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Joel Osteen Podcast
The Power of Visualization | Joel Osteen
00:30:49
The way you see yourself can influence what kind of future you’re going to have.
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- [00:00]
Joel Osteen
Hi, this is Joel and Victoria.
- [00:02]
Victoria Osteen
Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoyed today's message, why don't you be a blessing and share it with a friend?
- [00:10]
Joel Osteen
We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life.
- [00:14]
Victoria Osteen
Well, God bless you. It is always our joy to come into your homes. We love you. We know God has great things in store. He rewards people that seek after him and I believe that's you. And you here as well. If you're ever in our area, I hope you'll stop by. I promise you we'll make you feel right at home. But thank you. Thanks for tuning in today. I like to start each week with something funny and this was sent to me from a senior citizen's home. It's about this 84 year old woman. She'd gotten out of shape and she knew she needed to start exercising. So she decided to join an aerobics class for seniors. The first day she bent and twisted and gyrated back and forth, jumped up and down, perspired for over an hour. But she said by the time she got her leotards on, the class was over. All right, hold up your Bible. Say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. I have what it says I have. I can do what it says I can do. Today I will be taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind is alert. My heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus name. God bless you. I want to talk to you today about the power of visualization. God created us as visual beings. It's so important that we create the right images in our mind because the way we see ourselves is what we move toward. And visualization is simply seeing yourself the way you want to be. It's creating a picture in your mind of you accomplishing your goals, overcoming your obstacles and fulfilling your God given destiny. Our imagination is extremely powerful. The way we see ourselves and these pictures that we create over time, they not only drop down into our spirit, but if we continue to dwell on them, they get in our subconscious mind. Once something is in the subconscious, it's just like gravity. It pulls us toward it. All these internal forces are released and more often than not, we become just like we've imagined. If you'll create a picture in your imagination of something you want. A dream coming to pass, a business succeeding, a picture of yourself healthy and whole. And if you'll keep that image in front of you, that's what will get into your subconscious mind. All the studies tell us we move toward what's in the subconscious. Maybe you struggle with your weight. You need to get back in shape. You need to see yourself through your eyes of faith in this mental picture. At your ideal weight. And if you'll be consistent and just keep seeing it, no matter what you look like in the natural, over time, that's going to get into your subconscious. The subconscious mind never sleeps. It works 24 hours a day. And with prayer, with discipline, with determination, it can help bring that image to reality. You'll have something pulling for you instead of against you. But the problem with many people is they've spent years making negative deposits into their subconscious mind. They've gone around with the wrong pictures. Seeing themselves undisciplined, overweight, not being promoted, not being a good parent. Now their subconscious mind, it doesn't know any better. It doesn't think, it doesn't reason. It just performs what's been put into it. So it naturally pulls them toward the negative. That's why sometimes it feels like everything's coming against you. You can't seem to get victory over it. You need to check your pictures. What kind of images are you putting in? I've seen people with an addiction. They have victory in all these other areas. But this one thing keeps holding them back. It's because for years they've let the picture become ingrained in their thinking of them not being able to do it. They see themselves weak and undisciplined. And now that's always pulling against them. The key is we have to create the right pictures. So our subconscious works for us instead of against us. You remember in the Old Testament, the people were trying to build a tower to the heavens. The scripture says nothing they imagined was impossible to them. Their imagination was so powerful that God had to send confusion. To keep them from accomplishing something for the wrong purposes. I believe that same principle is true today. If we can get our imagination working for the right purposes. If we will let God paint a new picture on the canvas of our heart. And see ourselves as he sees us, strong, healthy, victorious. Then we can rise higher and accomplish everything he's put in our heart. It may look impossible, but if you can imagine it, if you can see it through your eyes of faith, God is saying nothing will be impossible to you. That means you can overcome addictions. By forming a new image on the inside. You can break generational curses by creating the right pictures in your imagination. You can go further than you ever thought possible. If you'll Keep the right vision in front of you. Great athletes understand this principle. A professional golfer, before he makes an important putt, he visualizes the ball going in the hole. He gets a mental picture of it, helps him to stay relaxed. A field goal kicker in football, in the middle of all the pressure, with the game on the line, he has visualized that ball a thousand times. Splitting the upper rights, the game being won, the fans going wild. He's got that picture of it in his mind. I talked with one of the great baseball players of our time. He told how all through the day, he sees himself hitting the ball before he gets up to the plate. He visualizes getting on base. He has this picture of himself succeeding. It's gotten deep down on the inside. Now he's moving toward him. And I realize it takes more than just visualization. It takes. It takes obedience, it takes prayer. And of course it's got to be a part of God's plan for our life. I can't just visualize myself into playing professional basketball. First off, I'm a foot too short. And secondly, we all know white men can't jump. But what I'm saying is, the dreams God's put in your heart, the desire to be healthy, the desire to be successful, if you'll keep the right pictures in your imagination, seeing yourself rising higher, seeing yourself healthy and whole, that's going to get deep down on the inside. The way God created us is, that's what we move toward. You will have a supernatural strength, a supernatural energy that will help you bring that to pass. Maybe you have a desire to work in a certain field or to step up and take a new position. But what's holding you back is the wrong picture. You think that you're not able to do that and you're not talented enough. But God would not have put that desire in you if you didn't already have what it takes. You simply need to start seeing yourself at that position, get a vision for it. When you see somebody that's very good at what you want to do, they're excelling in that position. Let that inspire you. Don't say, oh man, they're so talented. I could never do what they're doing. I just don't have what it takes.
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Unknown
I.
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Victoria Osteen
No, you do have what it takes. You're just painting the wrong picture in your imagination. You cannot have a picture of defeat and failure and expect to fulfill your God given destiny. That defeat will get on the inside and it'll constantly be pulling you toward it. The only way to change is to change your picture. I read about a 10 year old boy. He grew up in Cincinnati in a lower income home. Nobody in his family ever made much of their lives. They were just very mediocre. It was a cold, windy day and he was standing downtown in front of this big office tower, just killing time after school. And he could see through the window a gentleman working away in a very busy office setting. This man was sitting at a typewriter, typing 90 to nothing. He had all these people coming up, handing him information. He was giving orders left and right, keeping everything moving. And for over an hour, that young man stood there fascinated by that man, Just so impressed at how he could handle so many different things. A few minutes, a police officer came by. He said, officer, who is that man sitting at the desk? The officer said, son, that's the editor of the Cincinnati newspaper. He's one of the most influential, respected men in our city. That day that young man went home with something new birthed on the inside. He told his parents one day he was going to become an editor. One day he was going to work at an important newspaper. His parents, they didn't know what to think of his new enthusiasm because nobody in their family had ever spoken words of victory and believed that they would do something significant with their lives. And over time, that young man told how every day, again and again, he replayed that scene in his mind. The only thing different was he didn't have the man sitting in the chair. He saw himself sitting in that chair. He was the one calling the shots. Intuitively, he believed it was going to happen every night. Nobody told him to, but he would say, father, thank you that you're bringing my dreams to pass. God, thank you that I'll become everything you created me to be. Night after night, even year after year, he just kept seeing himself in that chair, seeing himself running that company. Well, 30 years later, that young man was not only the editor and the publisher, but he was now the owner of that same Cincinnati newspaper. God had done more than he could even ask or think. But I believe it all started when he let the seed take root. He didn't think, I can't do that. I'm not talented enough. I don't come from the right family. No, he saw himself becoming everything God created him to be. Even as a 10 year old boy. He used his imagination for the right purposes. It got down on the inside. He reinforced that image with prayer and thanksgiving. And that's a winning combination that will cause us to succeed. And the scripture says there in Mark 11, verse 24. Whatever you ask for when you pray, believe that you have received and it will be yours. Notice we have to believe before we receive. One of the ways we believe is through our eyes of faith. Through our God given imagination. We have to create a picture of that dream coming to pass. That's what Victoria and I did concerning the compact center. When we were trying to acquire this place, we had so many things coming against us in the natural, it seemed impossible. But down deep we really believed that was a part of God's plan for our lives. And so instead of worrying and letting these negative images take root all through the day, in my imagination I could see this place with the Lakewood sign out front. I could see us up here ministering. I could see it filled with each one of you. Many times during the week we would drive by, especially at night, if nothing was going on, we would get out and walk around it. What were we doing? Letting the seed take deeper root. The more we saw ourselves here, the more confident we became, the more faith rose in our hearts. We went to bed each night not discouraged, not stressed out. We. We went to bed believing this building was ours. We got up seeing it as ours. We went through today with a picture of us overcoming every obstacle. I could already see in my imagination the city handing us the keys. I could already see the confetti falling from the ceiling for the groundbreaking services. I could already see it full of thousands of Victors and not victones. For three and a half years we kept that image in front of us when it was difficult, when it looked impossible. I believe that's one of the reasons we were able to stand strong and fight the good fight of faith. It was deep down in our spirit and in our subconscious mind, we knew this building was going to be ours. That's what happens when you keep the right images in front of you. I remember after the first service we ever had here, Victoria said, joel, I'm amazed at how at home I felt tonight. I thought it would take a long time to get used to. But I reminded her it's because we had seen ourselves here three years before we ever got here. It was birthed deep down on the inside. And on December 1, 2003, when Mayor Brown handed us the keys, it was just like when he handed us the keys. It was just like I'd seen it before. On December 14th when that confetti fell from the ceiling in the groundbreaking services. It's just like I'd seen it before. July 16, 2005, when 57,000 people gathered for a grand opening weekend. It was just like I'd seen it before. Let me ask you today. What do you see through your eyes of faith? What kind of image do you have on the inside? If you can imagine it, God can bring it to pass. Now I want to encourage you to see yourself accomplishing your goals. It's not enough to just pray. It's not enough to just believe. You've got to look out through your eyes of faith and again and again, see it coming to pass. When you do that, it gets deep down on the inside. Not only will you gravitate toward it, but that's your faith being released. That's when God can show up and make a way, even when it looks like there is no way. And the truth is, every one of us, whether we realize it or not, are visualizing something right now. You have an image in your mind of yourself, of your future. Now, I'm asking us to use our imagination for the right purposes. If you visualize yourself barely getting by, never getting married, never accomplishing your goals, that defeat is going to get in you and constantly be pulling you down. You've got to change your pictures. See yourself rising higher. You may not feel well today, but get a vision of yourself healthy or in your business. Maybe you're in sales. Visualize new customers coming in. Visualize yourself being promoted. Get a vision of yourself succeeding at whatever God's put in your heart. This is what I had to do in 1999, when my father went to be with the Lord. I didn't really think that I could get up here and minister. I'd only spoken one time before. My personality is kind of quiet and reserved. I like being behind the scenes. But deep down, I knew I was supposed to step up and pastor the church. The first thing I had to do is create a new picture on the inside. Because I had used my imagination in the wrong way in this particular area. When my father would ask me to get up here, I didn't think I could do it. I was nervous. I saw myself weak, defeated, not able to. I remember one time, right after I first started, I had a dream one night, and it was so clear. I guess really it was a nightmare. But the building was filled with people. And just as I got up to minister, everybody got up and walked out the doors. I thought, what is wrong with you people? Some of them look just like you. All those thoughts had created the wrong images. One day I realized what I'm telling you. I started seeing myself up here, strong, anointed well, able. I got a vision of myself succeeding. A vision of people liking me. Little by little, that began to take root. A few months later, I woke up in the middle of the night. This time I wasn't sweating, thinking, it's never going to happen. No. I could hear myself singing a song of praise. On the inside, I had a confidence, a peace. I knew God had me in the palm of his hand. I knew I was well able to do what he's called me to do. And some of you, the only thing that's holding you back is the picture that you've allowed to form. If you will change the picture, you can change your life. Well, you say, joel, I've got a lot of problems. Got a lot of things coming against me. You need to get an image of God turning that situation around. Visualize every enemy in your life being defeated. An enemy of sickness, an enemy of debt, an enemy of marriage. Problems all through the day. See yourself as the victor and not the victim. If you'll be consistent, this will not only get in your spirit, it will get in your subconscious mind and help you to overcome. It's interesting, the subconscious mind, the part of our mind that never sleeps. It doesn't know the difference between what's real and what's fake. That's why you can wake up in the middle of the night from a bad dream. Your heart's beating 90 to nothing. Your emotions are all over the place, you're sweating. Yet it was just a dream. It wasn't even real. But that's the way the subconscious mind works. It doesn't recognize whether it's real or fake. It just reacts to what's in it. That's why it's so important that we program it with the right pictures. What you put in is what it's going to move toward. You may feel like you're stuck in a rut today, kind of like I did, that you can't accomplish what God's put in your heart. But you've got to see what's playing on the picture screen of your mind. What kind of image do you have of yourself? Do you see yourself rising higher? Accomplishing your goals, Fulfilling your destiny? Check up on those pictures. If you're in difficult times, I would encourage you to take 30 seconds several times during the day and just close your eyes and. And see yourself rising out of that problem. See yourself totally free. You may have been through a lot of negative things in the past. Well, you more than anybody, you got to close your eyes and see yourself Moving forward. See new doors opening up. Get a vision of yourself happier and more fulfilled than you've ever been before. If you'll get in on the inside, you'll begin to move toward it. One thing I like to do for four or five times during the day, when I wake up, when I go to bed, and anytime I start to feel stressed, I like to take three deep breaths. With the first breath, I say to myself, I'm breathing in confidence and I'm breathing out fear. Second breath, I'm breathing in healing. I'm breathing out sickness. Third breath, I'm breathing in victory and I'm breathing out defeat. What am I doing? Making sure the right pictures are playing on the screen of my mind all through the day. Breathe in victory. Breathe in confidence. Breathe in success. Breathe in God's favor. Breathe in divine healing. I read about this man that was diagnosed with cancer of the bladder. The doctors told him it was inoperable. They tried chemotherapy, but that didn't work. Finally, they gave him some pain pills and sent him home to die. This man was not a religious person. He told how he wanted to pray, but he felt like he'd ignored God most of his life and he would be a hypocrite to ask God for his help. But one day, a friend of his sent him a get well card. And it had on it the scripture found in Matthew 19:26. With God, all things are possible. When he read that, something ignited on the inside. He was filled with new hope. In a few days, he came across a newspaper article about a soldier who had been wounded in the war and wasn't supposed to make it. But this soldier, through prayer and through creating the right mental pictures, totally recovered, the soldier told how he saw himself. Well, he saw himself running again, playing with his children, going back to work. This man was so inspired, he decided to same thing every day. He began to visualize armies of healing white blood cells flowing through his body. He imagined them starting at his head, flowing through his veins, into his organs, attacking every cancerous cell hundreds of times during the day. He pictured health and healing and victory flowing back into him. This image was so clear in his mind that it's just as if he were watching it on television. He said, I could see those healing cells making their way to my bladder, into my liver, up to my heart, down through my legs, into my feet, mopping up every cancerous cell, not stopping until every battle was won. Day after day, he replayed this scene in his mind. All the while he was quoting the scripture with God. All things are possible. Six months later, he went back to the doctor for a checkup. Much to their surprise, the doctors could not find any sign of cancer in his body. Jesus said, if you believe, all things are possible. If you'll have the right images in your mind, if you'll speak words of faith over your life, then God can show up and do what men can't do. You may be struggling with a sickness today. Maybe the medical report doesn't look good, but why don't you do what he did right now? Picture healing cells flowing all through you. Picture these cells filled with the life of Almighty God, attacking and devouring every sick and diseased cell in you. Imagine them continuing to work until every battle is won. All through the day, just picture health and healing continually flowing back into you. See yourself coming off that sick bed, overcoming every obstacle, walking in divine health. Had this vision of victory for your life. I don't know about you, but I'm not planning on getting old and having all kinds of things that don't work and being run down and cranky. I don't see myself like that. I see myself getting stronger, healthier, wiser, better looking. I can see every cell in my body, every organ functioning perfectly normal. We have to realize our body responds to how we think. It was created to heal on its own. That's the way God made it. But we have to allow it to heal by thinking the right thoughts and keeping the right images in our mind. When we go around negative, never seeing ourselves getting better, distressed and worried, all we're doing is causing our immune system to function like it should. We got to switch over into faith. Believe healing is flowing through you. Believe victory is on its way. We have to believe it before we'll ever receive it. It's so important, the images we allow in our minds. You remember when God told Abraham that he was going to have a child in the natural? This was impossible. He was much too old. But what did God do? He gave him a picture of it. He gave him something he could see. He said, abraham, your descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand at the seashore. God could have said, abraham, you're going to have a bunch of descendants. But God knew the importance of giving him a visual representation so he could form the right image. I can imagine Abraham lying in bed at night thinking, oh, this is never going to happen. I'm too old to have a child. God says, all right, Abraham, get up. I want you to go outside. Look up at the Stars. That's how many descendants you're going to have. Abraham starts to count the stars. He gets encouraged. Goes back to bed believing it's going to happen. Wakes up the next morning, same thing. I don't see how God can bring this promise to pass. God says, okay, Abraham, let's go down to the ocean, pick up a couple handfuls of sand. Every grain represents just one of your descendants. Why did God want him to have something visual? So he could keep the right image in his mind. Let me ask you, what kind of image do you have of yourself, of your family, of your future? The picture you have in your mind, you are moving toward. I read about people that train Seeing Eye dogs, dogs that help people that are visually impaired. They said the most difficult thing about training a new dog is, is to teach the dog to look up and see things from the master's point of view. Because most dogs can see real well down here by the ground. That's what they're used to. But somehow they have to lift the dog's perspective and help them to see through the master's eyes. That's what I want to help you do today, to lift your vision and get you to see things from a higher perspective so you can create the right image on the inside. Why don't you make a decision with me that you're going to start seeing things from the master's point of view, the way God sees you. Strong, healthy, victorious. Use your imagination for the right purposes. Remember, we move toward what we keep in front of us. Get up every morning and picture yourself succeeding. Picture yourself healthy and whole. Get an image of you and your family not only being blessed, but being a bigger blessing if you'll keep the right images in front of you and always reinforce it through prayer and thanksgiving. God promises nothing you've imagined will be impossible to you. You will overcome every obstacle, you'll defeat every enemy, and you'll see God bring your dreams and desires to pass. Amen. Do you receive it today? We never like to close our broadcast without giving you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, lord Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my Lord and Savior. Friends, if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible based church. Keep God first place. He's going to take you places that you've never dreamed of.
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Joel Osteen
Each week I stand on this stage and remind you of what God says about you because it's easy to be defined by who people say we are or by our own negative thoughts that we're not talented or problems too big. The key is to go back to who God says you are. I'd love to send you my new book, 101 Great Things that God says about you. I'll help you discover your true identity. God says you're blessed. You're chosen.
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Victoria Osteen
You're forgiven.
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Joel Osteen
You have seeds of greatness. Your future is bright. When you get in agreement with God and declare his promises, you'll rise higher and become all you were created to be.
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Unknown
As our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount this month we would like to send you a copy of Joel's brand new resource, 101 Things God says about you. Faith reminders when you need them most. As you read and reflect the story of your life, the way you see yourself will radically change. It will become a reflection of God Himself and what he says about you. Use this resource to encourage your heart and remind you of who you are in Him. You are everything God says about you within these pages. So read it, experience it, and believe it. As an added bonus, you can detach the beautiful poster at the back of the book to read and declare these reminders every day. Yes, you are who God says you are. Now is your time to start believing it. Be sure to request your copy of 101 Things God says about you, visit jolosteen.com or call 888-567-joel as you dwell.
- [29:03]
Joel Osteen
On what God says about you, you're going to see yourself for who you really are. Strong, talented, valuable, a victor, never a victim. Victoria and I want you to know that we love you and we pray for you every day. Thanks so much for your prayer and support. Your generosity is helping people around the world. Special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners for your monthly support. If you're not a partner, I hope you'll consider becoming one. Remember, you can watch the services online every Sunday morning, download our daily podcast, listen on Sirius XM, watch our YouTube channel and the new Joel Osteen network streaming 24 hours a day until we meet again. May the Lord bless you and keep you.
- [29:48]
Unknown
Be sure to request your copy of 101 Things God says About you visit joel osteen.com or call 888-567- Joel for an additional donation. This month we are also offering 101 Great Things God says About you card set. These cards can serve as daily reminders of who God says you are. Additionally, you can request the beautiful copy of the Passion, translation, power, provision, and peace. This book brings fresh insight and deeper understanding to the early Church's journey, Paul's teachings, and the practical application of faith in daily life. You can request these unique resources by calling 888-567-JOEL or logging on to joelostein.com today. Call or click anytime 24 hours a day. Discover your true identity in Christ. Request your copies today.