PODCAST TRANSCRIPT | EPISODE 220: The Four L’s of Raising Children, Part 4
LIFE TO THE FULL w/ Nancy Campbell
EPISODE 220: The Four L’s of Raising Children, Part 4
We continue talking today about teaching our children to LOVE TO LABOR. God speaks so much about work and diligence in the Bible and also speaks strongly against laziness. Today we begin discussing all the attitudes God wants us to have towards work.
Did you know that when we work with all our might, it is the same Hebrew that is used to describe how God brought out the children of Israel out of Egypt “with His MIGHTY POWER.” That’s how we are meant to work.
Announcer: Welcome to the podcast, Life to The Full, with Nancy Campbell, founder and publisher of Above Rubies.
Nancy Campbell: Hello, ladies! Here we are again, and Michele is still with me, because we are still talking about raising our children with four “L’s.” Now, of course, Michele doesn’t have to come very far, just pop over. How far?
Michele: About one minute. [laughter] I’m not spending very much on gas!
Nancy: No, you are not! They are living in an RV, right next to our home while they are building up on the Hilltop.
Now, we haven’t finished yet about teaching our children to love labor, because I think it’s important to talk about all the different attitudes God wants us to have about work. As I have studied the Word, I have found 26 different attitudes God has explicitly given us about work. And maybe I have missed some. I always find so many, but often, as I’m reading the Word months later, ooh, I’ll find another one! It’s amazing!
Oh, there’s so much in the Word about everything we need, isn’t there ladies? And all the practical things. Getting down to business. Working in our homes. Trying to teach our children how to work. No, that’s not the thing. We’re not teaching our children how to work. We’re teaching our children how to LOVE work! Of course, in doing that, this really affects our whole home, doesn’t it?
So, I’m going to give you these different attitudes that I have found in the Word of God. You could actually, ladies, take one for a whole week, and say, “Children, we’re going to try and put this attitude into our work modes this week. Let’s see what we can do.”
In fact, you could even have competitions, like you could put each name of your children up on the fridge. Each day, as you see your children handling one of their chores, or even doing something without being asked, well, that’s a cool one! You will give them certain points. At the end of the week, the one who has the most points of doing their work with this attitude can get a special prize.
Michele: We have something similar to that. When I was pregnant with my twins, when I was only 15 weeks, I was on bedrest all summer with them. That’s another story.
Nancy: Maybe you’ve got to tell that story sometime.
Michele: Absolutely, yes, they’re miracle babies. I had other children in the home. So, what do you do? You make competitions. I had housework to be done that I couldn’t do. I couldn’t even have them help me do it. My husband was so busy, working and doing all the things that I normally would do.
So, I would do little competitions. We would get grandparents involved. One day, it was actually my oldest daughter and her best friend, who was a daughter. We’re very close to the family. She came over, and we had a competition for bathrooms, of all things.
Whoever could clean their bathroom, whoever’s bathroom was the cleanest, was going to go out for ice cream with my mom, with Nana. Needless to say, with Nana, they both got to go for ice cream. But I had very clean bathrooms and they were so excited! They were amazing things to incorporate. Just fun competitions.
Nancy: Yes, I love that idea! It’s great to have these things in our homes. We can put a carrot in front of them. It’s not wrong to do that. God gives us incentives all through His Word. I think that’s so great. You can try out these things in your home.
Now, NO. 1 ATTITUTE: ABOUNDING
We find this in 1 Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” What does it tell us there? To abound as we work, and especially in our work for the Lord.
But everything we do is for the Lord, every little mundane thing in our home. It doesn’t matter what it is, doing the dishes, cleaning the toilets, changing diapers, scrubbing the floors, whatever. Every mundane thing is a work unto the Lord. Our homes are a sanctuary unto the Lord. Everything we do is worship unto the Lord.
As you do a mundane task in your home, unto the Lord, with joy in your heart, doing it not normally, not just in an average fashion, but doing it over the top, even greater than anyone’s ever done it before, you are worshipping the Lord. And God delights in it.
That word “abounding,” and you’ve heard me tell you this Greek word before. It’s the word perisseuo, which means “to be excessive, to excel, over the top, going beyond what is necessary, super-abundant.” This word is beyond the normal. It’s not doing something, well, you just do it because you’ve got to do it. “OK, clean the bathroom, well, just wipe them around.”
No! It’s doing it more than is necessary. It’s over the top! It’s excessive. In the Bible, the lifestyle of the Kingdom is actually excessive. It’s always more than the normal. This word, that’s what it means. We’re to abound.
OK, ladies, what do you reckon? Do you think you could share that with your children this week? You could say, “OK, children, this is what the Bible says.” You could even write this Scripture out, type it out, put it in big letters up in your kitchen. That’s King James. You might like to do it in another translation if your children are more used to that.
Then you could even write underneath, “Abounding,” and then write what the word means underneath it. Listen to it again as I have just shared it with you and write it out! Big letters! “Now, children, I’m going to do a competition this week. I’m going to be watching, and I’m going to be noticing. Everyone that does one of their chores, who does it in an ABOUNDING way, more than is even necessary, they’re going to get so many points.”
You work out how you want to do it. “And then, the one who has the most points at the end of this week is getting a prize.” Make it something worthwhile, something really worthwhile. Maybe, as Michele shared, you go out to have something special with Mom, or with Dad, or with grandparents, or maybe a guest. Something you think they would really love. What a fun week it will be! Just imagine, the whole family working with that attitude? Can you imagine it? Well, that’s meant to be normal.
Michele: Absolutely. Just think how that’s going to carry over as they become adults, if they work, with that work ethic, as adults. Now, you just discussed it earlier. When people have a nine-to-five job, they’re good if they stay until five. Usually a minute or two, not going over, not working abundantly.
My son, who’s going to be 20, just the other day, two days ago, he’s like, “Mom, I found this internship. I’m going to talk to this person who knows more about it.” He was so excited about it! It was for a Christian organization with internal bookkeeping, all numbers and finance. I’m like, “Oh, that’s great! How much does it pay?” He’s like, “Mom, it pays experience!”
It’s not a paid internship, but he knew the knowledge and experience he could gain would put him far ahead in the future. It would open up doors and possibilities and increase his knowledge and learning. His willingness to go above and beyond, past the requirements.
Nancy: Yes, oh yes! Amen! I’m excited to think of what’s going to happen. I’d love you to even email me and write and tell me what great things happened as you began this attitude in your home.
NO. 2 ATTITUTE: AS TO THE LORD AND NOT UNTO MEN
I’ve got all these in alphabetical order so that’s how I’m giving them to you. As to the Lord, and not unto men. That’s Ephesians 6:5-7 and Colossians 3:23. I think you shared this, didn’t you, last time. “Whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as unto the Lord, and not unto men, knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward.” Amen.
NO. 3 ATTITUDE: DILIGENTLY
Proverbs 12:27: “Diligence is a man’s most precious possession.” Yes.
What about Jeremiah 48:10? “Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord with slackness.” Wow. That’s not good, is it?
And then Romans 12:11 in the J. B. Phillips’ translation says: “Let’s not allow slackness to spoil our work.”
That same Scripture in The Good News Bible says: “Work hard, and do not be lazy.” We teach our children to be diligent. Diligence is a very godly attitude.
NO. 4 ATTITUDE: FAITHFULLY
2 Chronicles 24:12 talks about the men who did the work faithfully. You’ll remember this Scripture, Matthew 25:21 and 23, and Luke 16:10: “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.” That’s a very good principle to teach our children, that as they learn to be faithful in little tasks, God sees it, and He will open up bigger doors for them.
Sometimes I’ve had women write to me, and they will maybe send in a poem. They say, “Can you publish this poem in Above Rubies?” Well, maybe it’s a lovely poem, but I don’t always find room. Usually, poems are to fill in a little space that I have. I don’t always have the spaces to fill in all the poems.
I will write and say to the lady, “Thank you for your lovely poem. I may not be able to put it in Above Rubies. We’ll see how I go. But if I don’t have room, don’t wait for your poem to be published. Share it now. Send it to some friend who needs encouragement. Write it out in a beautiful card for someone and send it to them. Do things in a little way. You don’t have to be published in a magazine, or even in a book. When God gives you something, even that you write, you don’t have to wait to do it in a big way. Do it in a little way.”
I think that I am doing Above Rubies today (and have been doing it for the last 45 years) but before that, when I was young, and I was actually teaching back in New Zealand, we didn’t have the big summer holiday like you do in the US. We would have more holidays throughout the year, but they were shorter.
In those times, because I had those holidays as a teacher, I would spend them in going to work in Christian camps among young girls they would bring in from all these unsaved homes. We had the opportunity to lead them to Jesus. Then they would go home, and I would think, “Goodness me, they’re going home. They’re never going to hear about Jesus again. They’re not even going to be discipled. My, they need such help!”
I began to write to these girls. I ended up writing to maybe about a hundred girls. It was just a little thing, but I believe, as I was faithful to write to these girls, to encourage them in their faith, and in some little way disciple them, that that laid the foundation for one day doing this magazine.
I don’t think that I would be doing Above Rubies today if I hadn’t been faithful to begin writing those letters to all those girls, away back then, even before I was married. I believe we have to learn to be faithful in the little things, don’t we? When we’re faithful in that which is least, well, we will be more likely to be faithful in that which is much.
NO. 5 ATTITUDE: FERVENTLY
Romans 12:11: “Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”
I like The Living Bible, which says: “Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.”
Another translation says: “Serve the Lord with spiritual fervor.”
It’s like everything we read in the New Testament. We always read these adjectives. Everything in the Bible is not the average or normal. It’s over the average. We don’t just serve the Lord. We serve the Lord fervently. We’re finding out all these other ways of how we are to work, and how we are to serve the Lord. What do you say, Michele?
Michele: Oh, absolutely. I can tell the difference in my children when I’m fervently serving the Lord, or if I’m passive, or just reluctantly serving. In my work, or my labor, whatever I’m doing, if I’m enthusiastic, my children are likely to be enthusiastic as well.
Nancy: Yes. I think we really set the tone. If we want to teach them to love labor, that’s what we’re talking about, to love labor. This is one of the things that Michele and Randy, one of their premises in training their children, is not just teaching their children to work, but to love work. We have to have all these attitudes toward it, don’t we?
NO. 6 ATTITUDE: FOR THE GLORY OF GOD
1 Corinthians 10:31: “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” That means every little thing, every little mundane thing. Those things that we have to do over and over again, every day.
I believe this is the greatest reason of all. I’m actually putting all these points in alphabetical order, but I believe this is, perhaps, the most important. Everything we do, we do to the glory of God.
Wow, what a difference that makes in our own lives, mothers, doesn’t it? If we have that attitude, and everything we do is to His glory, the little things and the big things, we teach our children. That’s why it’s so important to take some of these Scriptures as memory verses. Pin them up on your wall in big letters. Get the children to memorize them so that they’re part of their lives. So, they’ll grow up knowing, “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” Amen.
Michele: Amen!
Nancy: Yes!
NO. 7 ATTITUDE: HARMONIOUSLY
I have many Scriptures here. What I’ll do, ladies, is when I do the transcript, I’ll put all these Scriptures in for you (at the end of this transcript). But all the Scriptures that I have here about how Paul writes, and other servants of the Lord write, saying: “We are laborers together, workers together.”
Many other Scriptures say: “We are fellow laborers, fellow workers, fellow helpers, fellow servants, fellow soldiers, even fellow prisoners.” They were in everything together as they worked for the Lord. That’s another thing too, I believe, is teaching our children how to work together. What do you think about that, Michele?
Michele: Oh, absolutely. The things that can be accomplished when you work together. We have this thing in our home. We do a 15-minute quick clean-up. If just one of my children are missing out of the bunch, it is amazing what a difference that makes. They are truly missed, because if we can work together, and we’re doing it unto the Lord, we can harmonize together, wow! What a difference that makes.
Nancy: I used to have a “one-two-three.” We’d all go for it. As you say, when everybody works, well, it’s so great! Teaching our children to work together, to flow together, prepares them for the future time when they can work with people. Some people don’t know how to work with people. That is a very important thing. It’s a biblical thing. When we read about how they worked together, they were fellow laborers.
NO. 8 ATTITUDE: HEARTLY
Colossians 3:23: “Whatsoever you do, do it heartily.” That word means “to do it with strength and valor, and all the power that you have.” Actually, that was on my little card. I wrote some things. I brought them up to here where we are podcasting, and I can’t even find them!
But I had written down how many times this same word “heartily,” is translated “strength” in the Bible. “Strength” most times, and “power” was the next, over 40 or 50 times for each one. Verses like, how God brought them out of Egypt with His mighty power. When we think of what God did, to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt, wow! He bared his mighty right arm. He did such great and mighty acts to bring them out.
That’s the same word that’s used here, “Whatsoever you do, do it heartily.” That’s the same word that describes God baring His mighty right arm to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt. Perhaps one of the greatest miracles that were ever seen on earth is what happened there.
It’s an incredible word. It’s not just a little word. It’s a mighty word. This is how God wants it to work, and to teach our children how to work like this. Sometimes it may pay to take one of these Scriptures for a whole week and work it out in your home life together, so we really get it into our lives.
(So sorry, ladies, this meaning above that I gave you for “heartily” is not correct. It is for No. 14 MIGHTILY! What I said was true, but it Is not for “heartily” but “mightily”! We’ll get to that point. I was getting ahead of myself).
NO. 9 ATTITUDE: HUMBLY
We see many examples in the Word of God, even in Jesus Himself, where it says: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Jesus said” “I am among you as He that serveth.”
Sometimes we think all we do is serve around our homes. But that’s what Jesus came to do. It is a beautiful God-thing. It’s a beautiful Jesus-thing to do, to serve. We remember, in John 13, how Jesus arose, and He washed His disciples’ feet. Usually that job was done by a lowly servant. As people came into a home, the servant would wash their feet. But Jesus didn’t leave it to the servant. It says that He washed their feet. He had that spirit of the servant.
Paul was the same. In 1 Corinthians 9:19, it says: “I made myself a servant unto all.”
We look at 1 Peter 5:5. In the Williams translation it says: “You must put on the servant’s apron of humility to one another.” Isn’t that a wonderful translation? “The servant’s apron of humility.” I like wearing aprons. Do you ever wear aprons or you’re not an apron person?
Michele: Oh, actually I do. Sometimes I can’t find them, because my six-year-old likes to wear my aprons as well. She has her own, but she likes mine. [laughter] But I notice the difference after I make dinner whether I had an apron or not.
Nancy: Oh, I know! I’m just one of those who has to wear an apron. When I come up to start preparing the meal, I put on my apron because I must be a very messy cook, or something! I will mess up my clothes if I don’t wear an apron. It’s just part of my habit, to put on an apron, and even my aprons are so stained and dirty!
I do have some nice ones that I actually keep for when company is coming, because my day-to-day ones get . . . I’ve washed them, but they still look so stained, because they really get messed up, because I’m really working. But I love to remind myself that when I put on my apron, it is a servant’s apron. A “servant’s apron of humility.” I'm working to serve my family, so it’s also a good reminder.
Michele: I was about to say the same thing. When I do put on an apron, it reminds me of what I’m doing. I seem to be more purposeful.
Nancy: Well, you know that “I’m here to work! I’ve got my apron on!” When I haven’t, when I am doing it a little bit half-pie, so I don’t get my dress mucked up or something like that. When I get my apron on, wow! I can go to work! I love that.
Then, of course, we have that beautiful picture of the woman in 1 Timothy 5:10. This is in the passage where Paul is writing to Timothy, to give him answers of what to do about the widows in the church. He seemed to have many widows.
Paul said to Timothy, “Well, make sure that their families look after them, their children or their grandchildren. But if they don’t have any family to care for them, if they have lived a certain lifestyle, then I want you to provide for them from the church and look after them.”
So, we have to look at the lifestyle. As we do, we see that this is the lifestyle that God has for women. “Well reported of for good works.” And what are they? “If she has brought up children.” That’s No. 1 on the list. Did she embrace children? How did she raise them?
Well, the word “brought up” is teknotropheo, and it literally means “to feed, to feed and cherish your children with food, pamper them with food.” It’s all about cooking and feeding. That’s such a big part of our motherhood, isn’t it? It’s a big part of our serving.
We actually teach our children this whole attitude when we prepare our meals with joy, and we’re serving with joy. We put on our aprons. We go to it, because we are blessed to serve our family. Preparing meals for them is such a beautiful way to serve them.
But then it carries on. What else does she do? “If she has lodged strangers.” Well, that’s opening her doors in hospitality. Of course, that’s cooking, too. It’s all to do with cooking. Then, “If she has washed the saints’ feet.” When people came into a Middle Eastern home, they washed their feet as they came in the door because they were so dusty. They didn’t want to bring all that dirt and dust into the house. Of course, what did they come in for? To eat.
Then again: “If she has relieved the afflicted.” She’s ministered to the poor and the needy. You can’t do that without taking food. This whole Scripture is all about food and cooking. It concludes: “If she has diligently followed every good work.”
The Good New Bible says: “Has she performed humble duties?” It brings out that spirit of humility again.
NO. 10 ATTITUDE: IN THE FEAR OF THE LORD
Psalm 2:11: “Serve the Lord with fear.”
Go to the New Testament, Hebrews 12:28: “Serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear.” Everything we do, we do in the fear of the Lord. That even comes down to work! Everything we do, we do it “in the fear of the Lord.”
NO. 11 ATTITUDE: IN THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS
Colossians 3:17: “Whatsoever you do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” There’s another wonderful Scripture to memorize, isn’t it? Oh, these are powerful Scriptures for our children, aren’t they?
Michele: Oh, absolutely. Even though my children are grown up, so many of these that you’re reading are ones that we memorized, or we have hanging on our walls.
Nancy: I love these Scriptures for memorizing because this is what we want to get into our children. We’re getting them this LOVE TO LABOR, this LOVE TO WORK! Work shouldn’t be, “Oh, I’ve got to do my chores.” No, we never give that impression to our children! All the things that we do are all to help keep the family going and keep it going smoothly. We’re all working together, remember? That’s one of the points, working together.
So, we are imparting these principles into their lives, these wonderful biblical principles. Everything in the Name of the Lord Jesus.
NO. 12 ATTITUDE: JOYFULLY
Do you remember, ladies? We did six podcasts about the land of motherhood being a JOYFUL LAND. Of course, that’s all part of working joyfully in our homes, too, isn’t it? I will have already talked so much about that.
NO. 13 ATTITUDE: LOVINGLY
Galatians 5:13: “By love, serve one another.”
1 Thessalonians 1:3: In the J. B. Phillips’ Translation it says: “Your love has meant hard work.”
Hebrews 6:10 also gives us this: “For God is not unrighteous, to forget your work and labor of love, which you have showed toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” That word really is “serve.” “That you have served the saints, and you do serve.”
But do you notice here, ladies, that phrase, “your work and labor of love”? How do we show love? Well, we can love people in our hearts, but we have to show our love. How do we show love? By working! We have to serve. We have to work.
Now, in our homes, of course, we want to show love to our husbands. Well, OK, we can think, “All right. I love my husband.” We even say to them, “I love you.” I love to say that at least once a day, hopefully more! Because I want him to know I love him. But the greatest way I’m going to show that I love him is how I serve him, what I do to show I love him.
It’s the same with our children. Everything we do in our home it takes work! It takes serving. It’s not just work. It’s showing our love. Work and love are twins. That’s something I think we need to get into our brains.
Michele: Absolutely! What drudgery if we’re not doing this unto the Lord and we’re not doing this joyfully. All these things go together. They work together. We need each part, but yet it’s not a hard thing, if we’re doing it unto the Lord and if we’re having a joyful attitude about it.
Speaking of laboring, and all the food and stuff, it’s my twins’ birthday today.
Nancy: Really?
Michele: Yes, truly! 15! They’re 15! So, my six-year-old and I, and my ten-year-old have been decorating this morning, because they wanted to go to work today. I tried to take them bowling, and they’re like, “We want to go to work!” So, they’re working today. And they’re coming home tonight for their surprise birthday dinner. My daughter’s all excited to make the surprise birthday dinner this afternoon.
Nancy: That’s Ruthie. She’s only six! So, she’s going to be working?
Michele: Absolutely. And then Elijah’s got his garlic bread he wants to make, so he’s going to be in there, too. Just getting our children excited about labor and about serving, oh, it makes all the difference in the world.
Believe me, we have the days where it’s whining and complaining. Sometimes it’s me! And I have to go back to Scripture, and “OK, this is not the right heart. Why am I doing this? This is miserable!” If we can install that and set an example for our children that we can do work and labor joyfully, oh my goodness, it’s a game-changer. It’ll change their life.
Nancy: Yes. So, what is Ruthie making?
Michele: Well, Ruthie and I are making together, we’re making homemade meatballs. One of my sons requested spaghetti. We’ll do regular spaghetti, and then we’ll probably do spaghetti squash. But we’re going to make the homemade meatballs to go along with it.
Nancy: Wonderful! Usually as our children were growing, every birthday party they could have their favorite meal, what they wanted. But isn’t it so lovely, she’s wanting to work and help, why? Because she loves her brothers.
That’s how we show love, isn’t it? Work and love, labor and love are twins. Remember that dear mothers. Teach your children that. Labor and love are twins. They go together. We don’t really, if we’re not prepared to work, we’re not prepared to show love.
Well, sometimes I think, “Oh, dear,” because even on Sundays we have a fellowship meal. So, everybody brings a dish. It’s so precious. Oh, I just love it. This is what church is all about. It's not coming to listen to a message and go home. No, it is assembling together, to minister to one another, to fellowship with one another, and pray for one another. Get to know one another.
A great way to do that, of course, is to eat with one another. That’s so great. Eating and fellowshipping go together. But I am amazed. Many times, we get left with all the dishes. Then all the tables to put away. Sometimes people forget. OK, they do love one another, but they forget to put the little bit of work in. It’s something we do all need to be reminded of, isn’t it? That love is also work.
1 Thessalonians 1:3. I did give you the Phillips’ translation, but the King James says: “Your labor of love.” He was remembering “your labor of love” when he talked to the Thessalonians. “In our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God, our Father.” Everything we do is in the sight of the Lord, isn’t it?
1 John 3:18: “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” That word “in deed” there is the Greek word ergon. It means “to make, to work, to do.” So, we’ve got to get love (which we want in our hearts), but we’ve got to get it out of our hearts into our hands and our feet and do a little bit of work to go along with it. That’s how we really show our love. Amen?
NO. 14 ATTITUDE: MIGHTILY
Oh, you know what? I was talking to you about “heartily.” Yes, heartily. And I was talking about the Hebrew word, but actually the Hebrew word I wanted to talk about belongs to this one, “mightily.” They’re so closely associated. Mightily.
Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thine might.” This was the Scripture where it talks about God bringing the children out of Egypt with His mighty power. That word is translated 47 times with the word “power” in the Old Testament, many talking about God’s mighty power. It’s talking about how He “maketh the earth by His power.” Wow!
Those are powerful things! That’s how God wants us to work. It means “force, strength, power.” The word “strength” is translated “strength” 58 times. I’m sure you made that a memory verse for your children.
Michele: Yes, we have. That’s definitely one of them.
Nancy: If you haven’t, make that a memory verse. What a fun week, ladies, to put this Scripture up on your wall, big letters. Get everybody learning it. When you have family devotions together, all say it out loud.
Then you can talk about it with your children. “OK now, how can we really do this today, children? Can you think of something you can do today with all your might? We want to do everything with all our might, but is there something special you could do today? Thinking about how God even made the world with all His might! Because that’s the same Hebrew word. And He brought the children of Israel out of Egypt with all His might.”
You could think of some job, not just one of your chores, but something extra. Yes, give your children the challenge of thinking of something extra to do that they could do with all their might. It’s a bit like, back when we were raising our children, and it came to Christmas time. Our children would love to buy Christmas presents for one another. We didn’t give them money to do that. If they wanted to do that, they had to work for it.
NO. 15 ATTITUDE: NEVER GIVING UP UNTIL YOU FINISH
Wow! That’s a good point, isn’t it?
Michele: Oh, yes. We have many, many times . . . How many times do I have to call my children back in to finish the job they didn’t complete? It’s never fun. It’s a lot more fun to do it right the first time.
Nancy: I know, I know. That’s another very important principle to teach them. We learn this, of course, from examples in the Word of God. Zerubbabel, in Zechariah 4:9: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it.”
What did Jesus say? John 4:34: “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.”
He also said: “I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.”
Remember what Paul confessed? Acts 20:24: “None of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy.”
He also said in 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought a good fight. I have finished my course. I have kept the faith.” Another wonderful biblical principle.
NO. 16 ATTITUDE: RELYING ON GOD
Jesus said: “Without Me, you can do nothing.”
NO. 17 ATTITUDE: THANKFULLY
Colossians 3:17: “And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father, by Him.” Doing it with thanks. “Thank You, Lord, that I have the privilege to serve my family, to work for my family, to labor in my home! What a privilege! Thank You, Lord. I thank You for these wonderful opportunities.
TWELVE BASKETFULS OVER AND ABOVE
Now, do we have this great, amazing, thankful spirit? Oh, I often think of that wonderful principle in John 6, where Jesus is . . . Well, the Word of God is telling the story of Jesus. He fed the 5,000. This beautiful miracle is told in the four gospels.
Here in John 6:13, it tells us about how Jesus fed the 5,000. He didn’t just do what He had to do. But He did it over and above. More than is necessary. It tells us these very words, that there were 12 basketfuls of food, “over and above” what were needed to feed all the people. That little phrase, “over and above,” is the Greek word perisseuo, which I have talked to you about so many times, because it keeps popping up!
In the New Testament . . . It’s just what the New Testament life is all about. It means “super-abounding, exuberant, excelling, over and above, more than is necessary.” It’s more than what is the average. Here we see a beautiful example, where when Jesus had to feed the multitude, He didn’t just feed them, and they just had enough to eat. No, there were 12 basketfuls left over! Over and above!
That’s the kind of attitude we should have in our lives, precious ladies, and teach our children that everything we do, we do it over and above. We don’t do just what we have to do. We do more than what is necessary! More than what is necessary. When we have to do a job, do we just do, “OK, we’ve got to do the dishes”?
Well, we’re teaching our children to do that, because as they’re growing, we’re teaching them how to do these things. We have to teach them how to do it. Do they just do the dishes, and then kind of wipe the counter, half-pie? You go back, and oooh, it looks so messy! Or do they leave it so spic and span, so clean that there’s not a thing left! There’s not a crumb, and everything is shining, and the floor is swept. They’ve just done it, over and above!
Now, this is an amazing principle. Sometimes we can have maybe a little bit. We’ve got maybe one basketful over. We do that much. But I wonder how many basketfuls we could have over. Two? Three? Four? Five? How much over can we do things when we are doing them? Jesus shows this principle of twelve basketfuls over. Don’t you love that?
Michele: Oh, it’s so good! It was last night that I had to get one of my boys, he’d just laid down. I had to get him back up because his job was the dishes. He did the dishes, but when I looked in the sink, it was messy. All the leftover food and everything was all in the sink. He was like, “But I did the dishes!” I’m like, “Oh, but come look at the sink!”
Again, it’s that, “do it right the first time with a joyful heart.” Put everything into it and go above and beyond. It’s the people who go above and beyond who get the promotions. They get recognized. They stand out from the crowd and work hard to be set-apart. Not set-aside but set-apart. This is one more way that we can be set-apart as Christians, is to go above and beyond.
Nancy: Exactly. Oh, yes! It is true. It’s those people in life who get to the top, not the people who just do what they have to do, but those who do more than what they have to do. It’s an incredible principle.
But time has gone, ladies. We have just a few more. We’ll just finish off next session, and we’ll begin the next one, the next “L.” This is going to be a powerful one. You won’t want to miss!
Oh, I must tell you too, ladies, we’ve had quite an eventful podcast today. You wouldn’t know what was going on, but behind the scenes, just at the beginning of the podcast, my little dog, my little, what do I call him? He’s a . . .
Michele: Pug? Poodle?
Nancy: Yes, a poodle! [laughter] We found him on the side of the road, I think, goodness me, cannot even remember, 10, 12, 15 years ago? So, he’s getting older, and we don’t even know how many years he was when we got him.
Well, he took a turn, and we had to stop and look after him. Then he vomited, and we had to stop and look after that. So, we’ve been attending to him in between talking to you today! But anyway, we always keep going, no matter what’s happening!
Let me pray for you.
“Dear loving Father, we thank You so much, that You haven’t left out one thing in Your precious Word. You have filled it with how we are to live, how we are to work. Lord God, work is part of who You are.
Lord Jesus, You said these words, “My Father works, and I work.” And Lord God, You gave this principle to us at the very beginning of time. We pray, Lord, that as we embrace this principle with all these wonderful ways You tell us to work, that we can pass them onto our children, that we will raise young men and women who know how to work.
We’re living in a day of such laziness, and such wimpiness. So many who don’t know to work. Lord, we pray that You will help us to teach our children to be those who go beyond just the barest minimum, who will work with a great, wonderful, overflowing spirit, Lord. They will not just do what has to be done, but they’ll have many basketfuls over and above.
Help us all to have this wonderful attitude, Lord God. Bless all the darling ladies and children and young people who are listening today. Pour out your blessings on them, I pray. In the Name of Jesus, amen.”
Michele: Amen.
Blessings from Nancy Campbell
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Transcribed by Darlene Norris * This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
SCRIPTURES FOR NO. 7. WORK HARMONIOUSLY WITH OTHERS
One of our biggest challenges is to teach our children to work amiably and harmoniously with one another. We cannot give up as we teach them how to do this as it paves the way for the success of their future lives. Many people miss out on many blessings because they have not learned how to work with others.
Paul loved to work with others and always took one or more laborers with him when ministering the gospel.
1 Corinthians 3:9: “We are laborers together with God.”
2 Corinthians 6:1: “Workers together with Him.”
Let’s look at more believers who knew how to work alongside others. These were some of Paul’s co-workers.
ANDRONICUS AND JUNIA: “My kinsmen, and my fellow prisoners” (Romans 16:7).
ARCHIPPUS: “Our fellow soldier” (Philemon 1:2).
ARISTARCHUS, MARCUS and JUSTUS: “These only are my fellow workers for the extension of God’s kingdom” (Colossians 4:10, 11 AMP). I love WAY’S translation which calls them my “fellow-toilers.”
CLEMENT: “And the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the Book of Life” (Philippians 4:3 (AMP).
EPAPHRAS: “My fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus” (Philemon 1:23). And “our dear fellow servant” (Colossians 1:7).
EPAPHRODITUS: “Companion in labor and fellow soldier” (Philippians 2:25).
MARCUS, ARISTARCHUS, DEMAS, and LUCAS: “My fellow laborers” (Philemon 1:24).
PHILEMON: “Dearly beloved and fellow laborer” (Philemon 1:1).
PRISCILLA AND AQUILA: “My fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their own necks to save my life” (Romans 16:3-5).
TIMOTHY: “Our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ” (1 Thessalonians 3:2) and “my workfellow” (Romans 16:21).
TITUS: “My partner and fellow helper” (2 Corinthians 8:22) and “true yokefellow” (Philippians 4:3).
TYCHICUS: “A faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord” (Colossians 4:7).