Daily Radio Program with Charles Stanley - In Touch Ministries - Staying on Track - Part 2

Episode Date: March 3, 2026

Live by the principles in God's Word and you'll experience His blessings.Donate: https://store.intouch.org/donate/generalSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the In-Touch podcast with Charles Stanley for Tuesday, March 3rd. When biblical principles are ignored, we often end up where we never intended to be. This is true for individuals, communities, and even nations. Here's part two of staying on track. If you said to the engineer who said, we have a 500-mile trip here, and this is the way this train's going, and suppose you said, well, look, when we get over here about 200 miles, why don't we just take a left trip? turn somewhere. Well, the engineer's not going to do that because he knows you'll never get to

your destination. Watch this unless you stay on track. And every time you get off track, what happens? You get a big locomotive off track and it takes cranes, it takes all kind of things and time and days to get them back on track. When a Christian gets off track, watch this carefully, you lose time, you lose blessing, you lose all kind of things in your Christian life. because only as you and I are walking in his will and doing what he asks us to do, are we going to get blessed? Now, so what I want to do in this message is this. I want to give you a track.

It's just a track that I know that has worked for me for a long, long time. It was a long time before I ever called it a track. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized this is my track. This is what keeps me aware of where I am in my Christian life. So I want to encourage you to jot down these notes. Then God will show you how to apply that to your own life. But the first stage of this track is number one, and that is, scheduled prayer and meditation in the Word as the daily priority of your life.

This is the way that Christian life should start every day, and that is with the Father. He knows everything you're going to face. He knows all of your needs. He knows you're going to get hurt. No, you're going to get rejected. No, you're going to get loved on, whatever it might be. And so this is the way it begins. There is a track, and every single stop on this track you're going to see is very important, very scriptural, very biblical, and very essential to staying on the track.

You can get off track easy. You can get off track by neglect, or you can get off track by deliberately, willfully sinning against God. if you're going to live a consistent life and put yourself in a position where God can bless you with his best. There's not anything in the Bible about God blessing anybody with his second best. He wants the very best for his children. So his children must walk the pathway that allows God to be just and holy and at the same time bless us. So number one, meditating upon the Word of God. Then, of course, there is this whole issue of dependence.

upon the Holy Spirit. This is a vital part of the track. Let us think about this for a moment. When you were saved, the Bible says the Holy Spirit came into your life to endwell you. Why did he do that? Well, Jesus said in this 14 chapters, it's really interesting how loving and kind and sympathetic he was to them, tender-hearted. Listen to what he said in this 14 chapter. He says, I will ask the Father, then he will give you another helper, that he may be with you forever. So he says, I'm leaving you, but the Father is going to send somebody to take my place. That is, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him and know Him. But you know Him because He abides with you.

Watch this carefully. He abides with you, and he will be in you. Beginning at Pentecost, from that point on, he's going to be in you. Now watch. He says, to encourage them, I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you. And so how do we live the Christian life like this? Jesus is living through us, listening in us, through the Holy Spirit who lives it out in us.

You say, well, where has Jesus seated the Father's right hand? But he's also in your life and my life because the Holy Spirit, remember what he said? He said he'll be with you and he'll also be in you so that every believer is indwelt by, sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise. Now, why does he do that? do that because he knows that you and I do not have it within us the ability and the skill and the power and the strength to live a godly life in an ungodly world. We don't. And so he sent the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is the one who does what? He equips us. For example, one thing.

Let's say you are a teacher and you have the gift, think of all the gifts he gives for this exhortation or teaching or giving or administration or mercy. In other words, all the gifts he gives. why does he give them? He gives them to equip that person for that specific task so that you today are equipped by the Holy Spirit to do whatever God has ordained for you to do in your life. So when a person says, well, I can't serve the Lord, I don't have this education, listen, it isn't education, it's the Holy Spirit living within you, endowing you, enduring within you throughout your whole Christian life, doing what, equipping you, enabling you to do whatever God calls you to do. And on this track of living the Christian life, when you start doing it in your own

strength, you don't get in trouble. The same thing is true of salvation. How were you saved? You weren't saved by your works. You were saved by a gift from God. And part of that gift was the indwelling Holy Spirit. So that every single day you and I have the privilege of telling him. And I like telling him in the morning, Lord, you know what's ahead of me today. I need your spirit, of fresh and new today to enable me, to strengthen me, to guide me, to interpret for me, to show me the truth, not to be deceived by anything. I'm trusting you to do your work in me today. And the truth is, that's what he does in your life when you allow him to do it. You say, well, what's the power of the Holy Spirit? It's God's divine energy working in your life. You say, well, I'm just a homemaker.

Well, Mom, you've got the toughest job in the world, raising teenagers. I don't know of any job in a tougher than that. We think people who are president of this and president of that and president of the other. The Holy Spirit of God in the life of the believer is there to, listen, to equip you, enable you, and to encourage you in whatever the task is at the moment. That's who we have. Not only that, he's there to also energize us and protect us and give us the strength to say no when we're tempted. We don't have to make that decision along. we have the Holy Spirit within us, and so we have a conscience, and the Holy Spirit used that conscience to show us that something is wrong, speaks to our Spirit, this is not

the best way, this is not the right way, this is not the way of God. And so if you're on the track and you've got a track to go by, listen, you know whether you're working and operating out of the Spirit or whether you're not. You get up in the morning, you just head off, forget all about God until you some problem or some issue hits you, then you start calling on them. Listen, he wants us, this is why we put it first, he wants us listening to him, privately with him, before the day ever starts. And then we have him living within us every single day. That's when a person says to me, well, you know, they want me to do this, that and the other, if God tells you to do something,

he is fully committed to enable you through the power of the spirit working within you to do what. whatever He calls you to do. And this is why I think many people go to church and live at that church life by simply sitting and listening to sermons and so forth or maybe doing something here and there. But every single person, listen, God has a plan for your life. He has equipped you. You may not think you're equipped, but you're equipped. And whatever technical equipment that needs to go in in your life, God's going to provide

whatever you need. He's committed to that. It'd be unfair for God to call you to do something. something and that you just do it on your own. That's not who he is. Nowhere in the Bible does he say that's where he operates. So it's the work of the Holy Spirit, the awesome work of the Holy Spirit. And when Paul, for example, was preaching, he said, I'm not preaching you in trying to be smart with big words. He said it's in the power of the Holy Spirit. And their work was the work of the Holy Spirit. Every single day, you and I have a track we are living on. God is at work in

the life of his people, if they will just realize, he has this wonderful track by which we to live. And then, of course, number six, and this is very, very, very important. Remember that God loves you unconditionally. You say, well, that doesn't sound like that's a very important one. Let me tell you why it is, because every single one of us is going to face those situations that would discourage us if we allowed it. Secondly, we're going to face those situations in which we're going to get hurt. because we're human. We're going to get rejected. There'll be situations when we lose, whatever it might be, have people want to treat us. Here's what he's saying to us, this will help

you stay on track. No matter what happens to me today, no matter how people treat me, my Heavenly Father loves me unconditionally. You know what that means? It means it doesn't make any difference what happens. He's going to love us anyway. If you don't feel that, you don't experience that, you don't believe that, you get off track. I can guarantee it. You know why you get off track? Watch this. Because every person is seeking to be loved. Everybody. We either find it or we don't find it. And look how most of the world is seeking to fulfill their desire to be loved. What happens is, it turns, it never reaches love for many people. It's always lust. Something for me, something for me, something for me, something for me, something for me. When true genuine love,

goes way beyond all of that. And then also on this track is this whole issue of giving to God generously. He said, well, now, wait a minute, I thought this was living in a Christian life. It is indeed. In Luke, chapter 6 verse 38, listen to what he says. And Jesus said it, give, and it shall be given to you good measure, press down, shaking together, it's going to be running over. What he was simply saying is, you came out giving. give and it should be given you. Why would Jesus make such a point? Give and it should be given to you. Why? For the simple reason of what he knew that would cure in a person's life. For example, if you and I know how to give, we will not be selfish, we will not be greedy, we will be loving, we won't be self-sendent. We'll be looking for somebody, somehow to help somebody else. Giving it should be given you. Listen, if you and I do not know how to give, we will not know how to give, we will be self-sendent.

we will never stay on track. If you don't know how to give, you're going to be selfish. You're going to be covetous. You're always looking for what somebody can do for you. And you and I know we live in a world, whether it's in business or whatever it might be relationships, to find people who really and truly love you just for who you are and accept you just the way you are, or if it's some business deal, you have to be careful. What?

That they don't take advantage of you, that they don't treat you in such a fashion that you know it's not really fair. And so givers are the happiest people. Givers are the happiest people. You know why? Because there's a flow going on. And that flow is, as God gives, you give. God gives, you get, God gives, you give, God gives, you give. And then when you say, that's the end of that. I hate to say this, but you become like a stagnant pool. When you clam up and you get selfish, you get greeting, you get covetous, it's all about me, then you're off track. This is why I say to you, here's what the Word of God says. If you're wise, you will obey it. The giving is part of God's whole system. And I'll tell you why. Look at the cross and look what he gave. How could I ever

withhold anything from Almighty God when He gave its only begotten son? And so giving is a part of the track. It's a wonderful part of the track. Here's what I'm going to be able to God. Here's what? happens once you settle that issue this is I can remember my mother telling me this I didn't believe it she'd say Charles it's really much more fun for me to give to you than for you to give to me oh not not not in my age it wasn't I have to admit you know I thought giving business but you know it didn't take me long to watch her always giving sometimes I thought we don't have it to give always giving but she's always happy We always had everything we need, and finally I caught on.

My mom was right, and that is, the happiest people are giving people, generous people. I do not know of a stingy, tight person anywhere who's happy. I don't. Listen, think about this. You can be stingy and tight and keep it to yourself and die with it. Why don't you just give it and get blessed while you hear? That's part of the track. You get off the track and you're giving, you're going to be off.

Then there is the assurance that God is in absolute control of your life, a major part of this track. And here's the reason. If God is not in control, you and I have lots of reasons to worry and fret and be scared to death. He says, He has established his throne in the heavens and his sovereignty rules overall. Psalm 103, verse 19. He's in charge.

He has control of everything. So Jesus said, the sermon on the Mount, don't be anxious about all these things. Why? He says, Your Heavenly Father knows what you have need of, and he's going to provide. Part of the track, very, very important part of the track is the recognition and the acknowledgement that what? Our sovereign God is in absolute control of every single solitary thing. Will I always understand it? He didn't promise that. Will I always like it? What he does? Not necessarily. But he says he's in control.

And his being in control means that I don't have to worry about what he's going to do because I know, watch this, loving me unconditionally, loving you unconditionally and living by his own principle that he's going to cause everything to work together for your good, then what? He's going to provide where you need. He's going to work it out. Our problem is we don't trust him. We get off track.

and listen, if you're off track, you're out in the mud somewhere, then you've got to figure your way how you're going to do it when you can be sailing through the woods and through the mountains on a clear track, and you're over here with a wheelbarer trying to make things work. You get off track. And remember this. When you acknowledge that he's in absolute control of everything, you have acknowledged an awesome sense of faith. I'm trusting you, God, for everything.

It's part of the track. In fact, you can't eliminate any of this without getting in trouble if you get off the track. Then I would say one last thing. If you're going to stay on track, you have to keep your eyes on your destination. Listen to what Jesus said. He said, in my father's house or many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you. And he says, if I go and prepare a place for you, I'll come again to receive you to myself that where I am, there you may be also, and they knew that He ascended from the grave and went to heaven.

So what's your destination? You only have one or two destinations. There is a heaven and there's a hell. There are people who absolutely reject the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. Is there what's hell like? I don't know that I know what hell is like, and I never intend to find out. I know this. However you want to count it, without Christ, you are eternally

separated from God. Now watch this. So when it comes time for you to die, and by the way, there's no escape. It's a point unto man wants to die and after this is a judgment. Listen, your trip ends the last breath you breathe and you have reached your destination. And there's not anything you can do about changing it unless you change it before that. last second. We're all going to reach a destination. If you're wise, you will trust the Lord Jesus Christ to forgive you of your sins and set your course to live a godly life. Everybody has a destination, but when you reach it, there's no turning back and no second chance. That's why you need to be saved by the grace of God who gives absolute

certainty and assurance and clarity as to what's going to happen when he calls your name. There is a track, and what you want to do is you want to get on that track, and you want to live it out. Not going to be perfect. That's what grace is all about. You want to live it out. So when you come to the destination, you'll be welcomed by the Lord Jesus Christ forever and ever and ever. That's his promise. And Father, I pray the Holy Spirit, who is the one who convicts us of our sin and who gives the erection for our life, who's the great enabler, and who is willing to bring about conversion in the heart of any person who desires to be saved.

Speak to every heart, God is my prayer. We have one trip through this life, one destination. Thank you, thank you, God for your awesome grace. my prayer. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for listening to Part 2 of Staying on Track. If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or InTouch Ministries, stop by intouch.org. This podcast is a presentation of InTouch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.