There are times when it is right to be silent. We all know the adage, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” It’s also good to remember, “If you can’t say something positive and faith-building, don’t open your mouth.” When we are accused unjustly, we should also follow Jesus’ example and keep our mouths shut. Jesus “opened not His mouth” when He was accused by his tormentors.
On the other hand, there are times when we must not keep silent. Psalm 30:11, 12 (NASB) says: “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, That my soul may sing praise to You and NOT BE SILENT. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.”
We must never be silent when we face deception or evil. We will never compromise but always open our mouths and speak the truth. We will NOT BE SILENT.
We dare not be silent when it is time to pray. When we gather together for prayer, let’s open our mouths, pray, and NOT BE SILENT! It is so sad to be in a prayer meeting where there are long gaps waiting for people to pray. A real prayer meeting is when you can hardly get a word in edgeways because everyone is burdened to pray.
Let’s teach our children to open their mouths in prayer. At our Family Devotions we encourage all the children who can speak to pray. Even the little ones. Children can learn to become great prayer warriors. It saddens me when families come to visit and the children do not want to pray. Usually, it is because they are not used to praying together as a family in their own home. At our family prayer meetings, the adults have to be quick to pray for the children are jumping in and ready to pray.
What about singing and praising? When it’s time to praise the Lord, do we open our mouths with all our hearts, sing out loud, and NOT BE SILENT? Do we worship the Lord with all our hearts or only halfheartedly? Do we teach our children to worship the Lord with all their hearts?
What about speaking for Jesus wherever we go? Do we clam up or do we seek every opportunity to share truth and NOT BE SILENT?
How can we ever be silent? When Jesus came into Jerusalem at Passover time before His death, the whole multitude began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen. However, the Pharisees told Jesus to rebuke them. Instead Jesus answered, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out” (Luke 19:40). Do the stones have to cry out around your home, or can they rest in peace?
Let’s become outspoken families for Jesus, talking about His love, salvation, and truth. Not having to be cajoled, but loving to pray, praise, and worship constantly. This is the normal lifestyle of a family on fire for God.
Have a wonderful day,
Nancy Campbell
Picture: Family Prayer Meeting
Have a blessed day worshipping the Lord together as a family.
Dear mother, you are in the greatest building program in the nation--building strong, godly marriages and families. Proverbs 16:14 reminds us that we are builders: “Every wise woman builds her house: but the foolish plucks it down with her hands.”
Filling our children with God's Word is the greatest antidote to deception!
Yesterday we reminded each other about digging deep wells. Away with shallow wells. Away with sitting on the fence--dabbling with the world and having a little bit of God when we need Him.
The early patriarchs dug wells to get their water. They couldn’t survive without a well. We also have to be well-diggers in our spiritual life. Isaiah 12:3 inspires us to draw water out of the wells of salvation. Not just one well. Do you notice the word is “wells”? Plural! There are wells for every need we have in Christ.
Lift up your head.
“But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what time the thief would come, he would have watched and would not have permitted his house to be burglarized” (Luke 12:39 MLB).
"In EVERY thing give thanks: for THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
Our thought life is our biggest temptation isn’t it? It’s so easy to allow negative thoughts, unbelieving thoughts, doubtful thoughts, depressing thoughts, self-pitying thoughts into our minds. And worry! The worst! We are consumed with worldly matters of this life. We spend more time thinking about material things and the things of this earth rather than things which are above (Colossians 3:1-3).
This is a picture of the car from Isaiah’s accident. The interesting thing is that the opposite happened. Somehow he didn’t have his seat belt on, but it saved his life. He would have been killed immediately if he had the seat belt! One of these exceptions, but God was in it all. Praise the Lord.
We are now in our eighth week of praying every night as a family for Arden, Serene’s son, who is diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Serene and Sam’s son, Isaiah was with us for our praying meeting Sunday night, praying along with everyone else for his brother (we often have over 30 of us each night praying, including all the children who are great prayer warriors). On the way home to Franklin Isaiah had a bad car accident. It took them two hours to extricate him 
We are now warring a warfare and fighting the good fight of faith, not only for Arden, but now for Isaiah. We’d love you to join with us in the prayer of faith for two of Serene and Sam’s sons. At this stage Isaiah is still in a coma and hasn’t woken up. We are praying for a great miracle of healing for his brain which is their greatest concern. His back is also broken in three places.
On Sunday afternoon we enjoyed a lovely baby shower for sweet Christiana and her precious baby, Liliana. Christiana is Serene’s daughter-in-law. Aunty Melissa is holding little Liliana.
I would now like to catch you up on the happenings of last weekend. There is never a dull moment during any of our weekends, or any day of the week, at our home here on the hilltop with many of our large family living around.
Your identity is “the state of having unique identifying characteristics held by no other person or thing.” People have said to me that women should not find their identity in motherhood, but only in Christ. Will you please forgive me if I challenge that statement? Yes, I believe that every born again Christian has their identity in Christ. I live my life by the truth of Colossians 1:27: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
The first home was called the Garden of Eden and was the prototype of all homes to come. In the Hebrew Eden means “delight” and this is God’s intention for our homes. We mothers set the tone for our homes and it is our mandate to make them a delight--a delight for our husbands, all our children, and all who come into our homes.
Some houses try to hide the fact
Dear manager of the home, beloved of the Lord,
Who helps to cheer the daily round?