What Glenn Writes

One of the books I remember reading to my children was the Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams.  I cannot say it was one of the books we read on a regular basis or one of the books we would often grab to hear a favorite, though it was read a few times.  I remember the book was on a separate shelf, as if it was a higher quality book with a special cover… you have a place for such books, don’t you?  However, this book did not have one of those special covers or show any different quality in material than the rest of the children books.  Yet, for some reason, the Velveteen Rabbit had a special spot.

Could it have been because of the story?

A boy receives a Velveteen Rabbit for Christmas.  The other more expensive or mechanical toys immediately snub the stuffed animal, each considering themselves more real or more with it than the Velveteen Rabbit. Eventually, the Skin Horse tells the Rabbit a toy only becomes real if its owner really and truly loves it.

When the boy’s china dog is misplaced, the maid gives the Velveteen Rabbit to the boy as a quick replacement. The Velveteen Rabbit soon takes his place as the boy’s constant companion, receiving a good amount of wear because of it.  No matter how shabby, the boy loves him and carries him everywhere, much to the dismay of the other toys. 

In the woods near the boy’s home, the Velveteen Rabbit is dropped while the boy is playing, and has the chance to meet actual rabbits.  The stuffed animal learns about the differences between himself and the real rabbits by his inability to hop, jump, or shed fur.

The climax of the story comes when the Velveteen Rabbit is separated from the boy and ready to be burned with the rest of the discarded toys.  In this moment, filled with the emotion he felt from the boy’s love for him, the Velveteen Rabbit cries a real tear for his loss.  This tear brings forth a fairy, who by the power of the boy’s love for the rabbit and the rabbit’s stored up emotion, changes the Velveteen Rabbit into a real one.  

I am reminded of this book as I consider so many people in the past few weeks telling me they want to keep it “real”, or they want their relationship with God to be more “real”, or in some way using this word “real” to describe an emotional desire in their life.  At this, I suddenly see the Gospel being presented in this children’s story.

When returning to the garden, we find Adam and Eve made in God’s image, complete and whole, having all they require.  Yet, Adam’s disobedience separates us from God and there is a divide created between God and man, a wedge in the relationship.  There is an absence in our state of being, an absence where the unity with God once existed. 

Jesus speaks of bringing this unity and presence of being back to the relationship in His prayer, recorded in John 17:20-23.  “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.  I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Here we are, just like the Velveteen Rabbit, wanting to be real.  Whether we recognize the craving or not, it is still there – and often, people will try to fill this need through other means, such as drinking, drugs, or denial.  And, in the end, the only thing that made the Velveteen Rabbit real was the extreme love of the boy.  Could it be all we need is to find this same sort of love for ourselves?   

The One who loved us sacrificed everything so we could be Real. 

Are you real?  If not, email me and let me introduce you to the Boy.   

Glenn Sasscer

www.glennsasscer.com
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If you are like me, you are constantly seeking out the purpose Christ has for you, whether it be in your task, your goal, your relationships, your day, or even in the larger picture by what you do as a career or ministry.  You may already have a clear map or maybe you already know your path, yet I am sure you still seek course directions to stay on track.  Many consider this to be part of spiritual maturity, where we continue to seek Him in our decisions, plans, goals, and priorities.

As I consider my life and where I “plug in”, I have diligently searched for the Lord’s direction in prayer with a sincere desire to “fulfill my purpose”.  I find myself searching for direction in my church leadership roles, business leadership roles, relationships, and teaching my children.  A constant request in prayer is for the Lord, “…to grant to me the wisdom, understanding, and strength to accomplish that which He has set forth in my day, to fulfill the purpose and role for which He has created me.” 

As a man, I have this macho desire to be strong, overcome all odds, achieve something, maybe (if I’m really lucky) conquer something, and at the end of the day cross off my manly list all the chores God gave me to accomplish.  If I can cross everything off the list, I have successfully completed my purpose – the purpose God gave me.  However, in a revelation just this morning, if I am not becoming more like Him (and I mean noticeably more like Him), I am missing God’s purpose in my life.   

David Wilkerson writes in this morning’s devotional, “You see, God’s purpose for me can’t be fulfilled by what I do for Christ. It can’t be measured by anything I achieve even if I heal the sick or cast out demons. No, God’s purpose is fulfilled in me only by what I am becoming in him. Christlikeness isn’t about what I do for the Lord, but about how I’m being transformed into his likeness.”

We find we were created in His likeness and image in Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”  We also know sin has separated us from God, perverting our image and likeness.  Part of His ministry of reconciliation is bringing us back to that true image and likeness.

As Jesus prays in John 17:20-21, “…I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me…”

As we are transformed into the image of Christ, how is it the world will believe in the transformation?  How is it the world will see Christ in each of us?  Is it by what we have accomplished?  Is it by the check marks on the chore list God has given us? 

Or, is it in the way we treat people?

Do I see God in the huge mega-church or do I see God in the people within that mega-church and their love for one another and others?  Is He in the accomplishment or the relationship? 

I think the Lord added a task to my chore list this morning.  I need to figure out what the following means and apply it to my life:

Understanding my purpose in the Lord comes down to how I treat people. 

Glenn Sasscer

www.glennsasscer.com
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My last blog post referred to men taking a leadership role in their relationships with the women in their lives.  This leadership role is one as a leader of equals and not a dictator.  This meaning may get lost in the semantics of the word leader, where today we can easily apply a business or professional definition to the word and consider it more of a dictatorship way of leading.  This was not my intent, although I was not clear on this point as even my daughter misunderstood it.

For a moment, let’s consider leadership: As there are many styles, forms, and strategies, I believe they all can be catagorized into two concepts: the leader of equals and the dictator.  What is remarkable is the effectiveness of these forms of leadership in today’s applications.  When we see a dictator’s style of leadership in business, in professional realms, and even in politics, we see an organization limited by one leader.  When we see a leader of equals, we see prosperous organizations, growing businesses, and success in various business models.  When the leadership style depends and thrives on a group effort, the limits are not on one person, but can exponentially increase (depending on the variables of the group).

I can give countless examples and supporting case studies to back this up, but the effectiveness of the leadership style is not the focus of this post.  The point here is the focus of the leadership: is it to press forward the ideas of one man or a group?  Is it to serve one man or a group?  A dictator can aways say he is serving the interest of the board, the share holders, and the employees, but who is he serving in his action and style?  As Michael Hyatt (CEO of Thomas-Nelson Publishers) states, “…at the end of the day, everyone is a volunteer. People will only go so far in the performance of a duty. If you want their very best, you have to have their hearts. You can’t demand this or even buy it with a paycheck. You have to earn it.”  At the end of the day, who is the dictator serving?  At the end of the day, does the dictator have the hearts of those around him?

Now, compare this to a leader of equals.  At the end of the day, does he have the hearts of those working for him or with him?  Does she have the hearts of those working for her or with her?  

With relationships, the focus is leading equals.  When I referred to a man being the leader of equals, I was placing more emphasis on the word “equal” than on the word “leader”. 

I draw this lesson from my own relationships, but also from Scripture beginning in Ephesians 5:21, where it is written, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  When we view one another as equals (for who is above another in God’s creation?), then our relationships drastically change. 

Too often, we see men taking the verses following this one and twisting them into an excuse for a dictatorship in the relationship.  “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.”  Quite a turn off, isn’t it?  If you are a woman reading this post, this is where you will most likely stop reading and click the back or delete button, but please bear with me.  Clearly, a dictator here would not have the heart of the equal, but rather fear or bitterness.  This understanding is not correct, nor is it ever a good idea to extract one verse out of many within a passage.  The entire passage is required to understand the meaning. 

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”

Here, we find a deeper meaning in the role husbands and wives have with one another.  When we consider a husband who accepts the responsibility of loving his wife under these directions, we have a man committed to a healthy relationship.  That is,

1. “giving himself up for her”, or being selfless, sacrificing and serving his wife;
2. “cleansing her through the word”, or caring for her spiritual needs; and
3. seeing her “…as radiant, without stain, wrinkle, or blemish,” or always focused on the good within her and not the bad.  (I actually refer to my wife this way in prayer, ask the Lord to bless “…my beautiful wife, who is without stain, wrinkle, or blemish.”  This prayer has changed the way I see my wife, and in turn, the way she sees me.)

What is the reaction of a woman who is treated this way by her husband?  Are the feelings reciprocated?  Does she respond?  And, in what way does she respond?  Will he have her heart?

But wait, what about the first verse in the passage?  “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  Can wives begin this approach in the relationship and hope the husband responds?  Will she have his heart?  Ah… but if you don’t try, how will you ever know? 

Of course, there are extremes in every example, and where there is an emotionally scarred, dominant man or woman forcing their feelings from a position of brokenness or suppressed pain, the relationship is handicapped.  Yet even in these relationships, the above pattern is an excellent path for healing. 

Is this a new philosophy?  Is this like, way out there in left field?  Actually, this is the basis for many Christian relationships, teachings, and counseling.  If you haven’t watched it yet, check out the movie, “Fireproof”.  This movie applies the same philosophies. 

Now, there are some who will pooh-pooh this whole concept and idea.  I understand.  I didn’t believe it either, until I lived it.  If your life and relationships are happy and successful without this idea, then please forget what you just read…

…or not.  Your choice.

Are you tough enough to be a Christian?

Do you know someone who might enjoy this blog or one of my eStories or Books? Please share this blog or my website with them. Thanks!

Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com
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I read a story about a pastor counseling a man with reoccurring nightmares where a ferocious lion kept chasing him until he dropped from exhaustion and awoke screaming.  Assuming the lion represented something fearful in the man’s life, the pastor worked through many possibilities: the man’s boss, his wife, some heavy responsibility, but all seemed to come up empty.  When they prayed about it, the pastor was compelled to ask the man to recount the dream and relive the nightmare as he described it.  When the man got to the point where the lion was approaching, the pastor instructed him to stand still until the lion was close, then ask it what it wants. 
 
Then the lion ate him.
 
No, I’m kidding.  The lion answered, “I represent your courage and strength.  Why do you keep running from me?”
 
There are so many lessons and teachings we can draw from this story, especially when comparing the verses in Scripture describing Jesus as a Lion, such as Revelations 5:5, “…See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

What/Who is our source of courage and strength?  What/Who provides our self-worth or self-image? 
 
When I consider ministry, one of the highest priorities I hold is seeing men recognize the image of Jesus in their own self-image, an image of courage, strength, integrity, and purity, without the macho junk or femin-nazi crap plaguing men today.  Through this renewal of the way men see themselves, women will recognize a difference in their self-worth, how they see themselves, and how they are portrayed in life. 

God loves both genders equally, not raising one above the other, yet recognizing the man as the leader of equals.  This is an essential element we have lost in today’s society, in our families, and in our relationships.  God sets the male as the leader of equals, not to dominate a female in an overbearing, control-freak way, but instead to serve in leadership.  Men are to see the women in our lives as equals, though understanding and accepting our role as the leader of the equals. 

Is this role for men to lead just for married couples?  No, this is a role for men to recognize for themselves for all the women in their lives: Wives, daughters, mothers, sisters, friends, co-workers, casual acquaintances, and even strangers.  Is this role just for men?  No, this role begins with boys at the age of accountability, accepting the role as a leader of equals with regard to their sisters and friends, although this also includes mothers and adults with respect and consideration to their position. 

The role takes responsibility.  To often, men try to grasp the role with authority, not fully accepting the responsibility, which must come first.  When men recognize the image of Jesus interwoven in their own self-image, their responsibility as the leader of equals is to help women come into this same position of recognition. 

I am not saying men are to give women the revelation, as this is not possible.  Only God can give either men or women the revelation to which I am referring.  However, when men truly understand their self-image comes from Jesus, the Lion of Courage and Strength, then they are more ready to receive the depth of this truth in their lives. 

When this revelation hits them, and more importantly, when they accept this revelation and receive this into their lives… oh man, watch out!  For this is a genuine man of God, an instrument of service to the Almighty, a destroyer of the enemies of God, and leader among equals for the women in their lives.  This is a true man, the way God made him, with a purpose and a role in life.

I will tell you this, just as Paul told the Philippians in 3:13-14, “…I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”  I am just beginning to develop the understanding my self-image comes from Jesus Christ, the Lion of courage and strength.  Oh sure, I can say I knew this academically for years, but have I actually understood this concept and accepted it in my life?  Now is the time to forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead, and I press on toward the goal to recognize my self-image is interwoven with Jesus Christ. 

Along with other men with this same goal, only then will we be transformed and know what it means to be a true man.  And, when the women in our lives see this transformation, will they follow?  Will they put themselves in a position to understand their self-image comes from Jesus?  Will they receive this revelation into their lives? 

I will let you know.

Are you tough enough to be a Christian?

Do you know someone who might enjoy this blog or one of my eStories or Books? Please share this blog or my website with them. Thanks!

Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com
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I gave a testimony in a previous blog post, which I believe is good to do when the Lord blesses us significantly.  This is a reciprocating blessing to the Lord for His kindness in our lives, and a shared blessing to others.  This is a way of inviting others to share in the Lord’s blessing and I believe it helps strengthen all our faith. 

As you have shared testimonies in the past, I wonder if any of you experienced attacks from the enemy? 

I can most definitely see and give testimony to God’s mighty hand in my life in recent days, yet in the past week the attacks and battle was stepped up a notch.  As my faith seemed to increase through the events and blessings, Satan was ready to cause it to waver with his brand of doubt, destruction, and depression.  As a friend put it, “The enemy is the enemy, and he is out to attack us.”  I stuck my head out in giving a testimony and the enemy took aim at it.
 
I found comfort this past week in 1 Kings 18, where the Lord used Elijah to defeat the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel.  You are probably familiar with the passage where the fire is brought to the water soaked logs, then afterward the Lord fills Elijah with the power to ran back to Jezreel on foot, beating Ahab in his chariot (I always thought that was cool!). 

After reaching Jezreel, Elijah is overcome with fear when Jezebel threatens him.  Fear - one of the enemy’s weapons.  Doubt, another weapon the enemy uses, can also be inserted here as Elijah doubted God could be stronger than Jezebel.  God lets Elijah run until he is exhausted, then reveals His glory and splendor, and even feeds Elijah!  I know many of you are more familiar than I with these passages; and we have all most likely heard many teachings on these verses, but you know how God can take something with which we are so familiar and make it applicable in a new way! 

I am thankful to our faithful God as He strengthened me in the midst of the attack in the same way he strengthen Elijah – well ok, not the same way, because I wasn’t in a cave and He wasn’t passing by the cave, but the results were the same. 
 
I highly doubt the battle is anywhere from being over, but the mere fact there is a battle is encouraging.  This is a great indication and a confirmation we are engaging in something way bigger than all of us.  Can you see it?  Can you see the vision the Lord is giving you to carry on with your mission and let not the enemy distract you?  This is the vision God gives us to carry us past the pitiful attacks of the enemy. 
 
When we pray for one another, let me encourage you to pray for strength in the midst of the battle.  Pray for the vision to be larger than the attack.  And, if you are reading this and thinking you are without a vision, ask the Lord to make it more apparent to you – this is a valuable weapon in the midst of the attack.  I believe the Lord has given us all a vision, or a mission in life… we just need to be reminded sometimes. 

I pray your mission is larger than the enemy’s attacks against you.  Would you pray the same for me? 

And, of course through it all, I should ask the question: Are you tough enough to be a Christian?

Do you know someone who might enjoy this blog or one of my eStories or Books? Please share this blog or my website with them. Thanks!

Glenn Sasscer
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I have a mighty testimony to share!

The Lord of Heaven and earth, the Author of Life, the God of all Creation, the One who cast the stars in the sky and created galaxies we don’t even know about, the One who knows all about the tiniest particles in the center of the nucleus of an atom… you know Who I’m talking about, right?  God, our Lord, our Savior, Jesus Christ, took a moment and shared His healing power with me. 

For seven years, I have lived with a gluten allergy, and for the past 10 months, I have lived with a casein allergy.  These food allergies prevented me from eating breads, grains, most pasta noodles, cheese, milk, butter, and just about 90% of the grocery store.  Now this problem was by far not life threatening, but a mere inconvenience, frustrating, and a life style of avoidance. 

On August 23, a dear sweet sister in the Lord stopped our worship service for a moment of silence and prayer.  Her obedience led her to pray for three individuals, me being one of them.  In that moment, I was healed of my food allergies. 

Prior to August 23rd, I would have had difficulty if I ate a piece of pizza.  The night of August 23rd, I ate five pieces of pizza.  Prior to that worship service, I would have had difficulty with cheese, bread, spaghetti, or even a sandwich.  Since that worship service, I have eaten over four complete pizzas, a plate of spaghetti, several cheese omelets, sandwiches, and bread sticks with garlic butter.  I just ate macaroni and cheese for the first time in seven years. 

I have freedom in Jesus Christ.   Jesus Christ has healed me. 

This is my testimony.  Praises be to Jesus Christ. 

Do you know someone who might enjoy this blog or one of my eStories or Books? Please share this blog or my website with them. Thanks!

Glenn Sasscer
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