November 2024

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”
Psalm 20:7, NIV

Dear Friend,

Your mailbox has undoubtedly been bombarded by political ads and religious appeals tied to the coming election.

As I’ve been praying the past few weeks about what to share with you just prior to the election, the Lord brought the above verse to mind. Psalm 20 is called a “Royal Psalm,” and it begins with the assembly of God’s people praying for their king (David) before he goes into a major battle.

Verses 1–4 are their request, on his behalf, for victory.

Verse 5 is their confidence that God will provide victory because they are trusting in the name of the LORD (His character, His nature, and His faithfulness).

Verses 6–7 are the king’s prayer of absolute confidence in victory because his trust is in the POWER of God–not in chariots or horses, but instead in the NAME of the Lord our God.

In battles of that day, chariots represented advanced TECHNOLOGY, allowing armies to move quickly and with great advantage over ground troops. Horses were the equivalent of POWER, providing mobility, strength, and superiority in battle.

Our world and our country are in an intense battle. Having just returned from Korea, meeting with 5,000 Christian leaders from more than 200 countries, I can assure you that the issues we are facing in America of moral decline, absence of truth, the deconstruction of the family, compromise within the Church, and polarization in politics are not unique to the United States.

The spiritual battle is real and very intense. Good is indeed called evil today, and evil is being called good (see Isaiah 5:20). The next generation has never been more irreligious (30% have no religious affiliation), and pastors in America are leaving the ministry at an alarming 1,500 per month.

The temptation in our current environment will be twofold, and neither alternative is positive. For some, the message is “the sky is falling” and it’s never been this bad and there is no hope, so hunker down to keep your tribe or family safe. The opposite approach will be to trust technology, as that will somehow be the answer to everything, or to think that political power will turn the tide.

Technology is a useful tool, and politics requires responsibility among God’s people to know the facts, do our research, participate in the process of voting, and run for office as God leads to make a difference as citizens of America.

But we DARE NOT trust in technology or political power!

Our challenges are complex, and we have not arrived here overnight. God’s people have faced and overcome far more difficult times in the past, and His power and presence are not limited in our day.

Our future does not hinge on who wins this election. A sovereign, all-powerful God is longing to awaken His people to walk in holiness and to TRUST Him fully, regardless of the outcome.

Could God’s bigger agenda for His people and His purposes for the world far exceed the outcome of this election?

Could it be that our tendency to blame “other people” and demonize those who are deceived has made many of us, as followers of Christ, part of the problem instead of part of the solution?

Could it be that God is calling us to repent, to be the light, to live the truth, and to acknowledge that we have chased Mammon, neglected our families, compromised our doctrine, and sought pleasure and power at the expense of authentic piety?

It’s unpopular to admit, but all the research tells us that 9 out of 10 Christians do not live any differently than those outside of Christ. It’s easy to see the sin, the blindness, and the evil in the lives of others and be nearly oblivious to it in our own lives.

Could our current battles and challenges be, in fact, the discipline of a loving God to call His people back to Himself to walk in love and purity and seek first His kingdom and His righteousness above all else?

At Living on the Edge, we have been called by God to help Christians live like Christians. Why? Because LIGHT exposes the darkness. LIGHT reveals the character and kindness of our God. LIGHT penetrates and overcomes evil.

God has a solution, and He’s made it very clear in His Word:

“You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light … Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them … But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:

‘Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.’

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:8, 11, 13–16, NIV)

Some will trust in technology and power, but we will trust in the NAME of the Lord our God.

Yes, we will vote wisely.
Yes, we will use technology appropriately.
No, our hopes will not rise or fall with the outcome of this election.
No, we will not blame, accuse, or attack those who are blind and deceived, BUT we will live the kind of life that exposes evil for what it is.

We will PRAY!
We will LOVE!
We will refuse to lose HOPE!
We will take stock and REPENT!

We live out our faith and hold forth the Word of God amid a crooked and perverse generation, regardless of the cost or the circumstances.

If that’s your heart, join me and millions of others who refuse to be deterred or discouraged by our current world situation but, in fact, will LEAN IN and trust in the King of kings and Lord of lords.

God’s greatest work in history has always occurred in the darkest times, when very few stand up to be counted and to TRUST Him in the face of adversity.

 

Thank you for standing with us,

 

 

Chip Ingram
CEO and Teaching Pastor, Living on the Edge
—Psalm 20:7