13.
In light of these developments:
Let Scripture interpret the headlines, not the other way around.
Guard your mind. As “brain weapons,” deepfakes, and AI-driven persuasion grow, deliberately submit your thoughts to Christ and saturate them with the Word.
Practice kingdom resilience. Build local, relational, and practical resilience in your church and community that does not collapse if digital systems shake.
Reject fortress mentality. Instead of hoarding, live generously and visibly as those who trust the Lord as their refuge.
Preach the gospel while the door is still open. The purpose of these signs is not fascination but repentance and readiness.
“For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.” — Hebrews 13:14 (ESV)