Exercise Personal Commitment, Part 1

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Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
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Do you find yourself wanting to do what's right,
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making commitments, and then in honesty, not
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being able to keep them? I mean big commitments,
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commitments to marriage, family, God, friends.
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If you long to learn how to make personal commitments
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and keep them, today's the day for you. Stay
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with us. Welcome to Living on the Edge with Chip
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Ingram. Nehemiah chapter 3 is one of the most
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unusual chapters in all of Scripture. It's essentially
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a long list of names, gates, and building assignments.
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But buried in that list is one of the most practical
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pictures of what it actually takes to make and
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sustain a personal commitment. Today, Chip pulls
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back the curtain to reveal biblical principles
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that are just as true for your marriage, your
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walk with God, and the unique purpose He's placed
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in your heart as they were for the people rebuilding
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Jerusalem's wall. Here's Chip Ingram with a message
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titled, Exercise Personal Commitment. We're going
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to talk about a personal commitment as the fifth
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step to turning God -shaped dreams into reality.
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And I want to talk about the awesome power of
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commitment. Just the idea. Think about, just
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right now, who's the most committed person in
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any area that you know? I mean, it could be the
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most committed Christian, most committed parent,
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most committed athlete, most committed business
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person, most committed student. Absolutely over
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the top, most committed person you know in any
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area. Have you got it? Got it in your mind? Here's
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what I want you to know. On your notes, commitment
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inspires us to greatness. Second, commitment
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protects us from short -sightedness and moments
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of weakness. And third, commitment provides stability
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and focus and results in blessing. Commitment
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inspires us to greatness. The reason I brought
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this ball up is in seventh grade, I was, I think,
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four foot eight or nine. In eighth grade, I made
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it to 4 '11", or about five foot. And then ninth
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grade, I just shot up to five feet four. And
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that's when my basketball coach said, Chip, you
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weigh just about 105 pounds, and I think you'd
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be a great wrestler. And I wanted to be a basketball
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player. And so I remember going to a dinner.
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It was between my eighth grade and ninth grade
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year. And back then, where I was from, ninth
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grade was a part of junior high. And it was a
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large junior high, pretty large school system.
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And I grew up as a little boy going to the Friday
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night high school games. And the entire town
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would come out, and it would be packed. And I
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mean, the greatest thing in my mind ever would
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be to be a part of the blue and gold Gahanna
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Lincoln Lions. And someday when I grew up, you
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know, be up and playing, you know, on the high
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school basketball team. And then my dream after
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that was get a scholarship, and play somewhere
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in college. I didn't care where, just anywhere.
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And so you're five foot probably about two between
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my eighth and ninth grade year, and they basically
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told me that I should try another sport. And
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I went to this sports banquet, and this coach
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from a little university that had a good basketball
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program called Capital University was the speaker.
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And if you've ever heard a really good coach,
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they're awesome motivational speakers. And he
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was talking about going to a team in their conference,
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Kenyon College, during the preseason, and his
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school was playing their school in football.
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And the basketball season went open in about
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a month. And when he was there, he saw a young
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man named John Rinka. This would be about the
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mid -60s. And John Rinker was 5 '9 and led the
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nation in scoring in small college. And there
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wasn't a three -point line. He averaged 41 points
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a game, and he was only 5 '9. And he told this
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story, and he tells the story, and he said that
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when he came in the gym, you know, if that's
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the basket there, John Rinker would be on this
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side, and he'd shoot, and then he would run,
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and he'd grab it, and he'd go to the other end
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line, stop, shoot, run, go to the other end line,
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and then he'd put a chair right here, and then
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he would fake, stop. Play it, go. And he said
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he was drenched in sweat. He wasn't like shooting
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around. They were drills that he was doing. He
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said they came in from the halftime of the football
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game and he was still doing it. He said the game
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was over. The whole football game. And John Rink
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is still in the gym. And he made the point greatness
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is not always or is it rarely a matter of ability.
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It's a matter of commitment. And one little boy,
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who's a big boy now who's out of breath doing
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that, I remember a picture came into my mind,
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and I decided that I was going to be a basketball
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player. And without exaggeration, I practiced
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six to ten hours a day. I would dribble in my
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room. I'd lay on the floor. I'd spin the ball
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on my finger. I saw an article about Pete Maravich
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that came out in Sports Illustrated right about
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that time, and he had all these drills he did
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behind his back, and I just did them. I'd try
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to find guys three, four, five years older and
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get in the game, and I just played and played
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and played and played until I got to be one of
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those high school guys, blue and gold for the
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Gahanna Lincoln Lions, and then a very small
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school offered me a scholarship to play basketball
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at it. Commitment. Now, because of that, I didn't
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go to a junior, senior prom. Because of that,
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I never put alcohol or drugs in my body. Not
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at all because I was religious. I was not a Christian.
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I'd never opened the Bible. But commitment gives
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you focus. It gives you stability. It inspires
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to greatness. And the other thing it does is
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when I got tired, when I got weak, when I wanted
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to quit, when bigger guys were beating me up,
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it sustained me because I thought to myself,
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I had that picture of what I wanted to be and
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I was committed to it. I wasn't just emotionally
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committed to it. I wasn't intellectually committed
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to it. I was volitionally and willfully saying,
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whatever it takes, whatever price, that's what
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I'm going to do. Now, that's a silly little illustration
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to tell you the truth because it's just a sport.
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But that sport paid my way through college. It
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later opened the door for me to play basketball
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throughout all South America a couple summers.
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We played every Olympic team, and I shared Christ
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at halftime, and that's where God called me into
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ministry. On a much more serious note, the awesome
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power of commitment protects you from short -sighted
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moments of weakness. I got to be a committed
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believer. And the people who helped me, I began
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to read the Bible in the morning. I wanted to
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follow Christ. And pretty soon we realized that
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God wanted Teresa and myself in full -time ministry.
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And so we got married in December. And then probably
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fairly unwisely, six months later, put everything
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we owned in a truck. And we drove to Dallas to
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go to seminary. And then I worked full -time,
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went to school full -time, had two kids. About
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18 months later, we realized we didn't know how
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to communicate. We didn't know how to resolve
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anger. And my wife was making me nuts. And I
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was making her more nuts. And apart from an irrevocable,
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willful, we made a vow to each other and before
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God, I would have just said, this is too hard.
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It was really hard. I couldn't fathom that you
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could love someone so much and feel so angry
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and so hurt and so rejected. But you know what?
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Once you make a commitment, see what a commitment
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does, it keeps you from short -sighted dropouts
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or giving ends in moments of weakness. And so
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we went to marriage counseling with one of my
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professors. And we learned how to communicate.
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And we learned how to resolve anger. But here's
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what I will tell you. The thought that we would
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ever quit was never an option. Commitment inspires
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to greatness. Commitment protects you from short
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-sighted moments of weakness. And commitment
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provides focus and stability and great blessing
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from God. Let me ask you, how personally are
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you committed to the people and the things that
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matter most? That's what we're going to talk
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about. We've learned that a holy ambition, these
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God -shaped dreams, they start with a dislocated
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heart, a broken spirit, a radical step of faith,
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you develop a strategic plan, and then you make
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a personal commitment about first and foremost
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to God, and then the role on the wall of the
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kingdom of God where he wants you to serve, where
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he's going to birth that holy ambition. Notice
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in your notes, I gave you a definition of commitment.
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It's a pledge or a promise to do something. It's
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dedication to a long -term course of action,
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relationship, project, or course. And I just
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want to remind you that when I'm talking about
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personal commitment, I don't mean that you intellectually
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or emotionally feel like I really ought to do
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that or I'll try to do it when it's convenient
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or I really want to do that as long as. I'm talking
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about the kind of commitment that says I will
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choose to do this regardless of circumstances,
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regardless of how I feel, regardless of what
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comes up against me. This is what I'll do. It's
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that kind of commitment. that transforms you
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and the people around you. The dynamics or the
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dilemma of commitment is this, is that I admire
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it when I see it, right? You know the Olympics?
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Don't you just love the little Olympics when
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they do the little vignettes and there's a little
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five foot two gymnast or they tell the story
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of someone that's gotten up since 4 .30 in the
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morning and they are standing on the stage and
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you just see the product of commitment. I admire
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commitment. I want commitment in my life. But
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the fact of the matter is it's very hard to keep.
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For all of us. We're living in a day where people
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have a hard time. Forget keeping them. We're
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living in a day where people have a hard time
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making them. We're afraid to make commitments.
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We're so afraid that we'll fail or we see so
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many people who fail. And so if we admire it,
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we long for it, and we know the value, how do
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you make and sustain personal commitments? That's
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what we want to talk about. And the answer is
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going to be in Nehemiah chapter 3. We're going
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to see that he modeled it convincingly. He stepped
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out. He left his comfort zone. He left the palace.
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He went to Jerusalem. We're going to say he asked
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for it specifically. He said, I need you to help
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me build this wall. It's God's will. It's worth
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it. And then finally, we're going to see he created
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an environment that sustained it. You're listening
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to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and we'll
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have more in just a moment. Remember, the place
00:10:57.409 --> 00:11:00.149
to go for all of these daily messages is over
00:11:00.149 --> 00:11:04.250
on our website, livingontheedge .org. There you'll
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find Chip's full teaching library, along with
00:11:06.629 --> 00:11:09.830
even more content like Chip's free daily discipleship
00:11:09.830 --> 00:11:13.110
tool to help you grow all week long. You can
00:11:13.110 --> 00:11:15.350
also download the Chip Ingram app absolutely
00:11:15.350 --> 00:11:18.330
free through any app store on your smart device.
00:11:19.110 --> 00:11:21.690
Now let's continue with today's message from
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Chip Ingram. So, open your notes, if you will,
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and this is one of those times where I actually
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put the entire text in your notes, and then on
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the bottom of your notes, I put a picture. This
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is out of the Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary.
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It's a number of things, and it's just a picture
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of the actual shape of the wall. And since it
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came from a little bit different area, you'll
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notice in the text here, there's about 12 different
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gates, and then in this picture, there's about
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14. Over the years, they added a few more gates
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or the authors from different periods. Now, when
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you just look at this, okay, this is just a chapter
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out of the Bible in front of you. I don't know
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about you, but it just, it doesn't just ooze
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excitement to me. And Eliashib, the high priest,
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and his fellow priests went to work, and they
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rebuilt the sheep gate. And they dedicated it,
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and they set its doors in place, and building
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as far as the Tower of Hundred. And then they
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dedicated it as far as the Tower of Hanel. And
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the men of Jericho, they built adjoining. And
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Zachar, the son of Imri, they built next to them.
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And then the fish gate, verse 5. And verse 6,
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then the Joshana gate. And then skip down, then
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you have the valley gate. And then look down,
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verse 14, the dung gate and the fountain gate.
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And what you see is this is a very unusual chapter
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of the Bible that has a bunch of names that's
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geared around a bunch of gates that talk about
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where people come from, that talks about lots
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of different groups of people, and basically
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summarizes who joined this rebuilding the wall
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project. And then we learn later that in 52 days,
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they get it done. And I hope that some of you
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are thinking, Now, you just said we're going
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to learn how to make and sustain personal commitments.
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How are you going to get that out of this? Right?
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I mean, do you just have to make up sermons when
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you come to chapters like this? No, not at all.
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Let me walk through with you a couple observations.
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The Scripture says that all Scripture is profitable
00:13:21.929 --> 00:13:25.070
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and
00:13:25.070 --> 00:13:27.309
instruction in righteousness. And I just want
00:13:27.309 --> 00:13:29.029
to, you know, I've put some circles and some
00:13:29.029 --> 00:13:32.049
boxes. I put boxes around the geographical areas.
00:13:32.169 --> 00:13:34.830
I put circles around the different people that
00:13:34.830 --> 00:13:36.629
were involved. Let me just walk through some
00:13:36.629 --> 00:13:39.529
observations. And all I did is do some Bible
00:13:39.529 --> 00:13:42.009
study. So let's just walk through quickly some
00:13:42.009 --> 00:13:44.409
observations. You know, when I look at this and
00:13:44.409 --> 00:13:46.929
just hold the notes open, couldn't we all agree
00:13:46.929 --> 00:13:48.970
the gates are the central focus of this chapter?
00:13:49.519 --> 00:13:51.919
I mean, the paragraphs break and just, there's
00:13:51.919 --> 00:13:54.100
a line under them. They're real bold. Whatever
00:13:54.100 --> 00:13:56.600
this chapter is about, the central focus is the
00:13:56.600 --> 00:13:58.899
gates. Second, there's a variety of people involved
00:13:58.899 --> 00:14:01.779
in this work. I mean, there's personal names.
00:14:02.019 --> 00:14:04.460
Sometimes it's their father, their grandfather,
00:14:04.559 --> 00:14:07.240
or where they come from. But I just listed some.
00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:09.019
There's merchants, there's priests, perfumers,
00:14:09.120 --> 00:14:11.039
goldsmiths, rulers, servants, temple servants,
00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:14.240
daughters, nobles, and officials. So, I mean,
00:14:14.240 --> 00:14:15.759
just we're making observations. A lot of different
00:14:15.759 --> 00:14:18.820
people here. Notice the project drew people and
00:14:18.820 --> 00:14:21.340
men from a variety of surrounding areas and towns.
00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:23.340
And by the way, when you do a little historical
00:14:23.340 --> 00:14:24.940
background, you realize they were in the midst
00:14:24.940 --> 00:14:27.460
of the summer harvest. Now think about this,
00:14:27.500 --> 00:14:30.889
the implication. This guy comes from Susa and
00:14:30.889 --> 00:14:32.750
he says, let's rebuild this wall. This is the
00:14:32.750 --> 00:14:35.029
will of God. And people are going, but wait a
00:14:35.029 --> 00:14:37.710
second, I live in Jericho. That's 17 miles from
00:14:37.710 --> 00:14:40.110
Jerusalem. Or I live in Mitzvah, that's 10 miles.
00:14:40.549 --> 00:14:43.549
Or I live in Tekoa, that's 10 miles. Or Gibeon
00:14:43.549 --> 00:14:47.059
is six miles. Or Beth Sur is 26 miles. And so
00:14:47.059 --> 00:14:49.139
they're leaving the summer harvest, their livelihood,
00:14:49.200 --> 00:14:53.279
to join this man who has a word from God, who
00:14:53.279 --> 00:14:55.600
God has put his hand upon him. And this is the
00:14:55.600 --> 00:14:58.120
clear, defined will of God. But notice the commitment
00:14:58.120 --> 00:15:00.840
it is. It's a commitment of time. It's a commitment
00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:02.860
of travel. It's a commitment of their money and
00:15:02.860 --> 00:15:06.559
economics. Fourth observation is the work began
00:15:06.559 --> 00:15:09.279
on the gates. It was the most vulnerable place
00:15:09.279 --> 00:15:12.100
defensively. It was usually the place where you
00:15:12.100 --> 00:15:15.200
would get water in a city. 2 Samuel 23, 15 and
00:15:15.200 --> 00:15:17.259
16 talks about, and they went to the city gates
00:15:17.259 --> 00:15:20.379
to draw water. It was the public meeting place.
00:15:20.539 --> 00:15:22.559
It would be sort of like our marketplace. It's
00:15:22.559 --> 00:15:24.700
where business was done. It's where the elders
00:15:24.700 --> 00:15:27.519
would meet, you know, the big decisions. It's
00:15:27.519 --> 00:15:30.639
where the law was read. And so it's the center
00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:34.340
of entry and exit. When we think about making
00:15:34.340 --> 00:15:36.779
and keeping commitments, they started on the
00:15:36.779 --> 00:15:39.580
place that was the most strategic, the most vulnerable,
00:15:39.700 --> 00:15:42.460
and the most important. And by the way, some
00:15:42.460 --> 00:15:44.899
of the application for your commitments is what
00:15:44.899 --> 00:15:46.860
we tend to do is do the stuff that's easy first.
00:15:47.179 --> 00:15:51.059
They tackled the most difficult job first that
00:15:51.059 --> 00:15:55.580
was the most important. Next observation is notice
00:15:55.580 --> 00:15:57.700
that the approach was very systematic and organized.
00:15:58.100 --> 00:16:00.809
They began on the sheep gate. And go ahead and
00:16:00.809 --> 00:16:03.450
let your mind scan all the way to the end. And
00:16:03.450 --> 00:16:05.809
they went counterclockwise. They end on the sheep
00:16:05.809 --> 00:16:08.309
gate. Each group had a specific responsibility.
00:16:09.009 --> 00:16:11.370
As you scan and read this a bit on your own,
00:16:11.450 --> 00:16:13.230
you know, this group built according to this
00:16:13.230 --> 00:16:15.190
wall. This group built in front of their house.
00:16:15.289 --> 00:16:17.690
This group did this over here. So each group
00:16:17.690 --> 00:16:20.129
had a very specific role and responsibility.
00:16:20.750 --> 00:16:22.950
And then I love this one. They always worked
00:16:22.950 --> 00:16:25.429
with someone either next to them or after them.
00:16:26.110 --> 00:16:28.190
If you have time later or you can even do it
00:16:28.190 --> 00:16:30.450
right now, just scan quickly and every time the
00:16:30.450 --> 00:16:33.190
word next to him is there, put some sort of squiggly
00:16:33.190 --> 00:16:35.230
line under it or after him, next to him, after
00:16:35.230 --> 00:16:37.649
him, next to him, after him. It occurs over 25
00:16:37.649 --> 00:16:40.860
times in this one chapter. No one works alone.
00:16:41.279 --> 00:16:43.600
Part of what we've learned about motivation and
00:16:43.600 --> 00:16:45.919
sustaining commitments is that when you get isolated
00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:48.259
and feel like you've got to lose weight on your
00:16:48.259 --> 00:16:50.580
own, break an addiction on your own, keep a commitment
00:16:50.580 --> 00:16:53.460
to God on your own, take a new step of faith
00:16:53.460 --> 00:16:55.879
on your own, usually it'll last two days to two
00:16:55.879 --> 00:17:00.139
weeks. But if there's people, if there's accountability,
00:17:00.620 --> 00:17:02.759
if there's encouragement, if you know you're
00:17:02.759 --> 00:17:07.740
not alone, then you hang in there. Next observation
00:17:07.740 --> 00:17:10.900
is each group worked near their homes, or at
00:17:10.900 --> 00:17:13.779
least was whenever possible. In verse 10, verse
00:17:13.779 --> 00:17:18.059
22, verse 26, 28, 29, and 30. And so they didn't
00:17:18.059 --> 00:17:20.680
have to travel. And the other is there was sort
00:17:20.680 --> 00:17:23.119
of a godly vested interest. Can you imagine saying,
00:17:23.259 --> 00:17:25.119
okay, we're going to rebuild this part of the
00:17:25.119 --> 00:17:27.220
wall right here. And the walls were, I mean,
00:17:27.240 --> 00:17:28.940
don't think of a little wall. These were huge
00:17:28.940 --> 00:17:31.039
walls. You could drive a chariot on top of these
00:17:31.039 --> 00:17:34.700
walls. And then inside the walls, the housing
00:17:34.700 --> 00:17:37.200
would be built. So my living room might be here,
00:17:37.319 --> 00:17:40.099
and then the external wall be here. I'm thinking
00:17:40.099 --> 00:17:42.039
I'm going to do a pretty good job on this part
00:17:42.039 --> 00:17:44.240
of the wall. If, you know, the catapults and
00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:46.220
the stones start coming and the arrows and the
00:17:46.220 --> 00:17:48.160
spears, I think I'm going to make it pretty thick
00:17:48.160 --> 00:17:50.259
and pretty good. I'm not going to do one of those.
00:17:50.299 --> 00:17:51.500
Well, this is good enough for government work,
00:17:51.599 --> 00:17:56.910
right? And so he motivates them not only by the
00:17:56.910 --> 00:17:59.829
great intrinsic, we're doing this for God, but
00:17:59.829 --> 00:18:01.849
he puts them in a place that highly motivates
00:18:01.849 --> 00:18:05.569
them to work in a way that has their best interest
00:18:05.569 --> 00:18:09.329
in mind. Notice the context. It's preceded by
00:18:09.329 --> 00:18:12.009
the apex of motivation, and then it's followed
00:18:12.009 --> 00:18:15.690
by a big section of opposition. You need to remember
00:18:15.690 --> 00:18:18.960
that. At the end of chapter 2, it's let us arise
00:18:18.960 --> 00:18:21.740
and build. Nehemiah's here. We're going to do
00:18:21.740 --> 00:18:24.299
it. Come on, gang. Let's make a difference. You've
00:18:24.299 --> 00:18:26.019
been in those moments, right? You know, people
00:18:26.019 --> 00:18:28.480
stand on top of chairs and this is what we're
00:18:28.480 --> 00:18:30.779
going to do. Let's go for it. Well, now, this
00:18:30.779 --> 00:18:33.319
is how you sustain it. You can get fired up,
00:18:33.420 --> 00:18:35.940
but he has them with people. They have clear
00:18:35.940 --> 00:18:38.779
roles. They make a very specific commitment.
00:18:39.099 --> 00:18:41.039
They're doing it someone before them, someone
00:18:41.039 --> 00:18:43.470
next to them. We're gonna learn in just a second
00:18:43.470 --> 00:18:46.029
that some people are gonna repair and other people
00:18:46.029 --> 00:18:48.369
are going to build because our giftedness are
00:18:48.369 --> 00:18:50.509
different. Some people are really great at fixing
00:18:50.509 --> 00:18:53.230
stuff and other people think I can't fix anything,
00:18:53.309 --> 00:18:54.670
but they're great with a clean sheet of paper
00:18:54.670 --> 00:18:58.130
and they can build stuff. But then in the context,
00:18:58.210 --> 00:19:01.509
chapters four, five, and six will be about opposition.
00:19:03.150 --> 00:19:06.400
I mean. Anytime you take a step, whether you
00:19:06.400 --> 00:19:08.319
decide to start really reading your Bible or
00:19:08.319 --> 00:19:10.779
really praying or working on your marriage or
00:19:10.779 --> 00:19:12.880
saying as a family, we're gonna do something
00:19:12.880 --> 00:19:15.279
radical. We're gonna try and eat together like
00:19:15.279 --> 00:19:18.980
at a table with nothing blaring, like two or
00:19:18.980 --> 00:19:21.900
three times a week. I'm gonna actually tuck my
00:19:21.900 --> 00:19:24.819
kids in and read them a story. I'm gonna get
00:19:24.819 --> 00:19:26.279
with a group of single people and we're gonna
00:19:26.279 --> 00:19:28.839
make a covenant about making a difference in
00:19:28.839 --> 00:19:30.980
our workplaces and we're gonna be sexually pure.
00:19:31.759 --> 00:19:34.160
Every time you take any kind of step of faith
00:19:34.160 --> 00:19:36.339
like that, it'll usually get worse before it
00:19:36.339 --> 00:19:39.200
gets better. So chapter four, you get external
00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:41.299
opposition. In chapter five, there's internal
00:19:41.299 --> 00:19:43.960
opposition. And then chapter six, he gets personal
00:19:43.960 --> 00:19:48.839
attack. People who make these kind of commitments,
00:19:49.059 --> 00:19:51.500
they change, they change people around them,
00:19:51.559 --> 00:19:54.039
and they change the world. But it usually starts
00:19:54.039 --> 00:19:56.619
with some very significant time of motivation,
00:19:56.640 --> 00:19:58.920
and it gets clear, this is what we've got to
00:19:58.920 --> 00:20:01.460
do. And then they start this process, and usually
00:20:01.460 --> 00:20:03.680
it's followed by things that are very difficult.
00:20:04.539 --> 00:20:06.900
Notice who started the work. It's the high priest.
00:20:07.599 --> 00:20:10.380
Different people have responsibility. The high
00:20:10.380 --> 00:20:13.420
priest was the highest representative of God.
00:20:13.579 --> 00:20:16.019
And notice the very first line, he models that.
00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:19.299
The ragtag group finished it in 52 days. And
00:20:19.299 --> 00:20:21.940
I have a friend who's an engineer who said, this
00:20:21.940 --> 00:20:25.180
is an absolute engineering miracle. It's an impossibility.
00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:27.619
And then notice they worked in affinity groups.
00:20:27.960 --> 00:20:29.960
If you could study it a little bit longer, the
00:20:29.960 --> 00:20:32.519
priests worked together, the merchants, the goldsmiths
00:20:32.519 --> 00:20:34.380
worked together. They worked in families, servants,
00:20:34.640 --> 00:20:37.359
and then they worked in geographical areas. So
00:20:37.359 --> 00:20:39.700
they knew each other. I mean, when you work,
00:20:39.759 --> 00:20:42.019
you're more motivated to work with people that
00:20:42.019 --> 00:20:45.240
you kind of have some kinship with. I mean, it's
00:20:45.240 --> 00:20:47.039
true today. Like, some of you are, like, real
00:20:47.039 --> 00:20:49.500
techie, and you can talk in languages that I
00:20:49.500 --> 00:20:51.700
don't understand, and some of you are more artistic,
00:20:51.799 --> 00:20:53.839
and some of you come from different parts of
00:20:53.839 --> 00:20:56.200
the country, and there's just an affinity of
00:20:56.200 --> 00:20:59.059
culture and background that as we work together
00:20:59.059 --> 00:21:01.819
with people that we can understand, it helps
00:21:01.819 --> 00:21:06.569
us sustain motivation. You've been listening
00:21:06.569 --> 00:21:09.349
to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and a
00:21:09.349 --> 00:21:12.029
message titled Exercise Personal Commitment.
00:21:12.170 --> 00:21:14.750
It's part of our larger series called You Were
00:21:14.750 --> 00:21:17.329
Made for More, How to Discover God's Purpose
00:21:17.329 --> 00:21:19.869
for Your Life. And you can find this lesson and
00:21:19.869 --> 00:21:22.690
every message in this series at livingontheedge
00:21:22.690 --> 00:21:26.609
.org. You know, for over 30 years, Living on
00:21:26.609 --> 00:21:28.569
the Edge has been committed to helping Christians
00:21:28.569 --> 00:21:31.589
actually live like Christians. That mission is
00:21:31.589 --> 00:21:33.890
only possible because people believe it's worth
00:21:33.890 --> 00:21:36.579
backing. If you're a regular donor to Living
00:21:36.579 --> 00:21:39.539
on the Edge, thank you. Teachings like today's
00:21:39.539 --> 00:21:41.559
and resources like the one we're about to share
00:21:41.559 --> 00:21:44.000
with you are all reaching new listeners right
00:21:44.000 --> 00:21:46.539
when they need it because of your faithful giving.
00:21:47.119 --> 00:21:49.259
If you're listening today and you've never given
00:21:49.259 --> 00:21:51.660
to this ministry before, now is a great time
00:21:51.660 --> 00:21:54.299
to start. We've made it quick and easy to partner
00:21:54.299 --> 00:21:57.720
with us by going online to livingontheedge .org
00:21:57.720 --> 00:22:03.730
or by giving us a call at 888 -333 -6003. Now,
00:22:03.730 --> 00:22:05.470
if you're trying to figure out where your section
00:22:05.470 --> 00:22:07.890
of the wall is, what God made you specifically
00:22:07.890 --> 00:22:10.470
to do and contribute, we have a special resource
00:22:10.470 --> 00:22:13.029
that can help. It's a free online assessment
00:22:13.029 --> 00:22:16.250
called The Real You, built to help you understand
00:22:16.250 --> 00:22:19.410
your God -given personality, strengths, and design.
00:22:20.170 --> 00:22:22.349
Thousands of believers have found it to be a
00:22:22.349 --> 00:22:24.849
real turning point. So don't wait. Take it today,
00:22:25.049 --> 00:22:29.849
absolutely free at therealyou .org. Well, now
00:22:29.849 --> 00:22:32.420
here's Chip. As you listen to today's message,
00:22:32.579 --> 00:22:34.920
I wish we could have been together with the Bible
00:22:34.920 --> 00:22:37.599
open. Because when you look at Nehemiah chapter
00:22:37.599 --> 00:22:41.240
3 and see this list, I mean a list of gates and
00:22:41.240 --> 00:22:44.859
people and details and hard names, you look at
00:22:44.859 --> 00:22:47.279
that and you think, what could be here? And yet
00:22:47.279 --> 00:22:50.400
God cares so much about individuals that He records
00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:53.400
their names and what they did and where they're
00:22:53.400 --> 00:22:57.779
from. Why? Because God doesn't just know in general,
00:22:57.880 --> 00:23:01.390
He knows specifically. He knows you. He knows
00:23:01.390 --> 00:23:04.289
your name. He knows where you go to work. He
00:23:04.289 --> 00:23:07.309
knows what driveway you pull into. He knows the
00:23:07.309 --> 00:23:10.410
burdens on your heart. And he wants you to be
00:23:10.410 --> 00:23:12.809
teamed up with other people to accomplish his
00:23:12.809 --> 00:23:15.880
purposes right where you're at. And here we have
00:23:15.880 --> 00:23:18.559
a picture of how God did it. He did an impossible
00:23:18.559 --> 00:23:21.920
thing. He didn't do it by some miraculous waving
00:23:21.920 --> 00:23:25.160
of the hand. He did it by regular, ordinary people
00:23:25.160 --> 00:23:28.539
finding their place, starting at the most strategic
00:23:28.539 --> 00:23:32.099
spot, being tied together with affinity and deep
00:23:32.099 --> 00:23:36.640
relationship, and then working together in cooperation,
00:23:37.160 --> 00:23:40.990
in coordination. Each person having their commitment
00:23:40.990 --> 00:23:44.009
sustained by the relationships and the projects
00:23:44.009 --> 00:23:46.849
that they were designed to do. So let me ask
00:23:46.849 --> 00:23:48.990
you, how are you doing with your commitments?
00:23:49.650 --> 00:23:52.710
What kind of help and support might you need?
00:23:53.259 --> 00:23:55.180
to keep the commitment to be the kind of marriage
00:23:55.180 --> 00:23:58.299
partner you know God wants you to be? What ministry
00:23:58.299 --> 00:24:00.779
are you involved in that you need to have a cup
00:24:00.779 --> 00:24:02.880
of coffee with someone and talk about what's
00:24:02.880 --> 00:24:05.599
going on? You see, there was someone next to
00:24:05.599 --> 00:24:08.980
them and someone after them that tied them together.
00:24:09.119 --> 00:24:11.599
You need that. If you're struggling with keeping
00:24:11.599 --> 00:24:13.880
your commitments, it may not be that you're weak
00:24:13.880 --> 00:24:15.900
-willed and that you're a terrible person and
00:24:15.900 --> 00:24:18.970
that you just can't stay with it. It might be
00:24:18.970 --> 00:24:21.490
that you're not in the kind of environment that
00:24:21.490 --> 00:24:24.890
fosters and sustain commitments. You're important
00:24:24.890 --> 00:24:28.309
to God. Could I encourage you to get close to
00:24:28.309 --> 00:24:30.670
others that are committed to the Lord and get
00:24:30.670 --> 00:24:33.190
the kind of encouragement you need to fulfill
00:24:33.190 --> 00:24:36.829
that special place that only you can do? There's
00:24:36.829 --> 00:24:39.680
a question most of us quietly wrestle with. How
00:24:39.680 --> 00:24:41.740
do you make the kind of commitment that actually
00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:44.740
holds? Whether it's a commitment to God, to your
00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:46.900
marriage, or to a calling within your heart,
00:24:47.299 --> 00:24:50.339
Chip Ingram has real practical answers next time
00:24:50.339 --> 00:24:56.440
on Living on the Edge. Today's program is produced
00:24:56.440 --> 00:24:58.619
and sponsored by Living on the Edge.