What I Learned from My Post About My Mother's Illness.

A few weeks ago, I posted “My Mother’s Illness and Death: The Unkindness of the Medical Establishment.” I learned something about myself today. I hadn’t forgiven those nurses who hurt me.

I’m a believer in Jesus, and of course forgiveness was one of the main things he talked about. Through the years, he has helped me forgive many, many people who have hurt my feelings. But for some reason it never crossed my mind to forgive these people.

But God showed me that the reason I keep thinking about what the nurses said to me and what they thought of me was because I lacked forgiveness and love for them. Yes, my eyes were opened by God.

I am not a person who talks freely with strangers. Sometimes I get angry at myself for not explaining myself better. Like when nurses would call from the hospital for information on my mother, I realized later I had left out a lot of details. I know this happens because my brain freezes when people talk with me. Especially people with authority.

After talking with me about Mom’s heart and back, one nurse asked me what I gave her for pain. I said, two Tylenol. When I hung up, I thought, “Was she asking about the heart pain or the back pain. Two Tylenol wasn’t enough for the back pain. I used to give her Codeine for that.

One nurse called and asked if my mom was sleeping much. I said, “No, the last week she was only sleeping 2-3 hrs. at a time.” Later in the conversation he said, “Well, shall I write down 4-6 hours?” I knew that was wrong but said, “Okay.” I have no idea why I said that. Maybe just to please him.

So, about forgiveness. I talked with God about it and said, “Okay. I forgive them. I pray you will put that in my mind and heart. I pray I will love them as you do.”

I think it was pride that kept me from forgiving at the outset. I felt shamed by these nurses, even though I knew I was doing a good job looking after my mom. And I still I feel shame for that and the fact they didn’t like me and thought I was awful for not taking Mom home.

Whether the shame will go away or not, I don’t care. I’ve lived with shame since I was a little child. I just want to do what Jesus told everyone to do. Love and forgive.

Helpful Quotations.

I’ve read some things lately that have touched my heart and I thought I would share them:

“Running from suffering makes one suffer more and more, from even the small things, until you hate your own life.”  

From The Seven Story Mountain, by Thomas Merton.

I found this to be true in my own life. I kept running from my inner pain and the more I ran, the worse I got. I did come to hate my own life, because it was a life of misery of pain in my past and pain in the now and thinking there would only be pain in the future. This attitude makes you open to death and suicide. You know there will always be bad things happening in the future and feel helpless and hopeless.

Tauren Wells sings about this in his song, Until Grace. I too thought my life was cursed:

I knew I was broken but there was no one that I could tell,
Praying felt like I was throwing pennies in a wishing well
And I started believing I was cursed to carry this weight
I was listing the reasons of why I should walk away

[Chorus: Tauren Wells & Rascal Flatts]
Until grace called my name
Oh, I didn't know I could be free
Until grace found me

Until grace broke these chains
Oh, I didn't know I could be free
Until grace found, Your grace found me.

God has taught me through other Christians that I must live one day at a time, so when I start thinking about sad events I go to him and tell him how I feel. He always helps and comforts me.

Another quote I found meaningful is this:

“In our culture, ‘Love’ is soft. In God’s kingdom, love is a battle cry.”

I wish I could tell you where I heard this, but I forgot to write that down.

To love our enemies, to love those who make fun of us or hurt us is a battle. A spiritual battle. It goes against our culture and our human nature, which is about protecting ourselves. Certainly, we don’t have to hang around people who are physically or verbally abusive, but we do have to forgive and love them. God’s love, not human love. His love is higher than ours.

The last quote is another one where I don’t remember where I found it; I will try to do better at that.

“I am not a solid rock, but I am standing on one.”

I love the imagery of that and it is true I am not a solid rock. I’m like the sand or bending reeds in the wind. But I need not be afraid because I am standing before God on Jesus the rock. The one who made the universe and loves me.

 

My Mother's Illness and Death: The Unkindness of the Medical Establishment. (To be blunt, people.)

My Mom.

I was listening to a podcast last night and a lady was being interviewed who had a child who had been born very small with some defects. She said a nurse said to her something like, “Been eating wrong foods?”

As if the mother wasn’t devastated already by her child’s illness, which turned out to be a medical condition having nothing to do with the mother. It brought back to me all the disheartening things nurses said to me during the years I looked after my mother.

My mother passed away on June 29^th. She was almost 93 and died of congestive heart failure. She had been ill for a long time. She was misdiagnosed a few times, but I don’t expect perfection from doctors. I know they are doing the best work they can. I asked the doctor a year ago if my mom might have congestive heart failure, but she said no, it was acid reflux.

The true diagnosis wouldn’t have made much difference anyway. And I’ve very glad she didn’t die of colon cancer which emergency doctors were 99% sure she had. They didn’t want to take a biopsy as it is a painful procedure and my mom was in her nineties. So, I lived with that scare for a long time. Altogether, my mom lived with us for five years and I’m so happy we had that time together.

But there were two things about my mother’s illnesses and hospital stays that made our journey much harder. The worst was that because of Covid-19 I wasn’t allowed in the hospital to visit her. They said I could come at the end, but it was too late when it happened. They told us a nurse was with her and I am grateful to that nurse.

Mom’s last day at home was a hard one. I just couldn’t get her breathlessness under control with her nitro sprays and she hadn’t been sleeping longer than 2-4 hours. My husband was working from home because of the virus so he was taking care of her in the day and I stayed up all night. But he would be going back to work the next week and I felt I just wasn’t competent enough to keep Mom comfortable any longer. We called an ambulance and they took her.

The emergency people called me and said I could pick Mom up in the morning and I said, “No.” Believe me, they were very upset, but I know my rights and they had to take care of her if I couldn’t.

Four days after putting her in a ward, the doctors agreed I couldn’t take care of her. Well, thank you.

By the time Mom was in the hospital ward her dementia was pretty bad. They said she didn’t ask for the family, for which I am grateful. It hurt my heart to think she might be asking why I wasn’t there.

But she just asked where she was every morning and seemed content with the answer. I believe she didn’t really know who my husband and I were the last week she was home. She rarely spoke and didn’t say my name anymore. She would forget what happened in a TV show a few seconds after watching it. She forgot all the visits from relatives in the last few years. She couldn’t read anymore because she couldn’t remember what she just read.

Yet, she was happy. That may sound strange, but it is true. We just watched TV together and she said she enjoyed each show. Before she forgot who I was, she thanked me over and over for taking care of her. Mom was almost always a sunny and grateful person and knew God. I know I will see her again.

The only problems I had was when I was questioned by nurses who visited and nurses at the hospital and nursing home she had to stay in while recovering from hip surgery.

After the surgery, they thought Mom was well enough to come right home or go for physical therapy at the nursing home. Well, she looked awful and was in constant pain so I told them to take her to the nursing home and I would meet her there.

I left that evening and I thought she would be okay. I came back in the morning and she said she had to go to the bathroom. I helped her in there and waited. A nurse came in and asked where Mom was and I told her. “No one is supposed to help her to the bathroom but us,” she said. I said, “Oh, okay.”

When Mom called out, the nurse went in and asked if she went. Mom told her no, she couldn’t. The nurse put her hands on her hips and said (not nicely), “This is the third time! If you don’t go the next time, I’ll have to use a suppository on you!” She was scolding her. A 90-year-old woman who had just had surgery! I took Mom home.

We got a hospital bed and all the stuff she needed and I took care of her with my husband’s help. Then a few weeks later, I twisted my foot around one of the legs of the hospital bed, which took up almost all the space of her bedroom. I couldn’t even stand on it, so I called an ambulance to take my mother. My husband was working and I had no one to help me take care of my mom. At this time, she was only sleeping for about 20 minutes at a time and I was exhausted.

When she was taken to the hospital the admitting person was angry. She called me and said, “This hospital is for sick people!” Well, my mother was sick and I couldn’t care for her so that’s why I sent her there! They kept calling me to come pick her up but I couldn’t! I know that in Canada they had to take care of her if no one else could, they just didn’t believe anything I said. It was horrible.

Mom was in a ward for four weeks and was injured twice while there. One time a nurse gave her twice the dosage of sleeping pills. Her organs started shutting down, but she pulled through. The other time, she fell out of bed because apparently some people choke to death trying to get out between the rails on the bed. So, Mom’s head had a hole in it from hitting the edge of the dresser and blood was everywhere. It makes me wonder why the nurses criticize family members when they make mistakes too. I could have sued over both incidents, but I would never sue people who are trying to heal people, even if they make terrible mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes.

 I took Shock Wave Therapy for my foot, which healed in 4 weeks. But I still had no one to help me with mother and she wasn’t walking yet.

I came to see Mom almost every day. The nurses thought she was being lazy and hard to get along with because she didn’t want to do any exercises or have them do anything to her. She just wanted to sleep. I kept telling them she was sick, but they didn’t believe me. But they had never seen her when she was well. They didn’t know how different she looked.

 It turned out later she was sick with a bladder infection. I then asked a nurse if Mom was getting her vitamin B12 shots. She told me Mom only needed pills not the shots. I told her that was wrong and she lost her temper at me and walked away. Later her feet had bruises on them and a doctor there told me it was because of a lack of vitamin B12.

One nurse told me I needed to push my mother to exercise etc. I said she is 91 and tired; she needs rest and more sleep. The woman was so mad she turned and walked away too. This was how they treated me the whole time.

Later, Mom started to walk with a walker and was sleeping through the night, so I felt I could take care of her again. When I took her home, I let her sleep as much as she wanted. She slept 20 hours a day at first and slowly she slept less and less until she was down to 9 to 10 hours a day. She recovered, which the doctors did not expect.

The next year went very well until she started getting the signs of congestive heart failure. I was so glad I could take care of her by myself the last two years. I know I did an excellent job, no matter what the nurses said and hinted at.

When she was in the hospital for the last time a nurse called me and asked if my mother had been walking with a walker. I told her no, she had told me she couldn’t walk anymore so I had been wheeling her around the apartment in a small travel chair (it is like a small wheelchair). The nurse said, “Well, she is walking.”

Hey, I’m glad she was walking, but it didn’t really matter here at home. She said she couldn’t walk and that was good enough for me. Frankly, it is hard to get over the unkindness of the nurses I dealt with. I’m sure there are also good and kind nurses somewhere.

I hope my experience was unusual, but I also wish there were classes given to medical workers on how to talk with families of patients.

 

 

 

 

Hear God's Words on Justice.

Photo by: "Carlos Delgado; CC-BY-SA" 

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you.   Psalm 89:14

Some people wonder where God's justice is in this world. The problem God has is he must work through his people to have justice on the earth. This is earth, not heaven, where justice reigns. Evil people outnumber the godly people and therefore there is injustice and horrible crimes committed every day. God does reach out himself to save many people's lives, but he can't turn this world into a heaven. Not yet. Evil must be played out to its bitter end so it never rises up again in the universe.

Isaiah, a prophet of God, wrote about the people of his time who questioned God. They asked him, “Why have we humbled ourselves and fasted but you have not noticed?” They didn’t understand why their prayers went unanswered.

This is God’s answer, “On the day of your fasting you do what you want and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast like this and expect your voice to be heard on high!

Is that the kind of fast I want? Do you call this an acceptable day of the Lord?

This is the kind of fast I desire: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set free the oppressed. It is a day to share your food with the hungry, to provide the poor wanderer with shelter. When you see the naked, to clothe them and not turn away from your own flesh and blood.

If you do this, your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear. Then your goodness will go in front of you and I will bring up the rear. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help and he will say, ‘Here I am!’

If you get rid of the burden of oppression that goes with pointing your fingers and cruel words, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.

The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your body. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a stream whose waters never fail.”   Isaiah 58:3-11

But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.   Amos 5:24

This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.   Jeremiah 22:3

What I Learned About Racism, Protests and Injustice when I was a Girl in the 1960s.

When I was a young girl I read, Gone with the Wind. I loved Scarlett O’Hara because she was nothing like me. She had spunk and let nothing stop her, whereas I was like a shadow in the corner of a house, observing but unheard. I wanted spunk.

One day, after I finished reading, I ran downstairs to my mother and said, “Mom, It says in this book that slaves were happy. They didn’t want to be free!” She looked at me with pity and told me how evil slavery was and why. She encouraged me to study the subject.

On our next visit to the library, I took out the book called, “Black Boy,” by Richard Wright. I will never forget the impact that book had on me. I was horrified, sad and disgusted by what he had gone through. After that, I read many biographies on how black people had been treated by white people throughout their lives. I wish I could remember the names of the other books but one that I read recently, that was just wonderful is, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou.

I grew up in the 1950s and 60s and remember when Martin Luther King and his followers marched in a peaceful protest to Selma, Alabama. My parents subscribed to Life magazine and I poured over the pictures of snarling dogs and water hoses being turned on the protesters. I admired King so much, and even now, when I read a quote online attributed to him, my esteem grows larger.

When I went to high school, (Southern California) I noticed that white students hung around together and black kids and Hispanic kids did the same. It was puzzling to me because in the church school I had attended previously, I had black and Hispanic friends. Now I was in public school and it was certainly different. I will say though, I never heard any of my white friends say or do anything racist. In fact, later on, after I had left school, I met up with an old friend and she had married a black guy. I went to her place and met him and their new baby. The last year of high school my boyfriend was Hispanic. I was crazy about him.

Now, since the terrible death of George Floyd, we are again having peaceful protests. Of course, there has been some acts of violence and looting, which has been the actions of only a few and some have been committed by white protesters. Whenever there is a movement or coalition of any kind there are good people, bad people and crazy people involved. I saw this in churches I attended. My mother noticed it in the feminist movement and the Author’s Association to which she belonged. And we cannot forget politicians. Yes, good, bad and crazy.

A lot of people can’t understand the slogan, “Black Lives Matter.” They say that every person’s life matters and they are right, but they can’t seem to see that when someone is hated and oppressed, it looks to them as if their lives don’t matter to other people. White people don’t generally feel that way. We expect the police and those in the medical field to care about our problems. When they don’t, we tell everyone we know about that policeman or doctor. We feel insulted, get angry and will sometimes complain to those who are in authority over these people.

But what if we knew police and doctors hated us? What if we knew they would get rid of all of us if they could? And what if we knew some of them would like to kill us? What would it be like to live with that all our lives?

I have a friend online who is black. She told me her beloved uncle was in the hospital and very ill. It was possible he could die. Yet she was afraid to go to the hospital and visit him. Why? Because of the way the white doctors and nurses talked to and treated her and her family. She went anyway. I felt so sad for her. It is hard to believe people can be so cruel, and for no reason in the world but their hatred of the color of a person’s skin.

I remember an old Star Trek episode where the crew of the Enterprise came to a world that was in the midst of a terrible civil war. Captain Kirk tried to intervene and bring peace and couldn’t understand the basis of the two sides hatred of each other. Near the very end of the show one man said to Kirk something like this, “Are you blind? Can’t you see? My skin is blue on the right side of my face and his skin is blue on the left side!”

That’s racism in a nutshell: utter stupidity. Victor Frankl once wrote, “There are two races of men in this world but only these two: the race of the decent man and the race of the indecent man.” I believe this to be true.

(I began this blog post thinking I would write about what justice is according to God. But I got carried away with my feelings about what is happening right now. I’ll write the one on how God feels about justice next time. He feels very strongly about it.)

 

 

 

The Last Days of Earth.

This is an extremely long post. I wrote it for those who have no idea of what is going to happen as the world draws to a close. I usually write about the great love God has for all people, but I believe the end is very near and have decided to share God’s warnings.

One thing about the Bible, I have learned that sometimes when God says he is doing something, it means he has allowed it to happen. God could have prevented the corona virus that has killed many and changed the world, but he didn’t. He did stop SARS. Through the years, I know God has protected us from utter destruction, but those days are waning.

I believe most disasters are man-made. Even earthquakes at this time are sometimes caused by fracking for oil. I believe that as the world ends it is we ourselves who have destroyed it, not God. We have destroyed it through pollution, clear-cutting trees and perhaps through biological warfare inventions. Let’s face it; we are guilty. Not all of us, mainly the rich and powerful people who want to keep up their horrible works on the earth to become even richer. Our Lord even says, “I will destroy those who destroy the earth.” Revelation 11:18.  He tells us the earth will wear out like a garment. “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail. “   Isaiah 51:6

I hope I haven’t left out any important details. I certainly could have; I’m not a scholar. Anyway, here are a lot of verses on the end of time, or Day of the Lord. I pray we will turn to God, who will abundantly pardon all our sins. He is calling and calling to us, and believe me, if you ever give your life over to God, you will never regret it. It is an awesome experience.

“Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him—even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen.

 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and was and is to come—the Almighty.”   Revelation 1:7,8

“But you, beloved, remember what was foretold by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ when they said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow after their own ungodly desires.” These are the ones who cause divisions, who are worldly and devoid of the Spirit.

But you, beloved, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.”  Jude 1:17-24

 

“At that time (time of the end) shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. (Some believe this is Jesus. I do.) And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.”  Daniel 12:1

 

“And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your old men will dream dreams,

your young men will see visions.

Even on My menservants and maidservants,

I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth,

blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood

before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.

 

And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD

will be saved;

for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem

there will be deliverance, as the LORD has promised,

among the remnant called by the LORD.”   Acts 2:28-32

 

“Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. “Where is the promise of His coming?” they will ask. “Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.”  2 Peter 3:3

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”   2 Peter 3:9

“But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to conduct yourselves in holiness and godliness as you anticipate and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be destroyed by fire and the elements will melt in the heat.  But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.”   2 Peter 3:10,11

“Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him.

By the word of the Lord, we declare to you that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise. After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. 

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17

 

“Therefore, this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says:

“There will be wailing in all the public squares

and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets.

The farmer will be summoned to mourn,

and the mourners to wail.

There will be wailing in all the vineyards,

for I will pass through your midst,” says the LORD.

 

       Woe to you who long for the Day of the LORD!

What will the Day of the LORD be for you?

It will be darkness and not light.

It will be like a man who flees from a lion,

only to encounter a bear,

or who enters his house and rests his hand against the wall,

only to be bitten by a snake.

Will not the Day of the LORD

be darkness and not light,

even gloom with no brightness in it?

 “I hate, I despise your feasts!  (Because even as they worshiped God they did evil and hurt people.)

I cannot stand the stench of your solemn assemblies.

Even though you offer Me burnt offerings and grain offerings,

I will not accept them;

for your peace offerings of fattened cattle

I will have no regard.

Take away from Me the noise of your songs!

I will not listen to the music of your harps.

But let justice roll on like a river,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”   Amos 5:14-24

 

This is the word of the LORD that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi…

 “I will completely sweep away

everything from the face of the earth,”

declares the LORD.

 “I will sweep away man and beast;

I will sweep away the birds of the air,

and the fish of the sea,

and the idols with their wicked worshipers.

I will cut off mankind

from the face of the earth,”

declares the LORD.

 “I will stretch out My hand against Judah

and against all who dwell in Jerusalem.

I will cut off from this place every remnant of Baal,

the names of the idolatrous and pagan priests—

those who bow on the rooftops

to worship the host of heaven,

those who bow down and swear by the LORD

but also swear by Milcom,

and those who turn back

from following the LORD,

neither seeking the LORD

nor inquiring of Him.”   

     Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD,

for the Day of the LORD is near.

Indeed, the LORD has prepared a sacrifice;

He has consecrated His guests.

 “On the Day of the LORD’s sacrifice

I will punish the princes,

the sons of the king,

and all who are dressed in foreign apparel.

On that day I will punish

all who leap over the threshold,

who fill the house of their master

with violence and deceit.

On that day,” declares the LORD,

“a cry will go up from the Fish Gate,

a wail from the Second District,

and a loud crashing from the hills.

Wail, O dwellers of the Hollow,

for all your merchants will be silenced;

all who weigh out silver will be cut off.

And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps

and punish the men settled in complacency,

who say to themselves,

‘The LORD will do nothing,

either good or bad.’

Their wealth will be plundered

and their houses laid waste.

They will build houses but not inhabit them,

and plant vineyards but never drink their wine.

The great Day of the LORD is near—

near and coming quickly.

Listen, the Day of the LORD!

Then the cry of the mighty will be bitter.

That day will be

a day of wrath,

a day of trouble and distress,

a day of destruction and desolation,

a day of darkness and gloom,

a day of clouds and blackness,

a day of horn blast and battle cry

against the fortified cities,

and against the high corner towers.

I will bring such distress on mankind

that they will walk like the blind,

because they have sinned against the LORD.

Their blood will be poured out like dust

and their flesh like dung.

Neither their silver nor their gold

will be able to deliver them

on the Day of the LORD’s wrath.

The whole earth will be consumed

by the fire of His jealousy.”

For indeed, He will make a sudden end

of all who dwell on the earth.”   Book of Zephaniah

I am now including the entire chapter of Matthew 24, which is quite long. But it is Jesus himself speaking of the end of the world and his second coming. He is also speaking about the fall of Jerusalem, which took place in the year 70 AD. The Romans came and destroyed the temple and the city.

“As Jesus left the temple and was walking away, His disciples came up to Him to point out its buildings.

 “Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”

Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.  You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come.  Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.  All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.  At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, and many false prophets will arise and mislead many.

Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ described by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house. And let no one in the field return for his cloak.

How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not occur in the winter or on the Sabbath. For at that time there will be great tribulation, unmatched from the beginning of the world until now, and never to be seen again. If those days had not been cut short, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.

At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible. See, I have told you in advance.

So if they tell you, ‘There He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.  For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

Immediately after the tribulation of those days:

‘The sun will be darkened,

and the moon will not give its light;

the stars will fall from the sky,

and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you will know that He is near, right at the door.  Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. (This is a difficult verse since these things have not happened. But it seems Jesus was talking about showing his power and great glory, which he did show to Peter, James and John on the mountain where he was changed into glory and Elijah and Moses came down from heaven to talk with him.) Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.

No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark. And they were oblivious, until the flood came and swept them all away. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.

Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come. But understand this: If the homeowner had known in which watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. For this reason, you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.”

Matthew 24

Seven Last Plagues: (I believe we bring these on ourselves through war and pollution.

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out on the earth the seven bowls of God’s wrath.”

2So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

3And the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it turned to blood like that of the dead, and every living thing in the sea died.

4And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water, and they turned to blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters say:

“Righteous are You, O Holy One,

who is and was,

because You have brought these judgments.

6For they have spilled the blood of saints and prophets,

and You have given them blood to drink,

as they deserve.”

7And I heard the altar reply:

“Yes, Lord God Almighty,

true and just are Your judgments.”

8Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire. 9And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues; yet they did not repent and give Him glory.

10And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish 11and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds.

12And the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings of the East.

13And I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. 14These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.

15“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who remains awake and clothed, so that he will not go naked and let his shame be exposed.”

16And they assembled the kings in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

The Seventh Bowl of Wrath

17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came from the throne in the temple, saying, “It is done!”

18And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. And God remembered Babylon the great and gave her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath.

20Then every island fled, and no mountain could be found. 21And great hailstones weighing almost a hundred pounds each rained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.