Tag: God’s Word

Come…. Now Go!

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

Jesus calls us to come,come-to-me-then-go

receive his gift of grace,

accept his leadership of our lives,

accept his love and freedom….

and then he tells us to Go!

Share the Good News with our family.

Share what we’re learning with our friends.

Share the truth with our neighbors.

Share our new joy and purpose with everyone we come in contact with.

He did this very same thing with his apostles in Matthew 9.

Why?

Because people need to know.

Then – and now.

The light of the world has come!  There is no longer a reason to remain in the darkness!

Jesus has answers to all of our questions.  He gives us joy!

Contentment!

Comfort!

Purpose!

What else are you looking for?  Jesus has it.

Come and see!

Drenched in Pain

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

The rain came –lightning_electricity_night_242819_l

it drenched us with grief and pain.

The streams rose –

we were threatened on every side with deep loss and sadness.

The winds blew –

beating on us every day.  Reminding us of what was lost.

The storm broke our hearts.

It changed our lives – sending us in a direction we never wanted to go.

The powerful storm moved us to a place we never wanted to be.

the-storm-beat-against-the-houseBut our house did not fall…..

because our lives are built on the Solid Rock that Jesus told us about in Luke 6.

His name is God.

And he was there through the storm – holding us, guiding us, loving us – never letting go of us.

He is with us still – comforting us, loving us, showing us the way.

The storm came, but our Foundation could not be shaken.

Thank you, Abba Father.

 

 

 

Phenomenal!

On By Judy GlasserIn November2 Comments

The Sea of Galilee is a very beautiful sea.

gdtDSC_0632It’s really not that big.

I had the privilege of spending a day there 2 years ago.   It was tranquil and calm – until the wind picked up.  In the New Testament, we read of several storms rolling in over this sea and I experienced how quickly our boat went from perfectly still to  significantly rocking.  I can imagine how fast those storms could grow and become threatening.

It’s a gorgeous sea – but it’s just water.

So how could Jesus walk on it?  That’s impossible!

Isn’t it?

Nothing that we know or can understand explains this.

It’s just water.gdtDSC_0639

But its water that was brought out of nothing by the Creator of the Universe.

And this water obeys his commands.  It’s not the same as when you and I obey.  We are created in God’s image so we have a brain.  We have to think, to decide, to act.

The water just responds to its Creator.

I’m pretty confident if some of today’s geniuses of science could have been studying the water that Jesus walked on, they would have witnessed the molecular structure of the water change for just a few seconds as Jesus’ foot touched it.  Science would be able to tell us what happened but it would never have been able to explain why it happened.  It would be labeled an unusual phenomenon.

But we know who did it.

God created science.  And he can use it freely whenever he wants.

It wasn’t ‘just water’ when it was in God’s hands.

The same is true of you and me.  We’re not ‘just’ men, women, young adults, teenagers or children when we’re in God’s hands.

Something supernatural is going on when we trust in God, because his spirit comes to live inside of us…

and we become phenomenal!

Thank you, Abba Father!

I’m Laying By The Healing Waters….

On By Judy GlasserIn November6 Comments

fDSC_0489waiting to be healed….

wondering when its going to happen…

wondering if its going to happen.

All of us have some part of our life that is bruised or broken.

It’s not always a physical thing.  Many times its emotional or spiritual.

And so we lay next to cripple at the Pool of Bethesda….hoping to be healed.

I had the privilege to visit this tranquil, beautiful place 2 years ago.  The peace I felt in that spot was magnified by the conflict and tension that defines the city of Jerusalem.  If felt like nobody living there liked anybody else.  The air was filled with ‘you don’t belong here’ hatred.

But not at this pool.

It was quiet.

Smaller than I had imagined from reading about it in John 5.fDSC_0490

I wish I could go back there now – to lay at the side of the pool, waiting for healing.  A tragedy in my life this last year has taken away a big chunk of my contentment and joy.

And I want it back.

I know I can’t go back to the pool right now – maybe some day.  But I know where to go to be made whole again.

My Abba Father is in the process of healing my brokenness.  It’s not easy and not something I thought I would ever experience.

I am thankful for my healer.

I am waiting by the pool, Abba Father.

I Know Who You Are

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

They had no doubts.

Whenever a member of Satan’s team encountered Jesus, they knew exactly who he was.

i-know-who-you-are“I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” cried the demon as Jesus cast it out of the man in Mark 1:23.

Every time a demon saw Jesus, they declared that he was the Son of God.

They knew about his power.

They knew about his perfection.

And they knew who his Father was.

They also knew all about the righteous anger Jesus had for the evil they were creating and encouraging on earth.  So they were afraid of him.

They knew the truth.

Do you know the truth?

Have you accepted the fact that Jesus is the Son of God?

Do you believe in his power to redeem you and set you free?

The demons had no doubts.  We shouldn’t have any either.

Thank you, Lord Jesus!

 

We Are Free!

On By Judy GlasserIn NovemberLeave a comment

Free from guilt.

Free from never being good enough.

Free from emptiness.

Free from wondering why we’re here.

Free from trying to be in control when we know we’re not. (Or are you still operating with the misconception that you’re in control?)

And the list of our freedoms goes on…

Jesus tells us in Luke that his Father sent him to proclaim freedom for the prisoners.

That’s us.

Without Jesus in our lives, we are held prisoners by our past, our present and our future.

But Jesus came to set us free!  We just need to accept his gift of redemption and follow him.we-are-set-free

Then we are truly free.

Yes, we still struggle.

Yes, we still do things and say things we wish we hadn’t.

Yes, we still have questions and issues in our lives.  We have pain and sorrow.

But we know who holds the key.  He knows the way.  He has already won!

He is walking right next to us in this world and he will be walking right next to us into the next.

We are free in Christ Jesus!

Truly free!

 

 

Am I Good Enough?

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

Being ‘good enough’ is not our goal.

Getting our act together is not our goal.

Checking all the boxes – keeping busy with ‘God’ stuff – is not our goal.

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

We do.

When we trust in and are redeemed by Jesus through his sacrifice on the cross, we are adopted by God and become his precious children.

‘Joint heirs with Jesus’ – as an old hymn describes it.

As I read about Jesus’ baptism, I realize that he hadn’t started his ministry yet.  He hadn’t DONE anything for God except be his son.  But God was ‘well pleased’

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.

You and I are God’s children – and he is pleased with us.i-am-pleased

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.

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

And he is pleased.

Thank you, Abba Father.

How Do I Know?

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

What choice should I make?

What direction should I go?sign_roadsign_world_270309_l

What am I supposed to be doing?

We have lots of questions for God.

And there won’t be any answers unless we’re listening.  Unless we’re watching.

If I’m listening and watching – believing that God will direct my life – then I will get answers to my questions.

I don’t believe in coincidences.  When conversations/things I read/things I hear line up with each other, I call that a God-incidence.

God is speaking.

He is answering.

He is guiding.

road-closedI can choose to pay attention and relate his answer to my situation and know which way he is pointing.

Or I can just call it a coincidence and go on with my own plans, still wondering how other people hear God speaking to them so clearly.

As I read about the Wise Men going to visit Jesus, I realize they were pagan kings but they showed their wisdom when they correctly interpreted the dream they had and did not go back to Herod to tell him where Jesus was.  The Wise Men went home by a different route.  They were watching.  That’s how they saw the star that led them to Jesus in the first place.  And they were aware that a supernatural event was going on so they realized the dream also had significance.

It wasn’t a coincidence.

How about us?

Do we realize that there is a supernatural thing going on?  When we are redeemed, God’s Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us.  He resides in our mind, in our heart and in our soul.

And he guides us – supernaturally.  If we watch.  If we listen.

And the closer our relationship with God becomes, the easier it is to hear him….

because we know his voice.

Thank you, Abba Father.

 

 

Can You Feel It?

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

It feels like the darkness around us is growing….

Or do we just hear more about it through social media?

Or is it because the overall media has become just like the tabloids?  If the news isn’t ‘viral’ enough, they sensationalize it so it gets more attention and higher ratings.

Whatever it is, it feels like the darkness in our culture is looming large and getting more perverse everyday.

The media is feeding it and, if we’re not very careful, they are filling our minds with it day after day after day.

It feels like the darkness is closer….and more oppressive.

please-shineThe Good News is that God sent his Son from heaven ‘to shine on those living in the darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into a path of peace.” Luke 1:79.

Dear Jesus, Thank you for coming to earth so we can know your forgiveness and grace.  Please shine your light of truth on our country.  Shine your light of justice into the darkest shadows of our culture.  Shine your light of love on all of the people who are living in darkness today.  And please guide us onto the path of peace – the supernatural peace that only comes from you.

Where you lead, we will follow.  Thank you, Jesus.

 

Celebration = Loud

On By Judy GlasserIn OctoberLeave a comment

When the wall around their city was finally finished, the people of Jerusalem rejoiced because ‘God had given them great joy.” Nehemiah 12:43.oct-13-2016-celebration-loud

Everyone celebrated!  All the men, all the women and all of the children.

And we read in the Bible that the sound of Jerusalem’s celebration could be heard far away.

That’s really loud!!

They were so filled with joy that they couldn’t keep quiet.

And this is not unusual in the Bible – God’s people celebrated a lot!  They had joy!  They worshipped God!  They were loud!

Can you even imagine how loud it was then the heaven’s were filled with thousands of angels singing for joy and praising God?

So where do we sometimes get the idea that our weekly church family celebrations and worship should be quiet?

There is certainly a time and place for reverence and meditation when we get together.

But there are also many reasons for joy and excitement and celebration as we worship together and are blessed.  Our traditions should enhance our worship, not restrain it.

Thousands of years ago, God’s people showed us how to express our joy, celebrate and worship God.

And it was loud 🙂

Please give us joy, Abba Father!