A FORMIDABLE PEOPLE

"Who is this, shining forth like the dawn, fair as the moon, bright as the sun,
but formidable as an army marching under banners?”
(Song of Solomon 6:10 CJB).

God’s Word is so rich--every line, and from beginning to end. Much of the Old Testament is written directly to and about Israel. Although these Scriptures are literally for Israel, they apply to us spiritually. 1 Corinthians 10:11 says: “Now all these things happened unto them for examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”

2 Samuel 7:23, 24 speaks of Israel. “What one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself.” I also love the description in Deuteronomy 4:6-8: “For what nation is there so great who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statues and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?”

God not only did miraculous things for Israel in Bible times, but miracles continue today. Israel is only a nation again by the miracle of God. Jews continue to come back to the land from the four corners of the earth. The deserts, the wasted land, and the malarial swamps now grow fruitful trees and vineyards. Surrounded by enemies who want to “throw Israel into the sea” she continues to survive and grow. It is all miraculous.

But God hasn’t finished yet. There is more to come. Romans 11:12, 15 states: “Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; HOW MUCH MORE THEIR FULNESS? . . . For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but LIFE FROM THE DEAD?” There will come a day when Deuteronomy 28:10 will be fulfilled: “And all the people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD: and they shall be afraid of thee.”

God also wants His redeemed New Covenant saints to have the same testimony: “There is no one else on earth like God’s people, those redeemed by the blood of the Lamb!” Do we have this testimony? Unfortunately, many times people do not even notice the difference between the “saved” and the “unsaved.”

Like me, are you praying for a move of the Holy Spirit in our land that will bring God’s people back to Bible ways, back to His ultimate intention for us, and back to holiness “without which no man will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).

There should be no other people like us upon the face of the earth. We have been redeemed for eternal salvation. We have God living in us by His Holy Spirit. We have received abundant life. We have the promises of God to appropriate and show us the way. Why, then, is the church at large so ordinary? So pathetic? Why does the world not stand in awe of us?

I think it must be because we are afraid of being different. We want to stay as close to the world as we can. We want to fit in the groove. We don’t want to be ridiculed. We want to live on the edge rather than have a “three day gap” (Exodus 3:18; 5:3; 8:27; 10:24-26). But in trying to be “cool” we lose our power.

God’s awesome people, His body on earth should be noticeably different from every one else. We are meant to be a transformed people. A worshipping people. A praying and interceding people. Filled with the Holy Ghost. Penetrating the darkness with God’s light. Exposing deception with God’s truth. Walking in holiness. Living in the fear of God. Holding up the banner of God’s truth. Hating evil. Loving righteousness. Overcoming the devil. Victorious. Uncompromising with the world system. Shining like stars in the world. Pouring out God’s love to the hurting and needy.

This should be our individual testimony. It should also be our family testimony. God-centered, God-honoring, God-loving, praying, worshipping, and filled with the Holy Spirit families are an enigma to their neighborhoods. They become powerful churches who are a threat to the devil and an evil society. Our churches will only be as powerful as our families. And our nation will only be as strong as our families.

May we be faithful to pray, humble ourselves, turn from our wicked ways, and seek God’s face that He will have mercy upon us . . .

☼ That all people will SEE that we are called by the name of the Lord and be in awe of us (Deuteronomy 28:10).
☼ That we will be a holy people, without blemish, having no spot, or wrinkle or any such thing (Ephesians 6:27).
☼ That we will be like the sun going forth in its glory (Judges 5:31).
☼ That we will be as terrifying as an army with banners (Song of Solomon 6:4, 10).

Be blessed.
Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Oh God, please save me from being a blurred image of your true church. Please possess me and fill me with your Holy Spirit that I will shine like a bright light in his crooked and perverse world. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

There’s no more sitting on the fence,
Now I’ve got a lot more sense,
I hate “lukewarm,” I’m going “hot”!
To be halfhearted, I simply cannot!
I’m stepping out strong for my Lord,
On this “sold-out” life I won’t be bored!

THERE’S MORE TO IT

“Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing,
if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety”
(1 Timothy 2:15).

I love the truth of the above Scripture. The word “saved” in the Greek is sozo--a wonderful word which means “to be delivered, preserved, protected, healed, and made whole.” When Jesus healed someone and stated the words “Thy faith had made thee whole,” He used the word sozo.

Do you want to be preserved? Do you want to be whole--physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually? God’s Word tells us that women will experience these blessings through child bearing--giving birth to children, nursing them at the breast, and mothering and training them. This is God’s plan for a mother, although many today think they have better ideas than God.

However, although I love to share about the wonderful blessings God provides for mothers as they embrace childbearing, I have to confess I have not been faithful to share about the rest of the Scripture. God convicted me about this recently and therefore I share it with you today.

The Scripture says we receive these blessings “if we continue in . . . “

1. Faith

The word faith is pistos and reveals our total reliance upon Jesus Christ for salvation from sin. However, our faith is more than being saved from sin. This is just the beginning. How we start is how we continue. We can’t please God without faith. We are not only saved by faith, but live every part of our life by faith. We are purified and sanctified by faith, justified by faith, healed by faith, and receive our righteousness by faith. Christ dwells in our hearts by faith. We overcome by faith. And get this, dear ladies, we mother by faith!

We can’t effectively mother any other way. We walk in faith to conceive and carry a child in our womb--it is all the working of God. It takes faith to go through the birth of a child--we are totally cast upon God to bring our baby safely forth into this world. We nurture our little babies by faith and continue to walk by faith as we train our children to adulthood. We walk in faith as we trust God to provide. It is a faith walk all the way. We cannot do any of it in our own strength. We are totally reliant upon God, every moment of every day.

So often we try to do it in our own strength. We try to provide financially in our own strength. Forget trying. Everything to do with mothering is a faith venture.

2. Love

The word is agape. It is the highest type of the four kinds of love we understand in the Greek language. It is a revelation of God’s sacrificial love. We can only show forth this kind of love because of Christ’s love within us (Romans 5:5). This is love that loves even when we are not loved back. We love no matter what the response.

We may have thought this Scripture would use the word storge which is the love of a parent to a child, an affectionate love. This is an important part of parenting, but the love of a mother goes even beyond natural love. As children grow up they can hurt us, reject us, and even rebel. A mother keeps on forgiving and loving. Read Psalm 78:40 and Isaiah 63:10.

3. Holiness

Many mothers seek to be fashionable mothers, trendy mothers, career mothers, or fitting in with the world mothers, but we have a great need for holy mothers. To be la holy mother is not so popular, but holy mothers are powerful mothers. Without holy mothers we will not have holy children. Without holy children and holy homes we cannot have holy churches. And without holy churches we definitely will not have a holy nation.

If we want to be a godly mother, we will have to be a holy mother, because God is Holy.

Hebrews 12:14 tells us that without holiness no man shall see the Lord. We must seek to walk in holiness in our personal life. We must pray that our children will walk in holiness. We must seek to build a holy home, guarding against all impurity and uncleanness. A holy mother will not allow unholy movies, unholy books, or unholy habits in her home.

4. Self Control

The word “sobriety” in the King James Version means “self control, soundness of mind, soberness, sanity, and prudence.” Others translations use the words, “discretion, good judgment, and modesty.” As mothers we are not “tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching” (Ephesians 4:14 HCSB). We are not victims to the brainwashing of our humanistic society which woos us to fit in with the behavior of this world system. Instead, we daily renew our minds in God’s Word and stand fast in the truth.

Children need stable mothers, self controlled mothers, and mothers with good judgment.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, Please save me from trying to mother in my own strength. Lead me into your wondrous ways. I want to be a faith mother, a loving mother, a holy mother, and a self controlled mother. I know I can’t do this in my own flesh. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I will resist giving into the flesh and instead yield to your Spirit who lives within me. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I want to be a holy mother in this unholy world.

FURTHER INFORMATION:
Check out these links for further reading about being preserved through motherhood:
http://tinyurl.com/PreservedThroughMotherhood
http://bit.ly/PreservationTestimonies
http://tinyurl.com/QuintessentiallyFeminine
http://tinyurl.com/FullFemale
http://tinyurl.com/SucklingMother

Scriptures about Jesus making people whole:
Matthew 9:22; Mark 5:34; 10:52; Luke 7:50; 8:36, 48, 50; 17:19; and 18:42.

Scriptures to look up about living by faith:
We are saved by faith: Ephesians 2:8, 9 and Hebrews 10:39.
We cannot please God without faith: Hebrews 11:6.
Christ dwells in our hearts by faith: Ephesians 3:17.
We live by faith: Hebrews 10:38 and chapter 11.
We are purified and sanctified by faith: Acts 15:9 and 26:18.
We are justified by faith: Romans 3:26; 5:1; 8:3, 28; and Galatians 2:16; 3:24.
We receive righteousness by faith: Romans 4:5, 11, 13; 9:30; 10:6; 1 Corinthians 1:28; Galatians 5:5; and Philippians 3:9.
We are healed by faith: Matthew 8:10; 9:2, 22, 29; 15:28; Mark 2:5; 5:34; 10:52; Luke 5:20; 7:9, 50; 8:48; 17:19; 18:42 and Acts 3:16.
We overcome the world by faith: 1 John 4:4, 5.

We are to build up ourselves in the faith: Jude 1:20.
We are to put on the breastplate of faith: 1 Thessalonians 1:3.
We are to have confidence in our faith in Christ: Ephesians 3:12.
We are to contend for the faith: Jude 1:3.
We are to continue in the faith: Acts 14:22 and Colossians 1:23.
We are to be established in the faith: Acts 16:5 and Colossians 2:7.
We are to fight the good fight of faith: 1 Timothy 6:12.
We are to be full of faith: Acts 6:5, 8 and Hebrews 10:22.
We are to hear by faith: Galatians 3:5.
We are to be joyful in faith: Philippians 1:25.
We are to keep the faith: 2 Timothy 4:7.
We are to mother in faith: 1 Timothy 2:15.
We are to nourish up ourselves in the words of faith: 1 Timothy 4:6.
We are to be obedient to the faith: Acts 6:7 and Romans 1:5.
We are to have patience in faith: Revelation 13:10 and 14:12.
We are to pray in faith: James 5:15.
We are to stand fast in the faith: 1 Corinthians 16:13.
We are to be steadfast in the faith: 1 Peter 5:9.
We are to be sound in faith: Titus 1:13.
We are to be strong in faith: Romans 4:20
We are to have unity of faith: Ephesians 4:13

We must never . . .
Depart from the faith: 1 Timothy 4:1.
Deny the faith: 1 Timothy 5:8.
Err from the faith: 1 Timothy 6:10.
Overthrow the faith of others: 2 Timothy 2: 18.

SWEET GRAPES OR BITTER

“Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard.
My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill”
(Isaiah 5:1).

In the Scriptures Israel is likened to a vineyard. Isaiah 5:1-7 is a beautiful song describing God’s “wellbeloved” vineyard. He looked for it to be very fruitful, but instead of bringing forth luscious sweet grapes it brought forth wild grapes.

We as mothers are also likened to fruitful vineyards in Psalm 128:3. God looks for fruit in our families. I am sure we don’t want to be like the description of Israel in Hosea 11:1: “Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself.” When selfishness rules our lives we become an empty vine, but when we are ready to lose our own lives for the lives of others we become a fruitful vine (Mark 8:35).

The above passage reveals to us the principles for being a fruitful vine.

1. BUILD A WALL (verses 2, 5)

We must keep a protective wall around our personal life and our family vineyard. The flesh doesn’t like being hedged in. We like to be free to do what we want to do. However, this kind of attitude leads to an independent spirit which never works to our advantage. It was an independent spirit that caused Satan to be cast out of heaven. He now tries to tempt us with this same spirit, but it leads to destruction.

It is God’s blessing to us when He covers and protects us (Psalm 17:8; 57:1; 61:4; and 91:3). As parents we are to cover and protect our children. Our husbands have the responsibility to protect us, their wives. We all need to be hedged about from the inroads of the enemy. We do this by hedging ourselves and our family about with daily prayer and filling them with God’s Word.

When God’s hedge was around Job, Satan couldn’t touch him. It was only when God lifted the hedge for the testing of His servant for a limited time: “Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for naught? Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land” (Job 1:9, 10).

2. GATHER OUT THE STONES (verse 2)

You can’t plant a vineyard in Israel without first clearing out the big stones. The stones speak of our stony hearts and sticking to our own stubborn way rather than God’s way. God wants to give us a heart of flesh, a soft and tender heart (Isaiah 57:15; 66:1, 2; Ezekiel 11:19; 36:25,27; and James 4:6). We can only bring forth sweet fruit when we have a soft and tender heart to the Lord and to one another. And who wants to eat wild grapes? No one.

3. PRUNE FOR FRUITFULNESS (verse 6)

Those who grow grapevines know they must prune back the vines every year. Without the pruning they will not receive a harvest of delicious, sweet grapes. I have to confess that I don’t know much about pruning trees. Consequently the trees we planted don’t bear much fruit. Pruning is necessary for fruitfulness (John 15:1-7).

Pruning is hard for the vine. All the beautiful branches and leaves are cut right back. We also don’t like to be pruned. We like to grow wherever we want to grow. However, God, our Pruner has to keep a watch on us “wild women.” He knows our tendencies, but He also knows where we will blossom and bloom to the utmost for His glory. And that is in our home, nurturing and raising godly children for His kingdom and glory. Sometimes we can feel hemmed in, pruned to the bone, and frustrated. But that is usually because we listen to deceptive propaganda and are not established in God’s truth that leads us into the glory of His ultimate plan for our lives.

Submit to the pruning in your life. It is for your ultimate blessing and fruitfulness.

4. HOE THE WEEDS (verse 6)

We must continually keep the soil of our hearts free from weeds, all the things that come in so easily to grieve the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. We must also allow the Holy Spirit to keep hoeing in our lives lest our soil become hard and unusable.

5. BUILD A WATCHTOWER (verse 2)

Every vineyard in Bible times had a watchtower. We must not only watch our own lives, but build a watchtower of daily prayer for our home and family. Without vigilant watching, the enemy is sure to subtly enter in. Matthew 24:43 says: “But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.” Read also Matthew 26:40, 41; 1 Peter 5:8, 9).

6. SEEK THE HELP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (verse 6)

God said He would “command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.” When they were in Egypt the Israelites relied on the overflow of the Nile River for their irrigation. They stored the water by artificial means and irrigated the fields with treadmills, using their feet. It was hard work. It took sweat and toil. However, in the Promised Land they had to completely rely upon God to provide the rain to row and harvest their vineyards and crops (Deuteronomy 11:10-12). When they were obedient to God’s way, He faithfully sent the promised rains at the right seasons. When they were disobedient and turned away from God’s ways, He held back the rains.

The rain speaks of the Holy Spirit. Without the moving of the Holy Spirit in us, through us, and upon us we can accomplish nothing in growing a fruitful vineyard. We cannot bring about anything in the flesh.

Are you bringing forth sweet grapes or bitter?

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, I yield my life to the moving of Your Holy Spirit. Please take away my stony heart and give me a soft and tender heart to You, to my husband, and to those around me. Although I don’t always like it, I ask You to prune away all the dead, deceptive, unnecessary, and useless things in my life and prepare me to be a fruitful vessel for your glory. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I am building a watchtower of prayer and a wall of protection around my family.

P.S. The pictures show you how much the vinedressers must prune back the vines. But look what happens? A glorious harvest of sweet luscious grapes.

RESUME FOR GATEKEEPERS
Part 4

“Therefore let us not sleep as do others; but let us watch and be sober”
(1 Thessalonians 5:6).

We will now check the last points on the resume list:

8. We must watch over what comes in and what goes out

Ezekiel 44: 14 tells us of those who were “keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.” 1 Chronicles 9:28 (HCSB) tells us about certain gatekeepers who “were in charge of the utensils used in worship. They would count them when they brought them in and when they took them out.”

As a guardians and gatekeepers of our homes we also watch over all the details of what happens in our home. Our “beady” eyes watch what comes into our home and what goes out! Nothing bypasses mother’s eyes.

9. We watch over all things in the home

1 Chronicles 9:29 (HCSB) tells us about other gatekeepers who “were put in charge of the furnishings and all the utensils of the sanctuary, as well as the fine flour, wine, oil, incense, and spices.” Everything in our home is significant. We are the keepers of our furnishings and therefore teach our children how to respect furniture and possessions. I don’t allow children to jump on beds and sofas. Get them a trampoline for jumping!

I only allow children to eat in the kitchen or at the dining table, never in the bedrooms or the rest of the house. It makes more crumbs, more marks on the carpet, and more work for mother that is unnecessary. Nor do I allow children to chew gum in my home. There is nothing worse than finding gum stuck on the floor or furniture. To save the problem I outlaw it! Each one of us are different so you will set the house rules that are important to you. And as the keeper of the home, you will make sure your children keep to the rules.

We are also the keepers over all our food as this Scripture tells us. Everything is sacred in your home when God lives in it. As a homekeeper and gatekeeper you watch carefully over your food supplies. You make sure you have basic foods in stock without running out. Ordering in bulk is much cheaper in the long run. When you keep running out of basics and have to run to the shop to replenish, you usually pay much more. You only have foods in your pantry that are healthy for your children to eat so you don’t have to continually say No to them when they want this and that.

1 Chronicles 9:31 tells us about Mattithiah who was the firstborn of Shalom (the chief gatekeeper). He was given the responsibility over “the things that were made in the pans.” Isn’t it amazing how all these things were important in the running of God’s house, just as they are in our home? Cooking, baking, and pots and pans--all part of God’s service.

Proverbs 31:27 says: “She looks well to the ways of her household, and eats not the bread of idleness.”

10. We must be altar guarders

Ezekiel 40:46: “And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the altar: these are the sons of Zadok among the sons of Levi, which come near to the LORD to minister unto him.”

The altar was where they attended to the daily sacrifices. God commanded that the fire upon the altar was to burn continually and never go out. To do this they had to attend to it every morning and every evening (Leviticus 8:13). Although we no longer have physical altars, this is a type of our meeting with God every morning and evening, a principle that God revealed in tabernacle and temple times. They had to guard the altar. They had to keep the fire burning continually. In the same way we have to keep the altar continually burning in our home. We can’t be slack. We must faithfully gather our families morning and evening to worship God and listen to Him speak to us.

Are you guarding the altar in your home? Or do you allow other things to crowd it out? Our commitment to the morning and evening meeting with God exposes our true commitment to God as a family. It’s easy to say that we are a Christian family, but our commitment to our family altar each day proves whether God is preeminent in our homes or not.

Read these Scriptures too: Exodus 27:20, 21 and 29:38-42.

11. We must be marriage keepers

Malachi 2:15, 16 (NLT) says: “Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. For I hate divorce!” says the Lord, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.”

I think we must read these Scriptures also from the King James version: “And did not He make one? Yet had He the residue of the spirit. And why one? That He might seek a godly seed! Therefore take heed (shamar) to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. “For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that He hateth putting away; for one covereth violence with his garment,” saith the Lord of hosts. “Therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.”

God hates divorce, especially because it affects the children. God looks for godly children from our marriage union and He knows that divorce negatively impacts their lives. Therefore He says, “Take heed to your spirit.” Guard it from becoming hard and bitter toward your spouse. Hardness of heart is always the root of divorce. Be the gatekeeper of your marriage. Do not allow hardness, bitterness, hurt, despise, and negative thoughts to take root in your heart. Throw them out from your mind before they take hold.

12. We must prayer watchers

Jesus said in Matthew 26:41: “Watch and PRAY, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Jesus also said in Mark 13:33: “Take ye heed (beware), watch and PRAY.” It is not enough to watch; we must also pray. Much of our watching in the home happens through prayer. We not only watch physical gates, but the ear gate, the eye gate, and the heart gate. These take a lot of prayer watching with our children.

It is impossible to be a true gatekeeper of your home unless you are a woman of prayer. This should actually be No. 1 on the resume, rather than the last point.

Luke 21:34-36 (ESV) says: “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, PRAYING that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, Please help me to be a woman of prayer, watching over my children in prayer, and over everything that goes on in my home. Please expose all the hidden things that would be grieving to Your name. Please help me to establish a holy home. I ask this in the name of Jesus, Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I am a prayer watcher over my home and family. I will not be taken unawares.