WEBVTT 00:00:11.240 --> 00:00:14.220 Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:14.300 --> 00:00:17.940 What is it that gives you the will to stay in 00:00:17.940 --> 00:00:21.140 the fight when every fiber in your body wants 00:00:21.140 --> 00:00:25.000 to quit? What is it that gives you what you need 00:00:25.359 --> 00:00:27.539 When you're scared to death and yet you step 00:00:27.539 --> 00:00:30.199 out and do exactly what God wants you to do. 00:00:30.359 --> 00:00:34.259 Well, it's one word, courage. How do you get 00:00:34.259 --> 00:00:38.700 it? That's today on Living on the Edge. What 00:00:38.700 --> 00:00:41.299 barriers are keeping you from experiencing God's 00:00:41.299 --> 00:00:44.140 breakthrough power in your life? Today on Living 00:00:44.140 --> 00:00:47.140 on the Edge, Chip Ingram identifies five specific 00:00:47.140 --> 00:00:49.619 obstacles that prevent us from stepping into 00:00:49.619 --> 00:00:52.759 the impossible. Using powerful stories from the 00:00:52.759 --> 00:00:55.640 Gospel of Mark, Chip shows how Jesus deliberately 00:00:55.640 --> 00:00:59.200 taught his disciples to overcome each one. And 00:00:59.200 --> 00:01:01.899 at the heart of it all is one word, courage. 00:01:02.520 --> 00:01:05.120 We're in a series called Experience Breakthrough, 00:01:05.239 --> 00:01:08.019 learning to stop feeling confined by life's biggest 00:01:08.019 --> 00:01:10.620 barriers. If you're ready to break through the 00:01:10.620 --> 00:01:12.859 barriers that have held you back, this message 00:01:12.859 --> 00:01:15.400 is for you. Well, here's Chip Ingram with his 00:01:15.400 --> 00:01:18.200 lesson, Courage, the Catalyst to Breakthrough. 00:01:18.879 --> 00:01:23.900 Mark chapter 6, 5 ,000 people are fed. Notice 00:01:23.900 --> 00:01:28.620 what Jesus does. He sends the disciples off. 00:01:30.200 --> 00:01:33.040 Immediately, Jesus had his disciples get into 00:01:33.040 --> 00:01:35.739 the boat to go ahead of him. Well, he dismissed 00:01:35.739 --> 00:01:37.739 the crowd, and after they left, he went up on 00:01:37.739 --> 00:01:40.280 the mountain to pray. When evening came, the 00:01:40.280 --> 00:01:41.840 boat was in the middle of a lake, and he was 00:01:41.840 --> 00:01:44.719 alone on land. And this, by the way, when you're 00:01:44.719 --> 00:01:48.239 ready to take some steps for God, I mean, notice 00:01:48.239 --> 00:01:53.219 the disciples get on the journey and there is 00:01:53.219 --> 00:01:57.299 a stiff wind and they're straining at the oars. 00:01:57.840 --> 00:01:59.700 That's what it's like when you start taking steps 00:01:59.700 --> 00:02:02.000 for God. And so about the fourth watch of the 00:02:02.000 --> 00:02:04.819 night, he went out to them and this is trying 00:02:04.819 --> 00:02:06.859 to increase their faith. So he's walking on the 00:02:06.859 --> 00:02:10.659 water and as he comes by and had decided to pass 00:02:10.659 --> 00:02:13.699 by, they see him and think he's a ghost and they're 00:02:13.699 --> 00:02:17.039 terrified. Immediately he spoke to them. And 00:02:17.039 --> 00:02:18.759 notice what he says to them. He says to them. 00:02:18.819 --> 00:02:21.580 He says to us. You're taking a step. You want 00:02:21.580 --> 00:02:23.240 to do what God wants you to do. And you're thinking, 00:02:23.360 --> 00:02:25.620 yes, okay, we're going to go to counseling. Or, 00:02:25.639 --> 00:02:28.280 okay, oh, my lands. You know, I'm going to really 00:02:28.280 --> 00:02:30.259 go public in this situation. I'm going to share 00:02:30.259 --> 00:02:32.180 my faith with this person. Or, you know what, 00:02:32.240 --> 00:02:33.879 I'm going to confront this issue with one of 00:02:33.879 --> 00:02:35.740 my kids. And I'm scared to death because maybe 00:02:35.740 --> 00:02:40.280 she's going to. And what's he say to them? Take 00:02:40.280 --> 00:02:45.389 courage. It is I. Don't be afraid. Now, we're 00:02:45.389 --> 00:02:47.789 in Mark's gospel, and Matthew, Mark, and Luke 00:02:47.789 --> 00:02:49.969 are what's called the synoptics, and they're 00:02:49.969 --> 00:02:52.409 speaking to different audiences. And so Mark 00:02:52.409 --> 00:02:54.389 is written to the Roman audience, Luke to a Greek 00:02:54.389 --> 00:02:56.449 audience, and Matthew to the Jewish audience. 00:02:56.530 --> 00:02:59.270 And so they all tell the same story, but they 00:02:59.270 --> 00:03:03.710 add all correctly the full picture, but in ways 00:03:03.710 --> 00:03:06.949 that help their audience understand. And so Matthew, 00:03:07.009 --> 00:03:09.189 during this exact same time, he adds something. 00:03:10.209 --> 00:03:12.729 And he lets us know that right when Jesus is 00:03:12.729 --> 00:03:14.310 walking on the water and is going to pass by, 00:03:14.469 --> 00:03:18.789 Peter, you know, I love Peter. He's like impulsive. 00:03:19.030 --> 00:03:21.169 Let's give it a whirl. What the heck? You only 00:03:21.169 --> 00:03:24.289 live once. Lord, if it's you, tell me to come. 00:03:24.550 --> 00:03:26.969 And so Jesus says, come. And so Peter takes, 00:03:27.110 --> 00:03:29.629 you know, it's like this is amazing. He walks 00:03:29.629 --> 00:03:32.909 on the water. I walk on the water. And then his 00:03:32.909 --> 00:03:35.150 courage evaporates and he sees the wind and the 00:03:35.150 --> 00:03:38.219 waves and there's fear. He starts to sink. Literally, 00:03:38.240 --> 00:03:41.120 quick prayer, save me! And Jesus reaches out, 00:03:41.180 --> 00:03:45.719 pulls him up. They get into the boat. They worship 00:03:45.719 --> 00:03:50.360 him. And that metaphor, that picture of stepping 00:03:50.360 --> 00:03:53.500 out into uncertainty, which if God doesn't show 00:03:53.500 --> 00:03:56.939 up, you're paralyzed by your fear and you don't 00:03:56.939 --> 00:04:00.379 do it, is courage. And Jesus is going to use 00:04:00.379 --> 00:04:03.199 this little picture and then the author is going 00:04:03.199 --> 00:04:05.659 to take us through a series of barriers to break 00:04:05.659 --> 00:04:08.469 through. Because in your life, I can tell you 00:04:08.469 --> 00:04:11.689 this, God wants you to get out of the boat, and 00:04:11.689 --> 00:04:14.830 I don't know what the boat is for you, but he 00:04:14.830 --> 00:04:16.970 wants you to get out of the boat of your fear 00:04:16.970 --> 00:04:22.050 and take a step of courage, and that's the catalyst 00:04:22.050 --> 00:04:26.350 for the power of God. The issue is not, does 00:04:26.350 --> 00:04:29.009 God have power? The issue is not, is he willing 00:04:29.009 --> 00:04:33.290 to help you? He wants to. But the issue is, do 00:04:33.290 --> 00:04:36.360 you have the courage? Rooted in faith to take 00:04:36.360 --> 00:04:38.360 the step that even when you can't see what's 00:04:38.360 --> 00:04:41.040 going to happen, to obey and then watch him work. 00:04:42.360 --> 00:04:47.000 What keeps us from taking that sort of dynamic 00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:50.939 step that causes the chain reaction of God's 00:04:50.939 --> 00:04:53.779 power to come into our life? Now, I want you 00:04:53.779 --> 00:04:55.879 to know that sometimes, you know, when we're... 00:04:56.519 --> 00:04:58.519 Teach the Bible, or when I read it, I'll get 00:04:58.519 --> 00:05:00.879 into one passage and just a paragraph, and I'll 00:05:00.879 --> 00:05:03.180 spend all of our time there. But what we miss 00:05:03.180 --> 00:05:06.480 often is that the author has put sometimes story 00:05:06.480 --> 00:05:09.199 after story and miracle, and he'll let you know 00:05:09.199 --> 00:05:11.439 it all fits together, and he wants you to see 00:05:11.439 --> 00:05:13.100 the structure of what's happening. So that's 00:05:13.100 --> 00:05:16.079 what I'm going to do. My prayer is that you read 00:05:16.079 --> 00:05:18.160 chapter 6 through chapter 9 a little bit later 00:05:18.160 --> 00:05:20.920 today, and put your feet up and get a glass of 00:05:20.920 --> 00:05:24.329 iced tea. I'll give you... the highlights, and 00:05:24.329 --> 00:05:26.509 I'll narrate it because what I want you to catch 00:05:26.509 --> 00:05:31.189 is the big picture. Barrier number one, courageous 00:05:31.189 --> 00:05:34.310 steps that overcome this barrier. Our first barrier 00:05:34.310 --> 00:05:37.589 is our traditions. We open it up in Mark chapter 00:05:37.589 --> 00:05:40.870 seven. The context is they get out of the boat 00:05:40.870 --> 00:05:43.610 and now you need to know that things are swarming. 00:05:43.629 --> 00:05:45.350 Look at the very end of chapter six. If you have 00:05:45.350 --> 00:05:47.949 your Bible or iPad, whatever you're using, look 00:05:47.949 --> 00:05:50.360 at the very end of chapter six. Peter's walked 00:05:50.360 --> 00:05:52.980 on the water. He's now fallen in. They're in 00:05:52.980 --> 00:05:54.720 the boat. They get to shore. And when they get 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:57.279 to shore, notice this very carefully. People 00:05:57.279 --> 00:06:00.100 are running to villages and places all over. 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:03.019 And every single person who brings them to the 00:06:03.019 --> 00:06:05.899 marketplaces, anyone who touches Jesus, it says 00:06:05.899 --> 00:06:09.040 all of them are healed. Jesus is communicating, 00:06:09.339 --> 00:06:11.439 I am the good shepherd. He's doing these miracles 00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:14.600 to let people know, I want to help you. And physical 00:06:14.600 --> 00:06:17.439 healing is a way, you know, he lets them know. 00:06:17.850 --> 00:06:20.790 I'm here. I'm the healer. I love you. I'm for 00:06:20.790 --> 00:06:24.509 people. And so his popularity is mushrooming. 00:06:24.970 --> 00:06:26.949 And now the religious leaders are threatened, 00:06:27.089 --> 00:06:29.910 and so we pick up that story in chapter 7. The 00:06:29.910 --> 00:06:32.389 Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law 00:06:32.389 --> 00:06:34.449 who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, 00:06:34.550 --> 00:06:36.750 and they saw that some of his disciples were 00:06:36.750 --> 00:06:40.370 eating with hands that were not washed. The Pharisees 00:06:40.370 --> 00:06:43.509 and the Jews always washed their hands ceremonially. 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:46.399 When they came back from the market, before they 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:49.019 ate, in a special time. So this is not like wash 00:06:49.019 --> 00:06:52.379 your hands for germs. This was a spiritual issue. 00:06:52.459 --> 00:06:54.639 There was a tradition that, you know, when you 00:06:54.639 --> 00:06:56.300 went out into the market and you were around 00:06:56.300 --> 00:06:58.399 those Gentiles and all the evil in the world, 00:06:58.480 --> 00:07:01.879 you should clean yourself. Now you can scan the 00:07:01.879 --> 00:07:03.319 passage, but I'm going to tell you what's in 00:07:03.319 --> 00:07:05.199 it. Seven times the word tradition is there. 00:07:06.779 --> 00:07:08.660 The tradition of the elders, the tradition of 00:07:08.660 --> 00:07:10.680 the elders, the tradition of men. Tradition, 00:07:10.680 --> 00:07:13.120 tradition, tradition, tradition. And basically 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:15.899 what they say is, you know, you're not playing 00:07:15.899 --> 00:07:18.319 by the rules. And for years and years and years, 00:07:18.399 --> 00:07:20.579 we've been told we have these rules made by men. 00:07:20.740 --> 00:07:23.420 And Jesus says, your traditions nullify the truth 00:07:23.420 --> 00:07:25.660 of the word of God. And Isaiah was right. Look 00:07:25.660 --> 00:07:28.360 in the text. What's he say? Isaiah was right. 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:32.060 Your lips say one thing, but your hearts are 00:07:32.060 --> 00:07:34.980 far from me. And he said, you have your traditions. 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:37.920 And then he points out that you actually, the 00:07:37.920 --> 00:07:39.879 barrier of your tradition keeps you from obeying 00:07:39.879 --> 00:07:42.720 what God actually says. And so by that time, 00:07:42.740 --> 00:07:45.220 the Pharisees, who were very greedy, by the way, 00:07:45.259 --> 00:07:47.279 and very religious, so a lot of things haven't 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:50.639 changed, people were to support their parents 00:07:50.639 --> 00:07:54.920 in their old age, like we're supposed to. And 00:07:54.920 --> 00:07:56.680 what the Pharisees did is they came up with a 00:07:56.680 --> 00:07:59.480 new tradition. Just say the money is korban, 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:02.120 or dedicated to God, and so you would keep the 00:08:02.120 --> 00:08:05.240 money, and you wouldn't have to support your 00:08:05.240 --> 00:08:09.870 parents. And Jesus just rips them. And it says, 00:08:09.910 --> 00:08:12.290 your traditions made by men, your rules made 00:08:12.290 --> 00:08:15.449 by men, nullify the word of God. And then he 00:08:15.449 --> 00:08:17.550 says, you know, anything, no food is unclean. 00:08:17.569 --> 00:08:19.269 If you're thankful for it, it goes in you because 00:08:19.269 --> 00:08:21.250 everything you put in your mouth, it comes out 00:08:21.250 --> 00:08:23.170 of you eventually. He's pretty graphic here. 00:08:24.129 --> 00:08:26.329 He says, if you want to know what makes you unclean, 00:08:26.329 --> 00:08:28.509 it's what comes out of your mouth because that's 00:08:28.509 --> 00:08:33.509 what fills your heart. Greed, malice, envy, sexual 00:08:33.509 --> 00:08:38.789 immorality, using people, corruption. He said, 00:08:38.870 --> 00:08:42.230 it's the things in your heart. That's what separates 00:08:42.230 --> 00:08:46.370 you from God. And what all of us have is we have 00:08:46.370 --> 00:08:49.009 some baggage and traditions and rules that we 00:08:49.009 --> 00:08:52.529 have equated with scripture over time. And it's 00:08:52.529 --> 00:08:55.570 a barrier. It keeps you and keeps me from stepping 00:08:55.570 --> 00:08:59.210 out and being courageous. The fear of man, because 00:08:59.210 --> 00:09:01.230 people tell us, well, you have to do it this 00:09:01.230 --> 00:09:05.370 way all the time. I was getting interested in 00:09:05.370 --> 00:09:09.779 Teresa. She, many of you know, she was not a 00:09:09.779 --> 00:09:14.080 Christian, was married before. She would find 00:09:14.080 --> 00:09:15.820 out later that her husband was having an affair 00:09:15.820 --> 00:09:18.820 with another woman for about a year that she 00:09:18.820 --> 00:09:21.799 was unaware of. She got pregnant with twin boys, 00:09:21.899 --> 00:09:25.200 and when he found out that, he left with another 00:09:25.200 --> 00:09:28.460 state with another woman. She was, you know, 00:09:28.460 --> 00:09:33.679 absolutely just devastated, and her boss, a few 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:36.500 weeks later, led her to Christ. And after multiple 00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:40.019 attempts to contact him and bring restoration, 00:09:40.360 --> 00:09:43.139 a couple years later, there was nothing. And 00:09:43.139 --> 00:09:46.179 so she got a divorce and had two little boys. 00:09:46.320 --> 00:09:48.440 And I met her when the boys were just, she came 00:09:48.440 --> 00:09:50.600 in a Bible study. So two and a half, three years 00:09:50.600 --> 00:09:53.980 later. And so, you know, I certainly was attracted 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:57.000 to her, but a young woman with two kids was not 00:09:57.000 --> 00:09:59.580 on my radar. So I began to pray that God would 00:09:59.580 --> 00:10:03.169 give her a husband. Prayed for two years. And 00:10:03.169 --> 00:10:04.929 I just didn't have any idea that I would be, 00:10:04.929 --> 00:10:07.450 you know, like the answer. And it was really 00:10:07.450 --> 00:10:10.929 hard. Because at that point in time, I was a 00:10:10.929 --> 00:10:13.450 basketball coach and I was a teacher. And we 00:10:13.450 --> 00:10:15.169 were doing this college ministry. And then I 00:10:15.169 --> 00:10:17.730 got this like, oh, my gosh, God, you've got to 00:10:17.730 --> 00:10:20.649 be kidding. You want me to be like a pastor or 00:10:20.649 --> 00:10:23.750 a missionary or something? And little by little, 00:10:23.970 --> 00:10:26.610 Teresa became one of the most godly women I'd 00:10:26.610 --> 00:10:29.950 ever met. And I got to know those kids. And God 00:10:29.950 --> 00:10:33.879 said, okay, I want you to. This is my plan. Well, 00:10:33.940 --> 00:10:35.519 you know, I checked with my parents and had their 00:10:35.519 --> 00:10:40.840 support. But in that day, as is important, you 00:10:40.840 --> 00:10:43.139 know, divorce is not like for any reason, any 00:10:43.139 --> 00:10:45.659 time, any way. God hates divorce. He wants us 00:10:45.659 --> 00:10:48.500 to be together. But when you're abandoned by 00:10:48.500 --> 00:10:53.320 an unbeliever or on grounds of infidelity, God 00:10:53.320 --> 00:10:56.039 provides measures for people who are the victim. 00:10:57.019 --> 00:10:59.639 But I had a spiritual leader that we have now 00:10:59.639 --> 00:11:01.899 reconciled all this, but he told me, I don't 00:11:01.899 --> 00:11:04.200 believe in divorce. He said, if my wife died, 00:11:04.419 --> 00:11:06.240 I would still not remarry. You get one shot, 00:11:06.399 --> 00:11:08.980 one person. And I'd been around my spiritual 00:11:08.980 --> 00:11:11.840 leader in this group for about seven years. And 00:11:11.840 --> 00:11:14.840 I mean, the tradition of this group was, that's 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:19.149 the way it is. And I remember agonizing. We fasted 00:11:19.149 --> 00:11:21.389 and prayed and prayed and fasted. And oh God, 00:11:21.490 --> 00:11:23.710 I read every book on the subject. I looked at 00:11:23.710 --> 00:11:26.350 every verse. And it was real clear what the Bible 00:11:26.350 --> 00:11:29.309 said is, you know, she's an unbeliever. She's 00:11:29.309 --> 00:11:32.370 abandoned by an unbeliever. It was immorality. 00:11:33.549 --> 00:11:35.629 Here's what the Bible says, but this group's 00:11:35.629 --> 00:11:38.870 tradition. And so this man's wife went out for 00:11:38.870 --> 00:11:42.330 coffee with my wife and said, if you marry Chip, 00:11:42.470 --> 00:11:45.090 you'll destroy his life. God has his hand. on 00:11:45.090 --> 00:11:47.350 Chip's life, and he'll never use Chip's life 00:11:47.350 --> 00:11:50.669 if you all get married. It's a lot of pressure. 00:11:51.409 --> 00:11:53.929 And I agonized, and I just realized one day, 00:11:53.990 --> 00:11:55.549 you know, I'm going to give an account for my 00:11:55.549 --> 00:11:58.669 life before the judgment seat of Christ. And 00:11:58.669 --> 00:12:00.990 it was a real breakthrough for me because that 00:12:00.990 --> 00:12:03.590 was the beginning of a series of decisions that 00:12:03.590 --> 00:12:07.070 said, what other people think can't dictate what 00:12:07.070 --> 00:12:10.490 I do? The fear of man is a snare, but blessed 00:12:10.490 --> 00:12:13.230 is he who trusts in the Lord. It's Proverbs 29, 00:12:13.409 --> 00:12:16.580 25. And you know, there's some of you that you 00:12:16.580 --> 00:12:19.019 know exactly what you ought to do and you don't 00:12:19.019 --> 00:12:22.539 do it because of your tradition. You have a history, 00:12:22.580 --> 00:12:24.620 as I've talked with one guy recently, you have 00:12:24.620 --> 00:12:26.779 a history that, you know, your great -great -grandfather, 00:12:26.820 --> 00:12:28.659 grandfather, grandfather, they're Buddhist or 00:12:28.659 --> 00:12:31.899 they're Hindu or they're moderate Muslims. Or, 00:12:32.000 --> 00:12:33.779 you know, God has been speaking to you and you 00:12:33.779 --> 00:12:35.480 know that, you know, you're walking with him 00:12:35.480 --> 00:12:37.299 now and you need to go public with your faith 00:12:37.299 --> 00:12:39.340 and you really haven't. But it's, you know, I 00:12:39.340 --> 00:12:41.120 don't want to do that because, you know, my family 00:12:41.120 --> 00:12:42.820 or my parents, you know, they think that, you 00:12:42.820 --> 00:12:45.460 know, I got baptized as a kid, even though I 00:12:45.460 --> 00:12:47.500 wasn't a Christian. And God's speaking to me, 00:12:47.539 --> 00:12:49.320 but I just don't want the hassle. My mom, my 00:12:49.320 --> 00:12:52.019 dad, it'll offend them. You know, for others, 00:12:52.059 --> 00:12:54.139 it's just, you know, the tradition. You know, 00:12:54.159 --> 00:12:56.220 my faith is really private. And, you know, I 00:12:56.220 --> 00:12:57.759 don't want to go too public with that. I don't 00:12:57.759 --> 00:12:59.179 want to be fanatical. And that's sort of part 00:12:59.179 --> 00:13:00.659 of the tradition in our family. We really love 00:13:00.659 --> 00:13:02.879 God, but we're not real public about it. And 00:13:02.879 --> 00:13:05.299 God says, go into all the world, share the gospel. 00:13:05.379 --> 00:13:08.139 I love people, and you're my agent. And that 00:13:08.139 --> 00:13:11.200 tradition holds you back. Jesus said, you want 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:14.840 courage? You want to believe? Then look at some 00:13:14.840 --> 00:13:17.549 of the man -made rules. The second one, he says, 00:13:17.590 --> 00:13:20.190 there's a barrier of our unworthiness. Right 00:13:20.190 --> 00:13:22.509 after this, it's interesting, the issue was whether 00:13:22.509 --> 00:13:25.269 you're unclean. And right after this, Jesus is 00:13:25.269 --> 00:13:27.990 trying to get a little R &R, if you will. I mean, 00:13:28.049 --> 00:13:31.429 he's been bombarded by all these people. All 00:13:31.429 --> 00:13:33.870 of them, they want his time, they want his energy. 00:13:34.149 --> 00:13:37.009 And so he gets away, verse 24, Jesus left that 00:13:37.009 --> 00:13:39.549 place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered 00:13:39.549 --> 00:13:43.950 a house and didn't want anyone to know it. Yet, 00:13:45.450 --> 00:13:48.090 He could not keep his presence secret. In fact, 00:13:48.090 --> 00:13:51.850 as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose 00:13:51.850 --> 00:13:54.330 little girl was possessed by an evil spirit came, 00:13:54.509 --> 00:13:59.590 fell on her face, and she begged him to heal 00:13:59.590 --> 00:14:03.450 his little girl. And so this is a woman the author 00:14:03.450 --> 00:14:06.370 wants to note. She's a Gentile, Greek origin. 00:14:06.490 --> 00:14:10.549 She's a woman. She breaks in. She's uninvited. 00:14:10.549 --> 00:14:13.129 She does everything wrong, but she's passionate. 00:14:15.139 --> 00:14:17.419 And the conversation goes, as you read a little 00:14:17.419 --> 00:14:19.539 bit later, and he says, look, I came for the 00:14:19.539 --> 00:14:23.139 house of Israel, the Jewish nation. And the Gentiles 00:14:23.139 --> 00:14:25.740 were called dogs in that day in a slang term. 00:14:25.899 --> 00:14:28.299 And Jesus, I think, testing her says, you know, 00:14:28.320 --> 00:14:30.919 I came for the children and not for the dogs. 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:35.200 And her answer of faith was, even the dogs, after 00:14:35.200 --> 00:14:37.039 the children eat, get to come in and get the 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:39.820 crumbles under the table. And basically what 00:14:39.820 --> 00:14:41.480 she's saying is, you know what, I believe in 00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:44.340 you and I don't have any hope, but I don't care 00:14:44.340 --> 00:14:47.340 what anyone says. I don't care. I'm coming and 00:14:47.340 --> 00:14:50.639 I need your hand. And then the text says, daughter, 00:14:50.820 --> 00:14:54.759 go home. You've answered well. Your faith, your 00:14:54.759 --> 00:14:59.600 daughter's well. But you know, if I was one of 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:01.879 those disciples, I would say that woman is unworthy. 00:15:03.370 --> 00:15:06.210 I mean, number one, I mean, culturally and she's 00:15:06.210 --> 00:15:09.649 not a Jew. I mean, she rolls herself on the floor 00:15:09.649 --> 00:15:14.110 and she begs. And you know, for some of us, you 00:15:14.110 --> 00:15:16.809 have this little lie. Yeah, I think this is probably 00:15:16.809 --> 00:15:20.690 true. Well, for Chip or maybe a pastor or missionary 00:15:20.690 --> 00:15:23.669 or, you know, some Christian you think is really 00:15:23.669 --> 00:15:25.769 hot stuff and really lives a life. Yeah, I bet 00:15:25.769 --> 00:15:29.289 God does that, but not for me. And so, you know 00:15:29.289 --> 00:15:31.269 what? You don't take any step out. You know why? 00:15:31.330 --> 00:15:33.620 Your fear of disappointment. I'm afraid if I 00:15:33.620 --> 00:15:40.600 take a step out and I'm unworthy. God, he wouldn't 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:43.519 do for me what he does for some other people. 00:15:43.580 --> 00:15:48.080 And so Jesus very clearly says, you know something? 00:15:48.240 --> 00:15:52.740 I love impartially. I'm for you. Do you believe? 00:15:54.379 --> 00:15:57.100 You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip 00:15:57.100 --> 00:15:59.720 Ingram. We'll hear more from Chip in just a moment. 00:16:00.009 --> 00:16:02.269 If you've missed any part of this message or 00:16:02.269 --> 00:16:04.210 if you'd like to share it with a friend, you 00:16:04.210 --> 00:16:07.710 can find it anytime online at livingontheedge 00:16:07.710 --> 00:16:11.029 .org. And while you're there, you'll also discover 00:16:11.029 --> 00:16:14.009 a full library of Chip's teaching series, small 00:16:14.009 --> 00:16:16.870 group resources, and practical tools to help 00:16:16.870 --> 00:16:19.250 you grow in your faith. It's all waiting for 00:16:19.250 --> 00:16:23.330 you at livingontheedge .org. Now let's get back 00:16:23.330 --> 00:16:26.450 to today's message. The third barrier is the 00:16:26.450 --> 00:16:29.720 barrier of our deafness. Right after this, we 00:16:29.720 --> 00:16:32.759 read that a group of people come and they have 00:16:32.759 --> 00:16:35.879 a friend who's deaf and mute. And they bring 00:16:35.879 --> 00:16:38.720 him to Jesus. Look at your text. They beg him. 00:16:38.759 --> 00:16:40.940 Notice the pattern. The people at the end of 00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:42.740 chapter 6, they brought their friends and they 00:16:42.740 --> 00:16:45.220 begged Jesus to heal. The woman comes and she 00:16:45.220 --> 00:16:47.799 begs for her daughter. And now they come and 00:16:47.799 --> 00:16:50.200 they beg for their friend. He can't hear and 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:53.320 he's a mute. And so Jesus takes him aside out 00:16:53.320 --> 00:16:57.509 from the crowd. He heals him. Some of us, you 00:16:57.509 --> 00:17:01.409 can't hear from God. You think, you know, I would 00:17:01.409 --> 00:17:03.450 take a step of faith or I would have a breakthrough, 00:17:03.610 --> 00:17:06.549 but you know what? I'm afraid because God doesn't 00:17:06.549 --> 00:17:09.049 speak to me the way he speaks to other people. 00:17:09.170 --> 00:17:11.190 I don't want to go public with what I really 00:17:11.190 --> 00:17:13.289 believe and why because people will ask me questions 00:17:13.289 --> 00:17:17.250 and I don't know how to answer them. You think 00:17:17.250 --> 00:17:19.450 you're deaf. You think there's some special thing 00:17:19.450 --> 00:17:21.990 that other people know about this book. And every 00:17:21.990 --> 00:17:25.900 single day, this book... That God speaks to ordinary 00:17:25.900 --> 00:17:28.640 people is available, and the great majority of 00:17:28.640 --> 00:17:31.119 Christians never open it. They depend on people 00:17:31.119 --> 00:17:34.019 like me to, you know, give you 30 or 40 or 50 00:17:34.019 --> 00:17:35.700 minutes of a little bit of truth, and then you're 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:37.920 on this journey of trying hard to be a good person. 00:17:38.160 --> 00:17:41.359 Totally missed the point. The living God who 00:17:41.359 --> 00:17:46.589 created the world says, this word is alive. and 00:17:46.589 --> 00:17:50.470 I'll speak to you about you and about me, and 00:17:50.470 --> 00:17:52.490 I will give you promises, and I'll give you direction, 00:17:52.670 --> 00:17:54.170 and I'll show you what to do with one of those 00:17:54.170 --> 00:17:56.730 kids and work, and what to do when you're single, 00:17:56.890 --> 00:17:58.710 and what to do when you're depressed, and what 00:17:58.710 --> 00:18:00.509 you do when you're struggling, and what to do 00:18:00.509 --> 00:18:02.869 at work, and when and how to do what, but you've 00:18:02.869 --> 00:18:06.589 got to listen to me. Because see, faith comes 00:18:06.589 --> 00:18:09.869 by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. And 00:18:09.869 --> 00:18:12.190 he's saying to his disciples, because the goal 00:18:12.190 --> 00:18:14.210 of all these things, as the author writes this, 00:18:14.940 --> 00:18:16.980 The real goal is not just to help these people. 00:18:17.140 --> 00:18:19.500 These disciples are going to get the ball and 00:18:19.500 --> 00:18:21.019 the mission to take it to the world, and they 00:18:21.019 --> 00:18:23.559 did, or we wouldn't be here. He wants them to 00:18:23.559 --> 00:18:26.299 learn. He wants them to learn. You know what? 00:18:26.779 --> 00:18:29.140 No one is unworthy, no matter what you think. 00:18:29.299 --> 00:18:32.359 He wants them to learn. I'll speak, I'll speak, 00:18:32.460 --> 00:18:34.660 and I'll open people so they can then, after 00:18:34.660 --> 00:18:38.160 hearing, they can speak. And then we get the 00:18:38.160 --> 00:18:41.819 fourth barrier. It's not just our deafness, but 00:18:41.819 --> 00:18:44.809 it's our lack of resources. How many of us said, 00:18:44.849 --> 00:18:46.690 you know, I would really do that. You know, I'd 00:18:46.690 --> 00:18:48.109 like to go on a missions trip, but, you know, 00:18:48.130 --> 00:18:49.670 if I take the time off, I don't have the money. 00:18:49.769 --> 00:18:51.930 Or, you know, I see that that's a really big 00:18:51.930 --> 00:18:55.089 need, and I would love to help people, but, you 00:18:55.089 --> 00:18:58.210 know, I don't have that kind of money. And so 00:18:58.210 --> 00:19:00.769 we saw the feeding of the 5 ,000 in the Jewish 00:19:00.769 --> 00:19:03.329 arena. Now we have the feeding of the 4 ,000, 00:19:03.369 --> 00:19:05.990 but it's a Gentile audience. It opens up in chapter 00:19:05.990 --> 00:19:08.390 8. During those days, another large crowd gathered, 00:19:08.490 --> 00:19:10.549 and since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called 00:19:10.549 --> 00:19:15.089 his disciples to him and said, Are you getting 00:19:15.089 --> 00:19:18.769 this? I have compassion. The word is splachna. 00:19:19.829 --> 00:19:24.109 It comes from down deep in your gut. It's visceral. 00:19:24.390 --> 00:19:29.750 Jesus sees the needs of people. Gentile, Jew, 00:19:30.170 --> 00:19:34.630 hurting, moral, immoral. Jesus sees the needs 00:19:34.630 --> 00:19:37.569 and something deep inside of him because of who 00:19:37.569 --> 00:19:41.809 he is as God. He just cares. And compassion is 00:19:41.809 --> 00:19:44.230 not sympathy. It's not like I feel for them. 00:19:44.710 --> 00:19:47.990 Compassion in scripture 100 % of the time leads 00:19:47.990 --> 00:19:51.410 to action that actually helps people. And so 00:19:51.410 --> 00:19:53.289 he says, I have compassion for them. They've 00:19:53.289 --> 00:19:56.049 been with me three days. It's like a rock concert 00:19:56.049 --> 00:19:59.809 except different. It's like three full days and 00:19:59.809 --> 00:20:02.750 they're hearing him teach. But there's no porta 00:20:02.750 --> 00:20:06.579 potties. There's no food. And he says, The three 00:20:06.579 --> 00:20:08.920 -day seminar is over, and I'm going to send them 00:20:08.920 --> 00:20:11.319 home, and many of them haven't eaten. They're 00:20:11.319 --> 00:20:13.640 going to faint along the way. Notice he doesn't 00:20:13.640 --> 00:20:15.579 say to the disciples, he doesn't say, you feed 00:20:15.579 --> 00:20:19.579 them. He just presents the issue. He just presents, 00:20:19.660 --> 00:20:22.839 you know, here's people that have a need. We 00:20:22.839 --> 00:20:27.740 ought to do something. And, you know, I can just 00:20:27.740 --> 00:20:32.279 hear Peter to John. You know, he did it once. 00:20:32.319 --> 00:20:34.759 You think he can do it again? What are we going 00:20:34.759 --> 00:20:37.430 to do? And they go back to the same old thing 00:20:37.430 --> 00:20:39.109 and they don't know what are they going to do. 00:20:39.190 --> 00:20:42.250 And of course, they bring what they do have because 00:20:42.250 --> 00:20:44.210 that's what God wants. The breakthrough comes 00:20:44.210 --> 00:20:46.650 not when you have it all figured out, not when 00:20:46.650 --> 00:20:48.609 if I do this, this, and this, not when everything 00:20:48.609 --> 00:20:50.569 gets lined out, then I'm going to do it. You 00:20:50.569 --> 00:20:54.210 bring what you do have to the supernatural power 00:20:54.210 --> 00:20:56.769 of the living God who lives inside of you as 00:20:56.769 --> 00:20:59.069 a follower of Christ. And you say, I'm going 00:20:59.069 --> 00:21:01.109 to courageously step out because I believe you'll 00:21:01.109 --> 00:21:06.089 provide. And so 4 ,000 people get fed, and then 00:21:06.089 --> 00:21:08.049 the disciples get clean up duty again, and guess 00:21:08.049 --> 00:21:10.849 what happens? There's seven baskets this time. 00:21:11.089 --> 00:21:13.650 Because for the Gentile or the Greek world, the 00:21:13.650 --> 00:21:16.069 word seven is a perfect number, and they pick 00:21:16.069 --> 00:21:17.990 it up, and it's not lost on the disciples, and 00:21:17.990 --> 00:21:20.589 they're realizing he's not just the Messiah for 00:21:20.589 --> 00:21:23.349 the nation of Israel. He's a light to the Gentiles. 00:21:23.349 --> 00:21:26.710 Jesus came to save and to forgive all people, 00:21:26.789 --> 00:21:31.740 and he'll provide. I wonder how many times those 00:21:31.740 --> 00:21:36.140 of us, God shows us a need. Need at a local school. 00:21:36.440 --> 00:21:39.559 A need with an unwed mother. A need with sex 00:21:39.559 --> 00:21:42.039 trafficking. A need with some people that can't 00:21:42.039 --> 00:21:44.400 make their house payment. A need with some people, 00:21:44.460 --> 00:21:47.019 and we say, you know, God, I would really help 00:21:47.019 --> 00:21:49.819 out, but I don't have the resources. What's God 00:21:49.819 --> 00:21:54.140 saying? Courage is the catalyst to breakthrough. 00:21:54.539 --> 00:21:57.759 Take what you do have. Take a step and start 00:21:57.759 --> 00:22:00.400 meeting some need. And then what you see, God 00:22:00.400 --> 00:22:03.759 will show up. He'll draw other people. I mean, 00:22:03.779 --> 00:22:05.819 all those great stories we have of miraculous 00:22:05.819 --> 00:22:07.920 things that happen, they don't happen to people 00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:09.740 that are waiting for God to line everything up. 00:22:09.839 --> 00:22:12.640 They happen to people who step out and often 00:22:12.640 --> 00:22:15.779 don't know how it's going to work. In fact, that's 00:22:15.779 --> 00:22:19.259 part of making room. I meet with old and young 00:22:19.259 --> 00:22:21.980 people and get talking. And after a while, for 00:22:21.980 --> 00:22:23.599 whatever reason, people sort of get honest with 00:22:23.599 --> 00:22:25.900 me, which I really like. And I've met a lot of 00:22:25.900 --> 00:22:27.980 older people who are living together who are 00:22:27.980 --> 00:22:30.099 not married and basically tell me things like, 00:22:30.160 --> 00:22:32.539 you know, we know this really isn't right. We 00:22:32.539 --> 00:22:34.119 can't believe that, you know, this is how we're 00:22:34.119 --> 00:22:36.839 living. But if we get married, we only get one 00:22:36.839 --> 00:22:39.819 social security check. And so, you know, it's 00:22:39.819 --> 00:22:42.079 just a sheet of paper, you know, and God understands, 00:22:42.400 --> 00:22:44.839 really. You know what they're really saying? 00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:47.460 The God who created the universe and has the 00:22:47.460 --> 00:22:50.039 power to raise the dead and take care of everything 00:22:50.039 --> 00:22:52.940 for them, he just doesn't have the power to provide 00:22:52.940 --> 00:22:56.220 for what they need each month. I talked to another 00:22:56.220 --> 00:22:58.500 guy recently who was telling me about, he works 00:22:58.500 --> 00:23:01.660 in a tough area, and the only way that, from 00:23:01.660 --> 00:23:03.500 his mind, you can make it in this tough area, 00:23:03.559 --> 00:23:06.000 in this tough economy, is that he pays some people 00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:08.400 checks and some people cash so he doesn't have 00:23:08.400 --> 00:23:12.680 to report. And he casually turns to me, and we're 00:23:12.680 --> 00:23:15.240 good buddies, and I like him a lot. And I think 00:23:15.240 --> 00:23:17.720 he was sort of maybe looking for a pass. You 00:23:17.720 --> 00:23:19.460 know, in this day and age, the only way you can 00:23:19.460 --> 00:23:20.779 do it, you know, the government's ripping us 00:23:20.779 --> 00:23:22.519 off for all this, and I'd have to pay this, this, 00:23:22.619 --> 00:23:25.000 this, and this, and, you know. So I got to pay 00:23:25.000 --> 00:23:27.259 him cash because the worker's comp alone would 00:23:27.259 --> 00:23:31.180 be XX dollars. Now, do I agree with necessarily 00:23:31.180 --> 00:23:32.980 how much you have to pay as a business owner 00:23:32.980 --> 00:23:36.720 and all the rest? That's not the point. But you 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:38.680 can trust God. You're telling me I can trust 00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:43.079 God to forgive my sins, rise from the dead, create 00:23:43.079 --> 00:23:46.119 a heaven, and create the world. But if I'm honest 00:23:46.119 --> 00:23:48.900 about my taxes, there's no way he could give 00:23:48.900 --> 00:23:52.299 me more business and take care of that. Do you 00:23:52.299 --> 00:23:55.359 understand? God is on the edge of his throne 00:23:55.359 --> 00:23:57.740 and he wants a breakthrough to happen for you. 00:23:57.839 --> 00:24:00.359 And you're basically saying, I'm not taking a 00:24:00.359 --> 00:24:02.759 step because I don't think he'll provide. And 00:24:02.759 --> 00:24:06.880 your financial worldview has you living in a 00:24:06.880 --> 00:24:08.859 situation where you don't experience God's power. 00:24:09.500 --> 00:24:11.339 You don't experience answers to prayer. You know 00:24:11.339 --> 00:24:14.059 what? God doesn't play games. He doesn't provide 00:24:14.059 --> 00:24:16.480 breakthroughs over here when he says, now this 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:18.299 is true and right and this is what I want you 00:24:18.299 --> 00:24:20.900 to do. And you say, well, thanks. I take that 00:24:20.900 --> 00:24:23.160 as a really good opinion and I'll consider doing 00:24:23.160 --> 00:24:27.859 that. That's not how it works. Obedience is a 00:24:27.859 --> 00:24:30.680 channel through which blessing flows. The fifth 00:24:30.680 --> 00:24:34.640 is blindness. After he gives a little reproof 00:24:34.640 --> 00:24:37.849 to... The Pharisees and to the disciples. I'll 00:24:37.849 --> 00:24:41.430 come back and touch that in verses 8, 11 through 00:24:41.430 --> 00:24:47.930 21. He's going to heal a blind person. They came 00:24:47.930 --> 00:24:50.630 to Bethesda and some people brought a blind man. 00:24:51.130 --> 00:24:53.769 Are you getting a pattern here? Begged Jesus 00:24:53.769 --> 00:24:56.769 to touch him. And he took him off to the side 00:24:56.769 --> 00:24:59.250 and he put his hands on the man's eyes. And he 00:24:59.250 --> 00:25:02.109 says, do you see? And the man says, I see people 00:25:02.109 --> 00:25:03.650 who look like trees walking around. In other 00:25:03.650 --> 00:25:07.539 words, he prays. And he gets partial sight, and 00:25:07.539 --> 00:25:09.759 he sees things, but it's blurry. And then he 00:25:09.759 --> 00:25:11.839 prays for him again, and then he sees everything 00:25:11.839 --> 00:25:16.539 clearly. You have to understand the literary 00:25:16.539 --> 00:25:19.720 genius and why Jesus does what he does, not only 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:23.339 for the disciples, but for us. Because just like 00:25:23.339 --> 00:25:27.640 there was an actual deaf man, the disciples can't 00:25:27.640 --> 00:25:31.559 hear God. I mean, the disciples see the miracles, 00:25:31.640 --> 00:25:34.660 but they don't understand. And so sandwiched 00:25:34.660 --> 00:25:37.400 in between these barriers, Jesus is going to 00:25:37.400 --> 00:25:40.200 have a little talk with his disciples. And he's 00:25:40.200 --> 00:25:45.200 going to say, I've shown you miraculously hearing 00:25:45.200 --> 00:25:51.420 and seeing, and you can trust me. And yet, they 00:25:51.420 --> 00:25:54.079 don't get it. In fact, notice the two groups 00:25:54.079 --> 00:25:56.059 that don't get it. Skip back up now to verse 00:25:56.059 --> 00:26:00.220 11. The Pharisees came and began to question 00:26:00.220 --> 00:26:02.079 him. All these miracles are happening, right? 00:26:02.920 --> 00:26:05.740 I mean, traditions are blown out of the water. 00:26:05.839 --> 00:26:08.339 This unworthy woman comes. This deaf man can 00:26:08.339 --> 00:26:11.119 hear, you know, 4 ,000 people. And I mean, there's 00:26:11.119 --> 00:26:13.859 a buzz. And so the Pharisees come and they're 00:26:13.859 --> 00:26:16.240 thinking, this is really getting out of hand. 00:26:16.859 --> 00:26:19.660 Allah, we're losing control. He's getting way 00:26:19.660 --> 00:26:22.910 too famous. And so they come not to hear, not 00:26:22.910 --> 00:26:25.430 to learn, not to grow. What's it say? They came 00:26:25.430 --> 00:26:27.670 to test him and they asked him for a sign from 00:26:27.670 --> 00:26:33.910 heaven. And he sighed deeply. Why does this generation 00:26:33.910 --> 00:26:36.150 ask for miraculous signs? I tell you the truth, 00:26:36.190 --> 00:26:38.950 no sign will be given. And then he left them 00:26:38.950 --> 00:26:43.269 and got into the boat. See, here's people that 00:26:43.269 --> 00:26:46.680 really think they've got it wired. And this is 00:26:46.680 --> 00:26:48.839 how we do with God sometimes. You know what? 00:26:48.859 --> 00:26:51.059 I'm kind of hearing this stuff, God. When you 00:26:51.059 --> 00:26:53.420 restore my marriage, get me a good job, I get 00:26:53.420 --> 00:26:55.500 my house back, and my kid's life turns around, 00:26:55.640 --> 00:26:57.660 and by the way, I've had this chronic pain, take 00:26:57.660 --> 00:26:59.880 care of that too. When you do all that, then 00:26:59.880 --> 00:27:03.680 I think I'll believe. Let me tell you Jesus' 00:27:03.839 --> 00:27:09.059 response. He sighs deeply and says, you know, 00:27:09.140 --> 00:27:14.339 faith isn't you seeing all the things and then, 00:27:15.759 --> 00:27:19.299 Faith is choosing to step out of the boat when 00:27:19.299 --> 00:27:21.619 you feel afraid in believing what I've said. 00:27:24.339 --> 00:27:27.460 This is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and 00:27:27.460 --> 00:27:30.559 a message titled Courage, the Catalyst to Breakthrough. 00:27:30.980 --> 00:27:33.319 Chip has one more teaching point to share in 00:27:33.319 --> 00:27:36.240 just a moment, so don't go away. As you think 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:38.359 about which barrier might be holding you back, 00:27:38.559 --> 00:27:40.900 let me tell you about a powerful resource that 00:27:40.900 --> 00:27:43.779 can help. It's Chip's free 10 -day devotional 00:27:43.779 --> 00:27:47.180 called Psalms of Hope. Each day, Chip teaches 00:27:47.180 --> 00:27:50.000 for 10 minutes from Psalms. Then you spend 10 00:27:50.000 --> 00:27:52.500 minutes alone with God, letting His Word sink 00:27:52.500 --> 00:27:56.460 deep. Just 20 minutes a day for 10 days. These 00:27:56.460 --> 00:27:59.019 devotionals address the very issues we've been 00:27:59.019 --> 00:28:01.859 discussing. How to stay close to God, how to 00:28:01.859 --> 00:28:04.200 hear His voice, and how to trust His provision. 00:28:04.779 --> 00:28:08.700 Get started today at livingontheedge .org. Search 00:28:08.700 --> 00:28:12.680 for Psalms of Hope and begin your journey. Resources 00:28:12.680 --> 00:28:15.140 like this are made possible by faithful friends 00:28:15.140 --> 00:28:17.339 who believe in what God is doing through this 00:28:17.339 --> 00:28:19.500 ministry. Now, if you'd like to support this 00:28:19.500 --> 00:28:23.599 work, give online at livingontheedge .org or 00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:26.819 send your gift to Living on the Edge, P .O. Box 00:28:26.819 --> 00:28:32.420 3007, Atlanta, Georgia, 30024. You can also call 00:28:32.420 --> 00:28:38.119 us at 888 -333 -6003. Well, now here's Chip with 00:28:38.119 --> 00:28:41.180 a closing point for today's message. As we wrap 00:28:41.180 --> 00:28:44.400 up today, I think to boil it all down, maybe 00:28:44.400 --> 00:28:48.140 the easiest way to say it is this. A lot of things 00:28:48.140 --> 00:28:51.859 get in the way of breakthrough. So it's understanding 00:28:51.859 --> 00:28:55.680 those barriers. It's realizing that we have to 00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:58.640 overcome them. Breakthroughs mean that you have 00:28:58.640 --> 00:29:00.880 to get out of, you have to get through certain 00:29:00.880 --> 00:29:03.460 things. And of course, that's where it requires 00:29:03.460 --> 00:29:06.509 courage. And let me give you a picture of how 00:29:06.509 --> 00:29:09.890 Breakthrough works. It was in my lowest moment 00:29:09.890 --> 00:29:13.109 of the COVID virus. All of us have had probably 00:29:13.109 --> 00:29:15.769 a couple days or a lot more where I thought, 00:29:15.789 --> 00:29:18.150 boy, my mental health is bad. I'm thinking not 00:29:18.150 --> 00:29:20.950 good thoughts. I'm angry inside. I'm resentful. 00:29:21.230 --> 00:29:23.369 And in the midst of all that, it was, okay, God, 00:29:23.529 --> 00:29:26.369 I just can't do this anymore. And the Lord said, 00:29:26.470 --> 00:29:28.549 well, why don't you think of some people that 00:29:28.549 --> 00:29:31.150 have a more difficult situation, get your focus 00:29:31.150 --> 00:29:33.819 off yourself and help them. And, you know, I 00:29:33.819 --> 00:29:35.400 was praying for a breakthrough. I was praying 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:37.980 for, oh, God, help me. And so to make a very 00:29:37.980 --> 00:29:41.900 long story short, I knew that things were really 00:29:41.900 --> 00:29:44.960 challenging in the Middle East. I scheduled a 00:29:44.960 --> 00:29:47.740 Zoom call with the head of all the churches in 00:29:47.740 --> 00:29:50.140 Egypt who has become a friend. I asked him how 00:29:50.140 --> 00:29:54.559 he's doing, and he just said, Chip, we feel like 00:29:54.559 --> 00:29:56.380 the government is doing a great job, but the 00:29:56.380 --> 00:30:00.380 pastors are barely surviving. And in the course 00:30:00.380 --> 00:30:03.799 of the conversation, I said, you know, I've actually 00:30:03.799 --> 00:30:06.700 been sort of pondering a little series on the 00:30:06.700 --> 00:30:08.799 art of survival. And he goes, oh, send it to 00:30:08.799 --> 00:30:10.400 me. I said, no, no, no, I'm just pondering it. 00:30:10.420 --> 00:30:12.720 I haven't even written it yet. I haven't filmed 00:30:12.720 --> 00:30:14.579 it yet. And he goes, well, when can you get it 00:30:14.579 --> 00:30:17.789 done? And I, out of sheer obedience, when I didn't 00:30:17.789 --> 00:30:20.650 feel like it, I call someone to encourage him. 00:30:20.829 --> 00:30:23.549 And as he said that, it was like a light went 00:30:23.549 --> 00:30:26.250 on inside of me. I got in an empty room. I looked 00:30:26.250 --> 00:30:29.549 into a camera and I did all three messages. We 00:30:29.549 --> 00:30:31.970 put a webinar together with all those people 00:30:31.970 --> 00:30:34.609 from all those churches. It got translated. Then 00:30:34.609 --> 00:30:36.829 we put it in print and gave it to them. And I 00:30:36.829 --> 00:30:39.980 thought, oh, my lands, what a breakthrough. And 00:30:39.980 --> 00:30:42.059 then the head of international said, no, Chip, 00:30:42.160 --> 00:30:44.440 you don't get. That's the beginning. And then 00:30:44.440 --> 00:30:47.579 it was 300 cities in India. Then it was across 00:30:47.579 --> 00:30:50.880 Africa. Then it was Latin America. Not because 00:30:50.880 --> 00:30:53.880 I was smart, not because I had a great vision. 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:56.799 It's because I got to the very end of myself 00:30:56.799 --> 00:31:01.400 and in my desperation, God took my weakness and 00:31:01.400 --> 00:31:04.759 he displayed his power. And that's what he wants 00:31:04.759 --> 00:31:08.359 to do in you. Could I encourage you, just right 00:31:08.359 --> 00:31:11.359 now, unless you're driving, shut your eyes and 00:31:11.359 --> 00:31:14.019 open your hands with empty palms and say, God, 00:31:14.039 --> 00:31:16.500 I'm at the end of me. And with the positioning 00:31:16.500 --> 00:31:19.059 that I will do whatever you say, and you sit 00:31:19.059 --> 00:31:22.819 quietly. And as you listen to the Spirit of God, 00:31:23.000 --> 00:31:26.240 just obey. That's where you'll find breakthrough 00:31:26.240 --> 00:31:30.299 and power. Now, by His grace, go do it. What's 00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:32.799 the secret to overcoming fear and stepping into 00:31:32.799 --> 00:31:35.680 courage? I'm Dave Drewy, inviting you to find 00:31:35.680 --> 00:31:42.319 out Monday on Living on the Edge. Today's program 00:31:42.319 --> 00:31:45.180 is produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge.