Author: Judy Glasser

Life is a journey. Sometimes I'm coasting downhill and, other times, its a tough road uphill. My journey has been straight uphill since May 19, 2016 when my son, David Glasser, who was a Phoenix Police Officer was killed in the line of duty. When my life and dreams blew apart, I only had one option - to hold on tightly to my Rock, my Father God. I have a new understanding of just how short life is and how important it is to take loving each other seriously. God is love and all love comes from him. I have seen love do supernatural things since my son was killed. I have published a book, "Then I Looked Up: Losing a Child, Finding His Legacy of Love." about my tough and painful journey since my son was killed. You can order it from Amazon or you can get an autographed copy by contacting me on messenger. I am sharing some of my experiences as a survivor of a line of duty death in MYFAMILYBLEEDSBLUE.COM. Please feel free to share these blogs with anyone you know who might find them helpful. My other blog - JOURNEYTOWARDSTHETRUTH.COM - has been a work of love for many years as I read through the Chronological Daily Bible each year and share what I hear from God when he stops me. I am inviting you to come along on one or both of my journeys. Please share as often as you'd like. Thanks so much for reading!

Psalm 119, 2014

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

Teach me, Lord, the right way to live my life so I can live like that the rest of my life.May 3 2014

I want to understand so that I can follow you with all of my heart.

Help me do the things you want me to do because you and I know those are the things that are going to make me really happy.

Focus my mind on things that are good for me.

Help me to stop my habit of getting all wrapped up in me and what I want.

Please help me use my time and energy on those things that matter most to you.  I want my life to be about the things you care about.

I know you always keep your promises and you desire respect and honor from me.

Please take away the guilt and shame that my sins have brought into my life.

I desire to live like you want me to live…each day, in every way…all of the way to the end.

Thank you, dear God.

 

 

Psalm 13, 2014

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

Why is this happening to me, Lord?April 20 2014

Even more important – why are you letting this happen me?

How long will I be overwhelmed with sorrow and defeat?

Why am I such a loser?

Answer me, God!

Are you answering me?

If you are, I’m not seeing it.

I am at the end of my rope.  I am barely  hanging on.  Everybody is fighting against me…and they are winning!

BUT I know that I need to remind myself that I just have to trust in you.

Your love has never failed me….ever.

You have saved me and my relationship with you gives me joy.  You give me joy deep inside of my heart.

I will always praise you, Lord.

You have been very good to me.

Thank you, dear God.

 

1Chronicles 29. 2014

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

Picture this with me –

King David  is standing in the middle of a huge mountain of bronze, silver, iron and gold with large piles of precious stones on top.  These are his offerings and the offerings of his people as they prepare for Solomon to build a temple for God.  David rejoices as he lifts up his hands high to heaven and says –

We give you all praise to you, God of Israel!April 19 2014

Now and forever we will praise you!

Only you are great and powerful!  Your majesty and splendor are glorious!

Absolutely everything is yours.

You are our king.

All wealth and honor come from you.

You are in total control of all things.

All strength and power come from you.

We give you thanks and praise your glorious name!

We have given generously in order to build a temple for you, but it all originally came from you.  Everything comes from you – we’re just giving some of it back.

Thank you, dear God, for giving us this picture in our minds of a godly king who understood where his strength and power and wealth and honor came from.  May we follow his example.

No Luck Involved

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

I recently talked with a man in his 40″s who said he believed that most of what life throws at us is luck.  Some people are lucky so good things come their way.  Others aren’t lucky so bad things happen to them.April 16 2014

How interesting!  Because I believe the total opposite.  I don’t believe in luck.  I think that our decisions directly determine what happens to us.  Sometimes we don’t think ahead when making decisions and we don’t like where we end up, but it’s not luck.

As a Christian, I also believe that God works everything out for good for those who love him.  But not without consequences for bad decisions we’ve made.  He walks with us as we go through the bad consequences and he helps us grow wisdom through these negative experiences.   If we let God guide us through the pain, disappointment and regrets, we come out more mature and with a greater faith at the other end.

In 2 Samuel, King David had made some bad choices so he and his people were going to pay the consequences.  No luck involved.

Blaming the results of our bad choices on luck is a very dangerous road to take.  When we don’t hold ourselves personally accountable for our decisions,  we won’t be motivated to change and improve.  I see lots of ‘bad luck’ ahead for anyone who chooses the treacherous path of not taking responsibility for where our decisions have taken us.  If we want a different outcome, we need to make different choices.

No luck involved.

Please give us wisdom, dear Father.

Psalm 3, 2014

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

Nothing is going right for me, God!April 14 2014

Everybody and everything is against me.

They believe that you’re not going to help me this time, Lord.

But I know you are always with me.  Because of you I have hope.  When I look to you and call out to you, you always answer.

I can sleep at night because you are there to take care of me.

I wake up every morning knowing that you are there to give me strength for the day.

I will not be afraid of anything that comes at me.

Save me once again, O God!

Take out my enemies.

You give me freedom.  May your blessing be upon all of us.

This psalm is especially sad because David’s enemy at this time was his own son, Absalom.   Absalom’s rebellion brought an enormous amount of pain to David and to David’s family.

Dear Father, Please remove any rebellious spirits within us so that our lives can bring glory to you.

The Tomb is Empty!

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

Hallelujah!

My journey down the Via Dolorosa seeing each Station of the Cross where another horrible thing happened to Jesus culminated in a emotional visit to the garden tomb.ftdDSC_0549

Experts can’t verify that this is the exact tomb where Jesus laid for 3 days.  But it’s in the right place and it has the same  unusual layout that Jesus’ tomb had. 

It’s in a peaceful and beautiful garden – an oasis in the middle of noisy, crowded, tension-filled Jerusalem.  Did I mention that we heard machine-gun fire for several minutes while having lunch in Jerusalem that day?

It didn’t matter to me if this was the exact tomb……Jesus’ body isn’t thereftdDSC_0558 anyway.  He is risen!  And he lives inside of me and all who believe in him!  So it was even more glorious to realize that Jesus was there that day with me.  He was helping me understand what he did for me just a little bit more.  I experienced the depths of his love at a new level. 

And I was overwhelmed with gratitude for those in my life who had introduced me to Christ – specifically for my mother who lived a sold-out-to-Jesus life all the way up to her death.  What a great role-model!  What a great legacy!

So I celebrate my risen Savior today with new enthusiasm and new understanding.

Thank you, Jesus!ftdDSC_0564

The Via Dolorosa

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

The Way of Suffering.

The path Jesus took throftdDSC_0523ugh Jerusalem that day.  The day he died on the cross – for you….for me.

His agony was more real to me as I walked down that crowded and narrow street just a few weeks ago.

The whips and the beatings caused his body to bleed. 

The hatred and anger etched upon the faces of the people he passed by must have hurt even more.  These were the people he loved enough to die for.   And they spit on him as the blood flowing down over his head mixed with the tears dripping down his face.

Meanwhile, Satan and his team cheered loudly, encouraging the crowds on as they hit Jesus and let the rage of their sinful hearts loose upon the sinless Son of God.ftdDSC_0527

It’s a narrow street.  It was filled with people and merchants on the day I walked down it just like it had been the day Jesus dragged his cross down it.  There wouldn’t have been much room.  I’m sure Jesus felt the pressure of humanity weighing down him just as much as the weight of the cross.

It was very personal.

And very ugly.

Isaiah’s prophecy from 700 years before Jesus was born rang through my head as I made my way down the Via Dolorosa:

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him.  Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.  He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.

Like one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised.  And we esteemed him not.fdtDSC_0502

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, and we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him and afflicted. 

But he was pierced by our transgressions,

he was crushed for our iniquities.

The punishment that brought us peace was upon him and by his wounds we are healed.

We all like sheep have gone astray – each of us to his own way.

And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

Thank you, dear Jesus.

So Easy

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

It can be so easy to make quick judgements about other people’s actions.  Their unfairness is so crystal-clear.   Their lack of judgement is so evident.

Why is it so much harder to look at our own behavior using the same standards?  We are very quick to excuse ourselves and rationalize away our own actions.  There is a veil of self-centeredness that covers our eyes when we look at our own choices.

Sometimes we all need a very good friend to help open our eyes to what we are doing.

That’s what Nathan did for David in 2 Samuel 12.  He tells David a story about a very rich man who took advantage ofApril 10 2014 a very poor man.  When David heard the story, he burned in anger and said the rich man should die for his actions.   And then Nathan turns to David and says’ You are the man.’

Wow!  Call it like it is Nathan!

Nathan goes on to correlate his story with David’s recent action with Bathsheba and Uriah.  This helped open David’s eyes to what he had done and David acknowledge his sins before God.  David was so good at turning right back to God when he strayed.

He asked for God’s mercy for his sins in Psalm 51 and here is how some of that psalm might have sounded if David had written it in 2014:April 10 2 2014

I really need your mercy this time, God.

I know you love me.  Your great compassion makes all of my sins disappear.  Wash me, dear God.  Clean me once again.

I know I have sinned against you – I can’t get it off of my mind.

I am guilty – go ahead and judge me.

I have always been sinful yet you desire faithfulness.

Cleanse me and wash me, dear God.  I’m ashamed of my sins.

Create in me a heart that honors you, dear God.

May your spirit continue to grow within me.

Never turn away from me.  You have saved me – may I find joy again.

Help me be a willing and faithful servant, dear God.

Amen.

Psalm 18, 2014

On By Judy GlasserIn April2 Comments

Everything God does is perfect.April 7 a 2014

All of his words are correct.

You are a refuge for all who believe in You.  There is no other God.

You are the only real Rock that is available to us.

It is You who gives me strength and keeps me safe.  You help through my days.

Anything that I’ve achieved has been done through your power in my life. 

You give me wisdom in conflict – the right words at the right time.April 7 2 2014

Your hand is my shield and You provide everything I need.

You have given me a purpose and You have made my life worth living.

You direct my path and give me the endurance I need.

Thank you, dear God!

 

The City of David

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

Jerusalem.

David built up the city and became more and more powerful because the Lord Almighty was with him.

On my recent trip to Jerusalem, we looked at an excavation site which experts believe to be remains of the City of David.  We stood where David lived as King.  It’s on the side of a hill looking down  on a beautiful section of Jerusalem.jerusalem from the city of david  We looked down upon the rooftops below us  just like David would have done when he saw Bathsheba.

The stories of David reverberated in my head as I looked out over David’s beloved Jerusalem.

First Chronicles tells us that the Lord Almighty was with David and he became more and more powerful.  Today, regular people like us don’t become more and more powerful by amassing armies and plunder.

We become more and more powerful as our witness to the power of God in our lives grows – when our faith becomes a rock which never waivers and cannot be moved.  Our power grows because God is with us all day, in every situation and we can feel him supernaturally moving through us.

And we grow more like Jesus who has all of the power.

Thank you, dear God!