From the moment I became a member of the Protestant church, I quickly learned of the Second Coming of the Lord. I was consumed with the idea of getting caught up in the sky, meeting Jesus. I worried about my unsaved loved ones. Would they go up in the Rapture? I have since returned to my Catholic roots.

The Rapture was introduced as a commentary footnote by John Nelson Darby in 1827. Cyrus Scofield  added this theory to his reference Bible and other popular Bibles scholars followed suite (in the footnotes of the commentary) to their publications. Books like “The Late Great Planet Earth” by Hal Lindsey and the “Left Behind” series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins gave the theory more fuel, and the fire spread throughout the Protestant believers. According to this doctrine, believers will be taken up to Christ in Heaven, and non-believers will be left behind to endure the tribulation with the Anti-Christ.

Second Thessalonians was written because the Thessalonians believed that the Lord return was very near. The apostle Paul had to instruct the Thessalonians to occupy until He comes. (Luke 19:13)

2 Thessalonians 2:2 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Great Apostasy

2 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, ² not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.

In California we just experienced a magnitude 7.1 earthquake; we felt it strongly in our home. So I ask you this? Are we living in the Last Days? If you had asked me this 30 years ago, the answer would have been an emphatic yes! Today my answer has not changed but I’m not so consumed or fearful of the inevitable.

As I experience more growth in The Lord, my spirit has shifted. I have developed a more monastic approach to the things in life. I witness the direction of many paving a clear path to Hell. I don’t turn my head away from their sin, I but have learned to operate in prayer. Believe me, I want to scream at the top of my lungs, “For the love of God, stop sinning!” But I would come across as judging or as holier than thou. So, instead, I turn to prayer, a lot of prayer.

When someone knowingly is involved in sin, you can’t talk to them about their transgressions because they cannot see through the clouded distortion of their sin. The sin has already made its comfortable place in their spirit, and they are sold out to their immorality. The only thing left to do is to pray for them, really pray for them, doing spiritual warfare. Use all the weapons God has given you, and you will see victory. Never ever give up! God will see you through this.

The earth cries out with birth pains and the Lord of us all grows tired of the same sin. God is in control of all earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes and all other natural disasters. Not even the most seasoned scientist can answer the deep causes of these phenomena. Only God can!

I recently watched two separate documentaries, one of John Lennon and the other of George Harrison. In my perception, these two gifted musicians (Beatles) were searching for “a god, a higher source.” John thought he found it in Yoko Ono. George, after taking acid (hallucinatory drug) said that he heard a whisper saying, “yogis of the Himalayas.” George Harrison said this subliminal message remained in his head. He continued his search until he found peace with Hinduism. George believed in the New Age god Hare Krishna, hence the song he composed, “My Sweet Lord.”

John Lennon went on to write his greatest and most popular song ”Imagine.” The lyrics of this song start with, “Imagine there’s no heaven.”  The message is not by a man influenced by God, but rather a woman who neither knew God nor cared to know anything of God.

There is a heaven, and one day we will all meet our Maker.

Philippians 3:20-21 New King James Version (NKJV)

²⁰ For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

I was on the phone with my sister Norma when I felt the earth shaking. I told Norma, “We’re having an earthquake! The Lord is coming soon!” In a panic I ran outside to check the pool and videotaped the water spilling out onto the patio. I ran upstairs to check on Mike. I asked him, “Why didn’t you check on me?” Mike looked at me with a questionable look and said, “I knew you were fine.” His calm, soothing voice comforted my nerves. I, on the other hand, turned into Chicken Little, believing “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” I called my daughter Sonja, and my daughter-in-law Jenny called to check on us. Praise be to God, we were all fine.

We are told to be prepared for “the big one ” with an earthquake kit, water, food, flashlights etc. But are we prepared for the Coming of the Lord or the day of our deaths? There will be no ” save the date card” to prepare you for these events. So my advice to you is to rid yourselves of all the unnecessary baggage of sin. Leave it at the foot of the Cross, where God Himself will consume it with fire and finally set you free.

Matthew 24:42-43 New King James Version (NKJV)

⁴² Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. ⁴³ But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.

Our country was founded on the love of God. The American Flag is our banner of unity, One Nation Under God. I will not be influenced by anyone or any mega corporation that choses to desecrate our Flag. I wrote this poem in honor of  our beautiful Flag:

Old Glory, you are a symbol of pride

We need not ignore your meaning or what you imply

I salute your banner waving high

Your colors and stars polish the blue sky

Who in this land cannot notice the freedom for which you stand

You’re an anthem of courage and are still in command

Liberty weeps at the thought of those who defy your side

She bows her head at the great divide

Your roots are deep and you honor those who strap on their boots

They fought for us to keep us sound and to them you are profound

© Lynda Ciriza

God Bless our beautiful imperfect country! Happy 4th of July!

Psalms 37:4 NKJV

Ten years ago Mike finally agreed to have our kitchen remodeled. We have been living in the same home for 37 years. This house was built in 1974. It is a solid lath and plaster home, which means that no drywall was used in the original building.

We did a small kitchen remodel shortly after we moved in. I made the worst decorating mistake in the world by installing a white tile floor and white tile counter tops. I became a slave to the floors, having to mop them every time we used the kitchen.

To add character to the old kitchen, it went through many metamorphic experiences. It was wallpapered, painted a hideous green, and we had two electric stove tops replaced. When Mike took over the cooking, we switched to gas. Gas made all the difference in our meals and Mike’s meals taste like we hired a personal chef.

I had a great desire in my heart to redesign the kitchen,  I started a campaign by nagging; when that   didn’t work, I prayed. It took a long time before I could convince Mike, but he finally agreed. We had a lot of expenses that took precedence over this huge undertaking. Both Mikos and Sonja were attending private colleges, and I decided that it was time for me to finish my education. So I applied and was accepted to Biola University. Mike was overwhelmed with paying part of three tuitions. After a little breathing room, we seized the opportunity and started the project.

We researched and got several estimates, but I wanted was a dream kitchen. Originally I wanted to expand the kitchen, but that idea quickly ended when the estimates came in at over $90,000.00, and that was without the kitchen remodel or new appliances! I prayed again on how to expand without breaking walls.

When we were about to make our decision between two contractors, I received a dream from the Lord. In the dream, two bay windows were added to make room for seating. The following morning Jonathan, one of the designers, called me. Jonathan  shared with me his idea on how to expand the kitchen. He told me that we should add two bay windows for seating. This was exactly what I dreamt! It was a clear confirmation for us to go with his company, Le Gourmet Kitchens. This is how God takes care of those who trust and believe in prayer.

My custom kitchen was a project of love, which took over 3 months to complete. I wanted Jerusalem stone for my countertop, but it was too porous, so I went with Caesar stone, which is also from Jerusalem. It was important for me to have products from the Holy Land. I brought back decorative tile from the Old City in Jerusalem. Jonathan is Jewish, so he really understood what I wanted. He ordered Jerusalem crosses from Israel to complement the tiles that I purchased.

My cabinets were made in Salina, Kansas, because there are too many E.P.A stipulations in California on how wood is treated. Also it does not compare to the quality of the wood from this part of the country. My cabinets have a lifetime guarantee.

I wanted the stove to make a statement, so we picked a Viking mint julep stove. It was perfect!

If you are wondering why am I writing about my kitchen, it’s because this is where families gather, where bonding takes place, where heartfelt stories are shared. The kitchen is the heart of a home, and it should be  filled with love.

All of my cooking is done without a recipe. If I do use a recipe, for some strange reason it always comes out different. I have accepted that cooking is not my gift, and I’m perfectly fine with that. Sometimes I cook the worst meals; at other times I surprise everyone with a tasty meal. Such is life.

I thought for sure that the beautiful kitchen would improve my cooking, but it didn’t. Once I tried a quinoa recipe and it kept growing so much that I had to change pots twice. Nowhere in the recipe did it warn that it was going to keep expanding. Dinner that night went down as another adventure that finally had us eating at 8:30 p.m. Never take the advice from a well-meaning friend who told me to cook the corned beef in a crock pot. That was a disaster that lasted until the following day, when we were finally able to enjoy the meal.

I am currently creating videos to give cooking tutorials for others who share my dilemma. Just recently I ruined a pot of rice; even the dog turned his nose up at it.

Mornings in my kitchen are my favorite. You can find me sitting in my breakfast nook every day around 7:30 a.m. I eat the same breakfast every day: a cup of coffee with Ezekiel toast. My cat Prudie usually joins me. I use this room to pray; sometimes when I’m overcome with uncertainties and unanswered prayer, I sit and cry in that same spot.

When our grandchildren were younger, all ten of us would gather for dinner every Monday night. Now that they are in sports and have their own busy lives, we try to get together at least once or twice a month. The kitchen is my favorite room of our home because this is where the sun greets me every morning after Mass. I look out the Dutch door and thank God for my beautiful bougainvillea that Mike planted.

I thank God for my ten-year-old kitchen, and am grateful that it still brings us together as a family. Happy, sad, mad, we are family, and will always meet in the kitchen for healing and laughter.

1 Corinthians 10:31 New King James Version (NKJV)

³¹ Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.