September 12, 2025, 7:05.  Silas will be 7 in another ten minutes.  We lay in bed longer than we should have this morning, remembering that day seven years ago.  Seven.  There’s something biblically significant about that number. In the Creation account in Genesis, it signifies rest. God’s rest from all His creation work on the 7th day.  In the Law, centuries later, in Leviticus 25, that idea of rest is revisited. Verses 1-12 recount the instructions.

“The LORD then spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you come into the land which I shall give you, then the land shall have a sabbath to the LORD.  Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its crop, but during the seventh year the land shall have a sabbath rest, a sabbath to the LORD; you shall not sow your field nor prune your vineyard,  Your harvest’s aftergrowth you shall not reap, and your grapes of untrimmed vines you shall not gather; the land shall have a sabbatical year.  All of you shall have the sabbath products of the land for food; yourself, and your male and female slaves, and your hired man and your foreign resident, those who live as aliens with you.  Even your cattle and the animals that are in your land shall have all the crops to eat.  You are also to count off seven sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years, so that you have the time of the seven sabbaths of years, namely, forty-nine years.  You shall then sound a ram’s horn abroad on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the day of atonement you shall sound a horn all through your land.  You shall thus consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release through the land to all its inhabitants.  It shall be a jubilee for you and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family.  You shall have the fiftieth year as a jubilee; you shall not sow, nor reap its aftergrowth, nor gather in from its untrimmed vines.  For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you.  You shall eat its crops out of the field.”   

There are many more laws of instruction that follow concerning the year of jubilee, and the idea of rest is taken further into the concept of redemption.  The basic summary is that no land is ever to be sold permanently because it doesn’t truly belong to any of them. Father says in verse 23, “the land is Mine.” Careful instructions are laid out for the return or redemption of property that is lost due to poverty.  Careful instructions are laid out for redeeming one’s relative or even one’s own self out of indentured servanthood or slavery.  And everyone is commanded to honor these laws of redemption.  They are to “consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release through the land to all its inhabitants”.  Here’s what I understand that to mean.  If you fell on hard times, through economic depression or your own foolishness, and lost everything you had: you were to get it back.  If you fell on hard times, through natural disaster or your own stupidity, and had to sell yourself and your family into slavery: you were to receive your freedom.  ALL of you.  Your entire family.  

I’ll be 49 in January.  Silas is coming to the end of his 7th year.  His “year of rest” is over. His 7th year was full of the joys of kindergarten: no pressure to retain, no pressure to perform, simply a little boy and his mama enjoying the discovery of the world around them through play, stories, nature, and living life together.  It was a great year.  Now first grade has begun.  We certainly don’t leave the wonder behind, but at 7 the state of Missouri wants proof that I am homeschooling my child.  There are hours to log, subjects to complete, lessons to master. And my boy is ready.  He loves to learn and is a delight to teach, probably because he hasn’t been forced to sit in a circle since he was 3.  While his first set of seven years is ending, and his work is beginning, I am nearing the close of my 7th set of 7 years.  My 49th birthday will mark the first day of my 50th year.  Do any of you ladies imagine there’s going to be rest?

I’m pausing here for emphasis. I appreciate every humph, LOL, and guffaw.  If any of you spit your coffee, please know you are my people. 

No, there will not be any physical rest.  Oh, maybe a day of sleeping in or a day of Mary Caroline guarding my bedroom hideaway like the BOSS that she is and assuming all of my duties. But praise Father, praise Him eternally with the sincerest and deepest honor, that I HAVE SPIRITUAL REST. I have been redeemed!  I was conceived, like each of you, into a sinful existence, and born into a fallen world.  I was born an enemy of a Holy God.  From my first breath every intent of my sweet little heart was bent on selfishness and pride and constant attempts to make my small world revolve around me, me, little ole’ me.  If it weren’t for the grace of God, the love of God, the mercy of God I would still be held hostage by that selfish toddler who ran around in flare legged polyester pants with a very large belly in the late 1970’s. Father brought me from death to life because it was His gracious choice.  He saw nothing in me that was worthy of redemption.  In addition to being born with a sinful nature, I added insult to injury by being rebellious, stubborn, hateful, self – centered, and self-destructive.  I didn’t “fall on hard times through economic depression or natural disaster”.  No.  I was raised right.  I had a wonderful home life.  I was blessed by two large, loving, involved extended families. I was raised in an active home church and discipled by women who loved the Lord deeply and modeled it in their personal lives.  I grew up in a decent school district with teachers who both taught me and also cared about me.  (No one in this scenario was perfect, but still, I had an idyllic childhood.)  I fell on hard times in my later teen years from foolishness and stupidity.  And nothing anyone did or said could wake me up…but God.  The prayers of the saints, many saints, from many different churches, over many years, calling on Father to send His Spirit and soften my heart, bring me from death unto life, give hearing to my deaf hears, bring sight to my blind eyes – that is what changed me.  Father brought me from death to life and then He made me hungry.  He made me hungry for Him, for His presence, for His Word, for His people, for His ways.  And he brought me a husband.  The greatest gift He has ever given me was bringing my husband from death to life and making him hungry for the things of God.  Why is that the greatest gift?  Because my husband has been led by Father to lead me.  He has loved me with a servant’s heart.  He has been used by God to set me straight and hem in my wild nature. He has said a lot of “no” and “not yet”.  And he has also said “yes”.  Not to me, but to His Lord.  Yes to the confines and constraints and immediate responsibility of a married man at 18. Yes to babies. Lots of babies.  Yes to keeping me at home with those babies, no matter the personal cost to himself. 

And that brings me to September 11th. And Charlie Kirk. First, I’ll say this.  I knew of Mr. Kirk, but I didn’t follow him.  He’s not of my generation.  My adult children followed Charlie Kirk and I am very grateful for his influence on their lives.  But Charlie’s message was a little late to the game at our house.  Clint Campbell was quietly living “Charlie Kirk” in front of our sons and oldest daughter for almost two complete decades before they knew his name.  The idea of “redeeming” this country for God by getting married young, having babies, and loving your people like Christ loves the Church is not a concept they learned by watching a young, charismatic Charlie Kirk on the internet.  They learned that from their dad.  And his redeemed life and character is absolutely the most precious gift any of us has ever been given. And Clint would say that America won’t be “redeemed” at all.  Individual people will be redeemed, by the blood of Christ.  And the outpouring of His Holy Spirit in their hearts will cause them to hunger for the things of God – and then they will want to, guess what, get married and live sacrificially for their family. THAT will bless our nation through right living.  And when men are living right with God, their wives will want to honor them.  Their sons will want to emulate them.  Their daughters will feel protected and loved by them, secure to flourish. The American family, by the grace of God, will be strong.  That will build strong communities.  That will build a strong nation.  

Many, many people are responding to the headlines this week by writing posts and dropping podcasts.  Myself included.  I’m not discounting anyone’s words.  There is a place for discussion, for vision casting, for problem solving through debate and rhetoric.  But I submit that America will get through this current crisis of violence the way it survived the violence of the 1960’s, the wars of the the 1940’s and 1920’s, the deep conflict of the 1860’s, and most especially the revolution of the 1770’s.  It will be the quiet men of God who lead their families well.  Those who got up this morning, read their Bible or listened to a sermon, prayed from a sincere heart, kissed their wives, and WENT TO WORK. Was that Charlie Kirk’s message?  Pretty much. But he was only defending it because that is the message of the Bible. This nation has always been great, is currently great, and will continue to be great- in spite of wars, conflicts, and assassinations- because it has been held steady by Christian men and women who loved God, loved their children, and lived sacrificially to ensure freedom for each of us.   

I wrote the lyrics to this song the week of 9/11 in 2001.  Dalton was three months old.  We lived out of state and I was at home with a baby, all of the time, and very alone.  Clint was working a lot of hours and gone a lot of the time.  I wasn’t yet a parent of toddlers or preschoolers or school aged kids and looking back I have no explanation for some of the lyrics other than God gave them to me.  I hope the words encourage moms and dads to either keep doing what you’re doing or to start doing what you need to be doing.  God is the only one who can change this world, but He graciously chooses to do it through our changed lives.  Will you submit to Him today? Will you be a tool in His hand? 
May God bless America as She blesses Him,
Margie

The Purpose of My Life
An early morning cry
She jumps to find out why
Toys are on the floor, as she stumbles to the door

New teeth don’t know the time
And it doesn’t matter why
He needs his mommy now, so she rocks him as he cries

And everything becomes so small as important things take over
Mommy can you find my ball?  When can my friends come over?
The little things take so much time, a runny nose and shoes to tie
But God can hear her when she prays, and He gives her the grace to say

I am a mother and this is the purpose of my life –
That I will teach my children every day that He’s alive
In the rustling of the leaves, by the cool and gentle breeze
And I will change my world, by making sure my children see His love in Me

 

The traffic has him stopped
He can only wish the clock
Would somehow do the same, as he rushes through his day

Little feet don’t know that he’s gone
And first steps won’t wait til he’s home
He closes his eyes to pray, for his family while he’s away

And everything becomes so small as important things take over
Daddy when are you coming home?  Can I ride up on your shoulders?
The little things take so much time, a bath to run and then a lullaby
But God can hear him when he prays, and He gives him the grace to say

I am a father and this is the purpose of my life –
That I will teach my children every day that He’s alive
In the rustling of the leaves, by the cool and gentle breeze
And I will change my world, by making sure my children see His love in Me     
And I will change my world, by making sure my children see His love in Me