WEBVTT 00:00:11.759 --> 00:00:15.960 you like to become a more loving person? I don't 00:00:15.960 --> 00:00:19.359 mean just trying harder to act more loving, but 00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:22.699 actually become from the inside out a person 00:00:22.699 --> 00:00:26.420 that just flat out loves people better and more 00:00:26.420 --> 00:00:29.239 deeply. Well, if so, stick around. That's today. 00:00:31.820 --> 00:00:34.259 Thank you for being with us for this weekend 00:00:34.259 --> 00:00:37.159 edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:37.679 --> 00:00:39.780 Chip serves as our Bible teacher for this global 00:00:39.780 --> 00:00:42.600 teaching and discipleship ministry helping Christians 00:00:42.600 --> 00:00:45.600 develop an authentic faith. Well, a few days 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:48.240 ago, we kicked off our series, I Choose Love, 00:00:48.479 --> 00:00:51.340 How to Build Lasting Relationships. Today, we're 00:00:51.340 --> 00:00:53.859 highlighting a message from this past week where 00:00:53.859 --> 00:00:56.159 Chip revealed essential practices to becoming 00:00:56.159 --> 00:00:59.380 a more loving person. But before we begin, let 00:00:59.380 --> 00:01:01.520 me encourage you to use Chip's message notes 00:01:01.520 --> 00:01:03.640 while you listen. They'll help you get the most 00:01:03.640 --> 00:01:06.069 out of what you're about to hear. Download them 00:01:06.069 --> 00:01:09.230 under the broadcasts tab at livingontheedge .org. 00:01:09.390 --> 00:01:13.010 App listeners tap fill in notes. Okay, let's 00:01:13.010 --> 00:01:15.030 settle in now for the second half of Chip's talk, 00:01:15.209 --> 00:01:20.290 Love Gives, from Philippians chapter 2. How to 00:01:20.290 --> 00:01:25.890 become a more loving person. Choose to declare 00:01:25.890 --> 00:01:30.969 war on, write the word, selfishness. Choose, 00:01:30.969 --> 00:01:37.459 declare war on. selfishness. And as usual, when 00:01:37.459 --> 00:01:42.620 I go high -tech here, my iPad is not working, 00:01:42.640 --> 00:01:45.579 so I think I'll go with a little bit less technical 00:01:45.579 --> 00:01:49.140 one that you all have. Turn to Philippians chapter 00:01:49.140 --> 00:01:52.920 2, if you're not already there, and let me read 00:01:52.920 --> 00:01:57.280 for you this command. Philippians chapter 2, 00:01:57.420 --> 00:02:02.489 we've looked at verses 1 and 2. Follow along 00:02:02.489 --> 00:02:05.909 here in chapter 2 as we read verse 3 and 4. Do 00:02:05.909 --> 00:02:12.210 nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but 00:02:12.210 --> 00:02:16.349 in humility of mind consider others more important 00:02:16.349 --> 00:02:19.490 than yourself. Verse 4, let each of you look 00:02:19.490 --> 00:02:23.430 not only on your own interest, but also on the 00:02:23.430 --> 00:02:30.969 interest of others. You may be looking at this 00:02:30.969 --> 00:02:34.629 and saying, declare war? Aren't you getting a 00:02:34.629 --> 00:02:38.750 little radical here? No, no. We're born with 00:02:38.750 --> 00:02:42.330 this innate ability to be selfish. In fact, let 00:02:42.330 --> 00:02:46.550 me define selfish ambition here. Four words. 00:02:46.729 --> 00:02:51.270 I want my way. That's selfish ambition. I want 00:02:51.270 --> 00:02:55.689 my way. You might jot down, it's a me first mentality. 00:02:56.400 --> 00:02:58.960 I want to be first in line. I want the best spot. 00:02:59.180 --> 00:03:00.939 I want to get on the plane first. That's one 00:03:00.939 --> 00:03:07.639 of mine. I want to get to work first. When I 00:03:07.639 --> 00:03:09.039 go through the buffet, I want the best piece 00:03:09.039 --> 00:03:14.199 of meat. I want the best promotion. It's me first. 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:17.020 I want my needs met in this marriage. I want 00:03:17.020 --> 00:03:19.379 my mom and dad to come through for me. I want 00:03:19.379 --> 00:03:21.520 my professor to give me what I want when I want 00:03:21.520 --> 00:03:25.830 it. It's a me first mentality. I want to be number 00:03:25.830 --> 00:03:31.270 one. I'm selfish. Now, it's very unpopular to 00:03:31.270 --> 00:03:35.449 admit that. But what is hard to see in ourselves, 00:03:35.530 --> 00:03:38.509 isn't it easy to see in others? I mean, you get 00:03:38.509 --> 00:03:40.370 out on the freeway, are people selfish or what? 00:03:41.009 --> 00:03:44.650 I mean, this isn't like out there somewhere either. 00:03:46.030 --> 00:03:48.490 Anybody here tried to get out of the parking 00:03:48.490 --> 00:03:50.710 lot here? You know, especially 11 o 'clock service? 00:03:51.949 --> 00:03:54.169 Now, there are some people, you know, very Christian, 00:03:54.289 --> 00:03:57.770 wave you in. And there's some of you that are 00:03:57.770 --> 00:03:59.330 still working on it. Let me put it that way. 00:04:00.370 --> 00:04:04.069 But we're selfish. But you don't slide out of 00:04:04.069 --> 00:04:06.650 being selfish. Even though the living spirit 00:04:06.650 --> 00:04:09.189 of Christ lives inside of you and you're born 00:04:09.189 --> 00:04:10.849 again and you're part of the kingdom of God, 00:04:10.969 --> 00:04:13.669 there's this battle. Galatians talks about the 00:04:13.669 --> 00:04:18.480 spirit wages war against the flesh. This predisposition 00:04:18.480 --> 00:04:23.180 toward my way, my stuff is rooted in your heart, 00:04:23.220 --> 00:04:25.579 and you'll have it until the day you die. But 00:04:25.579 --> 00:04:30.439 the Spirit of God can give you the ability to, 00:04:30.480 --> 00:04:32.420 in humility, look at the second half of that 00:04:32.420 --> 00:04:37.220 text. In humility, consider others as more important 00:04:37.220 --> 00:04:40.180 than yourself. Humility can be a very misunderstood 00:04:40.180 --> 00:04:45.560 word. So I came across a very, very interesting 00:04:45.560 --> 00:04:48.540 article. I think of humility as not thinking 00:04:48.540 --> 00:04:50.699 too highly of yourself, not thinking too lowly 00:04:50.699 --> 00:04:54.540 of yourself, but having an accurate, sober self 00:04:54.540 --> 00:05:01.000 -assessment. As one person said, humility is 00:05:01.000 --> 00:05:06.300 not thinking less of yourself. Humility is just 00:05:06.300 --> 00:05:11.120 thinking less about yourself. Beating yourself 00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:13.279 up, I'm a terrible person, that's not humility, 00:05:13.500 --> 00:05:16.500 that's not accurate. It's just not letting you, 00:05:16.579 --> 00:05:19.899 it's me not letting me be the thing and the person 00:05:19.899 --> 00:05:23.120 I think about all the time. They're doing science 00:05:23.120 --> 00:05:26.660 now on the benefits of virtues, things like forgiveness. 00:05:27.639 --> 00:05:30.500 They've done lots of research on gratitude. You 00:05:30.500 --> 00:05:33.220 may have read some of that. This is an article 00:05:33.220 --> 00:05:36.709 by a professor at George Fox University. It's 00:05:36.709 --> 00:05:39.430 called The Science of Humility. It says, researchers 00:05:39.430 --> 00:05:41.329 have developed scales to measure intellectual 00:05:41.329 --> 00:05:43.850 humility, relational humility, cultural humility, 00:05:44.089 --> 00:05:46.750 and some are now working on spiritual humility 00:05:46.750 --> 00:05:50.310 as well. As with forgiveness and gratitude, humility 00:05:50.310 --> 00:05:53.170 fosters, now listen, this is what humility delivers. 00:05:53.290 --> 00:05:55.490 Are you ready for this? Humility fosters physical 00:05:55.490 --> 00:05:58.079 and mental and relational health. Humble people 00:05:58.079 --> 00:06:00.759 are more grateful and forgiving, so they enjoy 00:06:00.759 --> 00:06:03.800 the benefits of those virtues. Also, humble people 00:06:03.800 --> 00:06:07.199 are more generous and helpful to others. Hey, 00:06:07.259 --> 00:06:10.339 this is a good one. They have better romantic 00:06:10.339 --> 00:06:12.720 relationships. For some of you, get humble right 00:06:12.720 --> 00:06:15.519 away, okay? They have better romantic relationships, 00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:18.100 have less anxiety about death, and experience 00:06:18.100 --> 00:06:21.959 less spiritual struggle. Those parents who are 00:06:21.959 --> 00:06:25.220 concerned about your kids, People that are humble 00:06:25.220 --> 00:06:27.319 perform better at school, show more compassion 00:06:27.319 --> 00:06:30.319 to others, and even have better self -esteem 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:33.939 than less humble people. So in other words, they're 00:06:33.939 --> 00:06:36.779 doing scientific research. And what God has commanded, 00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:40.620 what delights our Father, and what Christ modeled 00:06:40.620 --> 00:06:47.259 amazingly, is the genuine humility. Not putting 00:06:47.259 --> 00:06:49.839 yourself first, but actually considering the 00:06:49.839 --> 00:06:52.980 needs of others. It's what we call around here, 00:06:53.079 --> 00:06:54.980 and you'll learn more about in this series. It's 00:06:54.980 --> 00:06:58.600 the I am second mentality. I mean, it just goes 00:06:58.600 --> 00:07:01.699 completely against everything. I am second as 00:07:01.699 --> 00:07:04.879 I go through the line. I am second as I drive 00:07:04.879 --> 00:07:07.199 on the freeway. I am second when I think about 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:09.519 my rights in my marriage. I am second when I 00:07:09.519 --> 00:07:12.220 think about the needs with my roommate. I am 00:07:12.220 --> 00:07:14.379 second when we're trying to divide something 00:07:14.379 --> 00:07:19.459 and see who gets the bigger piece. The article 00:07:19.459 --> 00:07:23.060 goes on. and says that humility, this is very 00:07:23.060 --> 00:07:26.560 important, does not require self -loathing or 00:07:26.560 --> 00:07:29.040 self -belittling, but it calls for us to dial 00:07:29.040 --> 00:07:31.259 back our normal tendency, are you ready for this, 00:07:31.399 --> 00:07:35.319 to overestimate our abilities and behaviors. 00:07:35.540 --> 00:07:38.199 Now, I never do that, and you never do that, 00:07:38.259 --> 00:07:40.500 but there's some people out there that overestimate 00:07:40.500 --> 00:07:42.759 their abilities and their behaviors, and you 00:07:42.759 --> 00:07:46.240 know I'm teasing. I love it. He goes, there's 00:07:46.240 --> 00:07:48.720 three characteristics of people that are genuinely 00:07:48.720 --> 00:07:52.910 humble. Number one, They have a reasonably accurate 00:07:52.910 --> 00:07:56.730 view of themselves, neither too high or neither 00:07:56.730 --> 00:08:01.290 too low, pretty biblical. Number two is they 00:08:01.290 --> 00:08:07.189 care more deeply or have a concern and notice 00:08:07.189 --> 00:08:12.069 other people. And then number three is humble 00:08:12.069 --> 00:08:17.509 people are teachable. So genuine humility is 00:08:17.509 --> 00:08:19.930 rooted in some characteristics, and according 00:08:19.930 --> 00:08:23.050 to the scientific study, which actually is pretty 00:08:23.050 --> 00:08:26.050 biblical, whether they know it or not, is that 00:08:26.050 --> 00:08:28.129 they have a pretty accurate view of themselves. 00:08:28.290 --> 00:08:30.149 In other words, I'm not the center of the world. 00:08:30.649 --> 00:08:33.679 Are you ready? I'm not the smartest person. in 00:08:33.679 --> 00:08:36.460 the room. My opinions aren't always the best. 00:08:36.659 --> 00:08:39.779 My perspective of what we ought to do or my decision 00:08:39.779 --> 00:08:41.740 isn't necessarily better than others. But it 00:08:41.740 --> 00:08:43.340 doesn't mean that I don't have good thoughts 00:08:43.340 --> 00:08:46.620 and my decisions and my perspective can be very 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:48.700 valid. So they don't think too high. They don't 00:08:48.700 --> 00:08:51.549 think too low. The second one is they really 00:08:51.549 --> 00:08:54.370 consider the thoughts, the interests, and the 00:08:54.370 --> 00:08:56.990 feelings of others. Humble people are sensitive. 00:08:57.230 --> 00:08:59.850 Humble people notice the person that when everyone 00:08:59.850 --> 00:09:01.950 gets out and walks out of here, humble people 00:09:01.950 --> 00:09:04.750 see the people that no one said hi to. Humble 00:09:04.750 --> 00:09:07.750 people notice the needs of other people. Genuinely 00:09:07.750 --> 00:09:10.009 humble people, I'm always amazed that, you know, 00:09:10.029 --> 00:09:12.269 maybe I'll have a passing conversation with someone 00:09:12.269 --> 00:09:14.529 and like a week later, two weeks later, like 00:09:14.529 --> 00:09:18.429 get a note or get something in the mail. I was 00:09:18.429 --> 00:09:20.590 meeting with someone a long time ago and they 00:09:20.590 --> 00:09:23.669 watched me fiddle with trying to recharge. You 00:09:23.669 --> 00:09:25.809 know, you got all these rechargers and all this 00:09:25.809 --> 00:09:28.289 different stuff. Out of the blue, a week later, 00:09:28.409 --> 00:09:31.769 I get a package. There's no name. There's no 00:09:31.769 --> 00:09:33.970 note. There's no anything. I don't know what 00:09:33.970 --> 00:09:36.169 it is. I open the package, and it's one of these 00:09:36.169 --> 00:09:40.049 bars that has one, two, three, four, five, where 00:09:40.049 --> 00:09:42.049 you can hook in your phone, everything else with 00:09:42.049 --> 00:09:44.429 a plug, and you plug the thing in. I use it every 00:09:44.429 --> 00:09:49.149 day. Humility. Someone didn't say a word, saw 00:09:49.149 --> 00:09:51.750 I had a need, and addressed the need. And third, 00:09:51.909 --> 00:09:55.730 and I think this is big, they're teachable. They 00:09:55.730 --> 00:10:02.939 realize that they're on the journey too. How 00:10:02.939 --> 00:10:10.279 humble are you? For some of your personalities, 00:10:10.299 --> 00:10:14.080 I just want to say, please, please don't go to, 00:10:14.240 --> 00:10:18.279 oh, I came to church today. I'm a terrible person. 00:10:18.360 --> 00:10:20.320 Everything he's talking about, that's me. I'm 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:22.259 an arrogant, terrible person. You know what? 00:10:22.279 --> 00:10:25.840 Guess where your focus is at this moment? It's 00:10:25.840 --> 00:10:31.090 on you. At the heart of not being humble, is 00:10:31.090 --> 00:10:33.789 not thinking lowly of yourself, belittling yourself, 00:10:34.009 --> 00:10:39.169 condemning yourself. In fact, the second way 00:10:39.169 --> 00:10:43.950 to become more loving is attack the root of the 00:10:43.950 --> 00:10:46.490 problem. And then I want you to write in the 00:10:46.490 --> 00:10:52.990 word pride. Attack the root of the problem. You're 00:10:52.990 --> 00:10:55.940 listening to Living on the Edge. return you to 00:10:55.940 --> 00:10:58.379 Chip's message in just a minute. But first, let 00:10:58.379 --> 00:11:00.919 me tell you, God is doing incredible work through 00:11:00.919 --> 00:11:04.019 this ministry all around the world. And if you'd 00:11:04.019 --> 00:11:06.100 like to join us, consider partnering with us 00:11:06.100 --> 00:11:09.539 during our mid -year match. Every gift we receive 00:11:09.539 --> 00:11:12.500 until midnight on June 30th will be doubled dollar 00:11:12.500 --> 00:11:16.019 for dollar. Join us today by going to livingontheedge 00:11:16.019 --> 00:11:22.580 .org or call 888 -333 -6003. We appreciate your 00:11:22.580 --> 00:11:25.399 generosity. Well, with that, here again is Chip. 00:11:26.059 --> 00:11:28.700 If you will, right underneath where you see verse 00:11:28.700 --> 00:11:32.379 3, circle the world empty conceit. Do nothing 00:11:32.379 --> 00:11:39.159 from selfish ambition or empty conceit. Selfish 00:11:39.159 --> 00:11:42.299 ambition, selfishness is what we do. The root 00:11:42.299 --> 00:11:44.970 of the problem is why we do it. That's empty 00:11:44.970 --> 00:11:48.090 conceit. Or I love, write this word down. I love 00:11:48.090 --> 00:11:50.549 this phrase. It's an old, old, old version of 00:11:50.549 --> 00:11:55.250 King James. Vain glory, empty glory. You say, 00:11:55.250 --> 00:11:57.929 well, what's vain glory? What's empty conceit? 00:11:59.389 --> 00:12:02.769 Well, a good street name is pride, but that's 00:12:02.769 --> 00:12:07.409 sort of, it's kind of a big word. Let me give 00:12:07.409 --> 00:12:11.250 you some very specific pictures of empty conceit. 00:12:12.400 --> 00:12:16.460 Empty conceit is I'm better. I'm more important. 00:12:17.139 --> 00:12:21.980 I'm superior. I'm more intelligent. My time matters 00:12:21.980 --> 00:12:26.840 more than yours. My life matters more than you. 00:12:27.659 --> 00:12:30.480 I have greater value. I have greater worth. Now, 00:12:30.559 --> 00:12:32.879 you may not say that outside in your head, but 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:38.539 our behavior, our behavior just screams vainglory. 00:12:39.690 --> 00:12:43.710 I like the way I said that, glory, right? It's 00:12:43.710 --> 00:12:46.710 this, I'm the center of the world, and I can 00:12:46.710 --> 00:12:50.549 clothe it with all kind of Bible verses, and 00:12:50.549 --> 00:12:55.149 I can actually, in a Christian way, do image 00:12:55.149 --> 00:12:59.009 management to try and project I'm humble, which 00:12:59.009 --> 00:13:02.350 is the empty conceit. The idea is I want everyone 00:13:02.350 --> 00:13:05.769 to have this amazing opinion of me that I either 00:13:05.769 --> 00:13:09.220 want for myself, Or I actually think I have. 00:13:10.720 --> 00:13:14.700 I made a list because this got very convicting 00:13:14.700 --> 00:13:17.899 and I thought, oh boy. I made a list of some 00:13:17.899 --> 00:13:22.820 ways that when this happens in me, okay? This 00:13:22.820 --> 00:13:25.480 isn't you, this is me. When these things happen 00:13:25.480 --> 00:13:29.740 in me, what I know is vain glory, empty conceit, 00:13:29.740 --> 00:13:33.620 pride is raising its ugly head. And then I'm 00:13:33.620 --> 00:13:35.340 gonna talk to you about how to go into training. 00:13:36.169 --> 00:13:38.610 And did you notice the violent words I've used? 00:13:39.750 --> 00:13:43.240 Declare war! Attack! In other words, you've got 00:13:43.240 --> 00:13:45.080 to get to the root of the problem. This isn't 00:13:45.080 --> 00:13:47.740 about, I think I'm going to try and be more loving 00:13:47.740 --> 00:13:50.159 and I'll tell someone I forgive. No, this is 00:13:50.159 --> 00:13:54.120 heart stuff, root stuff. This is stuff that's 00:13:54.120 --> 00:13:57.340 so deeply in your psyche and in your soul and 00:13:57.340 --> 00:14:01.080 mind that you have to declare war. I refuse in 00:14:01.080 --> 00:14:03.000 light of what God's done for me to be a selfish 00:14:03.000 --> 00:14:05.899 person. I'm going to attack the root problem. 00:14:06.039 --> 00:14:09.179 And the root problem is in my thinking. I become 00:14:09.179 --> 00:14:11.860 the center of things even subtly because in my 00:14:11.860 --> 00:14:13.960 thinking, I think I'm better or I want to project 00:14:13.960 --> 00:14:16.220 that I'm better. In my thinking, my time and 00:14:16.220 --> 00:14:20.980 my money and what I do is more important. It's 00:14:20.980 --> 00:14:25.659 lethal. It destroys relationships. It's unloving. 00:14:26.539 --> 00:14:30.679 And so when these things happen in my life, what 00:14:30.679 --> 00:14:35.899 I know is pride. Defensiveness. Someone makes 00:14:35.899 --> 00:14:38.549 a comment to me immediately. It could be my wife. 00:14:38.590 --> 00:14:40.169 It can be in a meeting. It could be one of my 00:14:40.169 --> 00:14:42.470 kids. It can be someone I don't know very much. 00:14:42.830 --> 00:14:44.610 They say something. We're talking about something. 00:14:44.769 --> 00:14:47.850 And I hear myself. I'm defensive. Well, why? 00:14:48.409 --> 00:14:50.049 Because I've got to guard. I've got to prove. 00:14:50.129 --> 00:14:53.909 I've got to protect. Whatever they've said, that 00:14:53.909 --> 00:14:56.610 sort of hit a button inside. Second, making excuses. 00:14:58.950 --> 00:15:02.629 It's my pride. I didn't do it wrong. I didn't 00:15:02.629 --> 00:15:04.929 mess up. It was them. It was late. It was the 00:15:04.929 --> 00:15:06.570 traffic. If they would have done this on time, 00:15:06.649 --> 00:15:09.730 I would have had it on time. It's you name it. 00:15:11.429 --> 00:15:13.830 In fact, related to that one is when I hear myself 00:15:13.830 --> 00:15:17.149 blaming other people, I know that's pride. In 00:15:17.149 --> 00:15:19.950 other words, don't look at me and think it's 00:15:19.950 --> 00:15:23.470 my fault. See, humility, you know what humility 00:15:23.470 --> 00:15:27.529 does? And it actually gains. It actually gains. 00:15:28.269 --> 00:15:31.110 the credibility of people. When you actually 00:15:31.110 --> 00:15:33.149 make a mistake, when you're actually late, when 00:15:33.149 --> 00:15:34.929 you really blow it, when you don't come through, 00:15:35.090 --> 00:15:38.409 it's amazing what happens when you say, you know, 00:15:38.409 --> 00:15:42.549 hey, I hope you all will, I just apologize. That 00:15:42.549 --> 00:15:45.149 was a deadline. I didn't hit it. I could give 00:15:45.149 --> 00:15:46.990 you a number of reasons. None of them really 00:15:46.990 --> 00:15:49.730 measure up other than I didn't use my time wisely. 00:15:50.090 --> 00:15:52.649 I went down some bad paths in terms of how to 00:15:52.649 --> 00:15:55.049 solve this problem. I'd like to ask you guys 00:15:55.049 --> 00:15:58.669 to forgive me. You know what normally happens? 00:15:58.809 --> 00:16:00.649 Everyone in the room knows they do that too. 00:16:01.710 --> 00:16:06.450 But so often we blame, we make excuses. I was 00:16:06.450 --> 00:16:10.649 perpetually late for almost everything for years. 00:16:11.110 --> 00:16:14.009 You know, the guy that's dashing onto the plane 00:16:14.009 --> 00:16:16.210 in the old years before, you know, there was 00:16:16.210 --> 00:16:18.649 all that security or the person who's rushing 00:16:18.649 --> 00:16:21.190 in and running out of the parking lot and coming 00:16:21.190 --> 00:16:23.289 in two minutes late or five minutes late. I was 00:16:23.289 --> 00:16:27.659 late, late, late, late, late. And I tried hard 00:16:27.659 --> 00:16:30.899 and it really bugged my wife. And then I had 00:16:30.899 --> 00:16:32.919 a breakthrough. My problem was not being late. 00:16:33.019 --> 00:16:35.100 My problem wasn't self -will. My problem wasn't 00:16:35.100 --> 00:16:38.820 discipline. My problem was grandiosity. And when 00:16:38.820 --> 00:16:44.299 I saw that it was so ugly, I changed. Some of 00:16:44.299 --> 00:16:46.279 you are saying, so what exactly is grandiosity? 00:16:47.240 --> 00:16:49.519 Grandiosity is thinking whatever you're doing 00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:53.659 is so important. And if I can say this kindly, 00:16:55.309 --> 00:16:59.750 We come here on a weekend to adore and give our 00:16:59.750 --> 00:17:02.629 very best to the creator of the universe and 00:17:02.629 --> 00:17:04.930 the savior that died upon a cross to pay for 00:17:04.930 --> 00:17:07.170 our sin and rose from the dead and has given 00:17:07.170 --> 00:17:12.930 us eternal life. The grandiosity to come in 5, 00:17:13.130 --> 00:17:18.339 10, 15, 20 minutes late. The grandiosity. of 00:17:18.339 --> 00:17:21.440 during a song or during this time when I'm teaching 00:17:21.440 --> 00:17:24.200 the very word of God, you checking your email 00:17:24.200 --> 00:17:29.400 and having your phone open is arrogance. And 00:17:29.400 --> 00:17:33.920 so notice point number three is choose to practice 00:17:33.920 --> 00:17:38.039 humility daily by putting others' needs and interests 00:17:38.039 --> 00:17:40.680 ahead of your own. Don't consider just your own 00:17:40.680 --> 00:17:45.000 interests, although the passage is clear, take 00:17:45.000 --> 00:17:47.579 them into account. But consider the interests 00:17:47.579 --> 00:17:51.160 of others as more important than your own. What 00:17:51.160 --> 00:17:55.180 would happen? What would happen if we declared 00:17:55.180 --> 00:17:57.500 war on selfishness? If we said, I'm going to 00:17:57.500 --> 00:18:00.019 attack the root of this problem, which is really 00:18:00.019 --> 00:18:02.900 my own pride, this empty conceit, this vainglory. 00:18:03.039 --> 00:18:05.079 And then this week, I'm going to go into training. 00:18:05.319 --> 00:18:08.140 And I'm going to choose very specifically in 00:18:08.140 --> 00:18:10.059 little, little things that will grow into bigger 00:18:10.059 --> 00:18:13.329 and bigger things. I'm going to choose in my 00:18:13.329 --> 00:18:15.269 money to be generous. I'm going to choose in 00:18:15.269 --> 00:18:17.829 my time to be generous. And we'll talk about 00:18:17.829 --> 00:18:21.269 exactly how very specifically to put that in 00:18:21.269 --> 00:18:25.630 practice. Ask yourself, where does my money go? 00:18:26.890 --> 00:18:30.549 Loving toward God and others or me? Where does 00:18:30.549 --> 00:18:35.750 my time go? Toward God and others or me? Where 00:18:35.750 --> 00:18:43.539 does my energy go? Father, I pray now. As there 00:18:43.539 --> 00:18:47.200 are many, many, many relationships that are fractured 00:18:47.200 --> 00:18:50.559 and it will require only one person to admit 00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:52.900 at the heart of it, regardless of the other person, 00:18:53.000 --> 00:18:56.140 that pride and selfishness and arrogance is at 00:18:56.140 --> 00:18:59.599 the core and a repentance before you. And then 00:18:59.599 --> 00:19:03.920 the next steps of asking forgiveness and restitution 00:19:03.920 --> 00:19:07.700 and even reconciliation in some cases where it's 00:19:07.700 --> 00:19:11.720 possible. So Lord, would you bring to mind in 00:19:11.720 --> 00:19:16.829 this room, The people that need to get a call, 00:19:16.950 --> 00:19:21.390 a lunch, a coffee, a text, a letter, a note of 00:19:21.390 --> 00:19:24.369 apology so that we could love others the way 00:19:24.369 --> 00:19:30.490 you've loved us. Before we do anything else in 00:19:30.490 --> 00:19:34.089 this broadcast, I want to pause. I just prayed. 00:19:34.650 --> 00:19:38.690 And now I want to talk to you very honestly and 00:19:38.690 --> 00:19:42.470 sincerely about your life. The fact of the matter 00:19:42.470 --> 00:19:46.289 is that you need to ask and I need to ask, so 00:19:46.289 --> 00:19:51.690 where does your money go? And what actions really 00:19:51.690 --> 00:19:54.289 indicate that you love God and you love other 00:19:54.289 --> 00:19:57.470 people? I mean, where does your time go? And 00:19:57.470 --> 00:20:00.819 this is not about me in any way seeking to poke 00:20:00.819 --> 00:20:03.640 around or make you feel guilty. This is about 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:07.720 you and me as brother and sisters in Christ coming 00:20:07.720 --> 00:20:11.839 before the throne of God and saying, love isn't 00:20:11.839 --> 00:20:17.099 just a feeling. Love chooses to serve. It chooses 00:20:17.099 --> 00:20:20.759 to give. It chooses to get out of our comfort 00:20:20.759 --> 00:20:23.720 zone. It's the platinum rule. Love says, this 00:20:23.720 --> 00:20:27.789 is what God has done in us. And something inside 00:20:27.789 --> 00:20:30.829 of us, the Spirit of the living God, compels 00:20:30.829 --> 00:20:34.190 us to release our time and our money and our 00:20:34.190 --> 00:20:37.829 energy to meet the needs of other people. And 00:20:37.829 --> 00:20:39.589 so I'd like you, you know, if you're driving, 00:20:39.730 --> 00:20:42.269 don't do this. But if you're not driving, would 00:20:42.269 --> 00:20:44.750 you just open your palms upward and say, Lord, 00:20:44.890 --> 00:20:48.210 it's your money, it's your time, it's your gifts, 00:20:48.250 --> 00:20:51.250 it's your talents. Would you bring to my mind 00:20:51.250 --> 00:20:55.400 just today? Who could I extend money and time 00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:58.660 and energy and love to? And Lord, would you help 00:20:58.660 --> 00:21:01.599 me see first and foremost under the roof where 00:21:01.599 --> 00:21:04.279 I live, my roommate or my husband, my wife, my 00:21:04.279 --> 00:21:07.119 kids, would you help me to be an other -centered 00:21:07.119 --> 00:21:10.759 follower of Jesus? And then watch how the Spirit 00:21:10.759 --> 00:21:13.829 of God will work in you and through you. Great 00:21:13.829 --> 00:21:16.269 word, Chip. Well, if you've been inspired to 00:21:16.269 --> 00:21:18.650 deepen your relationship with God, we'd love 00:21:18.650 --> 00:21:22.289 to support you. Go to truespiritualityonline 00:21:22.289 --> 00:21:25.789 .org and check out our resources. You can order 00:21:25.789 --> 00:21:28.849 Chip's popular book, True Spirituality, get the 00:21:28.849 --> 00:21:31.210 small group, or watch countless helpful videos. 00:21:31.650 --> 00:21:34.250 All these tools were designed to show you the 00:21:34.250 --> 00:21:36.910 clear path to becoming a genuine follower of 00:21:36.910 --> 00:21:39.640 Christ. So check them out today. That website 00:21:39.640 --> 00:21:46.640 again is truespiritualityonline .org. Well, before 00:21:46.640 --> 00:21:48.839 we go, Chip's still with me in studio to pass 00:21:48.839 --> 00:21:51.799 along a really encouraging testimony. Thanks 00:21:51.799 --> 00:21:55.259 so much, Dave. I'd like to share a story of a 00:21:55.259 --> 00:21:58.640 fellow pastor in India. His name is Pastor Mustafa. 00:21:59.200 --> 00:22:02.680 And I have to say it is the... absolute saddest 00:22:02.680 --> 00:22:05.839 story I think I've ever heard. He lives in a 00:22:05.839 --> 00:22:08.480 very rural area. He has the disability of one 00:22:08.480 --> 00:22:11.599 leg, so he walks with a limp and a cane. He has 00:22:11.599 --> 00:22:14.440 a family and a couple kids. And he went through, 00:22:14.519 --> 00:22:18.099 I mean, a dark, dark, dark time. He came to the 00:22:18.099 --> 00:22:20.640 point where he was so desperate, the persecution 00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:23.700 was so bad, that he and his wife and his kids 00:22:23.700 --> 00:22:26.599 literally were planning and making a pact that 00:22:26.599 --> 00:22:29.339 said, we're going to do a mass suicide. I mean, 00:22:29.339 --> 00:22:31.519 that sounds terrible, but I can tell you, I've 00:22:31.519 --> 00:22:34.180 pastored for 40 years, some of the most godly 00:22:34.180 --> 00:22:37.259 people I've ever met. If things get so bad and 00:22:37.259 --> 00:22:39.480 they lose perspective, you can do things that 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:42.380 you think would be unimaginable. In the midst 00:22:42.380 --> 00:22:44.980 of that time, a fellow pastor said, you need 00:22:44.980 --> 00:22:47.240 to read this and come to this event. It's called 00:22:47.240 --> 00:22:50.539 The Art of Survival. He went to that, and God 00:22:50.539 --> 00:22:53.559 spoke to him. He said, I'm going to consider 00:22:53.559 --> 00:22:56.559 it all joy. I'm going to... hang on to God's 00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:59.740 wisdom. And I refused to give up. And God infused 00:22:59.740 --> 00:23:02.619 him. And as a result, he shared that with his 00:23:02.619 --> 00:23:05.720 church. And the ripples go on and on and on. 00:23:06.500 --> 00:23:10.119 When you support Living on the Edge, and when 00:23:10.119 --> 00:23:13.700 you pray, you're helping us help under -resourced 00:23:13.700 --> 00:23:17.259 pastors, often in rural areas, all throughout 00:23:17.259 --> 00:23:22.079 India, Nepal, places in China, Africa, Latin 00:23:22.079 --> 00:23:25.140 America. We have teams in these places around 00:23:25.140 --> 00:23:28.180 the world, and pastors like Mustafa, unfortunately, 00:23:28.440 --> 00:23:32.640 are not the exception. Pastors are hurting. God 00:23:32.640 --> 00:23:35.000 is allowing us at Living on the Edge to stand 00:23:35.000 --> 00:23:37.799 in the gap, to meet them where they're at, and 00:23:37.799 --> 00:23:41.700 see God give them life. Here's my question. Would 00:23:41.700 --> 00:23:45.269 you join us? Incredible story, Chip. So if God 00:23:45.269 --> 00:23:47.890 is nudging you to encourage and support pastors 00:23:47.890 --> 00:23:50.269 with us, now's a great time to become a financial 00:23:50.269 --> 00:23:53.549 partner. From now until June 30th, every gift 00:23:53.549 --> 00:23:56.069 we receive will be matched dollar for dollar. 00:23:56.309 --> 00:23:59.109 So to be part of our mid -year match, call us 00:23:59.109 --> 00:24:04.609 at 888 -333 -6003 or go to Living on the Edge. 00:24:06.309 --> 00:24:10.630 That's livingontheedge .org or call 888 -333 00:24:10.630 --> 00:24:15.789 -6003. App listeners, tap donate. As we close, 00:24:16.009 --> 00:24:17.910 you know a great way to get plugged in with our 00:24:17.910 --> 00:24:20.349 resources here at Living on the Edge is through 00:24:20.349 --> 00:24:23.049 the Chip Ingram app. You can listen to past series, 00:24:23.289 --> 00:24:26.349 sign up for daily discipleship and more. Let 00:24:26.349 --> 00:24:28.650 us help you experience God in a new personal 00:24:28.650 --> 00:24:31.410 way starting today with the Chip Ingram app. 00:24:32.109 --> 00:24:34.269 You've been listening to a selected program that 00:24:34.269 --> 00:24:36.809 we wanted to share from this past week. To hear 00:24:36.809 --> 00:24:39.829 more from Chip's series, I Choose Love, go to 00:24:39.829 --> 00:24:43.089 livingontheedge .org or the Chip Ingram app. 00:24:43.349 --> 00:24:45.789 Until next time, I'm Dave Drewy saying thanks 00:24:45.789 --> 00:24:48.450 for listening to this weekend edition of Living 00:24:48.450 --> 00:24:49.250 on the Edge.