Revelation Of His Word: It’s Not Just A Book!

We’re going to look at the Word of God and fall in love with His Word once again.  The church needs to return to her first love! Think back to when you were first saved. I remember when I was newly saved. I DEVOURED God’s Word like a drowning man grabs a life preserver and holds on for dear life! Then, like many other Christians, I allowed the cares of this life, the distractions of this age, etc. to enter in and choke the Word in my life. Oh, a lot of us know many scriptures and can quote them like the good little automatons that we are, but where is the HUNGER for HIM? The thirst to drink in His presence, to pray, to fast, to meditate in His Word? To eat it, drink it, sleep it, breathe it?

Many of us today blend in with the world WAY too much. I am not suggesting a bunch of rules and regulations. I am not going to start criticizing your hair-do, your fashion sense, or tell you that you just need to shape up and work on this sin or that sin. Why, you ask? Because those things are not the problem, they are evidence or where our hearts have been. We love Jesus, but He’s kind of gone down the line a ways, after our career, our family, our never ending quest for pleasure. These are all great things! They are just in the wrong place. The sad thing is, when the Word of God becomes the driving focal point of our life, these other things seem to fall into place, but we have it backwards. We think, I’ll have to start spending time in the Word after I get this and that and the other done.

Here’s another interesting observation. The more time we spend on worldly things, our love for the Word grows cooler and cooler. My son was extremely frustrated with himself when he was age fifteen. He LOVES movies and all kinds of music. This, once again, isn’t a bad thing at all, unless it’s in the wrong place. He told me, almost in tears, “I guess I’m just evil. I like evil things”. I tried to explain to him that it was merely a matter of what table you were getting your main nourishment from. In other words, the more I feed on God’s Word, the more I love God’s Word, the more God’s Word begins to change me from the inside out. The more I feed on the things of the world, the more I love the things of the world, and that also will begin to change me.

Let me put it another way: The world displaces the Word in your life, and the Word displaces the world in your life. It’s that simple.

In this series my prayer is that you will receive a revelation from the Holy Spirit about what God’s Word really is, and what His Word can do in your life to change you into the image of Christ. To be Christ-like in your words, actions, reactions. I pray that you will become so hungry for God’s Word that you will begin to meditate in it day and night, drawing nearer to God. I pray that you will experience the life changing power of His Word in your personal life.

I will make this statement about God’s Word: “THE WORD IS GOD”.  John 1:1  The amplified bible states: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He, (the Word), was present originally with God”.  John 1:1-2

For this week, I want you to think about that. The Word IS GOD. You want more God in your life? Pick up that Word, and begin to read it with the Holy Spirit. Ask the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus sent to be our Helper, to reveal God’s nature to you.

We are the sum total of our thoughts. God is also the sum total of His thoughts. He has expressed Himself to us in His Word. What if we actually believed that?  Hmmmm……the Word IS GOD.  Want to fall in love with Jesus again? Or for the first time? Start having a love affair with His Word!  ”Oh taste and see that the Lord is good…..” Psalm 34:8  YEAH, BABY!  He’s EVERYTHING that is good…..Wake up church ! We’re sleeping! He has so much more for us than this mud life we are settling for! And I’m not talking about Lexus’s and Porshes! I’ talking about walking and talking and knowing the living, loving, humble Saviour who died for us and longs to walk and talk and love through us!

It starts with His Word!    Love to all. Stay near His heart.      Denise

Forgive others – Forgive Yourself

This is the last post on forgiveness, at least for now. I want to address one more issue – forgiving yourself. Let me start by sharing a scripture that points out the problem with unforgiveness. Matthew 18:21-35 is the story of the man who had been forgiven by his master, but turned around and refused to forgive a smaller debt from one of his fellow servants. I’m going to deal specifically with verse 18:34. The man refused to forgive, and was turned over to the tormentors. One of the worst effects of unforgiveness is that the person who never learns how to forgive others (or himself) is tormented. I once held a young lady in my arms who had been abused sexually by her step-father. She was sobbing and saying, “I’ll never forgive him.” I explained to her that SHE was the one seeing a psychiatrist, SHE was the one on medication, SHE was the one having blackouts. I told her that holding that man in unforgiveness wasn’t hurting him one bit. Someone who would do something like that doesn’t care about anyone but themselves anyway. They are, at the very least, selfish and unfeeling, at the worst, a sociopath. I explained that she wasn’t “punishing” him in any way, because he’ll just skip down the road and find his next victim. However, she was being tormented by her unforgiveness, unable to move on with her life. I told her the things I’ve shared with all of you. To forgive is not saying ‘what you did to me doesn’t matter’. It’s saying: “What you did to me was wrong and horrible, and I forgive you. I no longer hold onto the rage and anger. I give that to God”. Then begin to pray for the very person who wronged you. Keep at it until there comes a healing in your heart. She couldn’t grasp that, and refused to forgive the man, and to my knowledge, is still a mess today.

The same thing holds true for you. If you hold on to things that you have done wrong and never forgive yourself, you will be tormented. Unforgiveness will turn into self-hate. You will be full of anger towards yourself and guess what? There are no benefits for the people around you. Why? Because you can only give out what you possess inside. If you are full of anger, hatred and bitterness towards yourself, that’s what you have to give to those around you that you profess to love.

You may ask, “How? How do I forgive myself? I did horrible things”! You first go to God and confess those “horrible things”. Then you ask His forgiveness. By faith, you receive it and thank Him for it. According to I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”. By faith, you thank Him for not only forgiving you, but CLEANSING you from all wrong doing. Thank Him for it daily. You also confess any anger and bitterness or hatred that you have been holding against yourself. This too, is sin. Thank Him for forgiving you and cleansing you of these also. Then, let it go Louie. Holding on to it serves no good purpose except to make you and everyone around you miserable. Flood yourself with God’s word concerning forgiveness, to break down every stronghold in your life in this area. Then: GO ON WITH YOUR LIFE!  Amen.  Stay close to His heart.   Love to all.   Denise

Goodbye for now Papa Gerry…..

I want to take this time to honor a dear brother in the Lord and someone that my husband considered a ‘father’ that God blessed him with. Gerald Simon went home to be with the Lord on Saturday. Rich and I have known the Simon family for almost thirty years. Gerry and Phyllis Simon and their children and grandchildren were a part of our Fremont Church for the duration of that ministry. After the church closed, Gerry Simon still called Rich ‘Pastor Rich’. Rich would always be his pastor. We have all laughed and cried together and grown in the Lord together. In the last few years, Gerry fondly called ‘Pastor Rich’, ‘Richie’. He always had a big hug for Rich whenever he saw him. He would always greet me with “How are you, baby?”  and a big hug. Gerry Simon shared his home, his food and his family with us and always made us feel a part of them. He had a great big heart and leaves a beautiful legacy in his wife, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He never pulled any punches, and was one of the most honest men I’ve ever known. He is now in heaven with my husband and his precious granddaughter Rachel Leigh Simon and many others near and dear to our hearts that have gone before us. We love you Gerry and will miss you terribly. God bless and keep the Simon family during this incredibly difficult time.  Love to all    Denise

More on Forgiveness

I’d like to start by sharing from I John. Starting with I John 1:5 – 7 states: “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have FELLOWSHIP with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin”……..He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” (I John 1:9 – 11)

The reason that I share this scripture, is to point out how important it is to keep your heart pure from all bitterness, hatred and unforgiveness towards others. It is vital to our walk with God that we continue to walk in love towards everyone, even those that have not done well by us. Apparently, it’s possible to deceive ourselves in this area, because John points out that we cannot say that we have FELLOWSHIP with God and continue to walk in unforgiveness in our hearts. I can personally testify to this. I remember a time when a sister in the Lord had gotten very angry with me. I felt that she was being unreasonable and childish at the time. We had gone to a church picnic, and I tried to talk to her, and she ignored me. I was steamed! Ever had those interesting little conversations with yourself, about someone who had done you wrong? Oh, I did. I argued with her silently in my mind, reminding her that she had the mental maturity of a seventh grade girl, and we were not in junior high anymore, or hadn’t she noticed? On and on I went in my thoughts, justifying myself, congratulating myself on being so mature, and condemning her for being so childish. Then I made a conscious decision to end all communication with her. I didn’t need her friendship and would get along just fine without her. Who needed an immature friend like that anyway? Ignore ME, will you? I’ll ignore YOU even better than you ignored me! I’ll show her……and on and on it went. There was a slight problen. I tried to go downstairs and have a time of worship with the Lord, and He kept BOTHERING me with this scripture: “Leave your offering there before the alter and go;  first be reconciled to your brother (sister), then come and present your offering.” Matthew 5:24  Oh, I argued. Ever try to argue with God? He is so patient with us, but He ALWAYS wins. Always. I stated my case. “God, she was completely out of line! Her reaction was over the top. Oh, and did I mention how childish she acted at the picnic? I mean COME ON!” This is what God spoke to my heart: “I’m not nearly as interested in who’s right or wrong in this situation. I’m more concerned with the fact that ‘right or wrong’, your sister is hurting. You have the ability to heal that. I need you to humble yourself, go to her house, knock on the door, and when she opens it, tell her that you are sorry if any of your words or actions hurt her. Ask her to forgive you, and tell her that you love her.” I would love to say that my reaction to God’s instructions was to obey immediately, but I tried to argue just a bit more. After all, this was going to be a MAJOR blow to my pride! Asking for forgiveness is very humbling. It goes beyond “I’m sorry” to putting yourself at the mercy of someone who may or may not forgive you! So, I  had another question for God. “And what if she throws it in my face? What if she doesn’t want to ‘forgive’ me for whatever I’m supposed to have done wrong? What then?” God then gently reminded me that if I obeyed Him, I was giving her an opportunity to forgive and heal. If she refused, it was still my place to forgive her for not forgiving me, and to pray for her to be healed. Wow. He can be relentless with this ‘love’ things He’s got goin’ on! In other words, whether I got the happy ending I was hoping for, God was still commanding me to love her. This involved a lot of humbling of myself. I was also instructed that whether she EVER forgave me or not, I was to walk in kindness towards her, and to keep praying for her. Because, oh yeah. IT”S NOT ABOUT ME. I’m happy to say that in this case, I obeyed, she melted like butter in the hot sun, and our relationship was salvaged.

This most important part of this story is that we need to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His instructions in all things. Just because God showed this to me, doesn’t mean that if your husband is beating and abusing you, and you have managed to escape that horrible situation, that you necessarily need to go over to his place and plead with him to forgive you. You might get another beating! LISTEN TO GOD in all things. What I can guarantee is that if you have hatred in your heart towards this man, and try to have fellowship with God, He will quickly expose that ugliness and lead you on the path of forgiveness. He will lead you to pray for the very person who has abused you. He will heal your heart in the process. This is a big bonus that a life of forgiveness gives you.  Remember at all times: “He who says he is in the light, and HATES his brother (or sister) is in darkness until now.” I John 1:9

Stay close to His heart. Love to all.    Denise Glenn   (How’d I do, Rich?)

He Who Has Been Forgiven Little, Loves Little!

Hello saints! Let’s continue in our teaching on forgiveness. I want to look at an important passage in Luke 7:36 – 48.  Jesus is having dinner with an important religious leader. While they are dining, a woman who has a ‘reputation’, interrupts their meal. She falls at the feet of Jesus and worships Him. She is weeping, and she takes an expensive jar of alabaster oil and anoints His feet. She washes His feet with her tears and wipes them with her hair. The Pharisee is pretty disgusted with the whole scene and says in his heart, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would know that this woman is a sinner’. Jesus, knowing the thoughts of the Pharisees’ heart, tells him a story. The story is of two men who owed another man debt. One man owed a little bit, the other owed A LOT. He tells the Pharisee, Simon, that the man to whom the money was owed forgave both men their debt. Jesus then asks, “Which of these two men do you think will love the man more? The man who owed him little, or the man who owed him much”? Simon answers, “The one who owed him much”. Jesus says: “You have answered correctly”. He then goes on to say, “Simon, when I entered your house, you gave me no water to wash my feet. This woman has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but this woman has not stopped kissing my feet. You didn’t anoint my head with oil, but this woman has anointed my feet with fragrant oil. Therefore, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved MUCH”. Then Jesus said, “To whom little is forgiven, that person loves little”. I find this story fascinating. In essence, Jesus is saying that people who feel that they do everything well, are people who first of all think that they are better than others. They go through life not believing that God needs to forgive them of much of anything. After all, they’re not screwed up like other folks! The problem with that kind of person is that they have very little compassion in their hearts for those who miss the mark. Many people in the world have this attitude. I know. I’ve been out in the working world and listening to people is very interesting. Most conversation is filled with non-stop gossip, judgement and criticism of others. Everyone seems to know how to run everyone else’s lives. That’s because they don’t know God’s love. The book of Micah points out a part of God’s character: You do not stay angry forever, but DELIGHT to show mercy. Micah 7:19   God DELIGHTS to show MERCY! I know. Many Christians are shaking their heads and saying, “Yep. Those ol’ sinners sure are judgmental”! But wait. Christians can fall prey to this kind of thinking. It can happen so easily. You give your heart to Jesus. He forgives you and helps you to clean up your act. You start living a better life. You make better life choices. You start looking down your nose at screwed up people in the world. You judge and criticize them. You tsk, tsk, as though you got better all on your own. Come on folks! It’s JESUS who brought about the changes! It’s JESUS who has changed you from the inside out. And the more you love Him, the closer you draw to Him, the more you know you need His forgiveness DAILY. That makes you appreciative of His love and forgiveness. That makes you overflow with love and forgiveness towards others. Stay close to His heart. You do that by staying close to His Word. Something to think about.    God bless all of you and I will begin posting on a weekly basis.       In His love,    Denise

Love Thy Neighbor?

Hey guys,  just back from two week Florida vacation (we drove)  and not a lot of computer access. With the recent death of Osama bin Laden, I was amazed at the flurry of Facebook posts from Christians on the subject. Unfortunately, many of those posts were, in my opinion, pretty ferocious. I posted too, after promising myself that I wouldn’t join in the fray. However, after a bit, I felt moved to add my two cents for what it was worth. It saddened me that the love of Christ was misrepresented. Many people made very good points and now I will make mine. I know that Osama bin Laden did horrible things. I believe with all of my heart that he definitely should have been brought to justice. He needed to be stopped. I, along with many other U.S. citizens, was relieved that he had been caught. It was my understanding that the military men on assignment tried to get him to surrender and he refused, resulting in his death. While I rejoiced that he had finally been stopped, I did not and will not rejoice at the loss of a human life, no matter how wicked his deeds. In my opinion, as a Christian, his eternity has been decided forever, no going back. If he was not saved, then he has been eternally lost. That is not a reason to rejoice. What upset me was that so many Christians seemed to want revenge. There is a big difference between revenge and justice. On Facebook, I just asked everyone to check their hearts, because that is what God is concerned with. Even Osama bin Laden needs to be forgiven. I will end this with the words of our Lord and Saviour.

“You have heard that it has been said: ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy’. But I say to you: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you; that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For He makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends His rain on the just and the unjust”.  Matthew 43 – 45

God bless!                                        Denise Glenn

We Are Still Going!

Hey hippers!  My deepest apologies! I couldn’t remember the password to post a new entry until today when my son rescued me and the site! God bless everyone for their patience.  I will be posting regularly from here on out.  Final post on the Forgiveness Series will be up soon.   Love to all        Denise  Glenn

Forgiveness: What it is and what it ‘isn’t'!

Hello everyone! I apologize for the length of time between posts. I am still trying to move from Fremont to Omaha, and also deal with all of the various financial matters concerning my husband’s estate. Let’s dive right in, shall we? On my last post, I gave you the dictionary definitions of  ’forgiveness’. The first definition states: ‘To grant someone pardon for a mistake or wrongdoing’. This simply means that you are not going to continue to hold that mistake or wrongdoing against that person. Many people get really angry here. The reason is, that some of the things someone has done to another person are really, really bad. Therefore, they struggle with forgiveness. First of all, I don’t think it is possible to truly forgive someone without the Lord’s help. Secondly, I want to state that forgiving that person of their misdeed or wrongdoing is not stating, “What they did to me doesn’t matter, it’s O.K., it’s forgotten”. What that person did to you is NOT O.K. It DOES matter, and what they did was WRONG. However, I am not going to let what they did to me define my life, character or personality. I am not going to let their wrongdoing continue to rule my life through bitterness and unforgiveness. What they did was wrong, but I am going to LET GO OF IT. In Matthew chapter 18:21, 22 Peter inquired of the Lord, “How many times shall someone sin against me, and I forgive them? Up to seven times? Jesus answered, “Not seven times, but seventy times seven”.  Wow. Really? If someone sins against me, I am to forgive them 490 times?! Jesus says, “Yes”. The whole basis for this is the fact that God has forgiven you. Something that helps me with that, is to remember that I am to forgive others, as God for Chris’s sake has forgiven me. I can do the same. I forgive others for Christ’s sake. Have you ever screwed up? Do you want forgiveness and mercy? I do. I want to deal with other’s sins the way my heavenly Father has dealt with mine. He grants me forgiveness and mercy. I will do the same for others. “Yes, that’s all well and good Denise, but what if they aren’t sorry? What if they keep on doing it, and it’s very destructive and harmful to me, or to those I love”! Your forgiveness is not based on whether or not they are sorry. It’s based on God’s forgiveness towards you, which you extend to others, sorry or not! Now, hear me out. I am in NO WAY advocating continuing a relationship that is destructive or harmful! I am not advocating that to truly forgive that person, you are obligated to trust them, or to continue to put yourself or your loved one in harm’s way. That would be just plain dumb! Forgive them, remove yourself from the situation, and PRAY for them. Amen! As you pray for the very person who hurt you, God will heal your own heart, but for heaven’s sake, use the good brain God gave you! Walk in wisdom. You are not obligated to associate with them. If you happen to see them in a social situation, or on the street, be kind, and move on. Continue to pray for them.  That’s all for today.  God bless all of you!    Love in Christ     Denise

Forgiveness: It’s What God’s All About

Hello Saints! This subject is not only the basis on which our salvation is built, but is a vital part of our walk with Jesus. Without operating in forgiveness, our Christian journey is pretty much put on hold. This has been coming up big in my spirit, so I’m going to do a series of teachings on it. The world operates in a system that is totally opposite to God’s way of doing things. People in the world tend to be good to those who are good to them, they get angry with those who get angry with them,they are mean to others who are mean to them, etc. In the Christian realm, Jesus has a whole different take on things. As our supreme example, He hung on the cross and said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do”. Luke 23:34. Jesus forgave the very people who were in the process of murdering Him! How could He possibly do that?! Yet He did. Some might say, “It’s because He was God”. He was and is God. But He hung on that cross as a man. He expects nothing less from us. As I pondered this scripture years ago, a key to forgiveness welled up in my soul. That key is contained in these words: “Father, forgive them, for THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO”. In other words, if they knew the Father’s love, they wouldn’t do this. We can put that into action in our lives by considering the same thought when someone hurts us. If that person knew God’s love and operated in it, they wouldn’t behave this way. On this basis alone, I forgive them.

   But what is forgiveness? What does it mean to forgive someone? First I’ll give you the dictionary definition: 1. To grant pardon for a mistake or wrongdoing. 2. To refuse to remain angry or resentful. 3. To cease to blame. 4. To free someone from a penalty (punishment). Now the Greek: 1. To release someone from bondage or imprisonment. 2. To forgive or pardon sins (letting them go as if they had never been committed). Whoa, there. Let it go as though it had never been committed? Denise, do you have ANY IDEA what this person has done to me? No, I don’t. But I could tell you some WHOPPERS that have been done to me and my husband over the years. Not only that, but I could tell some HORRIFIC things that have been perpetrated on some of our family members, and honey, it ain’t pretty. Do you know what? Rich and I have forgiven EVERY ONE OF THEM. Why? Those people don’t deserve forgiveness! No they don’t. But I have news for you. Neither do you or I. We don’t forgive people because they deserve it, we forgive them because God has forgiven us for every rotten thing we have ever thought, spoken or done. You don’t deserve God’s forgiveness, nor did you earn it through good deeds. God forgives you because He loves you! He forgives me because He loves me! Praise God! Can we do any less? It gets better! Forgiveness is not just a suggestion, it is a command! Jesus said in Mark 11:24-25 “And when you stand praying, forgive, if you have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses”. I don’t believe this scripture is a picture of our heavenly Father holding out on us in the forgiveness department, but rather, He cannot reach us with His forgiveness because He hits a wall of unforgiveness that blocks His own! I’d better quit while I’m ahead. Next post: We’ll talk more about what forgiveness is, and what it is NOT. We’ll be talking in future posts about how to walk this out in everyday life. Until then God bless you! Serve Him with everything in you! Let’s go for it!   Love in Christ   Denise

We’re Back!

Greetings all truth from the hippers! Just a short note to let you know that Truth From the Hip will continue. This website was dear to my husband’s heart, as were all of those whom he connected with through this blog. I want to take this time to express my thanks to all of you who have prayed for us and loved us even though we have not met personally. I will continue with teachings on God’s Word. I am not as elegant a writer as my husband was, but will go forth with the Word as I am led by the Lord. I cannot begin to express in words how my heart hurts and aches for him. He was an amazing husband, father and preacher of the Word! I miss him so.
Going forth to reach people with the Word was Rich Glenn’s passion and hearts desire. I step forward representing the Lord Jesus Christ, and Richard Glenn. Please keep our family in your prayers, as we are all in need of the support. There was no one quite like Rich. I will post my first teaching this week. God bless you all! In His love Denise Glenn