Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

God told the tribe of Issachar "to rejoice in their homes" (Deuteronomy 33:18). The word for homes is “ohel” and it means “a covering, a dwelling place.” It can be used of a hut or a palace! It speaks of a home for animals or for a king.

 

Maybe you are living in cramped quarters. It feels like a hut! You long for more room. Can I encourage you to keep rejoicing? When Moses spoke those words to Issachar, they were living in temporary tents! They had no mod cons. No store down the road to run to if they ran out of something. And God wanted them to rejoice.

 

Rejoicing is a powerful attribute. It allows God to work in our lives and in our circumstances. When we complain and whine, we keep ourselves in our self-pity dungeon! And we stay miserable!

 

When we rejoice, our circumstances may not change, but our heart changes and we can face insurmountable odds with the joy of the Lord.

 

Do you remember the time when David came back from battle to his home city of Ziklag? They found it burned to the ground with fire. That would be enough to make you depressed. But the Amalekites had also taken all their wives, sons, and daughters captive! They were left with nothing. They all lifted up their voices and wept until they could weep no more! The men were so upset they wanted to stone David!

 

David was so distraught! But then the Bible tells us that “David encouraged himself in the LORD his God” (1 Samuel 30:6). When David took his eyes off his devastating circumstances and directed his heart to the Lord, God was able to give David the strategy and he and his men recovered every wife and all their children. Verse 19 says “David recovered all.”

 

David had no answer to their terrible catastrophe while he was in a state of despair. We can’t hear from God when we are filled with bitterness, unforgiveness, and moaning. But when by faith we look to the Lord and rejoice in Him, things begin to change. It’s a biblical principle (Job 13:15 and Habakkuk 3:17, 18).

 

Fill your home with rejoicing today.

 

Blessings to you from Nancy Campbell

The other week I did a podcast with Rebecca Southey from New Zealand (who was staying with us at the time) where she tells her story of God’s grace and blessing upon her life. She mentioned on the podcast of how I printed a testimony by her mother, Maureen Green, who gave birth to a spinal bifida daughter. Can you believe it? It was printed in the No. 3 issue of Above Rubies, away back in 1978! Here’s the testimony.

 

 

How thrilled and grateful I was when my young daughter, Lois gave birth to a big bouncing baby boy. She had a perfect pregnancy and an easy natural birth. Little Joshua was my 15th grandchild, so why was it so special?

 

I thought back to a day 21 years ago when I lay on a hospital bed with a gynecologist/physician/surgeon surrounding me saying that this pregnancy must be terminated! This was because of my acute physical condition and the risk of childbirth. My previous pregnancies and births had been very difficult, and they did not think I could survive this one.

 

I was faced with an issue of life and death. How could I destroy life which God had put within me? No. I couldn’t allow it, even at risk to myself. I remember saying to the physician, “My faith is wobbly, but I will wobble on with the help of God” and I went through the pregnancy.

 

Lois was born with difficulty at five weeks premature, RH negative, and spinal bifida! She was operated on at two days old to close the opening. After the operation there was no reaction or sign of reflexes. Her legs just dangled. The doctor said they had done all they could.

 

My husband and I had many times experienced a touch from the Lord and so we turned to Him again. We took her to Wellington where a visiting evangelist from America prayed for her.

 

Nothing apparent happened, but my husband, being a man of faith, kept telling the Lord what we had read in His word: “They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover” (Mark 16:18). Each night as we put her to bed he would say, “Lord, we’re still waiting. We thank You that this baby will walk.”

 

The night she was one year old we were bathing her and suddenly she moved, and her legs kicked for the first time. What excitement as the whole family came crowding in the tiny little bathroom. Such shouting and rejoicing.

 

From this day on she grew stronger and began to hold her head which she could not do before. We decided to treat her from this day just as we had our other five children.

 

We had many opportunities to tell of Jesus and His love through what people saw happening over a space of time.

 

At 15 years she was last seen by the specialist who was surprised that she was just like any normal girl. However, he did say that if one day she should marry and have a child that she would need to give birth by c-section. How wonderful is the goodness of God that she had a beautiful natural delivery.

 

We have been a family who have known what it is to have sickness come our way, but we have seen the Lord’s hand on our lives and have been granted the ability to rise above it.

 

I strongly recommend this wonderful friend, Jesus Christ, to anyone needing healing, whether it be spiritual, physical, or emotional.

 

MAUREEN GREEN (who passed away many years ago).

 

(Maureen was also Sue’s mother who did the podcast, A LIFE POURED OUT, and Rebecca’s mother who shared her story in the podcast, GOD’S FAITHFULNESS.

Here's the link to Rebecca’s great testimony.

 

 

Picture: Cover of Above Rubies, No. 3. I wonder if anyone in the world still has this copy of Above Rubies!

I can’t believe it. I found the following on my computer the other day—and it was sent to me in 2000, 25 years ago! So here it is. Hope it’s a blessing to you.

 

 

(A little dialogue between God and someone).

 

“Our Father which art in heaven . . .”

 

“Yes?"

 

"Don't interrupt me. I'm praying."

 

"But you called Me."

 

"Called you? I didn't call You. I'm praying. ‘Our Father which art in Heaven . . .’”

 

"There . . . you did it again."

 

"Did what?"

 

“Called Me. You said, ‘Our Father which art in heaven.’ Here I am. What's on your mind?"

 

“But I didn't mean anything by it. I was, you know, just saying my prayers for the day. I always say The Lord's Prayer. It makes me feel good, kind of like getting a duty done."

 

"All right. Go on."

 

"Hallowed be thy name . . .”

 

"Hold it! What do you mean by that?"

 

"By what?"

 

"By ‘hallowed be thy name?’”

 

"It means, it means, good grief! I don't know what it means. How should I know? It's just a part of the prayer. By the way, what does it mean?"

 

"It means honored, holy, wonderful."

 

"Hey, that makes sense. I never thought about what ‘hallowed’ meant before.

 

“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

 

"Do you really mean that?"

 

"Sure, why not?"

 

"What are you doing about it?"

 

"Doing? Nothing, I guess! I just think it would be kind of neat if You got control of everything down here like You have up there."

 

"Have I got control of you?"

 

"Well, I go to church."

 

"That isn't what I asked you. What about your bad temper? You've really

got a problem there, you know. And then there's the way you spend your money all on yourself. And what about the kind of books you read?"

 

"Stop picking on me! I'm just as good as some of the rest of those people at the church."

 

“Excuse me. I thought you were praying for My will to be done. If that

is to happen, it will have to start with the ones who are praying for it, like you, for example."

 

"Oh, all right. I guess I do have some hang-ups. Now that you mention it, I could probably name some others."

 

"So could I."

 

"I haven't thought about it very much until now, but I really would like to cut out some of those things. I would like to . . . you know . . . be really free."

 

"Good, now we're getting somewhere! We'll work together, you and I. Some victories can truly be won. I'm proud of you."

 

"Look, Lord, I need to finish up here. This is taking a lot longer than it usually does. ‘Give us this day, our daily bread.’”

 

"You need to cut out the bread. You're overweight as it is."

 

"Hey, wait a minute! What is this? 'Criticize me day?' Here I was doing my religious duty and all of a sudden You break in and remind me of all my hang-ups."

 

"Praying is a dangerous thing. You could wind up changed, you know. That's what I'm trying to get across to you. You called Me, and here I am. It's too late to stop now. Keep praying. I'm interested in the next part of your prayer (pause). Well, go on!"

 

"I'm scared to."

 

"Scared? Of what?"

 

"I know what You'll say."

 

"Try me and see."

 

“Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us."

 

"What about Ann?"

 

"See? I knew it! I knew you would bring her up! Why Lord, she's told lies about me, spread stories about my family. She never paid back the debt she owes me. I've sworn to get even with her!"

 

"But your prayer? What about your prayer?"

 

"I didn't mean it."

 

"Well, at least you're honest. But it's not much fun carrying that load of bitterness around inside, is it?

 

"No, but I'll feel better as soon as I get even. Boy, have I got some plans for that neighbor. She'll wish she had never moved into this neighborhood."

 

"You won't feel any better. You'll feel worse. Revenge isn't sweet. Think of how unhappy you already are. But I can change all that."

 

"You can? How?"

 

"Forgive Ann. Then I'll forgive you. Then the hate and sin will be Ann's problem and not yours. You will have settled your heart."

 

"Oh, you're right. You always are. And more than I want to revenge Ann, I want to be right with You. Ann, I want to be right with you . . . (pause) . . . (sigh). All right! Alright! I forgive her! Help her to find the right road in life, Lord. She's bound to be awfully miserable now that I think about it. Anybody who goes around doing the things she does to others has to be out of it. Someway, somehow, show her the right way."

 

"There now! Wonderful! Now do you feel?"

 

"Hmmm . . . well, not bad. Not bad at all. In fact, I feel pretty great! You know, I don't think I'll have to go to bed uptight tonight for the first time since I can remember. Maybe I won't be so tired from now on because I'm not getting enough rest."

 

"You're not through with your prayer. Go on."

 

"Oh, all right. ‘And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’"

 

"Good! Good! I'll do that. Just don't put yourself in a place where you can be tempted."

 

"What do you mean by that?"

 

"Don't turn on the TV when you know the laundry needs to be done and the

house needs to be picked up. Also, about the time you spend having coffee with your friends. If you can't influence the conversation to positive things, perhaps you should rethink the value of those friendships. Another thing, your neighbors and friends shouldn't be your standard for ‘keeping up with.’ And please don't use Me for an escape hatch."

 

"I don't understand the last part."

 

"Sure you do. You've done it a lot of times. You get caught in a bad situation. You get into trouble and then you come running to Me, ‘Lord, help me out of this mess, and I promise You I'll never do it again.’ You remember some of those bargains you tried to make with Me?"

 

"Yes, and I'm ashamed, Lord. I really am."

 

"Which bargain are you remembering?"

 

"Well, there was the night that Bill was gone and the children and I were

home alone. The wind was blowing so hard I thought the roof would go any

minute and tornado warnings were out. I remember praying, 'Oh God, if

You spare us, I'll never skip my devotions again.’”

 

"I protected you, but you didn't keep your promise, did you?"

 

"I'm sorry, Lord. I really am. Up until now I thought that if I just prayed The Lord's Prayer every day, then I could do what I liked. I didn't expect anything to happen like it did."

 

"Go ahead and finish your prayer."

 

"For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen."

 

"Do you know what would bring me glory? What would really make Me happy?"

 

"No, but I'd like to know. I now want to please You. I can see what a mess I've made of my life. And I can see how great it would be to really be one of Your followers."

 

"You just answered the question."

 

"I did?"

 

"Yes, the thing that would bring Me glory is to have people like you truly love Me. And I see that happening between us. Now that some of these old sins are exposed and out of the way, well, there is no telling what we can do together."

 

"Oh, Lord, let's see what we can make of me, okay?"

 

"Yes, let's see."

 

 

The following is one of my favorite quotes by General William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army.

 

"Think of the possibility of raising a multitude of men and women whose bodies have never been poisoned by vicious indulgences, whose minds have been enlightened and filled with the principles of divine truth from their infancy, and whose hearts, from their earliest days, have been inspired with the love of Christ and possessed with the one supreme ambition to GLORIFY THE FATHER, DETHRONE THE DEVIL, DESTROY SIN, AND SAVE THE WORLD!"

 

God has given to parents a great vision and purpose. We haven't got time for lesser things. We have a world to influence with glorious gospel of Jesus Christ as we prepare our children for their destiny.

 

~ Nancy

 

Painting: Three Brothers by Wilhelm Palmer, 1898

 

"Think of the possibility of raising a multitude of men and women whose bodies have never been poisoned by vicious indulgences, whose minds have been enlightened and filled with the principles of divine truth from their infancy, and whose hearts, from their earliest days, have been inspired with the love of Christ and possessed with the one supreme ambition to GLORIFY THE FATHER, DETHRONE THE DEVIL, DESTROY SIN, AND SAVE THE WORLD!"

 

~ General William Booth

 

Fathers, what a great responsibility we have!

Dear lovely mother . . .

 

I want to remind you today that as you mother, nurture, and train your children in your home that you are in the perfect will of God.

 

When God gives His children to you (for they are ultimately His children) to raise and train for Him, He doesn’t give them to you to give to someone else. He knows that no one else in the world will love them, ache for them, protect them, and give their lives for them like YOU, their own mother. Mothers and babies are bound together. Mothers and children are bound together until they reach the age of maturity and are ready to charge out on their own.

 

I want to also remind you that because you are doing the will of God that you will abide forever. Here is the promisein 1 John 2:15-17: “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world, And THE WORLD PASSESTH AWAY and the lust thereof: but HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF GOD ABIDETH FOREVER.”

 

Sometimes you may feel like you would like to be out in the career world and doing important things. Let me tell you dear mother, that that kind of lifestyle is going to pass away as the Scripture says. You won’t take your career into Heaven with you. It will be left behind. Not a memory of it.

 

But you will take into Heaven your redeemed soul and the redeemed souls of your children who are eternal beings. Motherhood is an eternal career.

 

Rejoice that you are fulfilling God’s will. God sees your service which is ultimately unto Him. You may feel that you are hidden away, but as you are faithful to fulfil your calling, there is a day coming (and it comes too quickly) that from your home will come children who are polished and trained to bring God’s salvation and truth to the world, who will shine God’s light into the darkness, and who will overcome the evil.

 

You couldn’t be doing anything more powerful.

 

Love from Nancy Campbell

 

 

Painting: Thomas Little

When I was a young mother of two children I was given a stack of Above Rubies magazines. I gleaned messages from each magazine that were valuable to my life at the time. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have a large family or homeschool.

 

The Lord saved my husband's soul when my third born son, Isaiah (God is Salvation) was born and God led us to surrender our family size to Him. We kept building our wall. My sixth child, Nehemiah was born in 2019, and that year God gave my husband the gift of sobriety.

 

Nehemiah, and our seventh born, Jeremiah, were such difficult babies. My husband decided we would have one last girl, and he would get a vasectomy. Baby eight was a delightful little boy, Elijah Zion.

 

In spring of 2024 we welcomed our beautiful little Zinniah Blossom—our one last girl and my husband scheduled his vasectomy. With the finality of sterility, my heart ached for the children we would never meet. I held the conviction to allow God to create with our bodies so near to my heart.

 

I was advised by people much wiser to submit to my husband. He was a good man, of sober mind, and who loved the Lord. I tried to make my heart obey but it would not, and I threw the tantrum of my life when the month of his surgery came around.

 

We fought. I tried to hurt him with my words as badly as his decision was hurting me. It created a huge chasm in our marriage. A few weeks after his vasectomy my husband started having side effects that completely destroyed our sex life. These symptoms worsened as the weeks went by.

 

We went to counseling to work on the issues that stirred up this trial. We prayed together every single night without fail. The Lord answered us with a unified direction for my husband to have a vasectomy reversal.

 

During this time my husband decided to donate to Above Rubies for the first time and shortly after the most recent magazine, #102, was mailed to me. I couldn't believe that the first time my husband donated to this ministry was to put an issue about vasectomy reversals into my hands. What a blessed comfort each and every story was to my soul.

 

At Christmas, just four months after his initial vasectomy he had a reversal. God allowed us to schedule at the perfect time for my husband's work with the surgeon we felt was the best choice. The entire process was such a deep valley with so much provision from God.

 

My husband is now healed of all the side effects that destroyed our marriage bed. He is so proud that we are expecting a little baby soul from our Lord this Thanksgiving, our 10th baby that I never thought I'd have the privilege to carry.

 

The Lord fought this battle for me in entirety. I didn't need to force my will on my husband. God's will cannot be thwarted. Now as we stand on this mountain, I cannot believe I'm writing this. We are better than before. Our love is covered in daily prayer, and we have surrendered our will to our Father God.

 

CHELSIE PANELLA

Oconomowoc, Wisconsin

 

Picture: Michael and Chelsie with the beautiful children God has given to them.

The home is the nest God provided for mothers to raise their children.

Father, are you taking your responsibility as the spiritual leader of your home?

Currently we are reading through the book of Job in our Family Devotions. This morning we were encouraged by Job 23:12: “Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips: I have esteemed the words of this mouth more than mmy necssary food.”

 

The CJB translation and most others say: “I TREASURE his words MORE THAN my daily food.” Can we truly say these words? I believe this challenge comes to us personally and collectively as a family. I love my time in God’s Word each morning before everyone else is up. I treasure this time. I treasure God’s words. This is the exact meaning of the Hebrew word, “to treasure, to hide, to store up.” It’s the same word as Psalm 119:11: “Thy word have I HID in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Read also Psalm 40:7, 8; Proverbs 2:1; 4:20, 21; 7:1; and Jeremiah 31:33.

 

I’m a great believer in the words of the old Chinese saint who used to say: “No Bible; no breakfast!” He wouldn’t feed his body until he fed his soul and spirit.

 

But it is not enough to treasure God’s word pesonally. I believe we must treasure it as a family. Of course, if we treasure it more than our daily food, we’ll make sure that we are gathering our family together each day to feed them spiritually. We feed our family at least three good physical meals a day and often snacks in between. Are we feeding the spiritual inner man of our children MORE THAN that?

 

I think the least we can do is to have our morning and evening Bible time together. Anything less than this shows very clearly that we do not treasure God’s living and eternal Word.

 

Are you a family that can say, “We treasure God’s Word more than our daily food”?

 

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

The following is a message from a dear friend of mine, Chris Peach, from Norfolk, England. We look forward to fellowshipping together each time we go to England.

 

“TRUTH hurts sometimes. But it is better to face TRUTH now and honestly than to later realize that you have lived a lie!

 

Couples these days are waiting till they are "financially secure" before they have children. It makes sense and sounds reasonable, doesn't it? I wonder how financially secure Mary and Joseph were and how stable their situation was before they had Jesus.

 

They didn't have a horse or camel; they had a donkey.

They didn't have a chariot; they went on foot.

They didn't have the Ritz Hotel, swimming pool, and Spa, they had a stable.

 

It's interesting to me that God has always chosen to reward faith over common sense. Think about that one thought for a while. We couldn't afford our first child, let alone our seventh! Common sense would have kept us waiting forever (like many today) before we were financially stable. But with each child God blessed us. I cannot say it is easy, but I can say it is worthwhile!

 

God created family. It was His idea. And he said, “Go and multiply and fill the Earth!” The Earth isn't FULL yet and God hasn't changed His mind. If God can provide manna in a desert every day and double on a Friday so they didn't have to work on Saturday for nearly three million people in a desert, then God can provide for us!

 

Do you think they stopped having children as they wandered in that desert for 40 years? Do you think they used contraceptives or aborted their children because they hadn't got a house or a stable job? No! read the Bible. They multiplied in the desert just as they multiplied in Egypt under the servitude and chains of Pharaoh!

 

We are called to live lives of faith and trust in God and sometimes that doesn't make earthly sense. That is why it's called a walk of FAITH, not FACT! We honor God most when we take Him at His Word.

 

Psalm 127:3-5 (ESV): “Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!”

 

A HERITAGE FROM THE LORD!

A FRUIT AND A REWARD!

ARROWS IN THE HAND OF A WARRIOR!

THE CHILDREN OF ONES YOUTH ARE A BLESSING!

This is what GOD says about having children!

 

Don't allow fear to control you, the walk of faith is not an easy way, but God will make a way! Our God a way maker! A maverick! A SUPERNATURAL HERO! And if our God is for us, who can stand against us!

 

Go and live lives of faithful obedience to our Lord God—have children, multiply, fill your quiver to the full, overflow with the little blessings from God. The barren womb has always been seen as a curse until the lie came and Satan whispers in a woman's ear, “You can eat of the fruit, and you shall not die.” Eat she did and began to die. The tree men and women still eat from is the tree of knowledge of good and evil. I suggest that it's the tree of "common sense." The Devil always makes sense. He appeals to our reason and logic in his own manipulation. It's reasonable to use contraception, wait until you’re older, wiser, financially stable, etc. No!

 

Don't trust that liar! Trust God with your fertility and the timing of your children. Have faith that He will make streams in the desert! God will make a way! GOD WILL MAKE A WAY!

 

Satan has always killed the children, in the womb and out of it, in Egypt and in the Promised land.

 

Children are God’s blessings!

 

God bless you dads who go out to work and seek provision for the family you love. God bless you men and women of FAITH, COURAGE, AND STRENGTH IN THE FACE OF DARKNESS! Your witness and testimony are your faith and obedience to Scripture. And what a witness it is!

 

God's way works, Satan tempts us to do things his way—sex before marriage, children outside of wedlock, etc., but Satan only seeks to kill steal and destroy.

 

We need to get back to faithful obedience to God, His Word, and His Spirit.

 

God bless you all!”

 

CHRIS PEACH. Norfolk, England.

 

Picture: The Peach family.