Category: May

Psalm 146, 2025

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

I praise you, God!

Everything in me praises you, LORD!  I will praise you as long as I am alive.  I will be singing your praises, Father, when I breathe my last breath.

I don’t put my trust in people who have money – they will not help me when I really need it.  When they return to the earth as dust, all of their plans will die with them.

Those of us who trust in you to help us, God, find hope and joy. You are the Master Creator of heaven and earth and everything in them.

You always keep your promises.  You give food to the hungry and justice to the oppressed.

You have freed me from the guilt of my sins and you are opening my eyes to your truth. You, oh God, lift me up when the cares of this world weigh me down.  You are a Good Father to all of us who love you.  You protect the strangers among us and care for orphans and widows.

You mess up the plans of unbelievers.

You, my King, will reign forever, throughout all generations.

I lift my praise to you, Abba Father.

Psalm 25, 2025

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

I trust you, God.

I know you will never let me down.  Everyone who trusts knows how faithful you are.  Those who don’t trust in you get their just rewards.

Help me know you better, dear God.  Direct my steps and guide me into a deeper understanding of your truth.  Teach me, Father.  All of my hope is in you, God, my Savior.

You have been merciful and loving since the beginning of time.  I have confessed my sins and I know you have forgiven me because my guilt has disappeared.

You love overwhelms me.  You are so good, LORD.

I feel you walking beside me as I go through my day, God.  When I listen, you teach me what is right.  You are loving and faithful to those of us who have put our trust in you.

Your grace covers all of my sin and rebellion.

In response to my respect and honor for you, you help me make the right choices in my life.  You give me good things and bless my children.

I need to hear your voice, Father.  Speak to me – I need you each day.

When my eyes are fixed on you, God, you help me avoid the danger and pitfalls that come my way.  I turn to you when I am alone and sad – you take away my worries and stress.  When the trials and problems of this world press in all around me, you are always beside me – loving me and giving me strength.

You are my Rock and Refuge, Father.  Guard my life and rescue me.  I trust in you alone.

I pray that all people everywhere will experience your mercy and strength, God.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Psalm 139, 2025

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

You know me well, LORD.

You know where I am and what I’m thinking about.  You know where I go and when I stay – you know all of my habits.   Before any words come out of my mouth, you know what I’m going to say.  You walk close beside me, with your hand guiding me.

I will never totally understand you – you are too awesome!

I know I am never alone – you are always with me.  Where ever I go – you are already there.  My life is in your hands.  You are constantly guiding me, protecting me and loving me.

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I feel alone and everything seems very dark.  But you are there –

you are always there.

Darkness is not dark to you.  Your light shines through.

I know you created me, dear Father.  You knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you for how unbelievably wonderful you are!

You create masterpieces!  I know – because I am one of them.  You knew me before anyone else.  You saw me.  You formed me.  And you made plans for my life before I was even born.

Your plans are precious to me, God.  Please show me the path you have designed just for me.

I want to spend all my days with you, Abba Father.

(This picture is my grandson- Jackson.  We got to meet him 5 years ago in August)

Need Directions?

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

Ever feel like you need arrows pointing to the right decisions to make? How about a guide to light your path on this journey of life that we’re on?

I would be very surprised if any of us said no to either one of these questions.  I know I would like a personal guide for each day.  What would it be like to get ‘Judy’s agenda for today’ from God on my phone?  It would give me a plan for the whole day so I could do exactly what God wants me to do today and make all the right decisions.

The reality is that God has already given you and me a guidebook for our lives. The Bible.

“Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path” Psalm 119: 105.

The Bible doesn’t have directions like ‘do laundry today’ or ‘buy groceries’. We can figure out those easy things on our own.

God’s Word tells me the important stuff like what my top 2 priorities are for each day – to love God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength and to love others as much as I love myself.

When we put our faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us. One of his purposes is to guide us into truth and show us what is false. When we read and study the Bible with our eyes and our hearts wide open, the Holy Spirit highlights the sections of God’s Word that we need for guidance today and he draws our attention to the truth that we need to know to make the right decisions for tomorrow..

God wants you and me to plug into his guidebook each day so we know what direction to go. Through his word he provides a lamp for our feet.

This is my 15th consecutive year of reading the entire Bible and I don’t know how I would take my next step without it.

Meaningless

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

“Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, ” completely meaningless.”  Ecclesiastes 12:8.

Do you ever feel that way?

Obviously this emotion is spreading rapidly through our culture today as we see the suicide rates drastically rising and mass shootings multiply.  To many people, tomorrow seems to be meaningless and not worth sticking around for.

“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”  Eccl. 2:11

King Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes.  He was uber rich and  the wisest man who ever lived and yet, this is what he wrote at the end of his life.

Pretty depressing, isn’t it?

The futility of pleasure – fleeting and never gives us lasting  contentment.

The meaninglessness of work –  we put so much effort into work to achieve recognition and so we can own things we want – then we leave it all behind when we die.

The injustices of life – evil is very real.

The futility of wealth – those who love money will never have enough.

The limits of human wisdom – “No one can really comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all of their efforts to search it out, no one can discover its meaning. Even if the wise claim they know, they cannot really comprehend it.” Ecclesiastes 8:17.

Death comes to all – “The same destiny (of death) awaits everyone, whether righteous or wicked, good or bad.” Ecclesiastes 9:3.

At the end of Ecclesiastes, Solomon eventually gets to the good news.  Solomon’s final conclusions tell us what will bring true meaning to our lives.

He says to enjoy life while obeying God – real freedom and happiness come exclusively from God.  Evil and injustice will always in a part of life on earth.  We should live in faith knowing God wins in the end and will judge all things.

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, tells us that meaning and purpose will only be found by being faithful to God.

That alone is not meaningless.

Too Easy

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

It’s just too easy to wander away from God.

I know because I wandered away for several years when I was a young adult.    I moved away from home and gradually filled my calendar with activities I knew were not the best for me.  The people I met while doing these activities weren’t interested in a relationship with God so we never talked about him.  My whole lifestyle changed to ‘looking for love (and fun) in all the wrong places.’

It was easy.

Several years later, I woke up (with a lot of nudging from the Holy Spirit) and realized I was not where I wanted to be.  Don’t get me wrong – I had worked hard and gotten everything I thought I wanted – everything I thought would make me happy.

But I wasn’t happy.  I was empty.  I had a huge hole in my life.  I needed a meaningful purpose for getting up every morning beyond feeding the kids, paying the bills and getting my ‘to-do’ lists done.

It took me awhile to figure out that the aching hole in my life was where God was supposed to be.  I’m sure the Holy Spirit had to work very hard on me to get me to see that.  My relationship with God at this point had melted into nonexistence.

I realized I missed God.  I missed my spiritual family.

I’m extremely grateful that the Holy Spirit helped me identify my real need and desire so I could get back on track.  My relationship with God has given me all the purpose and joy and success that I was looking for.

I’ve seen many Christians wander away –

  • their Bible starts gathering dust on a shelf.
  • social activities on Saturday nights make sleeping in on Sunday mornings more important than worshiping God with their spiritual families.
  • their week becomes too busy with other things so they drop out of small group Bible studies, leaving their Christian friends behind.
  • Some Christians stopped going to church during our pandemic and have never gone back.  It is just so easy to wander away from being a part of a church family like God directs us to be, so easy to watch church in our pajamas on Sunday and check it off the list, ignoring God’s words in Hebrews 10: 24 – 25. “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

I am reminded that this can happen to anyone when I read about the end of King Solomon’s life.  “As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.”  1 Kings 11:4.  He was the wisest man who ever lived and he lost it.   Unbelievable!

God had even told Solomon when he was younger not to marry foreign wives because this would happen.

Solomon was warned and he still wandered.

I feel like God is warning me – and you – today through his Word.   I must be diligent about keeping my priorities straight.  When attitudes and activities start to draw me away from God, I need to adjust my focus.

I wandered away once.  I’m determined not to do it again.

 

Foolish

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

What was this person thinking?

I can’t believe this person wrote that! I can’t believe they did that!

There are times when I feel surrounded by a large number of people who are not thinking, not using logic, and not caring about the facts. These people seem to be reacting purely out of emotion – making no sense.

And sometimes its hard not to respond back in the same way. It would feel good – for a minute – to blurt out my own emotional response….but then I would regret that I was acting just like they were. Without thinking. That’s not good.

God generously gives you and I some wisdom in this situation in Proverbs 26:4, “Do not answer a fool according to his folly; or you yourself will be just like him.”

Yep, when I answer a foolish statement with my own emotional, foolish statement, I am on the wrong track. The right track is to look to God for wisdom and discernment. And to keep my mouth closed until he gives me the right answer.

God tells me in Proverbs 9: 7-9 to forget about correcting a fool. Their response will be to insult me, abuse me and hate me. But a wise person learns from correction and grows wiser.

That’s the kind of person I want to be – a wise person who is learning and being transformed by the truth of God.

Proverbs is full of God’s wisdom regarding all kinds of situations we find ourselves in…

especially when we are dealing with fools.

Soaking it In

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

Solomon gave us an enormous amount of wisdom in Proverbs but it’s in such small, short statements that I find it hard to make sure I’m absorbing it – not just reading it and moving on.  I want God’s Word to soak into my life – changing and transforming me.

One of the many things I like about the Chronological Daily Bible I read through every year is the proverbs are grouped by subject matter.  This helps me slow down and consider the overall message God is giving me about each topic.

For example, God talks to us often in Proverbs about the actions of fools versus the actions of the wise.  This list highlights the temperament of each.  As I read them and think about them, I see these comparisons:

The fool – 

*gets annoyed quickly.

*shows their insecurities through their quick temper.

*jumps in on mean and evil schemes.

*stirs up conflict and commits many sins.

*wants to control other people.

*hasn’t learned their lesson so don’t rescue them.  You’ll just have to rescue them again.

The wise –

*respects and honors God, avoiding thoughts and actions that aren’t consistent with God’s Word.

*does not encourage conflict, calms a quarrel.

*has self control.

*does not make friends with hot-tempered people.

*does not associate with those who are easily angered.

God is pointing out us that the wise are involved in the world around them while maintaining a focus on living out the word of God.  They are not quick-tempered because they have self control.  They don’t ignore quarrels, they calm them.  And they don’t regularly hangout with hotheads.

Wise.

Take an honest look – which list are you on?

Living Right

On By Judy GlasserIn May2 Comments

I’ve reading through Proverbs right now on my journey through the Bible this year.  There is such a wealth of knowledge and great direction in this book, it is impossible to actually take it all in.   So I ask God to open my eyes and heart to what he is trying to teach me.

God regularly points out to me his many Proverbs concerning righteousness.

Righteousness is an old-fashioned term that doesn’t seem to relate to my world today… until I remember it means ‘living right’.  Doing the right things.  Making the right decisions.  Saying the right things.

How do I know what is right?  God’s Word is right.  It’s the truth.  God himself speaks to me through the Bible, explaining it and helping me apply it to my life.  The Holy Spirit convicts me when my thinking gets skewed and my actions don’t reflect what I believe.

Sometimes the Holy Spirit uses other people to help us see where our thinking is going wrong.  I used to get very confused and disillusioned by people who said they were Christians but were not acting like what I thought a Christian should act like.  I was regularly disappointed with what people said and did – especially in the church.  I was in leadership positions in my church for many years and those of you who have been there know what that means.  Unfortunately, too many people in churches use their leaders as complaint boxes and punching bags.

I will never forget one day when I was talking to my husband about my frustration concerning someone we knew who was saying that God had healed them but they obviously were not healed.  “Why is she saying that when it’s not true?” I asked him.  He looked me in the eye and said, “Judy, you have to stop looking at people.  Focus your eyes on Jesus.”

That did it.  I stopped looking around the world for a role-model on how to ‘live right’ and put my eyes on Jesus.   This has helped me move past major issues with people in the church.  It has helped me lower my frustration with Christians who are not acting like I think a Christian should act. I realize that Christians are just people and we’re all struggling with our sin and weaknesses.  As believers, God has redeemed our lives but he is still in the process of helping each of us become more like Jesus.

When I focused on Jesus, my issues with imperfect Christians disappeared.

While he was on earth, Jesus gave imperfect Christians grace and love and spoke truth at the right time into their lives.  I’m so glad he still treats us this way, because I am imperfect and will not become perfect until after I leave this earth.

Speaking to other people with grace and love and truth.  Jesus somehow balanced all three perfectly. 

It’s the right thing to do.

 

Where Can I Find It?

On By Judy GlasserIn MayLeave a comment

Am I ever satisfied?

Are you?

We live in a culture where it’s very difficult to be content because there is always ‘bigger and better’.  There is always more.

How do I find this illusive thing called peace when I am surrounded by all of this?

God tells me through King Solomon in Proverbs 3 how to find peace, satisfaction and prosperity in my life.

  • Never forget what God has taught me.
  • Be loyal and loving.
  • Trust in God – be dependent on his power and strength and understanding, not my own.
  • Make fulfilling God’s will for my life my goal. “in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:6.
  • Keep on the path God directs me to take.
  • Turn away from evil.  Respect God and give him the credit for all the good things in my life. Never get too impressed with myself.
  • Honor God with my time and treasures.
  • Accept my Father’s discipline.  He loves me and wants the best for me.
  • Ask God for wisdom – it is precious and nothing else will bring me satisfaction.
  • Hang on to my common sense and discernment – they will help keep me unafraid and I’ll be able to sleep at night.
  • Love and encourage others.
  • Don’t envy violent or wicked people.  At first, I would say that I would never envy violent or wicked people.  But then, I think about some people I know who have ‘gotten away’ with things that were not right but it brought them pleasure or financial gain.  Did I ever wish that was me? “The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the house of the righteous.” Proverbs 3:33.

That’s a great list!  It’s interesting to me that things like ‘get an education so you can get a good job and make a lot of money’ aren’t on here. There’s nothing on this list that tells me that buying stuff and owning that boat or that cabin or that new car is going to bring me satisfaction.

How are you doing on this list? Have you found contentment? Peace?

This list is all about God working with us to grow our faith, grow our character and grow our wisdom.

Amen.  Let it be so, Abba Father.