Tag: its a journey

How Would I Respond?

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

What would I do if God asked me to build a gigantic boat in my back yard while my neighbors ridiculed me for my foolishness?

Would I willingly bring my entire family onto this boat filled with wild animals and poisonous reptiles?

Would I complain if I was Noah and the rain fell continuously for 40 days with the boat rocking wildly as it was lifted on the water high over the mountains?

How would I feel as the world as I knew it was wiped out below me?  Fearful?  Worried?

It took the waters 150 days to recede.  Five months.  Would I be calm as the boat now rocked down and down and down….to whatever was left below me?  Would I be anxious?  Scared?

After spending over a year on this boat, would I feel ready to face what was coming as the it once again settled on land?  Would I be happy to get off the boat?  Concerned about what I was going to find when the door opened?

I wonder how Noah felt when all of this actually happened to him?

As I read this historical account in chapters 6, 7 and 8 of Genesis in the Bible, all God ultimately tells me is ‘God said, Noah did.’  It’s clear that Noah trusted God through every step of this monumental struggle.   And when he finally got off the boat, the first thing he did was build an altar and make a sacrifice to honor God.

Noah’s faithfulness inspires me.

His perseverance amazes me.

His level of trust in God challenges me.

It’s awesome to know that the God who guided Noah, loved Noah and provided for Noah is the same God who guides me, loves me and provides for me.

I’m sure that this is one of the main reasons God wants us to read and study and apply the Old Testament to our lives. He is the God who took care of Noah and his family through this almost total destruction of the known world. He is our same God today. Our relationship with God has changed because of what Jesus did for us on the cross, but God’s love and care for us has not changed.

And it never will.

When Things Don’t Go Your Way

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

Do you work really hard to be in control? Be honest with yourself – do you get frustrated or angry when this world throws you a curve ball and things don’t go your way?

This used to describe me. I am a planner and a strategical thinker so my natural tendency is to try to organize the world around me according to my desired outcome.

I wanted control.

I was gradually learning what a waste of time it was to try to control everything around me when I had a defining moment. I learned the hard, painful truth about how much I am NOT in control. My son, David Glasser, was a Phoenix Police Officer who was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016. Reality slapped me in the face. The only thing I’m in control of is my response to what happens to me.

You might not be ready to hear this, but you are not in control, either.  Trying to control other people or circumstances will use up your time and energy on something that just is not possible. And it won’t work.

Does it surprise you that this issue of wanting to be in control goes way back to the Garden of Eden?

Satan tempted Eve to eat the apple by saying, “God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil”.  Genesis 3:5.

She ate it. She wanted to be in control ‘like God’.

Yep, like Eve, we still want to be ‘like God”.

Let’s just call it what it is. Sin. We are sinning against God when we try to take away some of the total control He has on our world.

We are not like God. We are not in control. And our lives will be much better, much more peaceful, much less anxious and much less stressful when we admit it and realize our total dependence on God.

It’s hard to do this. I still struggle and I’ve had several huge lessons in this area. Whenever I start to feel anxious, I have to remind myself. I’m not in control – God is.

It’s a good thing He is in control. He is all-powerful. He is always good, always right. And He loves me with a perfect love. He loves you with a perfect love.

It’s a good thing I’m not in control because I am none of those things.

I just need to be reminded sometimes.

In the Beginning

On By Judy GlasserIn JanuaryLeave a comment

So I begin again.  Genesis 1:1.

This will be my 14th consecutive year of reading through the entire Bible.  I’m anticipating many great mornings of hearing God’s voice as he speaks to me through his Word.

It’s also fun knowing that there is a group of over a dozen of you who are reading the Bible every year with me.  After each of us did it the first year, we realized that we couldn’t imagine not doing it every year.  It’s a spiritual discipline that feeds our souls all year long. If you haven’t read the entire Bible before, this would be a great year to start. I read the Daily Bible arranged chronologically by F LaGard Smith.

One of my favorite things about reading the entire Bible is I get a good understanding of God’s overall message on important topics.  Like God’s love – reading the Old Testament and then the New Testament gives me a knowledge of God’s love that I’m not going to get reading a verse here or a chapter there.

I am also hooked on reading the Chronological Bible for several other reasons – here are a few:

  • The Old Testament prophets are placed in the story with the king they talked to and in the correct time in history.
  • One of my favorite reasons – the psalms David wrote are placed in his story when he wrote them.  So I read the psalms David wrote while he was hiding from Saul in the cave when David is actually hiding in the cave.
  • The several different and extremely detailed accounts concerning the tabernacle and the temple are combined into one reading on each.  As a result, what I read makes much more sense to me.   All of the laws are combined into one reading instead of repeated in various places.  I used to skip over all of these sections because they were too repetitive and uninteresting.  Now I actually enjoy reading them because I’m only reading them once.
  • The New Testament gospels are combined so it doesn’t feel like I’m reading the same story 4 times.  It’s interesting to see the differences in perspectives.

The Chronological Bible is not good for in-depth Bible study but it’s great for reading and getting the big picture.

Once again, I start reading this first day of 2024…..

knowing God will open my eyes to more truth this year and he will focus my eyes on truth I already know but need to be reminded of.

In the Beginning.

Where’s the Fire?!

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

As the final Revelation of God’s Word begins, the Spirit is writing to the 7 churches through John.  The message that reverberates through my mind are his words to the church of Laodicea –

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot.  I wish you were either one or the other!  So, because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”  Rev. 3: 15 – 16.

The Spirit sounds pretty disgusted with this church.  They were rich and they were acting like they had everything they needed.  But the Spirit calls them pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

And then he offers them the truth – “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.  So be earnest and repent.  Here I am!  I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person and they with me.”  Rev 3: 19-20.

 The Spirit tells the church of Laodicea to repent and reminds them that Jesus is always ready to forgive them and redeem them.

Lukewarm is not a good place to be.  Jesus came to earth to save us and transform us into beacons of light in a lost and broken world.  ‘Okay’ is not what we are called to be.  ‘Comfortable’ is not our goal. The Holy Spirit wants to set a fire burning within each of us as we seek to know and love our Abba Father.   As our love for God grows, he transforms our hearts so we can truly start to love other people like he does.

There is a fire burning in my heart.  It burns hotter the closer I get to God.  This fire keeps me passionate about following Jesus on this journey towards the truth.

What’s the temperature of your heart for God?  Is there anything or anyone you care about more than God? 

Are you lukewarm?  Or sold out?  

Turn up the heat, dear Father!

He Lavishes His Love On Us

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

Do you feel it?

I do.

I see it in the gorgeous sunrise as God once again declares his faithfulness to me with the start of a new day.  I feel it in my 3 1/2 year-old grandson’s hug.  I see it in the smiles of my friends.  I feel it in the ‘love you’ from my husband of over 42 years.

It’s the great love God has lavished upon me.

God tells me that I am a precious child and he proves that by showing his love for me in a multitude of ways, every day.

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God.”  1 John 3:1a

It’s very encouraging to realize that the closer I get to God, the more of his love I feel pouring out over me.  As I’ve been consistently memorizing God’s scripture these last 8 years, I also feel his wisdom pouring out from his Word.  More knowledge.  More understanding.

I am his child!  How much more love and wisdom and knowledge and understanding does he have available for me?

There is no limit!

As 2024 quickly approaches, I am looking forward to seeing what God has planned for this next year.  New challenges.  More love.

Thank you, Abba Father.

Making a Plan

On By Judy GlasserIn December2 Comments

It is coming very quickly – 2024.

New Year’s resolutions have gotten a bad rep because so many of us break them within a day or two of making them.  I’m a goal-oriented person so I like them as long as I limit them to things I REALLY want to do.  I try to stay away from making resolutions that sound good but I’m not really committed to making them happen.

Here’s one that I’m totally committed to making happen in 2024 –

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen” 2 Peter 3:18.

These are the words Peter uses to close out his second letter.  There are several other things I would like to accomplish in 2024 but I’m not as committed to them as I am to this.  And I have a plan.  Please feel free to join me in any or all of these –

*I’m going to read the entire Bible again – for the 14th year in a row.  I have found that reading the entire revelation of God feeds my soul much more than skipping around in various chapters or verses.  I love the chronological Bible because the natural progression through history makes more sense to me and helps me understand what God is saying to me.  It’s not a Study Bible because things that are mentioned more than once in the regular Bible are condensed into one spot. The changes in the Chronological Bible make it much easier to read the entire book but I always keep a Study Bible handy if I want to know specifics. I also use a Daily Chronological Bible which has dates on the top of the pages. I get ahead and I get behind but the dates give me enough structure to be able to finish Revelations at the end of December, ready for “In the Beginning” on January 1st.

*I’m going to continue to memorize scripture.  My long-term goal is to memorize the entire book of James.  Yep, all of it.  Yep, it will take years, especially since I don’t have a good memory. It’s a God-sized task and I know he’s up for it.  So far, God has helped me memorize the entire first and second chapters of James and I’ve begun to work on the 3rd chapter.  He constantly blesses me by speaking to me through these words that he has etched on my heart and mind.

*I have couple of people in my life that I am spiritually mentoring. I’m praying that God will open my eyes to anyone else he is bringing into my life who I can walk beside on this journey of growing our faith.

*My husband and I are on the leadership team for a new Community Fellowship that has been started in our 55+ neighborhood. I see God’s spirit moving through our community – there has been a sudden spike in the number of people joining our neighborhood Bible studies. God is doing something good here and its going to be fun to be a part of what he has planned in 2024.

I’m committed to this plan. I know that I need to consistently put myself in God’s presence and he will grow my faith in 2024.

What are your spiritual goals for 2024?

Do you have a plan?

Please help us be intentional in growing our faith, Abba Father. 

My Forever Home

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

I don’t own anything.  When I die, nothing is coming with me.

I know – I check the box ‘own’ when I’m asked about my house but I should really be marking ‘rent’ because my house is not coming with me when I leave this earth.

The Apostle Peter says it like it is, “Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear.” 1Peter 1: 17.

Do you ever feel like a foreigner here?  I certainly do.  

Living in this world is often disappointing and difficult.  It’s confusing and full of conflicts.  The moments of joy seem fleeting compared to the problems that hang on forever.  When I hear people talk about their ‘forever homes’ here on earth, I’m really glad to know that my ‘forever home’ is not here – it’s in a much better place.

The hole left in my life by the death of my son will only be filled in heaven. A big part of my heart went to heaven with him when he was killed. My feeling like an alien here, especially in our current culture which is moving farther away from God, continues to grow each year.

So I’m good with my foreigner, renting status here on earth.  When my lease is up, I’m going home, where I belong…..forever.

I know you already have a place prepared for me, Abba Father.  Thank you.

It’s a Difficult Thing to Do

On By Judy GlasserIn December2 Comments

The world is crazy.  Bad things just keep happening.  I’m disappointed so often.  I’ve lost so many people I love – one person in particular who should still be here.

God tells us through James to “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds, because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.’ James 1: 2 & 3.

How I can I consider it all joy?  I’m not happy about any of it.

Ok, I know that happiness is not the same as joy.  Happiness depends on my circumstances and joy comes from the condition of my soul.  But persevering is a difficult thing to do.  It’s easier to give up when the going gets tough – get frustrated, get angry, get bitter, blame someone else.  Our culture teaches us to choose the ‘easy’ way, the fast way – where can I get immediate gratification?

God says to you and to me today that these choices don’t lead to maturity and completeness.

As I look back on my ‘trials of many kinds’, I can see God working through each of them.  The rear view mirror often shows these things most clearly. He guided me, he comforted me and, probably most directly affecting my faith, he taught me many things about myself and about him.

One of the major lessons he gave me was the need for me to trust him in all of it.  That was difficult to do when my son, David Glasser, who was a Phoenix Police officer, was killed in the line of duty over 7  years ago.  As I leaned on God through this tragedy, I gradually learned to filter everything through these facts I know are true about God:

God is good, all the time.

God loves me with a perfect love and nothing is impossible for him.

God wants the best for me and he is working all things out for my good.

He is God, I am not.

I have persevered through this tragedy, standing on these truths about God with a huge hole in my life and a heart broken into a million pieces.  Somehow this is the best for me.  Somehow God is working this all out for good for me.  I have learned a lot about trusting God on a whole new level – even when it doesn’t make sense.

God has been seriously working on maturing my faith.  Trusting him with all of this has deepened my love for him and helped me have a better understanding of how dependent I am on him.  I’ve been changed.  My eyes are refocused on God and my ‘forever home’ with him.

Trusting God, I have decided to persevere and grow my faith through my trials with him by my side. 

He knows what’s best.

Holding Onto Faith

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

2023 is almost over.  It has been a tough and rewarding year for me.

How would you describe your 2023?

In March of 2022 I started writing my book about watching God put the broken pieces of my life back together after my son, David Glasser, who was a Phoenix Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty. Losing a child is the most difficult thing a parent can experience.  Writing it all down was an extremely hard and yet cleansing experience.   I have been blogging about Davey’s death for over 7 years…but writing the whole experience was much different. This is the story God had been writing in my life since the awful day in 2016 when Davey was killed – “Then I Looked Up: Losing a Child, Finding His Legacy of Love”

I published my book on Amazon in February of 2023. This has been a year of great conversations with people who have read my book and wanted to tell me how my story helped them process grief and loss in their own lives. It also has been a year of constant interactions about other people’s tragedies. I’m glad God waited 6 years to tell me to write the book because I would not have been ready before for all of the stories of pain and grief I heard this year. I am reminded each time of how many people around me have experienced deep tragedy in their lives. I am so grateful to God for his comfort, wisdom and strength for my tough journey of surviving the death of my child.

My husband experienced a life-threatening heart issue at the end of June 2022 and he has had continuing health problems since then. He had another life-threatening issue in October of 2023 and so the doctor’s visits and procedures still fill his calendar.  I am thankful that the issue in June 2022 did not end his time on earth. I am thankful that the issue in October 2023 also didn’t end his time on earth. It’s evident that the day God has determined would be his last day here has not come yet and I’m grateful.  Again I am reminded how short our lives are and how quickly someone we love can be gone.  We need to love each other well today, it may be all we the time we have.

Now God is speaking to me about 2024.  He has plans.  Call them resolutions, call them goals, call them my ‘words’ for 2023, it’s obvious that God is using these last several days of 2023 to tell me what he wants me to focus on next year.

So 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 2024?  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 2024?  I have a hunger that growls in my soul with the desire to grow in my love for and knowledge of God.  I am confident that turning off the TV and putting down my phone so I have more time to read and study God’s Word is the right thing for me to do.   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 2024?

How do I hold on to a good conscience in 2024?  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 prepared to do God has planned for me.   So bring on 2024 with all its challenges and opportunities and blessings. 

Thank you, Abba Father.

Prepared

On By Judy GlasserIn DecemberLeave a comment

to fight the enemy.

Ready.

Equipped.

Satan is plotting against me every day – watching for the weaknesses in my defense.  Satan is whispering in your ear – do you hear him?  Telling you you’re a loser or encouraging you to make decisions that are going to create negative consequences for you.

It’s a battle.

God has given you and I real armor in order to fight this battle.  He teaches us about how to use it through what Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:

The Belt of Truth needs to be buckled around our waist.  This is what we’re working on right now as we read God’s word – knowing and living the truth.  All the lies swirling around me are not going to change my thinking when I know the Truth.

The Breastplate of Righteousness needs to be in place – protecting our hearts.  I know the right thing to do because I know the Truth. Through the power of the Holy Spirit living within me, I can live in a close relationship with God, never wandering, always feeling his presence.

We must put on the the sandals of peace – always ready to share the Good News of Salvation.  The only real peace any of us will ever find here on earth is in a relationship with Jesus.

We carry our Shield of Faith with us everyday so we can deflect the flaming arrows coming at us from Satan and his army.  He’ll try to  distract me or harm me but my faith will keep me safe and steady.

We put on the Helmet of Salvation to protect our minds from the confusion, anger and evil which surround us.  My perspective is very different from the culture around me because the Spirit of God lives within me.

The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.  When we know God’s Word, it is a supernatural weapon for good in our world. Satan has already lost the war.  And when I know and use God’s Word in my thinking, decisions, actions and speech, Satan is reminded of his defeat and he retreats.  Every time.

I used to think that the Sword of the Spirit was my only offensive weapon. I thought the rest were defensive. Now I consider the sandals of peace to be offensive. The Good News of Salvation has power in itself. When I speak or write the message of salvation, the Holy Spirit is unleashed in those words, attacking the schemes of the evil one in the lives of the people who hear it. 

I also consider my Shield of Faith to be offensive. When I pray for others, my shield stretches out to cover them from the flaming arrows of the evil one that are coming their way. When I share my faith story of walking closely with God for a long time, my Shield of Faith reaches out to cover the hearts of those who listen.

We must equip ourselves and be ready to fight the battle each day.

Thank you for your perfect armor, Abba Father.