Discernment is one of the most important gifts we need in this present time. Jesus rebuked the people of His day because they could read the weather but could not understand the spiritual meaning of the moment they were living in. He said, “You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?” (Luke 12:54–56).
That question still speaks today. We live in a world filled with confusion, anger, division, fear, and uncertainty. Many people are trying to understand what is happening through politics, race, economics, culture, and world events. But as believers, we must also ask a deeper question: What is God showing us, and how should we respond?
My Awakening to the Times
As a Christian minister, I was never deeply interested in politics. I voted in national, state, and local elections, but I did not give much thought to the intersection of politics, race, and religion until the 2016 election season. Something shifted in me during that time. I began paying closer attention, not just to candidates and campaigns, but to the spiritual condition of the nation.
I also began to study more deeply after hearing about the “Browning of America,” a phrase used to describe the changing racial and ethnic makeup of the United States. Around the same time, I revisited ideas like those found in Samuel P. Huntington’s book The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order. Huntington argued that, after the Cold War, many conflicts would be shaped less by political ideology and more by cultural and religious identity.
Whether or not one agrees with every part of Huntington’s argument, Scripture had already told us that ethnic, national, and kingdom conflict would be part of the signs of the age. Jesus said, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed… Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” (Matthew 24:6–7).
Discerning What Is Being Stirred Up
During the 2016 election, I sensed in my spirit that Donald Trump was a rabble-rouser. At the time, I did not know exactly what that word meant, so I looked it up. A rabble-rouser is someone who stirs up crowds, often toward anger, hatred, or violence. A related word is demagogue, which refers to a leader who gains support by appealing to people’s fears, prejudices, and emotions rather than by speaking truth with wisdom.
That is why discernment matters. We cannot judge only by outward appearance, crowd size, slogans, or emotion. The Bible says, “All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord” (Proverbs 16:2). God looks deeper than words. He weighs the heart.
As rallies, speeches, posts, and news stories filled the public square, I began to see something being exposed. The rhetoric was not only revealing leaders; it was revealing the hearts of people. Jesus said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). When people are stirred by fear, offense, hatred, pride, or resentment, what is inside eventually comes out.
God Is Calling the Nation Back to Righteousness
I believe the Lord is calling this nation to return to righteousness. This is not about political party loyalty. It is about spiritual alignment. Proverbs 14:34 says, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people.” What makes a nation great in God’s eyes is not just wealth, military strength, or political power. It is moral and spiritual integrity.
God has always dealt with nations according to righteousness, repentance, and obedience. Through the prophet Jeremiah, the Lord said that if He announces judgment against a nation and that nation turns from evil, He will relent from the disaster He planned. But if a nation does evil and refuses to obey, He will reconsider the good He intended to do for it (Jeremiah 18:7–10).
This means our response matters. Prayer matters. Repentance matters. How we speak matters. How we vote matters. How we treat people matters. How we handle truth matters. God is not impressed by religious language if our hearts are far from Him.
The Danger of Contention and Discord
One of the greatest dangers of our time is contention. Contention is disagreement, strife, and argument that keeps people divided. It does not usually begin between nations. It often begins in one heart. Then it spreads to families, churches, communities, and nations.
My concern is that contention and discord are becoming accepted as a normal way of life. We see it in media, politics, classrooms, workplaces, homes, and even among believers. But the Bible does not treat discord lightly. Proverbs 6 says that God hates “a lying tongue,” “a heart that devises wicked schemes,” “a false witness who pours out lies,” and “a person who stirs up conflict in the community” (Proverbs 6:16–19).
James asks a direct question: “What causes fights and quarrels among you?” His answer is that conflict often comes from desires battling within us (James 4:1–4). In other words, outward conflict is often the fruit of inward disorder. When our desires, fears, pride, and selfish ambitions rule us, we become easy to provoke and easy to use.
A Call to Clean Hearts
If we want to understand the present time rightly, we must allow God to cleanse our hearts. Discernment is not only about seeing what is wrong in the world. It is also about allowing God to show us what is wrong in us.
The Lord promised through Ezekiel, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols” (Ezekiel 36:25). Hebrews 10:22 calls us to draw near to God with sincere hearts, having our hearts sprinkled clean. Second Corinthians 7:1 tells us to purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit.
This is where the prophetic voice must begin. It must begin with humility before God. We cannot speak spiritual truth clearly if our hearts are filled with bitterness, pride, unforgiveness, or prejudice. First Peter 1:22 says that after we have purified our souls by obeying the truth, we are to love one another deeply from the heart.
Speaking Spiritual Truths in Uncertain Times
In uncertain times, Christians must not be silent, but we must also not speak like the world. We are called to speak truth in love, not anger in disguise. We are called to expose darkness, but not become hateful. We are called to stand for righteousness, but not lose the spirit of Christ.
Romans 13:11 says, “Understand the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber.” This is a wake-up call. It is time to pray. It is time to repent. It is time to examine our hearts. It is time to reject lies, hatred, and discord. It is time to return to God.
Revelation 3:3 warns, “Remember, then, what you received and heard; hold it fast, and repent.” That is the message for this hour. Remember the Word. Hold fast to truth. Repent where we have drifted. Return to righteousness. And ask God for the discernment to understand the present time from His perspective.
The prophetic perspective is not meant to make us fearful. It is meant to make us faithful. God is still speaking. God is still calling. God is still able to heal, cleanse, correct, and restore. The question is whether we will have ears to hear what the Spirit is saying and hearts willing to obey.
Minister A Francine Green I July 2026