{"id":302214,"date":"2011-02-15T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-02-15T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/getting-gods-best\/"},"modified":"2011-02-15T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-02-15T17:00:00","slug":"getting-gods-best","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/getting-gods-best\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting God\u2019s Best"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How do you get God\u2019s very best, and would you know it if you got it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/web.familylifetoday.com\/fl2011-02-15.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:","filesize":"25.4M","filesize_raw":"26632270","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2822],"tags":[4299],"podcast_series":[7788],"cwp_profile":[3049],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-302214","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-growing-in-your-faith","tag-faith","podcast_series-living-on-the-edge","cwp_profile-chip-ingram","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/302214\/getting-gods-best","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/302214\/getting-gods-best","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"mCHLyh2G2N\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/getting-gods-best\/\">Getting God\u2019s Best<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/getting-gods-best\/embed\/#?secret=mCHLyh2G2N\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Getting God\u2019s Best&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"mCHLyh2G2N\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"How do you get God\u2019s very best, and would you know it if you got it?","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2011-02-15.pdf","transcript_content":"<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong><strong>\u00a0 <\/strong>\u00a0I want you to think with me for just a second about the things that drive your life.\u00a0 Are those things leading you toward liberation or toward bondage?\u00a0 Here is Pastor Chip Ingram:\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 A lot of our drives for significance and security are rooted in we don\u2019t have a sober self assessment.\u00a0 I love that\u2014a sober self, an honest accurate self assessment it just frees you to quit pretending and thinking, \u201cWell, if I had that, if I drove that, if people thought that, or if I could only get in this zip code.\u201d\u00a0 Then, when I get this accurate view of myself, what you\u2019re starting to see is this picture of freedom.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Tuesday, February 15<sup>th<\/sup>.\u00a0 Our host is the President of FamilyLife Dennis Rainey, and I\u2019m Bob Lepine.\u00a0 We\u2019re going to hear from Chip Ingram today about how knowing, believing, and really living out the truth really does set you free.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWelcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>; thanks for joining us.\u00a0 You know some of our programs, I mean, let\u2019s just be honest.\u00a0 Some of them get a little dangerous from time to time.\u00a0 There are some programs you can listen to and you go, \u201cThat was good.\u00a0 That was helpful.\u00a0 That\u2019ll make a difference.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Are you speaking of other people\u2019s broadcast?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I\u2019m talking about ours.\u00a0 I\u2019m talking about what we\u2019re talking about today.\u00a0 It is getting dangerous in here.\u00a0 You know what I mean?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 I do.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Like I said, sometimes you listen; and you go, \u201cThat was good.\u00a0 That was helpful.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 We have Dr. Edge.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Dr. Edge, that\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Dr. Edge who joins us.\u00a0 For a second day.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I think, you know, it is called <em>Living on the Edge<\/em>; I think it ought to be called \u201cPushing You Over the Edge\u201d because that\u2019s really what you\u2019re talking about here, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 We\u2019re really talking about the amazing, exciting adventure of what it really means to follow Christ: not rules or religion.\u00a0 That is what <em>Living on the Edge<\/em> is: It is a life of faith and where you expect and see transformation from within and impact from without.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, that is the voice of <em>Living on the Edge<\/em>, Chip Ingram.\u00a0 He joins us again on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 Chip, welcome back.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Great to be with you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 You\u2019re a pastor.\u00a0 You\u2019ve written books.\u00a0 You\u2019re a father of four adult children, grandfather of eight children.\u00a0 You\u2019re pushing people over the edge.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 No.\u00a0 On the edge, on the edge.\u00a0 I pushed them over the edge.\u00a0 He\u2019s got them back living on the edge.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Oh, he has them living on the edge.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 That\u2019s right.\u00a0 That\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 There we go, alright.\u00a0\u00a0 We\u2019ve talked about how Romans 12 really contains an outline that spells out how we\u2019re to live the Christian life as Christ followers.\u00a0 It begins with what?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 It begins with giving God what He wants the most; and that is surrender: all that you are and all that you have.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Then, it moves?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 It moves to asking and answering this question:\u00a0 How do you get God\u2019s very best?\u00a0 The answer to that is to live a life separate from the world\u2019s values.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 That\u2019s Romans 12:2 that says, \u201cDo not be conformed to this world.\u00a0 Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.\u201d\u00a0 So, we\u2019ve got to reprogram what is the fuel of our life.\u00a0 Right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Then, there is the purpose clause.\u00a0 There is a \u201cso that.\u201d\u00a0 So, you get to experience\u2014taste-test what God\u2019s will is: good, acceptable, and perfect.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 So, as you go through this process, the net result is you\u2019re going to live a fruitful life.\u00a0 You are going to enjoy life.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t mean that it will be easy. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u00a0<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 It\u2019ll be difficult.\u00a0 You\u2019ve actually taught this in your church in the Bay area.\u00a0 You said there were three areas when you taught them that you sensed God was doing some business with people.\u00a0 One of them you said was when people began to do a sober, self assessment\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 What does that mean?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, Romans 12:3 says, \u201cAccording to the grace given to me, I say to everyone among you: Don\u2019t think too highly of yourself, but to think with a sober judgment as God has allotted each a measure of faith.\u201d\u00a0 If you study it carefully, that word sober and the word think is all the same root word.\u00a0 It happens four times in one verse.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhat he is saying is don\u2019t think too high, don\u2019t think too low; but you\u2014just as we have a DNA physically that is unique and God-given\u2014God made everyone of us, and He wants us to look in the mirror of our soul, of our body, and say I was designed for a purpose.\u00a0 I am made uniquely.\u00a0 I need to know what my strengths are.\u00a0 I need to know what my weaknesses are.\u00a0 I need to know my primary spiritual gift because then that will align with my purpose and my passion and where I fit in the body of Christ.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tVerses four and five talk about connected to the body; and six through eight talk about this dynamic, supernatural gift of being able to love people and express what God made you to do.\u00a0 When people got a hold of that, it was just amazing.\u00a0 We literally gave out cards, and people wrote their top three strengths, their top three weaknesses; and then, we went through a process where they could learn their primary spiritual gift.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt was like \u201cWow!\u00a0 You mean I don\u2019t have to be everything.\u00a0 I don\u2019t have to cover and act like I\u2019ve got it together.\u00a0 My weaknesses really are the doorways where I can invite people into my life.\u00a0 My strengths, instead of acting humble, I can say, \u201cYou know I\u2019m good at that.\u00a0 I\u2019ll take care of that.\u201d\u00a0 So, it was\u2014it was liberating.\u00a0 It was very exciting to see what happened.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I grew up spiritually in an era where spiritual gifts was a controversial subject: Which gifts are for today, aren\u2019t for today?\u00a0 We all kind of at least looked at the passages: Romans 12 talks about it; 1Corinthians 12 talks about spiritual gifts; there are other passages that unpack it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou\u2019re saying for a lot of Christians who had been following Christ for a long period of time, the issue of their own spiritual giftedness was not even on their radar screen.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Not only not on their radar or some that it was.\u00a0 They had this salad bar mentality.\u00a0 You\u2019d say, \u201cWell, what is your spiritual gift?\u201d\u00a0 \u201cWell, it\u2019s mercy, leadership, some exhortation, maybe a little hospitality.\u201d\u00a0 They\u2019d rattle off four, five, or six things.\u00a0 Then I\u2019d ask, \u201cHow does that help you determine your priorities: what you do, where you go?\u00a0 What\u2019s the one that motivates you?\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThey\u2019d look at you like \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d\u00a0 What\u2019s your primary one?\u00a0 What\u2019s the one that drives the others?\u00a0 When we help people discover that, the lights came on.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFor me, it was revolutionary because I had some natural leadership ability and I was put in leadership positions.\u00a0 When I read those early on in the Christian life, I just assumed that my spiritual gift must be leadership.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI didn\u2019t like being a preacher.\u00a0 I mean I had a very negative Christian experience.\u00a0 So, the word preacher wasn\u2019t good.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t really want to be on, but I ended up one.\u00a0 So, I called myself a communicator.\u00a0 I just share God\u2019s word.\u00a0 I\u2019m not a preacher.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut what God kept blessing was the prophetic exposition that challenged people to live a different life that was culturally relevant.\u00a0 That\u2019s a gift of prophecy.\u00a0 Well, I always wanted to be a leader.\u00a0 So, I kept leaning in different directions, and God kept blessing what He made me to do.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFinally, I realized, \u201cYou know what?\u00a0 That is what God made me to do.\u201d\u00a0 I can lead, but I only lead to fulfill that vision of what God gives me.\u00a0 I may have some teaching or exhortational gift, but those ministry gifts around my primary passion and what God made me to do.\u00a0 That allowed me to say no to some things.\u00a0 It gave me freedom.\u00a0 It gave me a sense of confidence.\u00a0 Then, it allowed me to prioritize what it is I really want to do.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re in the process of helping everyone in our church discover that.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 You know there was the best-selling book by Rick Warren, <em>The Purpose Driven Life<\/em>.\u00a0 I think what made that so popular was that Rick did a fantastic job of laying out some biblical mandates that are true for all\u2014all people but especially for followers of Christ.\u00a0 It became a magnet to attract them.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAs I was reading your book and I was thinking about my purpose, I was thinking I\u2019ve really never ever heard someone tie my spiritual gifts, my strengths and my weaknesses, together with my purpose in such a clear way.\u00a0 I thought I wish I had read your book forty years ago when I was just getting started as a serious Christ follower.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI could have had your coaching and encouragement to help me to begin to distill out what were my spiritual gifts, my strengths, and to help me understand that in light of God\u2019s purpose for my life.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 To me, that is revolutionary because if you can get on with what God\u2019s purposes are for your life, then you know what?\u00a0 You are hitting it on the fat part of the bat at that point.\u00a0 You are living life according to God\u2019s plan for you and your family.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 There are some folks who look at these lists of spiritual gifts; they look at their own life; and, frankly, there are some gifts they wished they had that they don\u2019t because it seems like there are some gifts that are more highly esteemed in the body.\u00a0 They\u2019d like to go after those.\u00a0 How do we deal with that desire for something we may not have?\u00a0 Well, you talked about it.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You had a desire for leadership\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 But it wasn\u2019t your primary gift.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, I think we have pictures in our mind of what is acceptable; and we come out at either models or churches or there is someone who really impacted your life.\u00a0 You want to be like them.\u00a0 So, you kind of imitate their gift.\u00a0 Here is what I would just say to people:\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnytime I compare myself with another person, it will always produce carnality.\u00a0 I either\u2014I\u2019m envious, or I feel superior.\u00a0 I\u2019ve compared, and I\u2019m a little better than them.\u00a0 Well, that is not a good place to be.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Or you feel inferior\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Inferior.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 And you put down what God\u2019s put together.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Then, you neglect the most beautiful person, the most impactful person, the most attractive person I will ever be is the me that God made.\u00a0 When I can embrace that and accept that, of course, I have needs along with my needs I\u2019m fallen; so, I can invite people into my life.\u00a0 But I do have strengths.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI love that\u2014a sober self\u2014an honest, accurate self assessment, it just frees you to quit pretending and thinking, \u201cWell, if I had that, if I drove that, if people thought that, or if I could only get in this zip code.\u201d\u00a0 A lot of our drives for significance and security are rooted in we don\u2019t have a sober self assessment.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo, again, when I say Jesus be Lord, surrendered.\u00a0 When I\u2019m saying no to the media of the world, that\u2019s telling me that success and significance and all that\u2019s going to come with what I have and how I look.\u00a0 Then, when I get this accurate view of myself, what you are starting to see is this picture of freedom.\u00a0 You\u2019re starting to see you\u2019re going to know the truth, and the truth will set you free.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 From that, you begin to challenge people to join in community.\u00a0 You say that community is a non-negotiable if you\u2019re going to live life according to God\u2019s perspective. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, once I know my gift, once I understand who I am, you cannot be a Christian; you cannot grow in Christ in isolation.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow there maybe, you guys know the Bible well I can\u2019t find any command in the New Testament, apart from one or two that aren\u2019t in the second person plural, it is you all love one another; you all honor one another; you all be holy before God.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI need community.\u00a0 I mean if Starbucks has taught us anything.\u00a0 I\u2019ve got two daughter-in-laws who worked there at one time.\u00a0 It is the third place.\u00a0 When they do their training, they\u2019re not selling coffee.\u00a0 You have home, work, the third place\u2014Starbucks.\u00a0 It is where we build community.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGuess what?\u00a0 When people gather and are in community, they drink a lot of coffee.\u00a0 So, they sell a lot of stuff.\u00a0 People are desperate to be belonging and connecting.\u00a0 So often, even small groups, just because you are in a small group doesn\u2019t mean you have community.\u00a0 Community is heart-to-heart, face-to-face, vulnerability, accountability.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re doing life together.\u00a0 You shoot it straight with me.\u00a0 I\u2019ll shoot it straight with you.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s safe.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to open up the deepest hurts of my life once you tell me you\u2019re safe enough to do that with; and you\u2019re not going to judge me, but you\u2019re not going to let me keep living in my sin.\u00a0 We\u2019re going to do life together, and you\u2019re gifts that you now know and my hurts and vice versa begin to create this beautiful thing that Jesus said is the greatest apologetic.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, it makes sense that if God\u2019s given you gifts, He didn\u2019t give them to you so you can use them to edify yourself.\u00a0 In fact, the <em>Bible<\/em> speaks to that point clearly.\u00a0 So, if you have this gift, you have got to live in community or else your gift is worthless, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Exactly.\u00a0 In fact, in the book, we lay out a summary of verses 9-13 by saying authentic community occurs when the real you meets real needs for the right reason and the right way.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe real you, authenticity versus hypocrisy.\u00a0 Real needs, it costs you something.\u00a0 It is not just going to a little group and talking about ball games or skimming over the <em>Bible<\/em>.\u00a0 It\u2019s\u2014it really costs you something, but you do it to honor God.\u00a0 When people are connected like that, it is priceless.\u00a0 It really is priceless.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You know the name Paul David Tripp?\u00a0 He is an author and a speaker.\u00a0 He has done workshops, seminars.\u00a0 He\u2019s got one that\u2019s called <em>Your Relationship with God Is a Community Experience<\/em>.\u00a0 That\u2019s really one of his themes.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe definition he gives to the Church\u2014I really like this: He says, \u201cthe Church is made up of people in an intentionally intrusive, grace-based, Christ-centered, redemptive relationship.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Wow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I really like all the components of that: grace-based, Christ-centered, intentionally intrusive.\u00a0 Most of us don\u2019t want\u2014we want intrusion only when it\u2014when it pleases us, but we needed to be intruded.\u00a0 We need people intruding into our lives, don\u2019t we?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Absolutely.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 I just want to go back to the little phrase you used, \u201cdoing life together\u201d with a group of people.\u00a0 We move so often in this culture.\u00a0 There are a lot of young couples who are missing an opportunity in the Church today by not having people who have access to their lives, who can intrude\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 To your point, Bob.\u00a0 Who can also cheer us on when we get off in a ditch.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 All these things fit together.\u00a0 The reason a lot of people don\u2019t have community is they\u2019re not surrendered.\u00a0 If you\u2019re not surrendered, it\u2019s I\u2019m going to figure a way to live my life.\u00a0 Now, I want God\u2019s forgiveness, and I want Him to be around in case someone I love is in the ICU, my mortgage goes upside down and I\u2019m in big trouble, or I lose my job; but then, I kind of want to run my own life.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen I do that, then, I usually feed my mind with the media and the world and a lot of messages that are the very opposite.\u00a0 The messages of the world are at the checkout stand.\u00a0 It is basically <em>Cosmo<\/em>\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 <em>Fortune<\/em>\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 And <em>People Magazine<\/em>\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life.\u00a0 Now, the promise is, is that those things are going to fulfill me.\u00a0 So, if I am really busy doing those things because I don\u2019t know who I really I am and I\u2019m looking for who I really am in those things, guess what?\u00a0 I don\u2019t have time to be in the <em>Bible<\/em>.\u00a0 I don\u2019t have time to connect with other people.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHere is the deal: They\u2019re really sincere.\u00a0 If you\u2019d ask them, \u201cDo you really love God?\u201d\u00a0 \u201cOf course, I love God.\u00a0 I trusted Christ at this camp, or it was two years ago or eleven years ago.\u201d\u00a0 But they\u2019re not experiencing the grace of God.\u00a0 For many people here is the deal: I literally wrote this book the Christian life isn\u2019t working.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 They\u2019re burned out because \u201cI\u2019m trying to keep rules, I go to these meetings, I\u2019ve been to these programs.\u201d\u00a0 It ain\u2019t working.\u00a0 It is not working because we\u2019re not doing it God\u2019s way.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Instead of overcoming evil, they\u2019re being overcome by the very thing God put them here to conquer.\u00a0 That\u2019s really another key area you talk about in your book.\u00a0 In fact, it is the last\u2014well, it\u2019s verses 14-21 of Romans 12 overcoming evil with good.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIn your life, you had a guy that you did basketball with, and I guess it is because I\u2019m a basketball player, too, Chip.\u00a0 I love this illustration of this guy.\u00a0 He was persecuting and prosecuting you, wasn\u2019t he?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 He really was.\u00a0 He was about 6\u20198, very big, very mean, and because of a number of differences but primarily because I was a Christian.\u00a0 He hated Christians.\u00a0 He had some bad experiences.\u00a0 This guy had a scar that went from his shoulder all the way around his back.\u00a0 He was an evil guy.\u00a0 In fact, he described himself.\u00a0 He said, \u201cI am evil; and I know if there\u2019s a Hell, I\u2019m going there.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt is a long story.\u00a0 I was a freshman; so, I\u2019d have to carry his bag, and he\u2019d make me go get food for him.\u00a0 I just hated him.\u00a0 I had a guy that was leading our ministry, and he said\u2014I shared\u2014and he said, \u201cChip, I\u2019ve got the answer for you.\u00a0 You\u2019re not going to like it, but it will work.\u201d\u00a0 I said, \u201cI\u2019ll try anything.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 You just can\u2019t imagine.\u00a0 I was one very afraid, and two had stomach acid and nightmares.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 You were very angry, too.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 I was really angry.\u00a0 So, he pulled out Romans 12.\u00a0 Verse 14 says, \u201cBless those who persecute you.\u00a0 Bless and curse not.\u201d\u00a0 Then, it goes on to say, \u201cIf you\u2019re enemy is hungry, feed him.\u00a0 If he\u2019s thirsty, give him a drink.\u00a0 Don\u2019t be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with good.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe said, \u201cChip, you know what the word bless means?\u201d\u00a0 I said, \u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0 He said, \u201cIt means to want the salvation of another.\u201d\u00a0 He said, \u201cDo you know what it also means?\u00a0 It means doing good when God blesses.\u00a0 It means to try and do everything possible that would bless and encourage their life.\u201d\u00a0 He said, \u201cI want you to start treating him with blessing in exchange for everything he gives you.\u00a0 Don\u2019t retaliate.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBy the way, I felt like killing him, but I chose to bless him.\u00a0 So, that day, I took his clothes when he was in the shower, I folded them, took them to the trainer.\u00a0 The next road game he didn\u2019t have to ask.\u00a0 I went and got his tray.\u00a0 I got him extra food.\u00a0 I grabbed his bag.\u00a0 I put it on the bus, I complimented him.\u00a0 At first, he looked at me like, \u201cMan, what are you doing?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou\u2019ve got to hear: no change for three or four months.\u00a0 Zero change.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 He was still insulting you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 He was just, just killing me.\u00a0 We played the end of the year tournament.\u00a0 We get done, and we\u2019re walking out.\u00a0 This guy says, \u201cChip.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s what he used to call me.\u00a0 \u201cChip, I\u2019ve got news for you, man.\u00a0 There are only two of us that I respect on this team.\u00a0 Everybody else is a phony.\u00a0 I am evil, and I know I\u2019m evil.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe said, \u201cYou\u2019re the first Christian I\u2019ve met that you\u2019re really a Christian, and I respect you.\u00a0 I disagree with everything.\u00a0 I hate everything you represent, but you\u2019re living it out.\u00a0 I\u2019m done messing with you.\u00a0 It\u2019s not fun anymore.\u201d\u00a0 He never did.\u00a0 There was a complete change of heart.\u00a0 I would love to say he knelt down later, trusted Christ, but the last I heard he got picked up.\u00a0 Things didn\u2019t go well for him.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI have watched wives, husbands, business partners, people in dorm rooms bless those who persecute them and see God really work.\u00a0 This doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re a doormat.\u00a0 Chapter 13 is very clear that the government at times\u2014this doesn\u2019t mean that you don\u2019t take some legal action in certain situations.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe <em>Bible<\/em> prohibits personal retaliation.\u00a0 You can\u2019t be bitter and resentful.\u00a0 It\u2019s pouring gasoline into a fire when I give evil for evil.\u00a0 It puts it out when I give good for evil.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 When you taught on this passage at your church and you shared that story, you used an illustration that was powerful in the lives of the folks who were there.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 We asked people to think of the person that hurt them, wounded them, abused them in the most difficult, painful thing ever in their life to really get it clear.\u00a0 We taught through this passage.\u00a0 When they walked in, they got not a pebble but they got a rock.\u00a0 They held it the entire service.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThen, I asked them to visualize that rock as the burden they\u2019ve been carrying and the hurt and the wound all those years and to make a choice that day to release that rock, to bless them, to forgive them, to release them from their desire for pay back.\u00a0 Then, it was dead quiet.\u00a0 We said, \u201cPeople, you respond to God.\u201d\u00a0 I remember sitting on that stage with my head bowed; and then, I begun to hear rocks, \u201ckink, kink, kink, kink, ki-kink, kink, kink, kink.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tPeople walking out that worship center with tears coming down their eyes.\u00a0 A guy walked up to me, \u201cI\u2019ve been a Christian thirty-five years, and I\u2019ve carried a rock for thirty-five years.\u00a0 I let go of it today of a person who did something unmentionable to me.\u00a0 I feel like the world has been lifted off my shoulders.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019ve got to believe that\u2019s God\u2019s will for those listening to us right now.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 My advice to those who are listening maybe you have somebody\u2014maybe it\u2019s not somebody you\u2019re playing basketball with like Chip did a number of years ago, but you\u2019ve had somebody who has done evil to you and maybe that\u2019s the application for you out of all of this.\u00a0 We\u2019ve talked about a sober self assessment, doing life with people in community.\u00a0 We\u2019ve also talked about overcoming evil with good.\u00a0 What\u2019s God want you to do about what you\u2019re carrying right now?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you find you\u2019re carrying that yourself and it\u2019s becoming too heavy, maybe it is time you let go; and you forgave that other person.\u00a0 You may need help in your own Christian faith in terms of growing from this point forward because just letting go of that hatred or anger or resentment that\u2019s represented there should be the beginning of a process not the end of one.\u00a0 A time of growth and becoming like Christ and getting on with life as God designed it. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tChip, I am just grateful for your book, <em>Living on the Edge<\/em> and how you\u2019re calling people to that edge and to follow Christ.\u00a0 I just appreciate you as a friend.\u00a0 I hope you\u2019ll come back and join us again soon.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Chip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Well, it is a joy to be here.\u00a0 We have put the lot of this information in small video vignettes that if someone is here thinking I wish I could get that book but I can\u2019t afford it.\u00a0 They can go through this process and pathway\u2014absolutely free on the website.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure you guys have all the information on that.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 We\u2019ve got a link on our website at FamilyLifeToday.com to the website you\u2019re talking about if folks want to dive a little deeper into what we\u2019ve been talking about today.\u00a0 Again, go to FamilyLifeToday.com and click on the link to the Living on the Edge website and watch through some of these videos online.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you\u2019d like to get a copy of the book\u2014I\u2019d encourage you to do that, it is a terrific book.\u00a0 You can request a copy from us at FamilyLifeToday.com.\u00a0 Order online or call 1-800-FL-Today; 1-800-F as in \u201cfamily,\u201d L as in \u201clife,\u201d and then the word \u201cTODAY.\u201d\u00a0 When you get in touch with us, we\u2019ll let you know how you can get a copy of Chip Ingram\u2019s book, <em>Living on the Edge<\/em>, sent to you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tLet me also mention that Chip was here a couple of years ago, and we had an extended conversation about a book he had written at the time called <em>Love, Sex, and Lasting Relationships<\/em>.\u00a0 This was a book that really talked about the difference between counterfeit love and the real deal.\u00a0 How can a single tell whether the relationship you\u2019re in is really the right kind of relationship to go ahead and pursue marriage?\u00a0 How can you identify that kind of genuine lifelong love?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen we aired that conversation of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>, we got a great response.\u00a0 We\u2019d like to make the CD\u2019s of that conversation available to those of you who can help support the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> this week with a donation.\u00a0 If you go online today at FamilyLifeToday.com and make a donation and you type the word \u201cLOVE\u201d in the online key code box, we\u2019ll send these CD\u2019s out to you.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOr if you call 1-800-FL-Today, 1-800-358-6329.\u00a0 That\u2019s 1-800-F as in \u201cfamily\u201d, L as in \u201clife\u201d, and then, the word \u201cTODAY.\u201d\u00a0 Just ask for the CD\u2019s from Chip Ingram when you make your donation over the phone.\u00a0 We do appreciate your support.\u00a0 We could not do what we do without folks like you standing with us; so, thanks for your partnership and your interest in the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tLet me encourage you to be back with us tomorrow when we\u2019re going to talk about autism.\u00a0 Dr. Laura Hendrickson joins us to talk about the <em>Autism Spectrum<\/em> and how families can find their way along what can be a very challenging pathway.\u00a0 I hope you can be back with us for that tomorrow.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, and our entire broadcast production team.\u00a0 On behalf of our host, Dennis Rainey, I'm Bob Lepine.\u00a0 We will see you back tomorrow for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHelp for today.\u00a0 Hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts. However, there is a cost to produce them for our website. If you've benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t2011 Copyright \u00a9 FamilyLife. 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