Joel Osteen Podcast - Are You Listening?

Episode Date: August 7, 2019

Proverbs 3:6 says, “Listen to God’s voice in everything you do and everywhere you go. He will keep you on the best path.” In this message, Joel will teach you practical ways to listen to God’s voice and how to recognize His leading in your everyday life.----Visit https://joelosteen.com to receive daily updates and encouragement from Joel Osteen.----Have you followed Joel Osteen on Instagram? https://instagram.com/joelosteen. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of the Joel Osteen Podcast ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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Well, God bless you. It's always a joy to come into your homes. And if you're ever in our area, please stop by and be a part of one of our services. I promise you, we'll make you feel right at home. But thanks so much for tuning in, and thank you again for coming out today. I like to start with something funny, and I heard about this man. He was the only Protestant in a large Catholic neighborhood. Every Friday during Lent, while his neighbors were eating cold fish, he was in the backyard grilling a steak. They couldn't stand the temptation and decided to try to convert him to Catholicism. He finally agreed.

A priest came over and sprinkled water on his head, said you were born a Baptist, you were raised a Baptist, but now you're a Catholic. The next year, on the first Friday of Lent, they smelled the same smell in the air. They rushed to his backyard. He was back there, sprinkling water over his steak, saying you were born a cow, you were raised a cow, but now you're a fish. Hold up your Bible and 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 told. I will be told. I will be 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, are you listening? Right now,

there are hundreds of radio frequencies in the air, hundreds of television signals all around us, yet we're not receiving any of them. The reason is we're not tuned in. If we were to get a radio, tuned to that frequency we would hear what the station was saying. In the same way, God is constantly transmitting to us. He wants to lead us, guide us, protect us, give us insight. But too often, we're not tuned to his frequency. You have to pay attention to what you're feeling down in here. God doesn't speak to us most of the time out loud, like you see on the movies. He speaks to us through subtle things. You have an unrest and uneasiness. You don't feel good about something. That's not just your nerves. That's God saying, go slow. Be careful. There's danger up ahead.

It can be a prompting, a suggestion. All of the sudden, you have a desire to check on your child, to call a friend, to start a new class. It's easy to think, oh, I don't need to do that. No, you've heard the phrase, trust your gut. A better way to put it. is trust your sensor. That's God telling you what to do. There are times that God will give you intuition. You just know something. You can't explain it. You don't have facts to back you up. You just know that you know that you know. Don't override that. Don't talk yourself out of it. That's God giving you inside information, helping you to know things that you wouldn't normally know. Some people say that's the universe talking to you. I like to add two words. That's the creator of the universe talking to you.

That's your heavenly father. He didn't just put you on the earth and say, good luck. You're on your own. I hope you make it. No, he's given you a helper, a guide, a counselor. His spirit lives in you. The question is, are you listening? In 1999, I was eating dinner at my house one evening. my father called and asked me if I would speak for him that Sunday at Lakewood. In my 36 years, I'd never ministered one time before. I didn't have any desire to be up in front of people. I liked being behind the scenes. I said, I'm sorry, Daddy, that's just not who I am.

I'm not a minister. He laughed and said, well, that's fine, Joel. At least I wanted to ask you. When I sat back down to finish eating my dinner, something said so strongly, Joel, you need to do it. Wasn't out loud. It was just an impression, a knowing. I can't explain it. It didn't make sense to my mind. Every voice of reasoning said, don't do it, but I couldn't get away from it.

Called my father back, said I'd change my mind. I ministered for him that next Sunday. What I didn't realize is that would be the last Sunday of my father's life. the next Friday, he had a heart attack and went to be with the Lord. Had I not ministered that Sunday, I don't know if I would have had the courage to step up and pastor the church. God knows what's best for us. He knows what you need and when you need it.

He knows how to put you at the right place, at the right time. He knows where the danger is, where the good breaks are. And I could have overridden that feeling. ignored it, listened to my mind, thought that's crazy. I'm not getting up there. No, I've learned to trust my sensor. That's one of my strengths. I won't go against what I'm feeling down in here. In my mind, it may seem impossible. All the odds are against me. I don't have the qualifications. But if I feel good about it in my heart, I'm going to move forward. On the other hand, if there's an unrest, an uneasiness, I don't have peace. It can be a once-in-a-lifetime

opportunity and I'm going to pass. Don't ignore the promptings, the impressions, the knowings. That's God talking to you. And Proverbs 3 says, listen to God's voice in everything you do and everywhere you go. He's the one who will keep you on the best path. God wants to help you in your everyday life, not just big decisions, but even small things. I wonder how much more favor we would have. How much less frustration and heartache we would see if all through the day we would be sensitive to

what we're feeling, the promptings, the suggestions, the uneasiness. At the mall, we don't feel good about that purchase. No big deal. We put it back. At the office, we feel an unrest toward a certain person. We back away. At home, we feel a prompting

to spend time with our child. We obey. At the office, at night, we hear that suggestion, turn off the TV, go to bed, you need your rest, we turn it off. In the kitchen, about to eat our third piece of pecan pie, we hear the voice saying, don't do it. Instead of saying, get behind me, Satan, we walk away. Pay attention to what you're feeling. Don't ignore the impressions, the promptings. God speaks to us in a still, small voice. It's not thunder. He's not going to up, boom out lightning to get your attention? It's not going to flash it across your TV screen.

My son, speak for your father this Sunday. It's going to be subtle. If you're going to hear a whisper, you've got to get close. You've got to be tuned in. It's got to be a priority. You're not going to hear it by accident with the busyness of the day, the stress of the office, running here and there. On purpose, you have to ask yourself, what am I feeling? What am I seeing? What am I seeing? What are my sensing. Take time to get quiet. Develop this art of listening. I was at the mall one time and I found this tide that I really liked. When I find something that I like, it doesn't take me long. I don't debate it. I don't overanalyze it. Like most men, we don't need two hours in a store. Give us 10 minutes and we'll find what we need. I walked up to the counter to pay and I heard something say to me,

not my mind, but my heart, Joel, don't buy it now. Just wait. It wasn't thunder, wasn't lightning flashing across the sky. It was just a small uneasiness, just a slight check. If you're not tuned in, you'll ignore it and you'll move on. And in the natural, there was no reason why I shouldn't buy the tie, but I had that check and I told Victoria, I think I'm going to wait and I set it down. A couple of hours later, just before we were to leave the mall, Victoria wanted to run into one last store. And I never shop at this store, but I went with her. As we were passing the men's department, she said, Joel, there's that exact tie you wanted to buy. I walked over, picked it up. It was marked down to half price.

I felt real good about it then. If you will pay attention to these impressions, follow these promptings, you'll see God's goodness in your everyday life. I pray each morning, God, help my spiritual ears to be open and sensitive to your voice. God help me to hear what you're saying today. It's not that God is not speaking. It's not that he's not giving us direction. It's the fact that we're not always paying attention. If we'll listen in everything we do and everywhere we go, God will lead us down the best path. He wants to give you wisdom, direction, protection, guidance that will save your heartache, make your life easier, give your breaks that'll put you years ahead. I have a friend that bought some property way out

in the middle of nowhere. He hardly paid anything for it, less than $100 an acre. He bought several hundred acres. On the surface, it seemed like that he had wasted his money. The land was dry and barren. You couldn't grow crops on it. You couldn't raise cattle. It was like the desert. Just rocks, clay, and cactus. He would go out from time to time and check on it. It always

puzzled me as to why he bought that property. I thought surely he must have some family up in that area. One day we were talking and it came up and I asked him why he purchased it. He said, Joel, I don't really know I was just driving by it

and I felt drawn to it. I felt such a peace, I knew that property was supposed to be mine. I thought to myself, the next time you feel drawn to something, you need to do your research first. You need to find some property that's going to increase in value. Didn't make sense to me. Fifteen years later, he was notified that the state was putting in a new highway. It was going to go right through his property.

They had to buy him out. He sold that for more than 100 times what he paid for it. Next time he buys property, I'm buying next door. This man is an older gentleman. He's kind of country. A reporter from the regional newspaper was talking to him and said, sir, you really know how to pick a good piece of property. He said, yes, my father told me about this.

The reporter said, I didn't know your dad was in real estate. The man pointed up and said, no, I'm talking about my heavenly father. He knows where everything is. But how could he have possibly chosen that piece of property over all the other pieces of property? Here's how he was tuned in to the right frequency. He followed the impression on the inside. When you listen to the still small voice, you'll come across favor, good breaks, supernatural opportunities.

God will give you insight to know things that you had no way of knowing. You just feel it. You can't explain it. You don't have facts backing you up. You don't have 20 years worth of research, but you do have the spirit of the most high God on the inside. You have a helper, a counselor, a researcher, an advisor, a protector. He's talking.

Make sure you're listening. My brother-in-law, Kevin, told how his washing machine had broken at his house. Kevin's very good with his hands. He's mechanically minded. He can fix just about anything. He pulled the washing machine out. to take a look at it. He disconnected the hoses in the back. He turned the water off. They're at the faucet in the wall. He knew he needed some more parts and was going to work on it later. As he was about

to leave the house, something said to him. Again, not out loud, just an impression. Wasn't even thinking about it. It said, Kevin, you need to put a cap on that faucet in case the valve breaks. You know, when you turn the faucet off for your washing machine, you don't normally need to put a cap on it. But he heard this distinctly several different times. Kevin thought, oh, I'm just being overly cautious. I don't need to cap it. It's not going to hurt anything. He left the house. Three hours later, he received a phone call. Kevin, come home. There's water all over your floors, the kitchen, the den, the living room. He said, Joel, I heard it so strongly, but I ignored it. Friends, God wants to make your life easier. If you will listen in everything you do,

and everywhere you go, God can save you from bad breaks, from heartache, from difficulties. All of us can look back and say like Kevin, I knew I was supposed to stay away from that person. I knew I was supposed to start eating better. I knew I was supposed to be more disciplined. We ignore it and it ended up making our life more difficult. One time my father was driving on the feeder. He was about to get on the freeway. he's in a big hurry going 20 miles an hour over the speed limit. As he approached a curve, something said to him, you better slow down. There's a policeman around the corner.

He heard it very clearly, but he ignored it. He got around the corner, and sure enough, there was a police officer, had his radar gun out, pulled my father over to give him a ticket. When the officer came up to the window, my dad had a big smile on his face. He said, officer, you're not going to believe this, but God told me you were here. That policeman looked at my dad like he was from another planet. He took his driver's license. He came back in a few minutes and said, listen to here, preacher, I'm going to let you go.

But the next time God speaks to you, you better listen. A friend of ours was a Methodist minister for many years, very popular on television. He had this long southern draw. Got pulled over by a policeman. He said, oh, officer, don't give me a ticket. I'm just a poor old preacher. The officer said, I know that. I heard you last Sunday on television.

The point is, don't override the alarms. When you feel uncomfortable, the uneasiness, the alarm is going off, pull back, and see what God is saying. You may be in a middle of a conversation and the alarm goes off. You know you're supposed to walk away. Don't ignore it. or you're about to purchase something. You're about to make some plans and you feel that check, that uneasiness, that alarm. That's not random.

That's God talking to you. If you'll learn to listen, God can keep you from trouble. He can keep you from danger. The scripture calls these promptings. In other words, God is not going to force us to do it. He's going to prompt us and then it's up to us. Hey, don't buy the tie. Put a cap on it.

Slow down on the freeway. It's a suggestion, a prompting. If we don't obey it, if we just ignore it, it's going to make it more difficult on ourselves. We'll miss the blessing, the favor, the protection. We'll have to deal with things that God could have saved us from. A young man I know used to do landscaping in our neighborhood. I saw him one day. He was all beat up. He had black eyes. His lips were swollen. He had this broken wrist. It looked like he'd been in an accident. Now, I asked him what had happened. He explained how on his way home from work, he had gotten carjacked. He was sitting at a light. These guys came up, pulled him out of the car, beat him up, took his wallet, and a lot of his equipment. Then he said something interesting. This young man, he wasn't necessarily a religious type person. He wasn't raised in church, but he said, Joel, the funny thing is, something told me to not go home that way. Very clearly on the inside, something said you need to take another route. He heard it so strongly that he even answered it back in his mind. He thought, why do I need to go another way? This is the way I always go. That doesn't make sense. There was this debate taking place, but he ignored it.

He said, I realize now that was God trying to protect me from danger the next time I'm going to listen. See, God knows where the pitfalls are. He knows where the danger is. All through the day, be sensitive. pay attention to these promptings. I've learned, God won't allow us to make a major mistake without first giving us warnings. The scripture says God will always provide a way of escape. Could it be that God is providing a way out, giving you wisdom, direction, intuition, protection, trying to keep you from danger, but like my friend, you're overriding it? And it may not be something

as dramatic as he faced. It may be when you're around a certain person, you feel an unrest and uneasiness. That alarm is going off. They seem nice, friendly, kind. You can't put your finger on it. Something is just not right. Don't ignore it. That's God trying to keep you from heartache. If you'll listen, God will give you discernment. A lot of people are not who they say they are. They may seem fine on the outside, but they have. They have wrong motives. They want to be your friend for what you can do for them. They're takers and never givers. Once they use you up, they'll move on to the next person. No matter how good they look, no matter how fine she is, no matter how much money he has, he may be tall, dark, handsome, and rich, but if you hear that alarm going off, you need to be smart enough to walk away. All that glitters

is not gold. Don't override those warnings. If they're not the right person for you, that means God has somebody better in store. Now, I've talked to too many people that overrode what they were feeling. Years later, there's heartache, broken dreams, pain. It all could have been avoided. Don't be so set on having it your way that you ignore what you're feeling. That uneasiness is not just your nerves, not just you being overly cautious. That's God saying, keep your distance.

Stay away. they may be a good person, they're just not good for you. This is one of the most important principles you could ever learn. If you will trust your censor, not go against what you're feeling, not override the alarms, God will lead you down the best path. You won't waste valuable time involved in things that you were never supposed to be involved in. I have some friends, this couple that lived in another state. The lady was a very gifted singer.

She had an incredible voice. She was working as an executive at a marketing company, but her dream was to be in full-time ministry. She wanted to use her gift to bless others. One day she received a phone call out of the blue from one of the largest, most prominent ministries of that time. They offered her a full-time position to come and lead worship. Her dream job.

She would not only be singing in large auditoriums all over the world, but to many more people through the television ministry. She and her husband were on cloud nine. God had done more than they could even imagine. They went out and celebrated. But over the next week or so, they both began to feel an unrest. In their mind, it was an easy decision.

They were excited, take the job. But in their heart, the alarm was going off. Something was saying, be careful, this is not right. The husband felt it so strong. But he didn't want to say anything to his wife. He didn't want to dampen her enthusiasm. He thought it was just his nerves thinking about the change and having to move across the country. But in a few days, his wife came to him, said, honey, you're going to think I'm crazy, but we need to talk. I don't think I should take the job. He explained how he felt the same way. When they made the decision to not take it, it was like a heavy burden had been lifted off of them. They felt to peace. What's in the important? What's Interesting is a few months later, that ministry that they were going to join was involved in a huge controversy. It was all over the news. Several months later, 90% of the employees were let go. The ministry basically shut down. Here they would have just moved across the country, sold their house, quit their jobs, taking their children out of school, all for nothing.

Friends, God can see the big picture for your life. He knows what's best for. you. Don't override the warnings. Don't ignore the unrest. God is not trying to keep you from your dreams. He's trying to keep you from heartache. He wants to keep you on the best path for your life. Will you trust him? Colossians 3 says, let peace act as an umpire. An umpire calls us safe or out. Before you make a decision, see if you have peace. Before you get into relationship with that person, check your heart. Do you have peace? Before you buy that new car, before you take that job, before you eat that crispy cream donut, see if you have peace. If there's an unrest and uneasiness, then don't move forward. Let peace be the umpire. It tells you yes or no. How many people get into a relationship

with someone that they didn't have peace about and they end up miserable? They buy things they didn't have peace about, they end up in debt. They take a job. They didn't have peace about. They end up frustrated. Here's the key. If you don't have peace before you make the decision, you're not going to have peace after you make the decision. If you don't have peace about that person now, you're not going to have peace if you get into relationship. If you don't have peace about buying that new car, you're not going to have peace when the payments come each month. If you don't have peace about taking that job, you won't have peace when you go to work each day. It may pay more money, be more influential, have more benefits.

But if you don't have peace, it means it's not the right job for you. God has something better. Let peace be your umpire. For years, my father tried to buy the property across the street from our first small church. It was a big open field, 20 acres, had a bunch of cows grazing on it. And at that time, Lakewood only owned two acres. That was barely enough room for the services and the people to park. My dad knew that one day he was going to build a larger sanctuary.

They were going to expand. So that property was extremely valuable to him. He went and met with the owners, and they were willing to sell it. They wanted $400,000. And that was a fair price back then, $20,000 an acre. They were even willing to finance it. My dad was prepared to present it to the, the congregation, start raising the funds. But down in here, something didn't feel right. He had that

unrest. He thought it was just his nerves, tried to push it down. But week after week, it wouldn't go away. Every time he thought about it, he could hear the alarm going off. Finally, he told the owners that Lakewood wasn't going to purchase it. Five years went by. My dad got all stirred up. We need that property. We need a bigger sanctuary. He went back. The owner said, fine. We'll see. We'll see. sell it to you for the same amount as we asked before. Just as he was about to announce it, he could hear the alarm going off again. He felt that same uneasiness. In his mind, it didn't make sense. Now he had the money. They had the property, but no peace. Five years later, 10 years after the initial meeting, he went back to meet with the owners. This time, the market had gone

down. The economy was low. Those owners were desperate to sell. My father walked in. The owner said, we asked 20,000 an acre before. How about we sell it to you for 5,000 an acre now? My dad said, I think that would be okay.

The property went from $400,000 to $100,000. When you feel an unrest and uneasiness, that's not God trying to keep something from you. That's God trying to get something better to you. Now don't be hard-headed. Don't have to settle for second-best. Think, well, I'm going to do my own

thing, my own way. If you'll let God lead you, he'll do more than you can ask her thing. Job put it this way. God speaks to us in different ways, but we don't always hear his voice. God is constantly transmitting to you. My question is, are you tuned in? Are you on the right frequency? pay attention to what you're feeling down in here. The promptings, the suggestions, the uneasiness. Remember, it's a still small voice. You're not going to hear this by accident. It's got to be a priority. God, what are you saying to me today? Not just in the big decisions, but everywhere you go and in everything you do. Be sensitive. Don't override the warnings. Don't ignore the alarms. Let peace act as the umpire. If you'll do this, God promises he'll lead you, guide you, protect you,

show you his favor, give you inside information. Now, believe and declare you will rise higher, overcome every obstacle, and become everything God's created you to be. In Jesus' name, if you receive it, can you say amen 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 your places that you've never dreamed of. Thank you for listening to the Joel O's Dean podcast. Help us continue to share the message of hope with those all over the world. Visit

Joel Osteen.com slash give hope to give a gift today. Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you next time. More than ever before, people are turning to the church for their mental health struggles. Unfortunately, the church has largely been ill-equipped to help. That is until now, join nearly 50,000 people just like you who've enrolled in the mental health coach training program and become equipped to help. For a limited time, apply for a full tuition scholarship and only pay a one-time tech fee of $54 if accepted. Apply now at mentalhealthcoach.org. Again, that's

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