Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

Through the weekly and daily devotionals you can be constantly encouraged in your great role of parenting, the highest career in the nation. You can also stay updated on what's happening with the Above Rubies ministry.

The vision for Meat for Men — UNCOMPROMISING MANHOOD blog is to encourage husbands, fathers and single men in Biblical manhood.

WE MUST DOUBLE OUR EFFORTS

e735933f5f5848383d25da6b26daa974Isaiah 59:14, 15 is a picture of our nation today: “And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street and equity cannot enter. Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment"
 
Much of our justice system has become liberal and godless. We have thrown the Bible out of our state education and our halls of leadership as well. Millions of our sons and daughters are now being taught that homosexuality is acceptable, promiscuity is normal, abortion is your choice, and now transgenderism is being promoted. The world has turned upside down!
 
When we remove the Bible, we remove the truth.
 
When we remove the truth, we accept a lie.
 
The sad part about this is that fathers have failed to read the Bible on a daily basis to their families. The only antidote for a lie is the truth and it’s only in God’s Word that truth is revealed.
 
Because the moral situation is so corrupt, we must double our every effort to rectify this epidemic of falsehood. We must take back the moral ground, father by father, family by family. To rally the nation to resist evil, what we need more godly fathers who will daily open up the Word of God to their children.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
1
  312 Hits

IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY

dad readingWithout question, fathers are the most responsible for the biblical instruction of their children. In fact, fathers are not only COMMANDED but ORDAINED of God to instruct their children in biblical truth.

It is an inescapable role of fatherhood. If we fathers abdicate biblical instruction to our children, we abdicate true scriptural fatherhood. If we do not teach our children the truth of God’s Word, they will be deprived of the most important commodity in the entire world. If we do not accept this duty, it shows that we do not regard God’s Word as that important.

“The father to the children shall make known thy truth” (Isaiah 38:19).

“Our fathers have told us . . . We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord . . . he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: that the generation to come mighty know them…” (Read the full passage in Psalm 78:1-9).

We must not pass this awesome responsibility on to our wives, although they have an important supportive role. We must not pass this responsibility on to the church, although it also has an important supportive role. We fathers have the primary responsibility.

Be encouraged.

 

Colin Campbell

Continue reading
2
  252 Hits

FULL-TIME SERVICE

FulltimeServiceColossians 3:23-24 says: “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye serve the Lord Christ.”
 
Real men put their whole heart into whatever they do. Doing your work heartily and unto the Lord means working with intensity, enthusiastically, willingly, and cheerfully. You do not work grudgingly and you are not easily distracted.
 
Men, I believe it is so important to realize that your real Employer and Rewarder is the Lord. In this respect, you are in full-time service for Christ. If you get dismissed, or laid off, it would do well to recap your service to the Lord. Have you been working heartily? Christian men would gain a whole lot more respect from the Lord, as well as their fellowmen, if they put this Scripture into daily practice.
 
Even if you get laid off because the business has closed down you can be assured the Lord will soon prosper you with another job if you have been diligently applying the above Scripture. If you feel you have failed in your work ethic, repent, and tell the Lord that if He opens up another job for you that this time your attitude towards your work will be a lot better. Ask the Lord to help you work HEARTILY for Him.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
2
  266 Hits

ENTHUSIASTIC WORKERS

EnthusiasticWhat a testimony it would be for Christ if Christian men were the most enthusiastic workers in the nation’s work force? I could not, in the slightest way, imagine Jesus Christ doing the work God gave Him to do with a grudging attitude.
 
Jesus said: “My meat is to do the will of Him who sent me, and to finish His work” (John 4:34). Jesus likens His work to sustenance.
 
Psalm 110:3: “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power… thou hast the dew of thy youth.” The Hebrew word for “willing” denotes spontaneity and abundance. This is the same attitude as enthusiasm. This is a Messianic Psalm and the Messiah in you and me has the dew of youthful freshness.
 
We do not have to wait for the millennium to let the world see how fresh, youthful and enthusiastic Christ is in us. Let today be "the day of His power" in you and me.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  274 Hits

ARE YOU FINISHING THE RACE?

RUFinishRace.jpgMen, I believe it is manly to not only start something, but more importantly, to finish it!
 
Luke 14:28-29 says: “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to FINISH it? Lest haply after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him.”
 
The Christ who lives within us is the “author and FINISHER of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).
 
Philippians 1:6 reminds us that “Being confident of this very thing that he with hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
 
If Jesus Christ, our great Captain, believes in finishing things, then all I can say is that this should make a big difference in us who profess we follow Him. It means we finish what we begin.
 
Let’s talk about the tower of our marriage. Did we not first sit down and count the cost as to whether we had what it takes to perform it and complete it until “death do us part”? It is an indictment that over 50 percent, in the church, have not had sufficient fortitude, discipline, will-power, love, and courage to keep building until the conclusion of life.
 
What about the tower of raising a family for God? Did we sit down and count the cost? Again, many Christian men, for whatever unscriptural reason, haven’t got what it takes to have more than one or two children. Even then, they leave them to day care and public schools to raise. It’s high time to have a recap on what we need to finish.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
1
  324 Hits

FINISH STRONG

FinishStrong1 Corinthians 9:24 says: “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”
 
Men, fatherhood never finishes until your life is over. We begin fathering when the children start coming. Every young father should do all he can to assist his wife during “the baby years.” It is important for the father to regularly hold his baby and do his best to relate by speaking, smiling, and singing. As a loving husband, he should take every opportunity possible to assist with the extra chores that come with each newborn baby.. Baby bonding is extremely important.
 
Following the baby stage, the father should seek to be involved in every possible way with his children’s lives. As important as it is for children to learn to do chores, the father should realize that all children innately love fun. A wise father will seek to be a “fun father” with his children. It is wise for a father not to be a “sober-side,” but vice versa, not to be all fun without seriousness.
 
Be involved and available in every stage throughout your children’s lives, even when they are grown and married with their own children. Be a great finisher! Remember, fatherhood is not finished until you are finished!
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
 
 
Painting: Father and Son by Natalia Eremeyeva Duarte
Continue reading
0
  284 Hits

"BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD." (Romans 12:2).

RolloMay“The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice. It is conformity.”
 
~ Rollo May
Continue reading
3
  270 Hits

UNCOMPROMISING

UncompromissingI believe that most men respect the manly virtue of having backbone for it speaks of the ability to stand up in the face of opposition. A man may appear strong physically but if his spine is injured, he is still a weak man. There is something wrong when a man speaks the truth but backs down when he is opposed by friends or foes. He reveals that he is a pushover.
 
Every man should stand by his convictions to truth and never back down, not for anyone, no matter how many important or wealthy they may be. It is morally wrong to cave in and compromise on matters of truth.
 
Speak the truth and stand by it, come hell or high water!
 
We are living in days of much pressure to compromise on moral values such as homosexuality, abortion, and adultery. If we keep compromising, the day will soon come when we will not know right from wrong and we will start calling what is wrong right. This is the world we are facing now.
 
There will always be multitudes who will pat you on the back when you compromise values to their way of thinking, but deep down they would respect you more if you stuck to your guns about the truth.
 
"Buy the truth, and sell it not" (Proverbs 23:23).
 
Be encouraged,
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
4
  378 Hits

MEN WITH BACKBONE

MenBackboneWho can tolerate spineless men?
 
This nation needs men with BACKBONE—
Men with BACKBONE in their commitment to Christ and His course.
Men with BACKBONE in the battle of life.
Men who WILL NOT BEND or bow in the face of opposition.
Men who WILL NOT QUIT no matter what the enemy may hurl at them.
 
As the saying goes: "Winners never quit and quitters never win."
 
God’s calling to the men of today's Christian church is the same today as it was in the past. We are either the salt—halting decay and corruption, or we are "good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men" (Matthew 5:13).
 
We are the light scattering the darkness or light that is hidden and of no use.
 
Which one will you be?
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  338 Hits

MEN OF INTEGRITY

MenofIntegrityWhen the leadership of a nation is corrupt, how can God prosper it?
 
Psalm 9:17 tells us: "The wicked shall be cast into hell and all the nations that forget God." Forgetting God is wickedness for it replaces truth with lies. It does not fear God and casts aside His judgment on sin. When we forget God, we elevate man.
 
Integrity is vital to the preservation of the nation, the city, the family, the church, and the individual. If America is going to survive this time of gross darkness it will need a revival of old-fashioned, and yet as modern as tomorrow, integrity.
 
David's prayer in Psalm 25:21 is, "Let integrity and uprightness preserve me."
 
Can a man's word be trusted these days? Have we forgotten that the one who weighs the hearts of men on His scales of perfect justice observes our national and individual behavior?
 
"Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord" (Hebrews 10:30).
 
Will you be a man of integrity? It begins with the individual, then the home, then the church, and spreads out across the nation.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  282 Hits

EXAMPLE MEN

ExampleMenThese are men who are worthy of being imitated. Jesus Christ was, and still is, forever the perfect man, who is infinitely more worthy to be followed and imitated than all other men.
 
The supreme reason why God gave us His Holy Spirit is that we will be conformed into the image of His son. Romans 8:29 says: "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren."
 
The Apostle Paul was called by Christ to be an example. Acts 9:15 says: "He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel." Paul himself stated in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be ye therefore followers of me, even as I also am of Christ."
 
In this desperate hour in our nation, we need Christian men who will not be content with the status quo. We need men who will refuse 21st century normality. We need men who will be an example for others to follow.
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  311 Hits

HARD WORKING MEN

HardWorkingThis nation needs men who will not compromise their moral values, even under extreme pressure. It needs men who will not compromise truth, even if it financially advantages them to do so. Some men will say anything to get what they want, whether it be in marriage, promotion, election to public office, or even government hand-outs. The list is never ending.
 
There is an ever-increasing percentage of our nation who want the government to look after them from the cradle to the grave. They have compromised all personal responsibility and have sold out their souls to the devil's lie.
 
God said that man should work by the sweat of his brow, six days a week, whether that work be in the office or in the field. If a man does not have a full-time job, and is capable of working, he has a full time job looking for a job. A man who works full time looking for a job will soon have a job.
 
The rich who work hard should not be penalized to support and provide for those who compromise work values. This is communism and it has never worked in any country. It compromises creativity and the nation becomes bankrupt and third world!
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  270 Hits

MEN WHO WILL NOT COMPROMISE

WillNotCompromiseGod is looking for men who will not compromise, no matter what! Uncompromising men are few and far between, but thank God, there are some.
 
The Holy Spirit who indwells all Christians is not compromising. He must be grieved at the way we compromise so easily over divorce, accepting the children He wants to give us, and homeschooling them to save them from humanistic propaganda and morally corrupt peers.
 
An ever-increasing percentage of "Christian" homes are infected with pornography, and now we have same sex marriage, and the mutilating of our current generation with transgenderism! May God have mercy on America and help us to repent quickly for we are trampling underfoot the gracious liberty He has given us. We desperately need a revival of good old-fashioned biblical holiness.
 
We Christian men can, and should, fast and pray against all forms of moral compromise. This in turn will have its cleansing effect upon the church and then the general population.
 
Hebrews 12:14: “Without holiness no man shall see the Lord.”
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  298 Hits

DON'T WAIT AROUND, GET STARTED!

DontWaitAroundOne of the greatest acts of courage in the Bible (and of course there are many) was displayed by Jonathan, King Saul's son in 1 Samuel, chapters 13-14. In 1 Samuel 13:5-7 we read, "And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horseman, and the people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude . . . When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits."
 
That was a scary and terrible time for Israel. But in chapter 14 we read how Jonathan and his armor bearer courageously, and against all odds, discovered themselves to one of the Philistine garrisons. Jonathan spoke words of faith and courage when he said to his armor bearer: "Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few."
 
In that first encounter, Jonathan, with his armor bearer, slew about 20 men, then God took over. Remember that the only people in all Israel with sword and spear were Saul and Jonathan. Through the spiritual weapons God has given us we can be like Jonathan. Through prayer, we can expose ourselves, slay about 20 devils, and just see what God can do with the rest!
 
Like Jonathan, we just have to GET STARTED—and watch God do the rest!
 
Be encouraged.
 
Colin Campbell
Continue reading
0
  296 Hits

NO TIME FOR POWDER PUFFS!

PowderPuffMen, if we are going to be men of courage, we must speak up for what's right when the opportunity presents itself. If you have got any truth in you, for goodness’ sake, SAY IT! Do not hide truth behind closed doors.
 
Edmund Burke wrote, "All it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing."
 
The question we need to ask ourselves is, how righteous are we really when we do not speak up when we should? God is calling for all Christian men to use every opportunity possible to be light shiners and salt preservers. When someone is telling a lie, speak up and tell the truth.
 
True men will always cringe when they see men sucking up to the false, especially when the false are rich, predominant, popular, physically stronger, or politically powerful.
 
It is high time for us men to tell it the way it is, no matter who is listening.
 
We may get persecuted for it.
 
We may lose our job for it.
 
Even our friends at church, who we wish to impress, may despise us when we do not toe the party line.
 
So what! It's time for men to be men and get rid of all that is yellow and gutless.
 
No more time for powder puffs who hold their peace when the sword should be drawn.
Continue reading
0
  279 Hits

WHERE LIES THE STRENGTH OF A PEOPLE?

NewCreations“Where lies the strength of a people? Not in its arsenals, not in its army or navy, but in its men. The supreme need of a people is something higher than the making of wealth; it is the making of men. The highest of all social necessities is the making of new men, possible only by the preaching and the teaching of the gospel of Christ.”
 
~ Peachey
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Picture by teacherforjesus.com
Continue reading
0
  299 Hits

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY

HappyFathersDayWhere, oh, where are the true fathers? Oh, how the world is desperate for men to take up the mantle of biblical fatherhood.
Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers” (1 Corinthians 4:15).
 
True fathers are the desperate need of the anchorless age in which we live. Without fatherhood flying high on the flag poles of this nation we will flounder around like a rudderless ship and eventually become ship-wrecked on the rocks of liberal values. These liberal values regard the state (government) as the modern-day parents of the nation.
 
Fathers are mothers and are no longer the real owners of their children.
 
When I woke up this morning the Lord’ s prayer rose up from my spirit. The first words of the Lord’s prayer, “Our Father which art in Heaven,” hold the keys to understanding the value of fatherhood. Jesus Christ introduces God in Heaven as “our Father.”
 
Our God, who is in Heaven, is our ultimate Father, the greatest Father of all. Fatherhood is not just an earthly title given to men of the earth. It is exalted to a high, “far above all,” heavenly title. God has given you, men, the privilege and responsibility to also bear this name of father.
 
Above all other names, God wants to be known as Father and He wants the name of Father to be hallowed (venerated, highly regarded, and greatly esteemed). Unfortunately today’s world has lost the true understanding and value of fatherhood. The further we drift away from God being our Father the more depraved we be come of all the great blessings that this amazing name implies.
 
True fatherhood reveals a very loving, intimate, and personal relationship with his children and family. This is exactly the way God wants us all to view Him. Jesus spoke more about God being a Father than all the other writers of the Holy Scriptures.
 
We are desperate in need of a great revival of true biblical fatherhood. Just this week a good friend of mine told me of a TV questionnaire panel where the first of three contestants to push the button in front of them would win the point.
 
The question was asked, “What are the missing words in the Lord’s prayer. “Our Father which art in Heaven . . . . . . . Thy kingdom come.” Not one contestant knew the answer of “Hallowed be thy name.” How sad that they did not know the most hallowed name in the universe. This is indicative of a nation that does not know the value of fatherhood. The more this hallowed name is lost in our nation, the more we will suffer.
 
Let’s be encouraged, men, to be the fathers God wants us to be, fathering in His image.
 
Blessings to you and your family from COLIN CAMPBELL
Continue reading
0
  290 Hits

The Demise of Responsibility, Part 2

 
I would encourage you with all my heart to listen to this message by Pastor Ray McCollum. I attended this meeting last Saturday night and I believe it is one of the most powerful messages for fathers and young men. Fathers, I encourage you to listen to it with your sons.
 
“The majority of America’s problems can be solved with a return to the biblical principles of personal responsibility and accountability.”
 
~ Pastor Ray McCollum
Continue reading
1
  347 Hits

ARE YOU HELPING TO WEAKEN THE CHURCH OT STRENGTHEN IT?

WeakenChurchBarna Research found that only 33 per cent of adults now say they attend church service during a typical week which shows a decline representing the loss of about 15 million church-going adults each week.
 
Hebrews 10:28: “Not forsaking the ASSEMBLING of ourselves TOGETHER, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another, and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”
 
As the head of your home, are you taking your family to church each week?
 
~ Colin
Continue reading
0
  290 Hits

IT IS TIME TO UPHOLD THE TRUTH

David F Wells“If the church is not in possession of truth, truth as an understanding that corresponds exactly to what is in reality, and corresponds exactly to what is in the will and character of God, then it has been left speechless. It has nothing to say. . . . Why, then, has the evangelical church arranged itself around the marketing dynamic rather than around the truth which it is its birthright to proclaim?
 
“In the evangelical church, the belief in truth has substantially eroded. It is no wonder, if a majority no longer believes in absolutes of any kind, that the evangelical church is finding itself without a voice in a culture which likewise does not believe in absolutes.
 
“The church has been most influential in those moments when its contrition reached down deeply into its soul, when in its known weakness it cried out to God from the depths, when it sought to live by his truth, and on his terms, when it sought to proclaim that truth in its world, when it was willing to pay the price of having that kind of truth, when it was willing to demand of itself that it live by that truth, when it sought above all else God in his grace and glory. At such moments it has soared and out of its own inherent weakness found extraordinary strength and power. When all of these things have been present, then the church has been the church. “
 
David F. Wells (ABOVE ALL EATHLY POW’RS)
Continue reading
0
  300 Hits

Above Rubies Address

AboveRubies
Email Nancy

PO Box 681687
Franklin, TN 37068-1687

Phone : 931-729-9861
Office Hrs 9am - 5pm, M - F, CTZ