Momentum - Learning to Come to Grips with the Real You, Part 2

Do you ever feel like you don't measure up like your lights never can amount to anything you wonder. You know, like why am I here what's the deal. God or maybe you've really blown it and you think you know I don't think God could ever use my life again today. I'm been a share for specific insights that will help you get an accurate view of you and discover how to get back on track. Stay with thanks for joining us for this edition of living will be a shipping Living on the Edge features the Bible to all the steely discipleship program. This program chip continues is look at the life of Moses. Moses, all of his failures and insecurities face-to-face with the fact that God's will. Since we all have our past president of the worst possible times. I'm glad you're with us. I think you're going to find this message very encouraging.

So let's get started. Your strip with part two of his message. Learning to come to grips with the real you try and walk through very very quickly Moses to love you with himself and he basically has four excuses you can read this later on your own, but I want you to pick it up if you will, and chapter 3 Moses was one day he's tending his flock to thin out with the sheep.

He's got a new world is got a new wife.

He thinks his life is over.

He's hiding entities out on this rocky terrain. He sees this bush in the bush is on fire but is not burning and the angel of the Lord is in the bush. He comes near the bush and the angel of the Lord speaks to Moses and he says you're on holy ground. He takes off his sandals and he hides his his face in his hands and is in the very presence of God and he's overwhelmed and what is good.

Here is I've heard the cry of my people. And guess what those instincts to rescue them were right, and I'm going to use you to rescue them. I want you to go be my deliver. That's a real short overview of most of chapter 3 and then a conversation picks up and we pick it up in old let's see about verse 10 he says now go. This is God speaking Moses for I'm sending you to Pharaoh you will leave my people the Israelites out of Egypt now before he was you thinking to snap man. I got that covered. Now listen to them but Moses says who my interest in question is before they asking who you think you are announce like who my excuse. I'm a nobody. No one can ever use me. I'm a failure. I blew it. I don't I'm nothing. How can you expect me to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. How many times a too low view of you has kept you from doing you might be a real small voice and lots of them to do this, edition neighbors to Christ him over for dinner, whom I you know what I want you to take the step on whom I think God told him I will be with you.

Here's the solution to whom I I'll be with you and this will serve as proof that I sent you when you brought the Israelites out of Egypt. You'll be right here on this mountain, your worship basically got a who you are is not important. What's really important is who my and I'm can be with you will then we get excuse number two Moses is not convinced that he protect he protested if I go to the people of Israel and tell them the God of your ancestors has sent me they won't believe me they will ask which god are you talking about what's his name, then what should I tell you, excuse number one was, you know, I'm a nobody excuse number two is that I'm smart enough, you can ask me questions I don't know how these people over for dinner.

Talk to someone about the Lord.

Here, you know, if I take the step of faith.

I'm just not smart enough to go to Bible college and stuff for Mangino is one guy told me I never been to college at all.

Said you run this huge company. I'm not sure college was a really big deal for you, wasn't well. I know what I'm sort of uncomfortableness.

Often the two love you I'm not smart enough. So how does God answer that God replied I am the one who always is her literally. I am that I am just tell them that I am the ever existent one is the idea go Amy Jesus will quote this later in Greek when he talks to people who think he's claiming to be God and he'll say before Abraham was I am. And he reaches back in this text, the Lord, the God of your ancestors got Abraham and Isaac, and Jacob. You tell him I sent you. Now go and call all the leaders of Israel, tell them the Lord, the God of your ancestors. Skip down verse 18 humor.

He reassures and again you have to be smart enough, the leaders of the people of Israel. There can accept your message and then he says I promise even the Egyptians will treat you well when you leave the give you silver and gold and then we skipped the chapter for me. Get excuse number three so God reassures him I'll be with you all take care of it to chapter 4 then, but Moses protested again. Look, they won't believe me they won't do what I tell them they'll just say the Lord never appeared to you so okay see I'm a nobody tzedakah never use me I'm not smart enough not on the credible me him and that I was me.

I don't have the credentials. I don't have the platform will never, never listen to me and so God says okay what might Moses say what I authenticate people by just not what they need out there someday, some way. Let me take something is very common to you. You've used all your life see that Stephanie can you put on the ground and of really profit them so he drops it out comes a snake took him want to grab it. This is probably very hard.

The very first time we should grab this this viper by the tail touches the tip payment comes the staffing he said so like if they if you think any credibility. One thing about that and I think Moses facial expression got my I'm not really sure that work got this okay okay okay okay that's plan a plan B if they don't listen that Moses you know that little little Robbie got on the put your hand and get a good apply count. What is leprosy how my lands existing about public school and see if they don't believe planning about the staff go with the hand that is can be really powerful, like if that's not good enough will go to the Nile. I got a deal will turn all that into blood. Here's what I want to know your credibility is the issue you trust me and get your focus off yourself and all take what you already have. By my power and by my grace and all use you in ways you never dreamed well of excuses. Moses is a very slow learner. He's had 40 years to get stuck in his ways 40 years to believe after he thought it was such hot stuff that he's nothing. Now and so as we pick up the story. Moses pleaded with the Lord. Father, there's a guy was really learning to pray pleading. Oh God, oh God, oh God, no, no, no, no, not me. So is pleading with the Lord. He says you know what all your answers are pretty good God. But I'm just not a very good speaker. Know this is really going to take some oratory skill it's I'm just not gifted yet. I don't have the ability you've got the wrong guy. God's answer is, who makes man's mouth makes him deaf or dumb or singer blind is it not I the Lord. Now you go and I will tell you what your essay and then Moses after been convinced by the God of the universe that how he has made is exactly right for the job he's been called to do he says Lord, could you send someone else now. I think this is you know, one of the most amazing passages in Scripture because you talk about mercy and grace. You talk you talk about a got a guy kinda backing into God's will. He is reluctant as he can be. And yet God's got his hand on his life and so he says tell you what Moses I'm going accommodate by the way, every time we accommodate God often will get his will done in a way that we accommodate but always produces problems. We don't plan on so Aaron your brother. He's a good speaker. You know what I'm to have him meet you and he can do some of the speaking and all talk to you and you tell them what to do and he'll build a good job up front is good PR guy, but boy, he's going to cause you problems later is also an artist. He builds golden calves lead small rebellions is true. Sometimes we think too highly of ourselves. When this God's will, God calling.

Sometimes we think too low of ourselves. We miss God's will, Moses reluctant trust in God's promises in God's character noticed it was reluctant but they were his baby steps to a sober self assessment and notice in your notes.

I put God's answers and under his answer. I put a New Testament passage so you could know this isn't some Old Testament thing about God with one man about delivering when you have the excuse and I have the excuse I'm a nobody. God says I'll go with you. I will never ever leave you or forsake you.

Jesus says that to you and he says to me I'll never leave you or forsake you all be with you to do exactly what I've called you to do when we say God, you know I'm not smart enough, he says, look, I have all the answers. Philippians 413. You can do all things not on your own.

But through Christ who gives you strength to give you what you need. But step out and trust me, we say to God, and I'm not credible.

No one will ever believe me. He says I'll empower you. Second Timothy 17 says for God is not given us when we trust in Christ we turn from our sin. We accept him as our Savior. The spirit of God comes into us and we little takes up residence in our body and it says God is not given us a spirit of timidity or fear but of power and love and sound minor literally discipline you have inside of you all the power you need to fulfill all God wants to do and you and in the final excuses you know what basic I'm just not gifted you. I'm just not able to do this in God's answer is I gifted you for this job you are you beginning to see why it's so important that you ask some hard questions that you peel back some things in the past that you put things into your mind that help you see yourself for who you are, you know what if I'm a young woman and I'm like 14 to 18 years older little older and I look at all the people that are all the pretty people and then I look in the mirror, look at me at say what it's like oh or find a guy and I'm thinking you know I got have biceps like this and steroids like this in six weeks. I can get abs of steel and so I tried the rock and I tried this okay and you know and if I can just look a certain way than others. You know, forget it, you'll never get that so pickup for businesses today. What you get through four more zeros behind her name.

You strut your stuff.

It's all relative. You know what it's all relative and all I'm saying to you is, those bombarding messages and issues will eat you up telling you you don't measure up. But if this is the key advertisement. If you can't be discontent with who you are. You don't need to buy what they got, you get a sober self assessment, you realize who you really are who God made you to be what you're calling is and then you can choose and so you know what, that's a false message but you know what I do want to keep my body in shape and I do want to present myself the best way I can. And there's nothing wrong with being beautiful or attractive.

That stuff can't make me break me and doesn't tell me who I am.

Notice what he says Moses's life reveals that a sober self assessment right this word is a prerequisite to fulfill your divine assignment you you can't do what God made you to do unless you figure out who you are our key passages can be Romans chapter 12 verse three it says, for by the grace given to me. I said everyone of you do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of the faith that God is giving you. If you have a pen. I want you to underline do not.

The word think and the more highly than right. Underline the word in this translation. Actually, the Greek text that has the word think repeated again and then I want you to underline the next word. Think and I want you to underline the next word sober.

That's all the same root word you know anything look your surrendered to God. You offer your bodies a living sacrifice you're saying no to the world you not to let it conform you because it's death. What you saying yes to God you renewing your mind. Now the first place to renew your mind.

Don't think too highly of yourself.

Don't think too low. Leave yourself think as a sober judgment look into the mirror physically, but the mirror of your soul and realize this is who God made you and you what it means you have strengths and weaknesses you have things that come out of your past and your suffering, your hurts and some even abused the produce scars that are hard to trust people and produce levels of compassion and care for others that could never happen.

Apart from even the difficulty you've been through. So God says I want to have a sober self assessment. I know you need to know what your strengths are, but you need to know what your weaknesses are. Because this is got to bring other people strengths you can find there are no Lone Ranger you need them and they need you. No one can give you an accurate view of your life to God and were back to the verse that I keep quoting your his workmanship at that word. You can circle workmanship literally your his poem. It's a picture of your his tapestry your his work of art. Your his Rembrandt your his Michelangelo God created you. There is no other DNA in all the universe exactly like yours and in his sovereignty he knew where you would be born, he would know the mistakes that other people would have against you. He would know the opportunities that are unique to you even know your eye color you would know what time in history, and here he's been preparing you all these years for today to prepare you for the good work for you to walk, but the prerequisite is to get accurate on your me that this is so profound.

Even Jesus you know sometimes we think that Jesus just automatically do God's will is a struggle. He was fully God, but is absolutely fully human, and he lives his life out of his humanity. Looking to the father trusting the Holy Spirit to give them the strength and the grace to fulfill as well.

When he started his ministry. And just before he was tempted. You know what you need to remember. He needed to remember who he really was, and he comes out out that baptismal water. What does God say this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.

Some of you need to hear that from God.

This is my beloved daughter. This is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased.

If you put your faith in Christ you been made by God, redeemed by God, forgiven and adopted into his family.

He not only loves you. Are you ready for this. He likes you he likes you without makeup. He likes you without hard abs he likes you when you had a lot of money and he likes you. When you don't have a lot right now he likes you and your peppy and encouraged in obeying and he likes you. When you're struggling your his beloved son, the Transfiguration. Remember when he launched out. It was near the end of his ministry and their up on the mountain and there's Moses and Elijah make a visit and there's Peter John and James in the cloud enveloped them in Luke chapter 9. This is my son in who I dearly love listen to him. He needs to be reminded clearly in his humanity of a sober self assessment which gave him the renewed strength to do what go to the cross for you and for me, turned to the back page and let me get you started on some very specific application number one is ask God to help you recognize the warped mirrors of the world that have shaped your life at some point time.

What don't you think if you would go like if you had like 11 or 12-year-old kid and and you know they were really really struggling with life and they came to you and said mom, dad, whatever. Would you please help me design you tell them when you we wouldn't.

So, don't you think your heavenly father if you said, you know, I find myself on a workaholic unit started with a glass of wine and now it's okay. It's way more in an unpleasing people all the time. I say yes to everything I get overextended I don't like my body don't like this at like banister with depression and gone around on just about Landis describing all of us in this room various levels of airtime.

What he said he heavenly father. Would you I know is I feel like I'm in sort of you know that the fun house with the different mirrors and my head tells me I'm sort of normal, semi-dysfunctional, like everyone else saved by your grace, but when I look in this mirror look like I weigh 5000 pounds in my head and my motions are actually than my look at this mirror and I look like you know I'm 67 pounds and bulimic emotionally God, would you help me see me what you see me, but that's a prayerful answer.

I mean, I read the Bible in the morning because okay you know chapter day keep the devil like I need to be reminded of what's true of God me in life. Second, his people, then personal evaluation for thing is discover your primary spiritual gift. Final thing I would encourage you to celebrate. Daily that you are unique love accepted capable and being prepared to fulfill your divine assignment. I have to share one little thing because I think when people hear all this. I just this last word is this is really possible and I'm not alive to this is really a lot of hard work, and everyone struggles but I think the culture has made it much harder for women than men is an interesting movie stars. How can the guys can be like 50 and 60 have leading roles and be with all these hot chicks. And if your hot chick you know you hit 40, after out unless you get a lot of surgery is true and so I married this very beautiful woman that thought she was ugly and we went through a very long journey of learning how to get God's view of you. We actually put some cards that we reviewed. Actually, she reviewed for years and years and years that allowed her to see herself God's way is one share. This is a close. Lest you think you can never change or wrong changing how you think about yourself is hard work. Underline that in your mind.

Hard work but the rewards are well worth it when my wife and I began reviewing the cards. Tresa was a woman who was beautiful, but thought that she was ugly who was gracious and kind but thought she didn't measure up.

Who is the most wonderful person I've ever met but felt inferior having desperately low self-esteem when I watched her work and review these cards day after day.

Little by little she began to believe what God said about her rather than the message she absorbed from the people of her past the traumatic experiences she'd live through today I live with a woman who is beautiful on the inside and the outside that has a clear sense of confidence and positive self that comes from thinking accurately about himself. God sees us baseball. The difference personally then and how we treat or think about other great encouragement will triple be back with a final thought before is just a quick word about this series in momentum. Chip develops his outline for Romans chapter 12 and shows you how to live a life of real faith no matter what's going on.

Learning how to overcome the evil aim to do in understanding how to give God what he wants the most is guaranteed to make a difference in your life, starting today, access chips entire series momentum how to ignite your faith with the Chip Ingram up or download the free MP3s from our website. LivingontheEdge.org chips so much as changed over the last year and 1/2 or so, and dismissed with people in all a lot of different ways. Some of the total fallout is that many are struggling with issues of faith summer stuck summer doubting what are we doing to help people who need to reignite their faith walk with Jesus or Dave, you know, we create resources that are specially designed to help people in different seasons in Windows and their life in a very close friend that I've learned so much from his name is Lance Witt and he developed a resource. It's called leaving ordinary behind 25 days to an extraordinary fate. It's a devotional. What I find when people need to get back on board they need to cultivate the habit again and sometime something big is overwhelming. This is a devotional, you read little bit you interact little bit 25 days that will reignite your spiritual life that will help you get unstuck. That will take you from where you're at, to begin to get a fresh wind of God's Spirit in your soul and in your heart. This is a great resource for people that are struggling right now. This brand-new devotional written by chips friend and fellow pastor Lance Witt is called leaving ordinary behind 25 days to an extraordinary faith to check out the discounts while they last go to LivingontheEdge.org or give us a call at triple late. 333-6003 Listeners tapped special offers.

Again, the resorts were talking about is our brand-new devotional called leaving ordinary behind 25 days to an extraordinary faith without your strip with his application. As we close today's program. I like to take just a minute and address you ladies I'm been talking about Moses and he's a man and we talked about having a sober self-assessment and early on he thought too highly of himself and then later on he thought to lowly of himself, but what God wants is for you and for me to have a sober self-assessment and accurate picture not too high and not too low and ladies the reason I wanted to address you as I shared the story about my wife and I have found that women especially struggle with an accurate self perception.

It's not that men don't but I just think you're up against it more. The emphasis of a man having to look perfect is is very minute compared to all the messages that little girls get from the time that they are small all the way your life that you need to look a certain way all the messages all the magazines of the multibillion-dollar cosmetic industry that always tells you that there is a blemish. There's a blemish on your face. There's a blemish in your body. You don't look right. You don't sound right.

You need to have this you need to look this way and you've been bombarded by a world that tears at the very fabric that you are fearfully and wonderfully made, and I just want you to know that I wish I could push a button and have all your thinking it's negative, erased, and that many of you who are so wonderful could believe that just the way you are, the way you look at the height you have the personality you have the gifts you have. You are the person that God made it and here's the thing. If you fail to see yourself the way you really are, you will almost always miss the purpose for which you were made.

You don't have to compare yourself with anyone else. You are precious in God's sight. You matter the journey that my wife went on has been now two or three decades, but that she came up with the teaching that she did for some women it's on our website and it's called precious in his sight.

And if you are a woman listening to my voice thinking while I sure would like to see myself the way God sees me, but I just don't how to get there. Let me encourage you go to the website and maybe just download the MP3s is called precious in his sight and is not by me. It's by my wife and I just feel for you and I would long for the Holy Spirit to put his arm around you and begin to renew your mind and you realize that you are wonderful that your fearfully made by the creator of the universe and he has a great plan for you. Thanks Chip precious in his sight taught by chips wife Teresa Ingram is a thoroughly biblical practical series part of a sober self-assessment is believing.

At the core of your thinking that God really does love you that he's for you. Teresa has a very candid way of getting to why that truth is so important to becoming a Christian that really lived like a Christian and guys. If you have a wife, mother or sister, a daughter or a girlfriend who could use some encouragement about how much God loves her, why not order precious in his sight and use it as a way to communicate how much you love her to go find precious in his sight on our website LivingontheEdge.org or just give us a call at triple late. 333-6003. Until next time, this is Dave really saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge