Look at the Birds

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

It’s hard not to be anxious about our world today.  We have a list of huge issues which continue to grow around us – politics, the economy, mental illness, our education system – just to name a few.

Most of these things we can’t do anything about.  They are out of our control.

So we worry.

Jesus tells us today in Matthew 10 to look at the birds.  “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside of your Father’s care. And even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” verses 29-31.

Yes, I am more valuable.

So are you.

We are created in the image of God.  We are the best part of his creation.

I know God cares for me much more than the birds.  So what do I need to worry about? I’m leaving all of my fear and concerns at my Father’s feet.  He’s got this.

Look at the birds.

Why would my stomach get tied up in knots about politics and the election?  God’s in control.

Look at the birds.

God provides everything I need.  If I worry about the economy, this just indicates I need to grow my trust in God.

Look at the birds.

The only wise and logical response when I feel anxiousness growing about issues like the mental health crisis and all the other scary stuff going on is to pray about it and be confident that God is working all things out for the good of those who love him.  He promised – it’s true.

Look at the birds.

Jesus says to you and me today, “Can anyone of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (Matt 6:27)

No.  The answer is obvious.  Worrying and anxiety are a waste of time and energy.  Let’s use this time and energy loving God and loving people.  If you ever start to forget how much God cares for you –

Look at the birds.

Thank you, Abba Father.

My Fears

On By Judy GlasserIn November2 Comments

What am I afraid of?

What are you afraid of?

This world can be a very scary place with evil lurking around every corner.  The worst can happen in an instant –

I’ve been there.  It’s indescribably shocking and painful.

So it seems logical that you and I would be afraid….. until we read what Jesus says to his disciples in Matthew 8, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” vs 26.

Wow!  Jesus directly correlates the fact that they are afraid to how much faith they have.  He is saying the same thing to you and I today.  Through his Word, God is telling us that our fears mean we’re not trusting him.

After thinking about this for a while, I have accepted that this is very true for me.  When I am worried, I am not trusting God.  The amount of my fear is a clear indication of the lack of my faith because I know God is in control.  He has a plan and purpose.  There is nothing that happens to me that has not gone through his hands.

So what am I afraid of?

My worst fear – that something bad would happen to one of my children – has already come true for both of them.  My daughter got cancer and my son was a police officer who was killed in the line of duty 6 years ago.

What a huge waste of time and effort fear is!  It didn’t change anything that has happened to them or to me.

God has used these difficult experiences to teach me many things.  One of them is to lay my worries and fears at God’s feet and leave them there.  He is the only one who can do anything about them.  The question is not ‘if’ something bad is going to happen to me again, the question is ‘when’.  My faith in God’s goodness has grown to the point that I’m prepared for the next struggle, not fearful.

It’s a fact that God loves me and wants the best for me.  He is faithful to walk beside me when bad things happen, giving me strength and helping me grow my trust in him.

Jesus said it thousands of years ago and it’s still true today – fear comes from a lack of faith.

Not When We Expect It

On By Judy GlasserIn November3 Comments

I don’t understand.

While talking to the disciples about his departure from earth and his return in the future,  Jesus says, ” But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, only the Father” (Mark 13:32)

Jesus is admitting he doesn’t know when he’s coming back.

Jesus also tells us that we should always be ready for his return, “because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” (Matt 24:44)

Always be ready.

He will come back when we don’t expect him.

So why are so many people spending so much time and energy trying to drill down Revelations into a list of events so they can predict the second coming of Jesus?  I don’t get it.  Jesus said only the Father needed to know and he said we wouldn’t be expecting him when it happens.  Are we just ignoring these scriptures?

It’s obvious to me God has not made it clear when Jesus is coming back on purpose and he is telling us whatever prediction we make is going to be wrong.

I get it that we’d like to know when the end of the world is coming.  There were people in the New Testament that stopped working because they thought Jesus was coming back in their lifetime.  That was over 2000 years ago and it hasn’t happened yet.  And we’re still doing it today – predicting that it will happen in our lifetime.

I’ve decided  I need to be ready every day for Jesus’ return but my focus needs to remain on loving God and loving people.  That’s my purpose for still being here.  I have a responsibility to share the love and grace of God with those who haven’t put their faith in him yet.  I won’t be doing that if I’m spending my time trying to predict the end of the world.

I’m starting to think that all of this ‘end of the world’ stuff is just another strategy of the Evil One.  He’ll do anything to distract us from loving God and loving others.

Let’s not go there.

My eyes are on you, Father God.

What Do I Choose?

On By Judy GlasserIn October4 Comments

Do I choose to be healthy or unhealthy?

“Your eye is the lamp of your body.  When your eyes are healthy, your whole body is full of light.  But when they are unhealthy, your whole body is full of darkness.”  Jesus tells us this very important truth which affects our whole body in Luke 11:34.

Our eyes determine our emotional, mental and spiritual health.

What am I looking at?

What are you focusing on?

What am I watching – letting all of it go directly into my brain?

What am you reading?

Who are the people that you and I are surrounding ourselves with, giving them influence on our lives?  What behaviors and values do we see in them?  Are those the same values and behaviors we want in our lives?  I’m not judging them, I’m trying to make good choices about what my eyes regularly see – because it affects my whole body.

Do I want to live in the light?  Or in the darkness?

I choose.

You choose.

It all goes into our brain through our eyes.  Thoughts become attitudes and attitudes become actions.

Healthy or unhealthy – it’s our choice.

Please help us be very careful about what we let our eyes see, Abba Father.

Real Friends

On By Judy GlasserIn October4 Comments

I need real friends.

You need real friends.

Real friends are people who care about us, easily forgive us and want the best for us.  They are the people in our lives who cheer us on in the good times and listen well with extra tissues ready during the bad times.

I am fortunate enough to have several real friends in my life.

These friends love me enough to speak up if I’m getting off track.  They hold me accountable for behavior that is not good for me.  They subtly (and not so subtly) ask questions about my choices when my behavior is not going to help me reach the goals they know I want to achieve.  They love me enough to speak truth into my life at the right time.

These friends also have shared this journey of faith with me.  They have walked beside me as, together, we experience the transforming power of God in our lives.  They continue to encourage  me as God molds me into the person he created me to be and they celebrate with me when I find victory in my life through my relationship with God.

They help bring me to Jesus.

This is just like the four men who brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus in the second chapter of Mark.  Their friend couldn’t move, so his four friends carried him around on a mat.  They heard that this man, Jesus, was healing people – even paralyzed people – so they were determined to get their friend to Jesus.

You might think they would have been discouraged when they arrived and saw the huge crowd of people around the house that Jesus was in.  They didn’t care – this was their friend and this was going to happen….today…..right now.

So they carried their friend on his mat up to the top of the house and dug a hole in the roof right over Jesus’ head.  Then they lowered the mat down in front of Jesus.

Seeing the faith of his friends, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, ” Stand up, pick up your mat and go home.”

“And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat and walked through the stunned onlookers.”  (Mark 2: 11-12)

Jesus honored the faith of this man’s friends and healed him by the touch of his hand.

I know I have some friends who need to get to Jesus.

Do you?

Are we good enough friends to help them get close enough to be touched by our Savior?

Please help us be good friends, Abba Father.

One Very Important Sentence

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

This one sentence does a great job of summing up the Great News – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16.

If you wanted to memorize just one verse of the entire Bible, this would be it. 

God loved us so much that he sent his only son, Jesus Christ, to pay the price for all of our sins for all time on the cross.  Because of Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, those of us who put our faith in him can have an eternal relationship with God which starts here on earth and ends in heaven …. forever.

This is the most important news anyone can ever hear. 

People who are not Christ-followers don’t realize it, but they are looking for Jesus.  They might think they are looking for a better job, a better spouse or a better house, but they are really looking for Jesus.  We were all created with a God – shaped hole which only God can fill.  There will be an emptiness in our lives until we accept the salvation offered by Jesus, make him Lord of our lives and live in his Light.

I know this for a fact because I have felt that emptiness.

Have you?

The reality of this unfilled God-sized hole in people’s lives explains a lot of what you and I are seeing in our world right now.  People are looking for something and they aren’t finding it so there is anger, frustration, confusion and unrest.  Evil thrives in this kind of environment. 

Jesus is the only answer.

I cannot remember a time in my life when it was more important for those of us who have put our faith in Jesus to share our stories, share the Good News, share our trust in God and share that we know how this story is going to end.  Judging those who do not know Jesus is not the right response to what we see happening in our world. Jesus reminds us today that loving those who haven’t accepted the free gift of salvation yet is the right answer.

You and I can see the darkness that Satan is masterminding in our broken world.  Satan is winning some battles, but we have nothing to fear – God has already won the war.

Amen!  Hallelujah!

Am I Good Enough?

On By Judy GlasserIn October7 Comments

Being ‘good enough’ is not my goal.  Getting my act together is not my goal.  Checking all the boxes – keeping busy with ‘God’ stuff – is not my goal.

The historical account of Jesus’ baptism tells me what pleases God.

I do.

When I trusted in Jesus, made him Lord of my life and was redeemed by his sacrifice on the cross, I was adopted by God and became one of his precious daughters.  ‘Joint heirs with Jesus’ – as an old hymn describes it. 

What Jesus did for me makes me ‘good enough’.

While reading about Jesus’ baptism, I realize that Jesus hadn’t started his ministry yet.  He hadn’t DONE anything for God.  But God spoke from heaven saying, “This is my son whom I love: with him I am well pleased.” Luke 3:22.

Let’s take a moment to let that soak in, my brothers and sisters.  Jesus was God’s son and God was pleased with him – before his ministry began.  Before he did any miracles.  Before he did any teaching.

i-am-pleased

Accepting salvation through Jesus makes you and me children of God – and he is pleased with us.

Feel his smile shining down on you.

Feel his unconditional love.

Feel his forgiveness for any guilt that is weighing heavy on your shoulders.

Feel his peace flow over you in a supernatural way.

Feel his strength flow through you as he walks right beside you each day.

Let his joy fill your heart today.

Don’t DO anything.  Just feel the pleasure he has as he looks at you.  He sees himself in you.  We are all created in his image, yet each one of us reflects different aspects of him – making us all uniquely his.

I am important to God.  He has made me special.

You are very important to him.  He has made you special.

And he is pleased.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Watch It Happen

On By Judy GlasserIn October2 Comments

When I see something that needs to be done or fixed, my first inclination is to make a plan, figure it out and get it done.

Do you do this, too?

God regularly stops me as I’m starting my ‘fix-it” mode and reminds me there is a better way. He challenges me to bring the issue that is bothering me to him and let him take care of it. He promises that the outcome will be better if I let him take control.

So I have to smile as I read Zechariah’s story in the book of Luke.  Zechariah was a priest. He and his wife, Elizabeth, were old and childless when the angel of the LORD appeared to him.  Interesting things always happen when Gabriel shows up.

Zechariah was “gripped with fear” when he saw Gabriel.  Angels like Gabriel must be awesome creatures because the first thing they always say to us humans is, “Fear not”. Then Gabriel went on to tell Zechariah that he and Elizabeth were going to have a son who was going to do great things for God. They were to name this son John and he was going to prepare the way for the Messiah.

Immediately, Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this?” Luke 1:18. He and his wife were obviously way too old to have a baby.

Gabriel looked at Zechariah (my interpretation), rolled his eyes and, with a hint of frustration in his voice, said, “God, the all-powerful creator and sustainer of the universe, the Great I AM, the most Holy One, sent me to tell you this great news and you ask that silly question?  You need to stop talking and just watch God make it all happen just as he has said.”

Zechariah could not speak again until the baby was born.

I have learned that sometimes I need to stop asking questions, trust God and watch him work things out for my good right in front of my eyes – through his power and on his own timeline.  It can be very difficult for me to patiently wait for him to move but, when he does, it’s the right thing at the right time, every time.  It’s truly amazing to watch as God opens doors, moves mountains and orchestrates blessings in my life.  

This hasn’t been an easy lesson for me to learn. It takes a lot of trust to give problems, issues and situations to God and leave it all in his hands.

But – believe me – it’s worth it.

Thank you, Abba Father.

It’s Hard to Wait

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

When we want something to happen,

when it’s going to be good,

when today isn’t that great.

But we have to wait.  It’s hard.

The Old Testament ended on a high point of the Israelites turning back to God, listening to his Word and trying to obey.  Then came a 400-year break in God’s Word to us.

We know the Israelites continued on with their lives during that time.

They were waiting….

expecting the Messiah to show up.

How long were they going to have to wait?

I’m blogging through the Chronological Bible which means the Bible is re-organized so it resembles the actual timeline that things happened.  I just finished the Old Testament and now I’m moving on to the New Testament.

It’s October.  So 3/4 of the Bible is the Old Testament.  If three-quarters of what God wants to reveal to us is in the Old Testament, then I’m very glad I read and study the Old Testament every year.  After spending 3/4 of the year reading the Old Testament, I have a better understanding of how badly the world needed Jesus.  My anticipation of the coming Messiah rises as I read over and over again of the Israelites turning away from God, getting lost in idol worship, paying the consequences and repenting.  Then they get their spiritual act together – but just for a short time until they start wandering again.

Oh, how badly they needed a Savior!

It was hard to wait.

You and I live under the New Covenant with God.  The Messiah has come.  There is no more waiting.  Jesus was sent to earth to offer free salvation to everyone who would put their faith in him.  And it’s really clear right now that our culture needs saving just as badly as the Israelites did.

The last 1/4 of the Bible is so much easier to read than the Old Testament because Jesus’ love, grace, truth and light shines out of the New Testament.  Jesus is our role-model for how God wants us to live our lives here on earth.

A smile spreads across my face as I begin to read the New Testament for the 11th time.

No more waiting.   The Messiah has come.  This is the really good stuff.

Thank you, Jesus.

He Makes All the Difference

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

When ‘The Chosen’ series came out, I wasn’t sure I wanted to watch it because I usually don’t like the movie if I’ve read the book. And I’m reading this book – the Bible- for the 11th time.

So I started streaming it with critical eyes and my hand ready to turn it off if it was wrong and not representing my Father well. The first episode was about Mary who was possessed by many demons. I don’t know about you, but Satan turns my stomach. The Evil One is so real to me that it was very hard to watch Mary struggle with the demons on the screen. The characters in the show were trying to help her and I kept saying in my head with my stomach churning while watching this, “When is Jesus going to show up?”

I just finished reading the Old Testament in the Chronological Bible for the 11th time. It ended at a time that the Israelites had turned back to God and recommitted to following him. But the last 10 months of reading have been full of stories of people turning their back on God, disobeying him, and worshipping weird, worthless idols. The Old Testament ends with the faithful people saying, “When is the Messiah going to show up?”

Then I look up from my Bible and see the world around me. What a mess! Evil is revered and rampant. Important values are disappearing daily. Ignoring God and his truth is at an all time high – even in our churches. It would be easy to look around and say, “When is Jesus going to show up?”

The good news for us is that Jesus has already ‘showed up’. Over 2 thousand years ago he came to earth and sacrificed his life so we can have a personal relationship with God that starts here and continues on into eternity in heaven. After Jesus died for us and raised himself back to life before going back to heaven, he send his Spirit here to live inside all those who put their faith in him.

Jesus is here. His Spirit is alive here.

As I write that, I feel such a relief! Because when Jesus showed up for Mary in the “The Chosen”, he sent all the demons away and she transformed in a beautiful, happy woman who committed her life to serving Jesus. Jesus made all the difference.

Knowing Jesus is here gives me relief as I finish reading the Old Testament which is filled with stories of the Israelite’s lack of faith and hundreds of years of wavering commitment. When we choose to put our faith in him, his Spirit can help us remain faithful and committed. Jesus makes all the difference.

I even feel relieved when I look around at all the issues in our current culture. Jesus is here. He is in control. He gives me peace and love and fills my empty spaces in a world that is a ‘train wreck’.

Jesus makes all the difference today and every day.

Thank you for being here, Jesus.