In his sobering letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul warns Timothy as he paints a grim picture of the last days. He writes in 2 Timothy 3:1–5: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”
For those who follow Bible prophecy, I’m sure this passage is familiar. But while reading Scripture is one thing, watching it unfold in real-time is another entirely.
Watching Prophecy Fulfilled in Real-Time
Two recent headlines starkly illustrate how closely our world mirrors Paul’s warning.
The first came out of North Carolina: “School board member blasts plan to start meetings with prayer: ‘How much God do you need?’”
The second came from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: “Hillary Clinton slams the Trump administration for urging Americans to have more babies and argued that is what immigrants are for.”
In both stories, the underlying themes are startlingly clear: a rejection of godly values and a growing discomfort with the very idea of divine order—be it through prayer or traditional family structures.
Hillary Clinton vs. the Family
Last week, Hilary Clinton was at an event hosted by 92NY, at a cultural center in New York City. The event was part of its “Newmark Civic Life Series.” She was talking about her book Something Lost, Something Gained: Reflections on Life, Love, and Liberty, which was released last September.
Clinton criticized a pro-family message from Vice President J.D. Vance. Vance, speaking at the March for Life rally in January, made a straightforward appeal: “Let me say very simply: I want more babies in the United States of America.”
To many Americans, especially Christians, this sounds like a common-sense call to support families and promote life. Clinton argued that urging Americans to have babies ignores the economic contributions of immigrants. “The people who produce the most children in our country are immigrants,” she argued. “One of the reasons why our economy did so much better was because we had a lot of immigrants, legally and undocumented, who had a larger than normal family.”
While Clinton framed her point around economics and immigration, her comments raised an important question: Does the call to support American families now equate to intolerance or backwardness?
Her remarks prompted me to explore the data. The current U.S. fertility rate stands at 1.78 births per woman, far below the 2.1 needed to sustain a population. In contrast, countries like Niger average 6.73 births per woman, with most sub-Saharan African nations still embracing large families as a cultural and economic norm. There are 49 African countries south of the Sahara and the average birth rate for “sub-Saharan” countries is between 4.9 and 5.7 babies per woman. “Sub-Saharan” is the classification for 49 of Africa’s 55 countries. These include countries in Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa and West Africa. Most North African states are members of the Arab League and are considered to be part of the Middle East.
Meanwhile, in many developed nations, fertility rates are plunging. South Korea, for instance, has dropped to a world-low 0.73 children per woman. Perhaps J.D. Vance sees something Clinton does not: the long-term consequences of a culture that distances itself from family values.
How Much God Do You Need?
Now let’s return to that headline from North Carolina. In April, a local school board debated a proposal to open their meetings with prayer. One member vocally objected, asking, “How much prayer do you need? How much God do you need?”
Her motion was met with indignation from another board member who went on to suggest that board meetings should be strictly professional, not religious. She then said that board members are professionals dedicated to serving children, not engaging in religious activities. “We’re not in this business,” she declared. “If you want to pray with them, take them to church. This is not the time or place.” Ironically, she claimed invoking prayer violated religious freedom, seemingly forgetting that the very Constitution she referenced protects the right to pray publicly.
Another board member pushed back: “Then we need to get rid of prayer in our state houses and in the U.S. Senate, which opens every session with prayer. This is what we’ve done for 250 years as a Christian nation.”
Despite the heated exchange, the motion passed 5-2, allowing the board—overseeing a district of 33,000 students and a looming $11 million budget deficit—to open meetings with prayer. One has to wonder, if ever there was a time for divine guidance for that school board, isn’t it now?
Do Christian Values Still Matter?
This story did get me thinking. In a general sense, how important are Christian values to our nation?
According to a 2024 Pew Research Center study, belief in God remains strongest in the American South (86%) and weakest in the West (59%). The generational divide is even more telling. Only 51% of 18–29-year-olds say they believe in God, compared to 70% of those 65 and older. A 2023 Gallup poll also revealed that nearly 30% of Americans now identify as religiously unaffiliated (noners) —the highest number on record.
And when it comes to prayer in schools, support is still strong. A 2025 Pew study found that 56% of Americans favor allowing teachers to lead Christian prayers in public schools. Yet, the legal landscape does not comply. While voluntary, student-led prayer is allowed, school-sponsored prayer is deemed unconstitutional due to the separation of church and state.
I wondered if the North Carolina school board view on prayer is unique. Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland have Board Policy 8344.3 which states that meetings begin with a nondenominational prayer. In 2024, the Miami-Dade County School Board in Florida also implemented a policy allowing their opening sessions in public prayer.
However, the practice has faced legal challenges and opposition from organizations advocating for the separation of church and state. In 2018, the Chino Valley Unified School District in California faced a decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals which ruled that the district’s practice of opening meetings with Christian prayers was unconstitutional, emphasizing the coercive environment it created for students and attendees. In 2011, the Indian River School District in Delaware had the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the district’s prayer practice, claiming it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
A Final Thought
Paul warned that the last days would be filled with people “having a form of godliness but denying its power.” We are seeing exactly that: public debates over whether God belongs in government, in schools, or even in personal choices like family size.
So, how much God do we need? The better question might be: Can we afford to keep pushing Him out? If ever there were a time to return to prayer, biblical values, and truth—it’s now. Not just in our churches, but in our school boards, families, and national conversations.
