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Warning: Personal Discipline Can be Hazardous to Your Health, Part 2
August 13, 2025 · 36 min
You’re doing all the right things - but you feel spiritually dead inside. Chip shares how to break the spiritual activity trap and begin experiencing the peace and power you’re longing for.
Series Balancing Life's Demands August 13, 2025 · 36 min · Balancing Life's Demands
You’re doing all the right things - but you feel spiritually dead inside. Chip shares how to break the spiritual activity trap and begin experiencing the peace and power you’re longing for. ...more Show the full description Show less You’re doing all the right things - but you feel spiritually dead inside. Chip shares how to break the spiritual activity trap and begin experiencing the peace and power you’re longing for.
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618K followers
Chip Ingram is an American Christian pastor, author, and teacher. He is the founder, teaching pastor and CEO of Living on the Edge, an international teaching and discipleship ministry.
618K followers
The Heart of True Righteousness 0:01 Do you ever feel stuck in your spiritual life? I mean, you're trying hard and you are doing all the right things, but it's like where's God? Where's the power? Where's the presence? Where's the love?0:13 And you just can't figure out what's wrong. I've been there. And today, I wanna share some things I've learned to help you get unstuck.0:26 Thank you for being with us for this edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Chip serves as our bible teacher for this global teaching and discipleship ministry, helping Christians develop an authentic0:38 faith. Well, in just a minute, we'll pick up where Chip left off in our series, Balancing Life's Demands. Last time, he explained how hypocrisy can derail our honest pursuit of a moral God honoring life.0:50 Today, Chip will unpack the second threat Jesus highlighted for us in Matthew chapter 5, so go there now as we join Chip with part 2 of his talk, warning, personal discipline can be hazardous to your1:02 health.1:03 He said you have heard it said, love your neighbor and hate your enemies, but I tell you, love your enemies, and then listen to this, pray for those who persecute you, that you may be1:15 sons of your father in heaven. And the idea of sons, especially in Hebrew culture, it has family likeness is the idea. You'll be like your father in heaven. He causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, he sends1:27 rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, duh, you know, what reward is that? I mean don't tax collectors and sinners do that? And so he he1:39 makes this point. He says I want you to demonstrate to the Romans mercy, I mean grace. And then now he says, what do you do to your enemies? You don't give them what they1:51 deserve. Grace is giving people something they don't deserve, mercy is withholding what people do deserve. And so when your enemies do, He says, I want you to withhold what you2:03 would normally give them and I want you to overcome evil with good. You'll never be more like your Heavenly Father than when you love people2:15 who have wounded and hurt and abused and betrayed you. And and do do you see, I mean he is turning the paradigm of what it means to be an authentic2:27 follower of Yahweh completely upside down. This is a righteousness that exceeds the Pharisees because this righteousness is a matter of the heart. This righteousness2:39 requires supernatural help. This righteousness is not a religious system of rigid personal discipline of doing the right things, and we can do it ourselves. I go to church, I'm2:51 on the missions committee, you know, I'm in a small group, I give x amount of dollars, you know, I've got my little checklist, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, and I am doing great. I must3:03 be right with God, and then it develops 2 things. Number 1, a very tired, weary Christian with not much joy and usually a self righteous person who looks down on other people who aren't3:14 doing as much. Jesus was the most winsome human being on the face of the earth and his life of love and grace and mercy and truth and3:26 strength and courage caused prostitutes and sinners and people to be drawn to him like bees to honey, and it caused people who genuinely wanted to know God to see the3:38 Father as he really is, and it caused people who were religious and self righteous and controlling to want to kill him. And sometimes I ask myself, if I lived in that day, I3:50 wonder which 1 of those groups I would be in. I tend to read the New Testament like I'm always 1 of the disciples. Try reading it sometime like you're 1 of the Pharisees.4:05 My righteousness, your righteousness must exceed that. And so here's the summary, Jesus condemns external righteousness,4:17 spiritual activities, when it does not flow from internal relationship with God. True spirituality is always an issue of the heart.4:29 God's love is never dependent upon your performance. If there's 1 thing if we could be set free, God's love is not dependent on your4:40 performance. I remember, early on, I was helping out with a school and part of trying to negotiate some tuition for my kids was coaching the basketball team as I pastored4:52 this little church. And I had a group of, you know, 1 of those big vans, 15 passenger vans, I had the whole team, and we had about an hour and a half away, played the game, came back, and you know, the highlight for some5:04 of the guys was was stopping at McDonald's on the way home, regardless of the game. And so I've got about 10 or 12 of these guys and we're eating at McDonald's, and there was a very very old lady5:16 there, and she watched these young men bow and pray, and a conversation started, and, just had a little prompting from God, wasn't trying to be ultra spiritual, but got in a conversation5:28 with this lady, and I asked her about her spiritual roots, oh yes, and yeah, very spiritual, and you know, I love God, and this and that. I said, well tell me a little bit about, would you explain to me, and I've got all5:38 these guys here and I'm thinking this is a good window of opportunity, would you explain to me, how do you develop a close relationship with God? Because, you know, she had a lot of jewelry and things that5:50 would tell you that she's very religious, and she goes, Oh yes, yes. And she was from the old country, I don't know what old country she was from, had a little bit of an accent, but she was from the old country. She6:00 says, You need to understand that there is this great God, and between me and this great God is this huge boulder of granite,6:12 and every day I get up, and God gives me a little hammer, and he gives me a chisel, and I chisel a tiny piece of that boulder away, and I do6:23 it with a good work here, and I do it with a prayer here, and another prayer here, and another good work, and I mean the lady's like 90. And I said well, how's it coming on the6:35 vulgar? You know? Like you had a lot of time to work on this 1, you know? And she goes oh, well, I'm not through yet but I just6:47 pray and hope desperately someday. And she began to share a little bit of her life and I will tell you it is 1 of the simply saddest experiences ever. She6:59 knew a lot of the Bible. She quoted lots of verses. She was a modern day, her theology was the righteousness of the Pharisees. And that's a vivid picture,7:11 but I think at least subconsciously there's a lot of us that think that way. Oh, I miss my quiet time. Oh, I haven't prayed in a couple days. Oh, you know, I'm giving x percent but I ought to be giving x7:23 percent and you know what? And there's this unconscious, oh I feel okay and I'm doing okay and God loves me when I perform perform perform and when I don't. Now we're gonna learn in a second our7:35 spiritual activities. You're thinking wait a minute Chip, you just told us, man you've given all these sessions about, you know, how important it is and to be disciplined and all this, and now you're just messing with my7:43 mind Ingram. No no no, Jesus is. Okay? Everything we've talked about so far is absolutely true, absolutely of a necessity.7:56 But it's the difference between doing those things to walk into the house and meet with a person, then get focused on the driveway. It's the spiritual activities. And8:08 just sort of a quick FYI in case it's never got clearer, because I lived in America, and I went to church, though it would be not a good 1, I never heard it. So just let me8:20 take 2 minutes before we go on. I want to explain the good news of the gospel is this, God loves you. And there's no way, no effort, no good work,8:31 no means you can ever have to earn his favor and there is no boulder between you. It's a chasm that's impossible to cross. From the eternity past in the mind head of the triune8:43 God, they predetermined that the son of God would come to the earth and take on human flesh being fully man and fully God. Fully man, he would have the ability to die.8:55 Fully God, he would live a perfect life and his sacrifice would have infinite value. And after revealing by his life and his words and his teaching, the very character of God, truth and9:07 grace, it was preordained from the foundation of the world that the Son of God would be unjustly accused of many crimes, and he would hang upon a cross, and he9:19 would hang upon the cross not for 1 single thing that he did, but for the sins of all men for all time. And as he hung upon that cross, he would be the offering for you9:31 and for me, and all the sins of all people of all time would be absorbed by him. He would become sin, a sin offering on our behalf. And because God is holy and9:43 God is just, he would, because he can't see sin, for the first time, and this was the agony, he would take his just wrath and pour it on the Son of God so there would9:55 be separation. And Jesus would receive that, and why he said, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Because in that window and moment of time, for first time in all eternity, your sin and10:07 my sin was paid for completely by him, and he gave his life. And he now offers a gift to every human being on the face of the earth that is10:18 free. For by grace you're saved through faith. That's not of yourself, it's a gift of God, not of works, least any man should boast. And then 3 days later, not by a dream, not by a prophet, not by a10:30 religion, not by something in the sky, He would rise from the dead and for over 40 days have personal interaction with 500 eyewitnesses10:42 documented. And just to throw a little icing on the cake, God had a number of other people be raised from the dead, and they went around and talked about what was happening. In space time history. And10:54 the offer and the message of Christianity is not be a nice person, go to church, clean up your morals, and be a little bit, you know, kinder and nicer than other people. The message is we are lost in our sin, we're11:05 separated eternally from God, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No 1 comes to the Father except by me, Jesus would say, and he makes an offer to you and to every single person, whosoever would believe in11:17 him should not perish but have eternal life. Eternal life isn't something that happens after you die. It is a quality of life where the chasm is closed, your sin is atoned or covered11:29 for, you are taken out of this kingdom of darkness, ripped out of it by faith through his grace, planted in the kingdom of his beloved son in the kingdom of light, the spirit of God enters your11:41 physical body, you're sealed with the spirit, deposited spiritual gifts in you, and his purpose is now as Christ lives his life out through you. That's the gospel. The righteousness11:53 of Christ. And living the Christian life is not hard, and it's not about trying hard, it's12:05 impossible. When Paul explains it in the book of Romans, he will tell us the first 3 chapters is the problem, chapters 4 and 5 is the solution, then chapters 6, 7, and 8 are how the supernatural12:16 righteousness is achieved. It's achieved first by a reckoning that you died with him, you rose to walk in newness of life, that there's a battle of the flesh and the spirit, chapter 7, but praise God, there's no12:28 condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. It's the spirit of God that manifests the very life and presence of Jesus inside you, and he lives his life through you before God,12:40 manifesting through your personality and your life the righteousness and the life and the love of God. That's what it means to be a Christian, and that's what Jesus came and that's what he was12:52 explaining. Your righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees, and so he condemns external righteousness if it doesn't flow from13:03 internal relationship with God. So you got it? Good. Now let's look at the second issue he addresses, because you might say, Well,Spiritual Disciplines and True Devotion 13:15 wait a second. You know, that's wonderful. Grace, grace, grace, grace, grace, grace, grace. That feels really good. But what about all those teachings we went over about spiritual activities13:27 and disciplines? Aren't they commanded aren't we commanded to pray? Aren't we commanded to give? Aren't we commanded to fast? Yes. Jesus' solution was not to stop spiritual activities, but to ensure that13:39 we do them out of grace and relationship, not performance and obligation. It was that we would do them out of devotion and see them as what they are. They're just a driveway.13:51 They're just a conduit to get to where you really wanna go. Giving, praying, fasting, media fast, scripture memory, accountability groups, none of that is the deal.14:03 They're just the driveway to get you where Christ can make His home and have freedom and manifest His life in your heart. That's what Paul prays in Ephesians 3, that14:15 Christ would take up residence, that He would dwell, and the word dwell there means he would feel comfortable and be at home in you. And that and that's and by the way, the whole Christian life, 1 word, abide.14:27 What do you need to abide? I don't know. I mean, scripture gives us some basics, but whatever you need to stay connected to Jesus, just stay connected to Jesus and let his life flow through you. I mean, if you really14:38 wanna get it simple.14:40 You're listening to Living on the Edge. We'll return you to Chip's message in just a minute, but let me quickly share with you, God has called us to do incredible ministry work all around the world. And when you14:51 regularly give to Living on the Edge, you're a part of what we do. So consider becoming a monthly partner today, then visit living on the edge dot o r g. We appreciate your generous support.15:04 Well, with that, here's Chip.15:06 And what we know is that there's certain practices that help us abide. They're not an end in themselves. They help us abide. In chapter 5 Jesus corrects our belief, our15:18 misguided beliefs about performance orientation, self effort, guilt manipulation, obligation, and duty. Now, in chapter 6 he's going to correct our behavior. He's going to teach us,15:30 well how do we do the right thing, right, but how do we do it in the right way? And so I'm going to need a quick overview here of the first part of chapter 6. And what I want you to15:42 notice here is that what he's doing here, he's gonna say now, in our pursuit of seeking first the kingdom and his righteousness, there's also the danger of deception.15:54 In Matthew 6, he will give 3 most common practices of the Christians, the followers, the religious leaders of that day, and what he will do is he'll show you Now16:06 look, your righteousness needs to exceed that of the Pharisees, let me show you how to use those practices that does something to your heart, and your relationship,16:18 rather than tries to impress people. So, here's his application, chapter 6 verse 1, Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen16:30 by them. If you do, you'll have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogue and on the streets to be honored by men.16:42 I tell you the truth, they have received the reward in full, but when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, then your father who sees16:53 what is done in secret will reward you. He's not saying here that if anyone ever finds out what you give, it's a problem. What he's saying is if your motive when you give is to make sure people find out17:05 what you give, you got a problem. And he's saying you can have a reward. Plan A, people think you're hot stuff, God's unimpressed. Plan B, God thinks you're hot stuff and in17:17 secret wants to reward you, and people don't know about it. You got it? The key here is our motive. The key issue is our motive. Giving17:28 guards your devotion. Your heart just always follows your treasure, so if you want your motives and your devotion to stay true to God and not an idol, and what did17:40 Jesus say? When Jesus said this wild thing, he says there's only really 2 gods, me and mammon. I mean, what's mammon? It's materialism. And and he says, you know, you you can't serve17:52 both. And so giving isn't like all this obligation, oh my gosh, who made up this 10 percent thing? And, oh gosh, I went to that seminar, they're into this, what, proportional giving? My, and I'm doing 10 percent, it took18:03 me forever. Now they're going 12, 15, 22, you know? But I'll tell you what, I don't know where these people were coming from. And, you know, Okay, I paid my taxes, Okay, PG and E bill, gas bill, mortgage bill,18:15 Jesus bill. Golly! He said, You missed. Giving is my opportunity18:27 to remind you that I own everything, and your breath is from me. And what do you have that you don't receive and your heart is a very precious thing to me and so I've instituted18:39 this practice that every time you receive some things you take a portion of it and actually I'm quite generous since it's all mine and I just ask for a portion of it, not because I need it,18:51 I can do anything, but I'm asking for a portion as sort of this reminder for you to take your little claws because you always want to hang on to stuff and let go and love other19:03 people because I'm the most generous being in all the universe, I love so much, I gave my son, and so I want to teach you how to love. And you know what, you can give without19:14 loving but you can never love without giving. And so it's a practice not to say, Oh gosh, I'm really making progress, I used to only be a 10 percent or I'm up to 12.5.19:27 You're up to 12.5, I'm giving 30 percent of my income now, and you know. It's God has more and more of my heart, and I give cheerfully, and I19:39 give as a son that says, oh God, thank you. And and you you all of this, all this is still to bless me and to richly enjoy? Thank you, Lord.19:52 I encourage you to give from the heart first, then by the way, what many of you don't do, pay yourself, save second, and then live on the rest. In the next20:03 practice he goes to the motive again, the key issue in prayer, and when you pray don't be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray, how do they do it? Standing in the synagogues on the street corners, why? To20:15 be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they've received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, it's the idea of the inner room, close the door, pray to your Father who has seen you in20:27 secret, then your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And then he goes on and talks about when you pray and how to pray and right way to pray and not babbling, and he gives us what's now known in the20:37 Lord's Prayer. But he gives us in prayer what? It's again motive and it guards your discernment. A lot of the issues you20:49 have are discernment issues. What should I do? I just don't know. And you know what? No 1 does but God. And He has an agenda for you and we always want someone to tell us what we ought to do and what percentage should we20:59 give and should I do this or should I do that or guess what you know what, God wants to tell you. He wants to tell you. But you gotta sit still. And I pray in the car,21:11 I'm gonna keep praying in the car, I practice the presence of God. I have quick little prayers here, I have short ones over here, but I have to stop, go into my inner room, shut off the world,21:23 sit before him, and get clear. And often I pray through the Lord's Prayer so that it's not just needs or it's not just worship, it's our Father. It's relationship, who art in heaven,21:35 holy, this is who God is. I want your kingdom to come, your agenda, not mine. I'm gonna ask for my needs. I'm gonna deal with relational issues and forgive anybody you bring to my mind. I'm gonna ask you to guard21:47 me from temptation, you know what's coming today. And I want your kingdom and your power and your glory. You see, so he says I want you to pray, not because if you, okay, I21:59 did it 15 minutes, I'm spiritual, I did it 20, I did it 25. I pray for an hour every day. I'm not sure God has a clock or watch up22:11 there. I think he's looking at the heart, and the honesty, and the openness, and where you say, Lord, speak, your servant is listening.22:22 Where you're the Mary, Lord, be it unto me according to your word. Lord, if you'll show me, I'll do. I need to know. Because see, the real goal of all those issues22:34 you have, your agendas, you want to know like me so you can do this and do that and know what to do, you know what God's agenda is? Hanging out with you. Enjoying you. And the more you rub up and22:46 enjoy him, you won't even notice it happening, but it's kind of like when Moses was hanging out with God a lot, remember that? Like 40 days, no food, no drink, just talking. When he came down, what was what22:58 was he like? What, right man? He's glowing, why? Because you always become like the people you hang out with. And when you learn to hang out with God, you just, I23:10 mean, it's not like some mechanical deal, you just become more and more like him. And so the third area Jesus says about this internal righteousness, he talks about fasting, and we pick that up in verse23:21 16, When you fast, don't look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men their fasting. I tell you the truth, they've received their reward in full, but when you fast, put on oil on your head23:33 and wash your face so that it won't be obvious to men that you're fasting, but only to your father who is unseen and your father who sees what is done in secret and he'll reward23:45 you. Fasting is a motive again and it provides perspective. It allows you to disengage from all the stuff and spend that time23:56 with God and and try a day or 2 occasionally so when those hunger pains come, you know drink a lot of water and you say God I want to be reminded, I want to be reminded that all the24:08 busyness and all the pools and all the demands, you're just sort of backing up and I will tell you as you do that, you get perspective. Your your your spiritual sensitivity goes up when you fast.24:21 And finally, the summary of this is pretty clear. Spiritual disciplines are essential, okay? Spiritual disciplines are essential, but become dangerous when they become a24:33 means to gain the reward of men rather than deepen our relationship with God. Isn't it24:44 amazing that just the heart behind Jesus' teaching here? Do you need to have personal discipline? Yeah. Do you need to get your priorities right? Absolutely. Do you need to, I mean, get a handle on your time and your24:55 money? Yes. Do you need to look at the 6 things that are misplaced priorities and say, I need to address it. But you need to do all that with a the righteousness that exceeds that25:07 of the scribes and the Pharisees. I, have a final application here. It's that secrecy is God's method of keeping our motives pure. And this25:19 isn't a legalistic, oh no 1 knows, if someone finds out you're doing this or that, or someone found out I was fasting, big deal, that's not the issue. The The issue is if you have a sign, by the way did you know I'm25:29 spiritual and I'm fasting today? You know, that's what's being prohibited. Seems like God lets me do all kind of really silly dumb things and looking back now to help other people I guess,25:41 but it took me a long time to lock in to really want to be a follower of Jesus, and then when I did, I can remember the day I woke up and thought, I am a modern25:53 day Pharisee. I came up with a group that was really into scripture memory, so I mean I memorized hundreds and hundreds of verses, and then I went to chapters, and then I went to memorizing whole books.26:05 And boy was I spiritual. And, and I remember bumping into someone who had known me about 4 years earlier and really good relationship, liked26:17 her, and God really used her, she was not a believer. We passed in a common area outside where the school was, and I said hi, how you doing? And she said something, and I said something, and she said something,26:29 and I quoted a verse appropriately being the spiritual giant that I am, I mean you got all these verses, you gotta use them, and people gotta know how holy you are, so I mean you know, bang bang, bing boom boom26:42 boom. Hey, you get a problem? I got a verse. I mean I was bad man, you know? So I'm anyway. So she she makes some comment and I quote26:54 a verse. And then the spirit of God speaks to this gal, and she looks at me and goes, you know Chip, I knew you about 4 years ago. And you were a really neat guy. And she said, you27:06 know, you just kinda, I don't know what the right word is, but you were easy going, you were fun to be around, you know, I didn't know much about Christianity but I remember thinking, I'm not sure where27:18 you're coming from but you seem to have a song on your heart, you treated people in a way, and I thought, you know, man if I ever wanted to be a Christian, I'm not sure I ever would because I'm not sure what it's about,27:28 I think I'd like to be 1 like you. And she said, Chip, you know, I just kinda watch things and right now, you're just a bible spouting person that, you know what, every time I talk with you, I27:39 always leave feeling less of a person and guilty. And what I realize is I don't like to talk with you, and I don't like to be around you.27:51 And I'm obviously aware that her lack of spirituality is She's unable to discern the higher things of God. And you know what? I wish I was28:03 joking. When I walked away I remember thinking, Well obviously, you know, she doesn't have the Spirit because the verse came to me, Those who don't know the Lord, the Spirit of Christ is not in them, that you can't28:12 understand the things of the Spirit of God for they're spiritually discerned, and if they don't have you know? And then I got almost back to where I was to be, and the spirit of God said, you28:25 bible quoting hypocrite, All you have is a righteousness of the Pharisees. And you were a driven, focused, disciplined guy, and all you did was change uniforms28:36 from thinking basketball, or impressing people, or getting good grades, or making money would make you some money. And all you did was exchange it for religious clothes. And during that time I had a guy28:48 give me a 3 by 5 card after being at a little training program for 3 months, and of course I thought I was doing great because I always got my stuff done, I had more verses memorized, I did all that you're supposed to28:59 do, and all he did was give me a card with these 2 verses. And I thought, maybe there's a message here. Luke 16 15, it says, Jesus says, You are29:11 the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your heart. That which is highly esteemed among men is detestable on the sight of God. And just29:23 in case I didn't get his point, he had Galatians 1 10. Am I trying to win the approval of men, Paul would write, or of God? If I were still29:35 trying to please men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. And I would like, as your little application, is go in your notes a page or 2 back, and29:47 then just gaze at those little tests, your pop quiz, and look at objectives, and look at priorities, and look at schedule, and look at discipline,29:58 and look at accountability, and now let's look at these through the lens of how are you doing as those are simply means to know and30:10 love God and deepen your relationship, because personal discipline is a very, very spiritually hazardous endeavor.30:23 You need to be disciplined, but your discipline can always be just a driveway. The means can never be an end. God wants30:36 your heart.30:40 You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and the message you just heard, warning, personal discipline can be hazardous to your health, is from our series, Balancing Life's Demands. Chip30:52 will join us in studio to share some insights from today's talk in just a minute. Are you exhausted juggling your job, kids, marriage, and everything else you're responsible for? Do you wish there was a way to31:04 relieve that stress and live with a little more joy? Well, in this series, Chip reveals what a balanced life looks like and how you can rearrange your priorities around what matters most. Hear how31:16 to experience the joy filled and satisfying life God desires for you to have. Now if you've missed any part of Chip's teaching, catch up anytime on the Chip Ingram app. Well, Chip's back in studio with me now.31:27 And Chip, as I listen today, you know, I couldn't help but think about the countless people listening right now who have real needs. As we continue to create new programming and develop resources that meet those needs,31:40 the expenses of the ministry are a monthly issue. Take a minute to talk to those who have considered partnering with us before but haven't made that commitment.31:48 You know, Dave, really only about 2 percent of all the people that listen partner with us financially in any way. And I think sometimes it's because they just don't think what I could do would make a difference. But I32:00 just wanna encourage some of you that feel like, you know, hey, you know, boy, God's really using this in my life but I'm just not in a position. Maybe you could do something really small but God could take your small32:11 gift and do something really big with it. So, you know, thanks so much and appreciate anything God leads you to do.32:17 Thanks, Chip. Well, if joining the Living on the Edge team is an idea that makes sense to you, let me encourage you to become a monthly partner. Now you can do that today by visiting living on the edge dot org or32:29 calling triple 8 3 3 3 6 0 0 3. Take a few minutes to help others benefit from the work of this ministry. That number again is triple 8 3 3 3 6 0 032:41 3 or go to living on the edge dot o r g. App listeners tap donate. Well, with that, here again is Chip.32:50 As we close today's program, we've talked about priorities. We've talked about your motivation. I just gave you a a review of, you know, the role of prayer and fasting and giving, and here's what I wanna tell you. It's33:02 about relationship. I I have been through seasons of my life where I literally memorized hundreds, hundreds of verses and never missed a day praying. And and, you know,33:14 part of it then is how do you get the balance? Because the fact is is that I need to read the Bible at times when I don't feel like it. I need to pray when I don't feel like it and have times of breakthrough, but I've I33:25 have to avoid this this idea that doing those things makes me right with God or somehow I'm performing. Now what I found is I have literally taken in my journey with the Lord,33:37 this approach. I want my heart connected to you more than anything else, so what I'm gonna do when I meet with you is what will connect my heart. Yesterday, I did not read the Bible at all.33:49 I listened to about 35 minutes of worship music, and I sang out loud, and I enjoyed God. The day before, I read my Bible a little. I sat quietly. I just34:01 listened to God as I had lots of questions. My normal approach is I read the bible, I pray, I have a little program. But what what I've come to is, what do I need to keep my heart tender with34:13 my father? And we had family in, and, you know, it kinda interrupted my time. And some of us get really uptight because, you know, I'm gonna miss my time. And I I had a little granddaughter come down34:25 the stairs just about the time I was ready to open my bible. And and what I realized was the greatest thing I could do was put that little girl on my lap and play with her and talk to34:37 her and love her because God always values obedience over sacrifice. God's always looking for that which connects your heart, that which loves him and loves34:49 others. And that'll look different for different people. And I think sometimes, especially some of us with obsessive compulsive tendencies, you know, we just get our checklist and we unconsciously, you know, do so much35:00 of this and so much of that. And the balance is is I do need to keep on track, but I need to give myself permission as I'm on track to have freedom there. And there's been other times I've just35:12 felt dry, and I've just said, you know, I I read the whole book of, Esther the other day. Well, I don't usually read that much. I just needed it. I just needed my mind to get soaked in scripture. So what what I want you35:22 to hear is let your heart be open to the Lord, have a structured plan that you follow, and then inside of that, have liberty and get what you need just like you would in35:33 any relationship, so that at the very core of why you meet with God and what you do, you want to ask and answer the question, what does it look like to give love and to35:45 receive love from your heavenly father and to other people? And you know what? If you do that, I think your priorities will be right where God wants them.35:53 Great challenge, Chip. And as we close, if you're looking for a practical way to grow in your relationship with God, check out the Chip Ingram app. You can listen to our most recent series, sign up for daily discipleship36:05 with Chip, and more. We wanna help you deepen your faith, and the Chip Ingram app will help you do that. Well, from all of us here, I'm Dave Drewey, thanking you for listening to this edition of Living on the Edge, and I36:17 hope you'll join us again next time.In this video 0:00 The Heart of True Righteousness13:06 Spiritual Disciplines and True Devotion
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