Our society has shifted away from promoting a natural, God-given economy toward promotion of an unnatural, man-made economy. As Christians, we aim to be as close to God as possible. Of course, we live in a fallen world, so it is no surprise that our society has shifted this way.
The seven deadly sins (pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth) have led our society, some more than others:
- There is an entire month devoted to the celebration of pride.
- We encourage laziness (sloth) through ever-growing conveniences.
- Greed has shifted a natural capitalist economy to a more fascist/monopolistic economy. To clarify, our economy appears to be fascist primarily in one way: “a capitalist economy subject to stringent governmental controls”, and not necessarily in any other aspects of the definition.
- Americans are gluttonous not only with food, materialism, but also with over-consumption of screens.
On the contrary, we would like to exist in an economy that enhances the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
As an interesting note, here are synonyms for the word “natural”: usual, normal, accepted, biological, environmental, innate, native, instinctive, relaxed, unprocessed, pure, raw, organic, true. [Notice the bolded words here, as these point to the parallel economy we will be outlining in this series.]
And here are a few antonyms for “natural”: unusual, technological, learned, contrived, artificial, man-made. [These bolded words can help to be a guide or a red-flag for things to avoid in our society and the man-made economy.]
It’s imperative we (collectively) take the initiative to remove ourselves from relying on convenience, and instead challenge ourselves to build skills and communities to circumvent the incoming “mark of the beast” (a technocratic, enslavement system). We will have to make a choice sooner than later of submitting to Satan’s dominion or be excluded from society. Take the time to review prophecy, Revelations 13:18.
[Whether or not the “mark of the beast” is coming and Revelations will be seen through any time soon, should not necessarily matter. Only God knows this timing, but the reality is that many of us are already being excluded from society. The time is now to become prepared for living in a parallel economy.]
What is a parallel economy?
The easiest way to describe a parallel economy is that it is built of alternatives to the current mainstream options across all industries. For example (and we will detail this further throughout this series), in the healthcare system you can choose to pay insurance companies for the right to then pay doctors and pharmaceutical companies, OR you can join a crowd-sharing program and take ownership of your health by seeking more natural, holistic medicines and healthcare advice.
There are definitions that make this sound shady and unreputable, but this is meant to scare people into staying within the “system”.
As we refer to a parallel economy on this website, the businesses we are referring to will have some or all of the following values:
- Christian
- Natural Health
- Quality (made to last)
- People-minded
- American-Made
- Truth
Why transition to a parallel economy?
As noted above, the primary goal is to find more natural, God-given alternatives. With food, you will find happier farmers and animals, a healthier body, more time spent in nature – just as one example.
Additionally, this is a way for us to combat corrupt entities and tyranny in the world. We can take back our power (the power of the people) by giving our data, money, and time to companies that share/align with our values.
How to transition to a parallel economy?
We will outline the “how” in a separate article dedicated to each industry, so that we can go more in depth and offer great resources.
*Included within each article will be detailed alternatives to our current, man-made economy, as well as links to videos with more information. Spend as little or as much time as you can and would like, to inform yourself. Please do not ignore or write off any source simply because of something you heard on a mainstream news source (CNN, MSNBC, New York Times, Fox News, etc.) We encourage you to listen to people in their own words (in entirety) before placing judgment.
**These lists will not be all-inclusive and will be ever-changing as we learn about new alternatives. If you have an alternative that you believe should be included, please email us at hello@beslightlybetter.com. Additionally, check out our list of recommendations for online businesses/resources, recommendations for SW Ohio, and list of recommended experts to learn from.
As an overview, here are the different industries/topics we will cover in this Parallel Economy series:
- Food/Consumption (A global food system vs. a local food system)
- Healthcare (Traditional vs. Holistic)
- Finances/Money (Debt reliance vs. Debt freedom)
- Purchasing Power (Big Business/Private Equity Firms vs. Small Business)
- Media (Big Tech vs. Alternative)
- Reliance (Government/Man vs. God/Self/Community)
- Other (Man’s Economy vs. God’s Economy)