So Confusing

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

 

Our culture is filled with confusion.  That’s my favorite word for it.Dec 23 2014 So confusing

Lies are everywhere and large groups of people believe these lies.

Sometimes I’ll be in the midst of a large number of people when something really wrong happens and, when I look around, I realize that no one else looks like they think this is bad.  If its sexual in nature, people snicker and laugh, just like they did in Junior High.  I often feel like our culture is stuck in Junior High when it comes to sex.

People are so confused.

Even Christians.   We get distracted.  We get off-target.  We are never going to be perfect this side of heaven so we’re all hypocrites at times.  We say we are Christians but sometimes do very not-Christ-like things.

Hebrews 3 tells us the key to avoiding getting lost in this confusion.

Fix our thoughts on Jesus.

Jesus is our perfect role-model.  He was never a hypocrite.  He was God made flesh.

I have found this key to be extremely helpful to me.  Because the behavior of Christians can be very disappointing.  The things they say.   The things they do.  If I’m looking to them as role-models, I’m going to see the hypocrisy and I will be confused.

When I look to Jesus as my role-model, I find that I have a lot more understanding and grace for Christians who are on the path of faith like I am.  Jesus loved the broken and lost and confused.  He spoke truth and love.

He is the example of what God created us to be….before sin got in the way.

When we fix our thoughts on Jesus, our thoughts are in the right place.

Thank you, dear Father, for our perfect role-model – Jesus.

Contentment

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

Being content.

It’s an attribute rarely seen in our culture.

Paul says in Philippians 4 that he has learned to be content in whatever circumstance he is in.

Contentment is definitely a ‘learned’ feeling – it doesn’t come naturally to many of us.  We are surrounded by a gigantic marketing industry which constantly barrages us with ‘bigger, better & more’ messages.  We just lived through the largest marketing push of the year.  It’s very clear that we all need a new car, a new computer and a new cell phone.  And we need it now :)!Davey, Grandma and me at Christmas

Learning contentment is one of my goals and my mother was a great role model for me.  She didn’t have much worldly wealth but she was rich in happiness as she lived her life in close relationship with God. (The picture is one of my favorites – my son’s first Christmas.  He’s 33 years-old now.)

As I work on learning contentment, I remind myself that God has given me everything I have.  This is my portion and I need to be a great steward of it.  That’s how I can honor and delight my Father God.

When my thoughts are filled with counting my blessings, I feel that I have more than enough.  I have been abundantly blessed and I am content.

Unfortunately, I don’t always stay in the Land of Contentment…..but I know how to get back to it.  When I find myself straying down the ‘bigger, better, more’ aisle, I know I need to spend more time 1 – on – 1 with my Abba Father so he can get my desires lined up again with his.

And – poof!  I’m back in the Land of Contentment!

It’s supernatural!

It’s God!

Thank you, dear Father!

Our New Self

On By Judy GlasserIn December2 Comments

 

We need to put on our new self……

become the person God created us to be – righteous and holy.Dec 15 2014 our new self

New attitudes.

Different behaviors.

Take off our old, selfish, sinful thoughts.

“Be made new’, Paul tells us in Ephesians 4.

In our minds.

In our hearts.

This is a life-long process for all of us.

We each has a lot of ‘old’ that needs to be put off and ‘new’ that needs to be etched in our mind so that we can be transformed.

So we stay on this journey towards God, putting off the old and putting on the new.

We let God renew our minds with the truth.

And we become more and more like Christ everyday, every month, every year.

That’s the goal.  As we race into January of a new year, lets commit to letting the Holy Spirit shift our transformation into turbo gear next year.  Out with the old – in with the new!  2015, here we come!

Please guide us, dear Father.

Sword Fighting Class – The Only Thing That Counts

On By Judy GlasserIn Sword Fighting ClassLeave a comment

‘Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  James 1- 1-9

‘If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.  But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord, he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

‘The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position.’

How are you doing in memorizing James 1?  When we ask God to help us write his word upon our hearts, its amazing what he can do!  We’re up to verse 10:

“But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower.”

Those of us blessed with significant earthly goods (which is most of us in the United States) need to understand our true position of sinful poverty in front of a holy and perfect God.

When we’re in that mindset, we know just how badly we need the free gift of grace that God offers us.  Our money, our possessions, our influence – they are nothing.  They pass away just like a wild flower.

Only God remains.  And our relationship with him.  For eternity.

Thank you, Abba Father.

 

As God’s Chosen People

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

In the Old Testament, the Israelites were God’s chosen people.  Under the New Covenant in the New Testament, the church is God’s chosen people.december 14 2014. God's chosen people.

Not the church building.  The people of the church.

We are the church.

And Paul gives us clear directions in Colossians about how we – as God’s chosen people – will act when we let the Spirit of Christ live out loud in our lives.

God’s chosen people –

– are clothed in compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

– bear with each other, forgiving each other as our Father has forgiven us.

– love one another in a way that provides perfect unity.

– let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts.

– wisely let the message of Christ inhabit our minds, our teaching and our praise.

We live a life defined by gratitude, giving thanks to our Father God.

So be it – Amen.

For Those Who Love Him

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

In Romans 6, God promises to work all things for the good of those who love him.

When people quote this verse, they often leave off those last 5 words.Dec 8 2014 for those who love him

This is God’s promise to believers, not unbelievers.  Those are very important words to include when we use this verse.

God goes on in this passage of Romans to tell us that he has called us, he has justified us, he has glorified us.

And he promises us as his children that he will work all things out for our good.

We can count on it!

Thank you, Abba Father!

 

Don’t Rely on Yourself

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

We just talked about this!  And here in the first chapter of 2 Corinthians, Paul tells us that his group was under great pressure – far beyond their ability to endure.  They thought they were going to die.  But Paul says this happened so that they would learn to rely on God, not on themselves.dec 4 2014 don't rely on ourselves

And then Paul reminds us something that was true for him and is true for us today.  God has always delivered us in the past and he will deliver us again.

Such a comforting truth!  I often remind myself of this reality in my life.  God has always been faithful in the past.  He will be faith now – in this situation I’m facing today.

It’s not in God’s character to drop the ball – to be too late or too early.  His plan unfolds at just the right time in the right way – if we let it.

We will face trials and situations that are far beyond our ability to endure on our own.

But nothing is impossible with God!

Amen!  Hallelujah!

There is a Purpose

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

I bet you can relate to this – when something bad happens in my life, I often wonder why this is happening?  What’s the purpose?  I have learned to get very close to God during these times and ride out the storm – not knowing why this had to happen to me.  Then 2 years, 5 years, 15 years later, someone walks into my life who needs to hear about that specific time in my life and how God helped me through it.

It happens all the time.dec 4 2014 a purpose

Paul tells us this is going to happen in 2 Corinthians 1.  We receive comfort from God in our troubles so that we can comfort others.

God has a purpose for everything that he permits to happen to us.  Everything flows through his hands into our lives.

As we learn to trust him more, we can be confident in the knowledge that God is in total control.

God’s got this.

We know God.  He loves us.  He has a plan for us.  He wants the best for us.

All is well.

Thank you, dear Father.

Sword Fighting Class – Perseverance has Rewards

On By Judy GlasserIn Sword Fighting Class2 Comments

 ”Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  James 1 1 -9

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without fault and it will be given to him.  But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That man should not believe that he will receive anything from the Lord, he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

Great job so far in memorizing James 1!  Verse 9 gives us an example:

‘The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position.”

He should take pride because he has persevered in his faith despite his lack of earthly possessions.

This man has let his trials grow him and help him be mature and complete.

He has asked for wisdom when he needed it.

He believed that he received it.  There were no doubts.

His faith helped him become a stable man focused on God.

A high position.

Please help us follow his example, dear Father.

Nothing in Vain

On By Judy GlasserIn December2 Comments

‘Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm.  Let nothing move you.  Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”December 3 2014 nothing in vain

This is one of my life verses.

Stand firm – grounded in the truth with my eyes focused on Jesus.

Not Moving – faithfully following Christ is the life I’ve chosen.  Nothing is going to change that.

Always give myself fully to the work of the Lord – it’s all about God.  Sometimes I still need to remind myself about that.  And the ‘work’ of the Lord is everything I do, not just what I do at the office.

Nothing I do for God is in vain.  This is my favorite part of this verse.

How much of our time is spent on worthless things?  Things that have no kingdom value?

A lot!  Too much!

But everything I do for God is valuable.  Everything I do in his name has meaning.  Nothing I do for God is a waste of my time.

Love it!

If we want our lives to have purpose and be worthwhile, we need to be all about God!

I’m smiling as I remember the day that I realized I had become a ‘Jesus freak’ 🙂  It  kind of shocked me because the words bring to my mind an image of a hippy looking person driving around in a VW Van with flowers painted on it.

Not me.

But totally sold out to Jesus is me.  So I’m proud to be a Jesus freak 🙂