Interpreting the Times

Matthew 16:2-3 - He (Jesus) answered them, "When it is evening, you say, 'It will be fair weather; for the sky is red.' And in the morning, 'It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but  you cannot interpret the signs of the times." 

Last week I had a dream. In my dream I was having a very intense confrontation with Satan. It was bearable however because in my dream, I knew that Satan's time was coming to an end and his days were numbered! 

He knows his days are numbered as well! It should not surprise us then that he is reeking havoc in the world! As his reign is getting closer to being over, there are going to be more and more manifestations of evil. Also manifestations of evil will be more manifest as the reign of God becomes more apparent.

Another thing that happened last week, on April 21st to be exact, is Prince died. He was a Pop icon from the 80's. I was personally into him when I was a teenager. His music happened to lead me down a very dark road. There is a good chance he could have come to know the Lord before he died. I do not know anything about that but I think in a prophetic sense, he symbolized a worldly spirit and the Prince of this world. Again, the Prince of this world is coming to an end!

In prayer recently, I also saw an image of the Statue of Liberty with the torch of fire in her hand. I felt like the Lord said, "True liberty comes through fire!" 

This word was for our nation. However, whenever I receive a word for the nation or the world, I get the privilege (sarcasm) of experiencing it first. That is even one way we can discern the signs of the times; what is happening in our own life? If we are living for the Lord, we are prophetic people and what is going on in our life can reflect what is going to happen, in a sense in the world. 

For me, the spiritual warfare lately and God's purifying fire has been rather intense! I am definitely being stretched to the max! There have been blatant manifestations of evil and major testings of my faith!

I have a suspicion that 2017 is going to be an interesting year for our nation and the world! May 13th, 2017 is also the 100th anniversary of Our Lady appearing to the three little shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. 

These are uncertain but also exciting times! We are going to get to see things that people in the past longed to see! The Kingdom of God's reign is at hand and there will be great manifestations of His Spirit! His purifying love is going to consume our world! For those willing to receive it, this is great news! 

*Edited to add - I find it interesting that on May 13th of this year, also the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima, Obama issued a mandate that all public schools need to allow their bathrooms and locker rooms to be gender neutral. I can't help but think of the above quote by Sr. Lucia (one of the Fatima children) concerning the last battle.

What's Up With Essential Oils?

I am going to venture away from my normal type of topic to share something that has been very providential in my life. First let me say that I am one to steer away from trends. I've always been like that, even as a teenager. If certain designer jeans were in, I would wear an off brand. If all the other girls had long, fancy finger nails, I would cut mine short. Even as an adult, when all my friends had the latest smart phone, I stuck with and was happy with my flip phone as long as it still worked. Who knows, maybe it is the rebellious side of me.

Anyway, when a lot of the women around me started getting into essential oils, I steered clear. Just a year ago I thought it was just another trend and just about aromatherapy. I really wasn't open minded about them until I was in a desperate state. You see, I had an infection in my elbow. It was located in the bursa which is a very difficult area to treat. I was on multiple and very strong antibiotics. My elbow was very swollen and hung down by a couple inches. Despite all the antibiotics, I wasn't getting better. I continued to run a fever and it was starting to hurt in the bone. A friend of mine gave me some essential oils to take internally and some to apply topically. Immediately I began to see results. I stopped running a fever and the pain in the bone went away. The swelling also went down until my elbow was back to normal.

Since then I have discovered many more ways essential oils could help my family. For starters, I used to need sleeping pills every night to get a good night sleep. Well, they started to build up in my system and were causing heart palpitations and dizziness. I stopped them cold turkey and for two nights I literally did not sleep. 

Fortunately my friend knew about an essential oil blend that could help me. I started diffusing it by my bed every night and ever since I sleep well most nights. It's funny because my husband used to be a skeptic but after I was diffusing the sleep blend every night, he realized it was also helping him get a better night sleep.

I have also found essential oils to help with a daughter that has severe anxiety. If I see her about to have an anxiety attack, I have her breath in a particular oil and then she is able to calm down. I shared this with her Psychologist and he wasn't surprised and told me to keep using it.

Another one of my daughters has Dyslexia and ADHD. I homeschool her which has been very difficult to say the least! She has a really hard time focusing and therefore it is hard for her to learn. I found an oil to help her focus and it makes a world of difference. Because she is able to focus better, she is able to start learning to read whereas before she struggled to learn her letters. It is really noticeable the mornings I forget to put it on her. As soon as I realize it, I put it on her and then she is able to focus.

Other ways they have helped our family are by preventing illnesses, shortening illnesses, helping with stomach upset, allergies, muscle aches, insect bites, wasp stings, insect repellent, scrapes and coughs to name a few.

What really makes me feel good is that we are no longer putting harmful chemicals into our bodies. Essential oils are all natural and part of God's creation. They are taken from the seed, bark, stems, roots, flower and other parts of the plant. They are also taken from parts of the plant that helps heal the plant and helps it to thrive. So, it makes sense that they could help us as well! Many medications are actually a synthetic version of these. 

If you would be interested in knowing more about essential oils, please contact me. I would be happy to share with you and even give you some samples to try!