god bless you thanks for letting us come into your homes today and their ever in
our area please stop by and be a part of one of our services these are the finest
people in all of Houston Texas right here at Lakewood we'd love to have you
come out I'd like to start with something funny and I heard about this
man he was taking a walk through the woods with his friend when they suddenly
encountered a huge grizzly bear about 20 yards in front of them they both froze
in their tracks as the bear intently stared them down they contemplated what
they should do finally the man said to his friend I think we should run his
friend said are you crazy can't outrun a grizzly bear man said I know that I
don't have to outrun him I just have to outrun you say it like you mean it
this is my Bible I am what it says I am I have what it says I had 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 keeping your joy we
all have opportunities to get upset and go around frustrated somebody was rude
to us traffic was backed up we can't find our car keys life is full of
inconveniences delays and people that don't do right we're never going to stop
these things from happening the key is how we handle them
the scripture says no man can take your joy that means you control your joy
nothing can take it from you you have to give it away next time someone cuts you
off in traffic ask yourself is this worth giving them my joy that person
that's rude to you on the phone that you've never met are you going to give
them your joy that delay that planned that didn't work out that negative
comment you're going to let that sour your day the reason some people are not
happy is they're constantly giving away their joy I was in a crowded parking lot
one time waiting for a parking spot the man was putting his groceries in his
car took him a couple of minutes I had my blinker on
patiently waiting when he finally backed out a car came from the wrong direction
and pulled in right in front of me they could clearly see that I was waiting my
first response was to honk my horn and tell them what I thought then I noticed
he was bigger than me I thought to myself I'll give you my
parking spot but I'm not going to give you my joy I didn't like it it wasn't
fair but I've learned to not let things I can't control Sauer my dad I've made
up my mind I'm gonna be happy today I'm gonna enjoy
my life you can't control what people do you can't control what they say but you
can control how you respond my message is very simple quit giving away your joy
quit letting the same people upset you quit letting the traffic the delays the
things that don't work out frustrates you you can't pray these things away
that person at the office that gets on your nerves I don't mean to be negative
but they may not change they may be that way for the next 20 years my challenge
is don't go 20 years giving them your joy they may not change but you can
change life is too short to live frustrated upset over things we have no
control people have a right to have their opinion you have the right to
ignore it people have the right to be rude you have the right to stay happy
quit letting their negative comments upset you they wouldn't be talking about
you if you weren't making a difference nobody talks about people that are not
doing anything they're talking about you because you go in places they can see
there's something special about you you have the favor of God you're blessed
you're talented you're anointed sometimes small minded people will try
to push you down and discredit you don't pay any attention to it that doesn't
carry anyway they say cannot keep you from your
destiny that is simply a distraction every person has negative chatter all
your family members unfortunately are not going to be for you George Burns
said happiness is having a loving caring close-knit family living in another city
some of your relatives you have to love them from a distance they're sitting by
you today don't say Amen now all of your co-workers are not going to celebrate
you all of your friends are not going to be loyal some people can't handle your
success they'll make remarks trying to bait you
into conflict trying to get you upset here's the key don't get involved in
battles that are not between you and your destiny most of the conflict we
engage in is a distraction the enemy would love to get you off course
offended trying to straighten people out trying to convince them that you're okay
your job is not to change people's mind about you your job is not to try to make
people like you your job is to run your race to be who God called you to be and
not worry about the critics and the naysayers God will cause the right
people to like you one of the best things I've learned is everybody is not
supposed to like you everybody is not supposed to approve you some people are
ordained by God not by the enemy but by God to not be for you you have to accept
that everyone is not going to accept you we see it in the scripture Joseph's
brothers weren't supposed to be for Joseph
they were ordained to betray him without their betrayal Joseph would have never
made it to the palace to help the Israelite during the famine quit being
sour because somebody betrayed you how do you know that's not leading you
to your palace how do you know that disappointment is not a part of God's
plan to take you to the next level of your destiny King Saul was ordained to
not like David if he would have celebrated David been happy for his
success David would have never taken the throne are you upset because someone is
not for you when the truth is God has ordained them to not be for you when
Nehemiah was rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem there were two men Sanballat
and Tobiah s' that didn't like what he was doing they stood at the bottom of
the mountain and constantly shouted insults at Nehemiah they were trying to
bait him into conflict get him upset frustrated
Nehemiah understood this principle he said no thanks I'm not giving you my joy
you may not like me but you not liking me has nothing to do with me fulfilling
my destiny I'm gonna stay focused on what God's called me to do
if Nehemiah would have come off the mountain got upset went down there to
straighten them out even if he won even if he shut them up he wouldn't have
finished the wall when he did all the chatter that comes against you is a
distraction it's to get you upset so you get involved in battles that don't
matter then you look up and you're not accomplishing what you should do
yourself a favor don't pay any attention to it
quit being upset by people who are not for you people that make negative
comments trying to marginalize you push you down what they say doesn't determine
your destiny they are simply a distraction that's just noise don't give
it the time of day see some people no matter what you do they're not going to
like you even if you changed and did everything they wanted they would still
find some reason why you don't measure up you have to be at peace with people
not being at peace with you you don't need their approval to fulfill your
purpose you don't have to have them before you
to become who God's created you to be but if you get distracted trying to win
them over spending your valuable time trying to convince them to be for you
then you will miss the fullness of your destiny don't take the bait don't let
them get you riled up Jesus said blessed are the meek they will inherit the earth
meek doesn't mean weak meekness means strength under control when you ignore
negative comments you don't pay attention to the sand ballots and
Tobias's of life you're not being weak you'll be in meek you have the power to
fight you have the strength to straighten them out to tell them what
you feel but your strength is under control you're not wasting time engaged
in battles that are not between you and your god-given destiny I've learned when
you stay on the high road God will take care of your enemies
God can defend you better than you can defend yourself in the scripture Elisha
was traveling from Jericho to Bethel along the way a group of young men came
out and started making fun of him because he was bald the scripture says
they were mocking him saying go Baldy go you didn't know that was in the Bible
did you you know Elijah was annoyed he could have gotten upset thought I'm
gonna go straighten him out I'll show you what I thought instead he remained
calm he understood this principle they couldn't take his joy they were baiting
him trying to get him distracted he just stayed focused and continued doing what
God called him to do while those young men were making fun of him
two bears came out of the woods and tore them to pieces that tells me two things
number one don't make fun of all people number two you don't have to straighten
people out God will be your Vindicator god knows how to take care of the
opposition he sees what they're doing he hears the disrespect if you'll stay in
peace God will fight your battles when God does it I can assure you it will be
better than anything you could have done but your feelings will want to pay
people back feelings will tell us go in there get even stand up for yourself if
you let feelings rule you'll get upset you'll end up giving away your joy don't
get on board with your feelings the psalmist said God has given us the power
to remain calm in times of adversity it doesn't say God will keep us from all
the adversity from the opposition the sand balance the negative chatter it
says they will come we'll have opportunities to get upset but God has
given us power to stay calm and quit telling yourself I can't help
it this person at the office they just get on my nerves you have the power to
stay calm that doesn't have to keep upsetting you that is a learned behavior
they say something negative I get offended traffic is bad I get upset the
clerk is rude I can't help it Joel I just go off I just let them have it the
problem is you have strength but it's not under control
you need to relearn how to respond you need to develop some new habits next
time something happens that you don't like pause for a moment and say father
thank you that you've given me the power to remain calm thank you that I have a
spirit of discipline and self-control you don't have to let the same things
keep upsetting you year after year change your approach I met a gentleman
in another state at a restaurant it was very windy outside and when he walked in
the door the person in front of him let the door slam right in his face this man
had been hot-tempered his whole life normally he would have confronted them
told them what he thought but he'd been listening to our programs just when he
was about to lose his fool he heard my voice saying stay calm
and let God fight your battles he paused for a moment and decided to let it go he
walked away like nothing happened we came in the restaurant and sat down I
was sitting a few tables away he came over into Joe if you had not been in my
head I would have let them have it like this man you may have been trained to
respond a certain way you grew up seeing people lose their cool get upset
offended why don't you try a different approach
when you let people upset you you are giving away your power you are letting
them control you if they push this button you get offended that button you
get upset this other button they baits you into conflict why don't you turn
those buttons off life is so much more freeing when you're not controlled by
what people say you're not offended when someone's upset you're not soured
because traffic was bad you have tapped in to the power to remain calm a friend
of mine named David poly wrote a book called the law of the garbage truck he
was in a taxicab in New York City headed to a meeting a car pulled out right in
front of them the taxi driver had to slam on his brakes swerved to the left
missing the car by inches the driver of the other car put his head out the
window started screaming and yelling he was so angry so upset shaking his fist
the funny thing it was his fall the taxi driver just smiled waved real big and
drove on didn't give it the time of day David was in the backseat he was so
impressed he said that man almost totaled your car almost sent us both to
the hospital I can't believe you didn't yell back at him how did you keep your
cool the taxi driver gave an insightful answer he said I found many people are
like garbage trucks they go around full of anger full of frustration full of
bitterness as their garbage piles up they need somewhere to dump it
sometimes they'll dump it on you but you can't take it personally
it has nothing to do with you just smile wish them well and move on here's the
key successful people don't let garbage trucks overtake their day
if someone dumps a load on you don't get upset if you make that mistake you'll
end up carrying around their garbage and eventually you'll dump it on someone
else you have to keep your lid on these days many people are dumping frustration
disrespect criticism bitterness we can't stop them from dumping yet but we can
keep them from affecting us years ago Victoria and I were at the airport we
were going through the security checkpoint we put our bags on the x-ray
machine the security officer sent them both back and said you have liquids in
there that you have to remove picked I said oh yeah
I forgot to take my water out well I thought he was only talking to Victoria
so I just stood there and didn't do anything you would have thought I had
committed a major crime he was like totally insulted he practically screamed
sir what are you doing standing there I told you to open the bag and do it now
top man he's got a big garbage truck and he was full of frustration full of
stress and full of a lot of other stuff but
I didn't say it you just thought it but I took care of it as I passed by missus
sorry about that I thought you were just talking to her have a good day didn't
mean it but at least I said it but I thought to myself I'm keeping my lid on
I don't need his garbage I don't need that poison we have enough things of our
own to deal with you don't need somebody else's
bitterness they're sour attitude their pressure keep your lid on tight let
those things bounce off of you your destiny is too great your time is too
important to go around weighed down with other people's garbage you can't keep it
from coming but you can keep it from getting in you the longer I live the
more I realize how valuable each day is we're not always going to be here it's
easy to live upset offended frustrated but most of the things that are
upsetting us in the big picture they don't really matter traffic was
backed-up took you an hour to get home should have taken you 30 minutes is that
worth losing your joy over you're alive you're healthy God's given your breath
to breathe he's given you a family to love somebody was rude to you they made
you look bad they said something negative is that worth going around
offended discouraged what if we found out we only had a month to live I wonder
how many things were allowing to upset us now if we found out our time was
limited we wouldn't even pay attention to it can I tell you our time is limited
the scripture says our life is like a mist we're here for a moment then we're
gone that little quirk your spouse does that gets on your nerves if we knew we
weren't going to be here in a month we wouldn't let it bother us we would focus
on all the things right not on the few things wrong
we wouldn't complain about driving in traffic we'd be happy to be in the
traffic we're alive we've got another day to enjoy life
well I've got to go to work not me I get to go to work some people don't have a
job some people are in the hospital some people aren't able to work I'm grateful
to be employed well it's Sunday I got to go to church again not me
I get to go to church God's been good to me I'm gonna go back and say thank you
not only that I get to go to Lakewood I get to listen to that good-looking
minister well Joel my boss is not fair he's hard to get along with this is not
the position that I want the truth is somebody would love to have your job
somebody would gladly trade places with you it may not be perfect but keep the
right perspective God's blessed you with the job don't let it sour your life if
you will pass the test of being happy where you are then God can open some new
doors but if you don't get happy there you probably won't get to where you want
to be and your boss may not be fair I'm not making excuses for him I'm asking
you to quit giving him your joy he doesn't control your happiness you
control your happiness but if you let a grouchy boss
grouchy neighbor a bitter relative steal your joy keep you from being happy it is
not their fault it is your fault you are as happy as you want to be you
have to put your foot down and say this is the day the Lord has made I am NOT
going to live sour defeated depressed I am NOT going to let what people do or
don't do what they say or don't say what I have or not have keep me from being
happy I've made up my mind I'm going to enjoy this day it dishonours God to go
through the day upset frustrated bitter God gave you breath to be here he could
have chosen anyone but he chose you and he chose me one way we honor God is by
being happy living grateful having a good attitude seeing the best in life
a couple of months ago I was driving to the office during the week to meet some
people and I was in a hurry I had left a little bit late but I knew I could still
make it on time if I didn't have any delays and I would driven this route a
thousand times I was almost here few blocks away stopped at the
intersection I was in the left turn lane this light is very short you have to
stay right behind the car in front of you to trigger it to stay green well I
was the third car back waiting the problem was the car in front of me left
about two car lengths between it and the first car there was this huge gap the
light turned green just like I thought the first car went through turned red
before the second car could make it I could feel myself starting to get
uptight I heard that voice end Joe keep your calm keep your joy I thought I
don't want to hear one of my messages right now I'm in a hurry we sat there
waiting for a couple of minutes and it seemed like an hour about that time the
lady in the car in front of me got out and started walking toward the back I
thought she's going to get something out of her trunk real quick she came over to
me I roll down the window she said are you Joel
I wanted to say no I'm Fred I said yes I am out of the corner of my eye saw the
light go green back to red we missed another one she said I love you I
watched you on television I have all your books would you sign one for me I
said you mean like now she said yeah I done in my car and get it real quick I
said I love to sign your book in the middle of an intersection by now people
were honking wasn't just me everybody had lost their joy I signed
her book made it to the office about 10 minutes late
problem is I forgot my key fob to get in I'm knocked on the door and knocked
nobody answered called a staff member it went to voicemail never goes to
voicemail called another one another one hot
outside ten minutes later when I finally got in I just dripping with sweat had my
meeting Oh went well later that night I went up to the hospital to visit a
friend that's fighting cancer too serious situation we had time to pray
together and on the way out I prayed with several other families where they
had loved ones didn't look good they were very concerned I left there with a
different perspective I had been frustrated that day by delays by traffic
but not having keys I realized those were small things that wasn't worth
losing my joy over I wasn't believing for a loved one to make it in the big
picture what was frustrating me really didn't matter I wonder if you're doing
like me letting insignificant things steal your joy traffic negative comments
you can't find something keep it in perspective that's not worth losing your
joy over don't let the small insignificant things keep you some from
seeing the gift of this day in the scripture Habakkuk said it this way
though the fig tree does not blossom and there be no fruit on the vine though my
olive crops fail and my fields producing over
though there are no sheep in the pen though there are no cattle in the stalls
what am I going to do get depressed complain feel sorry for myself he said
yet will I rejoice in the Lord I will be joyful in the God of my salvation he was
saying everything's come against me had bad brakes business is down my income is
low surely that's a reason to be discouraged surely I can go around sour
his attitude was now I'm not giving away my joy I'm going to rejoice in the God
of my salvation salvation means deliverance when you stay full of joy
despite what comes against you God is saying salvation is coming turnarounds
are coming Healing is coming increases coming victory is coming I'm asking you
to keep your joy life is going to throw us some curves there will be
disappointments things that are not fair that's when you have to say like him yet
will I rejoice in the Lord we should make this decision every morning I will
be joyful today decide ahead of time that you're going to enjoy the day when
somebody dumps a load on you when they're rude keep your lid on you
tempted to get upset remind yourself you have the power to remain calm if you'll
do this I believe and declare you're not only going to enjoy your life more but
you're going to be free from unnecessary frustration bitterness anger you're
going to rise high you're live happier and reach the fullness of your destiny
in Jesus name and if you receive it will 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'll make you my Lord
and Savior if you prayed that simple prayer we believe you got born again get
in a good Bible based church and keep God first place your partnership makes
this ministry possible you're faithful and consistent monthly support makes you
a champion of Hope the vision of Joel Osteen ministries is to use every avenue
available to present the hope of Jesus Christ to people everywhere we know it
is this hope and the transforming power of the gospel that makes an eternal
difference in people's lives to partner with Joel Osteen ministries visit Joel
Osteen comm slash partner today
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