Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

Through the weekly and daily devotionals you can be constantly encouraged in your great role of parenting, the highest career in the nation. You can also stay updated on what's happening with the Above Rubies ministry.
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Strengthening Families Across the World through the encouragement of women in their high calling from God as wives, mothers and homemakers.

Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

A QUARRELSOME WIFE

QuarrelsomewifeIt’s a dreary life with a quarrelsome wife,
I’d rather be out in the rain.
Her nagging words drip out from a constant spout,
I feel cold and drenched and in pain.
The corner of a roof is where I’d like to be
To escape the constant war.
It’s safer and warmer and more comfortable,
Why should I come down for more
Of that complaining and discord and conflict and strife
From that woman You gave me to keep as a wife!
 
Or maybe I’ll live in a hot, dry desert
Wandering and dying of thirst,
Since in my own home my needs are not met,
Living there is definitely the worst.
The home I dream of holds a wife who’s content;
A woman placidly happy would be heaven-sent.
She’s satisfied, loving, and usually unruffled;
Her infrequent criticism she tries to keep muffled.
This wife brings me good; I feel understood.
 
I jump down from my roof and run in from the rain;
To be apart from this woman would just be insane!
 
~ Kim Newhouse
 
“Better to dwell in a corner of a roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife”
(Proverbs 25:24 TLV).
 
“Continual dripping on a day of steady rain and a contentious wife are alike”
(Proverbs 27:15 TLV).
 
“It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome, worrisome wife”
(Proverbs 21:19 TLV).
 
Read also: Proverbs 19:13 and 21:9.
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

TRAIN YOUR DAUGHTERS FOR THE BLESSING OF FUTURE GENERATIONS!

TrainDaughters“Mothers, be especially careful to regulate your daughters well . . . Be watchful over them, that they may be keepers at home. Above all, instruct them to be pious, modest, despisers of wealth, indifferent to ornament.
 
“For if you form them in this way, you will save not only them,
but the husband who is destined to marry them,
and not the husband only, but the children,
not the children only, but the grandchildren!
 
“For the root being made good, good branches will shoot forth, and still become better, and for all these you will receive a reward.
 
“Let us do all things therefore, as benefiting not only one soul, but many through that one. For they ought to go from their father's house to marriage, as combatants from the school of exercise, furnished with all necessary knowledge, and to be as leaven able to transform the whole lump to its own virtue.”
 
St. John Chrysostom (347 – 407).
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

REIGNING IN LIFE

reigningLifeDear mother, God does not intend for you to be groveling under the cloud of self-pity, grumbling and complaining, and all your household tasks on top of you. He wants you to reign. Rise up to your calling and manage your household well.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

WHAT KIND OF CHILDREN ARE YOU RAISING?

WhatKindChildren

You are raising children for God’s glory! Do it with all your heart.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

A HOLY PLACE FOR GOD IN THIS WORLD

HolyPlaceDid you know that God wants your home to be holy? Wow, that’s a huge undertaking isn’t it? Especially when our homes are filled with sinners. We are sinners and our children are sinners. And even though we are sinners saved by grace, we are still prone to sin. But as we invite God to come and dwell in our lives and our homes, He woos us to holiness.
 
I love Hebrews 9:1: “Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.” What is this Scripture talking about? It is King James language. Let’s read it in the J. B. Phillips’ translation: “. . . and it had a sanctuary, A HOLY PLACE IN THIS WORLD FOR THE ETERNAL GOD.” Don’t you love those words?
 
Back in those days, God dwelt in the midst of His people, Israel. God dwelt in His Shekinah glory in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle, and later the temple. Today, God does not live in a temple, but He still wants a dwelling place on earth. Now He wants to dwell in our hearts and in our homes (2 Corinthians 6:19, 20).
 
On this bit of earth, in the neighborhood where you live, you have a great commission to make your home a holy place for the eternal God! What could be more powerful? Can you seek to make your home a holy place for Him?
 
But there’s more. God not only wants our homes to be holy, but all the area around our homes. Talking about Ezekiel’s temple in Ezekiel 43:12 it says: “This is the law of the house; Upon the top of the mountain THE WHOLE LIMIT THEREOF ROUND ABOUT SHALL MOST HOLY. Behold, this is the law of the house.” You may only have a little backyard, or you may own many acres. Whatever God has given to you, He wants it all to be holy.
 
We not only guard what goes on in our homes, but what goes on around our homes. Who hangs out with our children? What is happening on the inside? What is happening on the outside?
 
God wants every material thing in our homes to be anointed with His presence. Yes, even our pots and pans (Zechariah 14:20, 21). Fill your home with everything that promotes holiness and cast out every evil thing.
 
Holiness begins with us wives and mothers. We are the heart of the home, and it is our responsibility to make it holy. Let’s make holiness our vision.
 
Hebrews 13:14: “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.”
 
Have a beautiful day with your family,
 
Nancy Campbell
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

LordMyShepherd

Don’t you love this picture? Of all the animals in the world God chose to call us His sheep. Sheep cannot survive without a shepherd. nor can we.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

ARE YOU SMILING AT YOUR CHILDREN TODAY?

SmilingChildren

A smiling mother changes the attitude of her home.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

THE DEVIL HATES SUBMISSION

SubmissionIt is the devil who hates submission.

1 Corinthians 15:28 tells us that God has put everything under His Son and then Jesus puts everything under the Father. Neither are vying for power but submission.

If it is the nature of God why don’t we want it to be part of nature?

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

GUILTY MUMS (Part 2)

GuiltyMoms2Here is the second part for you today:
 
My children fight with each other. What's wrong with me?
 
I know, I know. I, too, have read the home school magazine articles about families that love each other all the time and never fight. I've even talked to a family that said this was the case in their home. Mums, they just aren't being honest with us! Or else they aren't aware of what their children are doing when the parents aren't within eve or earshot.
 
We can have a zero tolerance of unloving behaviour toward one another. This means that if we hear the children bickering, name calling, etc. or see them beating the stuffing's out of each other, we can put a stop to it, referee the difficulty, and insist that they ask forgiveness of each other. We can instruct them in kindness, selflessness, and serving others before they serve themselves.
 
However, we can't keep them from initially getting into squabbles. Our children have sinful natures and will sometimes (many times?) choose to act in wrong ways. Each one of them has a free will of his own, just as we adults do, and sometimes they blow it, just as we do. The difference is, by the time we reach adulthood, hopefully we have learned how to settle differences more calmly, and hopefully we are more deferent to the desires of others. Our goal is to train our children in being loving and kind to others. It takes persistence and consistency. And sometimes we will feel like giving up, or just won't feel like dealing with it right then. Determine to do your best at dealing with the squabbles, but don't beat up on yourself if you aren't 100% consistent. None of us are 100% consistent. Over all, they will still learn to behave rightly.
 
I can't get organized.
 
Every year millions of dollars are spent on self-help books and closet organizers by women with this guilt trip. I suspect that the majority of us are not "Cleanies" by nature. How we envy those who do have a gift for organization and a forever-neat house! They are the exception, not the rule, ladies!
 
Let's be realistic. Before you had children, your house was cleaner than it is now. That's because there were less people in it to help dirty it up. When you began home schooling, the house took another slide. It's about priorities and the time available. It's hard to teach the children for several hours a day, and still get all the cleaning done that you used to do in those same several hours. Get the children to help as much as they are able but expect the house to be somewhat shabbier than it used to be.
 
It is a good thing to be disciplined, orderly, and neat. We shouldn't just throw up our hands in defeat and quit trying. We do want to teach our children to be orderly, and model it for them. But sometimes our standards are ridiculously high, and very often we are basing those standards on how we perceive some other person's neatness to be, or on a “Better Homes and Gardens” magazine, rather than on what God would have of us.
 
I don't cook wonderful meals.
 
We try to follow the old "Four Basic Food Groups that I learned as a child, try to get enough fibre, and don't worry a whole lot about whether the food is fancy anymore.
Don't let food obsessers lay false guilt upon you. Eating healthy foods can become a god. However, if God is speaking to you about getting eating habits in order, neither should you brush Him off and automatically assume it is false guilt. The watchword is balance.
 
In summary.
 
So, how do we deal with guilt? The first thing we need to do is ascertain where the guilt is coming from. Is it conviction from the Holy Spirit that we have sin in our lives? If so, we need to repent, and then leave it at the cross of Jesus. Once a sin has been repented of, it is washed away, and any guilt attached to it from that point on is a false guilt. If the sin comes up again, we can repent again, determine to deal with it until we have a complete victory, and look to the Lord to help us conquer it. "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ . . . ” (2 Corinthians 2:14).
 
Most of the time, when we feel guilty about our mothering skills, it is an exalted, idealized notion in our own minds of how we should be, rather than a realistic picture of how we can be. Many times the unattainable standard of perfection that we set for ourselves has nothing to do with holiness verses sin. It’s just an idea that we have, and something that the Lord is not expecting of us. We need to discern the difference between our own ideas and God's standard for us.
 
We are not alone in the guilt battle. I am speaking to myself, sisters, as much as to any of you. There is comfort in understanding that we all struggle with this problem. Not one of us is a "freak" because we suffer with guilt.
 
Jesus has enough mercy, grace, and all-sufficiency in Himself to more than make up for our parenting mistakes. If we humble ourselves enough to ask our children to forgive us when we err against them, they will forgive. If we pray diligently for them to grow up right in the Lord, He will hear our prayers and faithfully answer. His love covers a multitude of our sins, weaknesses, and failings.
 
May Jesus give us grace to go on in Him, be the best mums we can be, and leave the results in His hands.
 
© 2002 by Lee Ann Rubsam. All rights reserved.
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

GUILTY MUMS (Part 1)

guiltymomsDoes anyone relate?
 
I thought you may be blessed by this article. I will print half today and half tomorrow.
You've probably experienced it. Most of us have. The Guilty Mum Syndrome.
 
It gets its grip on us in a variety of ways, sometimes expected, sometimes taking us completely off guard— the Mother's Day sermon; the sentimental poem about what it means to be the perfect mother; the home school magazine with the elegant, smiling mother on the front, surrounded by her happy (and equally elegant) family; the home school conference with the “I've-got-it-all-together-and-I'm-going-to-help-you-get-it-all-together-too speaker;” the Character Building for Families book that you hope will solve all your family's problems—but instead makes you feel like more of a failure than you already suspect you are.
 
Guilty Mum Syndrome is one of my weaknesses, and if what I frequently hear from other women is any indication, I would guess that hardly any mother in America is completely immune. There is comfort in knowing that we're not alone, that others have been there—
and still go there frequently.
 
No, the Character Building for Families lady isn't perfect. Neither are her children. Yes, I do struggle with the concepts (still!) that we have laid out in our books. Our girls still get sloppy about obeying promptly the first time they are told, so we work on it again. I still haven't got the “Mum-isn't-going-to-yell-anymore “thing down. But I'm working on it, and repenting when I fail. Every time we go through Character Building for Families again, I get convicted, and I get my character built a little bit more. I hope the children do, too.
 
My husband, wonderful man that he is, puts the balance in my life. When he sees me down in the dumps about what a terrible mother I am, he reminds me that our children love the Lord with all their hearts, that they are well-adjusted, happy people, that they aren't neglected or abused. And he encourages me to pick up the pieces of my emotions and go on. He doesn't understand why I go through Guilty Mum Syndrome, but he helps me deal with it.
 
My children don't understand either. When I am less than kind, they forgive and keep on loving me. I, on the other hand, may beat up on myself for days, or dredge it all up again weeks later. They think this is weird. They are right.
 
The funny thing about Guilty Mum Syndrome is that it doesn't just hit us when we have actually sinned against the children. It is also triggered by comparing ourselves to exalted ideals we have created in our own minds, or that other people try to put on us.
 
Here are some of the main areas of guilt that I hear about from mums:
 
My children aren't motivated.
 
No, and neither are most everybody else's. Think back to when you were a child attending school. Did you like school— every class, every moment? Probably not.
 
Let's face it: many things we have to learn in life are not fun. Many children don't like math. Many don't like language arts or music lessons. Some don't like any of their school subjects. It isn't your fault. Doing schoolwork takes self-discipline and perseverance, most admirable character qualities to develop in our children. Our sinful nature is basically lazy. Developing self-discipline and learning to say "no" to our flesh is a life-time growing experience, so why should it surprise us that our children don't like to do things that take effort?
 
Tell your children that it doesn't matter if they like their schoolwork or not. They are going to do it. It doesn't hurt to gently remind them that schoolwork is their job for Jesus, and that they should do it well for His sake. There have been times when I have reminded my children to get back at their studies about every five minutes. It is a frustrating thing for a mum. Sometimes it makes us want to sit down and bawl.
 
There is light at the end of the tunnel, however. Keep after them, and by the time they reach young adulthood, they will show signs of maturity, responsibility, and (gasp!) even motivation. Honest! I've seen it happen in my oldest daughter. I have this theory that the love of learning kicks in after we become adults.
 
My children aren't perfect in public.
 
Every parent has felt the embarrassment of Johnny doing some stupid thing in public. And it is always worse when it happens at church. It is even worse yet if you are a home school mum, trying to prove to the world that your child is not a social misfit due to home schooling. (In fact, you might just be trying to prove to the world that your children are better than everyone else's because you do home school!) You know the kinds of things children do (and these are just the "church" infractions) - a sudden bout of disrespect that leaves you with your mouth hanging open (guaranteed to happen in front of the pastor's wife or the Sunday School superintendent), kicking little sister until she yelps (at the precise moment that the pastor pauses for emphasis in his sermon), spitting on another child just as Deacon Jones walks by. It makes a mum want to cry. Dads take this stuff in stride, but mums . . . well, we just wonder where we've failed.
 
Children do dumb things. All of them. Some more than others, but still, all of them. It isn't major crime, it's just immaturity. But we mums tend to beat up on ourselves about it. Maybe children's immaturity is one tool that God uses to keep us humble.
 
© 2002 by Lee Ann Rubsam. All rights reserved.
 
I’ll post Part 2 tomorrow.
~ Nancy
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

HIDDEN BEAUTY

HiddenBeautyHidden Beauty
 
I know a busy mother
With a thousand daily cares,
Who says each time I meet her,
“I’ve just found some more grey hairs!
 
It’s the housework and the children,
That are turning my hair grey,
All these problems and pressures,
Are just wearing me away.”
 
And I wonder as I listen,
While she frets about her curls,
If she had ever looked at a diamond
Or admired the glow of pearls.
 
If an oyster had a problem
And some sand gets in its shell,
If it covers it with beauty
And makes a pearl as well.
 
And a worthless lump of carbon
Hidden deep within the earth,
Changes form because of pressure,
And a diamond is given birth.
 
Without problems and without pressure
They would both have been sand or coal,
So let’s be thankful that our problems,
Can help to make a lovely soul.
 
~ Author unknown
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

ARE YOU A CROWN?

Crown

The attitude you have to your husband will affect the attitude he has to you.

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Super User
Uncategorized Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

IS YOUR HOME AN EXCITING PLACE?

HmPlaceYour home is God’s gift to you, whether it is a little home or a large home. God created the home for the woman before he brought her into the world. He had the home waiting for her. Eve woke up to life in the place God created for her. The Garden of Eden means “delight.”
This is God’s plan for the home.
 
Don’t vacate your home. Embrace it. Build it up. Pour into your home to make it a place that everyone in your family loves to be.
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

DON'T BE HOODWINKED!

HoodwinkedDear mother, as you tend to your children in your home you are right where God wants you to be. You are in the perfect will of God. Be content and rest in the glory of your high calling from God. Did I say rest? And yet you feel as if you are overworked and underslept! Maybe you are feeling overwhelmed but as you embrace your calling and relax in it you will experience God helping you. When you have the right mind attitude it changes everything.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

INVEST IN FOREVER

InvestingMothers

Make every day count for eternity.

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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

ARE YOU ON A WILDERNESS JOURNEY?

GrumbleGrumbling and complaining is not the way,
Keep your eyes on Jesus to have a good day!
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

PRAYER THAT CHANGES

BedtimeprayersIf I engage in too many things,
I won’t be good at “any things.”
And I won’t have time for
Prayer that changes things!
 
~ Joy Witheford
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

OUR HOME SWEET HOME

OurHmSweetHmLord, please bless our home sweet home,
Grant it love and cheer;
May the folks You bring to us,
Feel Your presence here.
 
Cast out thoughts of wrath and hate,
Cause all strife to cease,
Clear the air of fear and doubt,
Fill each room with peace.
 
If we stray from off the path,
Lead our steps aright,
Walk with us through each new day,
Hold us close at night.
 
May Your angels watch o'er us,
As we go down life's road,
Please make Yourself at home,
Dear Lord, Abide in our abode.
 
~Author Unknown
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

WHAT IS YOUR PASSION?

WhatsYourPassionI thought that the Queen of Sheba came to visit Solomon because of his fame, wisdom, and all his riches. However, I noticed in 1 Kings 10:1 that there was more to her curiosity. Let’s read what it really says: “And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon CONCERNING THE NAME OF THE LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions.”
 
Her biggest interest was because of the name of the Lord. We notice this again in 1 Chronicles 2:1: “And Solomon determined to build a house FOR THE NAME OF THE LORD.” This was Solomon’s passion.
 
What is your passion as you build your home? Is it to have the most beautiful décor? Or do you want your home to be a home where the name of the Lord is honored, uplifted, and magnified? In every room. In every life. In the atmosphere.
 
The name of the Lord is so powerful. All God’s attributes are revealed in His names. Do we know these attributes? Are we experiencing them in our homes? Are we teaching these attributes to our children? May our children be in awe of His name. May people around know that our home belongs to the name of the Lord.
 
Through the name of Jesus we can defeat the devil, have power over temptation, and receive answers to prayer. We are more than conquerers through His name. His name is a strong tower into which we can run.
 
Does the fame of His name go out from your home to your neighborhood? Is your passion to build a home to honor the name of the Lord?
 
Blessings to your home today,
 
Nancy Campbell
 
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Nancy Campbell
Women's Daily Encouragement Blog

I BOUGHT A LIE

BoughtLieEver since my childhood
I dreamed of marriage and motherhood
But I suppressed that dream and made another choice
For I listened to the deceiver’s voice
I sought to perform like all my friends
And I set my sights on empty ends
I got my education from the world
And learned some things that are not good for a girl
Because . . .
I BOUGHT A LIE!
 
I know of a couple who grieves their sin
Of rejecting the blessings God intended for them
They felt overwhelmed with young children
So she got fixed though she was not broken
Years later she longer for another one
And it was costly to reverse the damage done
Now they recognize God is in control
And will never again try to take His role
For she cries . . .
I BOUGHT A LIE!
 
I know a woman who lives with great pain,
Due to the memory of the child she had slain
Many proclaimed that it was her choice
And she did not recognize the deceiver’s voice
She has since repented and trusted Christ
And He has forgiven her and changed her life
She shares this truth with those who are grieved
And tries to keep others from being deceived
She tells them . . .
I BOUGHT A LIE!!
 
Will we serve self, or will we serve Christ?
Will we promote death, or will we promote life?
Will we seek God’s glory or seek man’s praise?
Will we humble ourselves and walk in His ways?
Will we train up God’s soldiers to wage this war?
Or will we tell Him we don’t want any more?
Will you seek God’s guidance for every choice?
Or will you listen to the deceiver’s voice?
A hope you never have to say . . .
I BOUGHT A LIE!
 
~ Paula Thorson
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
 
IBoughtLieSong
I BOUGHT A LIE – IT’S A SONG
After posting the poem above, "I BOUGHT A LIE", Paula contacted me. Paula was originally one of my very first Above Rubies helpers years ago. She is now the mother of teens. The poem is actually a song Paula wrote and she has given me the link to the song if you would like to check it out.
 
By Paula Smith (nee Thorson)
And her current email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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