Category: Uncategorized

It’s Time

On By Judy GlasserIn October, UncategorizedLeave a comment

“For such a time as this”.  God challenges me with these words as I read the story of Esther in the Bible.

Now.  My next step.  Today.

Esther’s story is a very good example to me of how God orchestrates opportunities and invites me to be a part of what he is already doing.  Queen Esther faced the possibility of being killed if she stood up for her people, the Jews.  Mordecai, her uncle, told her, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (vs 4:14)  So Esther asked all of the Jews to pray and fast with her for three days before going to the king.  God gave her the wisdom and courage to risk her life and save her people.

For such a time as this.

I would be missing an important point if I thought this is the only opportunity God ever gave Esther.  There were many more, this is just the one he told us about because it’s a significant example of how he worked to complete his will through her.

And how he wants to complete his will through me.

And through you.

Today.

For such a time as this.

Today I will be given opportunities to partner with God in what he is accomplishing in this world.  He has made it clear to me that this blog is one of my assignments.  So I continue reading the Bible every year, listening to him and sharing with you what he has said to me.  And I’ll do that until he tells me to stop.

I encourage you to read the Bible yourself because God may have different things to tell you.  Before you start, ask God to open your eyes and heart to what he has to say to you.  Then listen as you read and stop when something interests you.  Meditate on that scripture to determine how that applies to your life.  Is God telling you to do something, say something, or change something?  You will see God move in your life when you obey.

There is a reason I’m still breathing today.

There’s a reason you’re still breathing.

For such a time as this.

Open our eyes, Abba Father.

It’s Time

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

“For such a time as this”.  God challenges me with these words as I read the story of Esther in the Bible.

Now.  My next step.  Today.

Esther’s story is a very good example to me of how God orchestrates opportunities and invites me to be a part of what he is already doing.  Queen Esther faced the possibility of being killed if she stood up for her people, the Jews.  Mordecai, her uncle, told her, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (vs 4:14)  So Esther asked all of the Jews to pray and fast with her for three days before going to the king.  God gave her the wisdom and courage to risk her life and save her people.

For such a time as this.

I would be missing an important point if I thought this is the only opportunity God ever gave Esther.  There were many more, this is just the one he told us about because it’s a significant example of how he worked to complete his will through her.

And how he works to complete his will through me.

And through you.

Today.

For such a time as this.

Today I will be given opportunities to partner with God in what he is accomplishing in this world.  He has made it clear to me that this blog is one of my assignments.  So I continue reading the Bible every year, listening to him and sharing with you what he says to me.  And I’ll do that until he tells me to stop.

I encourage you to read the Bible yourself because God may have different things to tell you.  Before you start, ask God to open your eyes and heart to what he has to say to you.  Then listen as you read and stop when something interests you.  Meditate on that scripture to determine how that applies to your life.  Is God telling you to do something, say something, or change something?  You will see God move in your life when you obey.

There is a reason I’m still breathing today.

There’s a reason you’re still breathing.

For such a time as this.

Open our eyes, Abba Father.

He Always Says Yes

On By Judy GlasserIn Uncategorized2 Comments

Did you know that there are some prayers that God always says ‘Yes” to?

John tells us in 1 John 5:14-17, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that is we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of him.”

When we ask for what he wants to give us, his answer is always ‘yes’. This is so great!

Maybe you’re wondering if this is a trick question – how do we know what God wants to give us? 

His Word has many promises of things he wants to give us. In the first chapter of James, God promises to give us wisdom whenever we ask for it. Not just a little wisdom, either. God specifically states that he will give us a generous amount of wisdom. Get this – he also added, “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” James 1:6&7.

Claim it! Believe it! Don’t ask God for wisdom and then walk away saying you don’t know what to do. If you’re not sure, spend more time with God. Get closer to him so you can hear him more clearly. He is trying to give us wisdom but we need to listen and we need to believe and we need to look for confirmations. (Confirmations are what some people call coincidences). I’ve had many days when I asked God to guide me and then told him, “I am going to keep my eyes open for your direction all day today. I’m not going to be distracted. Today is all about watching for your answer as I go about my daily life.” And he answers. He moves. He creates ‘coincidences’ that tell me which way to go. Or there are times when these ‘coincidences’ let me know that its not the right time – yet.

God always says yes when we ask for more of the gift of the Spirit. ”But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.” Galatians 5:22 & 23. I will say a word of warning here – I found that my Perfect Father often put me in situations where I needed to practice being patient when I was praying for patience. Lines got longer. Traffic got slower. The food delivery in restaurants took forever. It makes sense. That’s how we grow these attributes in our lives – by practicing them. Don’t be surprised.

I think the best thing to pray for is that God does his will in my life. This prayer gets a big ‘yes’.  I’m not God, I don’t know what’s best for me. He does. I pray this for other people as well for the same reason – I’m not God, I don’t know what is best for them.

Don’t get me wrong, God tells us we can pray to him about anything and everything. “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” Ephesians 6: 18. We can follow King David’s example of talking to God when we’re mad, when we’re scared, when we’re happy, when we’re lost. Anytime. Everything.

The answer to those prayers just isn’t always ‘yes’.

There are more prayers that God always says ‘Yes’ to other than the three I pointed out in this blog. 

Why don’t you read the entire Bible with me next year and find out what they are?

Do You See It?

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

There’s a light.

When you are talking with a person who you know has a close relationship with God, can you see the light of Jesus shining out of them? I have a some people in my life that regularly shine His light in their lives. I see it, I feel it.

That’s one of my goals – to let the light of Jesus and the love of Jesus shine out of my life. Sometimes when I’m talking with someone who doesn’t believe in Jesus yet, I can see in their eyes that they are wondering what’s different about me. They are feeling something, seeing something that they don’t understand.

They are seeing the light.

Don’t get me wrong, the light and love of Jesus is not always shining out of my life. I have a ways to go on making this a daily reality. But – there are times when I get out of the way and let Jesus shine.

I am amazed as I read Daniel’s story about getting thrown into the lion’s den. Daniel did not obey the decree King Darius made regarding not praying to anyone or anything but the King for 30 days. Daniel prayed to the One True God, Maker of Heaven and Earth every day and refused to stop. King Darius was forced to throw Daniel into lion’s den. The King didn’t want to. He knew there was something special about Daniel. But the king had to keep his word and Daniel was thrown in. Darius was unable to sleep so he got up early the next morning and hurried to the lion’s den.

“When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, ‘Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, be able to rescue you from the lions?” Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! My God sent his angel and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me because I was found innocent in his sight.” Dan 6:19 – 22.

The king was overjoyed. He was also impressed with Daniel’s God. God’s light was shining out of Daniel and the king could see it. So the king send a decree to his entire kingdom telling his people to have fear and reverence for the God of Daniel.

“For he is the living God and he endures forever;

his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end.

He rescues and he saves; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth.

He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.” Daniel 6:25-27.

How awesome!

May your light shine out of us, Abba Father, so others may know you and praise your name.

It’s A Struggle

On By Judy GlasserIn Uncategorized4 Comments

I have been struggling with the grief of losing my son for over 7 years. Recently, I have gotten a new understanding of just how many of you are also struggling with grief and loss. You are travelling with me on this very tough journey of surviving the death of someone we were very close to.

In February I published a book on Amazon, “Then I Looked Up: Losing a Child, Finding His Legacy of Love.” This is the story of my son, David Glasser’s, death in the line of duty, his life and my search for hope as I figured out how to move forward after my life exploded.

Since publishing the book, I have received many messages from people who have read my story and they tell me how it helped them with their own struggle. These messages have come from all kinds of people, not just those who lost a child. I have heard from sisters, wives, brothers, husbands, children and everyone else out there who has been grieving the death of someone who left a big hole in their lives. I have heard from people who are experiencing grief over divorces. I have heard from people who are not struggling themselves with grief right now but reading the book has helped them understand family and friends who are.

It has opened my eyes to how many grieving people there are in my world who are dealing with these tough, painful emotions.

“Your book changed my life.” one of my neighbors told me when I saw her at our shared mailbox. “I was stuck in a deep, dark pit after losing my best friend and now I have started to move forward and enjoy my life again. I’m sending the book to a friend who really needs it.”

“God spoke to me through your story and it changed everything” another friend told me as she sat down next to me at Bingo. Her husband died last year and she couldn’t get past some of the ‘What if’s’ of the situation until she spent some time studying Job 14:5. “A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.”

” The truth in your book helped me answer some questions I had that made me get stuck in anger and bitterness, ” a sister of a fallen officer wrote. “Now I feel motivated to move forward and honor my brother’s life.”

” Your book helped me process my daughter’s death from over 20 years ago in a new way” said another friend. “I have a much more positive perspective now.”

And the comments, texts and emails continue to flow in.

What a blessing! I am extremely happy that sharing my story is helping other’s deal with their own broken hearts in a positive way. It gives purpose to my pain.

This is what I believe is happening – in the book I shared the truth that God has taught me about life and death and how different his perspective is from your’s and mine. I also told you my story which gave you ideas of how you can apply this truth to your situation.

When our lives are anchored on God’s truth, he can make all the difference.

One of my favorite comments is when people tell me they sent the book to a friend or family member. You are the people who know people who would benefit from reading this book. A lot of you are doing this!

Keep it up! I love it! It’s something positive we can do when we find ourselves in a “I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to say.” situation.

Meanwhile, we all continue the struggle – together.

Miss you, Davey.

Love you.

Can You See the Light?

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Do you see it?

When you are talking with a person who you know has a close relationship with God, can you see the light of Jesus shining out of them? I have a some people in my life that shine His light every day in their lives. I see it, I feel it every time I’m around them.

That’s one of my goals – to let the light of Jesus and the love of Jesus shine out of my life. Sometimes when I’m talking with someone who doesn’t believe in Jesus yet, I can see in their eyes that they are wondering what’s different about me. They are feeling something, seeing something that they don’t understand.

They are seeing the light.

Don’t get me wrong, the light and love of Jesus is not always shining out of my life. I have a ways to go on making this a daily reality. But – there are times when I get out of the way and let Jesus shine.

I am amazed as I read Daniel’s story about getting thrown into the lion’s den. Daniel did not obey the decree King Darius made regarding not praying to anyone or anything but the King for 30 days. Daniel prayed to the One True God, Maker of Heaven and Earth every day and refused to stop. King Darius was forced to throw Daniel into lion’s den. The King didn’t want to. He knew there was something special about Daniel. But the king had to keep his word and Daniel was thrown in. Darius was unable to sleep so he got up early the next morning and hurried to the lion’s den.

“When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, ‘Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, be able to rescue you from the lions?” Daniel answered, ” May the king live forever! My God sent his angel and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me because I was found innocent in his sight.” Dan 6:19 – 22.

The king was overjoyed. He was also impressed with Daniel’s God. God’s light was shining out of Daniel and the king could see it. So the king send a decree to his entire kingdom telling his people to have fear and reverence for the God of Daniel.

“For he is the living God and he endures forever;

his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end.

He rescues and he saves; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth.

He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.” Daniel 6:25-27.

How awesome!

May your light shine out of us, Abba Father, so others may know you and praise your name.

He Moves Me

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

This is my response as I read Ezekiel 36 –

I have been separated from the crowd and I am set apart.

God has sprinkled water on me, making me clean –

from my rebellion,

from my blindness to his truth,

from my sins.

He has given me a new heart and he has put a new spirit inside me.  He has removed my stubborn heart of stone and has given me a soft, open heart.

His spirit within me moves me to want to please him and accomplish the plans he has for me.  He has a purpose for me.

He is my God.  He has saved me from myself.

Thank you, Abba Father.

It’s Not a Waste

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Sometimes I feel like I’ve wasted a lot of time today – or last week – or last year.

How much time did I waste watching TV? How much time did I waste worrying about tomorrow? Worrying about things that never happened? How much time have I wasted looking at my phone or IPad?

What about you? How much time have you wasted lately?

But there is one place in my life where no time is wasted. I know this for fact – when I sit with my Bible open on my lap reading God’s word, studying God’s Word, and listening to God as he helps me figure out how to apply his word to my life, not one second is wasted.

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater; so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55: 10-11.

This is great news for all of us and especially ‘achievers’ like me. It is so awesome to know when God’s word goes into my mind, it achieves the purpose God has for it. Of course, I have freedom of choice so I have to choose to listen and I have to choose to obey.

It’s a huge confidence-builder for me to know that when I choose to open my eyes and heart to the word of God, he promises that he will accomplish his desires through me.

I can count on it.

I love knowing that I’m not wasting a second of my time when I spend it with God.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Don’t Forget

On By Judy GlasserIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Do you ever feel overwhelmed?

I do.

Do you worry?

I do.

Are there situations where your stomach knots up with dread of what could happen?

Mine does.

When I get these feelings, I have learned to go through a list in my mind of things I know to be true about God.

He is good – all the time.

He loves me with a perfect love.

He wants the best for me.

Nothing is impossible for God.

He is in the process of working all things out for my good.

As I focus on these truths, the knots start to disappear, the worry turns into confidence and I become overwhelmed with gratitude for my Father God.

Whatever it is – God’s got this.

Last week I ran into an antelope while driving through Wyoming. Scarey! It was my first time running into an animal that was taller than my car. I realized that God took care of it right away because the antelope bounced off and ran away and everyone in my car was fine. The car took a hit but it looked like it was safe to drive. We were at least an hour way from any cell service so I got back in the car and drove. And prayed that the tire under the crunched up fender didn’t blow apart. And prayed that there was nothing else wrong we couldn’t see. And prayed with confidence because I knew God had control of this whole situation. Whatever happened, he was going to be in the middle of it. I’m happy to say the next couple hundred miles went smoothly and we made it home safe. So glad God was out there in the middle of nowhere with us!

Since the beginning of time, God has been taking care of us, his people. Thousands of years ago, King Hezekiah understood this. As the huge Assyrian army approached, ready to attack Jerusalem, King Hezekiah prepared the city and said to his people, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the King of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a great power with us than with him. With him is only the the arm of flesh but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles. ” 2 Chronicles 32: 7.

God is saying this same thing to you and I today. If we have placed our faith in Jesus, God’s Spirit lives with us, giving us greater power than any mere human around us. The Holy Spirit gives me supernatural power to love, to forgive, to put aside fear, to understand God’s will and purpose for me, to live my life in step with God, and much more.

I just need to remember this –

every day.

Then I will see the power of the Living God working through my life.

Thank you, Abba Father.