Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

God can take the simple things that we have in our hands to perform miracles and bring forth breakthroughs for His people.

In Exodus 4:3, 4 God tells Moses to cast his rod on the ground. “And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand.”

This miracle was to be the first breakthrough sign to Pharaoh and his magicians to persuade Pharaoh to let God’s people go.

In so many ways, God’s people are still in bondage to the Pharaohs of this world. Considering what Jesus Christ has done for us at the cross, why are we still in bondage to the world, the flesh, and the devil? The trouble is, we fail to recognize the significance of what God has already put in our hands.

A rod is a very simple and insignificant thing. No one would give a second thought to a rod but with God’s anointing and power He used that simple rod to bring miraculous breakthroughs.

President Donald Trump has been raised up by God to use his hand to restore America’s greatness in the natural. But what’s the point of natural greatness if its not accompanied by spiritual greatness? If the talents and gifts God has put in our president’s hands can restore the greatness of America’s wealth, then surely God is saying to His people today, “What is in thy hand? Cast it down before Me and see what I can miraculously do with it to bring about great spiritual breakthroughs in your life, your family’s lives, and in the United States.”

That same rod that turned into a frightening snake out on the back side of Mt. Sinai would later be thrown on the ground before Pharaoh and his magicians. Although the magicians turned their rods into snakes, Moses’ snake devoured up all their snakes. Moses got his rod back but not the magicians!

Prayer is a rod in our hands. Do you recognize its significance? Have you got a prayer life in your hand? To break through, lift up holy hands in prayer and worship.

The Scriptures are a powerful rod which God has placed in our hands. Do you know them, and do you use them? Is the Bible in your hands daily? Keep it before your eyes and heart to get a breakthrough.

What about the unique gifts and talents God has put in your hands? Are you using them for your own benefit, or for breakthroughs in the lives of those around you? Consecrate them to God for a breakthrough. Many members of our families desperately need spiritual breakthroughs.

To be continued.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

1 Chronicles 14:11 (NLT) tells how David and his troops defeated the Philistines. What was David’s confession?

“‘God did it!’” David exclaimed. ‘He used me to burst through my enemies like a raging flood!’” So they named that place Baal-perazim (which means ‘the Lord who bursts through’).”

Evidently, the breakthrough God gave to David against the Philistines was like a major bursting forth through a breach in the wall of a large dam. God burst forth upon David’s enemies in some way that resembled the mighty gushing forth of waters.

David uses the words “by my hand (KJV).” Obviously God used the hand of David to accomplish this miracle.

I believe God loves to bring breakthroughs through the hands of His people. Yes, God can intervene on our behalf with His own arm. However, He loves to exercise His power through His chosen people. And David was that man.

We, God’s creation, also have the privilege of working with God to deal with our enemies who are also God’s enemies.

When God has a problem with this world He looks for a man through whom He can exercise His judgment, His rule, and His power. If He can’t find a man, then as a last resort, He makes bare His own holy right arm.

When God looked down from Heaven upon the great oppression of the children of Israel in Egypt, He found a man called Moses through whom He could work.

Ezekiel 22:30 says: “And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: BUT I FOUND NONE. Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them: I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord God.”

I believe it is wrong for us to not offer ourselves to God, that He, by His grace would use us in some way to get the needed breakthrough that we so desperately need.

To be continued.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

Can I solicit your prayers? I am so grateful for our president in all that he is doing for our nation and standing strongly for life and for that which is right.

However, since he shared about his DEAL OF THE CENTURY, which although gives to Israel, it also takes land away from Israel, some of the West Bank and part of Jerusalem. This is very serious because God plainly says in Joel 3:2 that He is going to bring judgment on the nations that DIVIDE HIS LAND! No one can get away with diving the land of Israel, which is God’s land.

I have therefore written a short email and a longer letter to the president. Could you please pray that he will receive the message of this letter and will understand the implications of giving up land for peace?

You may also like to email the president also and encourage him to never give away one inch of Israel’s land.

I am emailing this letter to you so you can pray with me about this important matter. I will send it in three segments so you don’t have to read it all in one day.

Thank you so much.

~ Colin Campbell

Dear Mr. President:

May I present to you my concerns regarding THE DEAL OF THE CENTURY.

Firstly, I want to thank you profusely for your unwavering support for little Israel (so small as far as land mass is concerned and yet so large as far as political and spiritual influence). The whole of our Judaic/Christian value system has its roots and foundations in the land of Israel.

When we make a deal with Israel, in a sense, we make a deal with God’s chosen land. Since God, in His sovereignty decided to make Israel and the city of Jerusalem His special place of residence, who are we to dispute or contend with Almighty God?

When God made a covenant with Abraham regarding the land of Israel, He spoke of the literal land (Genesis 12:1 and 17:8).

Genesis 12:3 He says: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” God has promised to bless the nations and their leaders who bless Israel.

Thank you, Mr. President for placing our American Embassy in Jerusalem. This was indeed a great encouragement to Israel who desperately need our encouragement.
Thank you, Mr. President for your strong heartfelt support for this little nation, so despised by so many of the powerful nations of the world, and yet at the same time so dearly loved by God.

Mr. President, I remember that soon after you were inaugurated, you showed great friendship to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (which Obama never did). You also mentioned you would not interfere with their struggle with the Palestinians but that you would support Israel.

God blessed your presidency because of this, and this blessing has been miraculous, given the short time of only three and a half years. Contrary to world opinion, you are blessing Israel by endorsing their right to build up and restore certain areas of the West Bank. I am sure that you have Israel’s best interest at heart.

The real truth is what the Holy Bible says, not what mortal man says. And the truth is that the whole of the West Bank (Judea and Samaria) belong to Israel (even if Israel is willing to give portions of it away to the Palestinians to keep in favor with the world) and maybe save themselves from a few less rocket attacks.

Sad to say, the Palestinians hate Israel with a dreadful hatred and thus bring upon themselves the judgment of Almighty God.

To be continued tomorrow.

~ Colin

Despite all the highly commended good works of the church at Ephesus, they had allowed a great problem to occur. They needed to repent quickly or else they would lose their candlestick from being regarded by the Lord as a true church (Revelation 1:20 and 2:4, 5).

Revelation 2:5: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent.”

This was more than just a problem. It was a sin from which they had to repent. Problems do not always necessitate repentance. However, sin always requires godly sorrow and repentance (2 Corinthians 7:10).

Falling from our “first love” or failing in “enduring love” is a very serious situation. It disqualifies us from calling ourselves a church. At least, from God’s perspective, although not necessarily from man’s perspective. I am sure there are many churches that call themselves legitimate and are proud of their good works. However, from Heaven’s perspective their candlestick has been removed long ago. How sad is that!

“First love” according to Scripture: First love responds to the first and second commandments:

Mark 12:30, 31: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy HEART, and with all thy SOUL, and with all thy MIND, and with all thy STRENGTH, that is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”

To me, first love is related to the first and second greatest commandments concerning the length, depth, height, and width of our love for God and our neighbor. Even though the second commandment is regarding our love to our neighbor, Jesus says that the second is like unto the first.

Jesus told a story in Luke 10:29-37 to explain who is our neighbor. To the Jews he was a man going down to Jericho who fell among thieves and was stripped of his clothes, wounded, and left half dead. The priest and the Levite would not help him. Only the Good Samaritan, who was not a Jew, would help him. The Good Samaritan met the conditions of what it means to love one’s neighbor as one’s self.

In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus clearly explains that when we show love to the needy, we are showing it to Jesus who is God.

There will come a day when Christ will judge all the nations of the world and divide the sheep from the goats. The sheep represent those who are humble and listen to His voice. The goats are proud, intelligent, and listen to their own reasoning.

Jesus said that . . .
He had been hungry and the sheep gave Him food.
He had been thirsty and the sheep gave Him drink.
He had been a stranger and the sheep took him in.
He had been sick and the sheep visited Him.
He had been in prison and the sheep came to Him.

We clearly see that first love has first works.

1 John 4:20, 21: “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.”

Beware of sectarianism which divides the churches and hinders brotherly love from enduring.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

1. They labored in good works. They were not behind, neglectful, or lazy regarding good works. Jesus Himself labored long hours in the ministry to meet the needs of the people. The Apostle Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 2:9 that he, along with the others who worked with him, labored night and day because they would not be chargeable to anyone.

2. They were patient. Patience is a good work. There are many times in life when we are called to wait and be patient with people and circumstances. How easy it is to face the test of patience.

3. They would not tolerate evil. To not bear those who are evil is also a good work. They refused to tolerate evil people. They obviously excommunicated themselves, perhaps because they exposed the evildoers and denounced them. There is far too much tolerating of evil in the church today.

4. They examined the church eldership that called themselves apostles, but they found to be liars. Jesus also commended this as a good work. By doing this they protected the church from those who call themselves apostles (who expected to preach in the pulpit and get offerings of money) but were false and spoke false doctrine.

They did all the above works for the Lord’s name sake and did not faint. This testimony of the Ephesians church was pretty amazing compared to church standards today.

But it was not good enough!

To be continued.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

The agape love that God sheds abroad in our hearts (Romans 5:5) is an enduring love which enables us to endure whatever we have to face in life. God’s love for us never fails.

Lamentations 3:22, 23: “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.”

Romans 8:35-39: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ, shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” Paul continues giving a whole list of hardships. However, he states that he is persuaded that there is nothing in Heaven or earth that can stop God from loving us.

Therefore, we must ask ourselves the following questions:

• Why do we cut off one another?
• Why do many Christians separate themselves from one another?
• Why are many Christian families are at war with one another?
• Why are many Christian marriages either in a state of tension, stress, arguments, and fightings with each other?
• And why do so many, sad to say, end up divorced?

Where is the enduring love that God, through Christ, has shed abroad in our hearts? It is obvious that so much of the church knows very little about enduring love.

The simple truth is that God has given freely to each one of us all of His enduring agape love, but we for the most part, are still operating in our own fallen, selfish, conditional love. Our human love falls far short of the endurance of God’s love.

As new creatures in Christ, we must learn how to live in the enduring love of God. Only then can we reveal to the world, the church, our own spouses and families, the true “enduring all things” love of Christ.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

The love that believes all things is the same love that hope all things. What has believing all things and hoping all things got to do with the love that God sheds abroad in our hearts? The answer is that believing and hoping all things has everything to do with God’s love dwelling in us.

The truth is that God’s love is the antidote for all things, all situations, and all people throughout all generations.

This great love is the motivating force behind the great commission to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:19, 20).

God’s love for all things, His belief for all things, His hope things is not exclusive; rather it is inclusive of all mankind.

God’s love motivates the belief of all things that every created human creature can be saved; that all mankind can have an eternal hope burning inside their hearts; that hope is an anchor, both sure and steadfast, that enters beyond the veil into the immediate presence of God’s glory (Hebrews 6:19). God’s love in us is not selfish. It is not exclusive, but all-inclusive to all mankind.

God’s love gives freely to all mankind a system of belief that all things are possible with God. His love provides all mankind who exercise this belief a hope which is more solid than any man-made anchor. This hope, according to the Scriptures, is indescribable, beyond our wildest imagination.

Isaiah 64:4: “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, Oh God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.” Read also Psalm 31:19; Psalm 107:8, 15, 21, 31; and 1 Corinthians 2:9).

To be continued.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

The love that is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost believes all things that God has spoken. This love does not believe any wicked person is beyond redemption for the love of God shed abroad in our hearts loves all of mankind no matter how far they have fallen.

This love encourages us to pray that God will grant them repentance no matter how much they may have caused us grief. We never cut our loved ones off when they unjustly treat us, for cutting people off and holding a grudge or negative attitude may hinder God’s redeeming love to save them. We may not be able to fellowship in anyway, but we must never cut them off in our prayers for them.

If we do not make it our goal to know every word that proceeds from the mouth of God and seek earnestly to apply it to our lives we will be hindered in our spiritual warfare against the temptations coming to attack us from the evil one.

It is important for all Christian parents to acquaint themselves and their children with the Word of God. If we neglect the Scriptures, we neglect our own salvation.

Hebrews 2:3: “ How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” Neglecting the knowledge and application of God’s Word sets ourselves up for massive spiritual failure as well as marriage and family failures.

Be encouraged to share the Scriptures with your family. In doing so you will assist them to overcome, rather than be overrun.

Read what Jesus had to say to the multitudes on the Mount concerning the essence of His doctrine:

Matthew 7:24-27: “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and great upon that house, and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the full of it.”

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

We all know that there are many who lie, tell half-truths, spin the facts, as well as exaggerate and embellish the real truth so one does not know what to believe.

Obviously, we cannot, and must not believe any thing that the devil says. We must not believe those who are influenced by the devil.

However, we can believe, and must believe everthing God says. He is the God of truth and it is impossible for Him to lie.

We can also, to a large degree, believe certain people who are proven to be trustworthy and would never deliberately tell a lie or make false statements.

We must also remember that the true doctrine on any subject in the Bible is not based on one Scripture, but rather the understanding of all Scriptures in the Bible on that subject. The truth is found in knowing all the truth on the subject.

This enables us to interpret any difficult passage. We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:21: “Prove all things, hold fast to that which is good.” In the context, this refers to the truth of what people are prophesying.

In such cases, one would be wise to prove what is being said by the plumbline of all Scripture. By believing what is prophesied by every prophet will not make the prophesy more true or false. Often prophecies are conditional and require certain behavior of humility, prayer, and repentance. For example:

2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways: then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

To be continued.

Be encouraged,

Colin Campbell