WEBVTT 00:00:01.679 --> 00:00:05.400 think of yourself as a skeptical person, you 00:00:05.400 --> 00:00:07.219 know, kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop? 00:00:07.679 --> 00:00:11.679 Do you see kind of the world with that half empty 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:15.720 glass instead of half full? That mentality is 00:00:15.720 --> 00:00:18.780 what some people call cynicism. And today we're 00:00:18.780 --> 00:00:22.079 going to learn how pervasive it is, how it steals 00:00:22.079 --> 00:00:26.100 our joy, and how we can learn to make it go away. 00:00:26.280 --> 00:00:32.310 Stay with me. Thanks for listening to this edition 00:00:32.310 --> 00:00:35.649 of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. We are 00:00:35.649 --> 00:00:38.469 an international teaching and discipleship ministry 00:00:38.469 --> 00:00:41.289 that motivates Christians to live like Christians. 00:00:41.929 --> 00:00:43.670 Well, as many of you know, Chip's our regular 00:00:43.670 --> 00:00:46.270 Bible teacher for this daily program. But for 00:00:46.270 --> 00:00:48.530 this series, he's passed the mic to our friend 00:00:48.530 --> 00:00:51.609 Jenny Allen. Now, Jenny is an accomplished author, 00:00:51.829 --> 00:00:54.929 national speaker, and founder of the If Gathering 00:00:54.929 --> 00:00:57.609 events. We're a little over halfway through her 00:00:57.609 --> 00:01:00.520 series, Get Out of Your Head. So far, Jenny's 00:01:00.520 --> 00:01:02.979 identified a handful of toxic thoughts that can 00:01:02.979 --> 00:01:05.760 rot our minds and provided biblical remedies 00:01:05.760 --> 00:01:08.819 to combat them. And to help you continue to get 00:01:08.819 --> 00:01:11.140 the most out of this series, let me encourage 00:01:11.140 --> 00:01:13.939 you to download our message notes. They contain 00:01:13.939 --> 00:01:16.719 Jenny's outline, scripture references, and more. 00:01:16.920 --> 00:01:20.760 Get them by visiting the broadcasts tab at livingontheedge 00:01:20.760 --> 00:01:25.099 .org. App listeners tap fill in notes. Okay, 00:01:25.140 --> 00:01:26.939 if you're ready, here's Jenny with her message, 00:01:27.099 --> 00:01:31.680 The Antidote for Cynicism. So we are diving into 00:01:31.680 --> 00:01:34.560 the different enemies that attack our mind. And 00:01:34.560 --> 00:01:36.659 today we're going to talk about one that I see 00:01:36.659 --> 00:01:39.560 everywhere. And the tricky one with this is it's 00:01:39.560 --> 00:01:41.920 actually valued by most of us. It's not something 00:01:41.920 --> 00:01:43.719 we typically fight because I think it's something 00:01:43.719 --> 00:01:46.040 that we respect in people. It's something we 00:01:46.040 --> 00:01:48.939 think is really helpful in life. And it's called 00:01:48.939 --> 00:01:53.150 cynicism. And I see it everywhere. So I don't 00:01:53.150 --> 00:01:55.750 know if you even notice it in yourself. So I 00:01:55.750 --> 00:01:58.450 wanted to read a few questions because honestly, 00:01:58.569 --> 00:02:00.370 I think we've all become cynical, but it's kind 00:02:00.370 --> 00:02:02.010 of the air we breathe. So we don't even notice 00:02:02.010 --> 00:02:04.349 it. I want to ask you a few questions that would 00:02:04.349 --> 00:02:07.069 kind of be a good self -diagnostic tool to see 00:02:07.069 --> 00:02:09.990 if you are cynical. So do you get annoyed when 00:02:09.990 --> 00:02:11.849 people are optimistic? So I want you to answer 00:02:11.849 --> 00:02:13.490 these. If you can, jot them down. If you're sitting 00:02:13.490 --> 00:02:15.469 somewhere, if you can't, just answer them in 00:02:15.469 --> 00:02:17.610 your head. Do you get annoyed when people are 00:02:17.610 --> 00:02:20.659 optimistic? when someone is nice to you do you 00:02:20.659 --> 00:02:23.780 wonder what that person wants do you constantly 00:02:23.780 --> 00:02:27.199 feel misunderstood when things are going well 00:02:27.199 --> 00:02:30.039 are you waiting for the bottom to fall out do 00:02:30.039 --> 00:02:33.099 you quickly notice people's flaws or faults do 00:02:33.099 --> 00:02:36.419 you worry about getting taken advantage of are 00:02:36.419 --> 00:02:38.960 you guarded when you meet someone new do you 00:02:38.960 --> 00:02:40.560 wonder sometimes why people just can't get it 00:02:40.560 --> 00:02:45.039 together are you sarcastic I asked these questions 00:02:45.039 --> 00:02:48.099 to my team and they all started out. The reason 00:02:48.099 --> 00:02:49.759 I actually wrote those questions was because 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:51.639 they all started out like, yeah, I struggle with 00:02:51.639 --> 00:02:53.840 all these enemies. I know all these enemies that 00:02:53.840 --> 00:02:56.259 you wrote about except for cynicism. I don't 00:02:56.259 --> 00:02:58.639 think I'm very cynical. So I thought, I bet they 00:02:58.639 --> 00:03:00.759 are. I know they are. So I wrote these questions 00:03:00.759 --> 00:03:02.500 and then I made them answer them and they all 00:03:02.500 --> 00:03:05.000 were like, oh my gosh, I had no idea it was so 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:07.340 cynical. So I don't know how you feel right now, 00:03:07.400 --> 00:03:10.300 but I think a lot of us relate to those questions 00:03:10.300 --> 00:03:13.370 and struggle with these things. Cynicism is an 00:03:13.370 --> 00:03:15.710 especially powerful tool from the enemy because 00:03:15.710 --> 00:03:18.710 when you and I are struck by it, we don't see 00:03:18.710 --> 00:03:21.669 our need to be helped. We get arrogant and we 00:03:21.669 --> 00:03:24.990 separate ourselves from getting help, from needing 00:03:24.990 --> 00:03:27.469 people we think we know more than everybody else. 00:03:27.710 --> 00:03:30.310 I want to talk about what cynicism is. Cynicism 00:03:30.310 --> 00:03:33.819 is this idea that We're looking for the bad to 00:03:33.819 --> 00:03:36.340 keep the bad from hurting us. It's protection. 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:38.500 It's making sure that we're not getting taken 00:03:38.500 --> 00:03:40.520 advantage of, making sure that somebody's not 00:03:40.520 --> 00:03:43.120 using us. And in a world where people can be 00:03:43.120 --> 00:03:46.340 really hurtful, cynicism can sometimes be helpful. 00:03:46.419 --> 00:03:49.280 So we start to prize it. We start to feel educated, 00:03:49.580 --> 00:03:52.259 like we're not naive. I want to tell you a story 00:03:52.259 --> 00:03:55.060 about my team. My team is so amazing. Love them 00:03:55.060 --> 00:03:57.639 so much. And they're great friends, all of them. 00:03:57.759 --> 00:04:01.289 And when I think about them, they're not... notably 00:04:01.289 --> 00:04:03.750 cynical for crying out loud. They moved to Dallas, 00:04:03.810 --> 00:04:06.129 a lot of them, to serve God and to be a part 00:04:06.129 --> 00:04:08.270 of this ministry. They're so surrendered and 00:04:08.270 --> 00:04:10.409 they're constantly obedient. But we were sitting 00:04:10.409 --> 00:04:12.389 around dinner when I was working on this book 00:04:12.389 --> 00:04:15.710 and this project. And one of the girls there 00:04:15.710 --> 00:04:18.110 was like, if I just choose to see the good in 00:04:18.110 --> 00:04:19.970 things and I just choose to think positively, 00:04:20.129 --> 00:04:22.610 I'm going to get taken advantage of. And one 00:04:22.610 --> 00:04:24.250 of the girls that was there, she doesn't work 00:04:24.250 --> 00:04:26.930 for us any longer, but she is just delightful. 00:04:27.129 --> 00:04:29.639 Literally, the girl, like, little sunshine on 00:04:29.639 --> 00:04:31.680 a stick. Like she just is happy, smiley all the 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:33.600 time, positive about everything. Even her voice 00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:36.879 is like sweet as syrup. Like she is just so sweet 00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:39.279 and kind. And so she's sitting next to me and 00:04:39.279 --> 00:04:40.600 I looked at Elizabeth and I said, Elizabeth, 00:04:40.740 --> 00:04:42.740 you tell me what you think about that. Because 00:04:42.740 --> 00:04:45.379 she is that. She models it. She walks around 00:04:45.379 --> 00:04:48.699 with joy in her heart every minute of every day. 00:04:48.740 --> 00:04:51.420 She sees the best in everybody. Some people would 00:04:51.420 --> 00:04:54.240 think of it as naive. And she said, so what? 00:04:54.600 --> 00:04:56.740 So what if I get taken advantage of? I'm happier. 00:04:58.089 --> 00:05:00.850 I was like, that's so brilliant. Like we're choosing. 00:05:00.910 --> 00:05:03.790 It's our mind, y 'all. We're not talking about 00:05:03.790 --> 00:05:06.399 our circumstances. We're talking about. the thing 00:05:06.399 --> 00:05:08.740 we live with day in and day out, day in and day 00:05:08.740 --> 00:05:11.639 out. And if it's conditioned and constantly looking 00:05:11.639 --> 00:05:13.579 for the negative, it will find the negative. 00:05:13.800 --> 00:05:16.459 It will find the negative in our family members. 00:05:16.600 --> 00:05:17.920 It will find the negative in our friendships. 00:05:18.040 --> 00:05:19.560 It will find the negative in our circumstances, 00:05:19.860 --> 00:05:22.939 in our jobs, in our callings. It will find the 00:05:22.939 --> 00:05:26.199 negative in everything if we let it. And so this 00:05:26.199 --> 00:05:28.379 idea of cynicism has actually, I feel like it's 00:05:28.379 --> 00:05:31.899 this slow leak. Like right now, my tire, every 00:05:31.899 --> 00:05:34.160 time I get in the car, it's going down and it's 00:05:34.160 --> 00:05:36.189 taking like weeks. to get to where it's a dangerous 00:05:36.189 --> 00:05:38.430 level, but like I've noticed there's a slow leak 00:05:38.430 --> 00:05:40.910 and it's extra slow, but it keeps alerting me 00:05:40.910 --> 00:05:42.930 like it's getting lower and lower and lower. 00:05:43.069 --> 00:05:45.569 And that's exactly what cynicism is. It's a slow 00:05:45.569 --> 00:05:48.769 leak of joy in our lives because if we fixate 00:05:48.769 --> 00:05:52.699 on negative, then... we are not ever going to 00:05:52.699 --> 00:05:56.040 be happy. And I know as Christians, we've got 00:05:56.040 --> 00:05:57.920 a lot bigger goals than happiness, right? Like 00:05:57.920 --> 00:06:00.379 that's not our ultimate goal. But at the end 00:06:00.379 --> 00:06:03.360 of the day, what we think about and the joy that 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:06.480 inhabits our mind and our hearts is and should 00:06:06.480 --> 00:06:09.680 be a goal of Christianity. Who wants to follow 00:06:09.680 --> 00:06:12.319 after people that are following after a God that 00:06:12.319 --> 00:06:15.600 doesn't issue joy? You know, I mean, I don't 00:06:15.600 --> 00:06:18.040 want that. We have a God that issues ultimate 00:06:18.040 --> 00:06:22.259 joy, like ultimate hope, ultimate peace, peace 00:06:22.259 --> 00:06:24.360 that surpasses understanding, scripture tells 00:06:24.360 --> 00:06:27.019 us. So we should be reflecting those things if 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:28.540 we actually believe this and if we're actually 00:06:28.540 --> 00:06:31.529 following God. And yet what cynicism does is 00:06:31.529 --> 00:06:33.829 it makes us question all of our authorities so 00:06:33.829 --> 00:06:36.149 we never submit. It makes us question all of 00:06:36.149 --> 00:06:38.509 our institutions so we never participate. It 00:06:38.509 --> 00:06:40.589 makes us question all of our friendships so we 00:06:40.589 --> 00:06:42.709 never connect. It makes us question our family 00:06:42.709 --> 00:06:45.689 members so we never, ever feel safe. I mean, 00:06:45.689 --> 00:06:48.350 it will erode our confidence and our joy in all 00:06:48.350 --> 00:06:50.949 of the gifts that God's given us to help us follow 00:06:50.949 --> 00:06:53.069 Him, to help us grow up in the faith, to help 00:06:53.069 --> 00:06:56.029 us live out full and abundant and obedient lives. 00:06:56.600 --> 00:06:58.360 So how do we change this? Well, one, I think 00:06:58.360 --> 00:07:00.680 we've got to be careful what we're feeding our 00:07:00.680 --> 00:07:04.660 souls. And for me, really candidly, I had to 00:07:04.660 --> 00:07:06.899 get off Twitter. If you go there right now, you 00:07:06.899 --> 00:07:08.660 will see one tweet that I've written like in 00:07:08.660 --> 00:07:11.129 the last six months because... Even though I'm 00:07:11.129 --> 00:07:13.189 sure that's a mechanism that could grow my platform, 00:07:13.389 --> 00:07:15.730 it was not feeding my soul. And I just decided, 00:07:15.829 --> 00:07:17.470 you know what? I'm not closing my account yet, 00:07:17.490 --> 00:07:19.790 but I'm never going there. And I would say I 00:07:19.790 --> 00:07:21.769 go there maybe every few months just to check 00:07:21.769 --> 00:07:23.790 in, see what's happening with friends, because 00:07:23.790 --> 00:07:25.930 some of my friends are only on Twitter. And then 00:07:25.930 --> 00:07:28.870 I'll also just browse through messages and that 00:07:28.870 --> 00:07:30.829 kind of thing. But I don't participate on Twitter. 00:07:30.910 --> 00:07:32.810 And the reason why is because it always made 00:07:32.810 --> 00:07:35.769 me cynical. Every time I got off Twitter, I doubted. 00:07:36.160 --> 00:07:38.720 every single thing about God, everything about 00:07:38.720 --> 00:07:41.300 church, everything about the hope for humanity. 00:07:41.420 --> 00:07:44.459 It just felt like everything there is believing 00:07:44.459 --> 00:07:46.620 the worst in everything. And I wanted to believe 00:07:46.620 --> 00:07:48.060 the best. And I didn't know how to fight for 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:50.279 that when that was the constant input in my life. 00:07:50.379 --> 00:07:53.000 So I just left. Now, that is not to say I do 00:07:53.000 --> 00:07:55.259 not stay educated. Guys, I'm a political person. 00:07:55.360 --> 00:07:57.819 I was a... poli -sci minor in college. Like I 00:07:57.819 --> 00:08:00.160 care about politics. I just don't think they're 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:02.500 the ultimate hope. So I don't over -engage there, 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:05.920 but I care. So I stay up to date. And when something's 00:08:05.920 --> 00:08:08.139 really interesting, I'll go read more about it. 00:08:08.160 --> 00:08:10.420 If there's a war that's brewing that I want to 00:08:10.420 --> 00:08:11.920 know more about, I'll go read more about it. 00:08:11.980 --> 00:08:14.579 But I don't sit there and consume my news from 00:08:14.579 --> 00:08:16.759 angry people on Twitter. You know, we moved to 00:08:16.759 --> 00:08:18.720 Dallas and I decided I'm going to be really careful 00:08:18.720 --> 00:08:21.600 about... who are my friends. I'm just going to 00:08:21.600 --> 00:08:23.379 choose the people that are going to input into 00:08:23.379 --> 00:08:25.639 my life, not the people I love, because we need 00:08:25.639 --> 00:08:27.480 to be loving people that are not healthy and 00:08:27.480 --> 00:08:30.240 that need us. But I'm talking about the people 00:08:30.240 --> 00:08:31.779 that are going to be in my ear every day that 00:08:31.779 --> 00:08:33.580 are really close to me. I'm going to make sure 00:08:33.580 --> 00:08:35.659 that they are positive people. I know this sounds 00:08:35.659 --> 00:08:38.799 so cheesy, but... I needed people that were life 00:08:38.799 --> 00:08:40.799 -giving, people that saw the good in the world 00:08:40.799 --> 00:08:43.039 and saw the good in me and saw the good in, and 00:08:43.039 --> 00:08:45.539 not naively so, but I want to speak to the naivety 00:08:45.539 --> 00:08:47.500 issue because I think sometimes we can just see 00:08:47.500 --> 00:08:49.639 positive people and assume they're naive. When 00:08:49.639 --> 00:08:51.840 I think of my friend Elizabeth, she has actually 00:08:51.840 --> 00:08:54.419 been through a lot. When you hear her story, 00:08:54.580 --> 00:08:56.259 you're like, gosh, you have been through a lot. 00:08:56.419 --> 00:08:58.759 So she's not naive to suffering. She's not naive 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:00.980 to disappointment. She's not naive to people 00:09:00.980 --> 00:09:04.179 hurting her. She just has chosen a better way. 00:09:04.399 --> 00:09:07.340 And she's selfish about it. She's like, I mean, 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:09.100 it's just a better way to live. I don't enjoy 00:09:09.100 --> 00:09:11.580 being negative about everyone all the time. I 00:09:11.580 --> 00:09:14.259 don't wanna live that way. And I think that's 00:09:14.259 --> 00:09:16.100 what we've gotta do is we need to get a little 00:09:16.100 --> 00:09:18.639 bit selfish and zealous for ourselves and our 00:09:18.639 --> 00:09:21.149 minds and saying, you know what? This is not 00:09:21.149 --> 00:09:23.730 leading to life and peace for me. And I don't 00:09:23.730 --> 00:09:25.529 know what your Twitter is or what your thing 00:09:25.529 --> 00:09:27.669 is that just is not leading to life and peace, 00:09:27.769 --> 00:09:29.370 but you need to notice it in yourself. Like, 00:09:29.370 --> 00:09:31.730 gosh, this is causing a cynical spirit in me 00:09:31.730 --> 00:09:33.789 towards people. And that could be gossipy friends. 00:09:33.950 --> 00:09:35.309 That could be friends that are always complaining 00:09:35.309 --> 00:09:37.210 about their husbands. That could be friends that 00:09:37.210 --> 00:09:39.029 are always complaining about their job. It could 00:09:39.029 --> 00:09:40.809 be coworkers. And I'm not saying you never spend 00:09:40.809 --> 00:09:43.029 time with them, but you guard your mind and you 00:09:43.029 --> 00:09:45.129 don't spend all your time with them. And when 00:09:45.129 --> 00:09:46.509 you're spending time with them, you have a... 00:09:46.750 --> 00:09:49.169 plan an attack. I do this with my kids when they 00:09:49.169 --> 00:09:50.710 go through seasons where their friends are making 00:09:50.710 --> 00:09:53.070 bad choices with their words and gossiping all 00:09:53.070 --> 00:09:54.289 the time. I'm like, you don't need to cut off 00:09:54.289 --> 00:09:56.509 your friends and not have them anymore necessarily 00:09:56.509 --> 00:10:00.289 because that's certain years of our lives. Gossip 00:10:00.289 --> 00:10:03.519 is just part of it. How do we turn the conversation? 00:10:03.740 --> 00:10:05.940 How do we bring life and peace into a conversation? 00:10:06.139 --> 00:10:08.460 And you have those little sound bites that turn 00:10:08.460 --> 00:10:10.340 the conversation around. And so I think we've 00:10:10.340 --> 00:10:12.899 just got to be light in dark places, but we also 00:10:12.899 --> 00:10:15.220 need places that are full of light and that bring 00:10:15.220 --> 00:10:19.860 energy and life and joy into us. You're listening 00:10:19.860 --> 00:10:22.340 to Living on the Edge. We'll return you to Jenny 00:10:22.340 --> 00:10:24.759 Allen's message in just a minute. But let me 00:10:24.759 --> 00:10:26.799 quickly share with you, God has called us to 00:10:26.799 --> 00:10:29.639 do incredible ministry work all around the world. 00:10:29.799 --> 00:10:32.120 And when you partner with us financially, you're 00:10:32.120 --> 00:10:34.399 part of what we do. So if you'd like to join 00:10:34.399 --> 00:10:38.440 us, go to livingontheedge .org. And we appreciate 00:10:38.440 --> 00:10:41.419 you giving whatever God leads you to give. Well, 00:10:41.460 --> 00:10:44.720 with that, here's Jenny. So then the question 00:10:44.720 --> 00:10:47.039 is, if I'm already cynical, how do I fight this? 00:10:47.159 --> 00:10:48.519 What does it look like? And I'm gonna tell you, 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:50.759 this one took me on a journey. It didn't end 00:10:50.759 --> 00:10:53.740 up in an obvious place. This one for me was when 00:10:53.740 --> 00:10:56.500 I thought back to what has interrupted my cynicism, 00:10:56.659 --> 00:11:02.039 I saw a theme and that theme was delight, that 00:11:02.039 --> 00:11:06.200 I get less cynical when I see delight because 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:09.740 we don't see it coming. It is delightful. It 00:11:09.740 --> 00:11:13.419 hits something in us that our, rational, reasonable 00:11:13.419 --> 00:11:15.720 self didn't see coming. And that's what happened 00:11:15.720 --> 00:11:18.600 to me. A song can do that to me. Beauty is God's 00:11:18.600 --> 00:11:20.960 evidence of something far more wonderful that's 00:11:20.960 --> 00:11:24.399 coming. It's this hope. It paints a picture of 00:11:24.399 --> 00:11:27.000 a world that is beyond the one that we live in 00:11:27.000 --> 00:11:29.269 now. a world that is coming. That's what beauty 00:11:29.269 --> 00:11:31.450 does. It reminds us there's something coming 00:11:31.450 --> 00:11:34.070 that's bigger and better and more beautiful than 00:11:34.070 --> 00:11:35.809 what we live in right now. Evidence that there's 00:11:35.809 --> 00:11:38.610 a creator who is loving and profoundly delightful. 00:11:39.029 --> 00:11:42.090 And so when we see beauty, we find ourselves 00:11:42.090 --> 00:11:44.769 delighted. We find ourselves enjoying God again. 00:11:44.850 --> 00:11:46.850 We find ourselves, our hearts tender. That's 00:11:46.850 --> 00:11:49.289 how I feel in worship so often, is that I'll 00:11:49.289 --> 00:11:51.509 be worshiping and all of a sudden I'm in tears, 00:11:51.570 --> 00:11:53.629 even though my heart has been hard for a week. 00:11:53.690 --> 00:11:56.029 I'll all of a sudden be... crying before God 00:11:56.029 --> 00:11:58.370 because worship has just pierced something in 00:11:58.370 --> 00:12:01.490 me that isn't rational, but it causes me to delight 00:12:01.490 --> 00:12:03.929 and enjoy God's delight over me. And so I want 00:12:03.929 --> 00:12:05.830 to talk about this because I don't think we value 00:12:05.830 --> 00:12:07.710 delight. I think we don't value a lot of these 00:12:07.710 --> 00:12:10.529 things that God's given us as weapons. And we've 00:12:10.529 --> 00:12:12.289 talked about in the past about God delighting 00:12:12.289 --> 00:12:15.090 over us, but think of the ways God delights you. 00:12:15.549 --> 00:12:17.970 Just look outside right now, out of your window, 00:12:18.029 --> 00:12:20.470 whether it's raining or snowing or leaves are 00:12:20.470 --> 00:12:22.590 falling or whatever it looks like right now, 00:12:22.629 --> 00:12:24.129 or it's bright and sunny, whatever it looks like 00:12:24.129 --> 00:12:27.889 outside, there's delight in God's creation. There's 00:12:27.889 --> 00:12:29.909 delight in the way he built seasons, the way 00:12:29.909 --> 00:12:33.110 he built trees, the way he built a leaf. I remember 00:12:33.110 --> 00:12:35.690 looking at a leaf one time, and I actually led 00:12:35.690 --> 00:12:37.909 a bunch of girls through a whole Bible study 00:12:37.909 --> 00:12:39.730 one time, just looking at leaves and realizing 00:12:39.730 --> 00:12:43.230 like, gosh, he made every leaf on earth differently. 00:12:44.039 --> 00:12:46.120 should blow our minds. Like there is delight 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:50.019 and power of God expressed to us daily through 00:12:50.019 --> 00:12:52.799 creation. There is delight over, have you ever 00:12:52.799 --> 00:12:55.440 seen a baby born? I mean, when you see a life 00:12:55.440 --> 00:12:57.480 brought into the world, there's something just 00:12:57.480 --> 00:13:01.100 so delightful. My little niece right now is probably 00:13:01.100 --> 00:13:03.820 the cutest human I have ever met. Like literally, 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:06.700 I have the cutest human as a niece that I have. 00:13:06.759 --> 00:13:08.460 I know my own children are like, mom, what about 00:13:08.460 --> 00:13:11.440 us? Well, I'm sorry. She is the cutest baby I've 00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:14.960 ever met in my whole life. And when I'm with 00:13:14.960 --> 00:13:18.980 her, it's like I'm mesmerized. I can't even stand 00:13:18.980 --> 00:13:21.820 it. I study every finger, every toe. I look at 00:13:21.820 --> 00:13:23.740 fingers and toes all the time, never think anything 00:13:23.740 --> 00:13:26.759 about it. But what about a baby expresses something 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:29.720 about God and His delight over us? And I think 00:13:29.720 --> 00:13:31.980 these are the things that God's given us to remind 00:13:31.980 --> 00:13:34.580 us like, hey, I'm safe. I'm trustworthy. I'm 00:13:34.580 --> 00:13:37.879 likable. And my world is good. And yes, there 00:13:37.879 --> 00:13:40.659 is sin in institutions sometimes. And yes, there 00:13:40.659 --> 00:13:42.980 is sin in people. And what cynicism says is, 00:13:43.019 --> 00:13:45.799 so never trust people. So never trust the church. 00:13:45.960 --> 00:13:49.539 So never trust God. And what delight says is, 00:13:49.600 --> 00:13:53.919 there is good too. And there is trustworthy too. 00:13:54.120 --> 00:13:56.980 And there is redemption too. And what delight 00:13:56.980 --> 00:14:00.850 says is, there's joy. And when we think about 00:14:00.850 --> 00:14:03.490 God, we can get in these places where, and my 00:14:03.490 --> 00:14:05.450 team and I were doing a little Devo on this recently, 00:14:05.570 --> 00:14:07.990 and they all shared this idea that there's this 00:14:07.990 --> 00:14:10.309 guilt they feel when things go well for them. 00:14:10.389 --> 00:14:12.230 Like there's something about to happen that's 00:14:12.230 --> 00:14:15.070 bad. Something's going to come that's bad. Again, 00:14:15.169 --> 00:14:17.210 there's no promise that it won't, but why is 00:14:17.210 --> 00:14:18.809 that our immediate thing when something good 00:14:18.809 --> 00:14:20.450 happens to us? Why is that our immediate thing 00:14:20.450 --> 00:14:22.049 when there's something joyful to celebrate rather 00:14:22.049 --> 00:14:24.809 than sitting in the joy, delighting in the gift? 00:14:25.440 --> 00:14:28.240 enjoying what God has given us as a good thing 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:30.480 because he is good, because he gives good things, 00:14:30.559 --> 00:14:33.559 scripture says, Romans 8, 28. And we know that 00:14:33.559 --> 00:14:36.120 for those who love God, all things work together 00:14:36.120 --> 00:14:38.899 for good for those who are called according to 00:14:38.899 --> 00:14:41.799 his purpose. This is true. God is doing that. 00:14:42.259 --> 00:14:46.340 And yes, some days and some people and some situations 00:14:46.340 --> 00:14:50.679 will disappoint us. But I would rather live full 00:14:50.679 --> 00:14:53.100 of joy, believing the good and get burned every 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:55.019 once in a while than constantly waiting to get 00:14:55.019 --> 00:14:57.399 burned and constantly seeing the negative. That 00:14:57.399 --> 00:15:01.159 is a sad way to live. And I'm not going to do 00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:03.500 it. I'm going to keep believing good for our 00:15:03.500 --> 00:15:06.059 country. I'm going to keep believing good for 00:15:06.059 --> 00:15:08.580 my church. I'm going to keep believing good for 00:15:08.580 --> 00:15:10.879 my family. I'm going to keep believing good for 00:15:10.879 --> 00:15:13.570 this generation. I'm going to believe good because 00:15:13.570 --> 00:15:16.850 I believe we rise to what we believe. I believe 00:15:16.850 --> 00:15:18.730 we rise to that. I see this in my kids all the 00:15:18.730 --> 00:15:20.990 time. When I watch Cooper, when I speak life 00:15:20.990 --> 00:15:25.029 over my son, he will rise to that. This was yesterday 00:15:25.029 --> 00:15:26.929 morning. I'm sending him to school and I'm saying, 00:15:27.009 --> 00:15:29.730 buddy, you're a leader. You are a leader. Act 00:15:29.730 --> 00:15:32.450 like one today. And he came in and afterwards, 00:15:32.649 --> 00:15:34.529 after school, he's like, mom, it was a great 00:15:34.529 --> 00:15:37.789 day. It was a great day. He rose to that compliment. 00:15:37.970 --> 00:15:41.379 He rose to what I saw him as. And we've got to 00:15:41.379 --> 00:15:44.120 realize that how we think influences what we 00:15:44.120 --> 00:15:46.860 say and what we believe about ourselves and what 00:15:46.860 --> 00:15:49.019 we believe about the people around us. And if 00:15:49.019 --> 00:15:52.679 we can start to speak life over them, it's called 00:15:52.679 --> 00:15:56.039 being life -giving. The opposite of cynical, 00:15:56.179 --> 00:15:58.500 it's life -giving. It's life -speaking. It's 00:15:58.500 --> 00:16:00.559 life -thinking. It's a different way to live 00:16:00.559 --> 00:16:04.019 and the world is aching. for it. When you live 00:16:04.019 --> 00:16:05.720 this way, yes, some people will think you're 00:16:05.720 --> 00:16:07.879 naive, but most people will just want to go to 00:16:07.879 --> 00:16:10.559 coffee because they need people that can speak 00:16:10.559 --> 00:16:12.980 truth and not just speak it, but actually believe 00:16:12.980 --> 00:16:18.519 it for them. This is Living on the Edge with 00:16:18.519 --> 00:16:20.799 Chip Ingram, and we're in the middle of our guest 00:16:20.799 --> 00:16:23.460 teacher Jenny Allen series, Get Out of Your Head. 00:16:23.779 --> 00:16:26.059 Chip will join us in studio in just a minute 00:16:26.059 --> 00:16:28.220 to share his application for today's message, 00:16:28.379 --> 00:16:31.879 The Antidote for Cynicism. Let me ask you, what 00:16:31.879 --> 00:16:34.480 drives your thought life? What influences the 00:16:34.480 --> 00:16:37.980 way you think? Is it anxiety, loneliness, insecurity? 00:16:38.539 --> 00:16:41.700 Whatever it is, do you feel trapped by it? Like 00:16:41.700 --> 00:16:44.639 no matter how hard you try, your mind drifts 00:16:44.639 --> 00:16:47.620 back to these harmful patterns. In this series, 00:16:47.740 --> 00:16:50.340 author and speaker Jenny Allen calls out seven 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:53.000 toxic thoughts that derail our connection to 00:16:53.000 --> 00:16:56.200 God. Discover the powerful antidotes God's given 00:16:56.200 --> 00:16:58.940 us to break free from these dangerous mindsets. 00:16:59.519 --> 00:17:01.860 Join Jenny to learn what you can do to fight 00:17:01.860 --> 00:17:04.480 and win the war for your mind. And if you're 00:17:04.480 --> 00:17:07.140 wanting to do a deeper study on this topic, let 00:17:07.140 --> 00:17:09.480 me encourage you to get Jenny's book, Get Out 00:17:09.480 --> 00:17:13.000 of Your Head. For complete details, go to livingontheedge 00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:19.380 .org or call us at 888 -333 -6003. That's 888 00:17:19.380 --> 00:17:25.299 -333 -6003 or livingontheedge .org. App listeners 00:17:25.299 --> 00:17:28.990 tap special offers. Our Bible teacher, Chip Ingram, 00:17:29.089 --> 00:17:31.690 is with me in studio now. And Chip, Jenny wrapped 00:17:31.690 --> 00:17:34.490 up her message on the harmfulness of cynicism 00:17:34.490 --> 00:17:37.990 with a challenge to us to be life -giving. And 00:17:37.990 --> 00:17:39.849 that's really what we're all about here at Living 00:17:39.849 --> 00:17:41.990 on the Edge, isn't it? Helping Christians really 00:17:41.990 --> 00:17:44.730 live like Christians. Do you have a story that 00:17:44.730 --> 00:17:47.970 really drives that idea home? I sure do, Dave. 00:17:48.190 --> 00:17:50.670 At some point you wonder, you know, is Living 00:17:50.670 --> 00:17:53.190 on the Edge really making a difference? And I 00:17:53.190 --> 00:17:55.849 got a note in the mail that I just have to share. 00:17:56.150 --> 00:17:58.690 Listen to this. Dear Chip, we don't have enough 00:17:58.690 --> 00:18:01.369 words to show our gratitude. At one point, my 00:18:01.369 --> 00:18:03.670 husband and I both thought things were so bad. 00:18:04.009 --> 00:18:06.410 They'd never get better. But thankfully, I heard 00:18:06.410 --> 00:18:08.569 one of your sermons that spoke to our situation. 00:18:08.869 --> 00:18:11.869 So I started listening on a regular basis. Now 00:18:11.869 --> 00:18:15.109 my husband listens too. Through God's transformation 00:18:15.109 --> 00:18:17.890 in our lives, we've started seeing restoration 00:18:17.890 --> 00:18:20.369 in our family. Even though we're still a work 00:18:20.369 --> 00:18:22.710 in progress, we can see God's hand making direct 00:18:22.710 --> 00:18:25.740 changes in our lives. Recently, we decided to 00:18:25.740 --> 00:18:28.220 make a monthly donation to help keep your broadcast 00:18:28.220 --> 00:18:30.980 going. We realized that if your ministry helped 00:18:30.980 --> 00:18:34.619 us this much, then it can help others too. Thank 00:18:34.619 --> 00:18:36.880 you for all that you're doing to furthering God's 00:18:36.880 --> 00:18:40.819 kingdom. Signed, D .R. And I just remind you, 00:18:40.839 --> 00:18:42.779 you know, we're all so personally focused and 00:18:42.779 --> 00:18:45.059 we're human that, you know, over a million people 00:18:45.059 --> 00:18:47.680 this week will hear what you're hearing. And 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:49.839 not only that, but then the broadcast and the 00:18:49.839 --> 00:18:52.440 teaching and the small groups will go to China, 00:18:52.460 --> 00:18:54.660 to the Middle East and places all around the 00:18:54.660 --> 00:18:57.259 world because people pray and because people 00:18:57.259 --> 00:18:59.859 partner financially. And so if you're one of 00:18:59.859 --> 00:19:02.210 those partners. can I just tell you thank you 00:19:02.210 --> 00:19:04.890 very, very much? If you're one of those partners 00:19:04.890 --> 00:19:07.589 that kind of gives now and then and would ever 00:19:07.589 --> 00:19:10.230 consider prayerfully to say, you know, I bet 00:19:10.230 --> 00:19:12.829 I could give just a little a month. Boy, those 00:19:12.829 --> 00:19:15.809 monthly partners really help us understand what 00:19:15.809 --> 00:19:18.509 we can project and making budgets. It's a huge 00:19:18.509 --> 00:19:21.109 help. And if you have never partnered with us 00:19:21.109 --> 00:19:23.589 financially, would you just today say, Lord, 00:19:23.730 --> 00:19:26.609 is this something you want me to do? And if he 00:19:26.609 --> 00:19:29.130 nudges you and says yes, follow that good prompting. 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:31.819 Great encouragement, Chip. So if you'd like to 00:19:31.819 --> 00:19:34.460 be a part of growing this ministry, pray about 00:19:34.460 --> 00:19:37.319 becoming a monthly partner. Your gifts will go 00:19:37.319 --> 00:19:39.799 places and accomplish ministry work like you 00:19:39.799 --> 00:19:42.700 wouldn't believe. Set up a monthly donation today 00:19:42.700 --> 00:19:46.940 at livingontheedge .org or by calling 888 -333 00:19:46.940 --> 00:19:54.359 -6003. That's 888 -333 -6003 or visit livingontheedge 00:19:54.359 --> 00:19:58.660 .org. App listeners tap donate. Thanks for your 00:19:58.660 --> 00:20:01.160 support. Well, before we go, Chip, let's get 00:20:01.160 --> 00:20:04.200 to that application you promised. Thanks, Dave. 00:20:04.460 --> 00:20:06.819 Out of everything that Jenny's been teaching 00:20:06.819 --> 00:20:10.859 so far, I'd have to say that fighting cynicism 00:20:10.859 --> 00:20:14.460 has been a battle that I've just had to, I mean, 00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:19.019 fight over and over and over and over again. 00:20:19.769 --> 00:20:22.329 You know, when your desire is to see things healed, 00:20:22.490 --> 00:20:25.910 your desire is to see new life, you want restoration, 00:20:26.230 --> 00:20:31.230 you just are longing and longing for things to 00:20:31.230 --> 00:20:35.150 get better. And it just seems on some days that 00:20:35.150 --> 00:20:37.349 nothing gets better. At least that's the way 00:20:37.349 --> 00:20:40.619 you feel. You get this lens and you'll meet someone 00:20:40.619 --> 00:20:43.440 young and zealous with all these great ideas. 00:20:43.599 --> 00:20:46.339 And here's how you know you're cynical. You just 00:20:46.339 --> 00:20:48.960 sort of nod your head and think, yeah, I remember 00:20:48.960 --> 00:20:51.500 when I used to believe that stuff and say that 00:20:51.500 --> 00:20:56.480 stuff. And I've really tried to battle not becoming 00:20:56.480 --> 00:20:59.940 cynical because over the years, I've had a lot 00:20:59.940 --> 00:21:03.819 of great opportunities given by God to sit in 00:21:03.819 --> 00:21:06.299 a back room with a bunch of speakers, Christian 00:21:06.299 --> 00:21:10.869 leaders. And it's interesting, I'll hear people 00:21:10.869 --> 00:21:13.950 get up in front of some very large audiences, 00:21:13.970 --> 00:21:17.490 but then have some private conversations where, 00:21:17.549 --> 00:21:20.769 you know, they down deep don't believe that there 00:21:20.769 --> 00:21:24.009 can be any real change, that they're very, very 00:21:24.009 --> 00:21:28.009 discouraged. And don't get me wrong, the great 00:21:28.009 --> 00:21:29.970 majority of Christian leaders that I've had the 00:21:29.970 --> 00:21:33.869 privilege of hanging out with, are very godly 00:21:33.869 --> 00:21:37.529 men and women. But what I saw was as people got 00:21:37.529 --> 00:21:40.849 older, especially, they didn't just lose their 00:21:40.849 --> 00:21:45.029 idealism. They started to lose the belief. And 00:21:45.029 --> 00:21:47.730 see, I think there's a false paradigm that we 00:21:47.730 --> 00:21:50.920 get. It's the all or nothing paradigm. And when 00:21:50.920 --> 00:21:55.000 we see evil and tragedy and difficulty and division 00:21:55.000 --> 00:21:57.339 like we're seeing, and when there's pandemics 00:21:57.339 --> 00:22:00.339 and wars and all those things, especially if 00:22:00.339 --> 00:22:03.220 you allow your mind to be filled with multiple 00:22:03.220 --> 00:22:05.680 news broadcasts or be around really negative 00:22:05.680 --> 00:22:08.559 people, all those things are toxic over time 00:22:08.559 --> 00:22:12.660 to breed cynicism. And I would just remind you 00:22:12.660 --> 00:22:18.259 that life is a patchwork affair. And the patchwork 00:22:18.259 --> 00:22:21.819 affair in a fallen world is there is magnificent 00:22:21.819 --> 00:22:25.339 beauty. The beauty of a child being born, the 00:22:25.339 --> 00:22:28.579 beauty of a sunset, the beauty of that amazing 00:22:28.579 --> 00:22:31.880 sense and feeling of being in love, the beauty 00:22:31.880 --> 00:22:36.140 of watching someone recover from a tragic accident, 00:22:36.259 --> 00:22:39.460 the beauty of building something together, the 00:22:39.460 --> 00:22:43.160 beauty of watching orphans and widows being taken 00:22:43.160 --> 00:22:46.720 care of, the beauty of just... all around us, 00:22:46.799 --> 00:22:49.400 but that beauty is always mixed in with sadness 00:22:49.400 --> 00:22:53.559 and sorrow, betrayals and disappointments. And 00:22:53.559 --> 00:22:56.279 what I love about the scriptures and what Jenny's 00:22:56.279 --> 00:22:59.099 trying to help us see is we can't just look through 00:22:59.099 --> 00:23:02.799 the filter of the difficult, the painful. I love 00:23:02.799 --> 00:23:06.519 her reminder that heaven, that there's an eternal 00:23:06.519 --> 00:23:09.660 perspective. There is a place, there is a future 00:23:09.660 --> 00:23:13.430 when everything is going to be right. but it's 00:23:13.430 --> 00:23:17.269 not here. And when you expect heaven -like circumstances 00:23:17.269 --> 00:23:22.009 in a fallen world, you set yourself up to be 00:23:22.009 --> 00:23:24.990 a cynic. And you know, when you're a cynic, you 00:23:24.990 --> 00:23:28.109 don't believe, you don't trust, and over time 00:23:28.109 --> 00:23:30.730 you get negative. And so let me just encourage 00:23:30.730 --> 00:23:34.750 you, look for the beauty. Thank God for all the 00:23:34.750 --> 00:23:38.009 good. And in the difficult, in the darkness, 00:23:38.150 --> 00:23:42.690 in the challenges, in the corruption, pray. And 00:23:42.690 --> 00:23:45.750 just say, Lord, I know it won't always be like 00:23:45.750 --> 00:23:49.869 this, but let me be a light. Let me refuse to 00:23:49.869 --> 00:23:52.470 stop believing and becoming negative and cynical. 00:23:52.849 --> 00:23:58.210 Let me, in my little world, be positive, be biblical, 00:23:58.470 --> 00:24:01.690 be loving, and make a difference where I live. 00:24:02.289 --> 00:24:04.849 Thanks, Chip. And as we close, I want you to 00:24:04.849 --> 00:24:07.630 know that as a staff, we ask the Lord to help 00:24:07.630 --> 00:24:10.690 you take whatever your next faith step is. Now, 00:24:10.690 --> 00:24:12.750 if there's a way we can help, we'd love to do 00:24:12.750 --> 00:24:18.250 that. Give us a call at 888 -333 -6003 or connect 00:24:18.250 --> 00:24:22.349 with us at livingontheedge .org. And while you're 00:24:22.349 --> 00:24:24.390 there, take a moment to look through our resources 00:24:24.390 --> 00:24:27.470 on various topics, many of them absolutely free. 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:30.339 Well, coming up on the next edition of Living 00:24:30.339 --> 00:24:32.359 on the Edge, we'll continue our guest teacher 00:24:32.359 --> 00:24:35.200 Jenny Allen series, Get Out of Your Head. So 00:24:35.200 --> 00:24:37.559 we hope you'll join us then. But until then, 00:24:37.640 --> 00:24:39.339 I'm Dave Drewy. Thanks for listening.