← Joel Osteen Podcast
Joel Osteen Podcast
Trouble Is Transportation | Joel Osteen
00:30:38
That obstacle was never designed to stop you; it was meant to move you toward your destiny.
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Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. 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? We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. God bless you. It's a joy to come into your homes and if you're ever in our area, please stop by, be a part of one of our services. I promise you we'll make you feel right at home. I'd like to start with something funny. And I heard about this little girl. She asked her mother how the human race got started. Her mother explained how God created Adam and Eve and children and on and on. Here we are today. A few days later, she asked her father the same question. He explained how many years ago there were a bunch of monkeys. And over time they became more and more like people. And here we are, confused. She went back to her mother said, mom, you said God created people. Dad said, we came from monkeys. How could that be? She said, oh honey, it's easy. I told you about my side of the family. He Told you about his. 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 how trouble is transportation. We all go through difficulties in life and things that we don't understand. It's easy to get discouraged and think, why is this happening to me? But God uses difficulties to move us toward our destiny. Nothing happens by accident. You may not understand it, but God wouldn't have allowed it if it wasn't going to work to your advantage. Looking back in my own life, the times I was uncomfortable went through a disappointment. Somebody did me wrong. It didn't make sense to me then. But years later, I realized if that hadn't have happened, I would have never met this person. If that door wouldn't have closed, this bigger door would have never opened. If those people hadn't have done me wrong, I wouldn't have the experience I need for this new challenge. Now I can see. The whole time God was directing my steps. I thought I was going backwards. But he was setting me up to go forward. I didn't like it. I felt like I was stuck. The truth is that trouble was transportation. It was moving me into my destiny. You won't become all you were created to be. Without difficulties. You don't grow in the good times. You grow in the tough times. Trouble prepares you for the next level. Trouble deposits something in you that you can't get when it's easy and everything's going your way. In the difficult times, your spiritual muscles are developed. You gain strength, endurance, wisdom. Every challenge you've been through has deposited something in you. Every relationship that didn't work out, you gained experience. Something that will help you in the future. The times you failed, you blew it. They weren't wasted. You gained insight. It was all a part of God's plan. Don't complain about the trouble. Don't be upset because life dealt you a tough hand. The reason you have big challenges is because you have a big destiny. Average people have average problems. Ordinary people have ordinary problems. Here's the key. You're not average. You're not ordinary. You're a child of the most high. God, the creator of the universe, breathed his life into you. He's crowned you with favor. He put seeds of greatness on the inside. You're not ordinary. You're extraordinary. Don't be surprised if you face extraordinary challenges. It's because you have an extraordinary destiny. God is getting you prepared for something greater than you've ever imagined. Think about Moses. He was born into trouble. It was no fault of his own. As a young baby, when he was the most vulnerable, he was dealt an unfair hand. The king ordered all the Hebrew male babies 2 years of age and under to be killed. Looked like Moses was done. Too bad he was born at the wrong time. But Moses had a mother who understood this principle. She believed that trouble could not keep her son from his destiny. She hid baby Moses in a basket and sent him floating down the Nile River. There were snakes, alligators, all kinds of danger. Moses could have tumped over and drowned. He could have starved to death, could have been eaten by wild animals. There were a thousand things that could have gone wrong. But that trouble wasn't a surprise to God. The king issuing that death decree did not stop Moses purpose. God has the final say. People don't determine your destiny. God does. It just so happened, Pharaoh's daughter, this princess, decided to go down to the river and take a bath. She saw that basket floating toward her. She could hear the cries coming from the inside. She opened it up. There was baby Moses. It was love at first sight. She picked him up and said, I'm going to take this baby as my own. She raised Moses in the palace. Now God could have stopped the trouble. He could have caused the king to change his mind and not issue the decree that would have spared Moses life. But God used the trouble to to get Moses to where he wanted him to be. Moses would have never learned what he needed for his destiny. Being raised in that limited environment. In Pharaoh's house in the palace, Moses learned about leadership, business, how to conduct meetings, how to speak to people. The Egyptians were known for their superior education and ingenuity. But at the time, I'm sure Moses and his mother couldn't understand. It seemed like a setback, having to put your baby in the river. But years later, when God told Moses to tell the Pharaoh, let the people go. The reason Moses could go in there with authority, with his shoulders back is because he had been raised in royalty. He understood protocol. He wasn't overwhelmed, intimidated. He grew up in that kind of environment. What got him prepared for it? The trouble Being born into dysfunction, having the odds against him. If the king had never issued that decree, Moses would have never become all he was created to be. You may not like the trouble you're uncomfortable. It's not fair. But God knows what he's doing. That trouble is transportation. Like Moses, it's taken you to the next level. It's getting you prepared. You wouldn't be who you are today without the things you've been through. The scripture says God didn't take the Israelites the shortest route to the promised land. Because they weren't prepared for war. God had to toughen them up and get them ready. Don't complain about the trouble. It's not hindering you, it's preparing you. It's not going to defeat you, it's going to promote you. And you may not see how your situation could work out, but God has a plan. He's already lined up the right people, the breaks you need. Like Moses, he has a Pharaoh's daughter that will be there to help you. You trust God when everything is good. Why don't you trust him in the trouble? Why don't you believe that even when you don't understand it, he's directing your steps? You don't have to live frustrated because you had a bad break. That trouble means you're headed somewhere. You're on the way to your destiny. If you'll stay in faith, you'll see God begin to connect the dots. You'll see there was a reason that door closed, a reason that person walked away, A reason it didn't happen the way you had planned. Because God had something better in store. He was using that trouble to move you into your divine destiny. I heard about a young man that grew up in Detroit. His parents immigrated to the United States from the small country of Macedonia. This young man loved to play baseball. His dream was to one day play for the Detroit Tigers. All through high school, he was an excellent player, very talented. He went away and served in the military. When he came back in 1952, the Tigers offered him a four year contract to play in their minor leagues. He was so thrilled. He worked hard, kept getting better and better, believing that he would make it up to the big leagues. But three years in his baseball career, he had a major knee injury and was forced to stop playing. So disappointed. Everything he had worked so hard for suddenly came to an end. He had to move back home in with his parents. His father had already told him he would never make it playing baseball. He couldn't live at home unless he got a job and helped to pay the rent. This young man had a friend that owned a restaurant. He asked him if he could come work for him while he looked for a Job. He said, you don't even have to pay me. I just need to be somewhere during the day. So my father knows that I'm working. His friend said, we don't have any positions available, but if you want to go in the back and help them make pizzas, you can do that. He started working for free, making pizzas. He was very good at making those pizzas. So good that he started his own pizza restaurant. It was very successful. People loved it. So he opened up another one and another and another. Today, almost all of us have had a pizza from Little Caesar's Pizza, the restaurant that he started. Yes, that knee injury was a bad break. Yes, it was a disappointment. But it wasn't the end. It was transportation. It moved him toward his destiny. Joel, something like that would never happen to me. How do you know your story is not over? God is not finished with you. The setback, the disappointment, the loss, the divorce. That is not your final chapter. You do like this man. And keep being your best. Keep believing, keep honoring God. That trouble won't stop you. It will become transportation. It will move you toward the new thing God has in store. This man's dream of playing for the Detroit Tigers never came to pass. But do you know, today he owns the Detroit Tigers. It didn't happen his way, but God had a better way. What you're dreaming about may be too small. That door may have closed because God has something bigger for you. You're working at that company. One day you're going to own your own company. You're believing to manage the addiction. God is going to free you from the addiction. You're content to be single the rest of your life. God's going to bring somebody better than you ever imagined. Don't be discouraged by the trouble. It's not the end. You trust God when everything's going your way. I'm asking you to trust him in the trouble. When you don't understand it, when you're uncomfortable. Dare to believe that he's in control, that he knows what's best, that your steps and your stops are ordered by the Lord. It's a powerful attitude to say, God feels like I'm going the wrong direction, but I trust you, God. It's not working the way I thought, but God, I still trust you see, a lot of times we're trying to pray away the trouble, pray away the difficulties, pray away the bad breaks. Here's the key. You're anointed not from trouble, but you're anointed for trouble. The scripture says God Is a present help in trouble. It's not going to stop every disappointment, every bad break. But he will give you the grace, the strength, the power to go through it with a good attitude. Psalm 89 says, I have anointed David. I will steady him and make him strong. His enemies won't get the best of him. I will push down his adversaries and defeat his haters. He will rise to power because of me. Doesn't say I will anoint him so he doesn't have problems, so he doesn't have opposition. It says I'm anointing him for the trouble, for the sickness, for the legal battle. Now quit telling yourself, I can't take this. It's too much for me. You are anointed for that difficulty right now, just like David. God is steadying you and making you strong. You don't have to fight those battles. Live stressed out. God said he would push down your adversaries. He would defeat your enemies. That sickness, that legal problem, that trouble at work, is not going to get the best of you. Why you're anointed for trouble. I'm looking at powerful people, determined people, favored people, anointed people, the most high. God says, you will rise to power. That means you will see increase, promotion, breakthroughs, healing. You may be in trouble now. Don't worry. It's just transportation. It's taking you to the next level. You're about to see God. Begin to connect the dots in your life. Things that haven't made sense, things that you're going to see how God works it all out for your good. A couple of years after Victoria and I were married, we sold our house and moved into a different place. Three months later, there was a knock on my front door. I answered it. A police officer was standing there. He handed me an envelope and kind of laughed, saying, somebody must really not like you. The people that bought our house were suing us over the plumbing. They sued the builder, the architect, the realtor, the plumber, about a dozen of us. And we knew we weren't at fault. We hadn't done anything wrong. But I was 25 years old and never dreamed I would be in a lawsuit. I didn't like it. I had to go downtown and give my deposition. I was so worried, so nervous. Afterwards, I couldn't drive home. I was very nauseated. Somebody had to come pick me up. Several months later, everything was thrown out. We were all cleared. It seemed like that whole ordeal, having to go testify, go through that long, drawn out process, was such a waste of Time and energy. I couldn't see how any good would ever come out of that. But 16 years later, when we acquired this place, the former Compact Center, a company filed a lawsuit to try to keep us from moving in. This time, when I went to give my deposition, I wasn't the least bit worried. I knew exactly what to expect. I was strong. I was confident. I realize now the reason God allowed that lawsuit over my plumbing that didn't matter is because he knew that 16 years later, there would be a lawsuit that did matter that would affect my destiny. So he was getting me prepared. I couldn't see it at the time, but now I realize that trouble was transportation. Instead of getting upset when things don't go your way, why don't you believe that God knows what he's doing instead of complaining? God, why is this happening to me? No, God, I know that you have me in the palm of your hand. God, I know you're directing my steps. I may not understand it, but, God, I trust you. This is what Joseph did as a teenager. God gave him a dream that he would lead a nation. But along the way, one bad thing after another happened to him. He was thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, falsely accused, put in prison. He went through years of doing the right thing with the wrong thing happening. Didn't look like it would ever work out. But Joseph understood this principle that as long as he kept being his best, that trouble could not stop him. It was moving him toward his destiny. When you study his life, you'll see how God connected the dots. Every step was strategically orchestrated, and if you left one out, the other wouldn't work. If his brothers hadn't thrown him into the pit, he would have never been sold into slavery to a man named Potiphar. If he hadn't been sold to Potiphar, he would have never met Potiphar's wife, who falsely accused him and had him put in prison. If he hadn't been in prison, he would have never met the butler and the baker and told them how he could interpret dreams. If it had never told them that, the pharaoh would have never called him up to interpret his dream and eventually put him in charge of the nation of Egypt. All those steps along the way, if you isolate them, just looks like a bad break. It doesn't make sense. But you have to believe, like Joseph. What looks like a disappointment, a betrayal, a setback, is all a part of God's plan. Transportation. It's moving you little by little into your destiny. God knows what he's doing. God knew he would need someone in leadership in Egypt to show favor to the Israelites. So years earlier, he started the plan of putting Joseph in place. It looked like trouble, really, it was the hand of God. Joseph's brothers took his coat of many colors. They took his coat of favor. But they could not take the calling on his life. What people take from you cannot stop your purpose. What's on the inside is more powerful than anything on the outside. You keep doing the right thing, despite the problem, despite the trouble, despite the betrayal. And one day, you'll see, like Joseph, God will begin to connect the dots. And God will take you to your throne, so to speak. You'll say like he did, they meant it for my harm, but God used the trouble for my good. The scripture says God will deliver us from trouble. That means, of course, that God will stop the trouble. But another way to see it is like the post office delivers a package. It may start in New York. They deliver it to California. Deliver means they transport it. They move it from one location to the other. That package may have to go through five different stops along the way. The regional post office sends it to the city post office. They send it to the neighborhood post office. The mailman brings it to your house. It was delivered in the same way. Right now, God is delivering you from trouble. You're en route. The process has started. There may be a few stops along the way. Don't worry, you're not delivered yet. Like Joseph, you may be in the pit in the prison, but the palace is coming. You're in debt. God is delivering you into abundance. You're dealing with depression. God's delivering you into joy. You're fighting that sickness. He's delivering you into health and wholeness. When the thoughts tell you, ah, this trouble's permanent, it's never going to change. Just answer back, no, I'm being delivered. I'm en route. I know this trouble is temporary. It's just a stop. Along the way, I met a young lady. She grew up very healthy, active and energetic. But at the age of 11, she had a pain in her side that wouldn't go her way. The doctors took out her appendix, but that didn't help. Her health continued to go downhill quickly. She lost 30 pounds in just three weeks. The doctors were baffled. They couldn't figure out what was wrong. Her legs stopped working. She lost movement in her arms and hands. She couldn't swallow her food. When she went to speak, her words were not there. She described it like somebody was shutting off the circuits that controlled her mind and her body. She ended up in a vegetative state in the hospital, not able to move, open her eyes, communicate in any way. She was gone. The doctors finally diagnosed her with a rare autoimmune disorder that caused swelling on her brain and spinal cord. They told her parents that she would be a vegetable the rest of her life. There was a good chance she would not live that long. Her family, against all odds, believed that God was in control, that he could restore health back unto her. Her brothers, her parents. They would hold conversations with her, talk to her like she was still there. Month after month went by. No sign of anything changing. Two years later, on the inside, this young lady woke up. She. She still couldn't move, couldn't open her eyes. Didn't look like anything had changed. But now she was aware of everything that was going on. She was trapped in her own body. She couldn't tell anyone that she was there. She heard the doctors telling her parents that she was gone. No chance of recovery. She heard her mother telling her that she loved her, she was going to make it. Every Sunday in the hospital, her mother would turn our services on. On the television, this young lady would hear us talking about how God is a healer, how he can do what medicine cannot do. All through the day, laying in the bed, paralyzed, not able to move. Instead of feeling sorry for herself, in her mind, she would say, I'm a victor and not a victim. Thoughts would tell her, you're trapped. You'll never get out. She would answer back, no, My time is coming. This is not how my story ends. She prayed that God would give her family a sign that she was still in there. Three years later, she was able to open her eyes. She still couldn't move in any way. Her mother asked her, if you're still in there, if you can understand me, Blink once for yes. She blinked. And they knew she was still there. That was the start of a long journey back. She learned how to talk again, how to swallow again, how to move again. September of 2010, four years after she had become sick, she went back to school. Everything woke up except her legs. She was paralyzed from the waist down. She was happy to be in a wheelchair. She was grateful to be alive. But she was not satisfied. She knew what God started, he was going to finish. The doctors told her there was no chance of her walking again. But through prayer, through faith, hard work, and training, this march, just a few months ago, she defied the odds and took her first steps. She no longer needs the wheelchair. No more crutches she can walk like nothing was ever wrong. Today, at 21 years of age, she's one of ESPN's youngest on air personalities. She's an actress, a model, a motivational speaker. She's with us on the front row. That's Miss Victoria Arlen. Come on Victoria, stand up. Let them see how strong beautiful you are. She's an amazing woman. Victoria told me I wouldn't choose what happened to me, but I wouldn't. Change was meant to defeat her. Instead it promoted her. What am I saying? Your trouble is transportation. You may feel today like you're trapped. Trapped in negative circumstances, trapped in addictions, trapped in depression. Doesn't feel like anybody can hear you. You don't see how you could get out. But like Victoria, that is not how your story ends. The same God that brought her out is going to bring you out now. I believe today some dreams are waking up. Hope is waking up. Healing's waking up. Abundance is waking up. That trouble is not going to stop you. It's going to push you into a level of your destiny you would have never experienced without it. You may not choose what you've been through, but when you see how God pays you back, the new doors he opens, how he uses it to your advantage, you'll say, like her, I wouldn't change it. Friends, you are anointed for that trouble. It may look like a setback, but really it is a setup for God to do something greater. If you will trust God in the trouble, I believe and declare, like Victoria, your trouble is going to become transportation. God is going to open new doors, turn impossible situations around and take you to the fullness of your destiny. In Jesus name, if you receive it, can you say Amen? Today I'd like to give 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. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love to send you some information on your new walk with the Lord. You can text the number on the screen or go to the website. But I hope you'll get into a good Bible based church and keep God first place. It's easy to feel stuck in life, wondering why things aren't changing and worrying if it'll ever happen. But there's a better way to wait. I'd love to send you my new resource called Pray It Forward. This book is a collection of prayers and promises from the scripture to help you pray boldly to strengthen your faith while you're waiting. It's important to keep your mind filled with hope and expectancy when you pray in faith. Believing what God promised, that's what moves the hands of God. That's when you'll see doors open. Healing begins to come. Breakthroughs in your family don't let doubt hold you back.
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Pray It Forward as our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount, we'd love to send you a copy of Pray It Guided Prayers for Faith and Breakthrough Inspired by real life answered prayers, Pray It Forward will help you speak God's promises over your life and over the people you love. Trusting that when you ask in faith, God is already at work preparing victory ahead of you. You can take these prayers and scriptures and pray them forward. They'll build a momentum of faith that carries you past obstacles and into the promises God has spoken over your life. As you meditate on these truths, you won't be tossed back and forth by finances, health challenges or relationship struggles. Instead, you'll be able to boldly pray with faith that is immovable and strong, and you'll be filled with peace, assurance and joy. Don't let circumstances control your future. Pray the truth of God's word forward in faith and watch the mountains in your life begin to move when you
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pray the promises what God has spoken over your life. Those are powerful prayers. And that's when God shows up and does what only he can do. Thanks so much for being with us. Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day and we appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity helps us take this message of hope to people around the world. A special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. If you're not a partner, I hope you'll consider becoming one. But until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you.
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Be sure to request your copy of Pray It Guided Prayers for Faith and Breakthrough, available this month by simply visiting us@jolostein.com or call 888-567-JOEL. You can also receive the Pray It Forward Companion Prayer Journal designed to help you engage in Scripture, personalize faith filled prayers and put God's promises into action. With an additional gift, you can receive the Pray It Free Forward Prayers Essential Collection that centers around a prayer bowl with Scripture cards. Designed to help you physically release what's been weighing on your heart, this collection creates a powerful prayer rhythm for your life, helping you focus your thoughts, speak God's Word boldly and stay anchored in hope when circumstances try to shake you. You can request these inspiring resources by calling 888-567-JOEL or logging on to jolostein.com today. Call or click anytime, 24 hours a day.
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