Mr. C's Blog

One of the most misunderstood aspects of discipleship is that of submission. People have all kinds of wrong ideas about submission especially when it comes to areas such as marriage.  What does it mean?

Submission means willingly choosing to let someone else lead. It is an act of choice made to prepare the believer for his own submission to God. The Bible is full of admonition for believers in submission. Let’s look at few that theologian Richard Foster has given:

1) Submission to God- We must learn to submit our lives and obey God. “We must obey God rather than man.” Acts 5:29. 

2) Submission to scripture- We must learn to live under the authority of God’s Word. “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” 1 Timothy 3:17 

3) Submission to our family - We must consider others before ourselves. I have learned as the man of the house that I am to love my wife as Christ loved the church. How did He do that? He gave Himself sacrificially for the church. I am to love my wife and children sacrificial. “Do not merely look out for your own interests, but also for the interests of others.”  Philippians 2:4. ly. 

4) Submission to our neighbors - Again, we must consider others before ourselves. Life is not about us or our rights.“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.” Philippians 2:3 

5) Submission to the body of Christ- “Obey your leaders and submit to them; for they keep watch over your souls, as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.” Hebrews 13:17 

6) Submission to the broken, the despised - We need to be about helping those who need our help and sharing the love of Christ with them. “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this, to visit orphans and     widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” James 1:27 

7) Submission to the world -  I have been taught so well the idea that we are never more like God than when we give. God gave His only Jesus so that we might have the forgiveness of sin and eternal life. We need to be about submitting our lives sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ to others. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believed on Him might be saved.” John 3:16.

Submission is not an ugly word nor is it something we should avoid. Submission is a spiritual discipline we all need so that we may daily more experience the life and joy that God has for us. 

Have a great day!

Rick Calloway

We will equally face many good and bad times in this lifetime. This is especially true when it comes to raising our children.

We are not called to be their friend or make decisions that are popular with them if we are committed to doing what is best for them. Also, we must recognize that they will make mistakes and fail. What will we do when that happens? Where will we stand during these moments? Will we throw the towel in and become discouraged?

It is easy sometimes to think that we as Christians should be immune to disappointments and discouraging events when we are not. I ran across a great quote that reads:

"Expecting the world to like you because you're a good person is like expecting the bull not to charge because you're a vegetarian." - Anonymous.

The difference for Christians is that when we face difficulties, we have hope because we are anchored in a relationship with an all-powerful God who can help us through any situation we may face. I want you to see two verses below that give us this hope:

Daniel 2:20-21: "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever: for wisdom and might are his; and he changes the times and the seasons; he removes kings and establishes up kings; he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding."

1 Corinthians 4:20:"For the Kingdom of God is not in word, but in power." 

Daniel reminds us that all wisdom and power is his. He can change seasons, times, and kings so surely, He can help us with any difficulty we may face as a parent. Being a member of the Kingdom of God gives us access to real power. It is not like the person we all know who just runs off at the mouth about how powerful he is but can never back it up. I am grateful that we serve a God who can do anything.

I love great praise music and one of my favorites is “Our God is greater.” There is one line in that song that I especially love. It says: “Our God is greater, our God is stronger, and our God is higher than anyone else.” This is a truth we must continually remind ourselves of.

God is omnipotent which literally means "all-powerful". I do not know of another concept more critical for Christians living today than understanding and embracing this one. We will quickly be overwhelmed and discouraged in trying to raise our children without living out the idea that God alone is able to give us the power and wisdom we need for whatever task we may be facing.

So, how do we practically live out this concept? Ephesians 6:10 tells us to "be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." What does this mean? It means that in our mind and in our heart, we know and claim daily that He is all powerful. Specifically, we daily recognize that we cannot rely on our own strength to face the difficulties of life and instead we must rely on His strength.

It is a certainty that we will face difficulties in raising our children. It is not a matter of if but when and how often we will face them.

Have a great day!

Rick Calloway

“Then I told Joshua, “You saw how the Lord our God helped us destroy King Sihon and King Og. So don’t be afraid! Wherever you go, the Lord will fight on your side and help you destroy your enemies.” Deuteronomy 3:21

I have always been a dreamer. I have a vivid imagination. As imaginative and creative as I can be, I could have never imagined the path God had for me in ministry. I ran across a verse that reminded me of how God wants to work in our lives. I pray it will be a blessing to you.

“May God enlighten the eyes of your mind so that you can see the hope that His calling holds for you.” Ephesians 1:18

Paul was not talking about our physical eyes but instead our imagination. God wants to give us His dream for our lives. That is His calling for us. There is no higher calling. I want you to be reminded today of the hope His calling has for you. I pray that you will be energized by that calling and seek to make a difference for Him afresh and anew. 

I love a quote by Rick Warren that says: “Let the size of my God determine the size of my goal. God’s dream for my life is bigger than my dream.” Never has there been a time more important than now for the imagination of God’s people to come alive. The evangelical world desperately needs a generation of believers who in faith will be able to discover the dream God gave them for their lives. 

We need to develop a high view of God. One that remembers all the miraculous things that God has done. One that holds tightly to the promises of His Word. One that embraces the power and sovereignty of a Holy God. Gaining a high view of God will completely change our perspective about life and all of its difficulties. A.W. Tozier captured this truth when he said:

“The low view of God entertained almost universally among Christians is the cause of a hundred lesser evils everywhere among us… The decline of the knowledge of the holy has brought on our troubles. A rediscovery of the majesty of God will go a long way toward curing them.” 

Joshua understood the need for a high view of God. He had a history with God. In Deuteronomy 3:21 he remembered how God had delivered him before and he knew not to be afraid and who to trust. He knew the Lord would be with him no matter what. He said so in that verse.

“Wherever you go, the Lord will fight on your side and help you destroy your enemies.”

Joshua saw God do extraordinary things with his life and leadership because of his view and trust of God. Joshua lived out God’s dream for his life. I too desire that God will “open the eyes of my mind, so that I can see the hope that His calling holds for my life.” 

I desperately want to know God’s dream for my life so that I might be the person that He wants me to be. One that will bring honor and glory to an extraordinary God.

So many times, as parents we can get so caught up in how our kids are behaving that we can easily forget what is most important in seeing the behavior we desire out of our kids. To gain the behavior we desire to see in our kids, we must first establish the importance of truth and freedom from captivity to lies in our kids’ lives. 

I love the pyramid above as it illustrates what I am talking about. The building block or foundation of our kids’ lives is Truth.  Specifically, God’s truth.

When God’s truth is established in our children’s lives, the right values and attitudes will begin to flow from their lives. And from there, we will begin to see Godly behavior. Too often, we start on the wrong end and only focus on behavior. 

Without establishing truth first, focusing on behavior alone will never work in and of itself. Our kids need to be rooted and grounded in God’s word. How do I know this? Colossians 2:3 tells us that:“In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Also, Proverbs 22:6 and Colossians 2:8 both reflect this idea of establishing truth in our kids’ lives. 

“Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.” Proverbs 22:6

“Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.” Colossians 2:8

Following the pattern above, our children can develop a strong foundation on which to build their lives and develop a lifelong faith. 

Have a great day!

What kind of goals do we set for our kids? We all have something in mind like academic goals, character goals, athletic pursuits, performing arts goals, and many others. When my kids were young, I thought about all those things and more. There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of those things.

However, there was a gnawing inside of me that I knew was from God that there was so much more that I needed to aim for to give my girls a heart for God. I knew that I needed to answer the question “What do I want for kids spiritually?"

As I searched the Scriptures and prayed, God gave me the following spiritual goals for my kids:

1) To gain a spiritual depth that would help them overcome this culture.

Jeremiah 12:5 declares: “If racing against mere men makes you tired, how will you race against horses? If you stumble and fall on open ground, what will you do in the thickets near the Jordan?”

I wanted my kids to have a spiritual depth that would not be worn out by those that don’t  believe.

2) To gain the ability to become a Godly decision maker.

Hebrews 5:14 says this: “Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.”

I wanted my kids to have the Biblical tools and worldview to know how to make Godly decisions.

3) To become a servant to others.

I wanted my kids to live for something bigger than themselves. I wanted them to have the mind of Christ that Philippians 2 describes.

4)To become a “Thinker."

2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us that we should be able to: “We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.”

I had the goal for my kids to be to discern what is good and right and destroy those things in  their mind that was not of God.

5) To have an eternal perspective on legacy.

Psalm 78:6 declares: “so the next generation might know them— even the children not yet born— The goal here for our kids is to live with an idea even as kids to grow up one day and follow God so passionately that they will pass that faith to future generations. 

6) To be a Great Commission Christian. 

As Matthew 28 says; “go and make disciples.” The goal here is to teach our kids to share their faith regularly. To be an effective witness sharing with everyone they meet the most important aspect of their lives. 

I pray that these goals will spur you on to ask yourself the question: “What do I want for my kids spiritually? I do believe that God will give you the wisdom to create your own.

Have a great day!

Rick Calloway