Joel Osteen Podcast

Episode: Thank God Before The Promise

Host: Joel Osteen
Date: November 30, 2025

Episode Overview

In this uplifting episode, Joel Osteen encourages listeners to shift their mindset from begging God for what they desire to thanking Him in advance for His promises—even before they see any visible evidence. Drawing on scripture, personal stories, and memorable analogies, Joel emphasizes the power of gratitude as an expression of faith and trust in God's faithfulness. His core message: "Don't be a beggar, be a believer"—move from constant pleading to confident thanksgiving, and you'll activate God's blessings in your life.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of Thanking God Before the Promise

• Joel explains that we all have dreams and prayers we’re waiting on, but the key is to thank God before those answers arrive.

• “Once you pray, you don’t have to ask anymore. From then on, you need to thank God that it’s on the way.”
  — Joel Osteen [03:32]

• Continuing to beg God implies a lack of trust or unworthiness, but thanking Him shows faith that He’s working, even when you can’t see it.

2. Scriptural Foundation

• Joel cites Mark 11 (“When you pray, believe that you receive when you pray, not when it shows up…” [04:21]) and Philippians (“Bring your request to God with thanksgiving.” [07:42]) as the biblical support for moving from asking to thanking.
• He references Abraham and Sarah’s long wait for a child. Though the promise seemed impossible, Abraham “grew strong in faith by giving praise to God” [12:14].

3. Thanking as an Act of Faith

• Thanking God before the promise manifests is a sign of trust in His faithfulness and belief in your own worthiness as His child.

• “When you switch over into thanking Him, you’re saying, God, I trust you. I know you’re faithful to your word.”
  — Joel Osteen [04:03]

• Begging, pleading, and worrying don’t invite God’s power; faith-filled gratitude does.

4. Practical Applications & Personal Stories

• Joel shares how 90% of his own daily prayers are spent thanking God, not making new requests [09:01].

• He tells the story of his daughter Alexandra, who, after receiving a promise for a car, thanked her father for years in advance, never doubting she’d receive it [16:02].
  “All she did for those three years was thank me for the car that was on the way… That made me feel good as a father—to know that she trusted me.”
  — Joel Osteen [16:40]

• Relates the story of his mother’s healing from terminal cancer: after prayer, she moved to continual thanksgiving, never asking again, and lived to see healing despite grim circumstances [21:10].

5. Don’t Turn Prayer Into a Complaining Session

• Joel warns against letting prayer devolve into airing grievances or constant worries, which he says doesn’t get God’s attention.
• Instead, declare God’s promises and thank Him for what’s to come [23:24].
• “It’s a whole different perspective to say, God, I have all these things coming against me. But I want to thank you that you are fighting my battles.”
  — Joel Osteen [23:50]

6. Examples: Jonah, David, and The Power of Praise

• Jonah's transformation inside the whale came when he stopped complaining and began to offer “the sacrifice of praise… with the voice of thanksgiving” (Jonah 2:9) [25:49].
• David faced giants by magnifying God’s power, not the problem:
  “Father, I thank you that you’re the great I am… You have the final say. Lord, I thank you what you have purposed for my life will come to pass.”
  — Joel Osteen [24:40]

7. Encouragement to Shift Mindset

• Joel concludes by encouraging listeners to maintain a posture of thankful expectation even during the wait, trusting in God’s timing and promises.
• “You don’t have to see it to believe it. Lord, I thank you that what you promised is on the way.”
  — Joel Osteen [20:29]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On switching from asking to thanking:
  “Don’t be a beggar. Be a believer. When you pray, believe that it’s done and start thanking God that it’s on the way.”
  — Joel Osteen [06:25]

• On God’s faithfulness:
  “The first time you asked, God went to work. The first time you prayed in faith… He said yes. The scripture says all of His promises are yes and amen.”
  — Joel Osteen [17:43]

• On discouragement in the waiting:
  “All you have is a promise from the God who created the universe… Now it’s up to us. God, I trust you. I don’t have to see it to believe it.”
  — Joel Osteen [20:14]

• On the importance of praise in hard circumstances:
  “When Jonah realized that wasn’t doing any good, he made a switch… ‘I will offer up the sacrifice of praise… with the voice of thanksgiving’… That whale started to get indigestion… and spit Jonah out on dry ground.”
  — Joel Osteen [26:10]

• On magnifying God instead of problems:
  “The bigger you make God, the smaller your problems will become.”
  — Joel Osteen [25:10]

Important Timestamps

• [03:32] – Key principle: thank God after asking, don’t keep begging
• [06:25] – “Don’t be a beggar. Be a believer.”
• [12:14] – Abraham and Sarah’s story: strength through thanksgiving
• [16:02] – Alexandra’s car promise story—thanking in advance
• [20:14] – “All you have is a promise”—the waiting period of faith
• [21:10] – Joel’s mom’s healing from cancer—thanking after prayer
• [23:50] – Avoiding “complaining sessions” in prayer
• [24:40] – Praising God like David when facing giants
• [25:49] – Jonah’s story: praise leads to deliverance
• [28:00] – Call to thank God for promises, not just fulfillment

Final Encouragement

Joel closes by summarizing the episode’s core theme: make the switch from persistently asking to consistently thanking. This affirmation of faith releases God’s power, sustains hope through the waiting, and demonstrates childlike trust in the Father’s promises.

“If you’ll do this, I believe and declare you’re going to feel supernatural strength empowering you… Giants are coming down. New doors are about to open… If you receive it, can you say Amen?”
— Joel Osteen [27:15]

For listeners seeking encouragement during a season of waiting, this episode offers practical, spiritually grounded advice to “thank God before the promise”—so your faith, not your fears, leads the way.