PREPARING PRINCES
Part 2

"Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel... to serve the Lord their God. And all his days they departed not from following the Lord, the God of their fathers."

2 Chronicles 34:33

While Josiah reigned as king of Israel, the whole nation of Judah did not depart from following the Lord. What a marvelous testimony for the leader of the nation. This was not the testimony of an older experienced man, but of a young man.

2 Chronicles 34:2-3 tells us, "He did right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David and did not turn aside to the right or to the left. For in the eighth year of his reign while he was still a youth, he began to seek the God of his father." Josiah was only 16 years old when he began to seek the Lord with all his heart. This is the most opportune time for young people to seek God--the time when they are filled with energy, passion and vision. The greatest way they can exert this energy is toward God and His kingdom.

ZEALOUSLY SEEKING GOD

How do we get our young people to seek God? We can't make them do it. No law can make them do it. It has to come from their heart. Therefore, how can we influence their hearts?

1.    Inspire them to a life of serving God and others. Encourage them to get involved with missions and helping the needy. A selfish mentality where everything revolves around "me" is a destructive attitude.

2.    Make sure they are raised on the Word of God. The best way is to have Family Devotions together every morning and every evening.  The Word of God has power to change their lives and draw them closer to the Lord. Give God opportunity to work in their hearts by the daily filling of His Living Word. Make sure this is not done in legality, but with vitality, asking questions and promoting discussion.

3.    Make sure that prayer is second nature to them. This will happen as they pray out loud each day at Family Devotions. Encourage them to have their own daily "Quiet Time."

4.    Train them in character. Don't allow petty attitudes and self-pity trips. Don't allow grumbling and complaining. Prepare them to be able to face all situations in life, to minister equally to the poor and to the rich. They cannot become princes and princesses without training. Everyone born of royalty is consistently, systematically and extensively trained for kingship and queenship. They will not live like children of the King of kings without our faithful training.

5.    Pray for them. Our greatest weapon is prayer. When we pray, the Holy Spirit will work in their lives in answer to our earnest and fervent prayers. Prayer was our greatest weapon as we raised our teenagers.

It saddens me to see so many so-called "Christian" young people today who are taken up with the worldly pursuits of this life. Instead of seeking God and shining with the glory of God, they are more interested in looking at guys, talking immaturely with their friends, chewing gum* and dressing immodestly. "Cleavage" seems to be "in" in the church today, with adult women as well as teenage girls. Where is the example for our youth?  I hardly know where to look when I am amongst church people. What about young guys and men who must be tempted to lust. Do young ladies and women not realize that this relegates them to the "common" instead of belonging to royalty--princes and princesses of the King of kings?

A DIFFERENT SPIRIT

It's time to earnestly cry out to God for our young people. Pray they will not be interested in living the status quo life of the other young people around them, but who, like Caleb, will have a different spirit than everyone else. I love the description of Caleb in Numbers 14:24, "But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully him will I bring into the land... and his seed shall possess it."

When young people become filled with the zeal of God they can change a nation. That's what Josiah did. 2 Chronicles 34:3 continues, "And in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem..." Josiah was now 20 years of age, still a young man. At this age he began to clean up the nation. He rose up in boldness to expose the works of darkness. He was not only concerned about the evil, but he did something about it. He purged the land of evil, tore down the altars of Baal, chopped down the incense altars, broke them in pieces, ground them to powder and scattered them. He burned the bones of the priests of Baal and tore down the Asherim altars and beat them to powder. This was radical stuff! There was no half-heartedness here but absolute passion and zeal for the Lord. Let's pray for a nation of young people with this passion.

IN ALL THE EARTH

In the last devotion we talked about Psalm 45:16, "Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth." Do you notice that we are training princes for all the earth? We are getting them ready to go out into the nation and into the countries of the world to take the gospel; to rise up against evil and deception and do something about it! These young people are not the "ordinary" who try to fit in with the "in" crowd. No, they are princes and princesses, living like royalty as they truly represent the King of kings.

After reading the last devotion, a mother wrote, "We live in a small beach town in California where there are a lot of very unfeminine young girls with tattoos, dark attire and very skimpy clothing. After reading your devotion, for the rest of the day my daughters and I kept reminding ourselves that we were the daughters of the King. It is great to have the mindset of being a princess."

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

Above Rubies, www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

""Father, please help me to prepare children who will seek after you with all their hearts and be zealous for God. Amen."

AFFIRMATION:

I will not give up my vision of training children who will stand strong against evil and take action against it!

* Please, don't get too upset with me. Of course, there is nothing biblically wrong with chewing gum. However, I personally feel that it is not dignified as a subject of the King of kings. Plus, I think it is rather rude to talk to people while chewing.

Many women like to save these devotions. They print them out and keep them in a folder to read over and over again. Some print them out and pin them on the fridge with a magnet to read through the week. If you are printing this devotion and need it to be smaller, highlight and change to a smaller font.

If you know others who would be blessed by these devotions, you are welcome to forward them or let them know they can subscribe by sending a blank email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. You are welcome to copy this article and forward it to your friends or post on your Blog or Facebook.

PREPARING PRINCES, Pt 1

Psalm 45.16; "Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth."

What an amazing vision for parents, to prepare children to be princes and princesses in all the earth.

The Hebrew word for prince is sar It is used to describe our Savior, the Messiah. He is called Sar Shalom in Isaiah 9:6, "The Prince of Peace." God wants His children to also walk with princely character. Sar has a number of meanings.

A head.

God wants us to raise our children...

To be the head and not the tail. (Deuteronomy 28:13)

To not be defeated by the temptations of the devil and this world, but to be an overcomer; We must remind our children that they should not be surprised when trouble and difficulties come their way. If we did not have trials, we would have nothing to overcome. And God's rewards are only for the overcomers; therefore, we can rejoice that we have obstacles to overcome! (Numbers 13:30; John 16:33; Romans 12:21; 1 John 4:4-5; Revelation 2:11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; 21:7)

To not be subservient to the lusts of this world but to reign in life with Christ. (Galatians 5:16; 2 Timothy 2:12; 1 John 2:15-17; Revelation 5:10)

A ruler.

God wants us to teach our children to rule over their own spirit. It is a powerful thing to rule the spirit and this gift belongs to princes. Proverbs 16:32 tells us that the one who rules his spirit is better than one who captures a city! We have to teach this principle to our children. Instead, many children are trained by their parents to have no control over their spirit. From an early age they are gratified with every whim and fancy. When they whine for something, they get it. When they keep pestering their parents for something they get it. This does not train them to rule over the lusts of the flesh that will constantly come to tempt them. This does not prepare them to rule in adult life.

A disciple of Christ learns to deny his own lusts and desires. Titus 2:11-13 says, "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present world..." Did you notice the word, "deny"? Jesus also said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me." (Matthew 16:24) *

The Message Bible tells us to kill off the tendency of "doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy. That's a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God." (Colossians 3:5-6)

A Master.

God wants us to teach our children to master their emotions, to live by the truth of the Word of God rather than their feelings. A wimpy person lives by their feelings. Feelings are deceiving. They change from day to day and come and go, whereas God's eternal truth is absolute. We should teach our children to keep a good spirit and trust in the Lord even when things are going bad. Rather than give into their feelings, we teach them to thank the Lord for His goodness and that He is a faithful God. We teach them to confess their trust in the Lord. We teach them to confess the joy of the Lord even when they feel unhappy. We teach them to put a smile on their face instead of a grumpy face. These daily habits will help them to be masters of their fickle feelings and to be men and women who will trust God and stand strong even when everything is going wrong.

A Leader.

A person of princely character is not easily led into devious ways by others. Instead, he is one who knows what he believes, stands true to what he believes and leads others into truth. We must soak our children in the Word of God. We must impart the understanding of God's truth to them so that they are rooted in truth and are confident to lead others in the ways of God. (1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 2 Timothy 2:2

A Prince (a Nobleman).

We must raise our children to know that they are sons and daughters of the King of kings and Lord of lords. They belong to royalty, the greatest kingdom on earth. This does not mean that they are proud, for pride has no part of God's kingdom. He is looking for subjects of his kingdom who are meek, humble and tremble at His Word.

However, we teach them to walk with dignity as true representatives of the King of kings. We should bear the image of royalty because we His children. We should walk, speak, dress and act as subjects of the heavenly kingdom and teach our children to do the same. We should have about us a heavenly aristocracy. Because we belong to the One who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, we can walk with stateliness even though we may not have a penny to bless ourselves!

A Priest.

God has made us kings and priests to God. (Revelation 1:6; 5:10; 20:6) Not only has He made us kings and priests, but He says that we will reign on the earth. If we are going to reign, we should start practicing now.

We will teach our sons to be priests in their homes, taking their leadership to provide and protect their families and to lead them into the ways of God. They will take up their responsibility to rule in godliness and not give in to wimpiness. As priests, we all have a responsibility to intercede on the behalf of others and to bless others in His name. (Deuteronomy 10:8; 18:5; Numbers 6:23-27; 21:5)

May our sons walk as princes and our daughters as princesses. (Psalm 144.12)

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

Above Rubies, www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

""Father, please teach me to walk like a princess and help me to train my children to walk as subjects of the King of Kings and Lord of lords. Amen."

AFFIRMATION:

I am giving extensive training to my royal subjects!

* To read more on this subject, go www.aboverubies.org and click on Motherhood and then Self Indulgent or Self Disciplined.

You may have other thoughts on this subject that you may like to share with me.

Many women like to save these devotions. They print them out and keep them in a folder to read over and over again. Some print them out and pin them on the fridge with a magnet to read through the week.

If you are printing this devotion and need it to be smaller, highlight and change to a smaller font.

If you know others who would be blessed by these devotions, you are welcome to forward them or let them know they can subscribe by sending a blank email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

You are welcome to copy this article and forward it to your friends or through your Blogs and Face books.

WHICH CAMP DO I BELONG TO?

1 Corinthians 1:2, "Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord..."

Did you know that the early Christians were referred to as those who "call upon the name of the Lord"? You can read more references in Acts 9:14, 21 and 2 Timothy 2:22.

Do you think God's people have this testimony today? Is it such a normal habit of our lives to call upon the Lord that the ungodly see this as our habitual characteristic? Do our neighbors know us as people who call upon the name of the Lord? How many times during the day do we acknowledge the Lord and call upon His name?

It started in the beginning. While the generations of Cain were going after material pursuits and worldly business another godly line was born to Adam and Eve. Genesis 4:25-26 says, "And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord." History says that Enos was the first of eight preachers of righteousness, of whom Noah was the eighth.

This new generation began to call upon the name of the Lord in prayer, thanksgiving. and worship. This is when they began public worship. They became known as people who called upon the Lord.

It is this way of life that distinguishes us as the people of God from the heathen. The ungodly do not call upon the Lord. The godly do. This decides which camp we belong to.

Recently I was challenged by reading Jeremiah 10:25, "Pour thy fury upon the heathen that know thee not, and upon the families that call not on thy name." This Scripture is talking about families-not churches, but families. Therefore we had better take notice because it relates to us. It is convicting to realize that families who do not gather together to call upon the name of the Lord are equated with the heathen! Ouch!

How many "Christian" families are actually heathen families? They do not gather together for prayer and worship from one day to the next.. Life is too busy. The program is chock full from morning ‘till night. So what distinguishes us from the worldly?

I too find that life is busy from morning until night. Therefore, we have to make times to call upon the Lord. If we don't, it doesn't happen. We have established in our home Morning and Evening devotions where we come together as a family to read the Word and call upon the Lord. We don't allow any interruption to interfere with his habit. For if we do not do it, we cannot confess we are the people of God. God's people call upon His name.

What does this word "call" mean? It is not a mumbling prayer or a quick "God bless our family today" and go on our merry way. The Hebrew word is qara which means, "to cry out, call out loudly, to  roar, to summon God's aid."

When we call upon the Lord we show our dependence upon Him. We know we cannot make it in our own strength, as the previous verse, verse 23 says, "the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." We need God to show us the way.

The morals of our nation a deteriorating fast! We stand guilty before God for the murder of 50 million babies since Roe v. Wade. Atheism, immorality and homosexuality, are rife. It may not be long before our nation's financial resources fail. How can we go blindly on while our nation goes down the road of wickedness? Do we not have any heart to cry out to God. The hour is urgent for families to come together and to pray, night and morning. God has promised that when we humble ourselves and cry out to Him that He will hear us and save our land. (2  Chronicles 7:14)

Will we as families pay the sacrifice to see God's deliverance or will we go blindly on our merry way? (Romans 10:13)

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

Above Rubies, www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

"Oh Father, please save me from living like the heathen. Please help us as a family to make specific times to call upon your name for our own salvation and the salvation of this nation. Amen."

AFFIRMATION:

We will be known as a family that calls upon the name of the Lord.

P.S. To read more about establishing the daily habit of calling upon the Lord, go to www.aboverubies.org and click on ARTICLES AND STORIES, then PRAYER IN THE HOME and then THE MORNING AND EVENING PRINCIPLE.

Many women like to save these devotions. They print them out and keep them in a folder to read over and over again. Some print them out and pin them on the fridge with a magnet to read through the week. If you are printing this devotion and need it to be smaller, highlight and change to a smaller font.

If you know others who would be blessed by these devotions, you are welcome to forward them or let them know they can subscribe by sending a blank email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. You are welcome to copy this article and forward it to your friends or through your Blogs and Facebook.

TWENTY UPs!

Part 4

2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

The Word of God establishes us and furnishes us up to do all that God wants us to do. How does this happen?

12. Doctrine Up

It happens through doctrine. It is not enough to tell our children Bible Stories and take them to Sunday School, although this is great. They need to be nurtured daily in the doctrines of the Word of God. They need “all the counsel of God.” (Acts 20:27) It is not always necessary to isolate certain doctrines (although this can be good from time to time) but if we consistently take our children through the Word of God (not just the Psalms or our favorite chapters) they will gradually imbibe doctrine.

Another thing we must realize is that doctrine is not only an intellectual understanding on subjects such as  baptism, justification, sanctification, etc. It is practical “know how” on how God wants us to live. Paul told Titus to “speak the things which become sound doctrine.” What was the sound doctrine? Explicit instructions on how the older men are to conduct themselves and the behavior of the older women. Sound doctrine is teaching the younger women “to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good and obedient to their own husbands.” It is good advice for the young people and how servants are to act toward their masters! (Titus 2:1-15)* Sound doctrine gets to the nitty-gritty of daily living. That’s why we and our children need to be doctrined up!

Some families like to take their families through the Bible chapter by chapter. We have done this from time to time. Currently we use THE DAILY LIGHT which gives Scriptures from different parts of the Bible on a specific theme. We find this very effective.+

13. Reproof Up

The Word “reproof” actually means “to convict.” The daily reading of the Word of God brings conviction to our souls and to our children. We can go on blindly through each day, not knowing that we are grieving the Holy Spirit by our thoughts, words and actions until we are convicted by the Word of God. It keeps our children sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

14. Correct Up

This word means “to make right what is wrong; to refute error.” Constant reading of the Word will show us what is wrong in our lives and show us how to make it right.  It will expose deception and lead us into truth. No wonder we can’t do without it.

15. Instruct Up

The Word is profitable for “instruction in righteousness.” This Greek word includes chastening. God’s Word not only instructs, but chastens us. Chastening often leads us to righteousness. .

The psalmist in Psalm 119:67 says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.” He confesses again in verse 71, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statues.” (Hebrews 12:10-11) J. B. Philipp’s translation calls it the “re-setting the direction of a man’s life.”

16. Furnish Up

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable… that the man of god may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

This is the plan. This is the fulfillment—that we will be “fully equipped” for every good work that God has planned for us to do. The Word prepares us for our destiny. The Word prepares our children for their destiny.

I believe that the Word of God is able to fill up that which is lacking in our lives and make us complete in that area. If I have a weakness in my life, I will look up every Scripture in the Word relating to this area. I will write out these Scriptures, meditate upon them, and embrace them into my life. I find that they always bring victory.

I  also did this when raising our children. If I saw a weakness or an area of their lives that needed attention, I would look up the Scriptures relating to that subject, write them in large colored letters on paper and pin them up in the home. I would read the Scriptures to them. I would get them to memorize certain Scriptures relating to the subject. As the Word filled their hearts, they were built up and made complete in this area.

Truly, this living, breathing Word of God has power to change our lives. Let’s drink in the truth as we read it again from another two translations…

Knox, “Everything in the Scripture has been divinely inspired, and has its uses; to instruct us, to expose our errors, to correct our faults, to educate us in holy living; so God’s servant will become a master of his craft, and each noble task that comes will find him ready for it.”

The Message, “Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.”

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL

Above Rubies, www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

“”Thank you, Lord, for your living and active Word which is able to fully equip me and my children for the work you have planned for us.”

AFFIRMATION:

I’m equipping my children for life with the anointed and inspired Word of God.

*Other Scriptures about Sound Doctrine:

Proverbs 4:2; Isaiah 28:9-19; John 7:16-17; Acts 2:42; Titus 1:9; 1 Timothy 1:10; 4; 6, 13, 16; 6:1-3; 2 Timothy 4:2; Titus 1: 9;2:6-8; 2 John 1:9.

+What is THE DAILY LIGHT? It is a daily devotion with a Morning and Evening reading comprising of Scripture verses on a particular theme. We love to use it because it is the Word of God, not someone else’s interpretation.

How can I get hold of THE DAILY LIGHT? Go to www.aboverubies.org and click on ON-LINE SPECIALS. Or call 1 877 729 9861 to order by credit card.

Many women like to save these devotions. They print them out and keep them in a folder to read over and over again. Some print them out and pin them on the fridge with a magnet to read through the week. If you are printing this devotion and need it to be smaller, highlight and change to a smaller font.

If you know others who would be blessed by these devotions, you are welcome to forward them or let them know they can subscribe by sending a blank email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. You are welcome to copy this article and forward it to your friends or through your Blogs and Face books.

To unsubscribe from the Above Rubies Devotional, send a blank email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.