Superpowers Summit

May 14

The world’s leading superpowers are meeting this week in Beijing, China as U.S. President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping are set to speak directly on matters ranging from trade to human rights to the war in Iran. The two leaders have divergent views on a number of issues and certainly enter this week’s talks as fierce economic competitors, but both also appear eager to find some public common ground on at least economic issues.

Analysis and eternal perspective: In economic terms, the U.S. and China are far and away the superpowers of the world. The U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) registers just over $32 trillion, while China’s is just shy of $21 trillion. For perspective, no other country is more than $6 trillion, and the roughly $53 trillion between the two superpowers represents more than 40% of the world’s economic activity. Simply put, the U.S. and China are the dominant drivers of the world’s economy.

There are two seemingly opposite takeaways for you today—and in reality they go hand in hand.

First, if you live in the U.S., you have been given so very much! That might at first feel like an overly broad statement, especially if you are currently in a place of need—which can be a very tangible reality! Even so, to live in the most prosperous nation in the world during a time of unparalleled wealth, and to combine that with historic levels of freedom (the U.S. is far from perfect in this regard, and yet it is still the envy of the world and even of history) is a tremendous blessing! You and I have a duty to steward that blessing well (Lk. 12:48).

Next, all of this shall pass away (Matt. 24:35). Quite frankly, this truth underscores rather than undermines the duty of stewarding well our present day. But God’s Word is clear: All of this world—superpowers and otherwise—will pass away. Only His Word will remain on that day.

Therefore, as you revel in the blessing of your today, and as you endeavor to steward it well, make sure your true delight is in His Word. For only His Word will endure!

Thann Bennett

Thann Bennett is the Founder and President of Every Good Work, which exists to equip Jesus followers for a life of impact. His weekly newsletter, The Equipped, helps Jesus followers engage current events through a lens of the True and the beautiful. Thann and his wife, Brooke, are co-Founders of A Fearless Life, which works to find and fund a family for every adoption-eligible foster child in America. Thann has more than two decades of high-level public policy experience, with a particular focus on the U.S. Congress and the United Nations. He is the author of In Search of the King and My Fame His Fame. Thann and Brooke live in southern Maryland with their three children: Jude, Gambrell, and Hope, as well as a host of farm animals. The Bennetts are longtime members of the National Community Church family in Washington, D.C.

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