Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

Isn't it interesting that man seems to think he knows better ways of doing things than God? The teaching system of today is to segregate children into their age groups. Of course, I can understand that this makes it much easier for teachers. However, even the church has taken on the public school method and separates children from babies to teens in all their separate age levels.

But God didn't intend it to be this way. Whenever He wanted to speak to His people, He didn't ask them to put all their children into their different age groups so they could each understand the message in their own level. Instead, He commanded that they all come together--the nursing babes, the toddlers, and everyone in the family.

Here are some examples: Joshua 8:33-35 says, "Joshua read all the words of the law . . . there was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women AND THE LITTLE ONES."

2 Chronicles 20:4, 13 says, "And all Judah stood before the Lord with their LITTLE ONES, THEIR WIVES AND THEIR CHILDREN."
J

oel 2:15-17 says, "Blow a trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly. Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, GATHER THE CHILDREN, AND THOSE THAT S.UCK AT THE BREASTS." Read also Deuteronomy 31:11-13; Ezra 10:1; Matthew 21:12-16; Mark 9:33-37 and 10:13-15.

God commands us to teach our children in the context of the home--when we sit down, walk by the way, drive in the car, lie down, and rise up (Deuteronomy 6:6-9).

God wants children to be able to communicate with all ages--children who do not ignore adults, but know how to converse with them. Do you notice that many young people today ignore adults? They will come into a room without even acknowledging their presence. They only gravitate to their age group. Their conversation relates to the shallowness of their peers. Or they are consumed with texting or face-booking.

When Jesus was only twelve years old, He sat with the "doctors of the law, both hearing them and asking them questions" (Luke 2:42-47). Are your children interested in learning from adults when they are in their presence?

Let's raise children who understand the value of all ages--older people and also the little ones.

Love from Nancy Campbell

Psalm 46:4 (JB) says, "There is a river, the streams of which make glad the city of God, the sanctuary of the tents of the most high." The city of God consists of the homes of God's people. To have a joyful city we must have joyful homes. To have a joyful nation, we must have joyful cities, filled with joyful families. In the same way, we can never have a righteous nation if we don't have righteous homes.

How do we have joyful homes? It is only through the RIVER which speaks of the Holy Spirit who flows out in many streams. The Holy Spirit wants to flow out in streams in your home--streams of joy and gladness. Streams of love, forgiveness, sweetness, healing, encouragement, and building up. Streams of compassion, kindness, tenderheartedness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, patience, and peacemaking.

They should be flowing streams, never stagnate. They may not all flow at once, but they are ALL IN THE RIVER to pour forth in gushing streams as they are needed in the home.

As these streams flow, they gladden the home. The Hebrew word "make glad" is "samach" and means "to brighten up, cheer up, rejoice, make merry and very glad."

Dear mother, I hope you are not filling your home with complaining, negativity, sourness, and bitterness. Yield yourself to the River of the Holy Spirit. Ask Him to fill you and flow forth in streams into your home to bring gladness and cheer to your husband and children (John 7:37-39).

"MAKE GLAD your motherhood today. "MAKE GLAD your home today."

Love from Nancy Campbell

"A woman once fretted over the usefulness of her life. She feared she was wasting her potential being a devoted wife and mother. She wondered if the time and energy she invested in her husband and children would make a difference. At times she got discouraged because so
much of what she did seemed to go unnoticed and unappreciated. “Is it worth it?” she often wondered. “Is there something better that I could be doing with my time?”

"It was during one of these moments of questioning that she heard the still small voice of her heavenly Father speak to her heart. “You are a wife and mother because that is what I have called you to be. Much of what you do is hidden from the public eye. But I notice. Most of what you give is done without remuneration. But I am your reward. Your husband cannot be the man I have called him to be without your support. Your influence upon him is greater than you
think and more powerful than you will ever know. I bless him through your service and honor him through your love.

"Your children are precious to Me. Even more precious than they are to you. I have entrusted them to your care to raise for me. What you invest in them is an offering to me. You may never be in the public spot light. But your obedience shines as a bright light before me. Continue on. Remember you are My servant. Do all to please Me.”

~ Roy Lessin

I'm tired of the broken record. The rhetoric is the same with those who advocate abortion as those who advocate the freedom to take one's life if they feel they cannot cope. "It's her body. She can do what she likes." Unfortunately, it's not true. In the case of abortion it is not the mother's body that is at stake; it is the life of another person who is being created in the image of God in the womb. No one has the right to take the life of another living being.

The same words are spoken regarding "death with dignity." "It's her body. Stop judging what she does." Yes, in some ways it is her body. But more truthfully, her body belongs to the Creator who gave her life. Her body belongs to Him. And more so if she or he is a Christian. 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20 NLT says, "Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? YOU DO NOT BELONG TO YOURSELF, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body."

We must be reminded again that there are only two kingdoms in this world--the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. And they both have their own language. The language of the kingdom of God comes from the Bible and is different from the language of this world. Isaiah 55:8, 9 says, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Whereas, the language of the kingdom of darkness is the language of humanism that always revolves around what man thinks, that honors the creature more than the Creator, that espouses selfishness, and that believes we do what we think is best rather than what God says.

If you are a truly born again Christian, make sure you speak the right language. If you belong to the kingdom of God, be careful you do not fall into the trap of speaking the language of the religion of humanism and the religion of tolerance.

Blessings, Nancy Campbell

Apart from the comment of "Don't judge" (which I will write about later), another comment that came up in my post CHOOSE LIFE is that God gave everyone a free will and therefore they can do whatever they want." True. God has given us a free will. We are not robots. But that doesn't mean that we never give advice or encourage people to do the right thing. It is over to the person what they do, but we have a responsibility to tell them the truth.

Dear mothers, do you let your children do whatever they feel they would like to do? When your little children are running near a high cliff, your automatic reaction is to urgently call them to come away from that dangerous place. You warn your little ones to not touch the hot stove or to not play with sharp knives, etc. We constantly teach and warn to protect our children and show them the right way to live. In the same way as God's children, we teach and warn to protect one another.

God's Word, from beginning to end, is filled with showing us the way we are to live and warning us against the way that brings destruction. Although He gives us a free will, He longs for us to listen and obey Him for His ways lead to blessing and life. Read Deuteronomy 28.

God sent His only son from the glory of heaven to become a man, die, and shed His precious blood to save us from our sins and give us eternal life. Although we can choose Christ or reject Him because of our free will, He pleads with us to receive His salvation.

Ezekiel 3:18, 19 says, "When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him no 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 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul." The blood of others can be on our hands. God pleaded with the whole nation to CHOOSE LIFE rather than death (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).

We are our "brother's keeper" (Genesis 4:9). We are to "save others by snatching them out of the fire" (Jude 1:23). We are responsible for one another. To warn or save people from a wrong decision or destruction is far greater love than saying, "Please yourself. You have your own free will."

One person commented, "How would you like it if someone told you what you can and cannot do with your body?" It would be my decision what I do, but I would welcome all the advice I could get. I would be seeking and researching for wisdom and advice, not rejecting it.

And I will certainly be standing against "death with dignity" becoming law in every state. This would eventually take away people's free will. I don't want to come under a government that tells me that it is time to end my life when they think I am too old or whatever. I pray against the situation that was happening in Nehemiah's time where those who ruled over them had "dominion over our bodies . . . at their pleasure, and we are in great distress" (Nehemiah 9:37).

Blessings from Nancy

I am grieving. I am sad to hear of the death of Brittany Maynard, the 29 year old lady who chose to end her life on Saturday. I grieve because she has died and also that she decided to end her own life. Yes, she had terminal brain cancer and was informed it would be a painful death. But how do we know for sure? The medical profession give so many diagnosis that often do not eventuate. God is able to heal. He is able to help people through suffering. Not so long ago my husband's brother, and his son, both died of very invasive brain cancers. But they did not take their own lives. God was with them right to the end.

At this present time, "death with dignity" is only legal in Oregon, Washington, and Vermont. Brittany's legacy is that she wants this to become legal in every state in USA. But we must face the facts. It is not "death with dignity." It is suicide, the meaning of which is: "the act of intentionally causing one's own death, taking one's own life." And this should never become law.

The liberalists love to choose euphemisms for their choices. They use "pro-choice" instead of abortion. Once again it is a lie--abortion is a choice to murder a life, a life that is being nourished in the sacred place of the womb.

We cannot be wishy washy in our beliefs. If we believe in God, we believe in life, from conception to the grave. There are only two kingdoms in this world--the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. God's kingdom is a kingdom of life--He is the author of life and loves life. Satan hates life and seeks to eliminate it every way he can, in the womb and before God's time is up for a person to die.

Deuteronomy 30:19 ESV says, "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse Therefore CHOOSE LIFE, that you and your offspring may live." We must choose life for every baby in the womb and choose life in every decision we make at the potential end of life.

I was with my father the last few days of his life. One day the pastor came to see him and said to him, "Ivan, you have lived a great life. You are ready to meet the Lord. We release you to go to Him now." I didn't think anything of it at the time. It was a few months later when God woke me up one night and spoke to me. I came to realization that this man did not have the right to tell him to go. It is God's prerogative. Even though my father could not communicate at this time, I sensed he loved being in our presence us as we cared for him in the lounge. Although he was ready to meet the Lord he was savoring every last moment with his loved ones and passed so peacefully when he eventually took his last breath. Who are we to tell someone when they should go?

According to USA TODAY, there are now 40,000 suicides every year in America, one every 13 minutes. We already have an epidemic of suicide in this nation, each one thinking they have a valid reason. We do not need the state or federal government to pass legislation to approve or encourage any more suicides.

As a nation we do not want Ebola to take over our lives and we should not congratulate or make heroes out of people who take their lives. This only influences others who are going through a difficult time to do the same.

Let's CHOOSE LIFE in every situation, no matter what the circumstances.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

Ruth 4:16 tells us that "Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it." The word "nurse" is "aman" and is broad in its meaning. It not only speaks of nurture, nourishment, and caring for a child. It also speaks of stability and faithfulness.

This Hebrew word is translated in the KJV by these words: faithful, sure, believe, long continuance, assurance, establish, trust, verify, trusty, stand fast, and steadfast. What wonderful adjectives to think about when you are mothering or foster-mothering. It is not a flighty task. It takes faithfulness, continuance, and steadfastness even when we don't feel like it. But as we seek to work out these characteristics in our mothering our children will have a sure foundation, confidence, and trust.

And remember, dear mother, that these attributes are the attributes of God. You show your children what God is like when you mother in this way. Deuteronomy 7:9 describes God: "Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the FAITHFUL (aman) God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations."

It is also used to describe God's eternal Word. Psalm 93 5 says, "Thy testimonies are VERY SURE (aman)." We can totally rely on them. Read also Psalm 19:7 and 111:7.

Motherhood is stickability, continuing on, and faithfulness through thick and thin.

Blessings from Nancy

Everything comes back to the family. Marriage and family were the first institution God designed--before church and before government. They were in the heart of God in eternity, even before He created the world. Therefore God has blessed parents and given them authority and anointing to "be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, subdue, and take dominion . . . " (Genesis 1:28).

What happens in the nation is a picture of what is happening in the family. We are watching the decline of morality, the fear of God, knowledge of God's Word, and people living in truth in integrity. We see the breakdown of marriage, the fragmentation of family life, more and more children being born out of wedlock, violence in our streets, and our jails filled with young people who have not known a stable home life.

The prophet speaks God's Word to the people of Judah and tells them they are nation that do not listen to the voice of the Lord God, nor do they receive correction. Consequently truth is perished and cut off from their lips (Jeremiah 7:28). This same word is being spoken to the nation today; not only to the nation but to each family, because this is where it starts.

Are we raising children who love and listen to God's Word? Are we raising children who know how to receive correction and discipline? Are we raising children who know the truth and who can discern and cut through the deception that is around them?

I know this is a huge task. It's not something you can do on the side. It's a full time career. But your career of mothering determines the destiny of the nation. If children come out from your home with rebellion in their hearts and not knowing how to receive correction, they help the nation on a downward path.

However, if from your home come children who love the truth, who have soft hearts, and are willing to receive correction and discipline in order to grow, we assist our nation to be a great nation. We are preparing our children to have stable marriages. We are preparing them to build strong families. And when this happens we will have a strong nation.

It all hinges on us, dear mothers. Let's forget about all the other pursuits that entice us away from our greatest destiny. We have great and important work to do. We are training children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and future generations to transform the nation.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

"Likeness to the infinitely glorious Creator constitutes the chief dignity of our nature. And the intelligent, pious mother looks upon her infant offspring with adoring gratitude to God, as possessing that likeness (Genesis 2:7). . . . And though the moral likeness of its blessed Maker is defaced by the fall of our first parents, still, in thousands of instances, by means of early tuition and the prayers of the faithful mother, the child is created in Christ Jesus in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 2:10 and 4:24).

"What, then can be the greatness, dignity, and honor of her who is the appointed medium of such amazing powers and blessings! Must not mothers feel their high distinctions? Should they not frequently be invited to contemplate them?

In this, the security, the prosperity, and the happiness of our country, and even the welfare, the regeneration of the world, are involved."

~ Jabez Burns (1805-1876).

In Ezekiel 44:23, 24 we read that the priests were to "teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statues."

Parents also have the responsibility to teach their children the difference between what is right and what is wrong. And mothers have to be judges. Constantly throughout the day you can face arguments and disruptions with your children that you have to umpire. Peace does not come through tolerating the disarray or the rebellion, but dealing with it. Instead, we teach our children to show love to their sibling rather than fighting them. We teach them to speak the truth rather than giving into lies. We teach the difference between the clean and the unclean, the holy and the profane. If we don't do this, we'll live in bedlam in our homes.

This principle continues in society. I could hardly believe the responses from recent post, "Do We Have our Heads in the Sand?" The common reaction was that we must not judge. In other words, they've joined the "Religion of Tolerance." If we were to tolerate every wrong thing in our homes, they would become chaotic. No wonder this is what is happening in our society today.

Dear mothers, let's not be those who give in to the thinking of society all around us that tolerates any lifestyle that people want to embrace. It's not enough to say, "Well, I would never do that, but I can't criticize them for doing it." This is not what the Bible says. We are told to expose and reprove all evil (Proverbs 24:23-25 and Ephesians 5:11). We are to be "the light of the world" exposing and pushing back the darkness and evil.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

Jeremiah 15:19 reminds us to stand strong and not be lured back to worldly ways, deception, and humanistic thinking: "Let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them." It is very clear in the New Living Translation, "You must influence them; do not let them influence you!"

I am sure you constantly hear conflicting voices and reactions against what you believe. You are laughed at for embracing more children. You are scorned for homeschooling. Are you influenced by these comments? They should roll us off like water on a duck's back. We know we are walking in truth. Why should we be affected by the ignorant and deceptive words of others?

The Message Bible is even more powerful in its translation, "Let your words change them. Don't change your words to suit them. I'll turn you into a steel wall, a thick steel wall, impregnable. They'll attack you but won't put a dent in you because I am at your side, defending and delivering."

Stand tall, dear mother. Stand strong. Constantly influence others as you speak words of truth. Don't be influenced by their words. Even when you are attacked with words, it won't even put a dent in you because God is with you. Praise the Lord.

Love from Nancy

I love the affirmation of the psalmist in Psalm 119:31, "I have STUCK unto thy testimonies." Do you cling to God's Word? Of course, before we can stick to it, we have to know it. We can't stick to something we don't know. In fact, I think this is why many are not glued to God's Word. It's because they are trying to cling to something they are a little hazy about. We have to get the Word into our heart and into our mouths (Isaiah 59:21).

This last statement really enables us to stick--and that is getting into our mouths. When you constantly confess the Word and speak it out, you'll find it easier to stick to. Hebrews 10:23 says, "Let us HOLD FAST the confession of our faith without wavering." Speak out the affirmations of your faith every day.

What about your children? I am sure you want them to be those who will STICK TO THE TRUTH and the principles of God's Word. Fill their minds with God's Word, but make sure it gets into their mouths too. If it is not in their mouths it won't stick. It's sad to see children grow up in a Christian home and become unstuck!

Be a sticker and raise stickers! Amen.

Are we aware of the accelerating of the indoctrination in our public schools away from everything that relates to God and family. Or do we have our heads in the sand? Islam is now taught in many of our schools, but the Bible, the Ten Commandments, and prayer are out! One of our children's textbooks says, “I bear witness that there is no God but Allah.” Some history books teach that Muslims discovered America and that Jerusalem is an Arab city. That’s just some of the “history” that students in America’s K-12 classrooms have been taught in recent years–with the help of taxpayer money.

And what about the gay agenda which is radically and subtly becoming more and more part of the school agenda? Liberal educators teach students that being a homosexual is not much different from being left-handed. They are encouraged to be "open-minded" and try this lifestyle before deciding their preferred sexual orientation. This is only tip of the iceberg of what is happening while we merrily go along our way.

Every father and mother is vigilant in protecting the physical bodies of their children. But what about their souls and spirits? As Bible-believing parents, how can we send our precious children into this system, a second home away from home, to be indoctrinated against all that we believe? Don't we want them to have an education that affirms and enforces what we believe?

The psalmist stated in Psalm 119:30 "I have chosen the way of truth." I am sure this is also your testimony. But are we choosing "the way of truth" for our children? If so, we'll be rescuing them from this system where they are subtly indoctrinated in a humanistic and atheistic agenda.

We go back to the first Psalm to find who God blesses: "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, not stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night" (ESV). Every day children sit in the seat of scoffers in our public schools. You can't find one mention of God's Word, let alone delighting in it, in all the hours they spend there each day, each week, and each year.

Psalm 1 tells us what happens to the wicked counselors. They are like the chaff that the wind drives away. They will not stand in the time of judgment, and their way ends in destruction (Psalm 1:4, 5). Why send our children to receive counsel that will be blown away like the wind? Instead, bring them home where they can be filled with the truth that "lives and abides forever" (Matthew 24:35; 1 Peter 1:23; and 1 John 2:17).

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

"By the sovereign ordination of the Almighty, she gives birth, not to a being of a mere momentary existence and whose life will perish as that of the beasts of the field, but to an immortal! Her sucking infant, feeble and helpless as it may appear, possesses within its bosom a rational soul, an intellectual power, a spirit that all-devouring time cannot destroy--which can never die--but which will outlive the splendors of the glorious sun and the burning brilliancy of all the material host of heaven! Throughout the infinite ages of eternity, when all these shall have answered the beneficent end of their creation and shall have been blotted out from their positions in the immense regions of space, the soul of the humblest child will shine and improve before the eternal throne, being filled with holy delight and divine love and ever active in the praises of its blessed Creator."

` Jabez Burns (1805-1876).

I would suggest, dear mothers, that you read this over more than once to comprehend the power, honor, and eternal blessings that have been given to you as a mother. Nancy

"Nor did they know how to blush" (Jeremiah 8:12 NKJV). It is easy to become numb to the evils around us, for the very reason that they are all around us! We live in a fallen world filled with the devil’s perversions and all manner of abominations. But can we still blush?

We cannot control evil, but we can stay sensitive to its offensiveness. We don’t want to turn into haughty prudes with hardened hearts. We pray with compassion for the lost and reach out our hand into their world of pain, but can we still blush? Evil should jar our spirits.

Have I become desensitized to the things that should make me blush as a daughter of our Holy God? Is TV constantly in the background with its lewdness and humanism seeping into the atmosphere? Could I watch this movie and be comfortable if Jesus sat beside me in the flesh? Would I lose my temper and justify it because I had a headache if God was over for dinner? Actually, He is over for dinner every night!

What do we accept through the gates of our hearts and homes that doesn’t even bother us, and yet should make us blush?

~ Serene

God's Word is amazing. And the more we read it, the more we behold His character and His heart for mankind. In Psalm 8:1 and 3 we read about the glory of God's creation and the heavens. But right in the middle of these acclamations to God's glory verse 2 pops up: "Because of Your adversaries, You have established a stronghold from the mouths of children and nursing infants to silence the enemy and the avenger" (HCSB). This Scripture reveals how God sees babies and little children. They silence the enemy, the devil who hates children and wants to eradicate life every way he can by contraception, sterilization, and abortion.

Genesis 3:16 is the first prophetic promise of the Messiah who came through the womb of a woman to bruise the head of Satan and bring salvation and deliverance to the world. The womb of the woman is still the vehicle through which babies come, eternal souls born in the image of God and with a God-consciousness and bent toward God. Children naturally love God and respond to Him and as this is taught and fostered in a godly home they can grow up to be mighty men and women of God. Of course, this inborn response to God can be squelched by ungodly parents.

What happened after Jesus rose up in indignation and cast out all the money-changers from the temple (Matthew 21:14-16)? The children filled the temple crying out "Hosanna to the son of David." It was the children who filled the temple with the glory of God (Matthew 21:14-16) and Jesus then quoted Psalm 8:2.

Dear mothers, please understand the power of bringing forth the "godly seed" from your womb. Every baby that is born is another opportunity to destroy and silence the enemy's evil plans. The more children born to godly families, the more righteousness will fill the land and the more evil will be defeated. (Psalm 127:5).

Can I share with you again one of my favorite quotes by Frank Boreham?

"We fancy that God can only manage His world by big battalions abroad, when all the while He is doing it by beautiful babies at home. When a wrong wants righting, or a truth wants preaching, or a continent wants opening, GOD SENDS A BABY INTO THE WORLD TO DO IT. That is why long, long ago, a Babe was born in Bethlehem."

Blessings from Nancy

There are exceptions, but God does not reveal Himself to us unless we really want Him and seek Him. After Jacob had wrestled with the angel all through the night, the angel wanted to leave and said, "Let me go, for the day breaketh." But Jacob would not let Him go and said, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me" (Genesis 32:24-30). The angel (most probably the Son of God in human form) could have left of His own volition, but wanted to see how much Jacob really wanted Him.

One time the disciples were out on Lake Galilee. The wind was strong and they were toiling in the waves. Jesus came by walking on the water "and would have passed by them" but they cried out to Him and He came into the ship and the wind ceased (Mark 6: 47-51).

When the Canaanite woman came to Jesus to ask Him to heal her daughter, He did not even answer her. The disciples wanted to send her away because she kept bothering them. but she would not give up. Eventually Jesus said, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Still she would not give up and because of her persistence Jesus healed her daughter (Matthew 15:22-28).

Do you remember when the two disciples were walking to Emmaus? They were dejected and sad because they thought Jesus was going to deliver them from the Romans but was now dead. Along came this stranger, Jesus Himself but unknown to them, and revealed all the things in the Scriptures concerning Himself. Their hearts burned within them as He talked with them, but eventually they arrived at Emmaus and Jesus "made as though he would have gone further." But the disciples "constrained him" to stay with them and come in for supper (Luke 24:13-32). Because of their insistence that He come to their home, He made Himself known to them as they ate together.

Dear wives and mothers, do you want God to come and bless you and your children in your home? God does not stay around if we don't have time for Him. He comes to those who will not let Him go. He comes to those who really want Him to reveal Himself to them. That's why it is important to make time to meet with God as a family each day. God tells us in Exodus 20:24 that when we make an altar to Him That He will come to us and bless us. This does not mean we make a physical altar, but a time and a place where we commit together as a family to meet with Him--allowing nothing else to interfere with this time.

When we allow everything else to get in the road and eclipse this time, He knows that we are not really seeking after Him. He sees by our actions that all the other things in our day are more important than Him.

Are you going to let Him pass by, or are you going to say, "God we want you to come to our home. We are going to make a time each day when we gather as a family to meet with you and where we cry out to you to meet with us"?

Alexander Maclaren writes, "If we do not desire Him to stay, He will go, unless we keep Him."

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

What makes does a door swing open? It's the insignificant hinges that we hardly ever notice. And yet without the hinges the door cannot open or close. And so it is with our daily life. It cannot function without the seemingly common and insignificant things of life.

Making beds, sweeping, vacuuming, and cleaning up the house seem so commonplace. But they bring order which is Godlike. Plus, it makes the home function. Washing dishes and doing laundry can also seem humdrum. But they reveal cleanliness which is Godlike.

Smiles, hugs, and kisses and courteous attitudes may seem inconsequential but they change the whole atmosphere of the home and because they change the home to one of love, peace and joy, they are part of changing the world.

Preparing a meal seems a common-place thing, But is not unimportant. It reveals servanthood which is also Godlike. And it prepares the way for greater things--family togetherness, fun, and fellowship, feeding the soul and the spirit. It also establishes a pattern for the next generation. The gathering around the family table for meals is declining in USA. Some apartments today don't even have stoves. If children do not grow up with family meals, how much more will they digress in the next generation. Will tables be eliminated?

Some think it is a lowly thing to stay at home and nurse a baby, change diapers, care for little ones, and guide and teach their growing children. But this so-called lowly thing in the eyes of society is huge in the eyes of God. It is the highest career He has given to women. It is God's ultimate plan for you if you are blessed to be married and have children. And without mothers embracing their role the world would come to a halt! We may be involved as one writer calls it, "the dust of the small duties" but we make the world function!

The little things you do in your home every day make the world go round.

Love from Nancy Campbell

Alexander Maclaren writes: "Unless religion is communion, it is nothing." True Christianity is a relationship with a person, Jesus Christ. However, this same principle relates to us as families too.

Family life is togetherness. It is relationships. They take time to build. If we don't make an effort to keep the family relating together, it is easy for everyone to start going their own ways. The family becomes fragmented instead of being built together.

Of all the animals God created, He chose to call us His sheep. Sheep have a flock mentality. They cannot survive on their own. They are only content when in the flock. Psalm 107:41 tells us that God also makes "families like a flock." He wants us to be together.

A wonderful way to fellowship together is at the family meal table where we encourage discussion and heart and soul dialogue together. I hope you have the same rule that we do at our family table that no one is allowed to bring IPhones or IPads to the table. I cannot think of anything more rude than people texting or checking their messages while sitting with the family. It's bad enough seeing families do this at a restaurant, let alone in the family home. We sit around a table for the purpose of being able to look at one another in the eye as we share together.

Many blessings. Nancy Campbell

Yesterday we talked about mothering with zeal. However, I must mention that this kind of mothering attitude will get you into trouble. Are you ready for this? The description of Jesus in John 2:17 is taken directly from the prophetic Psalm 69:9 (ESV) where it says, "Zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me." We can read it again God's Word translation, "Indeed, devotion for your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me."

When you become passionate for mothering, when you embrace it with all your heart, when you are homeschooling and not living according to the status quo of our society you will receive insults. Most people don't like zealous mothers. They don't like mothers who keep having the children God has planned for them from eternity as they are subconsciously convicted of their own attitude.

But that's nothing compared to how Satan hates zealous mothers. They are his biggest threat! They are dangerous to his kingdom. Mothers who have embraced the mandate God has given them to receive His children and raise them to be mighty men and women of God who know the power of God and know how to destroy the works of the enemy get in the road of Satan's plans. He wants to eliminate children. And the ones who are born, he wants to get hold of and indoctrinate them in his deceptive ways.

Therefore, dear mothers. Don't worry about the insults and the reproaches. You can expect them when you are zealous for building a family for God. And how did Jesus combat the insults that were thrown at Him? "He answered him never a word" (Matthew 27:13, 14). You are doing a GREAT WORK. You haven't got time to come down to your adversaries or insulters.

Nehemiah 6:3 says, "I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?"

Blessings from Nancy Campbell