Life is not always easy. It seems we go from one battle to the next, from one challenge to another. All the great saints of God in the Bible suffered hard times, but they show us how to survive in the difficult times.
In Lamentations chapter 5 Jeremiah laments for 18 verses about all the terrible things happening in Israel, but he doesn't stay discouraged. In verse 19 he exclaims that God is still in control, "You, O Lord, remain forever; Your throne from generation to generation."
When David was going through one of the darkest times of his life (one of them, because he went through many) his confession saved him. In 1 Samuel 30 we read the story of how David and his men came back to their city of Ziklag to find that the Amalekites had destroyed their city with fire and captured all their wives and children. They wept until they had no more power to weep. In fact David's' men were in such distress they wanted to stone him. Even in this hour of despair, he "ENCOURAGED himself in the Lord his God," and it was then that God showed him what to do (1 Samuel 30:6-18).
This was David's habit. When he was cast down and in the pits, he would speak to his soul, "Why are you in despair, my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? HOPE IN GOD! For I shall still praise Him for the saving help of his presence" (Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5 WEB).
Take your eyes off your problems and put them on the Lord. It is then that you will hear His voice speaking to you. It's hard to hear His voice when you are consumed with your problem.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs
Charles Hadden Spurgeon writes:
"It would not be easy for some of us to recall the hour when we first heard the name of Jesus. In very infancy that sweet sound was as familiar to our ear as the hush of a lullaby. Our earliest recollections are associated with the HOUSE OF GOD, THE FAMILY ALTAR, THE HOLY BIBLE, THE SACRED SONG, and THE FERVENT PRAYER."
It was this foundation that produced a man such as Spurgeon. Will these be strong memories in your children's minds?
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
There is no greater vision we can have than "to be conformed to the image of God's Son" (Romans 8:29). Another attribute of Jesus that is a challenge to me is found in Philippians 2:5-8 where it tells us that Jesus Christ, who was very God Himself, "thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
If Jesus Christ, who was God, could have such a spirit of humility and submission, why do we run from it? Why are we stubborn and refuse to submit on some worthless matter, when Christ submitted to the death of the cross for us?
To have this same attitude of Jesus in our marriage brings harmony and unity. And as we yield to this spirit, we are being conformed to the image of His son, which is God's highest purpose for us.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
If you are wondering how to get a smile on your face, go to these pictures and you'll begin to laugh and smile!
Show them to your children, too, and everyone will be happy.
http://www.pinterest.com/aboverubiesmag/will-you-smile-and-laugh-with-me/
God's ultimate plan for each one of us is "to be conformed to the image of his Son" (Romans 8:29). What is the image of Jesus? It is His character which we see revealed through His life and spoken Word. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 reveals His character. Can we mention just one of them in this little post?
Joy! Hebrews 1:9 tells us that Jesus was anointed with the "oil of joy" more than anyone else! Therefore, if we allow Him to work in our lives and conform us to His image, we will be filled and overflowing with joy. It is true that we don't always feel joyful. But, life does not consist of our feelings. Feelings come and go, but the Spirit of Christ who dwells within us is permanent and His life is a LIFE OF JOY, no matter what the circumstances.
As we shared Family Devotions this morning I thanked each of our lovely Above Rubies helpers for coming into the kitchen each morning with a smile on their face, filled with happiness and joy. They fill our home with joy as they seek to be more and more like Jesus. And, it proves they have been trained well by their parents.
One of the girls shared how that one morning she came downstairs to the breakfast table in her home with a grouchy face. Her mother sent her straight back to her room and told her to come back with happy smiling face. Good training!
I hope you don't let your children, and especially your teens (they should certainly be trained by now) come to the breakfast table with a sour and grumpy face. If they do, send them straight back to change their countenance and come back with a smile! Teach your children that the action they put on their face will soon change their attitude within. And you are also training your children for marriage. What a horrible thing for a spouse to wake up to a grumpy and grouchy wife. Of course, you'll have a wonderful smile on your face, to show them the way, won't you?
Are you being conformed to Christ's image? Then JOY will be one of your attributes.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
I read Michelle's post where she quoted an older woman saying that to be happy we should, "Live simply, GIVE MORE, and expect less." I thought about the sheep. We know that God calls us His sheep. We are so much like sheep because we are prone to go astray and we cannot live successfully without our Shepherd. But, there is something else about sheep that we don't often think about.
Did you know that of all the animals in the world, the sheep is the GREATEST GIVER? All year the faithful sheep grows its wool, not for itself, but to GIVE AWAY. Once, or twice a year, the sheep is brought before the shearer where all its wool is completely shorn off. It doesn't give grudgingly, but submissively and willingly. Isaiah 53:7 says that Jesus, the Lamb of God is "as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth."
My father, Ivan Bowen who has now passed away, designed the way shearing is performed across the world and was the fastest shearer in the world in "his day." He and his brother, Sir Godfrey Bowen promoted the wool industry across the world. I love what my uncle wrote in His book, "Why! the Shepherd."
"How impressive the sight of the giving sheep. The soft, valuable wool, contributed so willingly by the humble sheep, who, when shorn, stripped bare, and a little cold, has given all that it has to give. What a wonderful sacrifice! And once made, the sheep is off again, away on the range to grow it all over again ... The sheep makes no fuss, waits for no compliments for its wondrous fleece, because it has given as a sheep has always given, because this is what it was born for, this is what it lives for: to give willingly all that it has ... The more we give, the more we receive. The more we give away, the more that comes back to us. The more we serve, the more we grow in happiness, contentment, and peace of soul."
Dear mother, as one of God's sheep, you were born to sacrifice, born to give, born to give your all. And when you have given again and again you grow in spirit and refresh to give more. This is the life of the sheep. And can I tell you a little secret? You will never lose by giving. You'll never live to the full by pampering yourself! You find your life by giving. Jesus gives us an eternal principle for ultimate living in Mark 8:35, "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."
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
LOVE GIVES ...
Love ever gives,
Forgives,
Outlives,
And while it lives
It gives!
For this is love's
Prerogative,
To give, and give,
And give!
I'd like to add to what I posted on Friday, BOILING HOT. The full meaning of "fervent" in Romans 12:11 is "BOILING HOT when referring to liquids and GLOWING RED HOT when referring to solids. The Amplified version says, "Be AGLOW AND BURNING with the Spirit." The Moffat's translation says, "Never let your zeal flag, MAINTAIN THE SPIRITUAL GLOW."
There's no room for apathetic, compromising, half-heartedness, lukewarm, mediocre, middle of the road, run of the mill, wimpy, or jelly-fish spirit here, is there? Instead God wants us to be hot and GLOWING for Him. The enemy wants to lull us to sleep and take away our zeal, but God wants us to be ardent, enthusiastic, exuberant, fiery, passionate, wholehearted, and GLOWING AND BURNING HOT.
And where are we to glow? In our home with our husband and children. And how will they see the glow? On our face. This is where the glow shows. Is your face glowing with love, sweetness, and joy today? If your faces looks down in the mouth, frowning, sour, and rigid, something's wrong. Yield to the Holy Spirit who lives within you to work in your heart and burn up the dross (Proverbs 25:4). Confess your sin of grumpiness, selfishness, and self-pity and let Him take over your life and fill you with His glow.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
Yesterday I shared about raising children who are zealous for God. Of course, we need to be zealous ourselves if we want zealous children. Do our children see that we are zealous for God's Word? Zealous for prayer? Zealous for righteousness? Zealous to serve the Lord?
Romans 12:11 tells us to be "Fervent in spirit; serving the Lord." The word fervent actually means "BOILING HOT." We're not to be cold, lukewarm, just simmering, but BOILING HOT.
Can you just imagine what could happen in the nation if Christian families (parents and children) became BOILING HOT for God? And this is meant to be the norm!
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
Sometimes we are inclined to think that zealous people are "over the top!" We like to keep everyone at our own level, don't we? And yet, what does God want us to be like? He tells us in Revelation 3:15 that He will spew us out of His mouth if we are lukewarm. That's not a very nice word, is it? It actually means "to vomit!"
Christ Jesus Himself should be our greatest example. He was "meek and lowly" but He was also zealous for His Father and His kingdom. He was zealous for rightousness. When he saw the corruption going on in the temple He chased them out with a whip and turned over all the tables. And the disciples remembered the prophetic Scripture, "The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up" (Isaiah 9:7; 69:9; John 2:17).
It grieves my heart to see so many young people from Christian homes who are apathetic toward the things of God. They confess they are Christians, but they have more desire for worldly things than pursuing God. They'd rather watch movies than read God's Word. In fact, most of them hardly know anything of the Scriptures. They spend every spare moment on their iPod, iPhone, and texting but have little thought for God.
Dearest mothers, what are we doing? It should be our passion, with persistent prayer, to encourage them to be zealous for God. May God save us from raising apathetic, mediocre, and lukewarm young people. May Gold anoint us by the power of the Holy Spirit to raise sons and daughters who are filled with zeal, who will stand against evil, who will stand up for truth and righteousness, and do mighty acts for God.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
Mother, are you feeling you just have to struggle through another day? Can I remind you that you are not only mothering for today. Your mothering continues into the generations to come. You fail one day. You "blow your cool" another day. What's a few days in the light of generations? Mothering is greater than one day. It is a lifetime that influences many generations to come and impacts eternity.
When speaking of a character in the Bible it mostly gives something of their genealogy, sometimes the father and grandfather are mentioned. Other times the Bible takes us back five generations or more. I was reading Zephaniah 1:1 one day and was ploughing through his genealogy of five generations when I was filled with great vision for our own family. Zephaniah came from the lineage of King Hezekiah, a king who did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. And now his great-great-grandson is a prophet to the nations! Doesn't that give you vision?
2 Chronicles 20:14 tells us of Jahaziel, where five of his generations are listed and then it goes back further to say he came from Asaph who was an anointed singer of the Lord.
My prayer is, as I am sure yours is too, that not only our children, not only our grandchildren, and not only our great-grandchildren, but the generations of our family to come will continue to serve the Lord and be mighty for God in the earth. Of course, this doesn't just happen. We must be faithful to impart God's Word into their lives and most of all, PRAY. When my husband and I pray for all our children and spouses and grandchildren and great-grandchildren each morning, we not only pray for them but also for the future generations.
Lift up your vision, dear mother. Your influence determines the future.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
Mother, you are a nation builder. You build and strengthen the nation as you embrace motherhood. It is mothers who determine the destiny of the nation. When mothers vacate the home and childbearing the nation weakens. When mothers come back to the home with a vision to raise godly children they strengthen the nation.
~ Nancy Campbell
Home based upon Christian marriage is so evidently an institution of God, that a man must become profane before he can deny it . . . Of this realm woman is queen. It takes its cue and its hue from her. If she is in the best sense womanly--if she is true and tender, loving and heroic, patient and self-devoted--she consciously or unconsciously organizes and puts in operation a set of influences that do more to mould the destiny of the nation than any man, uncrowned by power or eloquence, can possibly effect.
~ Dr. J. G. Holland
Did you enjoy wonderful fellowship with the saints this weekend, either Saturday or Sunday? Church is far more than going to a service, isn't it? It's the fellowship of the saints together. After our animated service each Sunday, where we not only receive a teaching Word, but where folk have opportunity and freedom to also share from the Word and what God is doing in their lives, we enjoy a Fellowship Meal together. Some days this goes on to the late afternoon and even into the evening, and sometimes late evening. It's not just about going to an event, but being part of one another's lives, isn't it?
This includes the children and the young people. There is no greater riches for young people than to be surrounded by other godly young people who can enjoy FUN and FELLOWSHIP together. Last night we celebrated Vision's 9th birthday. The children and young people from babies up to twenties enjoyed games and doing skits together. It's so wonderful to see everyone enjoying each other with all ages included. And it's so easy to get a party together here. A couple of phone calls to the families on the land and there are anywhere from 20 - 30 to celebrate together.
We all go through different seasons in our lives. We currently enjoy Fellowship Meal after our service because we have it in our home (in our big fellowship room which is also our Above Rubies packaging room). However, in times when my husband has been pastoring other churches, we would invite people back to our home for fellowship after church.
Malachi 3:16 says, "Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name."
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
We mutter, we stutter,
We fume and we spurt,
We mumble and grumble,
Our feelings get hurt,
We can't understand things,
Our vision gets dim,
When all that we need
Is a moment with HIM!
~ Source unknown.
Do you sometimes feel alienated? Do you feel as if you are the only one in your family or circle who believes in embracing children and homeschooling them for God's purposes? Don't despair. The Bible tells us that John the Baptist was just "one" in the midst of darkness and deception, too. Mark 1:3 says of John the Baptist, "The voice of ONE crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." This Scripture is quoted from Isaiah 40:3-5.
He was only ONE voice preparing the way for the first coming of Jesus. Our Father is also preparing the way for the second coming of His beloved, Son, Jesus Christ. He said that the way would be prepared by the turning of the hearts of the fathers (which includes the mothers), back to the children (Malachi 4:5-6). Back to embracing children and seeing them as God sees them. You can be part of this preparation. You may feel like you are only ONE voice in the situation where you live, but be encouraged, there are thousands of voices preparing the way.
Remember that John the Baptist was not only ONE voice (no one else was proclaiming his message), but he was also in the "wilderness." Don't despise what God will do through you as you are faithful to speak the truth. Do not be intimidated. Do not compromise. Lift up your voice. The word "cry" is not talking about an apologetic whisper. It is a word that means "to shout in a powerful way."
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
The Bible tells us that the devil lurks around to see who he can devour (1 Peter 5:8). But, we have a greater truth. 1 John 4:4 tells us, "Ye are of God, little children, and have OVERCOME them, because GREATER is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." Jesus Christ who lives in us is stronger than the enemy and gives us daily and personal victory.
The enemy also wants to sneak into our family life. Once again, he gives to us parents the privilege and responsibility to watch over our family and guard against the enemy. We can take authority over him in the powerful name of Jesus.
The enemy also wants to destroy our nation and take dominion for his kingdom of darkness. However, God's plan is for His people to overcome and fill the land with His righteousness and salvation. God gives us the plan. He wants us to embrace children, the godly seed, who will fill the land with His light and glory. The more godly children who fill the land, the more we possess the land for God. Psalm 105:24 says, "He INCREASED HIS PEOPLE GREATLY; and MADE THEM STRONGER THAN THEIR ENEMIES." How did they become stronger? By increasing! Not decreasing.
Satan has effectively deceived the majority of God's people today to limit their families and boycott the godly seed from coming into the world. This gives the advantage to the enemy to increase darkness and lawlessness. When God's people increase, the light and glory of God increases. May God open up our eyes to the cunning ways of the enemy.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
God's help is always sure,
His methods seldom guessed;
Delay will make our pleasure pure,
Surprise will give it zest;
His wisdom is sublime,
His heart profoundly kind;
God never is before His time,
And never is behind.
~ Lynch.
What is your plan as you begin homeschooling your children each day? Are you facing the huge challenge of completing all the curriculums you purchased for each child? Your goal is to make sure you get through them all?
Dear mother, can I encourage you to relax. Making sure your children complete all their lessons each day is not true education. What is the meaning of education? It comes from a Latin word meaning, "to draw forth from within, to bring out, to lead forth, to develop the innate capacities of, to rear." It has the meaning of upbringing rather than instruction.
Get on the right track, dear mother. There is much more to education that stuffing your children with information that they will invariably forget. God has divinely put desires to seek out knowledge, aspirations, abilities, and special gifts in each one of your children. Seek to draw forth and bring out what God has already put in them. This makes education exciting, and you work with God, instead of plodding on on your own.
I am most probably looking from a different perspective than you. My children are mostly in their forties. My oldest son will be 50 years in a few weeks. What do I see looking back? More than ever, I see that God created my children and put His plan in them from the beginning of time. They have accomplished amazing things, beyond what I could have ever taught them. They have fulfilled their dreams in spite of me! It wasn't their school lessons that helped them do what they are doing today. It was the giftings God had already put in them.
Of course, there are disciplines of teaching and learning that are important for life. But, dear mother, always keep in mind that your highest calling is to draw out from within your children the amazing gifts God has put in them and LEAD THEM FORTH with encouragement, motivation, and vision to fulfill the GREAT THINGS GOD HAS FOR THEM.
Love from Nancy Campbell
We often face day by day vexations in our family life. But, there can be a reason. God told the Israelites in Numbers 33:55, "If you will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be PRICKS IN YOUR EYES, and THORNS IN YOUR SIDES, and shall VEX YOU in the land where ye dwell."
Yes, we will always face challenges. We daily face the subtle inroads of the enemy that seeks to bring disruption, deception, and darkness into our home. Dear mother, when you face these issues, please don't let them linger, hoping they will go away. All your hoping won't make them go away. You must deal with them. You must talk and pray with your husband for wisdom on how to deal with them. You must take authority in the power of prayer. You must deal severely with all evil and not allow one vestige of it in your home.
It can often be difficult to make a scene and deal with something as we know we should. We'd rather not rock the boat. But, if you don't, the problems will continually vex you. They will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your side. The problems will multiply. The enemy will take hold more and more!
Commenting on this Scripture, Matthew Henry says, "If we do not drive sin out, sin will drive us out." As the old saying goes, "If we give the enemy an inch, he'll take a mile."
Love from Nancy Campbell