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Glass House Ministries

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Sick of pretending everything is fine when it’s really falling apart? Longing for a place where you can be real and know that you are accepted? That’s the heart of Glass House Ministries. We hope you’ll join us here.

Website: http://www.glasshouseministries.blogspot.com/
Members: 40
Latest Activity: 1 hour ago

Welcome to Glass House Ministries!

What Is Glass House Ministries?

The heart of Glass House Ministries was born during a painful season in our family, when both our sons succumbed to the temptation to use drugs and consequently battled with the force of addiction in their lives. As Christians, Wayne and I raised our four children to honor and respect the Lord, doing our best to train and disciple them to live a lifestyle of integrity. The problems we faced with our boys left us wrestling with anger, hurt, and confusion, as we tried to figure out where we’d gone wrong as parents.

We experienced two types of attitudes within the Christian community as we trod this desert. Some came alongside with words of comfort and support, joining us in prayer, as we trudged through the fear and the darkness. Others were less gracious; they prayed for our family, but their looks alone made it clear that they suspected what we feared: that we were failures. We knew we weren’t perfect parents, and the sting of judgment reinforced the shame we already carried.

For a short time we pretended everything was fine, but we soon grew to hate the charade. We decided instead to just be real about our lives and to deal with the problems head-on. As we submitted our hearts to the Spirit’s tender ministrations, we began to see healing and restoration take place in our family. One day we found ourselves coming alongside another family in distress, just as they’d come alongside us during our trial, and soon thereafter Glass House Ministries became more than just a dream in our heart.

For our family it happened to be drug abuse. We could just as easily have been the victims of unwed pregnancy . . . abortion . . . divorce . . . alcoholism . . . pornography . . . eating disorders . . . sexual abuse or addictions . . . depression . . . or a host of other harmful realities we see prevalent in today’s society. The truth is that people make choices that are less than healthy because they are driven by needs they do not know how to satisfy . . . the need for approval, the need for love, the need for acceptance, the need for respect, the need for security, the need for purpose . . . the list goes on.

In our modern-day world, broken homes and blended families are the norm. As many as one in four people will deal with cancer in their lifetime. People live under the constant threat of terrorism. Everyone wants to feel safe, wants to be able to trust in someone or something. But people will let us down, things will not fulfill as we expect, and when our confidence is violated, we easily grow bitter and unforgiving, angry and crippled in our ability to love and relate well. We demand perfection from ourselves and others, so that we do not have to deal with disappointment ever again, and life becomes impossible.

Is your life impossible? Have you finally come to understand that neither you nor anyone else can be perfect? Are you ready to be real? That’s where we found ourselves not so long ago, and we know we aren’t alone. We all live in glass houses. Throwing stones of bitterness and judgment at one another will only result in shattered houses and shattered lives. Misunderstandings, shame, fear, guilt, confusion . . . all these work to keep those hurt by life’s disappointments trapped and silent, isolated and alone; but it doesn’t have to be that way. Real people have real problems and they need a place to go, so we founded Glass House Ministries, a safe place to be real.

Through Glass House Ministries, Wayne and I pray God will use us as a source of comfort, encouragement, prayer, and support, to come alongside others in whatever challenge they face, just as God used fellow-Christians to minister to us in our time of need. We want Glass House Ministries to be a safe haven, a place to freely share and find hope. And no, your life doesn't have to be in a shambles to participate here. If you are an encourager, and you have a heart to pray for people, you are welcome here. Basically, if you want to be here, you are welcome here!

Wayne and I are not counselors, therapists, or attorneys. We do not claim to have "all the answers." We do care. We can listen. We will pray. And we will share our own story. Ultimately, it is God Who has all the answers . . . to every imaginable situation we can encounter in this world. We will point people to Him without apology, for it is only through His mercy and grace that our family was made whole again, and it is our heart to see the same thing happen to the people who come to Glass House Ministries.

We're glad you're here,
Cheri and Wayne

Please Note: NO inappropriate language or conversation is accepted. Any such posts will be removed by administrators.

Discussion Forum

Change Comes With A Price! 1 Reply

Started by Colin Bleakney. Last reply by Cheri Hardaway 1 hour ago.

Is there Value in Brokenness? 3 Replies

Started by Colin Bleakney. Last reply by Colin Bleakney 19 hours ago.

A Church With No Walls 5 Replies

Started by Colin Bleakney. Last reply by Colin Bleakney 1 day ago.

A Little Of My Story 5 Replies

Started by Colin Bleakney. Last reply by Cheri Hardaway 1 day ago.

Wanna Bet?

Started by Cheri Hardaway Nov 6.

Breathing Life into Dead Places

Started by Cheri Hardaway Nov 6.

Please Pray for this Blessing from our Lord 7 Replies

Started by Robin. Last reply by Cheri Hardaway Nov 5.

The Follower 1 Reply

Started by Robin. Last reply by Cheri Hardaway Nov 3.

Special Friends

Started by Cheri Hardaway Oct 29.

Be Still and Know...

Started by Cheri Hardaway Oct 29.

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205 Comments

Comment by Cheri Hardaway 18 hours ago: Hi Aerenia, nice to have you as our most recent member of Glass House. Join right in wherever God leads you! Cheri

Comment by Cheri Hardaway 1 day ago: Let's welcome Dr. Denis O'Callaghan as our newest member to Glass House Ministries! We are glad to have you, Denis, and look forward to getting to know you better. Have a great week! Cheri and Wayne

Comment by Cheri Hardaway 1 day ago: Robin, you said: "Coming Soon... Robin's Testimony on Video.. stay tuned.. "

That's EXCITING! Can't wait...

Comment by Cheri Hardaway 1 day ago: Colin, you wrote in your comment below: "I have found that the secret to healing and wholeness lies in a paradox. That is, the secret to winning is to accept my loss, and the secret to wholeness, is to accept my brokenness."

I couldn't agree more. I've often said it like this: Once I surrendered my control, my plan, my independence... and embraced God's plan, His way, letting Him control... it was then and only then that I experienced the truest form of freedom that I've ever experienced in my whole life. To be FREE I had to become a slave, to Him.

Comment by Colin Bleakney on November 8, 2009 at 5:17pm: Bent & Broken

Chariots Of Fire was for me one of the most inspiring films I have ever watched.

Eric Liddell a committed Christian was in a pack of runners and was breaking for the lead. Suddenly and without warning he was thrown off balance, and he crashed heavily onto the grass. Immediately the cameras were focused on Eric eager to catch every ensuing faltering moments.

He lifted his head only to see the other athletes pulling strongly away, not bothering even to look behind. That moment on the grass only lasted a few seconds, but from my perspective it seemed like an eternity, like a horrible dream where you try to run and are held back by some unseen hand. Questions gripped me as I watched with bated breath.

Would he get up, or would he remain on the grass? Would he limp away, with pride wounded, or would he get up, start again and finish the race?

Eric Liddell got up! And the man began to run.
As he reassumed his famous awkward profile the crowds cheered, now he was sprinting toward the distant pack.
The rest is history; Eric Liddell of course went on to win that famous race.

Another race is etched firmly in my mind, that of the promising young female athlete, Zola Bud. Zola was used to running on the rough track bare-footed.
Zola was in fact tipped to be the favourite that day, but disaster awaited that neither she nor the cheering crowds could have foreseen. It happened again, suddenly and without warning, while she was running a competitor overtook her but prematurely cut abruptly in as she passed, and as she did so, her spiked shoes cut deeply into one of Zola’s feet.

She screamed out in pain, limped for a few steps then succumbed to the grass verge where she fell onto the grass in agony; sadly for Zola, it was over.
Two races, two different people, two accidents, two choices, Will I get up and go again, or will I stay on the grass?

I have a name for men and women in that dilemma; I call them
”Broken World People.”

I have discovered that Broken worlds can come about through suffering, bereavement, an injustice, persecution, bullying, painful illness, a personal disposition, mental illness, anxiety, depression and abuse

to name but a few.
Some in an effort to describe their brokenness have described Their dilemma like

A vase that has fallen onto a hard floor and has shattered into a thousand tiny pieces. Some say it is like a jig-saw puzzle that has been smashed and scattered in a thousand different directions

Others simply have chosen to describe the experience of brokenness as having a broken heart

I’m not sure which of these descriptions I would use to describe my own personal broken world, perhaps all of them, and yet if truth were told, all of these descriptions, graphic though they are, cannot fully convey or describe the experience of brokenness.

I suppose the experience of brokenness carries with it an almost inherent question. Much like the question the two runners must have asked themselves when they crashed onto the grass, Will I get up and go again, or will I stay on the grass?

The Broken World Person is also confronted with other questions like:
1. Do I have any value?
2. Can I be useful to anyone ever again?
3. Is there life after brokenness?

My answer is a resounding and unequivocal Yes!

Simply put, Broken Worlds can be mended!

I have found that the secret to healing and wholeness lies in a paradox.
That is, the secret to winning is to accept my loss, and the secret to wholeness, is to accept my brokenness.

I am not speaking of a passive and defeatist resignation to fate; what I am referring to is in fact a Biblical principle.
It is the process whereby God can turn stumbling blocks into stepping-stones.

In my weakness He is strong, in my weak and feeble body His power and glory can be seen.

How? You might well ask.

Allow me to quote what the Apostle Paul said about his own weakness and brokenness and how that God turned these seeming stumbling blocks into stepping- stones.

Spiritual Treasure in Clay Jars

7 We have this treasure from God, but we are like clay jars that hold the treasure. This shows that the great power is from God, not from us. 8 We have troubles all around us, but we are not defeated. We do not know what to do, but we do not give up the hope of living. 9 We are persecuted, but God does not leave us. We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed. 10 We carry the death of Jesus in our own

bodies so that the life of Jesus can also be seen in our bodies.
What Paul is basically saying here is:

My body is just like a weak old clay jar, not much to look at, weak and destined to die, So when you hear the powerful message of God’s love and see the power of God within us, you can be sure it does not come from us but that it comes from God, so He get’s all the glory.

Allow me to illustrate something of what I mean in the following true story:

Two men were once asked to recite the twenty-third Psalm at a Church service.
One was a brilliant and eloquent orator, while the other was simply a bent old man.
The Orator took up his position behind the pulpit and began to read the text aloud from the Bible.
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want..”..

He spoke with a brilliant eloquence that captivated his audience by his articulate speech and flowing words. When he finished, the audience stood to their feet in rapturous applause, on and on the applause went, until at last they sat down.

Now it was the turn of the old man.

Quietly and silently he approached the pulpit, and without looking at the Bible or the audience he began to quote the twenty-third Psalm.
With tears streaming down his face he began, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want...” he spoke with such a gentleness and compassion in his voice that the entire audience could feel the hush of eternity steal into the room, tears flowed from their faces as they watched the old man and listened as if glued to their seats.

After he had finished there wasn’t a dry eye among the congregation.

A young man puzzled by it all asked the Minister at the end of the service, “Your Reverence,” he said, “how was it that when the great orator spoke everyone stood and applauded so loudly, yet when the old man recited the twenty-third Psalm, every-one just wept.

“Ah, that’s easy,” said the Minister, “You see,” he said, “the young orator knew the Psalm, but the old man knew the Shepherd.”

You see, when people see what God can do through someone so weak, something of little value as far as the world’s standards are concerned, then all the glory goes to God and not man.
God can use brokenness to bring glory to Himself.

And so to the title at the top of my page: Bent & Broken, perhaps you will never look at those words the same way ever again?

I know I won’t!

Colin Bleakney

Comment by Robin on November 8, 2009 at 5:15pm: Welcome Anne!

Coming Soon... Robin's Testimony on Video.. stay tuned..

Comment by Cheri Hardaway on November 8, 2009 at 4:45pm: Hi everyone, let's welcome our newest member, Anne! Jump in and join us wherever you feel led! We're a friendly bunch! =)

Comment by Robin on November 6, 2009 at 6:00am: Yes congrats! I will be anxious to read it!
Blessings!
Robin

Comment by Cheri Hardaway on November 6, 2009 at 1:35am: Kathy,

CONGRATULATIONS!!! On the news on your manuscript! We're thrilled for you! Keep us posted.

Blessings,
Cheri

Comment by Cheri Hardaway on November 5, 2009 at 8:23pm: Welcome, Colin Bleakney, to Glass House! We look forward to getting to know you more! Blessings, Cheri and Wayne