Steven Furtick's Blog, page 55

Elevation Creative: Bouncy Balls

One negative thought may not seem like a big deal. But one thought can lead to another and another – and before we know it, we find ourselves completely surrounded in the lies of the enemy. In this video from our Creative team, we imagine what it might look like if we let all those negative thoughts go unchecked. Fortunately, we are not helpless when it comes to managing these thoughts. We know the promises of God are bigger and more powerful than any lie we might be fighting against.

Crash the Chatterbox: Live

Tomorrow, February 11, is the release of Pastor Steven’s new book, Crash the Chatterbox. And to celebrate we’re hosting a live radio broadcast event with Pastor Steven and Lysa TerKeurst of Proverbs 31 Ministries, as they discuss the message of Crash the Chatterbox, how the Chatterbox speaks to them in their own lives, and how they overpower these lies of the enemy with the promises of God.

We’ll also be talking to many special guests from around the country including Pastor Craig Groeschel, Christine Caine, Louie Giglio, Carl Lentz, Israel Houghton, Kari Jobe, Mandisa, Shaunti Feldhahn, Carolina Panthers All-Pro wide receiver Steve Smith, former UFC Champion Vitor Belfort, and more. In addition to these guests, we’ll be taking questions from live callers throughout the day.

The broadcast begins at 10:00AM ET and will air live on the The Elevation Network.

Crash the Chatterbox: Live will be available on your desktop or mobile device at www.elevationnetwork.com, or on the Elevation App through your app store.

Visit crashthechatterbox.com today for more information about the book and how God wants to help us break free from the lies that have been holding us back.

How to Win the Battle Against Our Own Negative Thoughts

We are all fighting the same battle. No matter who we are or where we come from, we each have a common enemy – ourselves. Our negative thoughts overwhelm us on a daily basis and often dictate how we react and respond in almost every situation. So how do we get rid of these thoughts? And how do we focus on God’s will when our own negative thoughts of insecurity, fear, condemnation, and discouragement are speaking so loudly in our lives. In part one of our series Crash the Chatterbox, Pastor Steven explains what the Chatterbox is, why we’re all fighting it, and how the promises of God give us the ability to silence the lies of the enemy.

Crash the Chatterbox: The Series

We live in a world full of chatter. Lies of condemnation, fear, insecurity, and discouragement bombard us every day. These lies keep us from hearing God’s voice and realizing the full purpose He has for our lives. But what can we do about it? How can we silence the enemy and discern God’s voice above all others? In this series, we’ll learn how to Crash the Chatterbox with the promises of God, and embrace the freedom found only in Him.

Click here to find a location near you. Click here to invite your friends and family.

Why Your Life Matters More Than You Think

It can be easy, when we get caught in the midst of the daily grind, to wonder if our obedience to God makes any impact. Does it matter if we’re there for our kids, even when they don’t listen to us? Would anyone even notice if we took a stand for Christ in our schools and workplaces? In this clip from the sermon “The Most Encouraging Message You’ve Never Heard” Pastor Steven explains to us that, like John the Baptist, our lives matter more than we think because there’s more happening through our obedience than we will ever know.

Crash The Chatterbox Challenge Kit

The negative thoughts in your head don’t get to hold you back any longer. In less than one week, Pastor Steven will release his brand new book, Crash the Chatterbox – a book about hearing God’s voice above all others. In it, Pastor Steven teaches us how to fight our own negative thoughts of insecurity, fear, condemnation, and discouragement with the promises of God.

And to help you share the encouraging message of this book with your small group, Bible study, or ministry, we’ve put together a Challenge Kit to equip you with everything you need to walk through the teachings found in Crash the Chatterbox. In each kit, you’ll receive a copy of the book, a video curriculum DVD, 11 resource guides, and other helpful resources. Click here to find out more information about the Challenge Kit.

Also, if you pre-order Crash the Chatterbox by next Friday, February 14, you can take advantage of a special promotion to help your church or ministry – buy one book, get one book free. For every copy of Crash the Chatterbox you purchase online, submit your order information and you’ll be shipped an additional book direct from the publisher. It’s a great way to get additional copies of the book for you at no extra cost. Click here to find out more about this special offer.

We’re excited to share this encouraging message and we hope you’ll join us as we learn together how to overpower the lies of the enemy and embrace the freedom found only in Christ.

The Wrong Prayers For Protection

As believers, our relationship with God takes on a whole new shape in our moments of greatest vulnerability and uncertainty. As our fear floods into our mind, our prayers focus on God’s protection and our desire for safety. We want God to just get rid of whatever has made us afraid. But what if God doesn’t necessarily want to give us more protection, but instead wants us to have a greater perspective? In this clip from our series Room 101, Pastor Steven teaches us what it looks like to move beyond our fears into faith.

Your Greatest Advantage In Life

We all have our battles. Our issues. Our struggles. Situations we just wish would end. Fights we just want to get through and move on. But Jesus didn’t come so that we could just survive the battle. He defeated death and sin so that we could also have total victory. So how do we win? How do we finish the fight the right way? To close our series Sticks & Stones, Pastor Steven explains the advantage we have as Christians, and why simply surviving life is no longer an option.

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

There’s a lot of different strategies that the enemy uses to get us off track in our walk with God. But I think one of the enemy’s greatest tactics is a sequence I call, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Here’s how it works. The enemy gets you to think about your past, present, and future in these three ways:

Yesterday – Remember when.

Today – Live for now.

Tomorrow – Do it later.

The enemy wants to keep us stuck in yesterday. And so the way the he talks to us is by saying, “remember when.” In other words, the enemy comes to you and tries to get you stuck in yesterday’s memories. Dependent on yesterday’s successes. Reminded of yesterday’s failures.

Or the enemy will get you stuck in today. He’ll tell you: “live for now.” It’s all about present pleasure and satisfaction. Like Esau, the enemy will get you to sell your birthright for a bowl of beans. Trade something far better later for something inferior now. Maybe it’s by having sex before marriage. Or selling out on your God-given dream because there’s an easier path you can take right now.

And then there’s tomorrow. The enemy will tell you to live for now, but when it comes to the great things God wants you to do, he urges you to “do it later.” Delay your obedience.

If you’re not careful, you can easily fall prey to this yesterday, today, and tomorrow sequence. And your growth in God and what He has for you will be paralyzed.

Here’s how I think God wants to flip the script and have you look at it from an eternal perspective:

Yesterday – Remember who.

Today – Live for later.

Tomorrow – Do it now.

Whereas the enemy says “remember when” about your past, God says, “remember who.” Don’t stay stuck in yesterday’s success. Instead look at yesterday’s success and remember the God who gave you yesterday’s success. Or who can help you overcome yesterday’s failure. Take David’s cue and recall God’s past faithfulness so you can forge on into your future endeavors.

For the last two elements of the sequence, rearrange the enemy’s thinking. Where the enemy says “live for now, do it later,” God’s says “live for later, do it now.” Instead of living for the moment that you can see and the pleasures that you can touch, live in the present with a visionary mindset about your choices, realizing that your present bad decisions affect your future possibilities.

And instead of deferring obedience, obey now. Don’t live in the land of lofty aspirations. Whatever God tells you to do, do it. Immediately.

Refuse to look at yesterday, today, and tomorrow from the enemy’s perspective. As often as you have to, tell yourself:

Remember who (not when). Live for later (not now). Do it now (not later).

Right memory. Visionary mindset. Immediate obedience.

Yesterday. Today. And tomorrow.

This entry was originally posted August 17th, 2011.

How to Keep Fighting When You Feel Defeated

Some of us are living life discouraged by variables we can’t control – the place we were born, the skills we don’t have, other people’s choices that effect us. Over time, if we keep letting these circumstances have power over us, we end up living life defeated. But in this clip from our series Grapes and Giants, Pastor Steven explains that as Christians, when we define ourselves by the things we can’t control, we lose sight of the One who is ultimately in control – and who lives inside us.