Tag: its a journey

Psalm 23, 2022 – The Lord is My Shepherd

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

The LORD takes care of me each day.  He provides everything I need.

My Father guides me on the right path – he knows what is best for me.  He gives me exactly what my soul longs for as I walk closely beside him.

I can always trust my Father’s guidance.

Even when I’m going through the darkest, most painful times of my life, Father, I have no fear.  You are with me.  You comfort me.

You pour out blessings on my life.  Even those around me who don’t want the best for me can see how well you take care of me.

You fill my mind with your truth as I continue to study your Word and grow in my knowledge of you.

I am overwhelmed by your love for me.  Your goodness and grace fill all the days of my life here on earth.   And I am 100% certain of what happens to me when my time here on earth is done – I will go to live with my Abba Father forever.

Amen.  Hallelujah!

It’s All Yours!

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

I love the picture I get in my mind when I read 1 Chronicles 29: 10-13. King David is standing in the middle of more than 300 tons of gold and 638 tons of silver along with 675 tons of bronze with his arms stretched out, praising God saying “It’s all yours”.

I think about this passage whenever I find myself focusing on my money and my stuff.

Do you see that ‘my’ word crop up?  The truth is – it’s not mine.  Everything I have has been given to me by my Father God.  He owns everything.  I am just taking care of what he has given me while I’m here on earth.  And I give some back to him because I’m grateful for all that he has given me.

So I join with King David in praise of my Father today.

It’s all yours, dear Father.  Yours is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory and the majesty.  Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours.

Wealth and honor come from you alone for you rule over everything.

Power and might are in your hand and you decide who is made great and given strength.

Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone soon without a trace.  But you, dear God, give us significance. 

You call us your sons and daughters and you delight in us.

Amen. Hallelujah.

A Pure Heart – Psalm 51, 2026

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

I ask for a pure heart, O God! I want my life to be focused on you.

Keep me close by your side and grow your spirit within me. Keep the joy I felt when I first asked you to be Lord of my life alive in me. Give me a faithful heart so I stay near you. Then I will tell others about your saving grace and I will share the truth you have revealed to me.

You lift the burden of my guilt about my sins and rebellion from me, O God, and I sing of your goodness forever. When I open my mouth, Lord, let it be to praise you.

I know you don’t want me to just ‘show up’ at church because it’s the right thing to do. I know you don’t want me to give money to the church just because it’s the right thing to do. I know you don’t want me to read the Bible just so I can check it off of my reading plan for the year.

You want my heart to be broken open,

repentant,

humbled,

willing to be filled with your truth.

Amen. Let it be so, Abba Father.

Psalm 34, 2026

On By Judy GlasserIn April1 Comment

God is good – all the time!

I will share this great news with everyone I know.  Everyone needs to hear this – there is no one and no thing that compares to the LORD!

Say it with me – God is good, all the time!

When I talk to God, he answers me and takes my fears away.

The light of God’s love shines out of us, his children, and we are never ashamed.  When we are lost in a pile of problems that we created, we can call on God who rescues us.  His angel protects us and sets us free!

Try him and see!  God is good!

My Father God is a safe haven and a provider for me and for everyone who has faith in him.  Those who look strong on the outside are actually weak and empty on the inside if they don’t have faith in God.

God’s children have everything they need.

Listen to me –

respect and honor the LORD and you will live a life filled with good days.  Stay away from lying and all evil.  Be a peacemaker.

God watches over those who do what is right.  He hears our cries.  God is always close to the brokenhearted.

But God turns his face away from those who do evil.

When we have faith in God, we will still have trials but God walks beside us every step of the way – giving us peace and strength.

The wicked get what they deserve.  The LORD condemns anyone who opposes the people who love him.

God rescues his children – he is a safe refuge that is always available to us.

We praise you, Abba Father, for you are good!

Fighting Our Giants

On By Judy GlasserIn AprilLeave a comment

We all have them –

things we battle against.

Sometimes its family members. Sometimes its our boss. Sometimes its our friends or situations in our lives.

Many times its how to handle our finances.

A lot of the time, we find ourselves fighting against attitudes and desires that grow within us…

lies that have rooted themselves in our brains…

unwillingness to change….

rebellion against giving God first place in our lives.

What are your giants?

As we read historical account of David and Goliath, I noticed that the giant Philistine came out every day for forty days to take his stand against the Israelites.

Our giants also make themselves evident very regularly.  They are persistent.  We can’t miss them…..even when we try.

And, just like David, we need to put our trust in God and let him fight our battles.  We often forget what David knew and counted on – ” the battle is the Lord’s” (1 Sam 17:47).

David’s bold confidence in fighting his giant came from his absolute trust in God’s faithfulness.  As a young boy, he stepped up to fight Goliath while an army of grown men around him cowered in fear. David knew that God had been faithful before, he would be faithful again. 

I have also experienced God’s faithfulness over and over in my life.  He hasn’t always done what I wanted him to do, but I believe everything he has done will work out for my good.  Many things have worked out better than I could have ever imagined.

When I started to believe in the very depths of my soul that God wanted only what was best for me, my giants – one by one – were taken captive by God’s power and love.

There is only one way to successfully fight our giants and that is to let God lead the way.

Whatever Works for You

On By Judy GlasserIn MarchLeave a comment

Sounds good – let’s all do whatever works for us.   Then we’ll all be happy.

Or not.

“In those days Israel had no king: everyone did as they saw fit”. Judges 21:25. This is how the book of Judges ends.  It may sound good until we scan back a couple of chapters and realize what they thought was ‘fit’ to do. 

Family members were stealing from each other.  They obviously thought this was an ok thing to do.

Family members were kidnapping each other.  They thought this was ok as well.

Family members were killing each other to the point that they virtually annihilated one of the 12 tribes of Israel.  I wonder how they could possibly think this was ok but they did.  They could rationalize anything. Their moral judgement was quickly spirally into total chaos and confusion.

Because they had no compass.

Sounds familiar? Our current culture obviously has many of these same issues.

Why?

When I base what is right and wrong on what I think, I’m in trouble.  Then I’m just like these Israelites – doing what I see fit and letting my standards waiver in whatever direction the wind is blowing. When I do what I think is right, it can hurt you as well. My bad decisions have a lot of consequences.

God has been very clear to you and me on moral boundaries. His Word to us is full of direction and guidance. I might not like all of it. You may not agree with all of it. But that doesn’t change his Word to us.

The image of standing under an umbrella of God’s Blessing is stuck my head and reminds me that one of my main goals in life is to stay in line with God. When I obey God and follow the compass he has given me, I am placing my life under his umbrella of blessing. When I don’t obey God and just do what I want to do, I am stepping out from under his umbrella. I can’t expect God to bless my decisions and life when I’m not obeying him.

One example is tithing. If we have put our faith in God, we also want to give back to him a portion of all he has given us. This means being faithful with tithing. We can’t expect God to bless our finances if we don’t.

It’s my choice and I choose to obey so I stay under the umbrella – every hour of every day.

What do you choose?

My Story

On By Judy GlasserIn MarchLeave a comment

It’s a story of redemption.  It’s my story because I needed a Redeemer, someone to fill up the hole that was deep within my soul.  I needed the Only One who could save me from eternal separation from God.

It’s clear to me that the story of Ruth in the Bible is the story of everyone who has put their faith in Jesus.  I can see God orchestrating his love and grace in every step of the story.  Without Jesus in our lives,  you and I would all exist in a famine, without hope – stuck in our past.

But in Jesus we have found our Redeemer!  Hallelujah!

Jesus paid the price of our sins for us so we could make him Lord of our lives and become part of his forever family.  When we admit that we need a Savior and turn away from our rebellion and sin while turning toward Jesus, we become filled with the power of the Holy Spirit under God’s umbrella of grace and blessing.

Have you made this decision?  It not, today is a great day to fill the emptiness inside your soul with the light of Jesus.

“Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a kinsmen redeemer.” Ruth 4:14.

Thank you, Abba Father.

With Me

On By Judy GlasserIn MarchLeave a comment

Every day…

Every situation…

Every trial…

Every joy…….

The Spirit of the LORD is with me.

In the Old Testament, there were times when God would give his Spirit to someone when he had a tough assignment for them.  We read in Judges that Caleb’s little brother, Othniel, became a judge for the Israelites.  God raised him up to deliver the Israelites from slavery to the King of Aram Naharaim.

“The Spirit of the LORD came on him, so that he became Israel’s judge and went to war.” Judges 3:10. God’s Spirit made Othniel strong and courageous.

As believers today, we live under the New Covenant with God.  Everything changed when God sent Jesus into the world to save us from eternal separation from God. Now, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of each of us when we accept the salvation Jesus freely offers to each of us and make him Lord of our lives.

Jesus is Lord of my life.  God’s Spirit is with me every minute of every day.  His Spirit wants to make me strong and courageous, too.

And loving,

joyful,

peaceful,

patient,

kind,

faithful,

gentle and self-controlled.

All of this is inside me – I just need to let God’s spirit have his way in my life.

If you are a believer, all of these great things are inside of you, too.  It’s time to nurture them and let the Spirit show.

Thank you for the awesome gift of your Spirit,  Abba Father.

Make the Right Choice

On By Judy GlasserIn March2 Comments

Time is the great leveler – we all have 24 hours in a day.  You and I choose how we’re going to spend these 24 hours.  What are we going to do?  How are we spending the majority of our time?  Using a Biblical term, I would say that you and I are ‘serving’ whatever or whomever takes up the most of each of our 24 hours.

A lot of us serve ourselves.  Looking out for #1.  Do I like it?  Does it benefit me?  Do I wanna do it?  Do I feel like doing it?  What’s in for me?  Oh, yeah.  These questions come pretty easy because we use them a lot.  We may not say them out loud but we use them in our decision-making.

Many of serve our debts.  We have to work extra hours or extra jobs to pay for all of the stuff we already have.  We’re upside down on cars and houses.  When we’re not working, we’re worrying about paying the bills.  The best wisdom about our money I’ve ever heard is – “The secret in managing your money correctly is not in how much you make.  The secret is in how much you spend.”  Truth.

Some of us serve our hobbies –  like sports or exercising or shopping.  While we’re shopping today we’re planning about the next time we can go shopping.  Or we’re not happy unless we’re biking or walking or running or working out.  Or before the game we’re watching on TV is over, we’re flipping to the next channel for the next game and then the next game and then the next.

We all choose who or what we will serve.

Joshua makes this very clear to the Israelites as he throws down a challenge.  “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15.

You and I need to make a conscious choice, not just roll through our lives spending our precious time on things that have no eternal value.  We don’t want to get to the end of our lives with hearts full of regrets and emptiness, realizing we never made a choice – we just let the world push us to a place we never wanted to be.  Or maybe we get there and realize looking in the rear view mirror that we made a lot of choices – but they were the wrong ones.

I have made my choice and I know to the bottom of my soul that it’s the right one.  I have laid down any ‘idols’ I was serving at the feet of the One, True, Living God and now it’s all about him.

How about you?  If you have any doubts about the choices you have made in how to spend your short dash between birth and death here on earth, there is no better time than right now to start a new chapter in your life labelled, “The most important thing in my life: my love relationship with my Father God”.  Notice I didn’t say anything about religion.  Religion to me means all the manmade traditions and rules.  That’s not what I’m about.

Make a decision today to put God first in your life.  You won’t regret it.

I choose you, Abba Father.

Faithful, Obedient and Courageous

On By Judy GlasserIn MarchLeave a comment

Every time Caleb shows up in the Old Testament, he is being faithful, obedient and courageous. When I get to heaven, I want to meet him.

He’s not a central character in the Bible – he doesn’t have a main story line.   He’s never the star but he does an awesome job in his supporting role.

Caleb shows up as Joshua’s sidekick a couple of times and every time he’s right on target.  He  is always choosing to believe what God has promised.  He is willing to take God’s word and act on it.  He’s brave.  He doesn’t forget what God has already done in his life.  He’s consistent.

“I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.”  Joshua 14:8.  This is how Caleb described himself when comparing his actions with those of the other spies who brought back a negative report about the Promised Land.

Wholeheartedly.  What a good word!

Even though he was surrounded by other Israelites who lacked trust in God and were weak in their faith, Caleb never waivered.  He stood strong.  His faith in God defined his life.

I am a Caleb fan. I am encouraged and challenged by him.  I’m encouraged because he was always faithful through many years in good times and bad.  I’m challenged by Caleb because I would like that same thing to be said my life.

When I leave this earth, I want this to be true of my life – that I walked closely with God for a very long time.

Just like Caleb.