Tag: God

The Light of the World

On By Judy GlasserIn FebruaryLeave a comment

Secret Arts.

Those are the words used in Exodus 7 to explain how the Pharaoh’s magicians did the same ‘tricks’ as God did through Moses.

Do you know who the power is behind these ‘secret arts’?  Satan.  And he doesn’t like the fact that I’m pointing him out today.  He loves to lurk in the shadows, creating havoc while speaking lies into our minds.

The battle of good versus evil has raged across our planet ever since the Garden of Eden.  Most of the activity is in the spiritual realm.  This altercation between Satan and God is unusual because it was very visible on earth.

It started when Aaron, Moses’ brother, threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and it became a snake.  With Satan’s help, Pharaoh’s magicians did the same thing with their staffs.

But here’s a twist – Aaron’s snake swallowed up the other snakes.  In the writing world, we would call this foreshadowing – this is how the whole battle is going to go.  God is all-powerful, Satan is not.

Even after his snakes are eaten right in front of him, Pharaoh remained stubborn and unmoved.  No surprise there – that’s who he was.

Next, God changed the Nile into blood. (Yuck!)  But then Pharaoh’s magicians did the same thing – again with Satan’s help.

Of course, Pharaoh’s heart remained hard and stubborn.

So God sent a plague of frogs which covered the ground as well as the insides of their houses.  Once again, Satan helped Pharaoh’s magicians do the same thing.

Pharaoh’s stubborn refusal to let the Israelites go continued, so God sent a plague of gnats.  But – get this.  Pharaoh’s magicians were unable to produce gnats.

What happened, Satan?  Run out of steam?

Or did the Creator of the Universe get tired of playing your games and shut you down?

Suddenly, Satan no longer replies but we read the deadly result of his continued whispers into Pharaoh’s ear.  Pharaoh’s heart becomes more and more stubborn so God ups his response with the next plague of flies.

Do you notice?  Now the plagues start to only affect the Egyptians, not God’s people.  The 9th plague of darkness is truly amazing to me.  The land was in total darkness – they couldn’t see their hands in front of their faces – except God’s people.  The light still shone down on the people of Israel.

I feel that is true today.  Our world can be such a dark and confusing place – full of disappointment and heartbreak.  Only God brings true light into the darkness.

We can fool ourselves into thinking that money or recognition or a relationship with the right person brings light.  But all of those will eventually feel empty – ‘is this all there is?’ – without God.

Have we figured this out yet?  Our lives will be ‘plagued’ by darkness until we put God in the center.

Thank you for being the Light of the World, Jesus.

What’s in My Hand?

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

Sometimes I don’t feel like I have the right skills or experience or knowledge to do what God is asking me to do.  That’s how Moses felt when God told him to go back to Egypt to free his people from slavery.

“What if they do not believe me or listen to me..?”  Exodus 4:1.   I can hear the worry and concern in Moses’ voice, can’t you?

And then God asked Moses to look at what he already had in his hand and use that to do what God was asking him to do.  Moses was holding his staff in his hand.  As the story of the Exodus unfolds we will read of Moses regularly using his staff in order to do what God is asking him to do.

Applying this to my life, I need to consider what I already have and figure out how to use it to serve God.  What is God asking me to do and what has he already given me in order to accomplish it?  I have a car.  I have a house with chairs.  I have leadership and writing skills.  If I turn off the TV, close down my computer, lay down my phone, and adjust my priorities, I also have time.

When God asked me to start writing this blog, I was already writing a different blog.  So I had everything in my hands to do what he wanted me to do except for time.   I had to take a couple of things out of my already packed schedule to fit in the new blog but God blessed my efforts.  Here I am, 16 years later, still reading through the entire Bible every year and sharing the journey with you in this blog.

I have learned that it’s important to remember when God tells me he wants me to do something that I’m not doing it alone.  God with his supernatural power is working with me – making the impossible possible.  When I focus on what I can do, God takes care of the rest.

The questions God has for you and I today are – what is he asking us to do and what can we use that is already in our hands to do it.

What’s Next?

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

So many decisions…

sometimes its hard to figure out my next steps.

A lot of options.

burning-bush

Why can’t I get a burning bush like God gave Moses?  It was big.  It was dramatic. Moses couldn’t miss it.  If I got one of those, it would be so much easier to listen and follow, right?

In my life, God gives me what I would call burning plants. They are a lot smaller than a bush and much less impressive but when I’m reading God’s word, praying and listening, God will set fire to the next small plant in my mind- lighting the way to my next decision – and then my next.

Here’s how it works – I’m regularly reading God’s word and listening to how he wants me to apply it to my life.  I pray – expecting God to move and answer but keeping my mind open knowing that God can answer in a way that’s much different from how I think he will answer.

I watch.

And he lines up my circumstances, one step at a time. When I see what many people call a coincidence, I call it a God-incidence. It’s evidence that God is moving, answering my prayers. If we pay attention, we can see how he’s guiding us and understand what he’s showing us.

He will also add confirmations along the way. Godly people around me will say something that reinforces the direction indicated by a recent burning plant.  And it’s not unusual for my pastor on Sunday to say something that confirms my next decision.

I recently had a pressing situation that I was praying about and, in the middle of the night, God woke me up. He reminded me of an option that was available to me which I had totally forgotten about. It gave me a clear answer to my question and my next step was obvious. I was watching and waiting for God to show me the way and he did!

When God knows I am watching and listening, he can work through all of these things to make my decision clear to me. I have found that I don’t need a big, dramatic burning bush if I’m paying attention.  My small burning plants work just fine.

Thank you for your guidance, Abba Father.

When Bad Things Happen….

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

to good people.

It’s hard to understand.

In the past, I used to ask ‘why’?  Do you ask ‘why’?

Then I read about Joseph’s trials in Genesis and the answer is pretty clear.  A long list of bad things happened to Joseph and God brought something good from them all.  Joseph’s faith and wisdom grew as he trusted God with through each trial.

I don’t believe that God caused all of these negative things to happen to Joseph.  I don’t believe God causes all the struggles that happen to you and me.  Some of them happen because we live in a broken world where we all sin, we all make bad choices.  We pay the consequences for our sins as well as other people’s sins.  And Satan is working relentlessly to entice people to sin.  He is creating a lot of our trials.  I don’t understand why some people get mad at God when bad things happen – they should get mad at Satan who is doing the dirty work.

Yes, God is in total control so he could stop all sinning and consequences from happening.  But he has gifted us with free will so we can choose to love him and obey him.  Unfortunately, too often our choice is to rebel and do what we want to do. There are consequences for those bad choices. When we, as believers, get to where we’re going (heaven) we will no longer sin and there will be no more negative consequences.

you-intended-to-harm-me

Here on earth – where God is with all believers like he was with Joseph – he can use these consequences so that something good comes from them.

This truth makes the account of Joseph’s life very important to me.

His brothers sold him into slavery but – wait.

Then he’s put in charge of the top Egyptian official’s house.

The official’s wife lied to get Joseph in trouble and Joseph is thrown in jail.

But – wait.  God was with him and he was put in charge of the prison.  Joseph helped the Butler and Baker get out of prison – good news for the Butler because he got his old job back, bad news for the Baker who was killed.  The Butler promised to help Joseph get out of jail but he forgot. Two years (2 years!) later, Pharaoh had a dream and the Butler remembered Joseph who was called out of prison to interpret it.

Pharaoh was so impressed that he made Joseph 2d in command, right under himself.  From that position, Joseph was responsible for saving the lives of a whole nation.  A serious famine was coming and God spoke a warning through Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream.

God was with Joseph through all of the bad things that happened to him, making sure that he ended up exactly where he needed to be in order to fulfill his destiny.

Joseph also saved the lives of his brothers who had sold him into slavery.  This indicates the level of maturity and faith Joseph had acquired through his trials.  Joseph told his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. ” Genesis 50:20.  Joseph could never have predicted the part he was going to play in the huge famine that was coming.  God knew. And he was with Joseph every step of the way.

Joseph’s story encourages me as I watch God bring good out of the tragic death of my son, David Glasser, who was a Phoenix Police Officer killed in the line of duty.  And God has been with me every day as I learn to live with the grief and pain of losing a child.

God wants to walk through your trials with you, too – if you will let him.  He wants to bring good out of the trials you go through – if you let him.

I Have a Limp

On By Judy GlasserIn January2 Comments

Why is life so hard?  Why do bad things happen to me?  Why have I been bombarded by tough stuff?

I have wrestled with God often about the death of my son, David Glasser, a Phoenix Police officer, who was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016.  That’s the day my world exploded…….and then crumbled.  I had so many questions.  So much grief.  So many tears.

I did a lot of talking and questioning and struggling with God as my mind and heart gradually came to terms with the huge hole in my life.

I don’t think this wrestling is unusual.  In fact, as I read in Genesis 32 of God’s Word about Jacob wrestling with God over 4000 years ago, I can relate.  They physically wrestled all night.  God and I have gone many mental rounds over these last 9 1/2 years.

Have you ever wrestled with God in your mind all night?  Thoughts swirling.  Stuck in frustration.  Questions flying around.  Emotions rolling.  Tears flowing.

When the sun rose for Jacob in the morning, God changed Jacob’s name to Israel “because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”  Genesis 32:28b.

Then God blessed Israel (Jacob).  God also wrenched Israel’s hip out of its socket while they were wrestling and Israel limped the rest of his life – evidence of his successful wrestling with God.

Like Israel, God has blessed me and given me answers and peace as a result of our wrestling matches.  I have learned more about how much he loves me these years since Davey was killed than I knew all of my earlier years on this planet.  I have rebuilt my life on the facts that God is good, he is always right, nothing is impossible for him and he is working everything out for my good.  I have learned to filter everything that happens to me in this world through these facts.  This has changed my perspective and significantly increased my level of trust in him.

God has also changed one of the names I go by – now I am a ‘Survivor’.  I  have a ‘limp’ – evidence in my life that I have successfully wrestled with God.  With God walking beside me, I have overcome my questions and frustrations.

God has helped me experience his love and faithfulness in the deepest part of my soul.  I may not understand it all but I trust him with it all.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Deception

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

Saying things that aren’t true in order to get what we want.

Changing the facts a little to avoid dealing with the consequences for choices we have made.

Making a situation look and sound like something it’s not in order to get our way.

Lies and trickery.  This all sounds pretty bad when it’s listed out like this.  None of us really do any of this – do we?  Are we tempted?

I have a strategic mind which means all of the dots in my life connect.  I can see how each choice and decision connect to each other and where they are going to take me.  I can see how I got here and I can tell you where the dots are going.  It’s almost like being able to tell the future.

I am aware that not everyone’s brain works like this and, if I wanted to, I could use this to manipulate others into doing what I want them to do.  Lies. Deception.  I don’t want to be a manipulator so I’ve worked hard at not using this strength to ‘trick’ anyone.

I don’t want people around me to feel like they’ve been manipulated into doing what I want.

When I read Abraham and Sarah’s story in Genesis, I definitely don’t want to leave a legacy of deception and trickery to my family and friends like they did.  Abraham lied about Sarah being his wife.  Sarah manipulated Abraham into having a son with her servant and then she decided both of them needed to leave.  Their children and grandchildren continued this tradition of trickery as they lied to and tricked each other over hundreds of years for personal gain.

As we read through Genesis, we’re able to see all the pain and separation and distrust and suspicion that this legacy caused …….. from generation to generation.

I don’t want that in my family and relationships.  So I try to be honest and truthful – even when it’s hard.

What about you?

Tunnel Vision

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

I’ve had it.  Have you?

I think it happens to all of us at times – especially when our emotions are running high.  That’s when I see only what I want to see.  I notice only what I’m expecting, not what is actually happening.  When my perception clouds the facts, I can go down a path of thinking that is not right, it is not helpful, and it is not true.

If I don’t realize what I’m doing, I can go to a dangerous place which creates havoc in my life.

So I can relate with Hagar as I read her story in Genesis.  Abraham banished her and their son, Ishmael, out into the desert with food and a container of water.  Because she was focused on this one container of water, she felt that all hope was gone when it was empty.

She prepared to die.

She forgot all about reaching out to the Creator of all Things – who created water.  His angel had spoken to her and guided her before but Hagar was in the tunnel – not looking for any way out except for death.

God heard Ishmael’s cries.  “Then God opened her (Hagar’s) eyes and she saw a well full of water.”  Genesis 21:19.

What?  Was the well there all along and she just wasn’t seeing it?  Was she so lost in despair and discouragement that she didn’t even look around?  Or did God create the well for her?

We don’t know – either way, God provided for her.

And he provides for me constantly.  I need to remember that because, like Hagar, there are situations where I get tunnel vision.  When I’m lost in my incorrect thinking, I need to remember to reach out to the One who has all the answers.

Please open my eyes, Abba Father.

My Ticket to Ride

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

How close can I get to God? That’s a great goal, isn’t it?

I’d like to get as close as Enoch.  Enoch was Adam’s great, great, great, great grandson and we read in Genesis that he walked in close fellowship with God.  “Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years.  Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.”  Genesis 5:23-24.

Enoch never died.  God just took him home.  I don’t have any control over it, but that’s the way I’d really like to go.  Elijah was the only other person that we know of who God took up to heaven before he died.  Elijah rode a fiery chariot up to heaven.

How cool is that?  How many bonus points does it take to get a ride like that?

God has a huge sense of humor so he knows I’m just kidding.  I was once told that it’s ok to joke around with God and that makes sense to me.  He is always watching us so we might as well make him laugh once in awhile – or a lot.

I wonder how many more people have ‘disappeared’ or gotten a chariot ride up to heaven?  It’s a safe bet that we don’t know about them all.  I prefer the chariot ride because it’s more visible so the people I am leaving behind won’t have to wonder where I went when I disappear.

It is obvious that both Enoch and Elijah had a very close relationship with God.  That must be the ticket.  So I’m going to work on my relationship with God knowing he has already determined my last day and what my trip into heaven is going to look like.

But it never hurts to ask, right?

If it’s what you want, Father, please put me on the chariot list.

Two People = One

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

Dating is fun. Being engaged is exciting. Weddings are a great big party that celebrates love and commitment.

Marriage is tough.  Good…..but tough.  Worth it…..but not easy.

I’ve been married to the same man for over 44 years.  I know how tough marriage is. And he knows how tough marriage  is.  In order to stay married, we have had to work through it all.  And stuff just keeps coming at us. With God’s help, our marriage survived the most difficult thing that can happen to parents – the loss of a child.

Every year, as I begin reading through the Bible again, I pause when I read Genesis 3:20, “Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.”

Adam named his wife Eve after they had both lived in the Garden of Eden with God for who knows how long. This was after they had eaten the apple and sinned.

Up to this point, they were both called Adam.  Together, they completed the person of Adam.

man+woman = one.

How much would our perspective of marriage change if we sincerely considered ourselves – man and wife – to be one person?  It wouldn’t be, “I’m done dealing with his problems.” or “I’m tired of her behavior – I’m out of here”.

It would be more like when we say “my leg always likes to cramp up” or “my neck is often stiff and it’s driving me crazy”.  When our leg cramps up, we rub it and stretch it. When our necks are stiff, we massage them and warm them up.  When a physical part of us is having a problem, we work with the issue, figure out how to help it and get help if we need it.  Sometimes we can replace the part like a knee or a hip but I have several friends who still have pain and issues with those new parts. We can’t replace our whole body so we have to positively deal with the issues.

VERY different than the ‘throw away’ attitude that many people in our culture have towards marriage today, isn’t it?

Sometimes married people joke about their ‘better half’.  How would our marriages be different if we acted like we believed that?

Please help us honor you with our marriages, Abba Father.

Fight the Battle Well

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

2025 is almost over.  It has been a challenging year for me. There have been several peaks and valleys which generally describes my life ever since my son, David Glasser, who was a Phoenix Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016. Losing a child is the most difficult thing a parent can experience. The challenge of picking up the pieces and moving forward changes with time but remains a very tough road to be on. 2026 will mark 10 years since Davey has been gone. Tears begin to stream down my face as I write that. Unbelievable. Thank you, Father God, for being my Rock in the pain and grief that never goes away when we lose a child.

How would you describe your 2025? 

My husband lost a large amount his eyesight this year because of health issues. He could only see blobs and he walked around in a fog every day, all day. This caused a ripple effect, changing our lives significantly and not for the better. Many of my plans and how I thought the rest of our time left on this planet would go had to be, once again, adjusted to fit our new reality. It was also is a constant reminder that we are quickly moving through the fall years of our life. Life is short. A snap of our fingers and our time is up. I am the last one standing of my nuclear family so the reality of how our lives are just a flicker of time is very real for me. With each year, more and more of my heart is focusing on heaven.

Two retina specialists said that the damage to my husband’s eyes was permanent. There was nothing to be done. We all continued to pray. Every time we talked about Dave’s eyesight I would say, “The doctors say its permanent but its not permanent until God says its permanent.”

The good news is on December 20th, my husband woke up and some of his eyesight was restored. Awesome! Thank you, God! He can now see our smiling faces as we celebrate this improvement with him and continue to pray for complete healing.

Now God is speaking to me about 2026.  He has plans for me.  If you read my blogs, you know I published a book a couple of years ago on Amazon, “Then I Looked Up: Losing a child, Finding His Legacy of Love’. Its the story of my son’s life, his death and my journey to find hope and a purpose after losing a child. I have met many great people and have had a boatload of important conversations since my book was published. Even though it’s been awhile since it was published, my book continues to give me opportunities to have significant conversations with people I don’t know.

Several years ago God told me I was supposed to focus on mentoring and discipling- sharing what he has taught me with others – and that hasn’t changed. He showed me in a big way this year that there are people in my life and in my neighborhood here who want and need to know him in a more real way. It has meant adding a couple of weekly Bible studies to my calendar so some other things had to be taken off but it’s more than worth it. When God is the most important thing on my calendar, I know I’m on the right track.

Like always, God is using these last several days of 2025 to tell me what He wants me to focus on next year. God stopped me as Paul talks to Timothy in his first letter to him – “Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, holding on to faith and a good conscience..”  1 Timothy 1: 18 & 19.

How do I fight the battle well 2026?  When I’m connected to God through his Word and through his people, he fights my battles with me – guiding me, encouraging me and giving me victory.

How do you plan to fight the battle well next year?

How do I hold onto the faith in 2026?  I have a hunger that growls in my soul with the desire to grow in my love for and knowledge of God. I will be reading the entire Bible for the 16th year in a row in 2026. I am confident that God will bless my faithfulness and will reveal new understanding and new things to be joyful about in my life next year. My favorite thing about retirement – other than not having to set an alarm – is having all the time I want to spend with God.

How will you hold onto the faith in 2026?

How do I hold on to a good conscience in 2026?  When I’m in line with God, I know down to the depths of my heart and mind that I’m in the right place.  I feel God’s approval and blessing when I focus on him and what he is calling me to do.

How will you hold onto a good conscience next year?

With God by my side, I’m ready. I’m really excited to see what God has planned!   

So bring on 2026 with all its challenges and opportunities!