"Today, we should define our economic, cultural and political policies based on the policy of Imam Mahdi's return."
-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Does the government of Iran actually want war with Israel so that the Mahdi can return?  As insane as that sounds, the truth is that the vast majority of people in the United States and Europe simply do not understand how absolutely obsessed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and others in the Iranian government are with their form of radical Islam and with the return of the Mahdi.  It surprises many to learn that Iran's official state websites are filled with information about the Mahdi.  In fact, Ahmadinejad actually believes that he was born to be "the great jihadist" that would prepare the way for the twelfth Imam.  But in order for the Mahdi to return, the belief is that there must first be a great cataclysmic event.  So is Iran's nuclear weapons program designed to facilitate this cataclysmic event and hasten the return of the Mahdi?

That seems to be the most rational explanation for Iran's current behavior.  The government of Iran knows that Israel and the United States will never let them develop nuclear weapons and will go to war if necessary to prevent Iran from getting them. 

But they seem bound and determined to get nuclear weapons anyway.

In fact, Iran just announced that it plans to start constructing two new uranium enrichment facilities next month in the heart of the Iranian mountains.

But doesn't the Iranian leadership fear a war with the United States and Israel?

Perhaps the Iranian government should, but they understand that if the United States and/or Israel strike first, they will be viewed as the aggressors by the rest of the globe.  World opinion would swing dramatically in favor of Iran.

But that is only part of the equation.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and others among the Iranian leadership also believe that they are setting up the great cataclysm which will bring about the return of the Mahdi.  Many of them seem perfectly willing to die in order to fulfill this purpose.

During a speech in Tehran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly stated that his primary purpose in life is to "pave the path for the glorious reappearance of Imam Mahdi, may Allah hasten his reappearance."

So just who is this "Mahdi" supposed to be?

According to Wikipedia, Shi'ite Muslims "believe that the Mahdi is the Twelfth Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Twelfth and last Imam, who was born in 868 AD and was hidden by God at the age of five."  It is believed that the Mahdi will one day return during a very cataclysmic time in human history and will establish the rule of Islam around the world in the last days.

So now, many of those in the Islamic world who believe in the Mahdi are looking for that cataclysmic event to occur.

For example, AwaitedMahdi.com states that the "Last Hour" will not come "unless the Muslims fight against the Jews".

Ariel Sharon understood these radical Islamic beliefs very well.  Sharon is quoted as saying the following about Iran's obsession with the Mahdi....

"How will they bring him? Through an apocalypse. He (the Mahdi) needs a war. He cannot come into this world without an Armageddon. He wants an Armageddon. The earlier we understand this the better. Ahmadinejad wants nuclear weapons for this!"

So was Sharon just exaggerating when he said this?

Not at all.

In fact, check out the following quote from Ahmadinejad about how he believes that the United States is actively trying to prevent the return of the Mahdi....

"They have devised all these plans to prevent the coming of the Hidden Imam because they know that the Iranian nation is the one that will prepare the grounds for his coming and will be the supporters of his rule".

Most Americans and Europeans simply cannot conceive of a government that makes all major decisions based on an obsession with religion, but that is exactly what is going on in Iran.  The government of Iran believes that the Mahdi is really going to return and that they are the ones who are going to pave the way for it to happen.

Meanwhile, Israel continues to prepare for war.  Israel's air force has introduced a fleet of huge pilotless planes that can remain in the air for a full day and could fly as far as the Persian Gulf.  In fact, each one of these "super drones" is reportedly as wide as a Boeing 737. 

Israel's government understands what is happening in Iran and they know that a showdown is on the horizon.

Iran continues to recklessly pursue a nuclear program as Israel continues to prepare to neutralize it.  It appears as though it is more likely than ever that war between Israel and Iran is inevitable.  Let us pray that war can be averted if possible, and if not, that God's will be done.

"We must prepare ourselves to rule the world and the only way to do that is to put forth views on the basis of the Expectation of the Return."
-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

What in the world is happening to public schools in the United States?  Once upon a time they were safe and peaceful institutions where our young people could get educated and prepared for their future lives as adults.  But in today's "security conscious" America, many public schools are on the verge of becoming literal prison camps, with students regularly being handcuffed, arrested and charged with crimes.  Is this the new "Amerika" where even our schoolchildren have to be ruled with an iron fist?  What does this say about our society as a whole?  Are we witnessing the last days of the open society?

The introduction of "zero tolerance" policies in many areas of the United States has led to some absolutely ridiculous outcomes.  Just consider the following examples....

*A 6-year-old girl was recently handcuffed and sent to a mental facility after throwing temper tantrums at her elementary school.

*One 12-year-old girl in New York was recently arrested and marched out of her school in handcuffs because she doodled on her desk.

*One middle school student was arrested on Thursday for starting a fire in a restroom trash can.

*One teen in Georgia was recently arrested after he got into a fight with another student while waiting for a bus after school.

*One eighth-grade teacher in the U.S. has accused her students of committing a "hate crime" because they left a Bible on her desk and a Christmas card with the word "Christ" underlined.

*A while back, a 6th-grader's teacher told him that Jesus could not be mentioned in a Christmas poem that he was writing for class.

*A bill introduced in the Iowa House would require "age-appropriate" comprehensive sex education beginning in kindergarten.

*In Florida, students have been arrested for bringing a plastic butter knife to school, throwing an eraser, and drawing a picture of a gun.

Just what in the world is going on here?

If this is what our public schools are becoming, who in the world would want to send their kids there?

Of course not every public school is like this yet, but this is clearly the direction that the country is moving in.

If you know of more examples like this, please submit a comment and share them with us.

America is quickly changing, and unless we wake up and start speaking out now, the American we all remember may be lost forever.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is at it again.  This time he is publicly claiming that Israel plans to start a war this upcoming Spring or Summer, and that this will be a chance for the surrounding nations to "finish" Israel.  And yet there is very little outrage concerning these remarks outside of Israel and the United States. 

It should be quite obvious to everyone by now that Ahmadinejad is not interested in peace.  In fact, he very much sounds like someone who is almost lusting for war.  He has made these same kind of remarks over and over, and it is very clear that he believes that there will be an inevitable clash between Iran and Israel.

Just consider the following quotes from Ahmadinejad's most recent remarks as they were reported in The Jerusalem Post....

"According to information we have they (Israel) are seeking to start a war next spring or summer, although their decision is not final yet."

"But the resistance and regional states will finish them if this fake regime does anything again."

"If the Zionist regime repeats its mistakes and initiate a military operation, then it must be resisted with full force to put an end to it once and for all."

Are those the words of a sane individual?

Of course not.

These newest remarks come several days after Ahmadinejad reportedly told Syrian President Bashar Assad that Israel "must be resisted" and "finished off once and for all" if it launches a military operation anywhere in the Middle East.

Finished off once and for all?

Those are bone-chilling words.

The rest of the world doesn't seem to be getting the message, but the reality is that Ahmadinejad is very serious about wiping the state of Israel off the map.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration is mulling over "tougher sanctions" and Hillary Clinton is warning that Iran is moving towards a "military dictatorship".

In response, Ahmadinejad issued his own warning to nations that would imposed tougher sanctions on his nation....

"We prefer that they move in the spirit of cooperation. It won't put us in trouble. They themselves will get into trouble."

And this psycho may soon have his hands on nukes?

The truth is that the United States and Israel simply cannot allow Ahmadinejad to threaten the world with nuclear weapons.

But a war with Iran would be incredibly destructive not only to the Middle East, but also to the world economy.

So what should be done?

Hope that Ahmadinejad wakes up someday and changes his mind?

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is insisting that any effort to rid the Middle East of nuclear weapons must include Israel.

That puts Israel in a tough spot.  The reality is that they have had nukes since the 1970s, and the presence of those nukes has caused potential invaders to think twice.

There is no way that Israel should ever give up their nukes, but insisting that everyone else but them in the region be nuke-free is a tough argument for the surrounding nations to swallow.

So what is going to happen?

We'll all just have to wait and find out - that is part of the fun of living in the last days.

But all signs are pointing to a massive conflict between Israel and Iran at some point. 

Let us pray for the peace of Israel and for the peace of Jerusalem.

Is war on the horizon in the Middle East?  Iran is certainly arming for one.  In fact, what we are witnessing now could potentially be considered the greatest military buildup in the history of the Middle East.  Basically what Iran has done is they have pushed all of their chips to the middle of the table and have decided that they are going to develop nuclear weapons no matter what.  Now they are arming themselves to the teeth for the confrontation with Israel and/or the United States that they know is coming at some point.  We all know that there will be wars in the last days, but when war erupts in the Middle East, things are not going to be pleasant - especially if nuclear, chemical and biological weapons are used.

Iran and Israel are caught in a bizarre game of chicken, and Iran is showing no signs of blinking.  In fact, Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered his country's nuclear agency to begin the production of higher enriched uranium.  Iran seems to have no fear of sanctions or of anything else.  Perhaps they realize that Obama has absolutely no interest in a war with Iran.  Or perhaps they are just crazy.  In any event, Iran's leaders have set their course and they seem to have no intention of altering it.

In fact, they are arming themselves as if a coming war with Israel is inevitable....

*An Iranian air force commander said on Monday that Iran will soon unveil a domestically-made air defense system with at least the same capability as Russia's very powerful S-300 anti-aircraft hardware.  If this is true, it will be a major change in the balance of power.

*Iran has begun producing very advanced unmanned drones capable of carrying out devastating assaults "with high precision".   

*Iran has also announced that they officially started production of two new kinds of conventional missiles on Saturday.

*There are even persistent rumors that Iran is developing intercontinental ballistic missiles that could potentially carry nuclear warheads.  If that ever comes to fruition, the United States would be in much greater danger.

So what does all of this mean?

It means that Iran is desperately trying to develop strategic weapons that will enable it to close the gap somewhat between itself and Israel and the United States.

There is no way that Iran can achieve strategic parity with the United States military right now, but if they can put enough of a hurt on the U.S. and Israel they know that the politicians in those two nations will think twice before striking.

And that could buy time for Iran to make nukes.

After all, the destruction of Israel is one of the stated goals of the Iranian government.

In fact, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that he believes that the obliteration of Israel "is certain".

That is dangerous talk.

Tensions are rising all over the Middle East.  It is being reported that one Syrian government official recently said that Syria is ready for either peace or war.

And war seems more likely by the day.

According to one new report, Egyptian maritime sources say that the Israeli navy has deployed two missile ships to the Persian Gulf.

Not that there is anything too unusual about that, but it is yet another move that is raising tensions in the region.

As noted above, we all know that war is inevitable in the last days.  But we are also instructed in the Scriptures to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.  So let us pray for peace even as things move ever closer to war.

We truly live in extraordinary times.  Bible prophecy is being fulfilled at a pace that is absolutely mind blowing.  There were so many news stories related to the last days this week that it was literally very difficult to try to keep up with them all.  In fact, there are so many events happening out there right now related to the last days that it is hard to know where to begin.  So today we thought that we would highlight a bunch of the key news stories from this past week....

*Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Yaalon is warning that Israel might soon have to use military force to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

*The Iranian ambassador in Moscow stated on Thursday that Russia has assured Iran that it still intends to deliver long-range air-defense missiles.

*A large shipment of North Korean weapons recently intercepted in Thailand was bound for an airport in Iran.

*One new report claims that Egyptian military sources have put out information outlining Israel's plans for a military strike on Iran.

*On Wednesday, Syrian President Bashar Assad directly accused Israel of "pushing the region towards war".

*Syria's foreign minister is warning that a future war between Israel and Syria would be a "comprehensive" clash that would "come to your cities".

*Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said this week that he hopes someday to see Israel as a member of the European Union.

*U.S. relations with China are quickly taking a big turn for the worse.

*On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly approved a record $1.9 trillion increase in the cap on how much the U.S. government can borrow.

*One newly released poll says that 86 percent of Americans are worried or angry about the growing U.S. budget deficit.

*Is "Housing Crash Part 2" on the way?  A massive "second wave" of home mortgages is scheduled to reset beginning in 2010.

*Some analysts are projecting that Social Security is going to be the next federal program in need of a massive bailout.

*The death toll for the earthquake in Haiti has swelled to approximately 200,000.

*Is California next?  Northern California was rocked by a magnitude-6.0 earthquake on Thursday, but officials said there were no immediate reports of major injuries or damage.

*Over the last two weeks, more than 100 earthquakes a day, on average, have rattled Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

*The CIA is telling Congress that "homegrown extremists" working for Al-Qaeda will strike the U.S. in the next three to six months.

*Pressure from radical Muslims has forced the closure of two Christian churches on Indonesia’s Java island.

*Turkish police have recovered the body of a 16-year-old girl that was apparently buried alive by Islamic relatives in an "honor" killing carried out as punishment for talking to boys.

*Barack Obama used the "National Prayer Breakfast" as an opportunity to promote his "gay" and "green" agendas.

*U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen told Congress on Tuesday that overturning the ban on gays in the military is the "right thing" for them to do.

*The Archbishop of York is warning that traditional Christianity in the U.K. is being wiped out from public life in the name of equality.

*There are concerns that the U.S. military is going way too far in attempting to create "super soldiers".

*Hasbro and Toys-R-Us are actually marketing a new pink Ouija board for girls ages eight and up.

*Last of all, a U.S. Tax Court has ruled that a Massachusetts woman should be allowed to deduct the costs of her sex-change operation.