Category: September

Climbing a Tall Ladder

On By Judy GlasserIn September2 Comments

“Picture in your mind a tall ladder leaning against a wall.  Now think about your life as a process of climbing that ladder.  Wouldn’t it be a tragedy to ascend to the top and find you had placed the ladder against the wrong wall?  One life to live, and you missed it!”

When I first read this paragraph from Experiencing God many years ago, it startled me.  I’m a very goal oriented person so I was definitely climbing a ladder.  The thought that I could be climbing the wrong ladder caused me a lot of concern.  The fact that I could work so hard to get somewhere I didn’t want to be caused me to stop.  And seriously reconsider my priorities.Sept 15 2015 climbing a tall ladder

“Your walk with God (Father, Son, and Spirit) is the single most important aspect of your life.  If it is not as it should be, nothing else will function properly.”

“Scripture leads us to understand that God is saying, ‘ I want you to love Me above everything else.   When you are in a relationship of love with Me, you have everything there is.’  To be loved by God is the highest relationship, the greatest achievement,and the noblest position in life.”

God used these words from Experiencing God to help redirect my life onto the right ladder.  At that time I thought my success was going to come from my career.  God helped me understand that any success I would ever have – then and now –  would come through my relationship with him.

With him, everything else happens as it should, according to his will and his plan.

Without him, I was just working very hard and sacrificing too much as I climbed up the wrong ladder.

I am going through the Experiencing God study again – for the 4th time, many years later –  with my small group and I am filled with gratitude to my Father God.  He got my attention and brought his truth into my life at just the right time so I could switch ladders.  I am 100% confident that I’m now on the right ladder, the right path.

And this path going to take me all the way home, where my heart is.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Roaming Throughout the Earth

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

Satan told God in the beginning of the book of Job that he had come to heaven after roaming throughout the earth. (vs 7).

He is still roaming the earth today.Sept 8 2015 roaming throughout the earth

He is very real.

He is totally consumed with evil.

He has an enormous team  of evil spirits working for him.

And they are watching us.

Figuring out our weak points and then tempting us in those areas.

They take the truth and twist it….just a little bit.  Just enough so it’s not true anymore.  Then they whisper it in our ears….if we’re listening….when our guard is down….when we’re angry….when we haven’t spent much time with God so we’re not grounded…we’re wandering…..down the paths of sin as we listen to their prodding.

And Satan smiles.

When a believer gives into temptation, Satan is delighted.

He won that battle.

He is very real.

His army of evil is very real.

We see evidence of this everyday.

We see Satan’s work in our churches as well when people are critical instead of encouraging, causing dissension rather than praying, more interested in their own comfort and agenda than God’s purpose and agenda.  I know you’ve seen this happen because it happens all the time.

Satan is very real.  He is roaming the earth today.

Please protect us and give us wisdom, Abba Father.

Walking Through the Fire

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

We are never alone.

As believers, the Spirit of God lives within us.

God walks with us every step of our lives….even through the fire.Sept 4 2015 our God is able

God reminds us of this as we read the historical account of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego being thrown into the fiery furnace because of their faith in God.

As King Nebuchadnezzar watched the furnace expecting to see all 3 of them burn, he witnessed a miracle.  There were actually 4 men in the furnace and they were walking around, unharmed. Nebuchadnezzar described the 4th person as a ‘son of the gods.’  An angel.  And this angel was walking around inside of the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, waiting until it was God’s time for the door to open so they could come out.

God protected them.  He sent an angel as a visible symbol of his care and concern for them.

God still sends angels today.  In our lives, angels most often take the form of another believer whom God sends to be a visible symbol of his love and care for us.  The Holy Spirit lives inside of every believer.  As a result, when we do his will, our hands become his hands.  Our words become messages from God.

Or sometimes God still sends angels from heaven.  Maybe you’ve met one?  And maybe you’ve met one but you didn’t know it.

And there are other times when we may be physically alone but God’s spirit within us makes us very aware than we are not spiritually alone.

God is very alive within us.

And he walks with us through the fire…

through the pain…

through the uncertainty.

Great is your faithfulness, Abba Father!

Our God is Able

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

“Our God is able to deliver us.” Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego told King Nebuchadnezzar as they faced being thrown in the fiery furnace, “But even if he does not, we want you to know, your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel  3: 17&18. )Sept 4 2015 our God is able

God is telling us today as we read this that he able to deliver us from any fiery furnace we are facing.  It was true for Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and it is true now.  Our God does not change.  He will not change.

Every time I read this story,  I am struck by the words ‘But even if he does not’.  It’s one thing to put your life on the line if you don’t think you are going to die from it.

‘Even if he does not’ meant that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were totally trusting God with their lives and their deaths.  Either way, they were good.  They were committed.

They were willing to die rather than to be unfaithful to God.

Is our faith that strong?

Help us to grow our faith, Abba Father.

No More Dry Bones

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

You have breathed life into us, dear Father.Sept 2 2015 no more dry bones

Your breath of love has filled our empty and hurting hearts.

Your breath of forgiveness has removed our burden of guilt and shame.

Your breath of redemption has given us a new hope…a new purpose.

You give us strength.  Your power lives in us through the gift of your Holy Spirit who guides us and speaks truth into our hearts and minds.

You have clothed us in new robes of righteousness which we did not earn.

You have released us from our slavery to sin.  We celebrate our freedom to gladly serve you!

You have given us joy.  You have given us peace.

Through you, we have been reborn!  Thank you, Abba Father!

We are no longer dry bones.

Think About It…..

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

Consider it…..

Give it careful thought.

This is the direction given by God to the Israelites about their priorities.  They had been very busy building nice houses for themselves and they had put off rebuilding God’s temple.Sept 26 2014 Think about it

The temple continued to lay in ruins while the Israelites went about their normal lives.

They were planting a lot but only harvesting a little.

They were eating, but they were never full.

They drank, but it was never enough.

They put on clothes, but they were never warm.

They were earning money, but it immediately disappeared into a purse full of holes.

God was telling them that he was withholding his blessings from them because their priorities weren’t right.

What about us?

Is it time to re-evaluate our priorities to make sure they are matching up to God’s?

Are we experiencing all of the blessings God has for us?

* Contentment because what God has already given us is enough?

* Fulfillment because we know we are busy completing God’s purpose for our lives?

* Peace because we have given God control over our lives and we’re trusting him?

* Joy because we are experiencing the love God has for us every day?

* Strength for each day and every situation because our lives are built on our Solid Rock?

God has these blessings along with a storehouse more, just waiting for us.

We thank you for your abundant blessings, dear Father!

 

Let’s Party!!

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

The Israelites were very good at celebrating.  They partied when they wanted to remember things, they partied when they wanted to forget other things and every accomplishment was worthy of a celebration.Sept 23 2014 Let's Party

In Ezra 3, we read of them getting out their trumpets and shouting their praise to the Lord as they finished the foundation of the new Temple of God.

Sunday morning worship often feels like a celebration to me.  It sometimes can feel like quite a big accomplishment to get through another week of pushing back against the darkness and lies of our culture.  Spending time with my church family reminds me that there are other people who also love God and other people on this journey of faith with me.  I’m not alone.

Living a life faithful to God yet in the trenches of our society can feel like a never-ending battle.  What a privilege it is for us, as believers of God, to gather together.  We get out our trumpets, guitars and pianos so we can sing and shout praises to our God.

We celebrate the fact that God has already won the war!

And he will give us victory each day as we ask, listen and obey.

Thank you, dear Father!

Amazing!

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

God moved in the heart of Cyrus, the pagan King of Persia, to set the Israelites free from captivity and exile.  King Cyrus also paid for the rebuilding of the Temple of God in Jerusalem.Sept 23 2014 Amazing

Amazing!

God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven, right?!

Nothing is impossible with God!  He can make anything happen!

If God can move a pagan king’s heart to this extent, how much more can he move and grow the heart of someone who really loves him?  Someone who wants to show him how much they love him?

Someone like me?

Someone like you?

Dear Father God, We love you!  We love your Word to us!  We love this journey towards the Truth that we are all on together!  We want to know your Truth – please open our minds, Lord.  And move in our hearts so that our obedience is also amazing so that others will believe.  In the redeeming name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

 

 

They Couldn’t Do It!

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

They tried to find something to charge Daniel with but they couldn’t do it.  They found him to be trustworthy, without corruption or negligence.Sept 22 2014 They couldn't do it

This reminds me of the prayer Jesus prayed for us.  In the garden, he prayed for ‘those who would believe’ because of the disciple’s obedience in spreading the Good news.  That’s us! He prayed that we would live in unity with him and with each other.

Jesus prayed that the world would look at us and then be able to believe in him.  He knew we weren’t going to be perfect.  But he also knew that, after his sacrifice on the cross, we were going to be redeemed.

And there should be obvious proof of that redemption in our lives.

We have been forgiven and now we can forgive others.

Our Father God lavishes his love on us and now we can love others.

We have been richly blessed and now we can bless others.

Yes, we are redeemed!

And the people around us should be able to tell it because we forgive, we bless and we love.

Thank you, dear Jesus.

The Writing On the Wall

On By Judy GlasserIn SeptemberLeave a comment

Have you ever heard someone use this phrase?  Or have you used it?

I will often use it when I’m talking about a situation where what’s coming next is pretty obvious.  I can see the handwriting on the wall.

Several years ago I discovered that this phrase comes from book of Daniel.Sept 21 2014 The writing on the wall

King Belshazzar was having a party with all of his friends.  He ordered his slaves to take out the gold goblets that his armies had taken from the Temple of God when the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem.  Then everyone at the party used the goblets to drink their wine.

Suddenly, the fingers of a hand appeared and wrote on the wall near the king.  The king turned pale and was scared.

But the king couldn’t understand what the message said and neither could any of his enchanters, astrologers or diviners.

The queen finally remembered that Daniel had interpreted these kinds of things before so they called for him.  When Daniel arrived, he bravely told the king that the writing said that God had judged how he was ruling the people as king and found him not acceptable. He had learned nothing from his father – Nebuchadnezzar – who had constant issues until he acknowledged the most High God, who is sovereign over all.  King Belshazzar’s misuse of the temple goblets was the last straw.   So God was bringing the king’s reign to an end.

And King Belshazzar died that night.

What handwriting on the wall do we see for us through this story?  We don’t need an interpreter to understand that God expects us to learn from others’ experience.  In the first chapter of James, God offers to give wisdom to everyone who asks.  He expects us to use this wisdom so we don’t have to make the same mistakes as others have made.  He wants us to learn from their mistakes.

God expected this from King Belshazzar and he expects it from us.

Please give us your wisdom, dear Father.