Blog note. Jesus indicated that ‘fearful sights’ (various natural disasters) would occur leading up to the time known as the Tribulation and Great Tribulation (a combined seven year period of great destruction on earth). Although these types of things have occurred in the past for centuries and thousands of years, they could be identified as the ‘season of the times’ due to the ferociousness of these events. They would be occurring in greater intensity, severity, frequency, size, duration, scope … just like the pains that a woman experiences in labor the farther along she is in the labor process. We are in the ‘season of the times’ that comes just before the seven (7) year Tribulation/Great Tribulation period
… And great earthquakes shall be in diverse places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. (Luke 21:11).
… And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; (Luke 21:25)
… Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken; (Luke 21:26)
… This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. (2 Timothy 3:1)
Jesus is giving a series of prophecies about what to look for as the age of grace comes to a close. These verses are several of many such prophecies from throughout the Bible. 2017 was the worst year in recorded history for the intensity, frequency, severity, duration and occurrence of a large number of severe natural disasters worldwide. Earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, typhoons, cyclones, torrential flooding, unprecedented wildfires in unusual places, devastating droughts, excessive/scorching heat setting records everywhere, record snowfalls in Europe and Russia. Snow in the Arabia. This list can go on. Most studied Eschatologists believe these ‘fearful sights’ and massive natural disasters are all part of the ‘CONVERGENCE’ of signs that this Biblical and prophetic age is closing. Most people who study prophecy are familiar with the routine reference(s) made that these things will be like a woman having labor.

Mexico capital advises residents to stay inside due to fires

AMY GUTHRIE. Associated Press•May 12, 2019

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico City’s government warned people Sunday to remain indoors as forest and brush fires carpeted the metropolis in a smoky haze that has alarmed even many of those accustomed to living with nagging air pollution.

Outdoor activities on the capital’s main avenue continued, although fewer capital dwellers than usual came out to bike, rollerblade or do aerobics on Paseo de la Reforma, parts of which are closed on Sundays for exercise. The capital and surrounding metropolitan area are home to about 22 million people.

The Environmental Commission of the Megalopolis said the air was polluted with high levels of solid particles, such as ash, that can cause respiratory problems and other illnesses upon prolonged inhalation. In recent days, 258 firefighters have been dispatched to extinguish 13 brush fires, four fires on barren plots of land, two house fires, a forest fire and a blaze at an industrial warehouse in the capital. In the nearby state of Mexico, 992 firefighters have been sent to fight 30 fires.

At the same time, fires in the southern states of Oaxaca and Guerrero — combined with a high-pressure weather system — have carried contaminants into the Valley of Mexico and trapped them there, the commission noted. And in Tepoztlan, a popular weekend retreat just south of the capital, authorities closed access to archaeological ruins over the weekend while they stamped out fires that consumed more than 200 acres of grass, bushes and other flammable plants.

The hashtag #SmokeinCDMX was trending on Twitter, while an image of the iconic Angel of Independence statue on Reforma circulated with the angel donning a gas mask.

Olivia Meza, 28, strode on roller blades alongside her white Lhasa Apso dog Sunday despite the pollution warnings.

“I’m used to the air, somehow,” she said with a shrug. “We’re like cockroaches — It’s hard to kill us.”

Meza blames the city’s increasingly high levels of air pollution on global warming. Mexico’s dry season has extended in recent years, leading to less rain during the summer months and higher temperatures. The capital has the added challenge of being in a valley, which traps dirty air and particles. Then there are the millions of cars belching exhaust.

And now the fires.

Curtains of smoke have blanketed the capital in recent days, blurring visibility at street level— especially at night— and invading nostrils with the smell of smoke. Parents of young children have reported that their little ones are awakening with nosebleeds.

“Last night it smelled burnt,” said Michelle Serralde, 40, who joined Meza on roller skates Sunday in spite of the poor air quality, she said, “because we have so few free days.”

Nearby, a city-sponsored aerobics session wrapped up for the day. Irene Cruz, a 60-year-old whose gives instructional courses on how to use fire extinguishers on weekdays, sweated it out for four hours in the sun Sunday despite the warnings.

Saturdays are for church, she said, and Sundays are for outdoor exercise.

Pollution “is something we live with every day,” Cruz said dismissively, joking that she would rust out if she ever left the city of her birth.