WEBVTT 00:00:11.559 --> 00:00:14.339 Today, from guest teacher Kyle Eidelman. God, 00:00:14.400 --> 00:00:16.739 in the morning, just give me direction. Help 00:00:16.739 --> 00:00:19.539 me know the path I should take. Next verse, Psalm 00:00:19.539 --> 00:00:22.640 59, 16. But I will sing of your strength in the 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:25.039 morning. In the morning, I will sing of your 00:00:25.039 --> 00:00:27.539 love. For you are my fortress and my refuge in 00:00:27.539 --> 00:00:31.519 times of trouble. How you start your day, the 00:00:31.519 --> 00:00:33.619 thoughts you first think have a way of setting 00:00:33.619 --> 00:00:36.140 the direction for the rest of your day. And then 00:00:36.140 --> 00:00:40.979 ultimately, your days become your life. Life 00:00:40.979 --> 00:00:43.619 is difficult. The Bible never pretends otherwise. 00:00:44.020 --> 00:00:46.899 But in the middle of grief, confusion, and darkness, 00:00:47.140 --> 00:00:48.979 there's a choice you can make about what you 00:00:48.979 --> 00:00:52.079 call to mind. It's not positive thinking. It's 00:00:52.079 --> 00:00:55.060 the ancient wisdom of lamentations. And it still 00:00:55.060 --> 00:00:58.520 works today. Welcome to Living on the Edge. I'm 00:00:58.520 --> 00:01:00.700 Dave Drewy. And today, Chip Ingram invites guest 00:01:00.700 --> 00:01:03.280 teacher Kyle Eidelman to present the final message 00:01:03.280 --> 00:01:06.280 in a study about keeping every thought captive. 00:01:06.540 --> 00:01:09.500 Chip, set the stage. This whole series is about 00:01:09.500 --> 00:01:12.420 something that happens inside your mind and my 00:01:12.420 --> 00:01:15.099 mind, and that life change actually happens, 00:01:15.239 --> 00:01:18.540 and the root of all life change is in our thinking. 00:01:18.719 --> 00:01:21.099 And so we need to get the truth in our mind. 00:01:21.239 --> 00:01:24.000 What I love about Kyle's teaching in this series 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:28.420 is I know Kyle. He's authentic. He's real. He's 00:01:28.420 --> 00:01:31.420 sharing real -life stuff that you struggle with, 00:01:31.480 --> 00:01:34.239 I struggle with, and then he helps us learn through 00:01:34.239 --> 00:01:37.260 Scripture and science how to put into practice 00:01:38.450 --> 00:01:42.430 Taking every thought captive so that the Spirit 00:01:42.430 --> 00:01:45.329 of God can take the Word of God in the context 00:01:45.329 --> 00:01:48.390 of community and see those areas that need to 00:01:48.390 --> 00:01:51.409 change in your life and my life become a reality. 00:01:51.689 --> 00:01:54.530 Thanks, Chip. Today's message from Kyle Eidelman 00:01:54.530 --> 00:01:57.409 is titled, Win the Morning. And so what I want 00:01:57.409 --> 00:01:59.230 to do is talk to you about taking your thoughts 00:01:59.230 --> 00:02:01.609 captive at a certain time of the day, specifically 00:02:01.609 --> 00:02:04.069 taking your thoughts captive first thing in the 00:02:04.069 --> 00:02:05.989 morning. And what I discovered is that there's... 00:02:06.510 --> 00:02:09.050 a reflection of this in scripture. Like the Bible 00:02:09.050 --> 00:02:12.870 would teach and would prioritize, I believe, 00:02:13.069 --> 00:02:15.969 how we spend our morning hours, our time with 00:02:15.969 --> 00:02:17.990 God in the morning. And so it was just really 00:02:17.990 --> 00:02:20.969 clear to me that, okay, like this is biblically 00:02:20.969 --> 00:02:24.009 emphasized, this idea of connecting with God 00:02:24.009 --> 00:02:26.620 in the mornings, of meeting. God in the morning 00:02:26.620 --> 00:02:29.039 of taking my thoughts captive when I first wake 00:02:29.039 --> 00:02:32.280 up. And then I started to wonder if maybe science 00:02:32.280 --> 00:02:34.719 backed this up. In other words, if this is true 00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:37.860 in scripture, maybe it's true biologically. Like 00:02:37.860 --> 00:02:40.120 maybe this is how we're made neurologically. 00:02:40.120 --> 00:02:42.879 That God has wired us in such a way that our 00:02:42.879 --> 00:02:48.300 brains are especially moldable in the mornings. 00:02:48.780 --> 00:02:52.099 And turns out they are. When you wake up, your 00:02:52.099 --> 00:02:55.020 brain moves from delta waves to theta waves to 00:02:55.020 --> 00:02:57.699 alpha waves. And in that time, important things 00:02:57.699 --> 00:03:00.180 are happening that determine whether you respond 00:03:00.180 --> 00:03:02.419 or you react to whatever happens to you throughout 00:03:02.419 --> 00:03:05.400 the day. Dr. Andrew Huberman and his research 00:03:05.400 --> 00:03:08.379 for Stanford University, he uses some language 00:03:08.379 --> 00:03:10.620 I find really helpful. He calls the morning hours 00:03:10.620 --> 00:03:13.560 your neuroplasticity window. That you've got 00:03:13.560 --> 00:03:16.680 a couple hours in the morning that are your neuroplasticity 00:03:16.680 --> 00:03:19.639 window because in those few hours, you're thinking. 00:03:20.909 --> 00:03:23.909 disproportionately shapes your brain. This is 00:03:23.909 --> 00:03:25.990 the way our brains work, that whatever you tune 00:03:25.990 --> 00:03:28.610 into to begin your day is what you listen to 00:03:28.610 --> 00:03:30.830 throughout the rest of your day. So play this 00:03:30.830 --> 00:03:34.889 out with me. You wake up, you immediately grab 00:03:34.889 --> 00:03:37.069 your phone. There's a news alert, another tragedy. 00:03:37.750 --> 00:03:41.030 A political post makes you all angsty to start 00:03:41.030 --> 00:03:44.150 your day. A couple of messages from work marked 00:03:44.150 --> 00:03:46.289 urgent that you missed during the night. You've 00:03:46.289 --> 00:03:49.430 not even gotten out of bed yet. And you're already 00:03:49.430 --> 00:03:52.810 dealing with anxiety and anger and feeling overwhelmed. 00:03:53.770 --> 00:03:57.870 But what really the cost of this is what happens 00:03:57.870 --> 00:04:00.009 the rest of the day. Because it's not just in 00:04:00.009 --> 00:04:02.750 that moment, but now you're setting yourself 00:04:02.750 --> 00:04:06.099 up where. Small inconveniences, you're reactive 00:04:06.099 --> 00:04:08.860 to them. They feel like a crisis. Traffic makes 00:04:08.860 --> 00:04:11.219 you furious. Your coworker's innocent attack 00:04:11.219 --> 00:04:14.460 or comment feels like an attack. And you're reactive. 00:04:14.580 --> 00:04:17.439 It's because you primed your brain for chaos 00:04:17.439 --> 00:04:21.500 at 6 .47 in the morning. Or maybe instead of 00:04:21.500 --> 00:04:24.750 checking the news, you get on. Your phone, and 00:04:24.750 --> 00:04:25.970 the first thing you do before you even get out 00:04:25.970 --> 00:04:29.009 of bed, you look at Instagram, your friends posted 00:04:29.009 --> 00:04:32.470 their stupid, perfect vacation pictures. And 00:04:32.470 --> 00:04:35.930 fitness influencer you follow has been up for 00:04:35.930 --> 00:04:39.579 like four hours already. And like before you've 00:04:39.579 --> 00:04:41.699 even had your coffee, you're feeling inadequate 00:04:41.699 --> 00:04:44.639 and insecure. And so what that does for the rest 00:04:44.639 --> 00:04:47.120 of the day is it primes it. Like now you're measuring 00:04:47.120 --> 00:04:49.459 yourself against others. Your accomplishments 00:04:49.459 --> 00:04:53.560 feel small. Your appearance is lacking. And you 00:04:53.560 --> 00:04:56.240 spend the day feeling less than because that's 00:04:56.240 --> 00:04:58.660 what you primed your mind for. But you think 00:04:58.660 --> 00:05:00.399 of the flip side of that. Like what if you take 00:05:00.399 --> 00:05:02.459 your thoughts captive and you wake up and before 00:05:02.459 --> 00:05:04.459 you even reach for the phone, you say, okay, 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:06.910 God. Before I get out of this bed, I'm gonna 00:05:06.910 --> 00:05:09.029 think of three things today that I have to be 00:05:09.029 --> 00:05:11.860 grateful for. And you say it out loud. And maybe 00:05:11.860 --> 00:05:13.699 the first thing is I woke up. Maybe that's what 00:05:13.699 --> 00:05:15.899 you go with. And you pick a couple of other things 00:05:15.899 --> 00:05:18.240 and you say it out loud. And what happens? Well, 00:05:18.240 --> 00:05:20.579 the rest of the day, you've primed yourself for 00:05:20.579 --> 00:05:23.420 some gratitude. And you can notice things that 00:05:23.420 --> 00:05:25.139 maybe you would have missed otherwise. And this 00:05:25.139 --> 00:05:27.959 time when the traffic is heavy, you find something 00:05:27.959 --> 00:05:29.959 to be grateful for. The podcast that you're listening 00:05:29.959 --> 00:05:32.360 to or your work is stressful and you notice a 00:05:32.360 --> 00:05:34.060 coworker who's there for you that maybe you would 00:05:34.060 --> 00:05:36.660 have missed otherwise. And you respond instead 00:05:36.660 --> 00:05:39.060 of react because you primed your brain to see 00:05:39.060 --> 00:05:41.600 some blessings. This is what it looks like to 00:05:41.600 --> 00:05:43.360 take your thoughts captive. As you recognize 00:05:43.360 --> 00:05:47.160 in the morning, what you see, what you look for 00:05:47.160 --> 00:05:48.899 is what you're gonna see the rest of the day. 00:05:48.980 --> 00:05:51.079 The station you tune into is what you're gonna 00:05:51.079 --> 00:05:54.459 listen to the rest of the day. I want you to 00:05:54.459 --> 00:05:58.120 take a look at a parable that I call the parable 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:02.819 of the smudge. Kristen had always dreamed of 00:06:02.819 --> 00:06:05.420 visiting the picturesque coastal town of Seaview. 00:06:06.170 --> 00:06:08.470 She'd seen countless photos online of its stunning 00:06:08.470 --> 00:06:11.529 cliffs, pristine beaches, and vibrant sunsets. 00:06:11.990 --> 00:06:14.730 Finally, after years of saving, she booked a 00:06:14.730 --> 00:06:17.610 week -long stay at a highly -rated Airbnb perched 00:06:17.610 --> 00:06:20.449 on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. As soon 00:06:20.449 --> 00:06:22.589 as she arrived, Kristen rushed to the large picture 00:06:22.589 --> 00:06:25.319 window that dominated the living room wall. this 00:06:25.319 --> 00:06:27.800 was the view everyone raved about in the reviews 00:06:27.800 --> 00:06:30.660 but as she approached her excitement quickly 00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:33.819 turned to disappointment there right in the center 00:06:33.819 --> 00:06:36.899 of their window was a small but noticeable sponge 00:06:38.170 --> 00:06:40.430 She spent the next hour trying to clean it off, 00:06:40.509 --> 00:06:42.790 but it seemed to be in between the window panes, 00:06:42.790 --> 00:06:45.709 impossible to reach. For the rest of her stay, 00:06:45.810 --> 00:06:48.250 Kristen found herself fixated on that smudge. 00:06:48.329 --> 00:06:50.389 When she looked out the window, instead of seeing 00:06:50.389 --> 00:06:52.949 the vast expanse of the sparkling ocean, the 00:06:52.949 --> 00:06:54.750 rugged beauty of the cliffs, or the glorious 00:06:54.750 --> 00:06:57.410 colors of the sunset, all she could focus on 00:06:57.410 --> 00:07:02.230 was that small, blurry spot. Her photos all seemed 00:07:02.230 --> 00:07:04.370 to showcase the smudge rather than the view, 00:07:04.509 --> 00:07:07.029 and the more she saw it, the more she saw it. 00:07:07.519 --> 00:07:09.720 She finally shut the curtains so she wouldn't 00:07:09.720 --> 00:07:12.500 have to see the smudge anymore. She spent most 00:07:12.500 --> 00:07:14.779 of her vacation indoors, feeling cheated and 00:07:14.779 --> 00:07:17.379 frustrated. She barely noticed the sound of the 00:07:17.379 --> 00:07:19.980 waves or the fresh sea breeze when she briefly 00:07:19.980 --> 00:07:23.680 ventured out. On the last day of her stay, Kristen 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:26.730 left a scathing review. I don't understand why 00:07:26.730 --> 00:07:28.750 everyone raves about the view of this place. 00:07:28.829 --> 00:07:32.250 All I could see was a dirty window. As Kristen 00:07:32.250 --> 00:07:35.009 got in her car to leave, the young couple was 00:07:35.009 --> 00:07:38.350 just arriving to check into the Airbnb. The woman 00:07:38.350 --> 00:07:40.689 gasped with excitement as she got out of the 00:07:40.689 --> 00:07:43.649 car. Pointing at the view in awe, she said, look 00:07:43.649 --> 00:07:45.810 at that sunset. It's even more beautiful than 00:07:45.810 --> 00:07:48.850 in the pictures. Kristen glanced into her rearview 00:07:48.850 --> 00:07:51.250 mirror as she was driving away, hoping to catch 00:07:51.250 --> 00:07:54.550 a glimpse of a spectacular golden sun sinking 00:07:54.550 --> 00:07:57.720 in. to a violet and pink sky, but she couldn't 00:07:57.720 --> 00:08:00.120 help but notice right there on her rear view 00:08:00.120 --> 00:08:07.139 mirror was a smudge. The more you see it, the 00:08:07.139 --> 00:08:09.699 more you see it. Some of you are just smudge 00:08:09.699 --> 00:08:13.339 people. Like you do this really well. It doesn't 00:08:13.339 --> 00:08:15.220 matter how beautiful the view is out that window. 00:08:15.600 --> 00:08:17.579 You're going to find the smudge and you're going 00:08:17.579 --> 00:08:20.199 to notice it. And so the Bible would teach us 00:08:20.199 --> 00:08:22.759 that we have more control over this than maybe 00:08:22.759 --> 00:08:24.899 we realize, that if we will take our thoughts 00:08:24.899 --> 00:08:27.220 captive, if we'll look for the beautiful, we'll 00:08:27.220 --> 00:08:29.360 see the beautiful. If we look for the good, we'll 00:08:29.360 --> 00:08:31.680 see the good. If we look for the praiseworthy, 00:08:31.980 --> 00:08:35.279 we'll see the praiseworthy. And so how you start 00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:38.860 off each day will largely determine what you 00:08:38.860 --> 00:08:41.840 see during the day. I want us to spend a few 00:08:41.840 --> 00:08:43.419 minutes just looking at an example of this from 00:08:43.419 --> 00:08:45.440 the Old Testament. The prophet by the name of 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:47.320 Jeremiah is having the worst morning of his life. 00:08:47.419 --> 00:08:50.120 Kind of the worst morning in his nation's history. 00:08:50.799 --> 00:08:53.960 Jerusalem had been destroyed. People were starving. 00:08:54.039 --> 00:08:56.659 And he walks the street of the once beautiful 00:08:56.659 --> 00:09:00.679 city and his heart breaks. He sees his people, 00:09:00.720 --> 00:09:02.879 but really he sees God's people, the Israelites, 00:09:03.220 --> 00:09:07.399 rummaging through trash, looking for food. And 00:09:07.399 --> 00:09:09.240 it's not the way it should be. Like these are 00:09:09.240 --> 00:09:11.620 God's people. Why wouldn't God take care of them? 00:09:11.679 --> 00:09:13.700 Why wouldn't God protect them? And he smells 00:09:13.700 --> 00:09:16.600 the stench of death and he just, he breaks down 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:19.039 and the tears come and he starts weeping. And 00:09:19.039 --> 00:09:22.059 as he cries, he hikes up to this cave that overlooks 00:09:22.059 --> 00:09:24.080 Jerusalem and he wants to pray, but he doesn't 00:09:24.080 --> 00:09:27.320 know how. And we have written for us the book 00:09:27.320 --> 00:09:30.899 of Lamentations as he processes his thoughts. 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:34.740 Lament means to express grief or sorrow in a 00:09:34.740 --> 00:09:37.159 passionate or intense way, to weep or to wail. 00:09:37.519 --> 00:09:40.879 And then this is Lamentations. It's interesting 00:09:40.879 --> 00:09:43.460 the way the book is laid out. It's laid out as 00:09:43.460 --> 00:09:46.759 a bit of poetry. You have chapters, it's five 00:09:46.759 --> 00:09:49.039 chapters in Lamentations. Chapters one and two 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:52.480 and chapters four and five are all, have a similar 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:56.639 rhythm to them where he takes the alphabet, Hebrew 00:09:56.639 --> 00:10:00.779 alphabet, and each verse starts with the corresponding 00:10:00.779 --> 00:10:03.559 letter of the alphabet, 22 letters. And he just 00:10:03.559 --> 00:10:05.620 goes through in chapter one, here's all the things 00:10:05.620 --> 00:10:10.289 I have to lament about, alphabet, all the, Things 00:10:10.289 --> 00:10:12.230 I have to lament about chapter two and then the 00:10:12.230 --> 00:10:13.870 same thing in chapter four and five. It'd be 00:10:13.870 --> 00:10:16.549 like us wanting to kind of make our complaints 00:10:16.549 --> 00:10:18.850 known to God. And so we like, where do I even 00:10:18.850 --> 00:10:21.289 start? I've got so many of them. How about A? 00:10:21.490 --> 00:10:24.769 And A is for anxiety and B is for bullying and 00:10:24.769 --> 00:10:27.490 C is for cancer and D is for divorce and E is 00:10:27.490 --> 00:10:30.029 for eating disorders and F is for financial difficulties 00:10:30.029 --> 00:10:32.769 and we just work our way down. And chapter two, 00:10:32.909 --> 00:10:35.669 I can do another round of this and we just go 00:10:35.669 --> 00:10:39.360 through it. And that's how Lamentations is written, 00:10:39.399 --> 00:10:41.220 but sandwiched between chapters one and two and 00:10:41.220 --> 00:10:44.840 four and five is chapter three. And chapter three 00:10:44.840 --> 00:10:47.580 gives praise and thanks to God. And so the whole 00:10:47.580 --> 00:10:49.840 book is written as a bit of an illustration of 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:53.399 what it looks like for us as believers to lament. 00:10:54.720 --> 00:10:59.220 And the book is, of course, bookended with sorrow 00:10:59.220 --> 00:11:02.059 and grief and frustration and confusion and disappointment, 00:11:02.100 --> 00:11:05.980 but it's sandwiched around be joyful always, 00:11:06.779 --> 00:11:09.740 Give thanks in all circumstances. Pray continually. 00:11:10.440 --> 00:11:13.519 And so there's an important principle in lamenting. 00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:16.120 So when we find ourselves overwhelmed by the 00:11:16.120 --> 00:11:18.240 reality that life is difficult, one of the important 00:11:18.240 --> 00:11:20.700 principles for us as followers of Jesus is to 00:11:20.700 --> 00:11:25.899 start but don't stay. You're listening to Living 00:11:25.899 --> 00:11:28.019 on the Edge, and today's teaching from guest 00:11:28.019 --> 00:11:30.779 teacher Kyle Eidelman continues in just a minute. 00:11:31.100 --> 00:11:34.340 His message is available anytime at livingontheedge 00:11:34.340 --> 00:11:37.639 .org. Listen again, share it with a friend, or 00:11:37.639 --> 00:11:40.059 explore hundreds of additional programs, all 00:11:40.059 --> 00:11:43.720 free, all online. You can even search for specific 00:11:43.720 --> 00:11:47.120 topics like parenting, personal growth, and unchangeable 00:11:47.120 --> 00:11:50.179 truths. Plus, find small group resources and 00:11:50.179 --> 00:11:52.600 practical tools to help you live the Christian 00:11:52.600 --> 00:11:56.659 life every day. It's all waiting for you at livingontheedge 00:11:56.659 --> 00:12:00.240 .org. Now let's get back to today's message. 00:12:00.679 --> 00:12:03.620 This is where you start being very honest with 00:12:03.620 --> 00:12:05.919 God about your fears and your frustrations, about 00:12:05.919 --> 00:12:07.919 anger and bitterness, about the hurt that you're 00:12:07.919 --> 00:12:11.019 carrying. Like you don't pretend that everything's 00:12:11.019 --> 00:12:13.539 fine when everything isn't fine. You start there, 00:12:13.580 --> 00:12:16.039 but you don't stay there. David models this beautifully 00:12:16.039 --> 00:12:19.600 throughout the Psalms where he is uncomfortably 00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:23.620 honest with God about how he feels around some 00:12:23.620 --> 00:12:25.879 of the circumstances he's dealing with. He starts 00:12:25.879 --> 00:12:29.250 there, but he doesn't stay there. A term for 00:12:29.250 --> 00:12:31.750 this would be, in neuroscience, would be cognitive 00:12:31.750 --> 00:12:35.529 repraisal. It's a reframing where you recognize 00:12:35.529 --> 00:12:37.750 the reality of your emotion or of what you're 00:12:37.750 --> 00:12:41.350 going through, but with the intent of letting 00:12:41.350 --> 00:12:45.850 it draw you closer to God. When you're in a season 00:12:45.850 --> 00:12:48.629 of lament, it'll drive you further away or it 00:12:48.629 --> 00:12:50.370 can drive you closer to God. You start there, 00:12:50.409 --> 00:12:53.149 but you don't stay there. With God's help, you 00:12:53.149 --> 00:12:54.889 ask him to show you a different way of looking 00:12:54.889 --> 00:12:57.970 at things. You get a different perspective. And 00:12:57.970 --> 00:13:00.389 so you begin with some honest questions, but 00:13:00.389 --> 00:13:04.370 you're not just rehearsing your lament, you're 00:13:04.370 --> 00:13:07.710 releasing it to God. You're not just focusing 00:13:07.710 --> 00:13:09.529 on your problems, but you're focusing on his 00:13:09.529 --> 00:13:12.029 promises. And so that's what Jeremiah does. He 00:13:12.029 --> 00:13:14.789 sits in a cave, looks down at the ruins, and 00:13:14.789 --> 00:13:16.470 in the middle of these really dark circumstances, 00:13:16.710 --> 00:13:18.610 here's what he does. Listen, he makes a choice 00:13:18.610 --> 00:13:20.129 about what he's gonna think about. That's what 00:13:20.129 --> 00:13:22.710 we read in verse 21 of chapter three. He said, 00:13:22.750 --> 00:13:26.960 yet this I call to mind, despite all these, A 00:13:26.960 --> 00:13:29.820 to Z things that aren't going my way. This is 00:13:29.820 --> 00:13:32.159 what I'm gonna call to mind and therefore I have 00:13:32.159 --> 00:13:34.019 hope. Because I'm gonna be intentional with my 00:13:34.019 --> 00:13:37.179 thinking, I'm gonna find some hope. And so when 00:13:37.179 --> 00:13:39.059 you're lamenting, you have to be intentional 00:13:39.059 --> 00:13:41.960 about what you're gonna call to mind. And that's 00:13:41.960 --> 00:13:44.539 what Jeremiah does. And we see three things that 00:13:44.539 --> 00:13:48.019 he calls to mind. First, God's compassions never 00:13:48.019 --> 00:13:52.259 fail. Verse 22 through 23. Because of the Lord's 00:13:52.259 --> 00:13:56.519 great love, we are not consumed. for his compassions 00:13:56.519 --> 00:14:01.159 never fail. They are new every morning. That 00:14:01.159 --> 00:14:03.620 every morning, God will show you his compassion 00:14:03.620 --> 00:14:07.100 and his mercy. You have to look for it sometimes 00:14:07.100 --> 00:14:09.620 and pray that he'll show it to you, give you 00:14:09.620 --> 00:14:13.240 eyes to see it. The word new here is like new 00:14:13.240 --> 00:14:16.379 of a different kinds. It's like, it's not like 00:14:16.379 --> 00:14:19.759 saying, well, we had eggs for breakfast today. 00:14:20.580 --> 00:14:22.340 We're having new eggs for breakfast tomorrow. 00:14:22.440 --> 00:14:25.100 It's like we had eggs for breakfast. And tomorrow 00:14:25.100 --> 00:14:27.039 we're having waffles. It's like, it's new of 00:14:27.039 --> 00:14:30.419 a different kind. And the idea here is that each 00:14:30.419 --> 00:14:33.779 day, God will show you some way in which he is 00:14:33.779 --> 00:14:37.279 redeeming, restoring, rebuilding way that he's 00:14:37.279 --> 00:14:40.419 working, but you need him to help you see it. 00:14:40.940 --> 00:14:43.360 And so you say, God, it makes no sense to me. 00:14:43.740 --> 00:14:46.059 I don't understand what's happened or why it's 00:14:46.059 --> 00:14:49.490 happening. I don't sit where you sit. So tomorrow 00:14:49.490 --> 00:14:51.730 morning, when I wake up, would you help me see 00:14:51.730 --> 00:14:53.309 that you're compassionate and merciful? Would 00:14:53.309 --> 00:14:55.629 you let me see that your mercies are gonna be 00:14:55.629 --> 00:14:57.750 new tomorrow? That there's gonna be a new way 00:14:57.750 --> 00:15:00.169 that light shines into the darkness that I can't 00:15:00.169 --> 00:15:02.549 see from where I sit today, but tomorrow I'll 00:15:02.549 --> 00:15:05.610 be able to see it. That each day his mercies 00:15:05.610 --> 00:15:08.909 are new, each day his compassions are new. And 00:15:08.909 --> 00:15:13.590 so as you go. Through the lament, you just remind 00:15:13.590 --> 00:15:16.929 yourself that each morning his mercies are new, 00:15:17.009 --> 00:15:19.429 his compassion is new. The word compassion here 00:15:19.429 --> 00:15:22.730 carries with it this idea of tenderness. Verse 00:15:22.730 --> 00:15:25.970 32, if he works severely, he also works tenderly. 00:15:26.590 --> 00:15:29.470 It's not always the way we think about God, but 00:15:29.470 --> 00:15:31.629 Jeremiah understood in that moment the tenderness 00:15:31.629 --> 00:15:35.009 of God. His mercies are new each morning. Secondly, 00:15:35.190 --> 00:15:38.029 Jeremiah tells himself, here's something I'm 00:15:38.029 --> 00:15:40.750 gonna call to my mind, that great is his faithfulness. 00:15:41.100 --> 00:15:44.659 I'm gonna speak that out loud. I'm going to take 00:15:44.659 --> 00:15:46.480 the thoughts I have captive and I'm gonna replace 00:15:46.480 --> 00:15:49.620 it with this thought that God is faithful. Lamentations 00:15:49.620 --> 00:15:52.980 3 verse 23, great is his faithfulness. Even when 00:15:52.980 --> 00:15:55.799 you can't see it or feel it, even when you don't 00:15:55.799 --> 00:15:59.399 understand how the situation is unfolding, the 00:15:59.399 --> 00:16:02.480 sovereignty of God is at work. He is always faithful. 00:16:02.679 --> 00:16:05.899 He won't let you down. Third thing he says is, 00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:08.240 I'm gonna call to my mind, the Lord is my portion. 00:16:09.049 --> 00:16:11.590 The Lord is enough for me. Verse 24, I say to 00:16:11.590 --> 00:16:14.210 myself, the Lord is my portion. Therefore, I 00:16:14.210 --> 00:16:19.789 will wait for him. I'm not gonna put my confidence 00:16:19.789 --> 00:16:23.029 in anything else. I'm gonna put my confidence 00:16:23.029 --> 00:16:26.009 in him. And so when life is difficult, what do 00:16:26.009 --> 00:16:28.529 you say to yourself? Jeremiah says, here are 00:16:28.529 --> 00:16:30.509 the three things I say to myself. Here are the 00:16:30.509 --> 00:16:33.129 three thoughts that I am constantly thinking. 00:16:33.929 --> 00:16:36.590 God's compassions never fail. Great is his faithfulness. 00:16:38.139 --> 00:16:40.740 He's sufficient for me. So can I just challenge 00:16:40.740 --> 00:16:43.720 you starting tomorrow to have a little bit of 00:16:43.720 --> 00:16:47.019 a morning routine? Now look, don't be getting 00:16:47.019 --> 00:16:48.480 this thought in your mind that it has to be an 00:16:48.480 --> 00:16:51.059 hour long. Maybe you do that, good for you, but 00:16:51.059 --> 00:16:54.279 the duration is not nearly as important as the 00:16:54.279 --> 00:16:56.980 consistency. So what if you just for 10 minutes 00:16:56.980 --> 00:16:58.639 in the morning say, okay, I'm gonna be intentional 00:16:58.639 --> 00:17:03.200 to think through some of these things. Consistency 00:17:03.200 --> 00:17:05.599 is more important than the duration. And I would 00:17:05.599 --> 00:17:07.900 just tell you a couple of things. So if I could 00:17:07.900 --> 00:17:09.380 challenge you with number one, do not check your 00:17:09.380 --> 00:17:10.680 phone. Don't check your phone in the morning. 00:17:11.599 --> 00:17:13.940 The research is just really clear on this, that 00:17:13.940 --> 00:17:15.440 when you get on your phone, as soon as you wake 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:18.640 up, you skip the theta and alpha and you jump 00:17:18.640 --> 00:17:20.700 straight to the beta phase, which means you're 00:17:20.700 --> 00:17:23.819 awake and alert, but you're now already in a 00:17:23.819 --> 00:17:26.640 reactive response. In other words, it's triggering 00:17:26.640 --> 00:17:30.900 a stress response in you. And so unless you wanna 00:17:30.900 --> 00:17:33.960 start your day off, primed for distraction and 00:17:33.960 --> 00:17:36.039 stress, don't do it. Maybe you do. Maybe that's 00:17:36.039 --> 00:17:38.900 what you want. You want people to look at you 00:17:38.900 --> 00:17:40.859 and say, you know what I like about him? Always 00:17:40.859 --> 00:17:43.180 distracted. It's my favorite thing. He's never 00:17:43.180 --> 00:17:44.880 quite paying attention and he's always a little 00:17:44.880 --> 00:17:47.200 stressed out. If that's what you're going for, 00:17:47.359 --> 00:17:49.359 do it. Then just get on your phone as soon as 00:17:49.359 --> 00:17:51.059 you wake up. It's a good way to do that. But 00:17:51.059 --> 00:17:53.539 otherwise, just don't do it. Stay off your phone 00:17:53.539 --> 00:17:56.279 for that neuroplasticity window. And then just 00:17:56.279 --> 00:17:58.920 develop a morning routine. Look, use Jeremiah 00:17:58.920 --> 00:18:01.720 as an example of this. It can be different, but 00:18:02.269 --> 00:18:04.789 But what's he do? He starts with lament. He starts 00:18:04.789 --> 00:18:06.069 there, but he doesn't stay there, but he does 00:18:06.069 --> 00:18:08.690 start with it. David does this in the Psalms 00:18:08.690 --> 00:18:10.670 again, where he says, hey, here's some heavy 00:18:10.670 --> 00:18:12.549 things. Here's some challenges I've got to deal 00:18:12.549 --> 00:18:14.329 with today. Here's some people who are against 00:18:14.329 --> 00:18:16.430 me. Here's some circumstances I wish I could 00:18:16.430 --> 00:18:20.990 change. But then he turns the corner and reframes 00:18:20.990 --> 00:18:22.529 those things, which is take number two, taking 00:18:22.529 --> 00:18:24.509 your thoughts captive, where you say, this is 00:18:24.509 --> 00:18:26.190 all true, God, but here's what I'm going to call 00:18:26.190 --> 00:18:29.160 to mind. Yet this I call to mind. And then you 00:18:29.160 --> 00:18:32.059 declare those three truths over your life. God's 00:18:32.059 --> 00:18:34.539 compassions never fail. They're new every morning. 00:18:34.640 --> 00:18:36.559 Great is his faithfulness. I can count on God 00:18:36.559 --> 00:18:39.099 today. The Lord is my portion. He's enough for 00:18:39.099 --> 00:18:42.339 me. And then you pray and you read some scripture. 00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:45.220 You spend a few minutes in prayer, spend a few 00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:47.640 minutes in God's word before engaging in the 00:18:47.640 --> 00:18:52.700 demands of your day because life is difficult. 00:18:53.880 --> 00:18:55.940 I would love to say that it's gonna get easier. 00:18:56.880 --> 00:19:00.380 but there will be more to lament. Pain and suffering 00:19:00.380 --> 00:19:03.619 will continue to show up uninvited. Economic 00:19:03.619 --> 00:19:06.740 uncertainties will come. Family dynamics are 00:19:06.740 --> 00:19:10.079 fragile. Everything's maybe okay today, but tomorrow 00:19:10.079 --> 00:19:13.440 it might be different. Lamenting will be a part 00:19:13.440 --> 00:19:16.940 of your story and my story too, but we are chapter 00:19:16.940 --> 00:19:20.599 three people. We are chapter three people that 00:19:20.599 --> 00:19:23.950 in the midst of it, We praise the Lord. In the 00:19:23.950 --> 00:19:27.190 midst of it, we remind ourselves of God's faithfulness 00:19:27.190 --> 00:19:30.809 and his compassion and sufficiency. When Charlie 00:19:30.809 --> 00:19:33.190 Kirk's wife, Erica, stood and she made her first 00:19:33.190 --> 00:19:36.609 public comments after her husband was murdered, 00:19:36.809 --> 00:19:40.309 she whispered, if you heard her comment, she 00:19:40.309 --> 00:19:43.450 whispered a short prayer that the microphone 00:19:43.450 --> 00:19:46.730 picked up right before she began. This young 00:19:46.730 --> 00:19:50.410 widow and mother of two whispered, Jesus, fill 00:19:50.410 --> 00:19:56.259 this room. Before she spoke. And so in her moment 00:19:56.259 --> 00:19:57.880 of greatest darkness, when she could have said 00:19:57.880 --> 00:19:59.599 anything, when she could have cursed the darkness, 00:19:59.759 --> 00:20:02.359 no one would blame her. She said, Jesus, fill 00:20:02.359 --> 00:20:05.220 this room. She could have invited bitterness 00:20:05.220 --> 00:20:08.140 into the room. She could have allowed fear to 00:20:08.140 --> 00:20:11.299 fill the room. She could have whispered revenge, 00:20:11.420 --> 00:20:15.640 fill this room. But this young mom and her deepest 00:20:15.640 --> 00:20:19.839 grief invited the presence of Jesus. As you begin 00:20:19.839 --> 00:20:22.470 your day. Can I just challenge you to whisper 00:20:22.470 --> 00:20:27.769 those same words? Jesus, fill this room. Life 00:20:27.769 --> 00:20:31.130 is difficult. Darkness is real. Grief is heavy. 00:20:31.710 --> 00:20:37.349 Jesus, fill this room. Let's pray. Jesus, would 00:20:37.349 --> 00:20:38.910 you fill this room with your peace and would 00:20:38.910 --> 00:20:41.670 you fill this room with your power? Jesus, please 00:20:41.670 --> 00:20:44.750 fill this room. Would you fill it with forgiveness? 00:20:46.170 --> 00:20:49.859 Would you fill it with your tenderness? Would 00:20:49.859 --> 00:20:53.859 you fill it with second chances? Jesus, would 00:20:53.859 --> 00:20:59.240 you fill this room? We love you. It's in Jesus' 00:20:59.359 --> 00:21:04.299 name. Amen. You're listening to Living on the 00:21:04.299 --> 00:21:07.359 Edge with guest teacher Kyle Eidelman, wrapping 00:21:07.359 --> 00:21:10.700 up his series Every Thought Captive. Chip Ingram 00:21:10.700 --> 00:21:13.660 joins us in just a moment with some final thoughts. 00:21:14.259 --> 00:21:16.640 Kyle left us with a picture that's hard to forget. 00:21:17.180 --> 00:21:20.480 Kristen at that coastal Airbnb, a stunning view 00:21:20.480 --> 00:21:23.799 just beyond the glass, and a smudge she couldn't 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:26.680 stop staring at. The more she saw it, the more 00:21:26.680 --> 00:21:29.259 she saw it. And Kyle's challenge was simple and 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:32.140 direct. You have more control over what you fix 00:21:32.140 --> 00:21:35.440 your eyes on than you may realize. Win the morning. 00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:38.519 Start there, but don't stay there. And when life 00:21:38.519 --> 00:21:41.039 is at its darkest, call to mind what Jeremiah 00:21:41.039 --> 00:21:44.240 called to mind. God's compassions never fail. 00:21:44.640 --> 00:21:47.869 Great is his faithfulness. The Lord is enough. 00:21:48.390 --> 00:21:50.490 That's the kind of teaching Living on the Edge 00:21:50.490 --> 00:21:53.630 exists to bring you every day all across America 00:21:53.630 --> 00:21:56.450 and around the world. And it happens because 00:21:56.450 --> 00:21:59.450 of people who believe this mission matters. If 00:21:59.450 --> 00:22:01.869 you already give to support this ministry, thank 00:22:01.869 --> 00:22:04.470 you. You may never know this side of heaven the 00:22:04.470 --> 00:22:07.470 lives your generosity has touched. And if you've 00:22:07.470 --> 00:22:10.089 held good intentions about giving a gift, today's 00:22:10.089 --> 00:22:12.900 a great day to join this team. Your gift of any 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:15.240 amount empowers us to bring God's Word to the 00:22:15.240 --> 00:22:18.839 people who need it most. To give, visit livingontheedge 00:22:18.839 --> 00:22:24.579 .org or call us at 888 -333 -6003. Well, now 00:22:24.579 --> 00:22:27.660 here's Chip with a final word. Kyle took us to 00:22:27.660 --> 00:22:30.559 a little interesting place when we think about 00:22:30.559 --> 00:22:33.279 renewing our mind. He took us to Lamentations. 00:22:33.519 --> 00:22:36.980 And I love how he showed us that it's okay to 00:22:36.980 --> 00:22:40.460 start with honest lament. We just can't stay 00:22:40.460 --> 00:22:44.099 there. So let me say before I go on, everyone 00:22:44.099 --> 00:22:46.940 doesn't need to keep a journal, but I think if 00:22:46.940 --> 00:22:49.299 you're a verbal processor, for some of us, writing 00:22:49.299 --> 00:22:52.539 things down helps. And I'm not going to show 00:22:52.539 --> 00:22:55.279 you my journal, but if I did, you would probably 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:58.200 be shocked by the number of mornings it's, Dear 00:22:58.200 --> 00:23:00.640 God, I feel really flat today. I don't feel like 00:23:00.640 --> 00:23:03.200 praying. Or, Dear God, I'm really ticked off 00:23:03.200 --> 00:23:05.779 about X, Y, and Z, and I don't know why I feel 00:23:05.779 --> 00:23:09.039 this way, and I really need your help. I start 00:23:09.039 --> 00:23:11.640 with lament because what I know is I got to get 00:23:11.640 --> 00:23:15.400 honest or I'll just fake it. But here's the key. 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:19.680 You can't stay there. Lamentations 321, Jeremiah 00:23:19.680 --> 00:23:24.039 says, Yet this I call to mind, and therefore 00:23:24.039 --> 00:23:28.140 I have hope. That word yet changes everything. 00:23:28.460 --> 00:23:31.059 He makes a choice about what he'll think about. 00:23:31.440 --> 00:23:35.599 Three truths he declares. Number one, God's compassion 00:23:35.599 --> 00:23:38.660 never fails. It's new every morning. Number two, 00:23:38.880 --> 00:23:41.579 great is his faithfulness. And number three, 00:23:41.839 --> 00:23:45.759 the Lord is my portion. I mean, he's your portion. 00:23:45.920 --> 00:23:50.299 He's enough. Here's the challenge. Develop a 00:23:50.299 --> 00:23:54.000 simple morning routine. Start with honest lament 00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:57.140 if you need to, but don't stay there. Then declare 00:23:57.140 --> 00:24:00.839 God's truth out loud and then spend a few minutes 00:24:00.839 --> 00:24:05.299 in prayer and God's word. Most importantly, this 00:24:05.299 --> 00:24:08.779 will be hard for some of you, Don't check your 00:24:08.779 --> 00:24:12.140 phone first thing. Get it out of your bedroom. 00:24:12.420 --> 00:24:16.299 Open the word before you open the world and all 00:24:16.299 --> 00:24:20.039 of its influences on you. Even 10 minutes a day 00:24:20.039 --> 00:24:23.859 of winning the morning will cause a chain reaction 00:24:23.859 --> 00:24:27.160 in your thoughts and then your emotions and then 00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:29.799 your behavior and then your victory and then 00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:34.099 your life. I can't encourage you enough. Start 00:24:34.099 --> 00:24:37.130 every morning. By making room for God, you'll 00:24:37.130 --> 00:24:41.049 never regret it. Life and hope and peace. That's 00:24:41.049 --> 00:24:43.369 what we all want. But where do you actually find 00:24:43.369 --> 00:24:45.869 them when everything you've built comes undone? 00:24:46.029 --> 00:24:48.670 Well, there's an answer. And it's more than religion. 00:24:48.950 --> 00:24:51.769 Find out next time here on Living on the Edge. 00:24:55.049 --> 00:24:57.509 Today's program is produced and sponsored by 00:24:57.509 --> 00:24:58.630 Living on the Edge.