Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

However, along the journey the oxen carrying the cart stumbled and Uzza put out his hand to steady the ark. What happened? “The LORD’S anger burned against Uzziah, and God struck him dead on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there next to the ark of God” (2 Samuel 6:7 HCSB). David was angry and afraid of God. “How shall the ark of the LORD come to me?” he cries out.

David’s heart was perfect before the Lord. He was not rebellious. He did it with the very best intentions and the wisest way he could possibly think of, knowing it was the ark of “the LORD of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims” (v. 2).

In the meantime, David left the ark in the home of Obed-edom and “God blessed Obed-edom, and all his household” (v. 11).

Obed-edom was getting blessed and David was desperate for the ark. He had to get it back to Jerusalem somehow. This time, he searched for the way GOD wanted His presence carried. The previous time he did it the way he thought was best. Now he discovered that God had commanded in the beginning that the ark was only to be carried on the shoulders of the priests (Exodus 25:10-15 and Joshua 3:8).

This certainly was not as glamorous and prestigious as David’s first idea, but He obeyed God’s original command and ark of the covenant came safely back to Jerusalem.

I use this analogy regarding motherhood and homemaking. God’s original decree is for mothers to embrace mothering and child-rearing in their homes. The older women are to teach the younger women to love their husbands, love their children, and to be keepers at home (Titus 2:3-4). The picture God gives of a family is of the mother in the heart of the home and all the children sitting around the table (Psalm 128:3).

However, many mothers today are not embracing this mandate. The norm today is for mothers to go out to the work force and leave their children in daycares. This is the new cart. Some do it in rebellion to God’s ways. But many, like David, do it with good intentions. They think it is the best and wisest way. Well, it’s the way that suits their lifestyle!

But it is not good enough to do what we think is the best way or even the wisest in our eyes. We must do it God’s way. We must search His Word to know His way, for His way is always the best way. His way brings the presence of God. His way brings His blessing. His way is for our safety.

Many blessings,

Nancy Campbell

Genesis 5:24 tells us that "Enoch walked with God." Even more amazingly, we read in Genesis 6:9 that "Noah walked with God." Four generations after Enoch, his great-grandson, Noah, continues to walk strongly in the ways of God. What a great testimony. Don’t you long for this testimony in your family?

And Noah accomplished this in an environment of corruption and violence (Genesis 6:11-13). He not only continued in the influence of his godly forefathers, but "prepared an ark for the saving of his household" (Hebrews 11:7).

Keep this vision in your heart, dear mother. Train your children each day with a generational understanding. Believe for it. Pray for it. Pray that your progeny will continue to walk with God because of your influence as a mother . . . even when you have passed on. And pray for the coming generations. As my husband and I pray for our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren each day, we don’t stop there. We also pray for the coming generations!

You are doing a great job. Be blessed,

Nancy Campbell

Painting: Hendrik Heyligers (1877 – 1967, Dutch).

It wasn’t long before Lot and his family landed up living in Sodom (Genesis 14:12). We then read how he became totally entrenched in the city life. He even became an elder in the Gate of Sodom (Genesis 19:1).

He was still a righteous man who was tormented in his soul with the disgusting lifestyle of the people of Sodom (2 Peter 2:7-8). But he lost most of his family! When God came to warn him of the coming judgement upon Sodom he tried to warn his sons-in-law, sons, and daughters to run from the coming judgment. They thought he was crazy. They were already entrenched in the culture—and were destroyed (Genesis 19:12-28).

What is the passion and direction of your family? The direction you are pointed as a family is where your children will end. Keep pointing towards God’s ways. This takes constant effort and prayer on your part. You can’t take your responsibility lightly.

We must encourage, inspire, fill with God’s Word, show compassion, and sometimes “pull them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh” (Jude 1:23).

Are you raising children who are strong and brave enough to impact our godless culture or are they being influenced by the culture?

Be blessed today from Nancy Campbell

Did you know that God has appointed you to be a watchwoman over your home?

Proverbs 321:27 says: “She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.”

The Hebrew word for “looks well” is “tsaphah.” It means “1) to observe and keep watch, 2) to lean forward, to peer into the distance, and 3) to be a watchman.”

This woman constantly observes what needs to be done in her home. She does not let things go unnoticed. She also prepares for the future. She has enough food and other necessities stored up against a day of hard times or calamity. She does not live only for today, but is well prepared for any emergency.

But, primarily, she is a watchwoman. The Hebrew word used here for the woman is the same word that is used for “watchmen” in the Bible. I’ll give you the references at the end of this post.

A watchman cannot be a watchman unless he is at his post. We cannot effectively watch over our home and our children if we are not in our home. The enemy of our children has power to get at them when we are not watching over them. When we put them in daycares and public schools. This not only applies to our little children, but our older children.

When raising our children, I found I had to be a keen-eyed watchwoman when they were teens more than at any other time! I had to be on the job. I couldn’t leave my post. Isaiah 56:10, 11 gives a scary picture of watchmen who are not doing their job. “His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark: sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber . . . they all look to their own way, every one for his gain.”

If you have a watch dog, you’ll want it to be a barking watch dog. You want a dog that lets you know someone strange is coming around. We also must learn to be barking watch dogs. No, I don’t mean a screaming mother who is always yelling at her children. As my husband would say, “No, a thousand times No!” We bark at the devil, not at our children.

There are two aspects to motherhood. Firstly, the gentle, nurturing anointing that God has put within us. Secondly, the powerful, protective anointing that revolts against evil and all subtle works of the enemy that seek to pull our children away from God. We will not stay silent. We will not sit around while the enemy lurks. We will bark. In another words, we will take action, lovingly speak the truth, and do everything in our power to save our children from the claws of the enemy (1 Samuel 17:34, 35 and Jude 23).

Read prayerfully the following passages which speak to watchmen. They also speak to us as mother watchwomen (Ezekiel 3:7-9; 17-21; and 33:1-9). God holds us responsible to warn our children. If we don’t, their blood is on our hands.

Blessings and love from Nancy Campbell

P.S. Hope you didn’t scared off by the picture. Maybe it will help us to remember we are watch dogs in our home. But remember, we bark at the devil, (by resisting him in the powerful name of Jesus), not our children.

God is also a Watchman (the same Hebrew word used of the woman in Proverbs 31:27): This time the word “behold” is used: Psalm 66:7 and Proverbs 15:3.

Watchmen, the same Hebrew word as “looks well.” 1 Samuel 14:16; 2 Samuel 13:34; 18:24-27; 2 Kings 9:17-20; Isaiah 21:5-8; 56:10,11; Jeremiah 6:17; Ezekiel 3;7-9; 17-21; 33;1-9; Micah 7:4; Nahum 2:1; and Habakkuk 2:1.

Today we continue our word study about this phrase that is an offense to many women. However, if we are Bible believers, we need to understand what it is all about.

The second word from which this phrase is translated is “oikouros.” It is also from two Greek words: “oikos” meaning “a home, a dwelling, or by metonymy--a household or family” and “ouros” meaning “to guard, to watch, to keep, to have the oversight and responsibility for something.”

It means we are HOME-GUARDERS! It’s the picture of a “keeper of the castle” who guards it from any intruder.

Because this word is not used anywhere else in the New Testament we must look to similar words in the Greek language to fully understand its meaning. This word and all derivatives of this word were used in the context of a woman who stayed at home to manage her household. In the language of the day this same word referred to a watch dog who guarded the house. It was also used of men who stayed home from war to avoid military service. They were called “stay-at-home” men.

Therefore, this word means a “stay-at-home” mother, which is the exact meaning from the Strong’s concordance--“a stayer at home.” This sounds like a negative phrase, doesn’t it? But that is far from the truth.

THE WATCH DOG

The mother of children does not stay home for the sake of staying home. She is in her home to guard it. She is a Watch Dog. She watches over her marriage. She watches over her children. She conscientiously manages her home. She keeps everything in order (Proverbs 31:27 and 1 Timothy 5:14).

The AMPLIFIED version says: “makers of a home (where God is honored).”

J. B. PHILLLIPS translates it “home-lovers.” It is sad that many women do not love home. They want to get out of the home. I believe the reason for this is that most women have been brainwashed to look negatively on the home. They have been educated to think that the home is a boring place, an insignificant place, and a demeaning place. No one has told them the truth about the power of their home. School and college never taught them that home is not only a place to nurture and train our precious children, but it is the place where we can truly fulfil all the creative and productive dreams God gives to us.

I often say to women: “All mothers love their children, but not all mothers love motherhood! It’s when we love and embrace motherhood that we enter into the joy and fulfillment of motherhood.”

I believe it is also true of the home. God created mothers for the home, but they have been taught to despise it. When they acknowledge the truth, and begin to embrace and love their home, they find how they have been cheated and lied to. They begin to see that the home is their greatest place of fulfillment.

WAY’S translation tells the older women to teach the younger women “to recognize that their sphere is home.” This is God’s ultimate and wonderful plan for their lives. What a privilege to have a home. What an honor to have a dominion where we are QUEEN and where we rule and reign. What a privilege to make a sanctuary for the living God and for our husband and children.

There is no greater power we wield than when we are nurturing, loving, and training our children in our home who will one day go forth to bless the nation and the nations of the world with God’s truth and love.

What opportunity to influence the lives of hundreds of people as we open our doors in hospitality and invite in the needy and those who need encouragement and friendship. It’s not only the poor who are lonely and devastated; it’s often the rich. Every person is desperate to feel the love of God. And you can show them God’s love in your home.

Of course, over all, you are GUARDING. Your beady eyes (physically and spiritually) are watching and you are ready to bark at any entrance of the enemy. What’s the use of a Watch Dog who is not at home?

Be blessed today,

Nancy Campbell

P.S. The following versions translate this phrase as “home-keepers”: KJV, WEBSTER’S, YOUNG’S LITERAL TRANSLATION, 1599 GENEVA BIBLE, BERKELEY, WILLIAMS, and BEREAN LITERAL BIBLE.

Many women don’t like this phrase. Even Christian mothers. And yet it’s in the Bible! Isn’t that amazing? However, I think it comes down to the fact that we either believe the Bible or we don’t. If we believe the Bible we must receive every word as the living, breathing Word of God. It is an eternal Word. It is as up-to-date as tomorrow’s newspaper!

Therefore, if you believe the Bible, would you like to come with me on a little word study? Let’s look into this phrase and see what it really means, shall we?

The phrase “keepers at home” in Titus 2:5 is translated from two different earlier manuscripts.

The first Greek word is oikourogo, coming from two words:
“oikos” meaning “home” and “ergon” meaning “to work.”
The word literally means HOME-WORKERS!

I am a great believer in working mothers. However, we must know the place where God wants us to work. It’s in the home. It says “home-workers,” not “career workers.”

The home is not a prison to lock us away from all the wonderful things we could do in this life. The home is where we CAN DO all the wonderful things that will bless our own lives, the lives of our family, and many others.

The home is a place of function and action. It’s a place of nurturing where we have the privilege of nurturing and teaching the children God gives to us. It is also a place of creativity where we can accomplish all the creative ideas God brings to our minds. It’s the most exciting place in the world. We make our own hours and are free to create. We are not bound to an employer (submitted to another man rather than our husband).

That’s why we are workers in the home. We are not lazing around, but working. As we work, ideas come to us to do things in a better way. God gives us anointed ways to teach and minister to our children. Solutions come to us to solve problems in our family life. Inspiration comes to our hearts about hospitality and how we can reach out to the lonely, hurting, and those who need encouragement.

When you lift your eyes from focusing on the so-called “mundane” which must be accomplished each day and instead open your mind and heart to God, you’ll never have another boring moment in your life. And you’ll never have time to be lazy. You’ll be working hard and loving it.

Why do I used the words “so-called mundane”? Because if Jesus Christ, the Creator of the universe dwells in you, everything you do is sacred—whether it’s a huge project or the daily tasks of laundry, dishes, or cleaning up baby poo! Everything you do pulsates with the power of God and counts for eternity.

Why not decide to be the greatest homeworker in your city? Wow, can you imagine what miracles will happen?

Now we also have another Greek word to study to fully understand this phrase, but I’ll save it for tomorrow.

Love from Nancy Campbell

P.S. The following translations translate the word “homeworkers” or “working in their homes”: ESV, WEB, CEB, CSB, NIV, WMB, NASB, NCV, NLT, and DARBY. There could be others too. The Weymouth translation says: “industrious in their homes.”

In response to my post below, BE PROUD OF YOUR CALLING, a mother asks: “And what about the dads? Aren't they able to be a 'stay-at-home-dad' while 'mommy' works?”

This is becoming more accepted in our humanistic society. However, it is the opposite to God’s plan for men and women. God created the woman to be the nurturer, nourisher, and nestbuilder of the home. He created the man to be the provider, protector, and priest of the home.

When a mother, to whom God has graciously and miraculously given children, leaves her children in a daycare, or even with their father, to pursue a fulltime career out of the home, she denies who God created her to be. When a father refrains from taking up his responsibility to provide for the home, he denies who he is as a man!

The only way you can accept this state of affairs is if you have a humanistic and progressive mindset. You cannot accept it if you have a biblical worldview.

God gives a warning to men in 1 timothy 5:8: “If any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” Take notice that these words were spoken to men, not to women.

Two verses onwards, God speaks about the woman and gives a description of the lifestyle He has planned for her: “Well reported of for good works; if she has brought up children (FIRST ON GOD’S LIST), if she has lodged strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, if she has diligently followed very good work” (1 Timothy 5:10). It is a picture of a mother ministering to her children first and then opening her doors in hospitality and reaching out to the needy around her. Her ministry is in her home.

The picture God gives of the wife in Psalm 128 is of her in the heart of her home with her children all around her table (Psalm 128:3). The picture God gives of the wife in the New Testament is of her being a keeper at home, ministering to the needs of her children and managing her home (1 Timothy 2:15).

To accept the reversal of roles, we must be brainwashed in some way. Why? Because it is opposite to nature. God has not invested in men the same maternal anointing He put in women. Yes, fathers love their children, but they do it in a different way to mothers. They have a strong instinct to protect their children. They want to provide for their children, but they cannot “mother” their children, especially babies and little ones. They are anointed to “father’ their children. And children need both mothering and fathering.

Babies and toddlers need the comfort of their mother’s breasts. Breastfeeding is tied up with motherhood. Scientific studies reveal that the more frequently a mother breastfeeds her baby the more motherly and nurturing she becomes. The hormones release the mothering hormones. A man does not have the same hormones God gives to mothers.

God has also put within women a love for home, unless of course it is brainwashed out of her by our education system, the media, and the deception of our progressive society. A man is not cut out for the finer touches of the home and to making a home feel like a home. He was created to go out and to provide. To work hard for his family.

And what about the following generations? The greatest teaching we give our children is our example. They watch what we do. They observe our roles. When we reverse the roles, they grow up confused. What happens to society? As more men stay home and more women enter the work force, there will be less and less children born. A career woman who is fulltime providing for the family does not have time to have children. Already we are being overtaken by the Islamic population who surpass us. Our average is only 1.8 children per family. Their average is 6.8 per family.

And God’s very first commandment carries with it a mandate for dominion (Genesis 1:28). Those who are fruitful and multiply will be those who take dominion. We see this already happening in Europe.

Let’s stop this ridiculous deception now--for the sake of our families now and for the sake of future generations.

Be blessed,

Nancy Campbell

Painting by Holly Irwin.

Active hands that like to throw,
Little hands that’re sure to grow.
Tugging hands there at my skirt,
Reaching hands for love when hurt.

Tired hands in blankets tight,
Quiet hands throughout the night.
Waking hands that tie my feet,
They slow me down--my goals defeat.

But though your hands sure wear me out,
I wouldn’t want to do without.

~ Kristin Eason from Missouri is blessed with five children: Emma (16), Rylan (13), Ellie (8), Nathan (4), and Elizabeth (1).

As you nurture and teach your children each day,
Discipline, train, and watch over their play,
May your heart fill with joy and overflow with love
That God gave you these “gifts” from heaven above.

Each precious child is a “blessing” from the Lord,
No longer will you ever have time to be bored!
You have the greatest career in all of the land
As you teach your children to heed God's command.

Lift up your head; be proud of your calling,
It’s an eternal work, totally enthralling!
I know you often feel tired and worn,
But claim God's promise, His truth He has sworn.

"The joy of the Lord is your strength," God has stated
Whatever He’s promised cannot be negated!
As you shine with His joy, you'll be a beacon to all
That embracing God’s children is His will and call.

Don't be intimidated by those who ignore God's way,
Who limit their children and leave them each day,
As you receive God's “rewards” and at home with them stay
You’ll be a light to save others from going astray.

Your sweet, gentle spirit is precious in God's sight,
As you serve in your home with all of your might
You reveal the spirit of Jesus your King
Who showed by example to serve in everything.

May God bless you and strengthen you each new morn,
May you know His faithfulness with each new dawn,
May God's presence be with you in a mighty measure
As you train your “arrows” for God's purpose and pleasure.

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

Painting: “Tender Affection” by Georges Moreau de Tours (1848 – 1901, French).

Painting by J. Brickey

I think that many parents are not aware of the true agenda of our current public school system which is to indoctrinate our children with their progressive agenda. They now teach Islam in schools. They now teach the gay agenda. They now teach alternative sex education. And that’s only the top of the iceberg.

And yet parents say it wasn’t like that when I was at school. What about grandparents? They can’t imagine it being different to when they were at school. But it’s time to wake up to what’s happening now. How can God-fearing parents send their children into this godless place to be educated?

I hear many mothers say they are concerned, but would never be able to teach their children themselves. They undermine their God-given abilities. God has put an anointing in mothers to teach their children. It is ingrained in them. They do it automatically. They teach their children naturally about life and knowledge before they ever send them off to school.

Who do you think is the best teacher? Job 36:22 asks the rhetorical question: “Who teaches like Him?” Of course, the answer is God. There is no teacher greater than Him? But now I want to ask you another question. Who dwells in your heart? Doesn’t God dwell within you by the power of His Holy Spirit? The greatest teacher in the universe lives inside of you? He enables you to teach.

What is the purpose of God’s teaching? Isaiah 48:17 says: “I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.” God’s teaching profits us. It leads us in the right way. The Hebrew word is “ya’al” and means “to ascend, set forward, valuable, useful.” God’s teaching doesn’t leave us in the same place. It takes us forward. It’s always ascending, taking us upward, leading us more and more into God’s ways (Proverbs 4:18), and conforming us into the image of Christ.

This is the heart and passion you have for your children. You want them to move forward in God’s ways, His knowledge, His wisdom, and in preparation for God’s destiny upon their lives. Is this the vision of public school? No, they have an agenda that is opposite to God and His ways. It is anti-God, anti-family, and anti-righteousness. Why would you send your precious children to receive this kind of education (Psalm 1:1)?

You have far more anointing and ability to teach your children. God is in you. His anointing to teach is in you. You have the right motive for teaching. You want your children to ascend, not descend into the ways of the enemy. You can do it. You are the one who will inspire them in the way they should go.

The next verse (v. 18) says: “O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! Then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.” If we do it God’s way, we and our children will be blessed. And did you notice the exclamation mark? The Bible exclamation mark, not mine!

Be inspired today,

Nancy Campbell

Painting: “A Gift of Time” by Jim Daley

However, this principle also relates to us as parents. Do we obey God the first time He speaks to us? Do we respond to Him immediately when He speaks to us from His Word?

By the way, how do our children see our attitude toward our husband? Do we obey him and respond to him or do we have an indifferent and rebellious attitude?

Not only are we responsible to train our children to obey, but we also show them by example.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

I know there are very few women who would have the capacity to do what Lois did. She is not the ordinary person! But God says that women are builders! We don’t have to build a house with hammer and nails. We are building a family. We are building godly generations.

Proverbs 14:1 says: “Every wise woman builds her house: but the foolish plucks it down with her hands.” What are you putting your time into? Into building up someone else’s organization or business? Or are you building up your home? That takes being at home. It takes time to build up your home and family. It doesn’t happen by gadding about here and there,

What about your marriage? Are you building into your marriage? That takes time too. What are you speaking into your marriage? Loving words? Encouraging words? Sweet words? More than anything else we build our marriage and our family with words. Words either build up or destroy.

Let’s be builders, not destroyers.

Love from Nancy Campbell

Photo: This is the home Lois built (and her beautiful garden), Palmerston North, New Zealand. I was blessed to see Lois again in New Zealand in March of this year.

He also made statements to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica in which he claimed that Americans have a distorted view of the world and put forward the idea that the people of the United States need to be ruled by a world government “for their own good.”

The Pope also believes that guarding America with the full muscle and might of a governmental oversight will be good for all humanity. In conversation with reporters from Ecuador’s El Universo newspaper, he said that it was essential to do so in order to formulate a cohesive, international stance against climate change. Can you believe what you are reading?

You can read and watch this and much more on this link: http://www.disclose.tv/…/popes_latest_warning_relati…/139720

Does this not grieve your spirit? I personally know many born again Catholics who love Jesus and walk godly lives. I hope they will stand up against this deception. But I think of so many who don’t know Jesus personally and how they will be so easily deceived.

It is false and reveals an antichrist spirit. As we see more of this, it is so important to ingrain our children in the truth of God’s Word. Are you daily implanting God’s Word into your children’s hearts? It’s only God’s Word that will keep them from being deceived, even by Christian leaders. The Bible is the great lie detector!

If you want your children to stand strong for Christ in this end time, fill them with the Word. It is imperative that you and your husband make this a priority in your life.

Matthew 24:24 says: “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”

Will your children know how to discern? Will they stand strong for truth even when Satan comes as an angel of light and with signs and wonders? Will they see through the lies? Will they will be willing to be persecuted or even face death for the sake of truth?

We must be preparing them now. We have a big task on our hands.

Be blessed,

Nancy Campbell

The greatest antidote to deception is God’s Word. It is our plumbline for everything we believe and do. It is also the great lie detector. Many times, we don’t know things are lies until we line them up with God’s Word.

One of the ways the enemy robs families of what is best is many of our extracurricular activities. None of them are bad. They are all good. And yet often they rob us of what is the most important. The tricky thing is that most of them are always around about the time we should be in the home preparing meal for the family so we can enjoy family togetherness around the table each evening. And of course, to have family devotions and worship together. And pray together.

The devil hates families praying and he will use good things to stop us. He’ll get us doing all these great things for our children, which are good, but which stop us from coming together as a family to pray. And the devil laughs. He wins the victory.

It’s praying families who are world-changing families. And as you know, this doesn’t easily happen. It takes a complete life change in our families to make it happen. But world-changing families are also sacrificing fmailies. They’re families who know what is the BEST, not only what is good.

Blessings, Nancy Campbell

Nancy Campbell

Perhaps you don't feel very loving to him at the moment? Forget your feelings and do it by faith! And watch what will happen. Plan a delightful meal and have it ready for him as he walks in the door this evening. Write a love note to have waiting on his pillow as he goes to bed.

How many extra things are you doing outside the home this week? How many evenings have you planned to go out? Why not cancel something and stay home with your husband and family instead? Think of a special thing you can do together as a family this evening. Turn off the TV and read a story together. Or, get each one to do a mime, read a poem, put on an act, or do something fun. You and your husband will be the audience, but be ready, the children will want you to perform something, too!

Batten down the hatches! In other words, close your doors to the outside world and shine the warmth of God's sunlight inside your home.

Build up your family life rather than things outside your family.

Make surprises happen today,

Nancy Campbell

Painting: Art print by John Walter