WEBVTT 00:00:11.470 --> 00:00:14.169 Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:14.269 --> 00:00:16.929 Do you want to change? I mean, do you want to 00:00:16.929 --> 00:00:19.589 do life differently, but you just can't seem 00:00:19.589 --> 00:00:21.809 to make it stick? Well, here's what you need 00:00:21.809 --> 00:00:24.609 to know. There's a way to experience real and 00:00:24.609 --> 00:00:28.010 lasting life change, and it isn't about trying 00:00:28.010 --> 00:00:32.189 harder. It's about a completely new way of thinking. 00:00:32.570 --> 00:00:35.710 Today, we're going to talk about how this process 00:00:35.710 --> 00:00:40.859 can begin in your life. Stay with me. How do 00:00:40.859 --> 00:00:44.159 you actually change lifelong patterns? Workaholism? 00:00:44.259 --> 00:00:47.520 People -pleasing? Insecurity? For years, you've 00:00:47.520 --> 00:00:50.560 tried harder and mustered willpower, but nothing 00:00:50.560 --> 00:00:53.780 sticks. Today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram 00:00:53.780 --> 00:00:56.780 reveals why trying harder never works and what 00:00:56.780 --> 00:00:59.640 actually does. He'll share his own battle with 00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:02.179 these issues and the specific tools that brought 00:01:02.179 --> 00:01:05.200 real transformation. From hearing and reading 00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:08.060 God's Word to memorizing and meditating on Scripture, 00:01:08.299 --> 00:01:10.959 you'll discover practical methods for renewing 00:01:10.959 --> 00:01:13.980 your mind. Now let's join Chip Ingram for a very 00:01:13.980 --> 00:01:16.780 important message titled, How to Get God's Best 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:20.319 for Your Life. Here's what Romans 12 .1 said, 00:01:20.680 --> 00:01:22.879 Therefore I urge you, my brothers, in view of 00:01:22.879 --> 00:01:25.420 God's mercy, remember 11 chapters, of His love 00:01:25.420 --> 00:01:28.680 for you, offer your body a living and holy sacrifice, 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:31.870 well -pleasing to God, this. is your spiritual 00:01:31.870 --> 00:01:33.409 service. In other words, that's what God really 00:01:33.409 --> 00:01:37.189 wants. But here's the question. It's one thing 00:01:37.189 --> 00:01:40.269 to give God what he really wants. Second question 00:01:40.269 --> 00:01:43.950 is, how do you get the very best from God? And 00:01:43.950 --> 00:01:46.069 it's interesting, that's verse two. He's gonna 00:01:46.069 --> 00:01:49.370 say, and do not be conformed any longer to this 00:01:49.370 --> 00:01:52.390 world, but be transformed by the renewing of 00:01:52.390 --> 00:01:54.709 your mind that your life, in other words, your 00:01:54.709 --> 00:01:57.510 lifestyle, what you actually experience would 00:01:57.510 --> 00:02:00.150 be the good, well -pleasing, and perfect will 00:02:00.150 --> 00:02:02.340 of God. And so here's the key. What I want you 00:02:02.340 --> 00:02:05.920 to get, review. Stop allowing the world to conform 00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:09.439 you. Start being transformed. Here's what I want 00:02:09.439 --> 00:02:13.800 to camp on. How? What's your part? We said we 00:02:13.800 --> 00:02:16.159 can't change ourselves. Allow yourself to be 00:02:16.159 --> 00:02:18.939 transformed. How? Here's our part. The renewing 00:02:18.939 --> 00:02:21.639 of our mind. Mind renewal, I think, has three 00:02:21.639 --> 00:02:23.939 key components. The first component of mind renewal 00:02:23.939 --> 00:02:27.000 is renewing your mind as a continual refocus 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:30.740 of the Romans 12 .1 perspective. Colossians 3 00:02:30.740 --> 00:02:32.340 says, set your mind on the things that are above, 00:02:32.439 --> 00:02:35.340 not on the things that are on earth. It's a worldview. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:38.180 It's a mindset that has eternity in mind, that 00:02:38.180 --> 00:02:40.639 has Christ in mind about what matters in mind. 00:02:41.659 --> 00:02:45.219 As I grew up in my home, my family of origin, 00:02:45.360 --> 00:02:48.659 I have one, you have one. The enemy uses the 00:02:48.659 --> 00:02:51.199 world in some ways in my life different than 00:02:51.199 --> 00:02:54.289 yours. And so I realized that I was a workaholic, 00:02:54.310 --> 00:02:56.490 that I was insecure, that I was always trying 00:02:56.490 --> 00:02:58.590 to please people. And then after I got married, 00:02:58.629 --> 00:03:00.310 that I was very insensitive to my wife. Other 00:03:00.310 --> 00:03:01.969 than that, as a Christian, I was really doing 00:03:01.969 --> 00:03:05.729 well. Now, I'm dead serious. I mean, I tried 00:03:05.729 --> 00:03:08.090 hard not to be a workaholic. I tried not to be 00:03:08.090 --> 00:03:10.229 insecure. I tried to be more sensitive to my 00:03:10.229 --> 00:03:13.330 wife. On my best days, and I'm pretty disciplined, 00:03:13.409 --> 00:03:15.870 willpower, I could only keep that up for about 00:03:15.870 --> 00:03:20.490 two weeks because I didn't understand. Transformation 00:03:20.490 --> 00:03:24.030 isn't about just trying hard. It's renewing your 00:03:24.030 --> 00:03:27.610 mind. And so I wrote down on some cards the truth. 00:03:28.469 --> 00:03:30.969 And now I prayed, I asked God, does it mean there's 00:03:30.969 --> 00:03:33.409 not self? Of course I had to make effort. But 00:03:33.409 --> 00:03:35.849 for example, I thought, am I gonna be insecure 00:03:35.849 --> 00:03:37.889 my whole life or am I gonna get my mind renewed? 00:03:38.250 --> 00:03:40.349 And so I wrote down this on a card. I read it 00:03:40.349 --> 00:03:41.789 in the morning, the night, put it in my pocket, 00:03:41.849 --> 00:03:43.990 read it multiple times a day. I'd like to be 00:03:43.990 --> 00:03:47.229 more authentic in every aspect of my life. You 00:03:47.229 --> 00:03:50.289 know, I was trying to please everyone and I am 00:03:50.289 --> 00:03:52.810 what I am by the grace of God. And his grace 00:03:52.810 --> 00:03:54.689 didn't prove vain toward me, but I labored more 00:03:54.689 --> 00:03:57.169 than all of them, yet not me, but Christ in me. 00:03:58.129 --> 00:04:00.030 You know, when you keep reading over, I'd like 00:04:00.030 --> 00:04:02.909 to be more authentic in every relationship. You 00:04:02.909 --> 00:04:05.250 know what happens that gets in your mind? You 00:04:05.250 --> 00:04:07.870 catch yourself when you're posing. You catch 00:04:07.870 --> 00:04:11.250 yourself image managing and God begins to birth 00:04:11.250 --> 00:04:13.750 where you say, you know, I think I'm just gonna 00:04:13.750 --> 00:04:18.580 like who God made me. Got a long way to go. Transformation. 00:04:18.580 --> 00:04:21.360 My people pleasing. I mean, anybody here ever 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:23.759 struggle with like, everyone asks you to do this 00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:25.420 and you either feel guilty if you don't or you're 00:04:25.420 --> 00:04:27.060 trying to do everything and you're multitasking 00:04:27.060 --> 00:04:28.879 and you're up early and you're back late and 00:04:28.879 --> 00:04:31.920 you know, I wrote this on a card. I want to stop 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:34.259 caring what others think and apply myself and 00:04:34.259 --> 00:04:36.560 my schedule to what will make me the best I can 00:04:36.560 --> 00:04:39.660 be to honor God the most. I want to grow free 00:04:39.660 --> 00:04:43.040 of the invisible expectations that I allow to 00:04:43.040 --> 00:04:45.800 hinder my joy, my freedom, my schedule from pursuing 00:04:45.800 --> 00:04:48.800 the best. These invisible, like I had this gun 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:53.839 to my head. Still struggle some. But if you live 00:04:53.839 --> 00:04:56.620 your life to please people, it'll kill you. But 00:04:56.620 --> 00:05:01.060 it's the world. So you refocus. My next one was 00:05:01.060 --> 00:05:05.639 on my workaholism. I just thought working a lot, 00:05:05.699 --> 00:05:08.560 performing, getting stuff done, I got approval. 00:05:09.180 --> 00:05:11.620 And so that was how I did everything. I even 00:05:11.620 --> 00:05:13.839 did the ministry like that. And so I wrote on 00:05:13.839 --> 00:05:16.439 this card. I read it over. I want to learn. This 00:05:16.439 --> 00:05:18.579 is almost sick to have to learn this. I want 00:05:18.579 --> 00:05:20.740 to learn to take time and schedule in enjoyable, 00:05:21.040 --> 00:05:24.139 fun, refreshing activities without feeling guilty 00:05:24.139 --> 00:05:26.920 about them or caring what other people think. 00:05:27.540 --> 00:05:30.800 What happened was I just found putting it in 00:05:30.800 --> 00:05:32.740 my schedule. Pretty soon, I didn't feel guilty 00:05:32.740 --> 00:05:34.779 about having fun. It was like, wow, this must 00:05:34.779 --> 00:05:37.819 be a part of God's plan. Finally, with my wife, 00:05:37.939 --> 00:05:40.600 I realized I was insensitive, and so I wrote 00:05:40.600 --> 00:05:43.519 on this card, my desire is to love Teresa sacrificially 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:45.480 and in a way that makes sense to her each and 00:05:45.480 --> 00:05:48.199 every day. And so I just kept reading that over, 00:05:48.300 --> 00:05:50.399 and a weird thing happened. I started seeing 00:05:50.399 --> 00:05:52.959 little times on this day and on Sunday night 00:05:52.959 --> 00:05:55.459 and on this day where I could be more sacrificial. 00:05:55.579 --> 00:05:57.699 Now, believe me, from glory to glory and with 00:05:57.699 --> 00:06:00.639 plenty of relapses. But are you seeing how it 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:03.579 works? You're seeing how you refocus, your mind 00:06:03.579 --> 00:06:06.199 gets renewed. Second thing is I want to tell 00:06:06.199 --> 00:06:08.879 you it's a battle. Renewing your mind always 00:06:08.879 --> 00:06:13.420 involves a battle. The spiritual life, the battle 00:06:13.420 --> 00:06:15.860 for your soul primarily is happening between 00:06:15.860 --> 00:06:19.230 your ears. The Apostle Paul would say in 2 Corinthians 00:06:19.230 --> 00:06:21.910 10, 4 and 5, the weapons of our warfare, listen 00:06:21.910 --> 00:06:24.170 to that language. He's in a battle for his soul. 00:06:24.350 --> 00:06:28.029 The weapons of our warfare are divinely powerful 00:06:28.029 --> 00:06:30.930 for the pulling down of strongholds and every 00:06:30.930 --> 00:06:32.850 lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of 00:06:32.850 --> 00:06:38.930 God. People pleasing, workaholism, having, possessing, 00:06:38.930 --> 00:06:41.610 working like crazy, accumulating, impressing, 00:06:41.610 --> 00:06:46.480 image management, addictions. The weapons of 00:06:46.480 --> 00:06:49.480 our warfare. He's talking about the power of 00:06:49.480 --> 00:06:52.759 the word of God. Community, fasting, prayer. 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:57.360 I mean, the world's powerful. There's a battle. 00:06:58.019 --> 00:07:01.420 And it's for your soul. There's a reason why 00:07:01.420 --> 00:07:04.959 the second most optimal time for couples or divorce 00:07:04.959 --> 00:07:08.060 is about between 20 and 25 years. Because she 00:07:08.060 --> 00:07:10.800 buys the lie that it's me and the kids and all 00:07:10.800 --> 00:07:12.540 that I do for them. And he buys the lie that 00:07:12.540 --> 00:07:14.160 someday, someway, if I can work, work, work, 00:07:14.240 --> 00:07:16.360 do, do, do, do. And then they wake up 20, 25 00:07:16.360 --> 00:07:18.639 years, they don't know each other. They've not 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:21.420 shared anything. And they both bought a lie. 00:07:23.439 --> 00:07:25.000 And they used to teach a Sunday school class. 00:07:25.259 --> 00:07:26.879 And they've been married 30 years. And their 00:07:26.879 --> 00:07:28.579 kids now are young adults who grew up in that 00:07:28.579 --> 00:07:30.300 home. And mom and dad divorced. And they're going, 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:34.360 what in the world? I guess this Jesus stuff isn't 00:07:34.360 --> 00:07:38.740 true. That's reality, people. That's for some 00:07:38.740 --> 00:07:41.879 of you, that's your experience. The third thing 00:07:41.879 --> 00:07:43.480 you need to remember is that renewing your mind 00:07:43.480 --> 00:07:47.040 is supernatural. It's a work of the Spirit. You 00:07:47.040 --> 00:07:49.379 know, reviewing cards, reading the Bible, doing 00:07:49.379 --> 00:07:52.019 this, doing that. I got news for you. The Spirit 00:07:52.019 --> 00:07:54.879 of God has to take the Word of God and do something 00:07:54.879 --> 00:07:57.680 in you. All of these things are about a heart 00:07:57.680 --> 00:08:00.180 -love relationship with Him. Romans 8 says the 00:08:00.180 --> 00:08:04.120 mind set on the flesh is death. The mind set 00:08:04.120 --> 00:08:08.949 on the Spirit is life. And peace. And so in summary. 00:08:08.990 --> 00:08:12.410 Let me just tell you. For me. For you. For every 00:08:12.410 --> 00:08:17.129 believer. You are what you eat. Period. You are 00:08:17.129 --> 00:08:19.470 what you eat physically. And you are what you 00:08:19.470 --> 00:08:22.629 eat spiritually and intellectually. You tell 00:08:22.629 --> 00:08:24.930 me how much time on your phone. How much time 00:08:24.930 --> 00:08:27.089 in video games. How many movies you watch. And 00:08:27.089 --> 00:08:29.110 the messages in those movies. Time. What are 00:08:29.110 --> 00:08:32.029 you putting into your mind? Over against. How 00:08:32.029 --> 00:08:34.909 much truth. How much of God's word? How much 00:08:34.909 --> 00:08:37.429 renewing relationships? And you know what? Plug, 00:08:37.490 --> 00:08:39.710 plug, plug, plug. It's pretty easy. I can tell 00:08:39.710 --> 00:08:44.070 you. Your lifestyle. Because you are what you 00:08:44.070 --> 00:08:48.350 eat. So my question is, what's your diet? Are 00:08:48.350 --> 00:08:52.929 you getting God's best? Now, let me walk through 00:08:52.929 --> 00:08:55.389 now and give you some very practical, specific 00:08:55.389 --> 00:08:58.210 ways to renew your mind. Because it's one thing. 00:08:58.269 --> 00:09:01.610 Those are the principles. That's the truth. Here's 00:09:01.610 --> 00:09:04.070 some practical methods for renewing your mind. 00:09:04.110 --> 00:09:07.110 To say no to the world, say yes to God. First, 00:09:07.309 --> 00:09:10.950 hearing God's word. Romans 10, 17 says, faith 00:09:10.950 --> 00:09:12.929 comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God. 00:09:14.450 --> 00:09:17.629 You have to, on a regular basis, you must hear 00:09:17.629 --> 00:09:21.169 God's word. It births faith. One way to do that 00:09:21.169 --> 00:09:23.470 is, this is a novel idea for some of you, come 00:09:23.470 --> 00:09:27.779 to church regularly. I mean, I'm not down on 00:09:27.779 --> 00:09:29.580 you. I just, first three years I was a Christian, 00:09:29.639 --> 00:09:31.399 if I made it twice a month, I'm high -fiving 00:09:31.399 --> 00:09:33.360 myself. Way to go, Chip. I never did that before. 00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:38.100 Second is, use your time in the car wisely. Hear 00:09:38.100 --> 00:09:40.460 God's word. My seminary training hasn't stopped. 00:09:41.259 --> 00:09:44.580 Second, read God's word. Revelation 1 .3 says, 00:09:44.679 --> 00:09:47.299 blessed is he who reads and those who hear the 00:09:47.299 --> 00:09:49.740 words of the prophecy and heed the things which 00:09:49.740 --> 00:09:52.899 are written in it, for the time is near. And 00:09:52.899 --> 00:09:54.779 in your notes, if you don't know much about the 00:09:54.779 --> 00:09:57.340 Bible and need some structure and a plan, first 00:09:57.340 --> 00:09:59.360 15 years, at least, I was a Christian. I read 00:09:59.360 --> 00:10:02.440 the Daily Walk Bible. And I just tell you, it 00:10:02.440 --> 00:10:04.279 was just like, okay, here's the structure. Here's 00:10:04.279 --> 00:10:06.759 what it means. Here's an overview, but you dig 00:10:06.759 --> 00:10:09.019 in for yourself. Or go on the internet. There's 00:10:09.019 --> 00:10:12.460 enough reading plans. Just log on on the App 00:10:12.460 --> 00:10:16.230 Store Bible. Believe me. 2 Timothy 2 .15 says, 00:10:16.309 --> 00:10:18.330 be diligent to present yourself approved to God 00:10:18.330 --> 00:10:21.690 as a workman that need not be ashamed, handling 00:10:21.690 --> 00:10:25.090 accurately the word of truth. And you'll notice, 00:10:25.169 --> 00:10:27.909 I had this a little bit later, but this is a 00:10:27.909 --> 00:10:31.490 little tool to help you study. And take this 00:10:31.490 --> 00:10:36.090 really well. God wants the best for you. Some 00:10:36.090 --> 00:10:38.730 of us have been so trained, we eat all processed 00:10:38.730 --> 00:10:41.899 food. Can you imagine if you ate just only processed 00:10:41.899 --> 00:10:44.159 food instead of the kind of organic, real good 00:10:44.159 --> 00:10:46.779 stuff? Or the picture that comes to my mind is 00:10:46.779 --> 00:10:47.820 some of that, you know some of that processed 00:10:47.820 --> 00:10:50.799 cheese? And you take it out of that plastic and 00:10:50.799 --> 00:10:52.240 you think, hmm, I don't know where this has been. 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:59.120 Well, it's a good start, right? But processed 00:10:59.120 --> 00:11:01.600 spiritual food is like, there's a little book, 00:11:01.700 --> 00:11:03.580 and it's a good little book, and it has two or 00:11:03.580 --> 00:11:05.740 three verses, and then someone who studied a 00:11:05.740 --> 00:11:08.519 lot, tells you a little inspiring story and tells 00:11:08.519 --> 00:11:09.860 you a little something about those two or three 00:11:09.860 --> 00:11:11.960 little verses and says, and now here's what you 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:14.600 might do. And you read for like, it takes almost 00:11:14.600 --> 00:11:16.759 three minutes to read these little things. And 00:11:16.759 --> 00:11:18.340 then you go, oh, Jesus, Jesus, help me, help 00:11:18.340 --> 00:11:20.200 me really follow you. I have really renewed my 00:11:20.200 --> 00:11:23.059 mind. Now I spent, you know, 40 minutes in the 00:11:23.059 --> 00:11:28.200 Wall Street Journal. But now I've spent my four 00:11:28.200 --> 00:11:29.899 or five minutes. What I know is what someone 00:11:29.899 --> 00:11:32.980 else thinks of that passage. The little card 00:11:32.980 --> 00:11:35.460 is how you can study God's word on your own. 00:11:36.080 --> 00:11:37.899 I learned this from a missionary about 30 years 00:11:37.899 --> 00:11:39.820 ago. I think it was Brazil. It's called the two 00:11:39.820 --> 00:11:43.799 pro app method. And that's just an acronym. And 00:11:43.799 --> 00:11:45.580 I'm not gonna go through it all other than just 00:11:45.580 --> 00:11:49.240 to say, if you would choose a New Testament book, 00:11:49.399 --> 00:11:51.360 the book of John, the book of Mark, one of the 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:54.340 small ones, and just read a paragraph or maybe 00:11:54.340 --> 00:11:58.360 two. And the P, pray, God, please help me. The 00:11:58.360 --> 00:12:00.639 second P, preview it, read it quickly just to 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:02.879 get a feel. It's all written on here. And then 00:12:02.879 --> 00:12:07.850 the R is read it slowly. Then the O is read it 00:12:07.850 --> 00:12:10.049 one more time and underline maybe words that 00:12:10.049 --> 00:12:12.590 are alike or thoughts that you have. The A then 00:12:12.590 --> 00:12:14.970 is that what application from this paragraph 00:12:14.970 --> 00:12:18.009 is God showing me? Then realizing since I don't 00:12:18.009 --> 00:12:19.750 have the power to do it, you pray again. God, 00:12:19.850 --> 00:12:22.509 will you help me to, it says be generous in this 00:12:22.509 --> 00:12:24.389 passage, so will you help me be generous in some 00:12:24.389 --> 00:12:26.789 way specifically today? And then the T is tell 00:12:26.789 --> 00:12:30.220 someone. It's just a very simple way to study. 00:12:30.580 --> 00:12:33.259 Here's what I can tell you. Processed food is 00:12:33.259 --> 00:12:35.299 helpful, and if you're just beginning, that's 00:12:35.299 --> 00:12:39.200 fine. When you are tempted sexually, when you 00:12:39.200 --> 00:12:41.460 want to break out of habit patterns, when there's 00:12:41.460 --> 00:12:43.440 addictions, when there's a crisis in your marriage, 00:12:43.559 --> 00:12:45.240 when you've got a kid who's going through a terrible 00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:47.740 time and you're trying to cling on to God, you 00:12:47.740 --> 00:12:51.159 have to have him speak directly from his word 00:12:51.159 --> 00:12:53.179 to you because that's where convictions come 00:12:53.179 --> 00:12:55.590 from. It's great that those people who wrote 00:12:55.590 --> 00:12:57.669 those little devotionals, that's what they believe. 00:12:57.809 --> 00:13:00.029 What do you believe? And what do you believe 00:13:00.029 --> 00:13:04.590 under pressure? It's birthed in study. You're 00:13:04.590 --> 00:13:07.110 listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:13:07.169 --> 00:13:09.629 We're halfway through today's message, so don't 00:13:09.629 --> 00:13:12.490 go anywhere just yet. Today's insightful lesson 00:13:12.490 --> 00:13:15.070 comes from our series called God's Dream for 00:13:15.070 --> 00:13:17.870 Your Life. Want to dig deeper into these truths? 00:13:18.190 --> 00:13:20.649 Well, the full series is ready for you online 00:13:20.649 --> 00:13:24.870 at livingontheedge .com. You'll discover extra 00:13:24.870 --> 00:13:27.730 teaching content, downloadable materials, and 00:13:27.730 --> 00:13:30.529 discussion guides to take you further. Find it 00:13:30.529 --> 00:13:34.090 all at livingontheedge .org. Well, now let's 00:13:34.090 --> 00:13:36.950 rejoin Chip with today's message. The next is 00:13:36.950 --> 00:13:41.250 memorization. Notice it says Psalm 119, 9 -11. 00:13:41.409 --> 00:13:44.470 How can a young man, a young woman, keep your 00:13:44.470 --> 00:13:48.190 way pure? By guarding it or keeping it according 00:13:48.190 --> 00:13:50.350 to your word. Your word I've treasured or hid 00:13:50.350 --> 00:13:53.289 in my heart. that I might not sin against thee. 00:13:54.230 --> 00:13:56.210 I don't know if there's any greater return in 00:13:56.210 --> 00:13:58.889 the Christian life than memorizing scripture 00:13:58.889 --> 00:14:01.710 or one that's probably more neglected. I can 00:14:01.710 --> 00:14:05.070 tell you a brief little story. I was, you know, 00:14:05.070 --> 00:14:06.889 in a school, and I think I've shared it, where 00:14:06.889 --> 00:14:09.710 there was like four girls to every guy. And I 00:14:09.710 --> 00:14:11.669 started to grow. So now I've been a Christian 00:14:11.669 --> 00:14:13.929 like three years. And so I'm reading the Bible, 00:14:14.049 --> 00:14:15.389 you know, like three or four mornings a week. 00:14:15.490 --> 00:14:16.970 I'm starting to go to church, which is really 00:14:16.970 --> 00:14:20.440 radical for me. And I'm making progress in a 00:14:20.440 --> 00:14:22.740 number of areas, but not in one in particular. 00:14:23.139 --> 00:14:25.159 My roommate is going to go to this Christian 00:14:25.159 --> 00:14:28.919 summer something where, you know, it's a parachurch 00:14:28.919 --> 00:14:31.279 organization that they go there for training 00:14:31.279 --> 00:14:33.059 and they get a job and share Christ and learn 00:14:33.059 --> 00:14:35.620 all good stuff. And I didn't want any part of 00:14:35.620 --> 00:14:38.600 that. But before he could go, he had to memorize 00:14:38.600 --> 00:14:41.940 these 60 verses. It was called the topical memory 00:14:41.940 --> 00:14:43.980 system put out by a group called the Navigators. 00:14:44.639 --> 00:14:46.700 And I'm just, I've always been very competitive. 00:14:47.580 --> 00:14:50.860 along with being insecure. And so he left the 00:14:50.860 --> 00:14:52.379 room one day, and I just thought, because he 00:14:52.379 --> 00:14:54.919 was going to memorize one or two verses a week, 00:14:54.919 --> 00:14:57.320 and he had it planned out 30 weeks, and I just 00:14:57.320 --> 00:15:00.320 thought, you chump. So my goal, secretly, he 00:15:00.320 --> 00:15:02.779 leaves. I literally copied all the verses down 00:15:02.779 --> 00:15:06.559 on these little cards. In fact, I still, these 00:15:06.559 --> 00:15:09.740 little cards, I still have them. and I got these 00:15:09.740 --> 00:15:12.700 60 verses down, and then I had an amazing gift. 00:15:12.759 --> 00:15:15.059 I had a psychology professor that was about 99 00:15:15.059 --> 00:15:17.919 years old who'd been tenured for like 40 years 00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:21.580 because he couldn't get a job anywhere. And so 00:15:21.580 --> 00:15:23.940 he would drone on and on, so I would put my psychology 00:15:23.940 --> 00:15:27.039 book up an hour every day. I memorized one verse 00:15:27.039 --> 00:15:29.620 the first day, so I decided 60 days I'm going 00:15:29.620 --> 00:15:31.440 to be done, and I'm going to have them perfect 00:15:31.440 --> 00:15:32.940 because here was the goal. I was going to say, 00:15:32.960 --> 00:15:34.960 okay, hey, Bob, how's it going with that thing 00:15:34.960 --> 00:15:36.990 that your training program is going to do? Why 00:15:36.990 --> 00:15:38.909 don't you go ahead and start and list the verses. 00:15:38.990 --> 00:15:40.669 And I'm just going to go bam, bam, bam, bam, 00:15:40.669 --> 00:15:45.850 bam, 60 in a row, you know. Is that sick or what? 00:15:46.090 --> 00:15:49.009 I mean, you know, memorizing God's word to impress 00:15:49.009 --> 00:15:50.690 someone out of your ego and your pride. Well, 00:15:50.850 --> 00:15:55.169 okay. To show that God can use anybody, even 00:15:55.169 --> 00:15:58.990 in our nuttiness. It's day 21, and I mean, I'm 00:15:58.990 --> 00:16:01.190 like getting into this. I can still remember 00:16:01.190 --> 00:16:03.509 hearing my cleats when I was running the baseball 00:16:03.509 --> 00:16:05.850 practice like this, you know, putting it in the 00:16:05.850 --> 00:16:09.389 back. Day 21, I walk around the corner, and there's 00:16:09.389 --> 00:16:11.289 a very beautiful young co -ed involved in the 00:16:11.289 --> 00:16:13.590 ministry. And what men will tell you, if they're 00:16:13.590 --> 00:16:16.389 honest, is that we struggled deeply with lusts, 00:16:16.389 --> 00:16:18.990 and I was struggling very deeply. The external 00:16:18.990 --> 00:16:20.909 things were changing, but my eyes were going 00:16:20.909 --> 00:16:22.769 everywhere, and my mind was going all kind of 00:16:22.769 --> 00:16:26.600 places. And when you lust for lust, A girl that's 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:28.980 not a Christian, you feel guilty. When you lust 00:16:28.980 --> 00:16:31.059 for a very godly girl, you feel really guilty. 00:16:31.779 --> 00:16:35.620 And so, oh, no, this is her. And so we turned 00:16:35.620 --> 00:16:37.519 around the corner. We started to talk, and we 00:16:37.519 --> 00:16:39.639 had a little conversation. We got done, and I 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:41.320 remember walking away. I got about four steps. 00:16:43.100 --> 00:16:46.220 I didn't lust. I didn't know the correlation. 00:16:47.000 --> 00:16:49.159 I had no idea. I didn't know about mind renewal. 00:16:49.379 --> 00:16:51.620 I didn't know how to change. All I knew was following 00:16:51.620 --> 00:16:53.679 Jesus is really hard, and a lot of it's not working 00:16:53.679 --> 00:16:56.230 very well for me. Some things undeniably are 00:16:56.230 --> 00:16:58.549 radically changing. But some other things, I 00:16:58.549 --> 00:17:01.929 just feel I was stuck forever. Day 21, I'd memorized 00:17:01.929 --> 00:17:05.190 21 verses, word perfect. And what I didn't understand 00:17:05.190 --> 00:17:08.509 was the supernatural work. God had taken the 00:17:08.509 --> 00:17:10.109 written word and made it the living word and 00:17:10.109 --> 00:17:12.890 changed my want -tos and my attitudes. And I, 00:17:12.910 --> 00:17:15.549 with my eyes, looked at a sister in Christ in 00:17:15.549 --> 00:17:18.529 the eye. And a new relationship with women completely 00:17:18.529 --> 00:17:21.759 changed my life. When I got to 60 verses, I was 00:17:21.759 --> 00:17:23.960 like a drug. I couldn't stop. Then I started 00:17:23.960 --> 00:17:26.640 memorizing chapters. And then I put my own topics 00:17:26.640 --> 00:17:29.460 together. And for the next five years, probably 00:17:29.460 --> 00:17:32.859 more than anything else, I memorized God's word. 00:17:33.420 --> 00:17:35.799 And I will tell you, all I can tell you is how 00:17:35.799 --> 00:17:38.599 I looked at the world was completely different. 00:17:39.700 --> 00:17:42.430 Completely different. And there was a level of 00:17:42.430 --> 00:17:44.589 peace and joy. I remember I'd have a question. 00:17:44.630 --> 00:17:46.410 I'd be praying. And as I was praying, God would 00:17:46.410 --> 00:17:48.490 bring a verse. Oh, that's the answer. I'd be 00:17:48.490 --> 00:17:50.450 in a conversation and I wouldn't know what to 00:17:50.450 --> 00:17:51.990 say or what's going on. And God would bring a 00:17:51.990 --> 00:17:55.470 verse. And all of a sudden I realized we have 00:17:55.470 --> 00:17:58.549 the mind of Christ. The Bible says it. We have 00:17:58.549 --> 00:18:01.230 the mind of Christ. But most of us don't know 00:18:01.230 --> 00:18:05.829 what his mind is. But it's in his word. The final 00:18:05.829 --> 00:18:09.019 thing he says is that you meditate. See, this 00:18:09.019 --> 00:18:10.599 isn't like you do all these little things and 00:18:10.599 --> 00:18:12.440 become a little religious robot that drives other 00:18:12.440 --> 00:18:15.119 people crazy. I mean, there's some people like 00:18:15.119 --> 00:18:18.799 that. This isn't about how many verses or how... 00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:21.640 And the word meditate here, it's the idea of 00:18:21.640 --> 00:18:25.279 ruminating. It's a picture a cow has four stomachs. 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:27.319 It's a cow chews on some truth, swallows it, 00:18:27.400 --> 00:18:30.140 regurgitates it. Swallows it, regurgitates it. 00:18:30.599 --> 00:18:33.019 This is reading and God speaks you through a 00:18:33.019 --> 00:18:35.220 verse and you write it on a card and you stick 00:18:35.220 --> 00:18:36.700 it in your pocket and then as you're driving 00:18:36.700 --> 00:18:38.220 to work, you try and see if you can remember 00:18:38.220 --> 00:18:41.859 it or so you're at a light and you're at a doctor's 00:18:41.859 --> 00:18:44.380 office and you just bring it up and something 00:18:44.380 --> 00:18:47.240 happens. This book of the law shall not depart 00:18:47.240 --> 00:18:49.140 out of your mouth, but you should meditate on 00:18:49.140 --> 00:18:52.019 it day and night in order that what? So you can 00:18:52.019 --> 00:18:56.160 obey it. For then you'll have, you'll be prosperous 00:18:56.160 --> 00:18:59.460 and have good success. And so on the back, I 00:18:59.460 --> 00:19:01.420 put a few tools that I think would be very helpful 00:19:01.420 --> 00:19:05.539 to you. Can I just close with this? Why, why, 00:19:05.819 --> 00:19:09.640 why, why do this? I mean, if you're listening, 00:19:09.759 --> 00:19:11.960 you're thinking to yourself, you mean I'm gonna 00:19:11.960 --> 00:19:13.980 limit my games and limit my movies and limit 00:19:13.980 --> 00:19:15.539 this and limit that and limit that and limit 00:19:15.539 --> 00:19:17.299 that and say no to some stuff that's just a part 00:19:17.299 --> 00:19:19.500 of my life and start saying yes to God's word 00:19:19.500 --> 00:19:20.960 and do some things probably some of you have 00:19:20.960 --> 00:19:25.480 never ever done. Why would I do that? So that 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:27.990 you could get the best from God. So that you 00:19:27.990 --> 00:19:31.170 could experience and taste what he wants normally 00:19:31.170 --> 00:19:37.589 for every person. His good. His good means winsome, 00:19:37.589 --> 00:19:41.509 beautiful, attractive, richly satisfying, well. 00:19:41.829 --> 00:19:44.549 Well -pleasing. Well -pleasing to him and well 00:19:44.549 --> 00:19:49.579 -pleasing to you. Perfect. There's a will that's 00:19:49.579 --> 00:19:53.259 according to a specific design just for you that 00:19:53.259 --> 00:19:56.720 when you fulfill it, you explode with joy, live 00:19:56.720 --> 00:20:02.180 with peace. How does that happen? No, I won't 00:20:02.180 --> 00:20:05.599 be conformed to this world. Yes, I'll be transformed 00:20:05.599 --> 00:20:09.720 by the renewing of my mind. So that. Would you 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:13.220 like that? As I close, here's two questions because 00:20:13.220 --> 00:20:14.920 you could feel overwhelmed. I don't want that. 00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:20.750 What? one thing do you sense God is saying you 00:20:20.750 --> 00:20:24.329 need to say no to? What's going into your mind 00:20:24.329 --> 00:20:26.730 or what relationship or what's one thing that 00:20:26.730 --> 00:20:29.750 woos your heart away from God? And just say, 00:20:29.849 --> 00:20:35.130 first step, no. And what one thing of all the, 00:20:35.170 --> 00:20:38.190 you know, hearing, reading, studying, memorizing, 00:20:38.349 --> 00:20:41.769 meditating, because we're all in different places, 00:20:41.849 --> 00:20:45.589 what one thing do you sense God would want you 00:20:45.589 --> 00:20:48.099 to take a baby step? and begin to renew your 00:20:48.099 --> 00:20:51.660 mind. Lord, I pray that you'd show every single 00:20:51.660 --> 00:20:57.539 person right now what they need to say no to 00:20:57.539 --> 00:21:02.220 that is drawing their heart away from your deep, 00:21:02.220 --> 00:21:06.220 abiding, amazing love. And Lord, what you want 00:21:06.220 --> 00:21:10.480 them to say yes to in order to enjoy and experience 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:15.059 your grace, your goodness. Will you please do 00:21:15.059 --> 00:21:17.480 that, Lord? And then will you birth faith in 00:21:17.480 --> 00:21:20.140 people right now? Would you even give them the 00:21:20.140 --> 00:21:22.079 idea of what one person could they share this 00:21:22.079 --> 00:21:24.779 with and ask them in a couple days, will you 00:21:24.779 --> 00:21:27.500 give me a call? Will you text me? And I'll tell 00:21:27.500 --> 00:21:31.039 you how I'm doing. Oh God, what would happen 00:21:31.039 --> 00:21:34.960 if hundreds and then thousands of people started 00:21:34.960 --> 00:21:39.299 to experience your good, well -pleasing and perfect 00:21:39.299 --> 00:21:44.619 will? That's our prayer in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:21:47.630 --> 00:21:50.630 This is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:21:50.970 --> 00:21:53.769 If you want to revisit or share this lesson with 00:21:53.769 --> 00:21:57.450 someone you care about, find it online at livingontheedge 00:21:57.450 --> 00:22:01.190 .org. And don't miss Chip's weekday broadcasts 00:22:01.190 --> 00:22:03.630 every Monday through Friday. You can also find 00:22:03.630 --> 00:22:05.750 them by subscribing to the Living on the Edge 00:22:05.750 --> 00:22:08.829 podcast on your favorite podcast app and hear 00:22:08.829 --> 00:22:12.079 Chip daily wherever you are. Friend, Living on 00:22:12.079 --> 00:22:15.000 the Edge exists as a nonprofit ministry, which 00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:17.579 means your partnership fuels everything we do. 00:22:17.839 --> 00:22:20.380 Whether you've partnered with us for years or 00:22:20.380 --> 00:22:22.799 today marks your first gift, we're inviting you 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:25.299 to join this mission. 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And by the way, full 00:23:06.619 --> 00:23:09.180 sermons are now available on the Living on the 00:23:09.180 --> 00:23:12.279 Edge podcast with a feature called the Chip Ingram 00:23:12.279 --> 00:23:15.579 Sermon Podcast. Find these episodes right alongside 00:23:15.579 --> 00:23:19.180 our regular broadcasts on your podcast app. Well, 00:23:19.200 --> 00:23:21.539 now here's Chip with some final thoughts. As 00:23:21.539 --> 00:23:24.319 we wrap up today's program, I have three questions 00:23:24.319 --> 00:23:26.640 for you. And I think you know what they are because 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:28.420 we've sort of addressed them already. But I want 00:23:28.420 --> 00:23:30.759 to get out of you kind of in the back of your 00:23:30.759 --> 00:23:32.619 mind thinking I was talking to someone else because 00:23:32.619 --> 00:23:35.359 I'm actually talking to you. In fact, it's not 00:23:35.359 --> 00:23:38.279 even me. It's God. And here's question number 00:23:38.279 --> 00:23:41.299 one. What do you need to say no to? What person, 00:23:41.339 --> 00:23:44.119 what relationship, what activity, what are you 00:23:44.119 --> 00:23:47.039 viewing that you just need to say today, no? 00:23:47.470 --> 00:23:51.170 I can't go there anymore. Second, what do you 00:23:51.170 --> 00:23:54.190 need to say yes to? What needs to get into your 00:23:54.190 --> 00:23:57.230 mind, your heart, your life that you're not getting 00:23:57.230 --> 00:23:59.930 right now? And maybe it's not time in God's word, 00:24:00.009 --> 00:24:02.289 or it's sort of a quick thing, or maybe it's 00:24:02.289 --> 00:24:05.529 not time in a local church, or maybe it's not 00:24:05.529 --> 00:24:09.339 time. actually memorizing a couple specific passages 00:24:09.339 --> 00:24:11.880 that address the biggest struggle in your life. 00:24:12.200 --> 00:24:14.380 Because it's when the Word of God gets in your 00:24:14.380 --> 00:24:16.880 heart and life that the Spirit of God ignites 00:24:16.880 --> 00:24:19.240 it with power to give you victory over some of 00:24:19.240 --> 00:24:22.400 those things. So what do you need to say no to? 00:24:22.519 --> 00:24:25.420 What do you need to say yes to? And here's the 00:24:25.420 --> 00:24:28.940 third question. Who today are you going to text 00:24:28.940 --> 00:24:33.160 or call or Facebook or email to say, will you 00:24:33.160 --> 00:24:36.210 help me? I'm saying no to this and yes to something 00:24:36.210 --> 00:24:39.990 else, but I can't do it alone. You ready? You 00:24:39.990 --> 00:24:42.569 answer those and God will show up. Well, I'm 00:24:42.569 --> 00:24:45.069 Dave Drewy signing off. Join us next time as 00:24:45.069 --> 00:24:48.109 we continue this practical series on God's dream 00:24:48.109 --> 00:24:50.829 for your life. That's coming up right here on 00:24:50.829 --> 00:24:56.450 Living on the Edge. Today's program is produced 00:24:56.450 --> 00:24:58.650 and sponsored by Living on the Edge.