Living in the Last Hour

Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.

So, here I am sharing my experience with a recent cancer diagnoses and with no health insurance. I can only sit and wait. This is the second week since getting the news. Friends and family ask me how I feel. Honestly, I say “I don’t know how I feel.” And I really don’t. My younger sister has been having her own health issues and because she has health insurance her doctor referred her to specialists and she was able to get appointments, testing and imaging services within days and not weeks as I must wait. She scares herself as she considers the worst scenarios, a heart attack, or a stroke. I am thankful that she has health insurance otherwise she would be in my shoes wondering how she will pay for treatment, or if there is a treatment.

My husband has VA care, but I am not eligible to share his benefits. Spousal benefits only applies to retired veterans. Health insurance through the marketplace is outrageous. We cannot afford it. Up until we started receiving social security benefits I was on Carelink. It is a credit payment plan of sorts. It’s for individual like myself who cannot afford health plan. I was thrown out of the program. My health is generally good, so we decided to just self-pay for preventive services. The UHS program accepts self-pay patients, but I had to prioritize my health needs. Unfortunately, I found out they (UHS/UT Health/Methodist) don’t accept self-pay with this new diagnoses. I am blown away with the idea that some medical providers demand health insurance. Money/cash/moola is unacceptable for certain medical care. That day came when Obamacare introduced financial penalties for lack of insurance. Now, self-pay is an option offered only by a number of medical providers.

So, I do not have health insurance. And even if I was able to get it, it would strain our finances, and coverage would not be instant. There is always a waiting period. Well, I have an appointment on Oct 13th with a provider that does take self-pay. And as I have mentioned before I must wait. I had reached out to the ACS for assistance and they were very informative. I was assigned a case manager who called me once. I returned her call and left a voicemail. I emailed her. Well, I have not heard from again. I had called another organization and they supposedly sent in a referral for me to some program to see if I qualified for some kind of financial assistance. I have yet to hear from them either. So much for, “We will get back with you within 24-48 hours.” If I sound bitter and ungrateful. I am not. There is so much need in this community of ours. And let’s face it, charity has its eligibility requirements and funding limits. There is never enough help. I am one in a ocean of people that cannot afford health care. Then we have certain powers that wish to eliminate any and all entitlement programs. Geez.

The other day, as I sat and pondered my circumstance I couldn’t help but consider Revelations 13:11-18. The Scripture talks about the last days. There will come a time when no one will be able to buy or sell without a mark, the mark – the mark of the beast. What will that look like? I am sure every Christian, at some point, has asked the question. Certainly, hundreds of thousands of books have been written by Biblical scholars and lay folk in which they provided their insight into this one event. I recall during Covid quarantine Christians felt they were experiencing “end times” persecution – lol – as the Amazon delivery drivers and Door Dash and Instacart delivery vehicles lined the streets in communities across the country. Online sales skyrocketed during the peak of the pandemic. Clearly, a pandemic and quarantine did not stop anyone from buying or selling. Conservative Texas leaders allowed alcohol home deliveries. Fast food establishments were also allowed to sell alcoholic beverages through the Drive-thru window. The church doors may have been shut for a while but God never left His child alone. Services were delivered online. If any Christian knows any detail about the end times is this idea, or fear of not being able to buy or sell. I am going to say that it will no doubt affect access to health care. Christians without the mark will not be able to buy or sell, by any means. Will there be a black market? I would imagine so. It is the power of demand and supply.

If you are blessed, and/or feel you have worked hard for all your conveniences, have the modern privileges of health care, a paycheck, means, shelter, food and drink, transportation, if you own a Bible, if you are up to your ears in debt, a credit score you can brag about, even if you are debt free and have all access to meet all your needs and desires. Consider this, if you call yourself a Christian, there will be a day when none of this will matter. If you are the sort that denies basic necessities to those you deem as lazy, it will not matter. All will be faced with the same question. Will you worship the beast? Let’s face it. Every American is primed to take the mark.

My lack of health insurance has made me realize how our world is forging ahead, on schedule to push us into (what has been called) a cashless society, a society where only a mark will allow us access to basic needs. And medical treatment is a basic need.

There is no specific date. There is no individual who can tell us exactly when Revelations 13 will be the norm. Will the rapture of Christians come before or after? Scripture can be interpreted either way. Top Christian leaders have their convictions, or speculations. I have mine. For now, I must be prepared for either. I must be ready to meet my Savior. Praise God for He is faithful.

More later. Blessings