Blog Archives
Working Toward Unity
Posted by Victoria Osteen on 8/28/2012
Relationships are all about learning. In marriage, we are learning to become one; in families, we are learning to get along; in business, we are learning to work together; in friendships, we are learning to make allowances for one another. Life is a learning process, and the quicker you embrace that fact, the more you’ll enjoy the people around you.
Over the years, I’ve learned that Joel doesn’t like hearing every single detail of a story, even though I do. I want to know exactly what was said, who said it, and how they said it. That’s why, when I tell a story, it takes me fifteen minutes, and Joel can tell that same story in about two minutes flat! Knowing this, I try not to tell him every single detail—although it’s not always that easy.
One time, I was enthusiastically telling Joel something that I thought was important, and just as I was getting to the good part, I noticed his eyes were beginning to glaze over. I began talking faster and faster, but it didn’t do any good. Finally, I said, “You don’t want to hear this, do you? I can tell because you are not even paying attention to me.”
It wasn’t anything he said; it was the way he looked. I could tell by his body language that I had lost him after the first three minutes. In that moment, I could have either allowed myself to get upset and frustrated, or I could make a few adjustments in the way I communicate with him.
I chose what was best for our relationship which was to adapt my communication style. Now I try to tell him only the most important details of the story. When I see his eyes glazing over, I don’t get upset. It’s just my cue that he is going into “detail overload,” so I adjust to make it easier for him to receive.
As you think about the people in your life, remember to respect and appreciate your differences. Don’t hold offense just because someone has a different approach than you do. Be willing to make adjustments and focus on the common ground of peace. As you work toward unity, you are positioning yourself to receive the wonderful blessings God has in store for you.
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity… for there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore. (Psalm 133:1-3, NIV)
Copyright © 2012 Joel Osteen Ministries
Let God Be God
Today’s Scripture:
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him… – Psalm 37:7, NKJV.
Today’s Word:
Are you struggling with trying to make a dream come to pass? Are you frustrated in a relationship, trying to make someone else change or live right? You may mean well, you may have good goals, but if you are trying to orchestrate things to happen your way, on your timetable, you are only going to frustrate yourself. At some point, you have to turn those circumstances over to God and trust that He has your best interest at heart.
How do you turn things over to God? Start by making the choice and declaring your resolve. Simply say, “Father, I choose to let You be God of this situation. I take my hands off. I trust You.” Then, choose to worship Him. Worship is one of the best ways to set your heart and mind in the right place. You can’t worry and worship at the same time! Worship is a sign that you are trusting God; worry is a sign that you are trying to control things.
Today, take the pressure off yourself and turn things over to God. Give Him control and let Him take your setbacks and turn them into comebacks. Remember, the God who holds the universe holds you in the palm of His hand. Trust Him and let God be God in every area of your life!
Prayer for Today:
Father, today I choose to release every care and concern into Your loving hands. I refuse to worry and choose to trust. Fill me with Your peace. Show me Your ways as I surrender every area of my heart and life to You in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Copyright © 2012 Joel Osteen Ministries
Give God Control
by Joyce Meyer – posted August 28, 2012
And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. —Romans 5:4
You will not enjoy your day if anything is out of control. You can keep your temper, moods, emotions, appetite, mouth, and thoughts in line with God’s Word if you give Him control over the areas you want to subdue with faith. God created us with a free will, and we can choose the thing that is best for us.
Be free from old destructive habits by simply forming new ones. Don’t let your emotions get out of control today. If, for instance, you feel your temper begin to rise, pray quickly for God to fill you with the fruit of the Spirit. Use the self-control that He freely makes available to you.
From the book Starting Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2003 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.
Our Daily Bread – The New Normal
Read: Hebrews 4:9-16
A pastor, who was trained in trauma and grief counseling, commented that the greatest challenge for people who are hurting is often not the immediate heartache of the loss. Instead, the biggest problem is adjusting to the different kind of life that follows. What once was normal may never be normal again. So the challenge for those offering help is to assist the sufferers as they establish the “new normal.” It may be a new normal that no longer includes robust health, a treasured relationship, or a satisfying job. Or it may be living without a loved one who has been taken in death. The gravity of such losses forces us to live a different kind of life—no matter how unwelcome it may be.
When our “new normal” comes, it’s easy to think no one understands how we feel. But that isn’t true. Part of the reason Jesus came was to experience life among us, resulting in His present ministry: “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15).
Our Savior lived a perfect life, yet He also knew the pains of a broken world. He endured sorrow; He suffered agony. And He stands ready to encourage us when the dark moments of life force us to embrace a new normal.
will never abandon us. Guide us with Your never-failing
presence through both the welcome and unwelcome changes
of life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Our Daily Bread – Sleepless In Heaven
Read: Psalm 121
One of the most dangerous aspects of flying is the landing. As the aircraft gets closer to land, the air traffic is more congested, the weather on the ground may be far worse than the weather at 30,000 feet, and the runways may not be clear of other planes. So pilots rely on the air-traffic controller to coordinate all the details so that every plane can arrive without incident. Without the air-traffic controller, chaos would be certain.
Imagine, then, the panic when the pilot of an airliner full of passengers radioed the tower and got no answer. It was eventually discovered that the air-traffic controller was in fact there but sound asleep, putting pilot, passengers, and plane in great jeopardy. The good news is that the plane landed safely.
Even better news is that God, the ultimate traffic controller, neither slumbers nor sleeps. From His heavenly vantage point, He knows all that is going on in and around your life. As the psalmist notes, “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber” (121:2-3).
You can count on it—God knows the impending dangers and will tirelessly direct the traffic of your life for your good and His glory (Rom. 8:28).
We need assurance, Lord, to know
That all our steps are being led—
That You, our God, are in control. —D. De Haan
Our Daily Bread – Off-Limits
Read: Romans 5:1-8
As a 12-year-old, I was curious about the Bible my dad was given when he retired from the paper mill. It came in a special cedar box marked The Holy Bible, and I assumed that “holy” meant it was off-limits to me. But still I peered inside. In the center of the Bible was a picture of Jesus hanging on the cross, along with the words of John 3:16. There was also a see-through red film covering the page, which I assumed meant He bled and died.
Occasionally, when no one else was looking, I would gently pull the holy Book off the shelf, open the box, look at the picture of Jesus on the cross, read the verse, and wonder about this Man and why He died. I wondered if His love was meant for me or if it too was off-limits.
Several years later I heard a message about how God had provided access to His love through Jesus. Romans 5:1-2 tells us: “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand.” I believed and received Jesus’ salvation from my sin.
Aren’t you thankful that the Bible and God’s love aren’t off-limits? Receive His forgiveness—it’s meant for unholy people like you and me.
Its pages every one!
They lead us to the Living Word—
To Jesus, God’s dear Son. —D. De Haan
Never Disappointed
Today’s Scripture:
…those who hope in me will not be disappointed. – Isaiah 49:23, NIV.
Today’s Word:
What a powerful promise we have from Almighty God! When we put our hope in Him, we will never be disappointed. Of course, that doesn’t mean that things will always go our way. There may be temporary disappointments, but we will never be permanently disappointed. Somewhere down the road, God will cause it to all work out for our good. With God on your side, you will always end in victory!
Are you carrying frustration, worry or aggravation about something? That’s usually a clear sign that your hope is in the wrong place. If you hope in circumstances, it will deplete you of joy and peace. But when you turn those circumstances over to God, when you refuse to worry, when you refuse to allow the temporary things of this world to dictate your happiness, that’s when God can do a work in your life. When you trust in Him, He will make your crooked places straight; He will cause you to mount up with wings like the eagle.
Today, choose to put your hope in the Father; you won’t be disappointed. Trust Him because He is faithful. Find rest for your soul in knowing that He is good, and He has good things in store for your future!
Prayer for Today:
Father, today I give You every frustration, every aggravation, every difficulty. I release total control into Your loving and able hands. Speak to my heart and give me Your peace. Show me Your love as I place my hope in You in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Copyright © 2012 Joel Osteen Ministries
He Opens Supernatural Doors
Posted by Joel Osteen on 8/24/2012
A friend of mine was sitting next to a young man on a plane who grew up in a very poor village in east Africa. Their country was in great famine, and they were struggling just to survive. At seven years old, his father was killed. At twelve years old, his mother died. He was separated from his brothers and sisters and then sent to live with his grandmother. His grandmother was very old and very sick, so at twelve years old, he became her caretaker. He would get up at five in the morning and study for an hour. He loved to study and read and learn. At six o’clock, he would walk to get water—an hour and a half each way. He would come back, make his grandmother breakfast, and then go to the school in the little village. He got out of school at three o’clock, went home, made his grandmother something else to eat, and then took the three-hour walk once again to get more water.
In the natural, it didn’t look like this boy had much of a future. All the odds were against him. He was an orphan living in the slums with no parents and nobody to watch after him. But there was something special about this young man. Deep down, he believed that he was a person of destiny, that he had seeds of greatness on the inside. Every night before going to bed in that little mud hut, he would get down on his knees and say, “Lord, I want to go to college. God, I want to have an education. I want to make a difference with my life.”
There were tens of thousands of young children living in the slums all around him. Nobody ever got out. But when you pray bold prayers of faith, it gets God’s attention. When you believe, it causes the Creator of the universe to respond.
In that country, the children only went to school through junior high. To attend high school, you had to pay tuition. Ninety-nine percent of the children couldn’t afford it. One night at twelve years old, this boy had a dream. In this dream, he saw himself walking through the village to a house about thirty minutes away. At that house, he met a man by the name of Mr. Stanley who was from Belgium. In the dream, Mr. Stanley helped him. When the boy woke up, he remembered the dream so vividly, right down to the smallest detail.
The next morning, he took that thirty-minute walk through the village and saw the exact house that was in his dream. The house was surrounded by guards. He walked up to them and said, “I’m here to see Mr. Stanley.” The guards were amazed, even shocked. They said, “How do you know anything about Mr. Stanley?” He said, “I saw him in a dream.” Intrigued, Mr. Stanley invited him in and said, “Son, what can I do for you?” The young boy said, “I want to go to school, but I have no money. I’m an orphan. I live in the slums.”
Mr. Stanley said, “You go find the best high school you can find, and I’ll pay your tuition. I’ll give you the books. I’ll pay for all your supplies. Anything you need, I’ll take care of it.”
In high school, the teachers noticed what an excellent student he was and how he loved to learn. They got him an internship at the Parliament working underneath the government officials, the lawmakers. They, too, could see there was something special about him. When he graduated from high school, the government said, “We’re going to send you to college in America to study law.”
My friend was sitting next to him on the plane. He had just gotten his law degree and was headed back to his country. My friend said to him, “They have groomed you to become the Prime Minister, haven’t they?” He smiled and said, “What you are saying, ma’am, is true.”
Friends, when you pray bold prayers, you never know where God is going to take you. When you follow the desires He has placed in your heart, He opens supernatural doors. He will connect you to the right people. He will go before you and make the crooked places straight. He will even speak to you in dreams. What you couldn’t make happen on your own, God can make happen for you! He is not limited by your background, by what country you come from, by your education or by your talent. Open your heart and mind to Him and believe that He will do exceedingly, abundantly in every area of your life!
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9, NIV).
Copyright © 2012 Joel Osteen Ministries
Our Daily Bread – The New Normal
Read: Hebrews 4:9-16
A pastor, who was trained in trauma and grief counseling, commented that the greatest challenge for people who are hurting is often not the immediate heartache of the loss. Instead, the biggest problem is adjusting to the different kind of life that follows. What once was normal may never be normal again. So the challenge for those offering help is to assist the sufferers as they establish the “new normal.” It may be a new normal that no longer includes robust health, a treasured relationship, or a satisfying job. Or it may be living without a loved one who has been taken in death. The gravity of such losses forces us to live a different kind of life—no matter how unwelcome it may be.
When our “new normal” comes, it’s easy to think no one understands how we feel. But that isn’t true. Part of the reason Jesus came was to experience life among us, resulting in His present ministry: “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15).
Our Savior lived a perfect life, yet He also knew the pains of a broken world. He endured sorrow; He suffered agony. And He stands ready to encourage us when the dark moments of life force us to embrace a new normal.
will never abandon us. Guide us with Your never-failing
presence through both the welcome and unwelcome changes
of life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Our Daily Bread – Risky Business
Read: Luke 9:18-27
As the worldwide financial crisis deepened in 2010, executives of a global banking firm were investigated for deceiving their customers about the risk involved in certain investments they were selling. While promising a high rate of return, the banking firm knew that the investments were destined to fail, leaving those who purchased them with nothing.
Deception is nothing new. Jesus described Satan as one who “does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him . . . for he is a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44). The enemy of our souls tells us, “Live only for the present,” when he knows it will result in our eternal loss.
Jesus, on the other hand, did not offer His disciples a life of prosperity and ease but called them to self-sacrifice and identification with Him. After telling them that He would be killed and raised from the dead, Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it” (Luke 9:23-24).
There are two voices telling us where to invest our lives. It’s risky business to follow the wrong one.
As He calls you, “Come to Me,”
In your life make Him your choice
And His faithful follower be. —Hess
I Am Lady Fab 