STANDING AT OUR POST
Part 2

“As my beloved sons I warn you”
(1 Corinthians 4:13).

We continue checking out the description of the watchmen who vacated their post from Isaiah 56:10, 11:

3. THEY CANNOT BARK

“They are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark.” What an insult. This is just about too much to take, isn’t it? But let’s not get upset. Let’s take the warning for the blessing of our families.

If a watchdog does not bark, it is not a watchdog. I currently have two dogs, both picked up from the road near our home. We live in the country and it seems to be a dumping place for stray dogs. Sad to say, neither of them are watchdogs. The little poodle is so shy, he would freeze or run away if a thief came. The other dog is so friendly, she wags her tail at everyone and would never dream of barking at anyone!

A true watchmother is always alert to anyone and anything that would taint the presence of God in her home. She will not be silent at any evil or deception. She opens her mouth and stands up for truth. She never compromises. She “barks” at the devil and resists him in the name of Jesus. 1 John 3:8 says: “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil.” Christ now dwells in our hearts and He still wants to destroy the works of the devil through us. He wants to have preeminence in our home, not the devil or his evil works.

If we abhor evil as we are commanded in Romans 12:9 we will not be silent, but speak against it. God said to Ezekiel: “Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor SPEAKEST TO WARN the wicked from his wicked way, TO SAVE HIS LIFE; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but HIS BLOOD WILL I REQUIRE AT THINE HAND” (Ezekiel 3:18-21 and 33:7-9). God also speaks this word to us watchmothers because He wants us to save the lives and souls of our children. It is because our children are “beloved” to God and to us that we open our mouth and warn.

“Dear Father, please fill me with boldness to bark at the devil, to bark at all evil, and never to be silent in the face of any deception or sin that creeps into my marriage or home. Amen.”

4. THEY DREAM AND SLEEP

“Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.” They may not do this physically, but spiritually. Mothers can physically work, rushing here and there, and yet be asleep to God’s purposes for their children. Mothers have many dreams. Many dream of what they could be doing with their lives, apart from their home and children. They have great dreams for all the things they long to do, but are asleep to the truth that they are in the very perfect will of God right in their home!

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Dear God, please help me to awake to righteousness and to the true purposes you have for my life. Save me from wasting time on transient dreams that are for my own selfish gain. Help me to understand that I am in Your perfect will as I embrace motherhood and watch over my family. Help me to see that only what I do in the light of eternity is worthwhile. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I am watching on all sides and I will bark at the devil if ever he shows up!

STANDING AT OUR POST
Part 1

“Can the blind lead the bind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?”
(Luke 6:39).

Sweet wives and mothers, do you mind if I give you a strong devotion today? It’s so much nicer to receive loving and comforting devotions, isn’t it? But sometimes it is good for us to get something that doesn’t just “tickle our ears,” but really challenges us to the core of our hearts. You won’t mind, will you?

I was very challenged as I read God’s words about the watchmen who fell down on their job. This relates to us too, because we are watchmothers on the walls of our homes. God has given us the task of watching over our homes and the bodies, souls, and spirits of our children. The word “watchman,” or perhaps we could say, “watchmothers” is also given to us in Proverbs 31:27: “She looks well to the ways of her household, and eats not the bread of idleness.” The Hebrew for “looks well” is tsaphah and is the same word that is used for “watchmen.”

Can you come with me on this challenging journey to see what God says in Isaiah 56:10, 11 about watchmen and “watchmothers” who vacate their post?

1. THEY ARE BLIND
“His watchmen are blind.” These watchmothers are oblivious of what is happening to their children. They may see the obvious, but are they aware of what is going on behind the scenes, of what is going on in their souls and spirits? Mothers, we must guard that we do not become conditioned to the compromises and worldliness all around us so that we no longer see from God’s standard.

Jesus described the Pharisees: “They be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch” (Matthew 15:14). We must know where we are going in order to lead our children in the right way. Read also Matthew 23:16, 24, 26; Luke 6:39; and 2 Corinthians 4:6.

Have you ever heard the expression, “Don’t pull the wool over my eyes”? As we shepherd our children, we must watch over them intensely to make sure they do not pull the wool over our eyes. We look beyond the “wool” that covers over their eyes to any festering things that may be underneath.

When talking about this subject with my father (who shore over one million sheep in his lifetime), he said, “Don’t forget to tell the ladies about eye-wigging.” Eye-wigging is something the shepherds need to do constantly. If shepherds do not clip the wool, it grows over the sheep’s eyes and they become wool-blind. Watchmothers consistently eye-wig their children. We clip from their lives the things that cause them to become blind to the things of God, that lead them into deception, and the humanistic philosophies waiting to deceive them.

What about your marriage relationship? Do you have unbroken love and communication between you and your husband or are you blind to what is going on behind the scenes?

Psalm 27:23: “Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.”

“Dear Father God, please save me from being blind. Open my eyes to what is really happening in the hearts and minds of my children. Amen.”

2. THEY ARE IGNORANT
“They are ignorant.” We are not very happy if someone slights us by saying we are ignorant, are we? However, mothers cannot afford to be ignorant. We must be versed in the truth, especially the truth of God’s Word. It is imperative for the sake of our children. We cannot truly watch over the souls of our children if we don’t know what God says in His Word. We need to be Word-filled mothers training Word-filled children.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell
I will continue with the seven points in this series.

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, please give me a love for Your precious Word. Open my eyes as I read it daily. Fill me with Your words. I want to be a Word-filled mother, daily pouring your truth into my children. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I’m standing at my post--eyes open, ears attune, and spiritually alert to every sly attack of the enemy.

WHICH COUNTRY DO YOU LIVE IN?
Part 3

“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:
I will guide thee with mine eye”
(Psalm 32:8).

ISAAC KEEPS DIGGING WELLS

Isaac dug a second well. Abimelech’s servants fought over this well too. This time Isaac called it Sitnah meaning “hostility, accusation.” The persecution didn’t lessen, but heightened. Maybe you wonder why you face resistance, persecution, and scorn when you obey the Lord and seek to walk in His perfect will. Can I remind you again? It’s all part of growing in your walk with the Lord. Don’t be surprised by it. Keep on walking in the light, even in Philistine territory!

1 Peter 4:12-14 says: “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye, for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you; on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.” Read also Matthew 5:1-12; Acts 5:41;and 2 Timothy 2:12.

What does Isaac do this time? He still doesn’t give into the flesh and react with rejection and bitterness. He just moves on again to find another place to dig a well. Often God uses contention and difficult situations to guide us. He pricks our nest to move us on or we may stay settled forever. Many times in our lives, Collin and I have faced dire situations, challenges, and even betrayals and have had to move on. But we look back and see the divine guiding hand of God moving us on to where He wants us to be. If God hadn’t stirred up the nest, we would never have moved.

We find Isaac digging another well and this time God blessed him. Nobody fought over this third well and Isaac called it Rehoboth meaning “broad places.” Isaac says in Genesis 26:22: “For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

Praise the Lord, life is not all battles. Sometimes we face battles; other times we enjoy great fruitfulness. Paul confessed in Philippians 4:12: “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” Even Job’s terrible troubles did not last for a great length of time and God brought him into a greater place of blessing than before his suffering.

However, Isaac didn’t put down his roots in Reheboth either. Even though he was enjoying a life of rest and great fruitfulness, he moved on. As he matured and listened, God was able to lead him without making life difficult for him. God kept drawing him on to the place where He wanted him to be and he arrived at Beer-sheba. Genesis 26:24 tells us: “And the LORD appeared unto him the same night and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.”

Even through our difficulties as we walk through life, God’s ultimate plan is to bless us, although He often blesses us in different ways than we would think. God promised Isaac to multiply his offspring. Do you want this blessing? This is the blessing God loves to give most of all. Check out these Scriptures although there are many more examples: Genesis 1:28; 9:1; 17:15-17; 26:3, 4; 48:3, 4; Deuteronomy 7:13; 13: 17; and 28:2, 4.)

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Thank you, dear Father, for Your guiding hand upon our lives. I thank you for the difficult times when you pricked our nest and caused us to change our ways, or even our location. I thank you that I can trust our lives in Your hands, knowing that you are always leading us onw3ards, closer and closer to You and in Your perfect plan. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

God is totally good in the difficult times and in the fruitful times. All are for my blessing.

Next week we will find out what Isaac does in Beer-Sheba.

WHICH COUNTRY DO YOU LIVE IN?
Part 4

“And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD,
and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well”
(Genesis 26:25).

After God leading Isaac on all his journeys, in good times and bad, he now settles in Beer-sheba. What does he do when he makes his home here? The same things we should do as we establish our home and family.

1. HE BUILT AN ALTAR

The first thing Isaac did was to build an altar. The early patriarchs built altars to make a meeting place with God. We don’t build altars of stone or earth today because we have the great privilege of having immediate access into the throne room of God through the precious blood of Jesus which was poured out for us.

However, I believe it is still important to build altars. Instead of a physical altar, we make a time and place where we meet with God each day. This is the foundation of our family life. Do you notice that it was the first thing Isaac did when he came to Beer-Sheba? We don’t establish this principle in our family life when it is convenient or works well in our schedule. No, it is the first thing we do. We make our schedule fit around our family altar.

Our grandson, Arden recently married. What a joy to go to their home for a meal and experience their family altar with them. As we ended the beautiful meal Esther cooked for us Arden brought out the Bible and read to us and then we all prayed together. They are starting on the right foundation.

2. HE CALLED UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD

An altar is a place where we come into God’s presence to listen to Him speak to us through His living Word. But it is also a place where we call upon the name of the Lord. This should be the testimony of all who confess they are believers. Jeremiah 10:25 infers that if we are not families who call upon the name of the Lord, we may as well be heathen! Calling upon the name of the Lord is the mark of those who fear God.

Of course, Satan does not want you to be a family who calls upon the name of the Lord. He will do everything to stop you. He won’t use evil things as he knows they will not tempt you. He uses “good” things to keep you busy and keep you from this most powerful place of prayer. If every believing family made a time each day, with their family, to call upon the name of the Lord, we would see mighty things happen in our nation and in the world.

3. HE DUG ANOTHER WELL

Isaac couldn’t survive without a well, for his family and for his cattle. You couldn’t survive without a well either if you didn’t have city water running into your house. But more importantly, your marriage and family will not survive without a spiritual well. Spiritual wells are for survival, just as physical wells.

Don’t dig a shallow well. They don’t last. When we came to live on our land over 16 years ago, we dug a well. Down, down, down they dug and didn’t find water. We were devastated. What will we do? We asked the well diggers to dig another well. Lots more money. Down they went again and still no water! My father arrived to stay with us from New Zealand. He prayed over our first well and we asked the well-diggers to check it again! A miracle! There was some water this time. We praised the Lord, but it was very sparse and barely enough for us to survive. We lived sparingly on a scanty water situation for some time until some more land became available with a wonderful spring. We now bring our water a mile or so from a spring that comes out of the rock.

The devil will contest your well, which also speaks of your personal and family devotion time with God each day. We read in Genesis 25:21 how Abraham had to reprove Abimelech because his servants had “violently taken away” one of his wells. Watch out! The devil will try to violently take away your well too. He wants to keep you shallow. He is scared of those who live by deep wells. A shallow well often has the scum of the earth on the top. It is usually dirty, sandy, and murky. You can’t get the pure unadulterated truths of God from a shallow well. They are mixed with deception and the lust of the world.

Clean water comes from deep wells where we draw from the pure, refreshing, life-giving water of God’s truth and revelation. This is God’s plan for us. Deuteronomy 8:7 says: “For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and DEPTHS that spring our of valleys and hills.”

Psalm 78:15 says: “He clove the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as out of GREAT DEPTHS.” The CJB says “from BOUNDLESS DEPTHS.”

Jesus Christ is a well of boundless depths. There is more in Him than we can ever comprehend, even throughout all eternity. He wants us to go deep into Him and into His eternal Word, taking time to be with Him, to meditate on Him, and to live in the depths and truths of His powerful, life-giving Word (Psalm 19:9-11).

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Dear Father God, thank You so much for showing me Your way. I know I cannot live successfully without building an altar and digging a well. Help me to faithfully establish these powerful principles in our family life. I know that I have the power to make it happen in my home as I determine to schedule everything else around what is most important. Save me from the subtle “good” temptations of the enemy that keep us from Your best in our lives. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

My husband and I are altar builders and well diggers. we have found the godly secrets of survival and success.

For further understanding, check out these links:

ALTAR BUILDERS:
http://aboverubies.org/index.php/2013-11-12-17-55-51/english-language/bible-in-the-home/899-bible-in-the-home-altar-builders

GOD WANTS TO COME TO YOUR HOME:
http://tinyurl.com/ComeToHome

SCRIPTURES FOR ALTAR BUILDING:
http://aboverubies.org/index.php/2013-11-12-17-55-51/english-language/bible-in-the-home/1160-bible-in-the-home-scriptures-for-altar-building

THE MORNING AND EVENING PRINCIPLE
http://aboverubies.org/index.php/2013-11-12-17-55-51/english-language/bible-in-the-home/901-bible-in-the-home-the-morning-and-evening-principle