Rapture (Phillips)

THREE AND HALF YEARS AGO, THE WORLD CHANGED FOREVER BILLIONS DISAPPEARED, CITIES BURNED, AND BILLIONS HAVE SINCE DIED DRAVEN CROSS'S ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT OPPRESSES ALL WITHIN ITS REACH THE ANCIENT BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL HAS BROUGHT THE OMEGA TEAM AND THE WORLD TO THE SHADOWS OF ETERNITY. Shadows of Eternity is the fourth book in the Rapture series. It captures the drama and suffering of a former U.S. Special Operations Team and their pursuit to survive the judgments of God and the evil of a Satan-indwelt global leader, Draven Cross. Christopher Barrett faces the pressure of leading an Omega team struggling for an identity in the wake of losing several members and being hunted across the globe. Jackson Williams, a core member of Omega and the spiritual leader, seeks to protect Christians caught in the wake of the U.E. global government's path, no matter the cost. The former Omega intelligence chief, Gabriella Costa, remains scarred from her imprisonment by Draven Cross, the evil one-world government leader. Gabriella's anger and pursuit of finding God's promised destiny will challenge the Omega team. Gemma Sutherland, an aide to Draven Cross and spy for the Omega team, is caught in a dangerous game where the stakes are the lives of millions. What will Gemma's allegiance to Omega and the God of the Bible cost her and the Omega team? As the Great Tribulation begins, the Omega team will forge new alliances to survive against the forces of darkness. Terrifying judgments will spur choices that further divide believers from non-believers, costing countless people their lives. In Shadows of Eternity, living until tomorrow is uncertain, and hope remains the only ally of the Omega team.

Christopher Barrett (mid-thirties), the leader of an elite U.S. special operations unit, is undertaking one of the most important missions of his military career, attempting to rescue a French journalist kidnapped by ISIS, while distracted with trusting God over himself. Christopher is confused and angry with God and ineffective in his leadership. However, the team-deputy is a long-time mentor and friend named Jackson Williams (early forties) who was placed on the team as an emergency replacement and provides much-needed stability for Christopher and the team. Christopher felt alone. If God was trying to reach him, he was tired of receiving the call. The operation just reinforced that God was not to be trusted when Christopher needed Him most. Jackson leaves the mission searching for God and meaning to his life, as the men prepare to return to Washington D.C for debriefing. As Christopher and his team redeploy from the rescue mission back to Washington D.C., they find themselves out of work as the National Security Advisor deactivates the Christopher-led Omega Group pending an investigation into the failed journalist rescue. The debriefing also brings a past love interest back into Christopher's life, Dr. Gabriella Costa (mid-thirties), who leaves the debriefing as the new Deputy of Omega Group pending the unit's reinstatement. Things go from bad to worse for Christopher and Jackson as the two disgraced soldiers are thrust, unbeknownst to them, into the midst of the Rapture, after their drivers disappear. Gabriella enters a White House in disarray to find U.S. President Glen Rodgers (early sixties) struggling with not only the destruction of the disappearances but his growing belief that God has just raptured his church and, in particular, his wife. Gabriella is ordered to send Omega Group to Brazil to save the President's daughter, who was taken by a separatist faction during the disappearances. In a series of globetrotting missions, from rural Virginia to the ancient ruins of Babylon, and finally remote Alaska Christopher and Jackson attempt to keep the chaos of a post-rapture world at bay. The addition of the maniacal John Barnes(forties), to the Omega Group, leads to explosive near-misses with death and dire consequences for the Omega Group and the United States. Gabriella and President Rodgers try to determine the intentions of the charismatic EU President named Draven Cross (early forties), hailed as the savior of the world. The actions of President Rodgers and Draven leave the world on the brink of World War, and thoughts of God grow for Christopher, Jackson, and Gabriella.