Did you know that just five minutes a day of negative thinking could have a significant impact on your well-being?

Dr. Jack Haskins, a professor at the University of Tennessee, conducted a 12-year study on media’s effect on how people think. In the study, a group of radio listeners were exposed to five minutes of negative news daily. The effects were startling. The listeners reported being more depressed than ever before, they believed the world was a negative place, they were less likely to help others, and they began to believe what they heard would soon happen to them.

Now you might be shaking your head in disbelief and wondering… “How could five minutes of negative thinking a day have that much of an influence?”

Whether we like it or not, the thoughts we entertain in our minds become the thoughts that guide our lives – influencing what we do and what we believe.

Turns out the old axiom, “You are what you eat,” is not only true about us physically but also psychologically and spiritually. We are what we think as well. If we feed our minds on a diet of mental junk food, your spiritual health will reflect it.

So it shouldn’t surprise us that our thoughts also matter to God. As our loving Father, God wants us as His children to aspire to greatness – to live influential and fruitful lives.  But to do this, we first need be intentional about filling our minds with great thoughts.

In his letter to the church at Philippi, the Apostle Paul emphasizes the importance of positive thoughts. Paul offers the Philippians a proactive approach to battling the inevitable negative thoughts that so often surround difficulties in this life: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (Phil. 4:8-9)

Paul is basically saying that if we get our thoughts right then the emotions, behaviors, and the peace of God will follow. Doing right thinking, though, takes practice. But for many people, the practice of meditating on Scripture and spiritual insights seems difficult, even daunting.

So how do we begin thinking great thoughts? I’d like to offer a few ways to help us get started:

• Start with Scripture. This doesn’t necessarily mean doing a Bible-reading program – although it can be very helpful. It mostly means absorbing the Word of God and thinking it over everyday when you lie down and get up, and lingering in the depths of God’s revelation. Thinking great thoughts about God will help us think great thoughts about ourselves.
• Dwell on great truths. Besides Scripture, we can learn valuable truth from our experiences in life. Another great way to fill our minds with great thoughts could include reading inspiring stores and quotes from other people. A few of my favorite inspirational people include A.W. Tozer and St. Francis of Assisi.
• Take time to notice beauty. For me, this means going for a walk outside and enjoying a scenic place like the ocean. I find that when I dwell on the beauty of creation I can’t help but grasp the enormity and goodness of God. This, in turn, affects the way I think and shifts my focus from being primarily on myself and instead on God and His bigger plan.
• Meditate on spiritual insights. Great thoughts can also come from personal insights God has given us in specific situations in our life.  The Holy Spirit has a way of working life lessons in our heart and they become more and more a part of us as we meditate on them and let them sink in.

This week, we’ll beginning a the series, Good to Great In God’s Eyes. In it, we’ll explore more in depth the idea that there are certain practices available to every believer at every level of spiritual maturity to help us move from good to great in God’s eyes. Some of these practices include how to develop great habits, take great risks, dream great dreams, and enjoy great moments. It’s my hope and prayer that this series will serve as a blueprint for building the life God has designed to fulfill your highest desires.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

Do you remember the reality TV show, “Extreme Makeover Home Edition”?  First, I want to say that I don’t watch a whole lot of prime time TV. Second, I loathe reality TV. But for some reason, while I was flipping through channels one night I began to watch this show. And to my surprise, I loved it.

For those who might be unfamiliar with the series, each episode features a less-fortunate family that was chosen to receive home renovations based on their recent or ongoing hardship. In the one-hour show, a team of designers, contractors and hundreds of workers redesigned — or even sometimes completely rebuilt — an entire house in seven days. When the new house was unveiled, the family’s reaction was very emotional. It even had me crying!

Afterward, I began to wonder: “What was it about this show that was so fascinating?” Then I realized that inside each and every one of us is the desire to see positive change. Our curiosity and attention is riveted by the skill and creativity involved in making something old, new and something broken, restored.

The truth is all of us secretly long for an “extreme makeover” in some area of our lives and relationships. I believe this is rooted in the spiritual DNA of our hearts and our lives.

And the one who wants to do this extreme makeover for us is Jesus Christ.

God loves to work in human heart, to take that which is imperfect and broken and make it into something that is useful, whole and beautiful. He wants to do a relational, spiritual and emotional transformation in each of us.

And this transformation begins with the ultimate “spiritual makeover,” which is our salvation in Christ. The Bible says that if any man, woman and child is in Christ, “the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

But God doesn’t stop there. He also wants to do an extreme makeover on His whole church — the supernatural community of God’s people. And he does this by using each person’s unique spiritual gifts to transform and grow the rest of the church. “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10)

God made each of us a certain way to do a certain thing. We just need to discover what that thing is that He pre-planned for us to do.  But to do this we must first discover which spiritual gifts and tools He placed inside us.

Imagine that God is an artist who is creating a painting. Our spiritual gifts are the “paintbrushes” He uses to create His masterpiece – which is the community of God’s people, living out their faith. It really is exciting to see how God puts the body of Christ together and how He wants to use our spiritual gifts to shape the lives of other people!

This week, we begin the series, Your Divine Design. In it, we’ll learn how to discover, develop, and deploy the primary spiritual gift that God has uniquely placed in each one of us.  I’m convinced that understanding this is a true game-changer, and your life will never be the same.  My hope is that this series will help you recognize the good works that God has prepared for you so that you may experience the fullness of blessing and impact that He desires for your life.

Keep Pressing Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

“Who do you think you are?

This is not an easy question for most us to answer. But it is a question that we’re all unconsciously asking, and it’s one that we will grapple with all the days of our lives.

That’s because most of us struggle with seeing ourselves accurately. Some of us don’t know who we are and, if the truth is known, we might admit that we don’t like who we are either. Then there are some of us who see ourselves as better than others, and there are some of us who struggle with feeling inadequate, constantly seeking the approval of others.

I’m convinced that the extent to which we’re able to accurately see ourselves affects not only our relationships but also the contentment in our lives. And as Christians, this is even more important.

In order to discover God’s unique purpose for each of our lives, we must learn how to see ourselves for who we really are — not who we want to be or who we think we are.

This question is not a new one. In fact, the Apostle Paul addresses this very issue in his letter to the Romans. He instructed them to first get an accurate self-assessment. He wrote, “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment.” (Romans 12:3)

Having “sober judgment” means that we see ourselves neither too highly or too lowly. It also means we need to know both our strengths and weaknesses. It requires taking an honest look at how our family backgrounds, environment, significant others, personalities, and values shape the ways we think about ourselves.

Remember Moses? He had quite the journey trying to figure out who he was. We read in Exodus 2-4 that over the course of Moses’ life he had to come to terms with his warped view of himself – first it was too high and then it was too low.  When God called him to lead God’s people out of slavery in Egypt, he put up quite a protest and begged God not to send him.

But God knew Moses was the perfect person for the job. He used Moses’ desires to help the Israelites, as well as his background, education and all of his experiences growing up in Pharaoh’s house as the needed preparation to fulfill His divine design for Moses’ life.

So how can we begin to come to grips with our true self? Here are a few ways to get started:

1. Ask God to help you recognize the warped mirrors of the world that have helped shape an inaccurate view of yourself.
2. Get God’s view of yourself through reading His word. Focus on the passages that specifically talk about how God sees you as his beloved son/daughter.
3. Talk to others. Ask one or two trusted friends to help you see yourself the way they see you.
4. Discover your primary spiritual gift.
5. Celebrate daily that you are unique, loved, accepted and being prepared to fulfill your divine assignment.

Remember, no one can give a more accurate view of your life than God. You’re His tapestry — a work of art! God created you uniquely. There is no one else in the universe with DNA like yours.  And He wants to use everything in your past and all of who you are in the present to accomplish His divine assignment for your life! “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph 2:10)

Later this week, we are beginning a new series called Momentum. In it, we’ll journey through the Old Testament and look at specific examples of true spirituality as modeled by many of the trailblazers of our faith. We’ll discover that they, too, wrestled the same questions that you and I have today. And just like them, coming to recognize the answers creates spiritual momentum that will propel for a lifetime. It’s my hope and prayer that as we embark on this journey together, we will experience the fullness of God’s love for us and recognize His calling on each of our lives.

Keep Pressing Ahead,

Chip Ingram

Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

What comes to mind when you think about the meaning of “diabolical”? By definition, diabolical means “anything that is extremely wicked, cruel and evil.” If we were thinking about it on a global scale, most of us would probably view diabolical in terms of genocide, murder, child abuse, or any of the horrible and pervasive tragedies that happen in the world. And most – if not all – of us would agree that Satan is involved in all of these evil acts.

But I’d like to challenge a common perception about what is — and what isn’t — diabolical. Often we view demonic activity in terms of obvious evil or spiritual attack, so we’re not always aware of is how subtle Satan’s activity can be. As Christians, it’s important that we recognize that the enemy’s main method of attack is not through the obvious, atrocious acts of evil. It is actually more sinister than this.

Satan’s agenda comes packaged so deceptively that we may never know we’re coming under demonic attack.

To shed some light on how the enemy works to destroy our lives, we first need to understand God’s view of what’s diabolical. According to Proverbs 3, God considers evil to be arrogance and pride, as well as when people plot to harm others, oppress the poor, and stir up dissention. It also says that God hates all forms of evil. This means God detests even the deception that happens in the small areas of our hearts.

And here’s why: God is opposed to anything that is contrary to Him and His agenda to give us an abundant life full of love, grace, forgiveness, healing and peace.

In contrast, Satan’s agenda is to steal, kill and destroy. (John 10:10) The Bible describes Satan as our enemy who “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Pet 5:8). Although he was defeated at the cross, the enemy still wreaks havoc on our lives by lying and deceiving, corrupting everything that is wholesome and good, and by bringing shame on our hearts.

He also loves to divide families and churches by creating disunity. In fact, one of the most subtle and lethal ways the devil attacks us is by dividing and conquering our relationships. He wants to ruin all of our relationships — with friends, spouses, small groups, parents, and kids. And he knows that the quickest and easiest way to do this is by getting us to divide over our differences.

So how do we recognize Satan’s subtle schemes to divide us?

• Learn how to recognize the danger of division when you find yourself moving from seeing others as merely “different” to forming an attitude of “I’m right and they’re wrong.”
• Be sensitive to seasons when you’re especially at risk for falling prey to the enemy’s schemes, like times of rapid change and growth. As things change, grow and multiply, your unmet needs – either real or perceived — begin surface in your relationships. During this time, there’s a greater tendency to see each other’s differences as the cause and place blame. This is the start of division that can end  relationships.
• Instead of placing blame, choose to remember God’s will and agenda for your life. You may need to apologize or recognize the need to “agree to disagree.” Sometimes that even requires forgiveness in situations you may not understand. This takes power and strength, but be encouraged because “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

This week, we’ll begin a new series called Diabolical: Satan’s Agenda for Planet Earth. In it, you will learn how to recognize Satan’s hidden agenda in your life, and how to apply Biblical principles that protect you from falling prey to his schemes and becoming part of a greater diabolical plan. It is my prayer that this series will heighten your awareness of the ongoing battle that rages around you and safeguard your soul with truth and tools the Lord.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

Sometimes smart people do dumb things, wise people do foolish things, and Godly people do sinful things. For some of us those things are a big, dark, ugly past. For others, it’s a secret we’ve never told anyone. Maybe it’s an abortion you had, or an affair, or you stole something.

Regardless of how we messed up, the one thing we all share in common is that we’ve all made mistakes. The Bible says “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom 3:23) Yet, many of us don’t know how to recover afterward.

So, how do we get right with God again after we’ve done something entirely wrong?

In the Bible, the story of David is one of the best examples of someone who blew it big time and then got his life right with God. David was one of the most Godly men in all of Scripture. He loved the Lord, yet in a weak moment he found himself committing adultery with Bathsheba and trying to cover it up by murdering her husband.

Psalm 51 gives us a snapshot of what’s going on inside of David’s heart after Nathan the prophet confronts David in his sin (2 Samuel 12). This Scripture also shows us the steps David took on his “road to spiritual recovery.”

Here are the Seven Steps that David took to get right with God: 

Step 1: Come clean with God. Get honest and get your mistakes out in the open. Sometimes we’re afraid of losing our reputation or being publicly exposed. And sometimes we’re afraid of losing the security we got from indulging in our “favorite sin.” But the peace we get in return for coming clean will be worth it! We can trust that God’s ultimate outcome will be good.

Step 2: Ask God for forgiveness. We have to ask God to wash, cleanse and forgive us. Notice that David doesn’t try to negotiate a deal with God or minimize his sin. He says, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.” (Psalm 51:1)

Step 3: Own responsibility for your sin. We need to own our part in our mistake and also its consequences. “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” (v. 3-5)

Step 4: Accept God’s forgiveness and cleansing. Like David, once we confess that we messed up and tell God we want a restored relationship with Him, at that very moment we receive His grace and forgiveness. But in order to experience God’s forgiveness, we first need to believe that we are forgiven, accepted and loved unconditionally.

Step 5: Request a fresh work of grace. Have you ever been tempted and then found yourself saying, “I’ll go ahead and sin and then ask for grace later”? What we need is for God to create a fresh work in our hearts so that we don’t want anything to do with sin.  Like David, we need to pray, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (v. 10)

Step 6: Resolve to use past failures for ministry. God wants to use the most difficult, sinful thing we’ve ever done and make us a trophy of His grace. God will use all of our sins to glorify Him, if we let Him. David tells God, when you do this new work in me “then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. Open my lips, Lord and my mouth will declare your praise. (v. 13, 15)

Step 7: Pray for limited fallout. Our sin never affects just us individually. But we can pray that in His grace, God will minimize the damage our sins might have had on those around us.

Over and over in Scripture we are reminded that we serve a God who, although doesn’t treat sin lightly, understands that we are mortal and struggle with sin. And out of His love for us, He wants to forgive us and take our very worst moments and claim them for Himself.

This week, we’re starting the series, Finding God When We Need Him Most. In it, we’ll learn how to find God in the midst of our most difficult moments: times of crisis, confusion and pain. It’s my prayer that God will use this teaching to help you move from just “knowing about Him” to powerfully experiencing His presence and power in your life … especially when you need Him the most.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

Why do our hopeful dreams for marriage so often end in nightmares? Most of us who are married – whether it’s been for 30 years or 3 months – realize that at some point the expectations we had for marriage weren’t realistic.

It’s not that having hopes and dreams for a great marriage is a problem, it’s that most of us don’t understand what marriage really is or what it takes to make it work. We all want a marriage that’s good but knowing how to get there is something else entirely.

When I came into my marriage, I had all of these amazing expectations and hopes. As a young Christian couple, my wife Teresa and I loved each other, we prayed for one another and served in ministry together.  So I figured when we got married things were only going to be wonderful and we wouldn’t have any arguments, right?  Boy, were we wrong!

Like most people, Teresa and I came into our marriage with a lot of emotional baggage from our families and past relationships. So it wasn’t long before we began having huge difficulties. Although it took a lot of work, prayer, and commitment, we were able to experience the deep and meaningful relationship that God always longed for us to have. But it took effort.

Here’s what we learned: God designed marriage and He has a dream for yours. And not only that, He also wants you to experience the dream He has for your marriage.

So what does God’s dream for marriage look like?

In the Bible, there is a pivotal passage that shows us what God’s idea of marriage is all about. Genesis 2:24 says, “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.”

God designed marriage so men and women would experience “oneness” and intimacy by leaving, cleaving and becoming one flesh. This means we leave our parents becoming emotionally and financially independent. Then we cleave with our spouse – or bond together at every level – essentially becoming one flesh.

This oneness or bonding is meant to be experienced deeply on every level:

• Spiritual (agape love) – This is the unconditional love we experience as fellow worshippers when we come together before God and worship Him in spirit and truth.
• Physical (eros love) – This is the passionate, sexual love of a husband and wife.
• Emotional (phileo love) – This is the love of best friends who connect on a soul level. Our soul is made up of our mind, will, and emotions.

Remember, marriage was God’s idea. That’s why the greatest thing we could ever do in our marriage is walk with God. When our sufficiency is dependent upon Him, not only are we are freer to give to our spouse but we can also have more realistic expectations of one another.

This week, we’re starting the series Experiencing God’s Dream for Your Marriage. In it, we’ll embark on an exciting journey to discover God’s plan for a thriving marriage. Together, we’ll learn how to have better communication, how to “fight fair,” and how to overcome barriers to intimacy in our marriages. If this series resonates with you on a heart level, I also encourage you to preview the group study and take a bold next step by sharing the truth about God’s dream for marriage with others.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

God has wired us to long for true love. The trouble is that over time, our perception of “true love” isn’t always in alignment with God’s. Here’s a simple test that will help you distinguish between love and infatuation. Make no mistake - infatuation is a powerful emotion - and when mistaken for love it can cause a lot of pain for people who have the best of intentions.

I encourage you to download and listen to the free MP3 message “How to Know if You’re In Love,” and take the test today. My prayer is that these resources will help you learn to build relationships that love and last a lifetime … according to God’s plan.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

Couples today have a lot of competing demands on their time. Although unintended, our marriages often bear the brunt of these pressures. I want to share with you a simple idea that will help you make a meaningful connection with your spouse this Valentine’s Day. Learning to apply this easy technique on a regular basis has had a powerful impact on my own marriage. I pray that it will help you and your spouse make it a priority to establish (and keep) an ongoing heart connection. Doing so is the key to healthy communication, and it opens your marriage up to God’s will in exciting new ways!

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

The American family is crumbling before our eyes. The family portrait we once knew as husband, wife and children now makes up less than 25% of all the marriages in our country. Along with this, 60% of all marriages end in divorce and more than 40% of Americans think marriage is obsolete.

This has left many of us wondering, what went wrong?

The latest research shows that the primary cause of the disintegration of marriage is our increasing failure to hold our marriage commitments in high esteem. Marriage has become a “conditional contract” in which we’re committed only until it gets really hard and we don’t “feel fulfilled.”

Despite these dismal statistics, there is hope! Our hope lies in following God’s original “blueprint” for how marriage and families are designed to work.

Remember, marriage was God’s idea. He designed and created marriage to meet our deepest spiritual, emotional and physical needs.  After He created Adam, God knew “it’s not good for man to be alone” (Gen 2:18). Then God brought Eve to Adam and began the first marriage.

“That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.” (v. 24) God’s design and purpose for marriage was that we would experience oneness and true intimacy with one another.

And it’s still His desire for us today. Even if we come from a dysfunctional past, it is still possible to learn how to love one another the way God intended.

We can do this by following God’s instructions for marriage:

1. Submit to God and to each other. If God designed marriage, shouldn’t we entrust Him with our relationships? The fact is that apart from Him, the designer, our marriage won’t work. We’re also instructed to have mutual submission to each other. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Eph. 5:21) When we do this, we give our mate what he or she needs.

2. Learn how to love your mate. Love your partner in the way God uniquely designed him/her to receive and respond to love. We can learn to love our spouse in ways that build a bond and create stability and an environment for him or her to flourish.

3. Remember that your marriage has an even bigger purpose than just your personal happiness. Yes, God did create marriage to give fulfillment and pleasure. And He intended the family to give stability, culture, and procreation. But the story doesn’t end there. In the bigger picture, we become living examples of Christ’s loving relationship with His church when we follow His design for marriage.

This week, we’ll begin a new series called, “House or Home — Marriage Edition.” In it, we’ll discover what it looks like to have a healthy, Biblical marriage and home-life. The response to this topic has been so strong that we’ve also created a new video-based Group Study. It’s my prayer that these resources will help you understand God’s design for building marriages that love and last a lifetime.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge

It’s no secret that marriage is in trouble in America … but there is hope. It all starts with going back to God’s original design for the roles of husband and wife. You see, there really IS a blueprint! In House or Home, Marriage Edition we’ll examine the timeless principles that help us experience God’s very best with the person we love the most. It reveals a clear path and practical help for couples who long for unity and fulfillment in their marriage. The stakes are high, and your marriage is on the line. I pray this new group study will help you learn how to build a marriage that loves and lasts for a lifetime.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram
Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge