Supply Chains, Lockdowns, Strikes, Inflation All Related -

PRAY WITH US about supply chains lockdowns. Father God, You are Jehovah Jireh, our Provider. But we have taken for granted Your provision until now. And world leaders now find provision so complex that when it breaks down, they can’t fix it. So we turn to You. For only You know how to unlock the lockdowns, unjam the logjams and straighten out the supply chains.

We do thank You that the Omicron variant has proven to be as week as the common flu. But we ask You to sweep away these Covid variants from the earth. Move on national leaders to lift unnecessary restrictions. Let the goods and services flow unhindered. And disrupt any wicked schemes to send more manmade contagions over the world. You show love to all You have made. And You satisfy the desire of every living thing. So let the whole world know we all depend on You, and only You deserve to be our Lord. In Jesus’ name, amen.

PRAYER ALERT: Supply Chains, Lockdowns, Strikes, Inflation All Related

Canada’s world-record 40-mile long truck convoy combines strike and protest tactics. Moreover, a one part of the convoy stayed parked outside Ottawa’s parliament building. The protest organizers did not want to budge until Covid restrictions and vaccine mandates are lifted.

Both Canadian and US governments have locked down the border to unvaxxed truckers. But they do this ignoring the dramatic drop in Covid-19 deaths. Though highly contagious, the Omicron variant is proving to be no more lethal than the common flu.

So why endanger our supply chains further by restricting these drivers? Already truck containers keep clogging up many ports due to in-country lockdowns. Therefore lockdowns and broken supply chains cause empty shelves and decreased income. These in turn cause inflated prices for scarcer goods, worker layoffs, and strikes by remaining workers.

After an 8-day strike at the Port of Belize, stevedores returned with assurances of job security and certain retirement benefits. But idle containers clogged up the port. As a result, shipping companies warned of delays, and business leaders warned of higher costs. Yet many containers docked at the Port of Big Creek instead. And they paid the extra amount to truck their goods to Belize City. In this way, Belize averted a major logjam and resulting inflation.

But will other countries avoid more supply chain breakdowns in 2022? No. Not if they keep imposing lockdowns and mandates. That will lead to more scarcity, more strikes and protests, and higher inflation. So politicians had better heed the voter dissatisfaction that is brewing. And companies had better keep their customers satisfied by stockpiling goods in case of future crises. Because who knows when another plague or calamity may strike?