What kind of food do you eat in your home? Junk food or healthy food? I’m sure most of you try to eat healthy food as much as possible. As mothers we are very aware of our responsibility regarding what we allow our children to eat. I cared very much for my children’s bodies as they grew up. I never allowed junk food. Never had any refined foods, white sugar, or any of the “whites” (white flour, white pasta, white rice, etc.) in my pantry. I wanted them to grow healthy and strong. Apart from going to the emergency room for broken bones or the boys cutting their legs open throwing knives (!) etc., we didn’t even have a doctor for any of our children growing up.
But although I cared so much for their bodies, I cared even more for their souls and spirits. We didn’t feed our children scraps. Praise God, we live in a country where we have access to whatever food we want. They don’t have to live on scraps; we can give them the best food. But what do we feed their souls and spirits? Do we allow them to feed on scraps? I’m amazed that many Christian mothers don’t mind their children spending hours on Pokémon Go, Harry Potter, and many other negative and questionable games and books. Scraps for their souls.
What about their spirits? Many Christian mothers are satisfied to make sure their children attend Sunday School or church once a week. They are not diligent to daily (and that means more than once a day) feed their children a rich diet of God’s Word (Colossians 3:16). Once a week is equivalent to a few scraps.
Dear mothers, God has a RICH diet for us and for our families. Hear His invitation to you in Isaiah 55:12, 2 (GW): “Listen! Whoever is thirsty, come to the water! Whoever has no money can come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk. You don’t have to pay; it’s free! Why do you spend money on what cannot nourish you and your wages on what does not satisfy you? Listen carefully to me: Eat what is good, and enjoy the BEST FOODS.”
God does not want you to live on scraps. He wants you to enjoy the BEST foods--for your body, soul, and spirit. He wants to nourish your children with life-giving foods for their bodies, souls, and spirits. He wants you to live in abundance. But there’s one condition; you have to listen diligently to God Himself. You can’t do it your way. You have to search His word. You have to seek after His wisdom. Not your mindset, but His mindset (Isaiah 55:8, 9 - same chapter!). It’s only in Him that all treasures and riches are found (Colossians 2:3).
May you live on the richest of food,
Nancy Campbell
P.S. Here are some other translations of the above Scripture:
TLV: “Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself
in ABUNDANCE.” (Also AMP and NASB).
CEB: “Enjoy the RICHEST OF FEASTS.”
GNB: “You will enjoy the BEST FOOD OF ALL.” (God’s food is the BEST food of all!).
NCV: “Your soul will enjoy the RICH FOOD THAT SATISFIES.”
NET: “ Eat what is NOURISHING! Enjoy fine food.”
TLB: “Food that FATTENS UP THE SOUL.” (We must fatten our children’s souls and spirits as well as nourish their bodies).
Where do you keep the Bible in your home? On the shelf? We have lots of Bibles on our bookshelves. In fact, I have a whole shelf of different translations. Beside your bed? On the table? In the bathroom? On your iPhone? It’s great to have God’s Word in all these places, ready to pick up wherever you happen to be. But even if we have twenty or more Bibles in our home, it’s not enough. We’ve got to keep it even better places.
We often sing the hymn:
Mark 8:35 has always been a challenging verse to me as a mother: “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.” We often feel that we give out more than we have to give as we pour out our lives in motherhood We feel as if we are losing our lives.
Some women think they have it all together. Others feel like falling on the floor in a heap as they know they could never have it all together, especially if it means keeping a perfect home, perfect children, and perfect situations! Let’s face it. There is not a day that goes perfectly. Every day poses new challenges.
Yesterday we talked about “sound doctrine,” the healthy lifestyle God intends us to live. God also gives us pointers in the Old Testament to bring health to our bodies and to everyone in our homes.
Paul writes to Titus and exhorts him: “Speak thou the things which become sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1).The word “sound” is interesting. The word is “hugiaino” and means “to be physically well in body, to be healthy, hygiene.” The Scriptures use this word in the context of health in 3 John 1:2: “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health (hugiaino), even as thy soul prospereth.” Also Luke 5:31; 7:10; and 15:27.
God’s water of life that He gives to us is pure, clean, holy, and life-giving. Revelation 22:1 says: “And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.”
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.
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.