WEBVTT 00:00:01.199 --> 00:00:06.339 It's a fact. Your children will fail. And when 00:00:06.339 --> 00:00:10.599 they do, how do you respond? Today, we'll discover 00:00:10.599 --> 00:00:14.039 why God promises that failure is never final. 00:00:14.619 --> 00:00:18.120 And the way He responds to your failure is the 00:00:18.120 --> 00:00:21.579 way He wants you to respond to theirs. Do you 00:00:21.579 --> 00:00:27.260 know how? Well, that's today. Thanks for listening 00:00:27.260 --> 00:00:30.179 to this edition of Living on the Edge with Chip 00:00:30.179 --> 00:00:32.759 Ingram. We are an international teaching and 00:00:32.759 --> 00:00:35.039 discipleship ministry that motivates Christians 00:00:35.039 --> 00:00:37.939 to live like Christians. We're in the middle 00:00:37.939 --> 00:00:41.159 of our empowering series, Uninvited Guests, recognizing 00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:44.240 and resisting the attacks on your family. Last 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:46.420 time, Chip walked through the three biblical 00:00:46.420 --> 00:00:49.380 practices our children need to know and explained 00:00:49.380 --> 00:00:52.179 how our kids can use these truths like stones 00:00:52.179 --> 00:00:54.979 in a slingshot to bring down the giants they'll 00:00:54.979 --> 00:00:57.880 encounter in life. Today, he'll give us the final 00:00:57.880 --> 00:01:00.359 two lessons, so let's get started. Grab your 00:01:00.359 --> 00:01:02.619 Bible and notes as we join Chip for the remainder 00:01:02.619 --> 00:01:05.299 of his talk, How to Prepare Your Kids to Win 00:01:05.299 --> 00:01:09.019 Life's Biggest Battles. Let me give you some 00:01:09.019 --> 00:01:12.079 ways to teach your children how to handle money 00:01:12.079 --> 00:01:14.620 so they'll be faithful in a little thing. One, 00:01:14.739 --> 00:01:16.920 teach your children the three purposes for money, 00:01:17.079 --> 00:01:20.680 okay? And again, since I'm going fast, there's 00:01:20.680 --> 00:01:24.579 longer material, small group, but for today, 00:01:24.640 --> 00:01:27.939 here's just thumbnail sketch. When my children 00:01:27.939 --> 00:01:30.079 were small, there's only three purposes for money. 00:01:30.180 --> 00:01:32.200 Actually, only five things you can ever do with 00:01:32.200 --> 00:01:34.819 money. But three purposes is you can give money, 00:01:34.939 --> 00:01:40.159 you can save money, you can spend money. Actually, 00:01:40.219 --> 00:01:42.180 you can invest money and you can pay taxes with 00:01:42.180 --> 00:01:44.480 money. But I think for a three to five -year 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:47.000 -old, let's just go with the first three. And 00:01:47.000 --> 00:01:49.959 so we took, you know, those mason jars? All my 00:01:49.959 --> 00:01:51.780 kids on their dresser, by the time they were 00:01:51.780 --> 00:01:54.099 even about two years old, they'd have a jar and 00:01:54.099 --> 00:01:57.079 printed real clearly, giving. jar number one 00:01:57.079 --> 00:02:01.540 next jar saving jar number two spending jar number 00:02:01.540 --> 00:02:03.959 three and you know they would you know make their 00:02:03.959 --> 00:02:06.120 little bed and help out with this and do that 00:02:06.120 --> 00:02:08.259 and you know okay you're a part of the family 00:02:08.259 --> 00:02:10.900 we're this is the house is god's everything is 00:02:10.900 --> 00:02:13.319 god's we're a team together thank you and so 00:02:13.319 --> 00:02:16.580 here's 10 dimes and they put a dime in the giving 00:02:16.580 --> 00:02:18.479 well why do we do that one daddy because everything 00:02:18.479 --> 00:02:21.479 belongs to him but we we as humans we forget 00:02:21.479 --> 00:02:23.800 that We start thinking it's ours. So we give 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:26.659 the very first and the best of your 10 dimes 00:02:26.659 --> 00:02:29.319 to him just to remind us. And then we're going 00:02:29.319 --> 00:02:31.740 to use that to help people. Okay. This dime goes 00:02:31.740 --> 00:02:33.560 into savings. Well, why do we do that? Well, 00:02:33.599 --> 00:02:35.199 because you don't know what the future holds. 00:02:35.400 --> 00:02:38.560 And so God says, always save because life is 00:02:38.560 --> 00:02:41.219 what goes up and down. And you always need to 00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:44.379 have a backstop. And we get eight of these. Yeah. 00:02:44.439 --> 00:02:45.960 Well, what's that for? Well, just God loves you 00:02:45.960 --> 00:02:48.180 so much. You spend that and he loves you. Enjoy 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:51.310 it. Oh, okay. Well, then they get a little older, 00:02:51.370 --> 00:02:53.449 and it's $1, $1, and $8. Then they get a little 00:02:53.449 --> 00:02:58.210 older, it's $10, and $10, and $80. Now, can you 00:02:58.210 --> 00:03:02.310 imagine what would happen to your kids in terms 00:03:02.310 --> 00:03:05.710 of a mind, a worldview of stewardship, if from 00:03:05.710 --> 00:03:07.669 the time they were small up through about 25 00:03:07.669 --> 00:03:11.330 years old they did that? If you don't suffer 00:03:11.330 --> 00:03:13.210 well, your kids won't. If you don't work unto 00:03:13.210 --> 00:03:15.050 the Lord, they won't. If you don't manage your 00:03:15.050 --> 00:03:18.189 life wisely, they won't. Can you imagine? I mean, 00:03:18.189 --> 00:03:20.270 I don't know your situation, but I know the statistics. 00:03:20.610 --> 00:03:23.909 If just let's say at age 15 to where you're at 00:03:23.909 --> 00:03:26.449 right now, if you didn't do anything with your 00:03:26.449 --> 00:03:29.129 financial planner except those three things and 00:03:29.129 --> 00:03:32.490 10 % of anything you earned you gave to God to 00:03:32.490 --> 00:03:36.110 align your priorities and 10 % you saved with 00:03:36.110 --> 00:03:38.229 all the bubbles and ups and downs and layoffs 00:03:38.229 --> 00:03:41.129 and you lived on 80 % and didn't go into debt 00:03:41.129 --> 00:03:42.870 for anything other than say maybe the mortgage 00:03:42.870 --> 00:03:45.009 on a home, do you realize where you'd be right 00:03:45.009 --> 00:03:48.240 now? Do you realize where you'd be financially? 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:52.800 You'd be like super well off. It would just take 00:03:52.800 --> 00:03:55.099 a lot of time. But see, the world says you got 00:03:55.099 --> 00:03:56.439 to have it now. And the way to get it now is 00:03:56.439 --> 00:03:57.860 you put it on this credit. You do this, you do 00:03:57.860 --> 00:04:00.639 that. And see, when you do it like that, you 00:04:00.639 --> 00:04:03.039 don't have much. I mean, I was pastors of little 00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:05.159 churches. We didn't have hardly any money. But 00:04:05.159 --> 00:04:07.819 by the time my kids were 13, 14 years old, I 00:04:07.819 --> 00:04:11.639 never had to put a car on time. I'd saved. And 00:04:11.639 --> 00:04:13.560 even I didn't have a lot. You save for six, eight, 00:04:13.599 --> 00:04:16.379 nine years. Then I paid for the car. Then as 00:04:16.379 --> 00:04:18.240 soon as I paid for that car, I started saving. 00:04:18.319 --> 00:04:20.240 In eight, nine years, I paid for the next car. 00:04:20.540 --> 00:04:22.120 You know what happens when you don't have any 00:04:22.120 --> 00:04:24.740 debt and no bills other than your house? You 00:04:24.740 --> 00:04:26.639 actually end up pretty well off financially. 00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:30.480 It's just slow. That's what you want for your 00:04:30.480 --> 00:04:34.540 kids. To manage their finances wisely. The message 00:04:34.540 --> 00:04:37.600 is your life is a sacred stewardship. Not just 00:04:37.600 --> 00:04:40.339 your stuff. Your life is a sacred stewardship. 00:04:41.100 --> 00:04:43.480 By the way, it got very quiet after that last 00:04:43.480 --> 00:04:46.129 point. Are you all doing okay here? You know, 00:04:46.149 --> 00:04:48.529 it was just, if I wish you could have seen you 00:04:48.529 --> 00:04:50.870 guys, I'm like, oh, no, shut up, please, please, 00:04:50.990 --> 00:04:55.149 you know. You told me way too late. It's never 00:04:55.149 --> 00:04:57.990 too late. In fact, the last one we're going to 00:04:57.990 --> 00:04:59.990 talk about is a grace -filled lives. You know 00:04:59.990 --> 00:05:02.129 how God treats people that make really stupid 00:05:02.129 --> 00:05:05.069 decisions, even selfish decisions, even sinful 00:05:05.069 --> 00:05:07.470 mistakes, and totally mess up their life? The 00:05:07.470 --> 00:05:09.970 moment they say, oh, man, why did I do that? 00:05:10.069 --> 00:05:11.970 Will you please help me? You know what God does? 00:05:14.089 --> 00:05:18.290 Come. I long to help you. We can turn things 00:05:18.290 --> 00:05:20.689 around. Yeah, there's some stuff to work out 00:05:20.689 --> 00:05:22.670 of and some consequences, maybe a little restitution, 00:05:22.750 --> 00:05:26.470 but wow, God is loving. He's good. You want your 00:05:26.470 --> 00:05:29.029 kids to learn that. Fourth thing you want them 00:05:29.029 --> 00:05:31.949 to learn is teach them to make wise choices. 00:05:32.029 --> 00:05:35.990 Write this one in. Teach them to make wise choices. 00:05:36.129 --> 00:05:38.850 Now, the way you do that is by helping them learn 00:05:38.850 --> 00:05:41.009 to discern the difference between good and evil. 00:05:41.730 --> 00:05:44.910 I mean, we're living in a day where good is called 00:05:44.910 --> 00:05:48.490 evil, and evil is called good. You want your 00:05:48.490 --> 00:05:51.730 kids to make wise decisions. Now, you understand, 00:05:51.850 --> 00:05:56.529 you make a decision, and my good marine dad would 00:05:56.529 --> 00:05:59.209 say, son, let me tell you something. You make 00:05:59.209 --> 00:06:02.189 a decision, and then they make you. And they 00:06:02.189 --> 00:06:04.670 do. You make a decision, I'm going to go out 00:06:04.670 --> 00:06:06.850 with this guy and get involved in this relationship, 00:06:06.930 --> 00:06:09.529 and it makes me. I make a decision about my money. 00:06:09.629 --> 00:06:11.110 I make a decision about where I'm going to go 00:06:11.110 --> 00:06:12.990 to school. I make a decision about how I'm going 00:06:12.990 --> 00:06:15.170 to respond to someone who hurt me. I make a decision 00:06:15.170 --> 00:06:17.509 about whether I'll forgive someone or not. You 00:06:17.509 --> 00:06:19.310 make a decision, and the decisions make you. 00:06:20.689 --> 00:06:23.850 You know, when kids understand life is difficult, 00:06:24.029 --> 00:06:26.290 but I'm going to walk with God and suffer well. 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:29.040 When I learned that, you know, working isn't 00:06:29.040 --> 00:06:30.660 bad. I'm actually going to discover what I'm 00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:32.899 made to do and work. And when I begin to manage 00:06:32.899 --> 00:06:35.420 and realize God owns everything and the only 00:06:35.420 --> 00:06:37.759 pressure is just to be a good steward, and then 00:06:37.759 --> 00:06:40.519 you start making wise decisions, do you understand 00:06:40.519 --> 00:06:43.819 how this blesses them? This is like marriages 00:06:43.819 --> 00:06:46.180 that work and relationships that work and decisions 00:06:46.180 --> 00:06:48.980 that are good. But the key behind wise decisions 00:06:48.980 --> 00:06:54.319 is a theology of holiness. Theology of holiness. 00:06:54.360 --> 00:06:58.339 God is holy. He's totally, I just mean he's separate. 00:06:58.399 --> 00:07:00.339 He's totally other. He's different. He's not 00:07:00.339 --> 00:07:04.040 like a large, ideal, perfect picture of the best 00:07:04.040 --> 00:07:06.680 human you've ever known. In heaven at this moment, 00:07:06.740 --> 00:07:09.620 the angels are crying, holy, holy, holy is the 00:07:09.620 --> 00:07:11.920 Lord God almighty. Heaven and earth are full 00:07:11.920 --> 00:07:13.699 of your glory. And they're doing that, covering 00:07:13.699 --> 00:07:17.360 their eyes. He's unapproachable light. He's absolutely 00:07:17.360 --> 00:07:22.420 unmitigated, pure love and pure holiness and 00:07:22.420 --> 00:07:25.699 just and kind. and sovereign, and all -knowing, 00:07:25.720 --> 00:07:27.939 and all -powerful. And just words come out of 00:07:27.939 --> 00:07:30.660 his mouth, and galaxies come into being. He is 00:07:30.660 --> 00:07:33.939 awesome. You want your kids to know he's holy. 00:07:35.240 --> 00:07:42.300 As Tozer says, the great and amazing conflict 00:07:42.300 --> 00:07:45.379 with God is that we're to fear him because of 00:07:45.379 --> 00:07:48.040 his greatness and his holiness, and yet not to 00:07:48.040 --> 00:07:50.879 be afraid because he's the most loving being, 00:07:51.000 --> 00:07:55.569 and he invites us to be his friend. The theology 00:07:55.569 --> 00:07:58.069 of holiness is not only is he holy, but God is 00:07:58.069 --> 00:08:01.790 absolute truth. Jesus said, I'm the way, the 00:08:01.790 --> 00:08:03.569 truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father 00:08:03.569 --> 00:08:07.250 except by me. God's word defines absolute truth. 00:08:07.610 --> 00:08:10.170 He says it's not relative. It's not this is right 00:08:10.170 --> 00:08:12.050 today and wrong tomorrow. It's not what the culture 00:08:12.050 --> 00:08:16.870 says. Jesus prayed on the very last night, Father, 00:08:16.990 --> 00:08:21.709 sanctify them or set them apart by your truth. 00:08:21.790 --> 00:08:25.629 Your word is true. So your kids need to learn 00:08:25.629 --> 00:08:29.389 that. God's laws or morals are for our protection. 00:08:29.970 --> 00:08:32.929 In other words, when God says don't have sex 00:08:32.929 --> 00:08:34.730 before marriage, when God says don't go into 00:08:34.730 --> 00:08:37.330 major debt, when God says here's how you make 00:08:37.330 --> 00:08:39.750 a decision, when he has rules and laws, it's 00:08:39.750 --> 00:08:43.230 not like this angry God trying to get fun. It's 00:08:43.230 --> 00:08:45.470 like these are guardrails. The Old Testament 00:08:45.470 --> 00:08:48.269 calls it the highway of holiness. And he says, 00:08:48.269 --> 00:08:50.909 you know what? I long for you. I love you. I 00:08:50.909 --> 00:08:52.889 created you. My son died for you. I want you 00:08:52.889 --> 00:08:55.190 to get the very best. So here's the guardrails. 00:08:55.509 --> 00:08:57.570 Don't do that because that takes you over a cliff. 00:08:57.889 --> 00:09:00.350 Don't do that. That destroys relationships. Don't 00:09:00.350 --> 00:09:02.350 do that. That'll destroy your body. Don't do 00:09:02.350 --> 00:09:06.049 that. That'll destroy your soul. That's why David 00:09:06.049 --> 00:09:09.919 would say, his law is my delight. If your law 00:09:09.919 --> 00:09:12.200 had not been my delight, I would have perished 00:09:12.200 --> 00:09:14.940 in my affliction. David loved the law of the 00:09:14.940 --> 00:09:18.279 Lord. Why? Because he knew these are boundaries 00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:21.419 for a good God that as I stay in between them, 00:09:21.480 --> 00:09:24.159 I get the highest and the best. And that's what 00:09:24.159 --> 00:09:27.740 God wants for you and for your kids. God's ultimate 00:09:27.740 --> 00:09:31.539 aim is to make us holy. But don't think holy 00:09:31.539 --> 00:09:33.200 as in, you know, some of those pictures in our 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:36.820 mind like holy is big black robes. There's a 00:09:36.820 --> 00:09:41.110 candle over here. People wear hoods and sing 00:09:41.110 --> 00:09:46.629 funny songs. Holy, holy. Or it's holy is a very 00:09:46.629 --> 00:09:49.950 big black Bible. A praise the Lord sticker and 00:09:49.950 --> 00:09:52.590 a self -righteous attitude. It's not holy. That's 00:09:52.590 --> 00:09:58.610 stupid. Holy is pure, blameless, winsome, kind, 00:09:59.009 --> 00:10:04.190 patient, sexually pure. Pure in your thoughts. 00:10:05.330 --> 00:10:09.090 Motives that aren't manipulative. Holy, write 00:10:09.090 --> 00:10:12.590 this in there, is Christlikeness. He is working 00:10:12.590 --> 00:10:15.490 every circumstance, every relationship, every 00:10:15.490 --> 00:10:19.110 issue, every school, every heartbreak for the 00:10:19.110 --> 00:10:21.490 good of them that love him in order to conform 00:10:21.490 --> 00:10:24.929 your son, your daughter, me, and you to the image 00:10:24.929 --> 00:10:29.210 of Christ. That's God's agenda. The Old Testament 00:10:29.210 --> 00:10:33.110 roots we find Moses. And there's a bush that's 00:10:33.110 --> 00:10:35.950 burning, but it's not consumed. And out of curiosity, 00:10:36.070 --> 00:10:37.889 he gets close. And remember what God says out 00:10:37.889 --> 00:10:40.330 of the bush? Moses, you're on holy ground. Take 00:10:40.330 --> 00:10:46.450 off your shoes. And he bows down. And he gives 00:10:46.450 --> 00:10:49.889 his personal known. I am that I am. He reveals 00:10:49.889 --> 00:10:52.009 himself. You want your kids to understand the 00:10:52.009 --> 00:10:55.440 fear of the Lord without being afraid. New Testament 00:10:55.440 --> 00:10:57.759 -wise, 1 Peter would say to a group that had 00:10:57.759 --> 00:11:00.120 been through all kinds, I mean, the world that 00:11:00.120 --> 00:11:02.820 they lived in was so immoral. I mean, it was 00:11:02.820 --> 00:11:07.159 just so crass, so corrupt in the Roman Empire, 00:11:07.379 --> 00:11:09.419 and they were being persecuted. And he would 00:11:09.419 --> 00:11:12.259 write in 1 Peter, as obedient children, do not 00:11:12.259 --> 00:11:15.019 be conformed any longer to the former lusts that 00:11:15.019 --> 00:11:17.799 were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy 00:11:17.799 --> 00:11:21.799 One who called you, be holy in all your behavior. 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:27.429 Why? Be holy for I am holy. Now, here's the application 00:11:27.429 --> 00:11:29.610 I want you to get. This is so encouraging for 00:11:29.610 --> 00:11:33.889 me, is that you want your child to learn to think 00:11:33.889 --> 00:11:37.269 biblically and critically to develop personal 00:11:37.269 --> 00:11:40.070 convictions and character. You want them to make 00:11:40.070 --> 00:11:43.470 great decisions, but you want them to watch TV 00:11:43.470 --> 00:11:46.710 and watch a movie and watch a situation and friends 00:11:46.710 --> 00:11:48.730 that are going through a difficult time. You 00:11:48.730 --> 00:11:50.750 want them to learn to think biblically, to discern 00:11:50.750 --> 00:11:54.330 evil from good, what's right, what's best. And 00:11:54.330 --> 00:11:55.769 what you really want, you want them to build 00:11:55.769 --> 00:11:59.169 convictions. As a parent, the issue is not, well, 00:11:59.269 --> 00:12:01.669 I got them to go to youth group every week and 00:12:01.669 --> 00:12:03.629 I made them do this and I made them do that. 00:12:03.669 --> 00:12:05.590 What you want is you want from the inside out. 00:12:06.039 --> 00:12:08.000 You want them to catch a heart for God because 00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:10.340 they see it in you. And then you want them to 00:12:10.340 --> 00:12:13.460 see it's not like, oh gosh, what a prudish God. 00:12:13.580 --> 00:12:15.320 No sex before marriage and all my friends are 00:12:15.320 --> 00:12:17.220 having it. Well, yeah, honey, but here's what 00:12:17.220 --> 00:12:19.559 you need to understand. This is what happens 00:12:19.559 --> 00:12:21.759 to them. And all my friends are living together. 00:12:21.820 --> 00:12:23.779 Why can't I? Well, this is what happens to them. 00:12:24.539 --> 00:12:27.399 God loves you so much. This is what he wants 00:12:27.399 --> 00:12:30.139 for you. And by the way, we now have the research 00:12:30.139 --> 00:12:32.539 empirically from secular sources that basically 00:12:32.539 --> 00:12:36.840 says God's way. God's way in all those areas 00:12:36.840 --> 00:12:40.899 is what works. Let me give you a couple ways 00:12:40.899 --> 00:12:44.179 to maybe develop this. One is start when they're 00:12:44.179 --> 00:12:46.480 little. Give them a really high view of God. 00:12:47.279 --> 00:12:49.100 Get on your knees when you pray with your little 00:12:49.100 --> 00:12:53.480 kids. Read to them. Read Bible stories early. 00:12:54.039 --> 00:12:57.000 Read the Chronicles of Narnia. Just introduce 00:12:57.000 --> 00:13:00.980 great, rich literature. All the bombardment that 00:13:00.980 --> 00:13:03.019 they get. We have kids living in a video culture. 00:13:03.710 --> 00:13:06.710 More and more kids are ADD now because the brain 00:13:06.710 --> 00:13:10.070 actually gets changed when all they get is video 00:13:10.070 --> 00:13:13.509 images. The third thing you need to do is monitor 00:13:13.509 --> 00:13:16.610 what goes into their mind. Monitor how much time 00:13:16.610 --> 00:13:20.529 on the screens. Monitor the movies. Monitor their 00:13:20.529 --> 00:13:23.830 friends. What goes into their mind and the people 00:13:23.830 --> 00:13:26.909 they hang out with will be the biggest factors 00:13:26.909 --> 00:13:31.590 of how they're going to live and the decisions 00:13:31.590 --> 00:13:34.470 they're going to make. And so they need to see 00:13:34.470 --> 00:13:37.590 your example, God's word, great things in their 00:13:37.590 --> 00:13:40.409 mind. And by the way, when I say monitor, this 00:13:40.409 --> 00:13:42.450 isn't like, oh, I'll never expose them to anything. 00:13:42.669 --> 00:13:44.250 There's times where you need to sit down and 00:13:44.250 --> 00:13:47.230 watch things together. What's wrong with this? 00:13:47.950 --> 00:13:51.490 Don't be afraid of the world. Empower your son 00:13:51.490 --> 00:13:53.289 or daughter to make a difference in the world 00:13:53.289 --> 00:13:55.269 and help them to see through it. Help them to 00:13:55.269 --> 00:13:56.970 see they're just trying to sucker you into this. 00:13:56.990 --> 00:14:00.090 That's not true. Does that work? But do you know 00:14:00.090 --> 00:14:02.840 what all this takes? It takes intentionality. 00:14:03.299 --> 00:14:06.220 It takes focus. Yeah, and it's easy to say, oh, 00:14:06.220 --> 00:14:07.519 I'm gonna put my kid in this and I'll put him 00:14:07.519 --> 00:14:09.379 in school here and someone else will learn here 00:14:09.379 --> 00:14:11.360 and we're really busy and we can't eat together 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:12.720 and we don't have time to really pray together 00:14:12.720 --> 00:14:14.899 and I really like to and I want to but I hope 00:14:14.899 --> 00:14:16.740 everything will be okay and then they get involved 00:14:16.740 --> 00:14:18.539 in a relationship and oh, I hope it's just a 00:14:18.539 --> 00:14:20.320 phase. You know what all that's called? Denial, 00:14:20.419 --> 00:14:23.840 denial, denial, denial, denial. The hardest job 00:14:23.840 --> 00:14:26.279 you'll ever get, the most important job you'll 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:29.960 ever have is being a mom or a dad. So you think 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:33.769 it's gonna be easy? And by the way, if you do 00:14:33.769 --> 00:14:36.289 quote everything right, here's the deal. There's 00:14:36.289 --> 00:14:39.129 still no guarantees. They have these little things 00:14:39.129 --> 00:14:42.269 inside their souls called choosers, right? Right? 00:14:42.950 --> 00:14:46.570 So they get to be 15, 14, 13, 16, 18, 20, 21, 00:14:46.690 --> 00:14:50.210 22, 29. And you can say, we created this, we 00:14:50.210 --> 00:14:51.909 modeled this, we did this, we did this, we did 00:14:51.909 --> 00:14:55.509 this. You know what they say? Great. But guess 00:14:55.509 --> 00:14:58.269 what? You're not held responsible for the outcomes. 00:14:58.470 --> 00:15:01.600 You're held responsible for... Did I model for 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:04.879 my kids what I wanted them to become? And did 00:15:04.879 --> 00:15:06.899 I do what I know to create this kind of environment? 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:10.759 And then if you're starting to feel, oh my, I 00:15:10.759 --> 00:15:14.860 didn't do it perfectly. No one has ever. See, 00:15:14.919 --> 00:15:16.559 part of what you model is what do you do when 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:19.500 you mess up? So they understand they can be forgiven 00:15:19.500 --> 00:15:23.080 like you. God, love covers a multitude of sins. 00:15:24.080 --> 00:15:27.679 And so finally, the... The life message is obedience 00:15:27.679 --> 00:15:31.659 is the only way to get God's best. Obedience 00:15:31.659 --> 00:15:35.840 is the only way to get God's best. You want them 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:38.360 to make decisions, and as they get older, here's 00:15:38.360 --> 00:15:40.440 the question as they get older and older, what 00:15:40.440 --> 00:15:43.299 do you think God wants you to do? What do you 00:15:43.299 --> 00:15:46.259 think God wants you to do? Don't make it all 00:15:46.259 --> 00:15:49.799 a power play. Force them to process where they 00:15:49.799 --> 00:15:52.720 start making decisions on their own while they're 00:15:52.720 --> 00:15:55.200 with you. Final one, and I think it's the most, 00:15:56.139 --> 00:15:58.259 Encouraging. Because I don't know about you, 00:15:58.279 --> 00:16:02.620 those first four are hard to pull off. Stone 00:16:02.620 --> 00:16:04.600 number five is teach them to live grace -filled 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:09.000 lives. A theology of grace. Grace is one of those 00:16:09.000 --> 00:16:11.580 words that is kind of slippery, you know? Grace. 00:16:13.039 --> 00:16:16.019 It's a nice girl's name. Hi, Grace. But, you 00:16:16.019 --> 00:16:17.320 know, what's it really mean? Let me give you 00:16:17.320 --> 00:16:20.159 a quick theology of grace. Grace is the unmerited, 00:16:20.200 --> 00:16:22.620 unconditional love of God toward us. Unmerited. 00:16:22.639 --> 00:16:25.509 You can't earn it. Unconditional. God doesn't 00:16:25.509 --> 00:16:27.789 love you or your child if they do this or because 00:16:27.789 --> 00:16:31.269 they did that. Grace is the opposite of performance 00:16:31.269 --> 00:16:35.330 mentality. It's the opposite of earning. Second, 00:16:35.409 --> 00:16:40.009 grace is freely to us but costly to God. The 00:16:40.009 --> 00:16:42.090 scripture clearly says, do you not know that 00:16:42.090 --> 00:16:44.490 your body is the temple of God and the spirit 00:16:44.490 --> 00:16:46.929 of God dwells within you, that you've been bought 00:16:46.929 --> 00:16:51.789 with the price? Christ's blood is the cost. for 00:16:51.789 --> 00:16:55.730 your salvation and your children's. You're listening 00:16:55.730 --> 00:16:58.450 to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. We'll 00:16:58.450 --> 00:17:00.649 get back to today's message in just a minute. 00:17:00.750 --> 00:17:03.570 But quickly, throughout this series, Chip's emphasized 00:17:03.570 --> 00:17:06.809 the fact that great marriages require a lot of 00:17:06.809 --> 00:17:09.650 work. And that's where we come in. Keep listening 00:17:09.650 --> 00:17:12.029 after this message to learn more about a helpful 00:17:12.029 --> 00:17:14.970 new resource we've created that couples can use 00:17:14.970 --> 00:17:17.990 to grow and strengthen their relationship. Stick 00:17:17.990 --> 00:17:20.920 around to get all of the details. For now, here 00:17:20.920 --> 00:17:23.859 again is Chip to continue our series, Uninvited 00:17:23.859 --> 00:17:28.700 Guests. The cross is God's greatest act of grace. 00:17:30.460 --> 00:17:32.920 When you look at the cross, God says that God 00:17:32.920 --> 00:17:35.220 demonstrated or proved his love toward us and 00:17:35.220 --> 00:17:37.819 that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for 00:17:37.819 --> 00:17:41.559 us or in our place. Salvation is a free gift 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:45.210 from God. Scripture says it's not by works of 00:17:45.210 --> 00:17:46.789 righteousness what we have done, but according 00:17:46.789 --> 00:17:49.750 to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration 00:17:49.750 --> 00:17:54.650 and renewing of the Holy Spirit. It's free. It's 00:17:54.650 --> 00:17:59.529 grace. But it needs to be received by faith. 00:18:02.170 --> 00:18:05.769 If you've ever watched an NFL game, what's in 00:18:05.769 --> 00:18:11.670 the back of the end zone? John 3, 16. For God 00:18:11.670 --> 00:18:17.430 so loved the world, he gave grace. That whoever 00:18:17.430 --> 00:18:25.210 believes in him would not perish, but have everlasting 00:18:25.210 --> 00:18:31.289 life. God the Son lived a perfect life. He died 00:18:31.289 --> 00:18:34.490 upon a cross to pay for the sins of all people 00:18:34.490 --> 00:18:38.220 of all time. It's like everyone's ticket is paid 00:18:38.220 --> 00:18:40.720 for a relationship with a holy God through what 00:18:40.720 --> 00:18:44.359 Christ has done. And God says, I invite you to 00:18:44.359 --> 00:18:48.019 be my son or my daughter, but I won't force you. 00:18:49.039 --> 00:18:51.339 If you want to stiff arm me, if you want to be 00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:53.259 the captain of your own ship, if you want to 00:18:53.259 --> 00:18:54.900 say, you know, I don't want the creator or God 00:18:54.900 --> 00:18:57.220 or anybody else telling me what to do, God says 00:18:57.220 --> 00:18:59.099 to you, in the words of C .S. Lewis, well, thy 00:18:59.099 --> 00:19:02.319 will be done. God doesn't force. How can there 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:05.019 be love if he just dictated, you must love me? 00:19:05.960 --> 00:19:08.559 But what he says is, I've provided a way that 00:19:08.559 --> 00:19:12.640 whosoever would come and humble yourself, turn 00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:15.059 from your sin, and with the empty hands of faith 00:19:15.059 --> 00:19:17.980 say, will you forgive me for all that I've done? 00:19:18.119 --> 00:19:20.960 And would you come into my life, make me your 00:19:20.960 --> 00:19:23.500 son, make me your daughter? I want to follow 00:19:23.500 --> 00:19:27.720 you 100 % of the time. He promises to answer 00:19:27.720 --> 00:19:32.259 that prayer and forgive you. Not if. Not because, 00:19:32.420 --> 00:19:35.000 but because of what Christ has done. Every ism, 00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:38.960 every religion can be two letters. Do, do, do. 00:19:39.099 --> 00:19:40.920 You name the religion, you need to do, do, do. 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:42.940 Different religion, do, do, do. Ism, do, do, 00:19:43.000 --> 00:19:45.019 do. Do, do, do. Pray, do, do, do, do, do, do, 00:19:45.019 --> 00:19:48.519 do, do, do, do. Christianity isn't even a religion. 00:19:49.980 --> 00:19:54.400 It's four letters, done, D -O -N -E. God has 00:19:54.400 --> 00:19:57.579 done for you what I can't, you can't do for yourself. 00:19:58.269 --> 00:20:01.190 Your sins are forgiven. And the moment you turn 00:20:01.190 --> 00:20:04.150 to Christ, you receive him. His spirit comes 00:20:04.150 --> 00:20:06.650 to live inside of you, and it's a relationship. 00:20:07.210 --> 00:20:09.950 And his spirit will then take his word in the 00:20:09.950 --> 00:20:12.410 context of this community, and he will create 00:20:12.410 --> 00:20:14.609 the very love and life of Christ in his presence 00:20:14.609 --> 00:20:17.450 within you. That's what it means to be a follower 00:20:17.450 --> 00:20:23.210 or a Christ one. And it's grace. Grace produces 00:20:23.210 --> 00:20:25.490 gratitude towards God and love toward others. 00:20:26.089 --> 00:20:28.289 It's just not some ooey -gooey feeling. When 00:20:28.289 --> 00:20:29.950 you have that inside of you, I will tell you 00:20:29.950 --> 00:20:31.910 what, you'll start acting the way Jesus acted 00:20:31.910 --> 00:20:33.930 toward people. You'll be thankful. You'll love 00:20:33.930 --> 00:20:36.410 them. The Old Testament roots are Genesis chapter 00:20:36.410 --> 00:20:39.710 3. When the first sin occurred, a free gift, 00:20:39.829 --> 00:20:43.410 blood was shed prefiguring Jesus, skins covered 00:20:43.410 --> 00:20:47.109 our first parents. The word is they atoned for. 00:20:47.789 --> 00:20:50.650 In the New Testament, it's Ephesians 2, 8, and 00:20:50.650 --> 00:20:55.410 9. For by grace, you are saved through faith. 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:59.180 That is not of yourself. It's not a result of 00:20:59.180 --> 00:21:02.720 your works or performance. It's the gift of God, 00:21:02.819 --> 00:21:05.839 lest any man should boast. It's powerful. It's 00:21:05.839 --> 00:21:08.900 amazing. Help your children realize that failure 00:21:08.900 --> 00:21:13.250 is never final with God. Can I say that again? 00:21:13.349 --> 00:21:17.329 Help your child realize failure is never final 00:21:17.329 --> 00:21:20.049 with God. The world is telling them when they 00:21:20.049 --> 00:21:22.690 fail, they're done. It is final. You're a loser. 00:21:22.809 --> 00:21:25.009 There's no hope. You didn't even make the traveling 00:21:25.009 --> 00:21:27.650 team. You messed up with the recital. You can't 00:21:27.650 --> 00:21:29.769 dance with a flip. You can't get in college. 00:21:29.910 --> 00:21:32.730 Your SAT scores didn't measure up. You got yourself 00:21:32.730 --> 00:21:34.210 pregnant. I don't want to have anything to do 00:21:34.210 --> 00:21:37.170 with you. Son of mine, what are you doing getting 00:21:37.170 --> 00:21:40.390 logging on that internet stuff? Okay, you wanted 00:21:40.390 --> 00:21:42.130 to marry that non -Christian? You go ahead and 00:21:42.130 --> 00:21:44.210 marry him, and now your life's messed up? Two 00:21:44.210 --> 00:21:45.970 and a half years, he leaves you? Well, good luck. 00:21:46.710 --> 00:21:48.609 That's what the world tells him. You screwed 00:21:48.609 --> 00:21:54.269 up, you live with it. God says, you mess up, 00:21:54.269 --> 00:21:56.910 and you find yourself in a 10 -foot hole. There's 00:21:56.910 --> 00:22:00.700 an 11. foot rope coming down if you repent and 00:22:00.700 --> 00:22:03.519 say i need help will you forgive me and there's 00:22:03.519 --> 00:22:05.599 a little loop at the bottom of the rope and you 00:22:05.599 --> 00:22:07.059 put your little foot in the loop and then you 00:22:07.059 --> 00:22:09.740 hang on and he'll pull you up if you have a hundred 00:22:09.740 --> 00:22:12.420 foot hole because you think oh man ten foot that 00:22:12.420 --> 00:22:15.099 you know i got two abortions two marriages haven't 00:22:15.099 --> 00:22:18.359 quite killed someone but i tried man i got a 00:22:18.359 --> 00:22:20.019 hundred foot there's no hope for me oh no no 00:22:20.019 --> 00:22:22.759 no you understand here's grace a hundred and 00:22:22.759 --> 00:22:25.500 one foot rope goes down it has a loop on it you 00:22:25.500 --> 00:22:27.759 stick your foot in and he brings you up Is there 00:22:27.759 --> 00:22:29.519 consequences? Of course. Is there stuff to deal 00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:31.920 with? Yes. Maybe restitution. But he'll heal 00:22:31.920 --> 00:22:36.200 you. He'll change you. And you say, 100 feet? 00:22:36.319 --> 00:22:39.480 That's not even close. You have no idea. I can't 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:42.200 even believe why I'm even here. I've blasphemed 00:22:42.200 --> 00:22:44.019 God. I've said things about Christians. I'm so 00:22:44.019 --> 00:22:46.119 far away from God. There is absolutely no way. 00:22:46.440 --> 00:22:53.779 I'm in a 1 ,000 -foot hole. A rope is going to 00:22:53.779 --> 00:23:00.809 be lowered that will be 1 ,000 and? Your kids 00:23:00.809 --> 00:23:04.210 need to know that. And you know how they learn 00:23:04.210 --> 00:23:07.710 it? They learn it by getting grace from you. 00:23:09.890 --> 00:23:12.230 They learn that not just with your words saying 00:23:12.230 --> 00:23:14.089 the right things. You know, say, oh, it's okay, 00:23:14.130 --> 00:23:17.470 son. And the body language is, my lands. You 00:23:17.470 --> 00:23:20.069 couldn't hit a ball if the sticking on a stool. 00:23:22.309 --> 00:23:24.950 Oh, yeah, that's okay, honey. I mean, for a loser 00:23:24.950 --> 00:23:29.400 non -academic like you. We send a lot of messages 00:23:29.400 --> 00:23:31.579 that are nonverbal that say to our kids, you 00:23:31.579 --> 00:23:34.539 don't measure up. And then they perform pretty 00:23:34.539 --> 00:23:36.859 well and it's, oh, oh my lands. And then we tell 00:23:36.859 --> 00:23:38.299 all of our friends and here's their scores and 00:23:38.299 --> 00:23:39.500 here's this and here's that and here's that. 00:23:39.559 --> 00:23:41.440 You know what the kid says? Oh, I'm loved when 00:23:41.440 --> 00:23:43.859 I do good, but I'm not loved when I don't measure 00:23:43.859 --> 00:23:47.900 up. That's called non -grace. You want your kids 00:23:47.900 --> 00:23:50.359 to understand their behavior is one thing, their 00:23:50.359 --> 00:23:52.839 value is something else and nothing changes the 00:23:52.839 --> 00:23:56.880 value. Nothing changes the value. You love them 00:23:56.880 --> 00:23:59.450 no matter what. And not just with your words, 00:23:59.549 --> 00:24:05.710 but with your action. How to do that? Be a safe 00:24:05.710 --> 00:24:09.730 place for your kids where they can come for help. 00:24:10.930 --> 00:24:13.349 Let them know that verbalize it early on and 00:24:13.349 --> 00:24:14.829 then model it the best you can. And when you 00:24:14.829 --> 00:24:20.380 don't, own it, make it right. My son was a senior 00:24:20.380 --> 00:24:21.940 in high school. I mean, sometimes, you know, 00:24:21.980 --> 00:24:24.519 you hear me saying these things, and, you know, 00:24:24.539 --> 00:24:27.579 by God's amazing grace, I have four grown kids 00:24:27.579 --> 00:24:30.500 that, despite ups and downs and rebellion here 00:24:30.500 --> 00:24:33.180 and problems there, they all walk with God. And, 00:24:33.200 --> 00:24:36.460 you know, you talk about wealth, greatest wealth 00:24:36.460 --> 00:24:39.799 I have on the earth, not even close. But you 00:24:39.799 --> 00:24:41.680 hear someone talking sort of this, like, oh, 00:24:41.680 --> 00:24:43.200 yeah, you're a pastor. It probably is pretty 00:24:43.200 --> 00:24:48.210 easy. You never really messed up. Senior in high 00:24:48.210 --> 00:24:55.190 school, third son. Something pops up on the internet. 00:24:55.950 --> 00:24:58.150 He has a year -long private secret addiction 00:24:58.150 --> 00:25:04.730 to pornography. I find out about it. Pastor in 00:25:04.730 --> 00:25:08.769 a church. My son's hooked on pornography. He's 00:25:08.769 --> 00:25:10.309 leading worship on Sunday morning in the high 00:25:10.309 --> 00:25:12.849 school group. He's led four of his volleyball 00:25:12.849 --> 00:25:14.569 players to Christ. He has a Bible study in my 00:25:14.569 --> 00:25:16.210 house every Wednesday night. He's hooked on pornography. 00:25:17.900 --> 00:25:21.059 And he denied it for about 12 seconds, and then 00:25:21.059 --> 00:25:25.359 he fell into tears in repentance. God, Dad, I'm 00:25:25.359 --> 00:25:28.559 so sorry. I'm so glad you finally found out. 00:25:29.099 --> 00:25:32.240 I've been a prisoner. And we were preparing. 00:25:32.460 --> 00:25:35.640 He's a pastor now, and he was helping a group 00:25:35.640 --> 00:25:41.019 of young people deal with this issue. And I heard 00:25:41.019 --> 00:25:44.480 him say something that, you know, as a dad, most 00:25:44.480 --> 00:25:46.299 of us, we're probably a little hard on ourselves. 00:25:47.500 --> 00:25:50.380 I'm pretty hard on me. But now and then you hear 00:25:50.380 --> 00:25:52.200 a little window of, you know, I think I did something 00:25:52.200 --> 00:25:56.140 right. You know, yay. And I heard him share with 00:25:56.140 --> 00:25:58.509 a group. He said, you know what? The reason I 00:25:58.509 --> 00:26:00.670 was able to break the pattern when I got confronted 00:26:00.670 --> 00:26:03.309 was since the time I was a little boy, I remember 00:26:03.309 --> 00:26:06.630 my dad saying, no matter what you do, it can't 00:26:06.630 --> 00:26:09.190 change my love for you. And he said, I messed 00:26:09.190 --> 00:26:11.589 up as a little boy lots of times, and there were 00:26:11.589 --> 00:26:14.369 consequences, but I knew my dad loved me. And 00:26:14.369 --> 00:26:17.109 when that big thing happened, I knew it was safe. 00:26:18.089 --> 00:26:21.930 And we went through it together. Do your kids 00:26:21.930 --> 00:26:27.039 know that? Are you a safe place to come to? When 00:26:27.039 --> 00:26:32.059 they really fail. When there is an addiction. 00:26:33.240 --> 00:26:35.960 When they went through rehab and they've relapsed. 00:26:36.539 --> 00:26:38.440 When they've run off and done something that 00:26:38.440 --> 00:26:41.359 just breaks your heart. Now, does it mean there's 00:26:41.359 --> 00:26:44.799 not boundaries and consequences? No. But it means 00:26:44.799 --> 00:26:51.059 that they know you love them. And nothing can 00:26:51.059 --> 00:26:54.259 change that. One of the ways they learn that 00:26:54.259 --> 00:26:57.619 is they need to see you repent. Right? I mean, 00:26:57.640 --> 00:26:59.859 how do people learn to get forgiveness from God? 00:27:00.099 --> 00:27:02.420 They need to see you get forgiveness from God. 00:27:02.579 --> 00:27:06.880 And I remember when actually the same son was 00:27:06.880 --> 00:27:08.619 very, very small. We were visiting my parents. 00:27:08.759 --> 00:27:11.180 And my dad, great, great guy. But I mean, you 00:27:11.180 --> 00:27:16.299 know, a Marine Marine, you know. And so my son 00:27:16.299 --> 00:27:18.440 did something. And it was really trite. And I 00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:21.019 blew up and yelled. What are you doing? You know, 00:27:21.019 --> 00:27:22.680 like that. And, you know, I started to walk away. 00:27:22.859 --> 00:27:24.059 And have you ever had a parent just realize, 00:27:24.220 --> 00:27:25.980 you know, the person who needs help is me, not 00:27:25.980 --> 00:27:28.700 my kid. And the spirit convicted me. I thought, 00:27:28.720 --> 00:27:30.940 oh, that was, man, that's about the worst dad. 00:27:32.920 --> 00:27:35.720 And so I went over and, you know, he's like four 00:27:35.720 --> 00:27:37.440 years old or something. I said, come here, Ryan. 00:27:38.039 --> 00:27:42.160 I said, I just want, I'm sorry, son. And I, that 00:27:42.160 --> 00:27:46.839 was, that was wrong. Okay, I just, I don't have 00:27:46.839 --> 00:27:49.759 any excuse. Will you forgive me? My little son 00:27:49.759 --> 00:27:52.619 puts his, it's your dad. He runs off, right? 00:27:53.500 --> 00:27:58.619 My dad, the Marine. What in the heck are you 00:27:58.619 --> 00:28:03.059 doing? I said, well, what do you mean? You're 00:28:03.059 --> 00:28:05.099 the parent. You don't ask your kids for forgiveness. 00:28:05.160 --> 00:28:12.220 Where'd you learn that stuff? And I said, well, 00:28:12.240 --> 00:28:17.559 Dad, I want my kids to understand that when they 00:28:17.559 --> 00:28:21.460 mess up, When your heart is broken over it and 00:28:21.460 --> 00:28:24.799 you come to your heavenly father, you get forgiven. 00:28:25.059 --> 00:28:28.039 And I figured they'll never know how to do that 00:28:28.039 --> 00:28:34.839 unless they see me do it. And I appreciate him. 00:28:34.839 --> 00:28:36.519 He kind of looks at me and goes, is it pretty 00:28:36.519 --> 00:28:43.799 young Christian then? Hmm. All right. Can I ask 00:28:43.799 --> 00:28:49.109 you something? Can you impart grace? because 00:28:49.109 --> 00:28:52.950 you've received it? I mean, is there something 00:28:52.950 --> 00:28:56.069 in your life that you just, it's like, wow, man, 00:28:56.210 --> 00:28:58.690 it's, hope nobody finds out, but you just need 00:28:58.690 --> 00:29:01.109 to come to God this morning and say, you know, 00:29:01.130 --> 00:29:04.349 I can't be a gracious parent because so much 00:29:04.349 --> 00:29:07.410 of my value is how my kids do this or that. I 00:29:07.410 --> 00:29:09.690 just need forgiveness so that I could give it. 00:29:11.230 --> 00:29:14.549 And I just wouldn't be at all surprised if there's 00:29:14.549 --> 00:29:17.549 not at least a handful or more of people who 00:29:18.700 --> 00:29:20.779 The fact is you kind of came for whatever reason 00:29:20.779 --> 00:29:23.500 and you realize I've never received grace for 00:29:23.500 --> 00:29:26.119 the first time. I'm not a follower of Jesus. 00:29:26.400 --> 00:29:29.160 This is kind of new to me. But if there's a place 00:29:29.160 --> 00:29:31.119 to be forgiven and have new life and eternal 00:29:31.119 --> 00:29:33.619 life, I really want it, but I'm not sure how. 00:29:34.299 --> 00:29:37.700 Then I would tell you that the offer is if you 00:29:37.700 --> 00:29:40.039 will believe, if you will turn from your sin 00:29:40.039 --> 00:29:43.519 and raise the empty hands of faith, the God who 00:29:43.519 --> 00:29:45.579 made all that there is will forgive you and cleanse 00:29:45.579 --> 00:29:48.839 you. His spirit will come inside your life. and 00:29:48.839 --> 00:29:51.359 he'll give you a new beginning. And by the way, 00:29:51.359 --> 00:29:54.460 it won't all be roses. You probably won't get 00:29:54.460 --> 00:29:56.400 a Mercedes or a Cadillac in the mail tomorrow. 00:29:57.839 --> 00:30:00.799 Everything's not going to... But you'll never 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:04.039 be alone. You will be certainly on your way to 00:30:04.039 --> 00:30:07.220 heaven, and the very power of the living God 00:30:07.220 --> 00:30:09.119 will live inside of you in the person of Jesus, 00:30:09.240 --> 00:30:12.420 and he will make you like him. And I cannot think 00:30:12.420 --> 00:30:14.779 of anything your kids need more than a mom or 00:30:14.779 --> 00:30:20.509 dad that's a lot like Jesus. I want to pause 00:30:20.509 --> 00:30:23.529 before we do anything else on our time together, 00:30:23.710 --> 00:30:27.190 and that is to ask you a very personal question, 00:30:27.289 --> 00:30:31.210 and that is, do you know for sure that you have 00:30:31.210 --> 00:30:35.450 a relationship with Jesus Christ? I just clearly 00:30:35.450 --> 00:30:38.630 explained what it means to receive Him as your 00:30:38.630 --> 00:30:42.289 Savior, to turn from your sin, and accept that 00:30:42.289 --> 00:30:44.609 His work on the cross has paid for your sin, 00:30:44.750 --> 00:30:47.869 invite Him into your life, and begin to follow 00:30:47.869 --> 00:30:51.339 Him. Scripture is very clear. It's by grace that 00:30:51.339 --> 00:30:53.640 we're saved through faith. It's not of ourselves. 00:30:54.019 --> 00:30:57.099 It's not a result of our works, but it is a gift 00:30:57.099 --> 00:31:00.519 of God. And I want you to know that the greatest 00:31:00.519 --> 00:31:03.839 gift you'll ever give to yourself and even more 00:31:03.839 --> 00:31:07.880 to your children is a mom or dad that not only 00:31:07.880 --> 00:31:10.700 receives Christ as Savior, but follows Him with 00:31:10.700 --> 00:31:13.549 all your heart. You know, life is really hard. 00:31:13.730 --> 00:31:16.569 It's hard for you. It's hard for me. It's hard 00:31:16.569 --> 00:31:19.309 for all of us. But when there is the supernatural 00:31:19.309 --> 00:31:23.109 power of the living God inside of you, he can 00:31:23.109 --> 00:31:25.549 give you patience. He can give you endurance. 00:31:26.009 --> 00:31:28.509 He can help you weather through a difficult time 00:31:28.509 --> 00:31:30.829 in your marriage. He can help you be the mom 00:31:30.829 --> 00:31:33.890 or dad that you long to become. And so let me 00:31:33.890 --> 00:31:36.150 invite you right now just to pray a very simple 00:31:36.150 --> 00:31:40.069 prayer. Lord Jesus, I admit that I need you. 00:31:40.779 --> 00:31:43.519 I admit that I have sinned and I fall short of 00:31:43.519 --> 00:31:46.920 being perfect. And today, I ask you to forgive 00:31:46.920 --> 00:31:50.240 me for all my sins. I ask you to come into my 00:31:50.240 --> 00:31:54.279 life and save me and live inside of me and be 00:31:54.279 --> 00:31:59.200 my Savior and be my Lord. Thank you very much 00:31:59.200 --> 00:32:02.319 that you promised if I would ask, you would respond. 00:32:03.000 --> 00:32:06.220 Thank you for forgiving me. Thank you for coming 00:32:06.220 --> 00:32:09.299 into my life. Now help me to walk with you. In 00:32:09.299 --> 00:32:12.710 Jesus' name. Amen. And let me just tell you right 00:32:12.710 --> 00:32:14.890 now that the greatest thing you can do is call 00:32:14.890 --> 00:32:18.390 or text or tell the greatest Christian you know. 00:32:19.130 --> 00:32:21.569 I'm not sure about all of this, but I just prayed 00:32:21.569 --> 00:32:24.109 and asked Christ to come into my life, and I 00:32:24.109 --> 00:32:26.450 know he need help. And the second thing is to 00:32:26.450 --> 00:32:28.549 find an easy -to -read Bible that you can start 00:32:28.549 --> 00:32:30.990 on the book of John and just say, God, I want 00:32:30.990 --> 00:32:33.349 to get to know you. And then this weekend, find 00:32:33.349 --> 00:32:35.970 a Bible -teaching church and just walk through 00:32:35.970 --> 00:32:37.930 the doors, and it'll be a little scary for some 00:32:37.930 --> 00:32:40.490 of you, but God's got a brand -new home for you 00:32:40.490 --> 00:32:42.910 somewhere. Find a great church and get plugged 00:32:42.910 --> 00:32:45.720 in. Thanks, Chip. Well, if you prayed to receive 00:32:45.720 --> 00:32:48.299 Christ, we have a free resource we'd like to 00:32:48.299 --> 00:32:50.460 put in your hands that was specifically created 00:32:50.460 --> 00:32:53.680 for new believers. This tool will help you understand 00:32:53.680 --> 00:32:56.480 what it means to trust in Jesus and what to do 00:32:56.480 --> 00:33:00.059 next. Request this free resource by calling 888 00:33:00.059 --> 00:33:05.940 -333 -6003 or by visiting livingontheedge .org 00:33:05.940 --> 00:33:09.559 and clicking the New Believers button. That's 00:33:09.559 --> 00:33:15.019 livingontheedge .org or call 888 -333 -6003. 00:33:15.400 --> 00:33:17.799 Let us help you get started in your faith journey. 00:33:18.440 --> 00:33:20.440 Well, Chip's still with me in studio. And Chip, 00:33:20.519 --> 00:33:23.160 back in your basketball playing days, you dedicated 00:33:23.160 --> 00:33:26.180 a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to earn a college 00:33:26.180 --> 00:33:29.220 scholarship. You couldn't just say you wanted 00:33:29.220 --> 00:33:31.460 to be better. You had to work at it. And that 00:33:31.460 --> 00:33:33.859 same principle applies to our marriages and how 00:33:33.859 --> 00:33:36.799 we parent too, right? Dave, you're spot on with 00:33:36.799 --> 00:33:39.279 that analogy. And even in my own marriage, there's 00:33:39.279 --> 00:33:41.960 been times where we weren't working very hard 00:33:41.960 --> 00:33:45.279 on our relationship. Work is busy, and then pretty 00:33:45.279 --> 00:33:47.980 soon the kids have all these activities. And 00:33:47.980 --> 00:33:50.660 you talk about better communication and resolving 00:33:50.660 --> 00:33:53.640 conflict and putting each other first, and all 00:33:53.640 --> 00:33:56.799 that begins to fade away. What I realized was 00:33:56.799 --> 00:33:59.779 I needed a tool. I mean, when I wanted to be 00:33:59.779 --> 00:34:02.380 a better basketball player, I had dribbling drills. 00:34:02.539 --> 00:34:05.819 I had passing drills. I had very specific things 00:34:05.819 --> 00:34:08.780 that I did each and every day for hours with 00:34:08.780 --> 00:34:11.500 that clear -cut goal in mind. And what we've 00:34:11.500 --> 00:34:13.860 developed at Living on the Edge is a practical 00:34:13.860 --> 00:34:16.659 tool. It's called the Marriage That Works Truth 00:34:16.659 --> 00:34:20.420 Cards to help regular couples begin to work at 00:34:20.420 --> 00:34:23.260 their marriage as they take those cards and review 00:34:23.260 --> 00:34:26.440 a few each and every day. And as you do that, 00:34:26.539 --> 00:34:28.840 what I can tell you, because I've done this with 00:34:28.840 --> 00:34:32.039 literally hundreds and hundreds of couples, your 00:34:32.039 --> 00:34:34.940 mind changes about your marriage. Your desires 00:34:34.940 --> 00:34:38.380 change. A great marriage is possible for all 00:34:38.380 --> 00:34:40.920 of us as we follow God's design. And that's the 00:34:40.920 --> 00:34:43.420 goal of these cards. We want to help couples 00:34:43.420 --> 00:34:47.360 really go to work in a good way to have a deep 00:34:47.360 --> 00:34:50.179 and great marriage that will disciple them and 00:34:50.179 --> 00:34:52.260 their children. So, Dave, take a minute now, 00:34:52.360 --> 00:34:54.340 if you will, and share with people how they can 00:34:54.340 --> 00:34:57.059 get these cards. Sure, Chip. It's actually really 00:34:57.059 --> 00:34:59.860 simple. Throughout this entire series, for anyone 00:34:59.860 --> 00:35:02.179 who chooses to become a monthly partner with 00:35:02.179 --> 00:35:04.420 Living on the Edge, we'll send you these new 00:35:04.420 --> 00:35:07.340 Marriage That Works truth cards as our way of 00:35:07.340 --> 00:35:09.880 saying thanks. So please pray about supporting 00:35:09.880 --> 00:35:12.900 us. Your gifts have an eternal impact as we fight 00:35:12.900 --> 00:35:15.809 for marriages and families everywhere. To learn 00:35:15.809 --> 00:35:18.710 how to become a monthly partner, visit livingontheedge 00:35:18.710 --> 00:35:25.030 .org or call us at 888 -333 -6003. That's 888 00:35:25.030 --> 00:35:31.610 -333 -6003 or go to livingontheedge .org. App 00:35:31.610 --> 00:35:34.389 listeners, tap donate. Thanks for listening to 00:35:34.389 --> 00:35:36.730 this edition of Living on the Edge with Chip 00:35:36.730 --> 00:35:39.110 Ingram. I'm Dave Drewy, and I hope you'll join 00:35:39.110 --> 00:35:40.050 us again next time.