Tag: Bible

Sword Fighting Class- Nothing Compares

On By Judy GlasserIn Sword Fighting ClassLeave a comment

We are memorizing Proverbs 3 together.  Yes, it’s a long chapter.  But that’s ok, we have this discipline of memorizing scripture going in our lives and we’re not going to stop.  So we have time 🙂Proverbs 2 -13-3-11

“My child, do not forget my teachings but keep my commands in your heart for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you, bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the site of God and man.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.Proverbs 3 to verse 25

Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruit of all your crops. Then your barns will be filled to overflowing and your vats will brim over with new wine. My child, do not despise the Lords discipline and do no resent his rebuke because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father, the daughter he delights in.

Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, who gains understanding. For she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. ”

Such awesome wisdom from God!  As we soak in your word, dear Father, please change us, renew us, make us wise.

“Nothing you desire compares with her. Long life is in her right hand, in her left hand are riches and honor.”

Nothing we desire compares to having wisdom.

And we get it for free from God who gives generously to all who ask .

This is the nugget of truth that just keeps repeating within God’s word.

Over and over.

And we’re soaking this in as we memorize his word.

We’re asking for your wisdom, Father.

We only want a long life if it’s lived well with you at the center.

We only want riches and honor if they are the right ones for us because they come from you.

You have promised in James 1 that you generously give wisdom to us when we ask.  But when we ask, we must believe and not doubt.  We believe it, please help us live it out.

In the precious name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Audio file:

Set Free

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

” Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31.

Set free to love.November 5 2015 set free

Set free to live with purpose.

Set free because we know how this story ends.

Jesus is the Truth.

When we know the Truth, he sets us free.

Free from the lies.

Free from brokenness.

Free from emptiness.

Free from hopelessness.

We are free when we live in the truth of God the Father.

And he has written it out for us in his Word.

This is the truth he wants us to know and to meditate on and soak in.

His word is his revelation of himself to us.

So we can know him.

Because when we know him, we can hear him.

When we hear him, he can help us navigate through the land mines around us.

He can help us walk the good and straight paths that keep us close to him.

Because he loves us and desires a relationship with us.

“For God so loved the world.”

Thank you, Abba Father.

The Wind Was Against Them

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

Sometimes it feels like everything is going against us, doesn’t it?

Our kids get sick.

Then the car breaks down.

Our boss starts driving us crazy.

And our bank balance gets down to a single digit.

We worry.

We struggle.

We stress.

We forget.

We forget that we have the Spirit of the Lord of the Universe living inside of us.  He has the power to handle all of our problems.  When we turn to him, he can help us stop worrying, stop struggling and stop stressing.gdtDSC_0639

This truth became more real to me last year when I had the chance to visit the Sea of Galilee.  As we sailed through the water, I thought about the stormy night when the disciples were straining at the oars of their boat while the winds of a storm battled against them.  I could visualize Jesus walking out to the boat.

The reality of the power of Jesus became even more evident to me that day.  Jesus really is in control of everything.  He really does command the sea and the winds and everything around me.gdtDSC_0632

I have nothing to fear.

I have nothing to worry about.

There is no wind blowing against me that he does not control.

And he loves me enough to sacrifice himself for me.

That says it all.

I just need to believe and obey.

Thank you, dear Jesus.

So Much More

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

They were looking for an earthly king.

With armies and chariots.Oct 30 2015 king of kings

With palaces and thrones.

With lots of banquets and women.

Instead of an earthly king, God sent the King of all Kings.

This King of Kings had no use for earthly palaces or thrones.  His place was at the right hand of his father in heaven so he didn’t even need a foxhole on earth.

He had no use for banquets or women.  All of his needs were met by his father.  The responsibility of the eternal future of all people was laid upon him.  He had much more important things to do with his time….

like touching a young boy bringing him back to life.

like speaking a word so a blind man could see, a deaf man could hear, and a sick woman would be healed.

He had armies of angels at his command.

He controlled the sun and the wind and the sea.  The storms calmed with one word from this King.

The people were expecting an earthly king,

but God send so much more.

His own son….

to save us,

to redeem us,

to love us.

Thank you, Abba Father.

 

 

Where is my Healing Place?

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

Physically.

Emotionally.

Spiritually.

We all need healing of some type.

And where do we go for that healing?

A large number of people during Jesus’ lifetime went to a pool called Bethesda in Jerusalem.

I had the chance to spend some time at this pool last year when I visited Jerusalem. It’s no longer a pool but the exterior is still there along with some remains of the colonnades around it which are mentioned in the Bible.fDSC_0489

It is beautiful.  A feeling of peace and healing are still there.  It was a quiet and calm oasis in the middle of tension-filled Jerusalem.

Where is our pool at Bethesda today?

Where we do find peace and healing?

The answer is always Jesus.  He tells us to come to him when we are weak and broken and lost.  He will give us rest and wholeness and a place to belong.

I have discovered that my healing place is right where I am now – in a quiet spot with my Bible open on my lap.  As I listen and read and think and discuss things with God, he once again sets my feet on solid ground.  He opens my eyes to the truth while he covers me with his love and grace.fDSC_0490

Two weeks ago I spent a cloudy day on the beach in San Diego with my Bible open on my lap – that was a healing place.

A couple of months ago I spent a day alone up in the mountains with my Bible on my lap.  That was a healing place.

Where is your healing place?

If you haven’t found it, why are you still looking?

You are our healing place, Abba Father.

No Doubts

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

Satan and his team had no doubts about who Jesus was when he walked on the earth.

They knew exactly who he was.Oct 24b 2015 No doubts

In Mark 1, the evil spirit said to Jesus, “I know who you are  – the Holy One of God.” ( vs 24).

Why were so many other people blind to the true identity of Jesus?  Satan’s army proclaimed it but people still didn’t get it.

Unfortunately,  we can still be extremely blind to the presence of Jesus and his Holy Spirit in our lives today.

Jesus is alive.

His Spirit lives within all believers.

This is the same power that brought Lazarus back to life!

In us.

Today.

Dear Jesus, we know you are the Holy One of God.  Thank you for filling our lives with your power and love and peace.  Amen. Hallelujah!

 

Freedom!

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

The Spirit of the Lord was upon him.

God had annointed him to share the Good News of salvation with the poor.  Those who are poor because they lacked resources. And to those who are poor because they lack the truth.  They lack meaning in their lives.Oct 24 2015 freedom

God sent Jesus to set the prisoners free!

We were all slaves to sin.

We were all stuck in the bondage of hopelessnes and darkness.

Until Jesus came.

Until he opened our blind eyes.

Until he lifted the oppression of sin from us, delivering us and giving us a life filled with love and grace.

Today we proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor!

We proclaim a lifetime of the Lord’s favor!

Jesus came.

Jesus loved.

Jesus saved us!

And his spirit lives within all believers today!

Amen!  Hallelujah!

Well Pleased

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

Jesus was just getting ready to start his ministry.

He hadn’t done any miracles yet.Oct 22 2015 Well pleased

He hadn’t talked about what he was going to do on earth.

He hadn’t shared any good news of love and forgiveness yet.

That didn’t matter.

When John baptized Jeus, the heaven opened up and God’s voice from heaven said, “This is my Son whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” ( Matthew 3:17)

Jesus was God’s son and God was pleased with him!

Jesus hadn’t ‘done’ anything yet.

He was God’s son and God was pleased with him.

Let’s rest on that fact for a moment…..

take a deep breath……

and feel the love of God pouring over us……..

hear the voice of God in our souls saying, “This is my child whom I love.  In them, I am well pleased.”

It’s not about what we’re doing for God.

Its about his love for us.

When we accept the salvation offered by Jesus, we are adopted by God.

He loves us not because of what we do for him.  He loves us in spite of our sin and rebellion and disobedience.

For God so loved the world.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Sword Fighting Class – Wisdom and Understanding

On By Judy GlasserIn Sword Fighting ClassLeave a comment

It still amazes me how God helps us memorize big sections of his scripture when we do our part!  Here’s where we are in Proverbs 3:

“My child, do not forget my teachings but keep my commands in your heart for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you, bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the site of God and man. Proverbs 2 -13-3-11

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruit of all your crops. Then your barns will be filled to overflowing and your vats will brim over with new wine. My child, do not despise the Lords discipline and do no resent his rebuke because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father, the daughter he delights in.”

Thank you, God, for helping us to memorize all of this!  Here are the next verses:Proverbs 3 to verse 25

‘Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, who gains understanding. For she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. ‘

God’s ways are definitely not our ways.  His thoughts are not our thoughts.  In the world we live in, it looks like success = a lot of money.

Not so – says God.  Having Godly wisdom and understanding is much more profitable.  It will yield better returns in our lives than gold.

In theory, this makes sense to us.  Living it out is not as easy.

This is one of the reasons why I am loving this process of memorizing whole chunks of God’s word.  God is using his scripture to transform some of these deep-bedded ideas and thoughts in my mind.  He is replacing that wrong-thinking with his truth as I repeat his words out loud and in my head over and over and over each day.

Which is why he commands us to memorize his word. 🙂

We understand now, Abba Father.

Here is my audio file of Proverbs 3: 1-16:

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Great Joy!

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

The angels had such good news to tell the world on the night Baby Jesus was born!

They told the shepherds to not be afraid – their news as going to create great joy for all people.Oct 20 2015 great joy

Great Joy!

For all people!

For all time!

The shepherds found Baby Jesus in the stable right where the angels said he would be.  And they praised God!

Simeon realized that his wait for a Messiah was over when he saw the Baby Jesus in the temple.  And he praised God!

Anna also recognized the Baby Jesus as the one who would redeem Jerusalem.  And she praised God!

We have great joy today because the Baby Jesus was born!

The Messiah!

He came to save all of us from our sin!

He brought peace into our world of chaos and anger.

He brought grace so he could replace our guilt and shame with his love.

He brought wholeness for our broken and empty souls.

He brought light into our dark and lost lives!

Today we join with the shepherds and Simeon and Anna in praising God for sending his son for us!

Thank you, Abba Father, for such Great Joy!