WEBVTT 00:00:01.389 --> 00:00:04.209 Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:04.330 --> 00:00:07.950 In times and circumstances that are overwhelming 00:00:07.950 --> 00:00:11.470 and everything in you wants to give up or to 00:00:11.470 --> 00:00:15.210 give in, your number one need is perspective. 00:00:16.489 --> 00:00:18.890 Perspective is the antidote to discouragement. 00:00:19.149 --> 00:00:22.129 How do you get perspective? That's today. Don't 00:00:22.129 --> 00:00:26.539 miss it. Ever feel like giving up? Like the challenges 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:29.160 are too great and the darkness too deep? Well, 00:00:29.219 --> 00:00:32.100 you're not alone. Pastors deal with discouragement 00:00:32.100 --> 00:00:34.619 too. And as a pastor, Chip Ingram understands 00:00:34.619 --> 00:00:37.299 firsthand what it's like when nothing seems to 00:00:37.299 --> 00:00:40.020 work, when prayers feel unanswered, circumstances 00:00:40.020 --> 00:00:43.500 grow worse, and hope feels distant. But whether 00:00:43.500 --> 00:00:45.840 or not you're a church leader, we all face dark 00:00:45.840 --> 00:00:48.780 days that tempt us to throw in the towel. Well, 00:00:48.780 --> 00:00:51.039 today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram reveals 00:00:51.039 --> 00:00:53.719 God's prescription for rising above our challenges 00:00:53.719 --> 00:00:57.079 through faith, hope, and love. Before we get 00:00:57.079 --> 00:00:59.119 started, remember that Living on the Edge has 00:00:59.119 --> 00:01:01.479 just started one of the largest match opportunities 00:01:01.479 --> 00:01:04.299 in our 30 -year history. Later in the program, 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:07.040 Chip will describe how you can multiply by two 00:01:07.040 --> 00:01:10.219 the size of your year -end gift. But right now, 00:01:10.260 --> 00:01:12.219 let's get started with the message from Chip 00:01:12.219 --> 00:01:16.099 Ingram, A Theology to Believe. God's going to 00:01:16.099 --> 00:01:18.359 take His Word today, and He's going to speak 00:01:18.359 --> 00:01:21.079 to that very specific discouragement in your 00:01:21.079 --> 00:01:25.239 life and in mine. Discouragement is the number 00:01:25.239 --> 00:01:29.420 one destroyer of God's plans for our lives. Just 00:01:29.420 --> 00:01:33.459 before we receive God's highest and best, many 00:01:33.459 --> 00:01:36.719 of us throw in the towel. You know, I've had 00:01:36.719 --> 00:01:38.900 some times and I've counseled so many hundreds 00:01:38.900 --> 00:01:42.120 of people right before God is at work. And, you 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:44.420 know, the habit, the addiction, the struggle, 00:01:44.500 --> 00:01:47.200 that it has just been a stronghold in your life. 00:01:47.239 --> 00:01:49.239 God is working, working, working, working. And 00:01:49.239 --> 00:01:53.079 just before he answers and delivers, so many 00:01:53.079 --> 00:01:56.620 people give up. Now, what I want to do is I want 00:01:56.620 --> 00:02:00.319 to develop three very practical, specific principles 00:02:00.319 --> 00:02:03.980 to help you. Slay the dragon of discouragement. 00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:08.759 Or as I like to say, hanging tough in tough times 00:02:08.759 --> 00:02:13.099 demand first that we get God's perspective on 00:02:13.099 --> 00:02:16.360 our circumstances. How do you do that? By looking 00:02:16.360 --> 00:02:19.099 at our circumstances through the eyes of faith. 00:02:20.120 --> 00:02:23.819 That's exactly what he calls us to do. Look at 00:02:23.819 --> 00:02:26.379 your current circumstance. Remember, what is 00:02:26.379 --> 00:02:28.900 it that's discouraging you? What is it that's 00:02:28.900 --> 00:02:31.180 difficult and painful right now that you just 00:02:31.180 --> 00:02:34.460 think, I can't take it. I can't take it. Look 00:02:34.460 --> 00:02:37.479 at it through the eyes of faith. What is it that 00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:41.539 God's going to do because you're trusting what 00:02:41.539 --> 00:02:44.560 you can't see? You're trusting his promises. 00:02:44.719 --> 00:02:47.800 You're trusting his character. How do you do 00:02:47.800 --> 00:02:52.659 that exactly? Well, you need to understand that 00:02:52.659 --> 00:02:56.360 the Lord has you in a position to develop a work 00:02:56.360 --> 00:02:59.840 in you. that's primary and even more important 00:02:59.840 --> 00:03:02.780 than the work through you. So don't get discouraged 00:03:02.780 --> 00:03:07.539 just by faith. I mean, remember I wrote for 20 00:03:07.539 --> 00:03:12.780 months, there's a passage in Psalm 25 that God 00:03:12.780 --> 00:03:16.099 gave me that said, Chip, I will instruct you 00:03:16.099 --> 00:03:18.500 in the way in which you should go. And for 20 00:03:18.500 --> 00:03:21.580 months, I'm going, Lord, and you know what he 00:03:21.580 --> 00:03:24.240 gave me? Here's what you do today. Here's what 00:03:24.240 --> 00:03:26.800 you do today. Here's what you do today. I kept 00:03:26.800 --> 00:03:28.719 saying, what about six months? What about six 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:31.879 years? What about 10 years? Lord, I have visionary 00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:34.419 gift. I need to know where I'm supposed to go. 00:03:34.620 --> 00:03:37.159 And what he said is, I'll show you what you need 00:03:37.159 --> 00:03:40.060 to do today. And I'll give you grace to do it 00:03:40.060 --> 00:03:44.439 today. And what I didn't realize, I had no idea 00:03:44.439 --> 00:03:47.379 that God's purposes for my family, my marriage, 00:03:47.580 --> 00:03:50.379 my children, my grandchildren, and the ministry. 00:03:51.210 --> 00:03:53.729 They were going to expand and expand and expand. 00:03:54.169 --> 00:03:57.090 And when God's going to do something wide through 00:03:57.090 --> 00:04:00.409 you, he first has to do something deep in you. 00:04:00.830 --> 00:04:03.550 And when God wants to do something deep in you, 00:04:03.669 --> 00:04:06.849 he has to remove the pillars and the dependency 00:04:06.849 --> 00:04:10.650 of your arrogance and your pride and your trust 00:04:10.650 --> 00:04:13.449 in people and wanting the affirmation of others. 00:04:13.550 --> 00:04:16.930 And he will strip you in ways for your good because 00:04:16.930 --> 00:04:20.699 you're so precious. But it's painful. So in your 00:04:20.699 --> 00:04:23.740 discouragement, can you say, if it looks like 00:04:23.740 --> 00:04:26.360 I have little, you should boast in your high 00:04:26.360 --> 00:04:29.660 position because you are dependent. And I would 00:04:29.660 --> 00:04:32.819 love to say, I would love to say it. And after 00:04:32.819 --> 00:04:35.759 35 years as a pastor, I would love to tell you 00:04:35.759 --> 00:04:38.139 this is true, but it's not. I would love to say 00:04:38.139 --> 00:04:40.100 that when things are going well and when they're 00:04:40.100 --> 00:04:42.660 easy and when all the relationships are good 00:04:42.660 --> 00:04:45.220 and circumstances are wonderful and we have lots 00:04:45.220 --> 00:04:48.019 of money, that we just trust God, that we go 00:04:48.019 --> 00:04:50.649 to deep levels with the Lord. The fact of the 00:04:50.649 --> 00:04:55.750 matter is, all of us, all of us have to have 00:04:55.750 --> 00:04:58.629 seasons where God takes the things that we trust 00:04:58.629 --> 00:05:03.089 in and he sets them aside so that we have him, 00:05:03.189 --> 00:05:07.449 just him. And God's doing that right now. He's 00:05:07.449 --> 00:05:09.930 doing it in the world. He's shaking people. He's 00:05:09.930 --> 00:05:12.050 shaking communities. He's shaking the church. 00:05:12.290 --> 00:05:15.050 He's shaking the world. The question is, will 00:05:15.050 --> 00:05:18.209 we listen? Will we humble ourselves and be dependent? 00:05:18.860 --> 00:05:21.100 So the first thing we need to do is look at our 00:05:21.100 --> 00:05:23.360 circumstances through the lens of faith. The 00:05:23.360 --> 00:05:25.839 second thing we need to do is get God's perspective 00:05:25.839 --> 00:05:29.220 on our future. And how? By looking at our future 00:05:29.220 --> 00:05:33.899 through the lens of hope. See, our hope, if it's 00:05:33.899 --> 00:05:36.819 in the now, if it's in what I can see, if it's 00:05:36.819 --> 00:05:38.939 in the ministry, if it's how people are responding 00:05:38.939 --> 00:05:41.800 to me, if it's in my bank account, if it's in 00:05:41.800 --> 00:05:44.339 things going well or not going well, my circumstance, 00:05:44.699 --> 00:05:47.300 what do we learn? It goes up and it goes down. 00:05:47.930 --> 00:05:50.370 He says, you need to take what you're experiencing 00:05:50.370 --> 00:05:53.930 right now, whatever is discouraging you. And 00:05:53.930 --> 00:05:55.589 he goes, I want to give you another new set of 00:05:55.589 --> 00:05:58.110 glasses. After the glasses of faith, you set 00:05:58.110 --> 00:06:00.689 those down. And now you put on the glasses of 00:06:00.689 --> 00:06:04.370 hope. Listen to what the Apostle Paul said. Therefore, 00:06:04.529 --> 00:06:07.889 we do not lose heart, though outwardly we are 00:06:07.889 --> 00:06:11.089 wasting away. Yet inwardly, we're being renewed 00:06:11.089 --> 00:06:14.649 day by day for the light and momentary troubles. 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:18.620 are achieving for us an eternal weight that outweighs 00:06:18.620 --> 00:06:23.040 them all. So we fix our eyes on not what is seen, 00:06:23.259 --> 00:06:27.500 but what is unseen. For what is seen is temporal, 00:06:27.660 --> 00:06:32.040 and what is unseen is eternal. He tells him, 00:06:32.100 --> 00:06:34.519 I'm telling you this after I've been shipwrecked, 00:06:34.519 --> 00:06:36.779 I've been beaten about three times, I've been 00:06:36.779 --> 00:06:40.579 left in the sea. I mean, he is viewing all of 00:06:40.579 --> 00:06:43.660 his temporal difficulty, pain, circumstances. 00:06:44.800 --> 00:06:48.519 through a lens of hope and what God is preparing 00:06:48.519 --> 00:06:52.540 for him, not just now, but forever. The third 00:06:52.540 --> 00:06:55.339 thing that we need to do is get God's perspective 00:06:55.339 --> 00:06:57.980 on our circumstances, God's perspective on our 00:06:57.980 --> 00:07:00.959 future, and now God's perspective on our motivation 00:07:00.959 --> 00:07:03.759 by looking at our motivation through the lens 00:07:03.759 --> 00:07:08.459 of love. Here's the question, and this is different 00:07:08.459 --> 00:07:11.220 for all of us, and this is very personal, so 00:07:11.220 --> 00:07:12.819 I want you to lean back. I want you to really 00:07:12.819 --> 00:07:15.689 think. for a moment before you would immediately 00:07:15.689 --> 00:07:19.589 answer, am I willing to enter into the fellowship 00:07:19.589 --> 00:07:24.649 of his suffering? Are you willing, like the Apostle 00:07:24.649 --> 00:07:28.470 John and the Apostle Peter, to consider a privilege 00:07:28.470 --> 00:07:33.889 and a joy to suffer for the sake of Christ? You 00:07:33.889 --> 00:07:37.970 see, in the early church, As they were beaten 00:07:37.970 --> 00:07:40.649 and taken in by the Sanhedrin, and they went 00:07:40.649 --> 00:07:43.790 back there in Acts chapter 2 and 3 and 4 and 00:07:43.790 --> 00:07:46.670 told the other believers what happened, they 00:07:46.670 --> 00:07:49.970 were filled with joy, being counted worthy to 00:07:49.970 --> 00:07:53.730 suffer for the Lord. It's out of loyalty. The 00:07:53.730 --> 00:07:56.329 Apostle Paul would say, I want the fellowship 00:07:56.329 --> 00:08:00.269 of his suffering. There's something about a love 00:08:00.269 --> 00:08:02.810 for the Lord Jesus that when you are suffering 00:08:02.810 --> 00:08:05.870 because you refuse to give up, refuse to give 00:08:05.870 --> 00:08:09.589 in, that is very, very precious. And what I would 00:08:09.589 --> 00:08:12.310 have to admit to you is that sometimes when I've 00:08:12.310 --> 00:08:14.750 worked hard, I've tried hard, I've prayed hard, 00:08:14.930 --> 00:08:18.350 I've ministered hard, and circumstances don't 00:08:18.350 --> 00:08:21.750 get better, and I don't feel better, and candidly, 00:08:21.750 --> 00:08:24.110 I'm not very happy, and I wish God would change 00:08:24.110 --> 00:08:28.240 things and change them faster. What I have to 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:32.399 admit privately is that my motivation is really 00:08:32.399 --> 00:08:36.279 about God working my life out instead of me being 00:08:36.279 --> 00:08:39.559 willing to experience whatever I need to experience 00:08:39.559 --> 00:08:42.980 for me to express my love to Him. I remember 00:08:42.980 --> 00:08:47.820 a number of years ago teaching a seminar. It 00:08:47.820 --> 00:08:50.019 was in Hong Kong at the time and I was meeting 00:08:50.019 --> 00:08:52.299 with a group of pastors and that evening I had... 00:08:52.440 --> 00:08:54.940 dinner with a pastor who happened to be a house 00:08:54.940 --> 00:08:58.820 church leader and evangelist. And he was telling 00:08:58.820 --> 00:09:01.440 the story and we had helped him with some resources 00:09:01.440 --> 00:09:03.759 and helped him with what he was doing in terms 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:07.059 of discipleship. And as he was traveling, doing 00:09:07.059 --> 00:09:09.740 evangelism, the church was meeting in his house, 00:09:09.759 --> 00:09:12.539 and the Communist Party came. It was a remote 00:09:12.539 --> 00:09:16.100 area. And his wife said, no, no, I'm the pastor. 00:09:16.240 --> 00:09:18.139 I'm the pastor. None of these people are here. 00:09:18.299 --> 00:09:20.679 And she got all the people to leave, and they 00:09:20.679 --> 00:09:23.200 took her down to the police station. And for 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:27.559 two days, they beat her to a pulp. And he came 00:09:27.559 --> 00:09:30.259 back from his evangelistic trip and found what 00:09:30.259 --> 00:09:32.580 was happening. And I'm listening to the story 00:09:32.580 --> 00:09:35.440 and in my mind's eye, thinking about my wife. 00:09:35.879 --> 00:09:38.620 And as he's telling the story, I'm just thinking, 00:09:38.659 --> 00:09:41.440 boy, if someone did that to my wife, I don't 00:09:41.440 --> 00:09:43.419 know if I could keep my faith. Boy, I would just, 00:09:43.460 --> 00:09:46.159 and I'm having all these emotions and anger and 00:09:46.159 --> 00:09:49.320 retribution. And he finishes the story. And when 00:09:49.320 --> 00:09:52.700 he gets done with the story, very calmly, he 00:09:52.700 --> 00:09:56.370 looks at me and my friend and he says, Can you 00:09:56.370 --> 00:09:59.110 imagine that God would count us worthy to get 00:09:59.110 --> 00:10:03.470 to suffer for him? And I was too embarrassed 00:10:03.470 --> 00:10:06.730 to say the emotions and the thoughts that I had. 00:10:08.029 --> 00:10:11.070 But I want to ask you that. These are the times 00:10:11.070 --> 00:10:13.850 that we're living in. Is our love going to be 00:10:13.850 --> 00:10:17.889 loyal? As we wrap things up, let me help you 00:10:17.889 --> 00:10:21.250 evaluate kind of a little bit where you are and 00:10:21.250 --> 00:10:25.620 to remind you that you can slay the dragon. of 00:10:25.620 --> 00:10:29.000 discouragement. You are not a victim. Victims 00:10:29.000 --> 00:10:31.980 have self -pity. Victims look through the lens 00:10:31.980 --> 00:10:35.080 of me. Victims look at, are things going well? 00:10:36.580 --> 00:10:39.980 Survivors don't. Survivors have an attitude and 00:10:39.980 --> 00:10:42.299 we count it all joy, whether we feel like it 00:10:42.299 --> 00:10:44.820 or not. Survivors don't know what to do, but 00:10:44.820 --> 00:10:47.100 we have God's wisdom and we'll take it one day 00:10:47.100 --> 00:10:50.289 at a time. And survivors get a divine perspective, 00:10:50.450 --> 00:10:54.049 a theology, a way of thinking about life and 00:10:54.049 --> 00:10:56.690 circumstances and the future and our relationship 00:10:56.690 --> 00:11:00.169 with the Lord in terms of motivation. And because 00:11:00.169 --> 00:11:05.529 of that, here's the deal. You can overcome discouragement, 00:11:05.590 --> 00:11:09.710 but you have to fight. So can I ask you, remember 00:11:09.710 --> 00:11:12.789 when we began this teaching time, I said, what 00:11:12.789 --> 00:11:16.750 person, what circumstance? What specific thing 00:11:16.750 --> 00:11:20.230 was really discouraging you? And I ask you to 00:11:20.230 --> 00:11:23.509 get it really clear in your mind. Before I go 00:11:23.509 --> 00:11:27.529 on and give you some practical tools, where are 00:11:27.529 --> 00:11:31.389 you struggling? From what I've shared so far, 00:11:31.549 --> 00:11:36.769 what is God saying to you today? What does it 00:11:36.769 --> 00:11:39.450 look like for you to look at life, your life, 00:11:39.610 --> 00:11:43.289 your sadness, your disappointment, your challenge? 00:11:44.029 --> 00:11:48.110 your heartache through the lens of faith, through 00:11:48.110 --> 00:11:54.210 the lens of hope, through the lens of love. We'll 00:11:54.210 --> 00:11:56.049 hear more from Chip Ingram's message in just 00:11:56.049 --> 00:11:58.350 a moment. First, we're inviting you to multiply 00:11:58.350 --> 00:12:00.889 your year -end donation through an exciting match 00:12:00.889 --> 00:12:03.090 that's active right now. You know, when you give 00:12:03.090 --> 00:12:05.250 to Living on the Edge, you're not just supporting 00:12:05.250 --> 00:12:08.000 one ministry. You're creating a ripple effect. 00:12:08.240 --> 00:12:11.840 You begin to mobilize people who help other people 00:12:11.840 --> 00:12:14.240 who help other people, and that makes a huge 00:12:14.240 --> 00:12:16.399 difference. Your gift to the match will make 00:12:16.399 --> 00:12:19.600 an impact. Picture these scenes. A single listener 00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:21.639 in Iowa shares our teaching with a small group 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:24.500 Bible study. A grandparent in Texas sends our 00:12:24.500 --> 00:12:27.080 resources to a son in Oklahoma that pastors a 00:12:27.080 --> 00:12:29.240 local church. Yes, the ripple effect of giving 00:12:29.240 --> 00:12:32.350 to Living on the Edge. For 30 years, Living on 00:12:32.350 --> 00:12:35.289 the Edge has been God's vehicle to not only help 00:12:35.289 --> 00:12:38.309 pastors, but to teach God's Word. And right now, 00:12:38.330 --> 00:12:41.450 we're on the threshold. We're at a season where 00:12:41.450 --> 00:12:43.669 God is using Living on the Edge like never before. 00:12:43.929 --> 00:12:46.470 Double the impact of your gift at livingontheedge 00:12:46.470 --> 00:12:51.009 .org. Don't let this opportunity slip by to double 00:12:51.009 --> 00:12:53.669 your gift, and even more importantly, to double 00:12:53.669 --> 00:12:56.409 your impact. Today, let's multiply God's ministry 00:12:56.409 --> 00:12:58.350 through Living on the Edge while there's still 00:12:58.350 --> 00:13:02.700 time. go to livingontheedge .org. From a series 00:13:02.700 --> 00:13:05.299 called The Art of Survival in an Age of Chaos, 00:13:05.639 --> 00:13:08.019 Chip Ingram is teaching from James, Chapter 1. 00:13:08.360 --> 00:13:10.620 Let me give you a couple handles that I think 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:16.039 will help. Number one, reevaluate your circumstances, 00:13:16.100 --> 00:13:19.559 and here's the test. Is my faith in things that 00:13:19.559 --> 00:13:22.480 are perishable or in things that are permanent? 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:26.179 Just pause for a moment. Your faith, what are 00:13:26.179 --> 00:13:28.509 you trusting in? Are you trusting in things that 00:13:28.509 --> 00:13:30.870 are perishable or things that are permanent? 00:13:31.389 --> 00:13:36.230 I remember again in China speaking to a pastor 00:13:36.230 --> 00:13:40.029 lamb of many years ago. And he was beaten and 00:13:40.029 --> 00:13:42.289 tortured and the church grew. And so they put 00:13:42.289 --> 00:13:43.970 him in prison and the church grew even more. 00:13:44.919 --> 00:13:46.860 And so he got out of prison after many years 00:13:46.860 --> 00:13:48.960 and he had almost like a tree house, I remember. 00:13:49.200 --> 00:13:51.679 And he had speakers and just hundreds of people 00:13:51.679 --> 00:13:53.679 would gather to hear him preach and proclaim 00:13:53.679 --> 00:13:56.100 God's word. And the officials came at that time 00:13:56.100 --> 00:13:58.980 and said, we are going to kill you. And he smiled 00:13:58.980 --> 00:14:01.440 at them. He said, you torture me, the church 00:14:01.440 --> 00:14:03.500 grows. You put me in prison, the church grows 00:14:03.500 --> 00:14:05.720 bigger. You kill me, the church will explode. 00:14:06.940 --> 00:14:10.899 Do you hear it? His faith isn't in what was perishable. 00:14:11.440 --> 00:14:15.990 His faith is in what's permanent. I was talking 00:14:15.990 --> 00:14:18.190 to one of our partners who does ministry in the 00:14:18.190 --> 00:14:20.950 Middle East, and they were growing in their faith, 00:14:20.970 --> 00:14:22.570 and as they were ready to go back into their 00:14:22.570 --> 00:14:25.230 country, one of the ladies said to the trainer, 00:14:25.870 --> 00:14:28.889 before we go back into our country, would you 00:14:28.889 --> 00:14:33.149 teach us to die well? She understood what they 00:14:33.149 --> 00:14:34.990 were going to do and what they were going to 00:14:34.990 --> 00:14:37.710 share, in all probability, is going to cost them 00:14:37.710 --> 00:14:41.940 their life. They wanted to die well. I sat across 00:14:41.940 --> 00:14:45.539 the table from a young doctor who had a contract 00:14:45.539 --> 00:14:47.779 on her life. She was in Yemen, and the church 00:14:47.779 --> 00:14:49.879 has exploded in the midst of that civil war, 00:14:50.019 --> 00:14:53.259 and she was making her way to another country 00:14:53.259 --> 00:14:56.960 to be safe. And she was young, maybe 30, 31, 00:14:57.139 --> 00:14:59.700 and she just looked at me and goes, I know I 00:14:59.700 --> 00:15:03.019 won't live very long. And she didn't say it with 00:15:03.019 --> 00:15:07.059 any sense of self -pity. It was a sense of, this 00:15:07.059 --> 00:15:10.360 is my calling in life. There is more to life 00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:13.240 than right now. My question is, do you believe 00:15:13.240 --> 00:15:16.580 that? Does your behavior, does my behavior declare 00:15:16.580 --> 00:15:20.320 that? For those of us in sort of the first world, 00:15:20.500 --> 00:15:22.860 I have a very good friend who's gone broke a 00:15:22.860 --> 00:15:25.139 couple times and made a lot of money, I guess 00:15:25.139 --> 00:15:29.940 probably three times now. And over time, he has 00:15:29.940 --> 00:15:33.019 come to actually believe and understand that 00:15:33.019 --> 00:15:35.940 money can't make you, money can't break you. 00:15:36.429 --> 00:15:38.490 He's looking at life through the lens of faith. 00:15:39.210 --> 00:15:41.850 Second is to reevaluate where your focus is. 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:45.629 The test here is my hope determined by the size 00:15:45.629 --> 00:15:48.809 of my problems or the certainty of God's promises. 00:15:49.870 --> 00:15:52.570 I mean, is your hope or the promises, you know, 00:15:52.570 --> 00:15:55.250 those problems are getting smaller or is it these 00:15:55.250 --> 00:15:59.210 big promises of God? Where is your hope focused? 00:16:00.230 --> 00:16:06.120 The Apostle Paul writing to the Romans and They 00:16:06.120 --> 00:16:09.779 have their share of struggles. The Roman Empire 00:16:09.779 --> 00:16:12.639 is persecuting Christians. And he says to them, 00:16:12.679 --> 00:16:14.879 for everything that was written in the past, 00:16:14.960 --> 00:16:18.000 the Old Testament, it instructs us or teaches 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:20.679 us that through, listen carefully, endurance 00:16:20.679 --> 00:16:23.440 and the encouragement of the scriptures, we might 00:16:23.440 --> 00:16:26.610 have hope. May the God who gives endurance and 00:16:26.610 --> 00:16:29.490 encouragement give you a spirit of unity among 00:16:29.490 --> 00:16:32.389 yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that 00:16:32.389 --> 00:16:34.909 with one heart and one voice you may glorify 00:16:34.909 --> 00:16:37.570 the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:16:38.279 --> 00:16:39.940 And then he quotes a number of Old Testament 00:16:39.940 --> 00:16:42.139 passages, about four or five, about the inclusion 00:16:42.139 --> 00:16:44.779 of the Gentiles. And then he ends with verse 00:16:44.779 --> 00:16:48.700 13 of chapter 15. May the God of hope fill you 00:16:48.700 --> 00:16:51.620 with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so 00:16:51.620 --> 00:16:53.779 that you may overflow with hope by the power 00:16:53.779 --> 00:16:57.179 of the Holy Spirit. In our dependency, I'm going 00:16:57.179 --> 00:16:59.580 to challenge you. One of the things that God 00:16:59.580 --> 00:17:02.659 wants to do is break down some of our preconceived 00:17:02.659 --> 00:17:06.920 ideas and our focus. For then it was Jew or Gentile. 00:17:07.160 --> 00:17:09.720 For some of us, it's black and white. For others, 00:17:09.839 --> 00:17:12.400 it's different tribes. For some of you in different 00:17:12.400 --> 00:17:15.519 countries, though you love Jesus, there is this 00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:18.400 division. There's this prejudice. God wants to 00:17:18.400 --> 00:17:21.680 take us to this place of dependency that brings 00:17:21.680 --> 00:17:26.099 about unity. He says he gives encouragement and 00:17:26.099 --> 00:17:29.559 he gives what? Endurance how? Through the scriptures. 00:17:30.380 --> 00:17:33.599 Here's the question. Where is your mind going? 00:17:34.109 --> 00:17:36.950 Does your mind focus on the problem, the problem, 00:17:37.150 --> 00:17:39.950 the problem, the problem? Or are you focused 00:17:39.950 --> 00:17:42.430 on the promises, the promises, the promises? 00:17:42.990 --> 00:17:46.150 You know, as I shared before, one of the reasons 00:17:46.150 --> 00:17:49.029 I memorize scripture, one of the reasons I renew 00:17:49.029 --> 00:17:52.190 my mind, one of the reasons I sing and worship 00:17:52.190 --> 00:17:56.650 out loud is I want to fill my mind and my heart 00:17:56.650 --> 00:18:00.190 with the truth and the promises of God so I can 00:18:00.190 --> 00:18:04.009 look at the very challenging. and discouraging 00:18:04.009 --> 00:18:08.670 circumstances in a fresh way, God's way. You 00:18:08.670 --> 00:18:12.349 see, it's perspective. Finally, we reevaluate 00:18:12.349 --> 00:18:16.349 our motivation. And the test is, is your primary 00:18:16.349 --> 00:18:19.269 motivation and the motivation of your heart to 00:18:19.269 --> 00:18:24.630 love Christ or simply experience relief and get 00:18:24.630 --> 00:18:27.470 what you want for you? This is a hard one to 00:18:27.470 --> 00:18:30.450 be honest with. But as I shared, I think the 00:18:30.450 --> 00:18:32.369 brothers and sisters that I've met around the 00:18:32.369 --> 00:18:35.490 world have taught me more about a pure love than 00:18:35.490 --> 00:18:38.569 anybody else in the world. Because there's very 00:18:38.569 --> 00:18:43.450 little hope for any financial gain or fame or 00:18:43.450 --> 00:18:46.650 life getting better. They do what they do. They 00:18:46.650 --> 00:18:49.150 experience what they experience. And you all 00:18:49.150 --> 00:18:52.089 suffer what you suffer because you love the Lord 00:18:52.089 --> 00:18:57.730 Jesus. As I close, when you start to get discouraged, 00:18:57.910 --> 00:19:00.859 are you ready? I just want you to remember three 00:19:00.859 --> 00:19:04.460 words. That's all you need. Three words. As you 00:19:04.460 --> 00:19:08.200 struggle, the art of survival. Word number one 00:19:08.200 --> 00:19:11.500 is faith. God is in control. Word number two 00:19:11.500 --> 00:19:16.119 is hope. You are his child. He has a place, a 00:19:16.119 --> 00:19:20.019 plan, and a promise for you. And the last word 00:19:20.019 --> 00:19:24.420 is love. Suffering is a chance and a privilege 00:19:24.420 --> 00:19:29.480 for you and for me. to express our love for the 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:34.640 Lord Jesus. Father, these are words of hope and 00:19:34.640 --> 00:19:40.299 life, but we confess in our humanity, in our 00:19:40.299 --> 00:19:43.660 fallenness, that they're very challenging words 00:19:43.660 --> 00:19:48.359 to apply. Lord, thank you for your word that 00:19:48.359 --> 00:19:51.319 gives us encouragement. Lord, thank you for Paul 00:19:51.319 --> 00:19:54.519 and Peter and John. Lord, thank you for people 00:19:54.519 --> 00:19:59.769 in our life. the heroes of today that blaze the 00:19:59.769 --> 00:20:04.990 trail, that love you, that live by faith, that 00:20:04.990 --> 00:20:07.950 focus on what's unseen rather than what's unseen. 00:20:08.849 --> 00:20:12.069 And Lord Jesus, may we be those kind of people. 00:20:12.450 --> 00:20:15.029 Thank you that we are not victims, that we're 00:20:15.029 --> 00:20:18.710 more than conquerors in Christ. Will you fill 00:20:18.710 --> 00:20:23.730 us with perspective and wisdom and hope? And 00:20:23.730 --> 00:20:25.970 will you grant us the ability to fight the good 00:20:25.970 --> 00:20:29.769 fight, to finish the race, to do all that you've 00:20:29.769 --> 00:20:34.069 called us to do. In Jesus' name, amen. God bless 00:20:34.069 --> 00:20:39.660 you. Let's keep pressing ahead. Please don't 00:20:39.660 --> 00:20:41.779 rush away. Chip Ingram, our Bible teacher, has 00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:44.220 prepared personal comments just for our Living 00:20:44.220 --> 00:20:46.799 on the Edge family. That's coming up in just 00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:49.119 a moment. But first, I'll remind you that Living 00:20:49.119 --> 00:20:51.900 on the Edge is the recipient of a generous match, 00:20:52.200 --> 00:20:54.960 one of the largest in our 30 -year history, meaning 00:20:54.960 --> 00:20:57.259 that every dollar that's given right now has 00:20:57.259 --> 00:21:00.460 twice the value and twice the impact. This is 00:21:00.460 --> 00:21:02.500 especially important because of our commitment 00:21:02.500 --> 00:21:05.400 to equipping and encouraging pastors. you see 00:21:05.400 --> 00:21:07.799 when you help the shepherd of a local congregation 00:21:07.799 --> 00:21:10.079 your gift is multiplied through the people he 00:21:10.079 --> 00:21:13.019 impacts the church is growing rapidly in other 00:21:13.019 --> 00:21:16.470 parts of the world god is moving To address the 00:21:16.470 --> 00:21:18.869 needs of this exciting growth, our ministry has 00:21:18.869 --> 00:21:22.250 expanded into 28 countries where churches are 00:21:22.250 --> 00:21:24.470 teeming with new believers who want to learn 00:21:24.470 --> 00:21:27.109 more about the Bible. Churches are desperately 00:21:27.109 --> 00:21:29.789 in need of pastors in order to provide leadership 00:21:29.789 --> 00:21:32.509 for new believers. Well, Living on the Edge comes 00:21:32.509 --> 00:21:35.349 alongside these ambitious men of God, and they 00:21:35.349 --> 00:21:38.150 crave direction and reassurance. In fact, when 00:21:38.150 --> 00:21:40.589 Chip's teaching series, The Art of Survival, 00:21:40.670 --> 00:21:43.970 was recorded on video, it spread like wildfire 00:21:43.970 --> 00:21:46.390 in parts of the world we never dreamed of reaching. 00:21:46.609 --> 00:21:49.869 But God had other plans. Chip? As you listen 00:21:49.869 --> 00:21:53.150 to this series, The Art of Survival, you may 00:21:53.150 --> 00:21:56.150 not be aware of how it was birthed, how God used 00:21:56.150 --> 00:21:58.710 it, and I hope it's been a great encouragement 00:21:58.710 --> 00:22:01.490 to you. But I will tell you, pastors are called 00:22:01.490 --> 00:22:04.009 to equip the saints, but the question is, who 00:22:04.009 --> 00:22:07.779 equips or pastors or loves the pastor? Right 00:22:07.779 --> 00:22:11.500 toward the end of COVID, God had this message 00:22:11.500 --> 00:22:14.839 birthed in response to body bags coming out of 00:22:14.839 --> 00:22:17.700 Egypt, of what was happening in rural communities 00:22:17.700 --> 00:22:20.819 as churches were shut down. And literally one 00:22:20.819 --> 00:22:24.339 day I filmed it. It was dubbed a week later in 00:22:24.339 --> 00:22:27.420 Arabic. And then like a fire that went across 00:22:27.420 --> 00:22:31.180 the world in 35 languages, hundreds of thousands 00:22:31.180 --> 00:22:34.440 of pastors. And they heard what you've been hearing 00:22:34.440 --> 00:22:36.799 the last few days. And then we had them get in 00:22:36.799 --> 00:22:39.880 small group to process it. And at the end, the 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:43.839 most common thing we heard was God spoke. I'm 00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:46.829 not going to quit the ministry now. And what 00:22:46.829 --> 00:22:48.990 I want you to know is I know you have hard times 00:22:48.990 --> 00:22:51.930 and challenging times, but your pastor lives 00:22:51.930 --> 00:22:54.390 a life that you can't imagine what he's going 00:22:54.390 --> 00:22:57.470 through. And when you give to this match, you're 00:22:57.470 --> 00:22:59.910 helping pastors all across the United States 00:22:59.910 --> 00:23:03.670 and all across the world. Would you be willing 00:23:03.670 --> 00:23:06.730 to radically give up something that's common, 00:23:06.890 --> 00:23:09.910 a few cups of coffee, a few luxuries here or 00:23:09.910 --> 00:23:13.069 there, and make a commitment to this match to 00:23:13.069 --> 00:23:16.230 help us help pastors here and all around the 00:23:16.230 --> 00:23:19.710 world? They're lonely. It's difficult. It's hard. 00:23:19.910 --> 00:23:22.329 And by the grace of God, Living on the Edge is 00:23:22.329 --> 00:23:24.869 giving them hope. And you can be a part of that. 00:23:25.210 --> 00:23:27.390 Yes, you can be part of this movement of God 00:23:27.390 --> 00:23:55.170 by going to Living on the Edge. Having twice 00:23:55.170 --> 00:23:57.970 the impact. To send your donation in the mail, 00:23:58.109 --> 00:24:01.490 address your... Living on the Edge, P .O. Box 00:24:01.490 --> 00:24:07.119 3007, Atlanta, GA 30024 Now you might think your 00:24:07.119 --> 00:24:09.259 donation will make little difference. Well, I 00:24:09.259 --> 00:24:12.140 can assure you every single dollar will be channeled 00:24:12.140 --> 00:24:14.619 into God's work to help pastors and all Christians 00:24:14.619 --> 00:24:16.940 discover how to walk more intentionally with 00:24:16.940 --> 00:24:21.200 Jesus. Again, write to P .O. Box 3007, Atlanta, 00:24:21.480 --> 00:24:27.920 Georgia 30024. You can also call 888 -333 -6003 00:24:27.920 --> 00:24:32.630 or visit livingontheedge .org. Well, I'm Dave 00:24:32.630 --> 00:24:35.069 Drew. Join us when Chip Ingram begins our next 00:24:35.069 --> 00:24:38.730 series, Discover How to Leave a Legacy That Lasts 00:24:38.730 --> 00:24:41.589 Forever, Tuesday on Living on the Edge.