Every day is training ground for eternity. In the midst of challenges and difficulties, keep your eyes upon the Lord.
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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.
God’s Word commands us to assemble TOGETHER but it should be our delight. It is also a powerful thing that we do together as families. We go together as a family to gather together with other families. Don’t deprive your children of this great heritage.
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There’ll be no books on the floor, no papers, no bags,
No cushions, or shoes, or bread sack tags,
The chairs round the table will be neatly in place,
We’ll sit on a seat without first clearing a space.
The beds in each room will be perfectly made,
Everything on the dresser will be neatly displayed,
There’ll be nothing to quickly shove under the bed
So the room will look tidy before books can be read.
The bathroom will have a permanent sheen,
Every inch of it will be immaculately clean,
There won’t be a queue lining up at the door
And there’ll be no towels hung up on the floor.
The windows will all be spotlessly clean,
Not one fingerprint will be there to be seen,
There’ll be no food smeared over the glass,-
Even the curtains will look first class!
However . . .
The day could be a bit of a drag,
With no washing to do the time will lag,
The children all gone and no schooling to be done
May cause one to feel that life is no fun.
The vacuuming won’t need to be done for a week,
The ironing will be left with nary a peek,
The baking could remain in the tins for so long-
I’d wonder if I’d got the recipe wrong!
The evenings may seem a bit of a bore
With not much to do, not even a chore,
No stories to read, no games to play,
No chatting about the events of the day.
I think . . .
I should be content with what I have now,
Pack more love and happiness into each hour,
Be more pleasant, gentle, tender, and kind,
Make lots of good memories to leave behind.
It’s not till they’ve gone that you realize how fast
Twenty years can fly by, ever so fast,
I’m thankful I have another twenty or so
Before my last baby fledgling will have to go.
~ Margaret Hartnett
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Choose to be thankful. To whine and grumble is such a miserable way to live!Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord bath done!
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DID YOU KNOW THAT NURSERY RHYMES HELP YOUR CHILD'S BRAIN?
I notice that more and more young people do not know the traditional nursery rhymes. As a child, and when I raised our children, it was expected that every child could recite all the nursery rhymes by heart. We knew them from toddler age.
I encourage you to read nursery rhymes to your children. I know you may think it a little ridiculous to teach your little ones some of the traditional nursery rhymes. They do not contain a lot of positivity. However, it is still important to recite rhyme to your children. That's why I have written a new nursery rhyme book for this new generation--NANNY'S NURSERY RHYMES.
Here are 10 REASONS to read nursery rhymes to your children, from babyhood onwards:
1. Nursery rhymes give your children a delight for listening.
Listening is one of the most important skills to teach your children. Their ability to listen affects their future. We all know that "listening comprehension precedes reading comprehension." The rhythm and beat of nursery rhymes give pleasure to the ear and therefore encourages them in this wonderful art from the beginning.
2. Nursery rhymes are good for their brain.
The repetition of rhymes builds memory capabilities that can be applied to all areas of life.
3. Nursery rhymes prepare your children for reading.
They are the "springboard to literacy." They give your child a head start in their education.
4. Nursery rhymes "boost language development."
They lay the foundation for understanding words and even help with spelling. A study by Bryant, MacLean and Crosland (1990) revealed that children who were familiar with nursery rhymes from an early age became much more advanced in their spelling and reading abilities. Did you know that in 1945 the average elementary school student had a vocabulary of 10,000 words? Today, the average child has a vocabulary of only 2,500 words!
Although the rhymes in NANNY'S NURSERY RHYMES are simple, they also introduce words and content with which your children may not be familiar. This is good--another opportunity to teach a new word. Teach them what it means. Get them to say it out loud after you.
5. Nursery rhymes help with memorization.
They are easy to learn because of the rhythm and rhyme, and also the repetition of the words. Little babies are drawn to listen to rhythm--the first sound they hear is the beating rhythm of their mother's heart. Research also shows that the more beat in the words, the more they love to listen and the easier they memorize. Read them with a beat.
As you read and recite the rhymes over and over, they remember them for life. My children grew up reciting all the traditional nursery rhymes (I wish I had thought of writing NANNY'S NURSERY RHYMES when they were young!).
They loved rhyming books and I loved reading them. One of our favorite children's authors was Bill Peet (who has now passed away). Look for his books (available on Amazon). You will love them. One of the children's favorite was "Huge Harold." Today, even in their late forties they still like to quote a phrase from the book and even say it to their children:
“Doggone and Dagnabit,
That's what I call a whoppin' big rabbit."
There was something about the rhythm and rhyme of those words that appealed to them.
6. Nursery Rhymes help expand your child's imagination.
7. Nursery rhymes help children with math skills.
Many nursery rhymes use patterns and sequence which help children to learn simple math skills. Other nursery rhymes help children to count.
8. Nursery Rhymes create memories of the warmth and safety of mother's love.
Because you read to them while they are nursing, sitting on your knee, or cuddled by your side, they not only learn rhymes, but associate them with love, security, and happiness.
9. Nursery Rhymes are portable.
After you have read the rhymes to your children many times, they will know them by heart. You can then say them together when driving in the car or wherever you are together.
10. Best of all, Nursery Rhymes are fun.
They are fun to read to your children. They are fun for them to listen to and fun for them to recite.
You will love this brightly colored, delightfully illustrated NANNY'S NURSERY RHYMES.
To order, go to:
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Proverbs 31:25 gives us one of the beautiful pictures of the virtuous woman: “Strength and honor are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.” This clothing is not only talking about her garments but the attributes with which she is clothed.The interesting thing is that these two beautiful attributes, although used here to describe the capable woman, are also used to describe God. How incredible that God’s attributes can become our attributes. Of course, it is not anything of our own making. We are reminded in Ezekiel 16:14 that any beauty or glory we have comes only from God Himself.
The word “honor” is “hadar” and means “magnificence, splendor, beauty, excellency, glory, honor, dignity, and majesty.” Psalm 96:6 describes God in this way: “Honor and majesty (hadar) are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.”
Majesty is a royal attribute. Majesty belongs to God who is King of kings and Lord of lords. Dear ladies, we belong to a majestic kingdom and therefore our lives should show to the world that we belong to this kingdom. We should have a sense of majesty about us because God dwells in us.
I discovered 19 different versions of the Bible translate this Scripture with the word “dignity.” Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary says that dignity means: “true honor; nobleness or elevation of mind, consisting in a high sense of propriety, truth and justice, with an abhorrence of mean and sinful actions.”
May we as home-advocating, home-loving, home-keeping, home-cooking, home-working, home-mothering, nurturing, and training mothers to walk in an anointing of dignity and majesty. These beautiful attributes have been given to us by God.
Be blessed today,
Nancy Campbell
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LITTLE FACESLittle faces at my place;
Some wear denim, some wear lace.
Muddy fingers, messy hair,
I'm just glad that they are there.
Yes, they keep me on my toes,
Picking up their toys and clothes,
Wiping faces, washing feet,
But I don't mind ‘cuz they're so sweet.
Days and moments will not last.
Up and away, they'll grow too fast.
My time with them today I'll savor,
And thereby do myself a favor.
To see them all as gifts from God,
To shape them is a noble job,
There is no greater joy on earth
Than teaching children of their worth
To God in heaven, who in love,
Designed them for His courts above.
He destined each one His plan,
To serve His purposes for man.
So let me pause for just a while
To ponder each one's face and smile.
While life speeds on and keeps its pace,
These memories won't be erased.
2017 Val Halloran
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Oil painting by Susan Blackwood – “Muddy Boys.”
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Don’t cast away the dignity God has given you as a woman. Embrace your womanhood. Embrace your femininity. Embrace your motherhood. Keep your honor. Bring glory to God in the way you act, speak, dress, and even walk.
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There is nothing greater you can do than impart God’s Word into your children’s lives. The greatest antidote to deception is God’s Word. In this deceived world in which we live they need it strongly implanted within them.
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WHAT IS A MOTHER?It takes a Mother’s LOVE
to make a house a home,
A place to be remembered,
No matter where we roam.
It takes a Mother’s PATIENCE
To bring a child up right,
And her COURAGE and her
CHEERFULNESS to make a day bright.
It takes a Mother’s THOUGHTFULNESS
To mend a heart’s deep “hurts,”
And her SKILL and her ENDURANCE
To mend little socks and shirts.
It takes a Mother’s KINDNESS
To forgive us when we err,
To sympathize in trouble
And bow her head in PRAYER.
It takes a mother’s WISDOM
To recognize our needs
And to give us reassurance
By her loving words and deeds.
It takes a mother’s ENDLESS FAITH,
Her CONFIDENCE and TRUST
To guide us through the pitfalls
Of selfishness and lust.
And that is why in all the world
There could not be another
Who could fulfill God’s purpose
As completely as a MOTHER!
~ Author Unknown
Painting by Sharon Forbes
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Another poem from Edgar Alan Guest. My favorite lines are:“The happiest people in the town
Are those the babies have tied down.”
TIED DOWN?
"They tie you down," a woman said,
Whose cheeks should have been flaming red
With shame to speak of children so.
"When babies come you cannot go
In search of pleasure with your friends,
And all your happy wandering ends.
The things you like you cannot do,
For babies make a slave of you."
I looked at her and said: "'Tis true
That children make a slave of you,
And tie you down with many a knot,
But have you never thought to what
It is of happiness and pride
That little babies have you tied?
Do you not miss the greater joys
That come with little girls and boys?
"They tie you down to laughter rare,
To hours of smiles and hours of care,
To nights of watching and to fears;
Sometimes they tie you down to tears
And then repay you with a smile,
And make your trouble all worthwhile.
They tie you fast to chubby feet,
And cheeks of pink and kisses sweet.
"They fasten you with cords of love
To God divine, who reigns above.
They tie you, whereso'er you roam,
Unto the little place called home;
And over sea or railroad track
They tug at you to bring you back.
The happiest people in the town
Are those the babies have tied down.
"Oh, go your selfish way and free,
But hampered I would rather be,
Yes rather than a kingly crown
I would be, what you term, tied down;
Tied down to dancing eyes and charms,
Held fast by chubby, dimpled arms,
The fettered slave of girl and boy,
And win from them earth's finest joy."
~ Edgar Guest
Painting by Jessie Willcox Smith
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TREASURES OF THE HEARTI tiptoe past the bedrooms
And try to hold my breath
When suddenly a shadow
Scares me half to death.
It’s just a little angel
Appearing in the hall,
So much for time alone, she’s more
Important after all.
Sometimes I’m such a failure
As a mother and a wife,
I often get impatient
And frustrated with my life,
I don’t live in a mansion,
My clothes are not so fine,
But I can lie without them
As long as these are mine.
Little cherub kisses,
“Mommy, I love you!”
Snuggles in the morning
And “look what I can do!”
May every precious moment
Forever leave its mark,
I’ll never take for granted
These treasures of the heart.
~ Linda Lang
Painting by Brenda Burke
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MOTHER'S DAY REFLECTIONSSeems the last I remember,
you were small
and playing with toys.
How is it now you are grown up
And raising your own
girls and boys?
I remember your
Chatter and laughter,
As though they had Just filled the air.
I almost feel sweet little fingers
Tugging their way
through my hair.
What would I give
just to go back
to years so swiftly gone by,
To tell you more often, "I love you,”
to annoyances,
turn a blind eye.
More moments I'd speak
of our Savior,
To know you were sure of His love.
By grace, be a better example
Of His truths that
I often spoke of.
I'd lay aside things that don't matter,
To hear of your joys
and your fears,
To look in your eyes as you shared them,
to sympathize more
with your tears.
Those days have dissolved
Like a vapor,
But I still hold you close In my prayers.
I long for the glory
that's waiting,
to ever be close to you there.
2015 Val Halloran
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Painting by Trent Gunderson
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I’M A STAY-AT-HOME MOMMy children are playing,
I can see their joy,
They know they are loved,
I’m a stay-at-home Mom.
I teach my young one how to clean,
I teach my older one how to cook,
I nurse my little one, I am content,
I’m a stay-at-home Mom.
They awake with a smile, there is no hurry,
Mommy will take care of us, so they don’t worry
They know they are loved,
I’m a stay-at-home Mom.
As the years do pass and I see them grow,
I am there for them wherever they go,
They are by my side, I am there to guide.
They know they are loved,
I’m a stay-at-home Mom.
I have learned my place,
I’m a keeper at home,
My children know they are loved,
I’m a stay-at-home Mom.
~ Jessica Campbell
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A Mothers’ LoveA Mother's love is something that no one can explain,
It’s made of deep devotion and of sacrifice and pain,
It is endless and unselfish and enduring come what may
For nothing can destroy it or take that love away.
It believes beyond believing when the world around condemns,
And it glows with all the beauty of the rarest, brightest gems.
It is patient and forgiving when all others are forsaking,
And it never fails or falters even though the heart is breaking.
It is far beyond defining; it defies all explanation,
And it still remains a secret like the mysteries of creation.
A many splendored miracle man cannot understand,
Just another wondrous evidence of God's tender guiding hand.
~ Helen Steiner Rice
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No children?No children in the house to play-
It must be hard to live that way!
I wonder what the people do
When night comes on and the work is through,
With no glad little folks to shout,
No eager feet to race about,
No youthful tongues to chatter on
About the joy that’s been and gone?
The house might be a castle fine,
But what a lonely place to dine!
No children in the house at all,
No finger marks upon the wall,
No corner where the toys are piled—
Sure indication of a child.
No little lips to breathe the prayer
That God shall keep you in His care,
No glad caress and welcome sweet
When night returns you to your street;
No little lips a kiss to give—
Oh, what a lonely way to live!
No children in the house! I fear
We could not stand it half a year.
What would we talk about at night,
Plan for and work with all our might,
Hold common dreams about and find
True union of heart and mind,
If we two had no greater care
Than what we both should eat and wear?
We never knew love’s brightest flame
Until the day the baby came.
And now we could not get along
Without their laughter and their song,
Joy is not bottled on a shelf,
It cannot feed upon itself;
And even love, if it shall wear,
Must find its happiness in care;
Dull we’d become of mind and speech
Had we no little ones to teach.
No children in the house to play!
Oh, we could never live that way!~ Edgar GuestPainting by Frances Tipton Hunter (1896-1957).
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This is Mother's Day week and therefore I am going to post a lovely poem about motherhood from this Wednesday until next Wednesday. I trust you will be blessed.NIGHT-TIME TREASURES
You pitter-patter to my bed
And laying down your little head,
Quietly whisper in the night,
“I need you, Mommy; hold me tight.”
“Come,” I croon, “I’ll hold you, dear,”
And gently brush away your tear.
Soft hands reach up and stroke my face;
Enclose me in your sweet embrace.
I gently rock you in my arms
Delighting in your baby charms.
Now humming as your lashes close
On cheeks so softly touched with rose.
You drift away to a far-off land
As dreams unfold from God’s dear hand.
This heart of mine is full of love
And thanks for you to God above.
~ Connie Richard
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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 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 experienced a stable home life.
The prophet speaks God's Word to the people of Judah and tells them they are a 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 is also God’s word to our nation today.
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, who have discernment, and who 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 fulltime 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 your home produces children who love the truth, who have soft hearts, and are willing to receive correction and discipline in order to grow, you are part of building a great nation. You are preparing your children to have stable marriages. You are preparing them to build strong families.
And this is what builds a strong nation.
It all hinges on us, dear mothers. Let's forget about all the 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
Painting by Mollie Faustman
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Have you thought of inviting someone home for lunch after your morning service tomorrow? Currently we have a fellowship meal each Sunday after church which provides such rich fellowship with one another. But in the seasons when we have not been doing this we always asked a family, or families, to our place for lunch after church. It was always such a blessing and such joy. Church is not just going to a building to listen to the pastor. It is togetherness. It is fellowship. It is one anothering. It is ministering into one another’s lives.
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The 12 loaves of shewbread which were upon the table of shewbread in the tabernacle were always there. They were never off the table. At the end of the week when the priests gathered the old loaves and placed the new fresh loaves upon the table, they placed them immediately the previous loaves were taken off so there was not one moment when the loaves were not upon the table. They speak of Christ who is our daily bread and of the Word of God which is our daily sustenance. Make sure God’s Word is daily bread and daily sustenance in your home. We must give it to our children daily. It is as important as our daily physical food.
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