Faith in the Wilderness

Faith in the Wilderness

John Anders was a man of faith and simplicity, a farmer rooted in the rhythms of the land. Life in rural Kansas had always been predictable: sowing, reaping, and evening prayers. But when news broke of a new strain of bird flu decimating poultry farms, John’s steady world began to shift.

At first, the sickness seemed distant, an affliction for other places and people. Then, Earl Carter, John’s neighbor and lifelong friend, fell ill after slaughtering a batch of sick pigs. Within days, Earl’s wife and children were coughing blood. The local clinic overflowed with patients, and fear spread faster than the virus.

The government acted swiftly, imposing quarantines, slaughtering infected livestock, and deploying drones to enforce compliance. “Necessary measures,” officials called them, but John felt the unease growing in his chest. He prayed for wisdom, seeking solace in the Scriptures, even as armed agents burned herds of cattle and confiscated farmland.

The Pandemic Deepens

When the first human fatalities hit national headlines, panic erupted. The government rolled out a vaccine within weeks, promising salvation. Mainstream media hailed it as a miracle, a triumph of science over nature’s cruelty.

John watched as his neighbors lined up at the town hall for their shots, their faces filled with relief and fear. But something about the rush, the urgency, unsettled him. Reports soon trickled in: seizures, fainting, and deaths following the injections. At first, the authorities dismissed them as rare side effects, but the whispers grew louder.

By the time John’s church congregation began to divide—between those who accepted the vaccine as a Godsend and those who saw it as something darker—he knew he had to act. His prayers for wisdom led him to investigate.

Unearthing the Truth

John spent nights scouring online forums and poring over leaked documents. What he found chilled him to the bone. The vaccine, celebrated as humanity’s salvation, was something else entirely. Patents linked the vaccine’s development to shadowy corporations tied to military contracts. Patents revealed that the virus itself had been engineered in biolabs years before the outbreak. The pandemic, John realized, was no accident—it was a plan.

The vaccine contained a hidden payload: a self-spreading agent that would infect even the unvaccinated. It weakened the immune system, a component derived from HIV induced immune deficiency. It was a bioweapon designed to cull and control the population. The ultimate goal became clear in John’s research: dismantle the free and independent middle class, starve resistance, and implement a global digital system—the prophesied mark of the beast.

A World Transformed

As the virus spread, so did famine. The government’s aggressive measures included culling millions of animals, leaving farms barren. Supermarket shelves emptied, and new food alternatives appeared—lab-grown meat, synthetic proteins, and nutrient blocks made from mushrooms and soy. Desperation drove people to accept government-issued rations, but only those who complied with the new digital ID system could receive them.

John’s refusal to participate marked him as a dissenter. Drones circled his property, recording his movements. Agents came to his door with offers of food in exchange for compliance, but he sent them away, clutching his Bible. When armed enforcers arrived to confiscate his land, he had no choice but to flee.

Into the Wilderness

With only a crossbow, a Bible, a few supplies, and snares, John disappeared into the forest. He survived on wild game and foraged plants, evading the drones that scoured the countryside. From a distance, he watched the cities descend into dystopian chaos. Swarms of automated drones patrolled the skies, broadcasting “Obedience Brings Peace” and “Conformity is Strength.” Digital IDs became mandatory to buy, sell, or travel. Those who resisted were labeled terrorists and hunted down.

Yet, even in exile, John’s faith never wavered. He prayed daily, seeking strength and guidance. In time, he found others like himself—believers who had fled the system. They formed a small community, sharing food, prayers, and the hope of Christ’s return.

The Tribulation Begins

One cold evening, John stood on a hill overlooking the remnants of his town. Fires burned in the distance as drones herded people into quarantine camps. He opened his Bible and read aloud to the others gathered around him: “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.” Tears filled his eyes as he looked at the faces of those around him, weary but unbroken.

The tribulation had begun. The elite, safe in their fortified bunkers, continued their schemes while the world crumbled. Yet John knew their reign would be short-lived. God’s justice was coming. The faithful would endure, and the meek would inherit the earth.

As the wind whispered through the trees, John knelt to pray. He asked for deliverance from evil and for the strength to endure—to be a light in the darkness. And though the world grew darker still, his faith burned bright, a beacon of hope in the shadows of the plague.