Have you ever seen such a precious father/daughter picture? Jack Simpson (Rashida's husband) with their little daughter, Ezzie (our great-granddaughter). Rashida is Evangeline's daughter.
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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.
An old picture of Wesley, our eldest son with Stephen and Evangeline (the twins) who turned 51 this last week! Where do the years go? It seems like yesterday.
Make the most of every day with your little ones, dear mothers. These overwhelming, but precious and wonderful days, end far too quickly. Savor every memory.
~ Nancy
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Yesterday our dog had 10 puppies! She kept on popping them out all day. We thought she was finished at seven, then eight, and then later we found nine and ten! Can you count them? I am amazed at how easily animals give birth and how instinctively and lovingly they mother. Goldie hasn't stopped licking and feeding them and is so content to let them nurse constantly.
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Holding Kyrah Joy, our 6th great-grandbaby. Selah and her husband and children are staying with us for a week while she rests from the birth of Kyrah. Selah is Serene's oldest daughter. Kyrah is barely one week. Isn't she adorable?
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Isn't amazing that when we embrace children into our lives we actually receive Jesus? Even more! Jesus states in Mark 9:37 that we not only embrace Him, but God Himself! What could be more powerful?
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I read a study about geniuses, past and present, in all different fields (although I should emphasize that we should not put this label on children). Every child, no matter who they are, is brilliant in the field God intends for them if they have opportunity to explore and develop their God-given giftings. Studies revealed three things peculiar to these children. They had:
1. A loving relationship with their parents.
2. Isolation from peers and one-on-one tutoring.
3. Rich educational environment with time to explore and ask questions.
This sounds like home education, doesn’t it?
Have a wonderful day,
Nancy Campbell
You could explore many sites, but here is one for you: http://learninfreedom.org/
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We are a word-formed people. Our children are word-formed people. They become what we speak into their lives. Our words determine the course of their destiny--for greatness or for destruction. Children shrivel up with negative words or thrive on encouragement. As they grow, we reap the reward of the words we continually speak into their lives.
Proverbs 12:18 (GNB): “Thoughtless words can wound as deeply as any sword, but wisely spoken words can heal.”
Proverbs 15:4 (GNB): “Kind words bring life, but cruel words crush your spirit.”
Proverbs 18:20, 21 (GNB): “You will have to live with the consequences of everything you say. What you say can preserve life or destroy it, so you must accept the consequences of your words.”
What are you speaking into the lives of your children today?
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
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It’s so easy to get involved in so many activities outside the home, isn’t it? We can even get entrenched serving in the church. This is just what Satan loves to do. He wants us to become so busy doing “good” things that we end up neglecting our greatest service to the Lord, that of caring for our children and managing our home. What’s the use of helping others outside the home if your own home is in a shambles?
I am always challenged by the words in Song of Solomon 1:6: “They made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.” Ouch!
If we spend more time looking after other vineyards rather than diligently keeping our own vineyard, we do not please God. Dear mother, your greatest service for God is right in your home. Tend to your own vineyard and make sure it is watered, cultivated, and protected before reaching out to other vineyards!
Do you notice something else in this Scripture? “They made me . . .”? How easy it is to let others cajole us into doing things, even “noble” things. Let me tell you a little secret. The Holy Spirit doesn’t “make” you do things. He gently woos you to walk in God’s perfect will. If you are blessed with children, God’s perfect will for you is to be the best mother and homemaker you can possibly be to bless your family and glorify God.
Don’t get into the deception of working in other vineyards while you leave your own vineyard unattended.
Enjoy a beautiful day in your home today,
Nancy Campbell
Painting: “Tenderness” by Cécile Veilhan
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Many Christians are content with a word from the pastor or minister on Sunday. Others like to read God’s Word every day. But I think we all fall short of the “gold” and “treasure” we hold in our hands. God’s Word is the literal “alive and active” living Word from the God of the universe, the God who created us. He wants it to be constantly part of our lives and the lives of our children.
Proverbs 4:20-22 (CJB) says: “My son, pay attention to what I am saying: incline your ear to my words. Don’t let them out of your sight, keep them deep in your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to their whole being.”
When God says “pay attention,” what does He mean? The word is “quashab” and means “to prick up the ears like an alert animal, to hearken, to give heed.” It’s so easy to hear words, and yet not hear God speak to us. We have to learn to “hear” with our ears. There is nothing more exciting than hearing God speak from His Word. It burns in our hearts and becomes life to our bodies. And this is the way it’s meant to be. It’s the way we teach our children to hear God’s living Word.
We not only hear with alert ears, but our eyes are not to depart from His Word. The ESV says: “Let them not escape from your sight.” How much are they in your sight throughout the day? Do you have the Bible open at different places in your home? On your window sill where you prepare meals and do dishes. In the toilet. In the spot where your nurse your baby. On the table. Every now and then you can speak forth a living Word to your children.
When we really hear and truly behold His words, they get deep down into our hearts. When this happens His Word becomes life to our souls and medicine to our bodies. I was blessed to know a dear old man who had served the Lord in China until it closed. He then moved on to other countries. I met him when he and his wife were in their eighties and at last coming home from the mission field. He told us how he had cancer while in China, but as he read God’s Word out loud daily over his body, God healed him. The Word has life-giving, healing, curative power to heal.
God’s Word is the best doctor in our home--for our souls and for our bodies.
I hope it’s the No. 1 priority in your home.
Love from Nancy Campbell
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Does Christ Jesus dwell in your heart? Let me share a secret with you. Christ lives in rest. God lives in rest. Nothing gets him in a state of nervous tension. Nothing gets His stomach tied up in knots. And wondrously, He wants to live His life of rest in you. Instead of doing everything in your own strength, allow Him to live His life of rest in you. Instead of doing it your way, do it His way.
“That’s impossible,” you say. You can’t imagine how much I have to do. And now the school year is starting again, I’ve got even more to cope with. I don’t know how I’m going to adequately school all my children!”
God is so great. He shows us the way to do everything we face in our lives. God’s way of teaching our children is quite opposite to the public school way. Of course you know Deuteronomy 6:6-9 where God tells us to DILIGENTLY teach our children. “Diligently” is not a half-hearted word. It means: “To impress sharply by verbal repetition, to point, to show, to engrave, to make them penetrate, and to whet as in whetting the appetite with repetition and diligence.”
How do we do this? God tells us to do it as we live life--when you sit in your home, when you walk by the way (or drive in your car), when you lie down, and when you rise up. He doesn’t tell us that we have to complete every curriculum we purchased (just because we spent the money on it). He doesn’t tell us we have to accomplish the set block of teaching we planned for the day.
God’s way of teaching is “precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little” (Isaiah 28:10). They don’t have to learn everything in one day. Children learn better in bite-size pieces. And there is still tomorrow. There is a lifetime ahead!
God says more on this subject. He continues speaking: “To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing” (Isaiah 28:12). Did you get this dear, weary mother? It says: “THIS IS THE REST AND THIS IS THE REFRESHING!” Let me repeat it: “THIS IS THE REST!” God knows the best way for our children; they learn a lot more this way. And He knows the best way for you; you will enjoy rest instead of becoming a stressed-out, anxious mother.
But we have a problem. Many don’t believe God’s way. They think they have to do it like the school system, or like some other mother is doing it. Dear mother, follow God’s way. Don’t be like the people to whom God spoke these words and their response was: “yet they would not hear” (Isaiah 28:1
Are you listening?
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
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You were created by the Divine Life-giver to be a life-giver. Eve, the first created woman, was a prototype of all women to come. She was named Eve, meaning “the life-giving one.”
The Hebrew word for Eve is Chavvah meaning “Life Giver!” She was a life giver; therefore we are also life givers! We have the privilege of conceiving, nurturing, and bringing forth a miracle of life from within our womb.
Let’s look a little more closely at this wonderful word, Chavvah. It has a number of root meanings which help us to understand the revelation of God’s heart for us even more.
1. Chavah. It looks very similar to chavvah, doesn’t it? This word means “to live, to declare, to show.” I think this is wonderful. Because we are created in the image of God, God wants us to reveal His image in the earth. He wants us to show to our families and the world around us who He created us to be. As we embrace, nurture, and then bring forth life from the womb, we declare to the world that we are life-givers.
We are not ashamed to be who God created us to be. We are not ashamed that God gave us a womb and breasts. We are not ashamed to embrace life in our womb. We glorify God by showing it to the world.
2. Chava which is only used in the book of Daniel. It also means “to show” and was used when Daniel revealed the meanings of the dreams.
3. Chayah meaning “to live, give life, revive, preserve alive, nourish, recover, repair, restore, save alive, and to be whole.” This gives us a fuller understanding of what it means to be a life-giver. It is the all-encompassing picture of motherhood.
4. Mechavvah. Some commentators believe that chavvah is abbreviated from this Hebrew word meaning “the sustenance, the propagation of life.”
5. Zoë. When they translated the Old Testament into Greek, they changed Chavvah to the Greek word Zoë meaning “life-giver, life-producer, life-preserver, and life-spring.”
It’s all about life ladies. LIFE. LIFE. LIFE. God’s purpose for you is to be a life-giver. Yes,
* life-givers from the womb, but also . . .
* living the abundant life-giving lifestyle Jesus died to give you,
* speaking life-giving words to your husband and family,
* bringing life-giving healing to your family,
* filling your mind and heart with God’s life-giving words,
* diligently and daily pouring God’s life-giving words into your children, and
* feeding them life-giving foods instead of the Standard American Diet of today.
Be a life-giver to every in your home and every one you meet today,
Nancy Campbell
Painting: “The Wait And The Reward” by Anna Rose Bain
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God has given us weapons. They are not ordinary, but powerful weapons. They have the power to demolish all strongholds. We have these weapons constantly available to us, and yet how often do we use them?
* We have the weapon of the “It is written” Word of God which overcomes the devil (Matthew 4:2-11).
* We have the weapon of consistent, never-giving-up, importunate prayer (Ephesians 6:18 and James 5:16-18).
* The have the weapon of the precious blood of Jesus Christ (Revelation 12:11).
* The weapon of the powerful name of Jesus Christ, the name which is above every name and the name to which every knee will bow, including the devil (Philippians 2:10, 11 and 1 John 3:8).
* We have the powerful weapon of our confession of the truth against the lies of the enemy (1 Timothy 6:12 and Hebrew 10:23).
However, we read in 2 Corinthians 10:4-6 four requirements to effectively use these weapons.
1. Tear down false arguments and reasonings.
When we fight the battle with God’s weapons we have to do it God’s way. We have to think like God thinks. We have to get our minds aligned with God’s Word, His infallible truth. If our thinking is humanistic or worldly, the devil laughs at us.
2. Tear down every arrogant thought that raises itself against the knowledge of God.
One of the biggest preparations for fighting the battle is to allow the Holy Spirit to expose every high-minded thought in our brains. We must renew our minds in the God’s Word. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. Who are we to doubt the knowledge of God? “Let God be true, but every man a liar” (Romans 3:4).
3. Take every thought captive that does not obey Christ.
When an army takes captives in battle he takes them ruthlessly. We must be ruthless against disobedience. This works out in the nitty gritty of life. We can’t experience victory in the battle if we do not have a submissive spirit to our husband. If children do not learn to obey their parents, they won’t learn to obey Christ, and will never be victorious in battle. If we have a willful spirit, forget about winning the battle.
4. Be ready to avenge every disobedience.
To win the battle, we must wipe out every vestige of disobedience. It gives Satan a foothold and hinders the victory.
Take hold of your weapons today, dear mother, and demolish every stronghold of the enemy in your home.
~ Nancy Campbell
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I think that many young men dream of digging for gold or hidden treasure. I know my husband still dreams of digging for gold! However, digging for gold, diamonds, oil, or diving for hidden treasure is tough work. It takes sacrifice. It’s not a picnic. The early gold diggers went through incredible hardships just to find a bit of gold. It becomes a fever and they can’t stop.
A few years ago two of our grandsons went to Alaska to gold dig. They were only 16 and 17 years. It wasn’t all fun and they both got frostbite and were in excruciating pain. Zadok couldn’t feel his toes for a number of years until God healed him. .
You may be in your home with your children all around you, but you don’t have to give up your adventurous spirit. You can go gold-digging, oil-digging, and treasure hunting every day. And I hope you teach your children to have this same adventurous attitude.
Colossians 2:3 speaks of Christ “In whom are hid ALL the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” A lifetime, and even eternity, will never discover all the treasures in Christ and God. And what about His written word which contains His heart and His plans for us? God’s Word is filled with treasures of gold. David was a gold-digger and describes his passion in Psalm 19:10: “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much find gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.”
I have a friend who told me the story of her brother. He purchased land in New Zealand which he hoped would support him financially. However, it turned out that it wasn’t enough provision and therefore he used the land as a hobby farm. Eventually he sold the land. But when selling he discovered he had another ten acres which belonged to him--the best of the land which would have enabled him to have a good income.
His neighbor was using the land. When he accused him, he replied that he had never asked him for it. He missed out on all the blessings he owned because he did not even know what he had!
Dear mothers, too many in the church today approach God’s Word as a chore or read it out of duty. That’s not the way. We must be gold-diggers who look for treasures. There should be nothing more exciting than searching for the divine truths of God’s Word. When we find gold we are so excited to share it with our husband, our children, and everyone we meet.
Our children enjoy our excitement. They see how we love gold-digging. They get a LOVE for God’s Word instead of growing up thinking it is a boring book to be read out of duty. This should never be.
Become an adventurous gold-digging family,
Nancy Campbell
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Before the world began she was in God’s mind,
A God who loves to create and is very kind,
He’s the author of life and destiny,
And He already knows what He wants her to be.
What an amazing miracle--the birth of a child!
We stand in awe--and God has a smile!
He’s created a life that’s never lived before,
A life that is special, unique, with gifts galore.
She’s a gift to her parents and a gift to the world
As we wait for her destiny to be unfurled.
She’s a budding life that will come to full bloom,
And of course her parents are “over the moon.”
But the greatest wonder of all to see
Is to know she was born for eternity!
She’s not just a life, but an eternal soul,
Born to embrace a heavenly goal.
Oh the wonder, the privilege we have as a wife
To bring into this world an everlasting life!
Praise God for this privilege and praise God for this babe
Whom He has lovingly and intricately made.
~ Nancy Campbell
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Deuteronomy 33: 25: “As thy days, so shall thy strength be.”
Are you worrying about what you have to do tomorrow? Are you wondering how your current situation is going to turn out? Are you fearful about things you are facing? Dear mother, God doesn’t give you strength for tomorrow. He gives you strength for today. And when tomorrow comes, He will be with you and carry you through tomorrow. Nothing you face is bigger than God.
And did you know that this promise is especially tailor made for mothers? God gives these words in a prophetic blessing upon the tribe of Asher where it says “Let Asher be blessed with children” and then it concludes with “As thy days, so shall thy strength be.” It’s in the context of having children! How about that?
You may think, “How on earth could I ever cope with another child? I’m already overwhelmed.” Dear Mother, God is your strength for today. He doesn’t give you strength and energy for a baby that has not yet come to you. If God sends you another blessing from Heaven, He will give you the strength when He gives you the baby. What a wonderful God we have.
Rejoice in God’s strength and anointing He gives you for today.
Blessings,
Nancy Campbell
Painting: Brooke Walker-Knoblich: Creation
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For mothers with boys--here is another little poem for you to enjoy:
Little boys are full of noise
It’s very, very true!
If you don’t ignore their jokes
They’ll do some more on you!
Little boys are full of noise,
And don’t say not always!
They stink, they smell, they scream,
They yell--every single day!
Little boys are full of noise,
If you have one you will know,
They cannot sit, they cannot knit
Or do quiet things like sew.
Little boys are full of noise,
Thousands do agree,
But they are also very fun,
I know, ‘cause I have three!
~ Unknown
Painting: “A Fine Day for Fishing” by Jim Daly.
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Yes, I know there are stains on my carpet,
The traces of small muddy boots,
And I see your fair tapestry glowing,
And flash in your dresses so bright.
Now, I think I'm a neat little woman
And I like my house orderly too,
And I'm fond of all dainty belongings,
Yet I would not trade places with you!
No! Keep your fair home with its order,
It’s freedom from bother and noise,
And keep your own fanciful leisure,
BUT GIVE ME MY FOUR SPLENDID BOYS!
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