Joel Osteen Podcast - Designed to Withstand

Episode Date: June 9, 2019

At times it may feel like the storm around you is going to overwhelm you, like you are unequipped to face what lies ahead of you? In this message, be encouraged that God has designed you to withstand whatever might be surrounding you. Your circumstances are not a surprise to God, you are equipped with everything you need through Jesus! 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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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 I like to start with something funny, and I heard about this pastor. He'd been out bear hunting all day long, and searched and searched through the woods, no sign of a bear. Finally, in frustration, he threw his gun on the ground and went to the stream to cool off. About that time, he sees this huge grizzly running toward him full speed ahead, about 100 yards up in front of him.

He fell on his knees and said, God, I need protection. please convert this bear into a Christian. Miraculously, the bear froze in his tracks, put both pause toward the heavens, and said, Lord, thank you for this food that I'm about to eat. 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 designed to withstand. There are times in life we can feel overwhelmed like the pressure's too much. We go through a loss, we're dealing with an illness, or we're not being treated right.

A lady told me how things had come against her at work and looked like she was going to lose her position. She said, I can't take it anymore. The worries, the stress, the demands, it's too much to handle. She felt like she was going to collapse under that weight, like it was unbearable. But Paul said in 1st Corinthians, God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted with more than you can bear. But with the temptation will make a way of escape so you can bear it.

Paul was saying, God will not let you face more pressure than you can handle. He won't let more weight come on you that you don't have the strength to bear. When an architect designs a building, a big skyscraper, he doesn't just design the outside, what it's going to look like, the color, the size, the shape. That's important, but it's of no use if he doesn't design the inner structure. He calculates all the loads, how much. much each floor will weigh, how much wind it will face, how much equipment will be on it, then he'll know how big the steel beams should be, how deep the piers in the ground, how

thick the foundation. In California, where they can have earthquakes, you have to put special reinforcements in the framing more than we do here. In Florida, the glass has to withstand hurricane force winds. I was at a hotel in Colorado during the summer. I noticed on the slope roof all these cables and wires. I didn't know what it was. I asked the man, he said those are heaters to melt

the snow. He explained that if you don't keep the snow off, it can pile up and that weight can cause the roof to collapse. The architect specifically designs each structure so it can withstand the pressure,

so it can bear the weight. The good news is, your architect is the most high God. He not only designed solar systems and mountain ranges, but he designed you. When he laid out the plan for your life, he calculated everything you would face, all the pressure, all the weight, all the winds. He took into account every hurt, every loss, every injustice, every mistake, and he designed your beams big enough, your foundation thick enough. He put in you the determination, the courage, the stamina, that no matter what comes against you,

it will not be too much to bear. You've been designed to withstand the storms, designed to outlast the opposition, designed to endure until the dream comes to pass. God wouldn't be just if he knew we were going to face 120 mile an hour winds, but he only designed us for 80 mile an hour winds. That wouldn't even pass code. You couldn't get that design through city planning. How much more has God put in you exactly what you need? You may not be able to see it, but your walls are strong enough. Your foundation is deep enough. You can bear whatever comes your way. God didn't miscalculate when he designs you. He didn't forget about what

environment you'd be in, what conditions you would face. He didn't accidentally leave out a beam. Now you can't handle the weight. Nothing you face will cause you to collapse under the weight. Now thoughts may tell you it's too much. You can't handle it. You need to remind yourself, I've been designed to withstand. I have what it takes. I am determined enough. I'm strong enough. I'm bold enough. I am well able. Now, an architect doesn't wait till the pressure comes to see what kind of beams to put in. He doesn't wait till the middle of the storm to check the force of the winds, to see how much resistance, to decide what kind of structure to build.

It's all calculated ahead of time. It's designed before one concrete truck shows up, before one hammer is lifted. The specs are studied, calculated, and approved, before. construction ever begins. In the same way, before you were formed in your mother's womb, your specs were carefully designed. Everything was strategically and precisely put in you for what you're going to need. When you face big challenges, that means you have big beams. You have strong infrastructure. You don't really know what's in you until you get some weight on you. you don't know what you can handle until the pressure comes.

When something happens that we've never faced, a loss, a disappointment, a setback, it's easy to think, I can't handle this. It's going to sink me. The truth is, you wouldn't be facing it unless you could handle it. If it was too much to bear, God wouldn't have allowed it. The very fact that it happened is a sign that you are well able. Now, you may have never put that kind of pressure on your beams. The glass walls of your building, so to speak, may have never experienced winds so strong.

That's why you're tempted to feel overwhelmed. You don't realize the structure has been designed for that pressure. Wasn't a surprise to your architect. He knew ahead of time. That's why he made the glass so strong. He took into account winds that you never knew you were. would encounter. Nothing you face will cause you to collapse. You've been designed to withstand. Now, you can collapse in your mind. In your thinking, you can give in and think, oh, this is too

much. I'm overwhelmed. I can't handle it. That's why the scripture tells us, don't faint in your mind. Your structure is strong enough. Now get your mind strong enough. Quit telling yourself it's too big. It's been this way too long. I can't take it anymore. You are well able. No weapon formed against you is going to prosper. That difficulty didn't come to stay. It came to pass.

But to say we can't handle it is to say when God designed me, he miscalculated. He didn't make my foundation deep enough. He left out a beam. I can't carry this weight. God doesn't make mistakes. The psalmist said, you have been fearfully and wonderfully made. It's not just talking about the outside, our looks, our size, our talents. That's talking about your specs as well, your infrastructure, how God

designed things that you can't see, how he planned ahead of time for challenges and obstacles. Things you would think would cause you to collapse, but out of nowhere, strength rises up. A courage comes, a faith to overcome, a determination to stand strong and outlast the opposition. When we acquired this building, it didn't have any rooms for children's and youth facilities. It's a big sports arena. We needed some classrooms. So we built a five-story building on the end that connects through the lobbies. It's our family life center.

We told the architects, one day we're going to want to add. five more stories. We're going to need to expand. So they designed the foundation, the peers, the underground to accommodate 10 stories. But when you see the building, what you see is a five-story building. Unless you have the plans, unless you have the specs, you don't realize it's designed for 10 stories. People driving down the freeway think the building's finished. It's peaked. That's as tall as it will ever be. They don't know what's underground. What enables it to go higher is the weight that the beams can handle, the thickness of the foundation. In the same way, you may think you've reached your limits. You've been at that same level a long time. Can I encourage you? You have more

floors in you. You've handled this much pressure fine. You've gotten comfortable carrying this much weight. It's no problem. But if you could look at your specs, if you could see the plans God has for you, you would notice your beams are much bigger than what you're carrying right now. You could think God overdesigned you. He put things in you that you don't need. No, it's coming. God has new levels. And with that increase comes more weight. You're going to have more pressure. Now, I don't mean pressure in a bad sense. this is pressure that makes you stretch, makes you grow, makes you release your faith, believe bigger, and take on new challenges, not just difficulties, but positive pressure,

where you discover you can handle things that you never thought you could handle. For 17 years, I worked behind the scenes here at Lakewood doing the television production. In 1999, when my father went to be with the Lord, I knew I was supposed to be. to step up and pastor the church, but I didn't know how it was going to work out. I had never faced that much pressure, not only having to get up in front of people, thoughts telling me I wasn't qualified, nobody was going to listen, but losing my father was very traumatic. I had worked with him every day for years. We had traveled the world together and now he was gone. I should have been overwhelmed. The pressure should have caused me to shrink back and be discouraged. But in the midst of

that turmoil, I felt a strength that I had never felt, a determination, a resilience, a confidence that didn't make sense to my mind. When I stepped up to minister, yes, I was nervous, I was afraid, but down deep, I believed I could do it. I believed I had what it tanks. There was a boldness that I had never experienced. I realize now that wasn't just me being strong. I had been designed for this. I was designed to withstand the pressure. I was designed to overcome the loss.

I discovered my beams were big enough. My foundation was strong enough that this didn't catch God off guard. What am I saying? You've been designed for everything you're going to face. When you come into things that seem too hard, too big, too unfair, things that should cause you to collapse, don't worry. God knew they were coming. He already made your beams big enough. You will be able to bear it. Now, it may be uncomfortable. You may have to stretch, but that pressure is not going to stop you.

You're going to discover ability that you didn't know you had. Even now, I have some opposition, people, that don't understand me, but that no more bothers me. I never pay any attention to it. For some people, that would cause them to be negative, bitter, spiteful. But God's given me the grace to handle it. The pressure that would cause some people to collapse doesn't affect me. Whatever is in your future, you have the grace to handle it. Nothing you face will be beyond what you've been designed for. But if you would have told me back in my 20s when I was behind the scenes that one day I would be up here in front of you every week and have to have something to say, and we would own the compact center and I'd be responsible to raise the funds, I'd say there's no way.

I can't carry that much weight. It's because I couldn't see the infrastructure. I'd never been put under that kind of pressure. But when it comes, like with me, you'll discover your being. are in place. Your foundation is strong enough. Your steel is big enough. Now the key is don't lose the battle

in your mind. Your mind will tell you your five stories when you're designed for 10 stories. Your mind will say it's too much. Shrink back, it's not fair, it's never going to work out. I might believe you if your architect live down the street. You might

convince me if your architect worked for a firm day. downtown, he could make a mistake. But can I remind you, your architect is the God who spoke worlds into existence. He doesn't miscalculate. You will never face a situation that you're not designed for. You will never face pressure that has to cause you to collapse, a problem that's too big, a dream where you can't carry the weight. And when I look back over my life at the critical points where I could have been overwhelmed. My mom being diagnosed with terminal cancer, the death of my father, the lawsuit with the compact center. Every time it was uncomfortable,

I could have been discouraged and given up, but I discovered not that the pressure went away, but that I could handle more pressure. I discovered I was designed to carry more weight. and if you don't face the pressure, you'll never know who you really are. The higher you go, the more pressure there will be, the good news is you have the beams to handle it. At some point, that pressure will subside and you'll see you're stronger than you think. Some of the things that overwhelmed you 10 years ago, you can look back now and say like me, it's no big deal. that trouble at work that almost gave you a nervous breakdown, but you came through it. Now things like that don't bother you anymore.

It's not so much that God changed the circumstances, it's that God changed you. He showed you who you really are. You thought you would always be at five stories. You better get ready. There's a skyscraper in you. There are new levels, new mountains to climb, new giant. to conquer, new skills to learn. With the new comes more opposition, more weight, more pressure. Don't let it overwhelm you. Let it inspire you. That means God's about to add another floor.

He's about to take you higher. Well, Joel, I didn't have a good childhood. Nobody was there to encourage me to cheer me on. That wasn't fair, but you have the beams to handle it. you have the infrastructure to rise above it. That didn't stop your future. Well, I came down with this illness. That's why I'm overwhelmed. Isaiah said, take hold of God's strength. It will be overwhelming if you don't remind yourself that it's not a surprise to God.

He wouldn't have allowed it if you couldn't bear it. Since he did allow it, that means you were well able. Now, all through the day, you need to take hold of his strength. Father, thank you that I am strong in the Lord. Thank you that you are fighting my battles. Thank you that you being for me is more than the world being against me. The Apostle Paul faced all kinds of unfair situations.

Three times he was beaten with rods. He was put in prison without a trial. He was shipwrecked, spent the night on the open sea, bitten by a poisonous snake. He could have collapsed under all the pressure, lived overwhelmed. Yet he's the one that said, thanks be to God who always causes us to triumph. He knew God won't let us face things that we can't handle. If you'll stay in faith, you'll discover like Paul you've been designed to withstand the pressure,

that the enemy didn't somehow come up with the scheme to outwit the God who created you. He can't send a storm so powerful to knock your walls down. He can't put so much weight on you that your beams can't hold up. Paul said, we are pressed on every side, but we are not crushed. He was saying, in effect, we've been designed to withstand the difficulty. Our architect took into account all the trouble, the wind, the bad break, and he's put in you the courage, the stamina, the endurance to withstand. As a young man, David was anointed to be the next king of Israel.

But he didn't go to the palace. He went back to the shepherd's fields and took care of his father's sheep for years. I'm sure thoughts told him, David, you're never going to be the king. You're stuck out here. Nobody pays attention to you. He could have been discouraged, but he kept doing the right thing. He eventually defeated Goliath. He went to the palace to serve.

King Saul. David was good to Saul, faithful, loyal, but Saul was jealous of David. He could see the favor on his life. And while David was playing the harp for Saul, trying to make him feel better, out of nowhere Saul threw a spear across the room. Barely missed David. He had to take off running for his life. He spent months in the desert, hiding in caves, living on the run with Saul, constantly on his trail. David thought it was difficult those years in the lonely shepherd's fields, but he had never faced this kind of pressure, the king trying to kill him. He could have been overwhelmed, given up, faded into the sunset, but David understood this principle. His attitude was, I've been designed to overcome this injustice. I know God wouldn't have allowed

it if I couldn't handle it. On the way, to your destiny. There will be opposition, things that are not fair, people that should be for you, but turn against you. You have to remind yourself, you've been designed for it. You're not going to collapse under that weight. Your beams are big enough. You don't have to live bitter. You don't have to get revenge. You can forgive. You can stay on the high road. May not have been fair, but like with David, you've been designed to overcome the injustice. You've been designed to outlast the opposition. If David would have complained about the Shepherds' fields, let King Saul overwhelm him,

we wouldn't be talking about him. He knew God would never let him face more than he could bear. He didn't like it. It was uncomfortable, but he didn't let the pressure cause him to lose focus and miss his destiny. We all have these times where we can be overwhelmed. But the reason you have big opposition is because you have a big destiny. And the good news is God took that all into account when he designed your infrastructure. He didn't give you a big future with weak walls, little beings, small foundation.

You are stronger than you think. You have more stamina, more endurance, more grace. more grace, more forgiveness. Those challenges are a sign that new floors are coming. God is about to take you higher to show you new levels of increase and favor. Now, don't complain about the difficulties. That's when you discover what's in you. David discovered courage, perseverance, faith like he had never seen.

If you'll keep the right attitude, that pressure instead of breaking you, It will develop you. You'll grow and mature so you can take your throne. Now, you may be in a time of testing now. You feel like the weight is too much to bear. People at work aren't treating you right. That situation with your child has you overwhelmed. Have a new perspective.

God is saying you've been designed to withstand. Now, you have to do your part and take hold of his strength. Instead of thinking all day about how difficult it is, turn it around, I can do all things through Christ. I've been armed with strength for this battle. I may walk through the valley of the shadow of death, but I know a secret. I'm not staying here. This valley is not my home. I'm coming out better, stronger, victorious into new levels of my destiny. A friend of mine came to see this building a few years ago. He's an engineer. I took him through the lobbies and into the auditorium. I brought him here on the platform,

showed him the lights, the sound system, the screens, the things that are impressive to me. He liked it, but then he asked me something that no one has ever asked. He said, can I see the mechanical rooms? I said, the what? He said, the mechanical areas, the power plant, the heating and cooling system, the chilled water pipes. I didn't even know where they were.

I had to get my brother-in-law Kevin. he took us to areas of this building that I've never seen. Huge rooms filled with equipment, generators, pumps, electrical panels. He showed us big beams that allow this building to span over 100 yards without a column. My friend couldn't believe it. He stood there in all. Well, I left that day with the new appreciation for this building. It has all kinds of things behind the scene.

things we can't see design and infrastructure that make what we can see so amazing. In the same way, God has put incredible things in you that you can't see. You have beams that can take you much further than you are right now. You have infrastructure to take you to higher levels, to add new floors. God didn't design you to reach a certain level and stay there. You may be at five stories now. You're blessed. God's been good to you.

What you can't see is you have a 10-story foundation. Where you are is not your final destination. He not only designed you to increase, but to withstand the storms. As you take new ground, there will be new obstacles. The greater the opportunity, the greater the opposition. In religious terms, new levels, new devils. Whatever you face, remind yourself, you can handle it. Not necessarily because you're so great, but because you're architect.

The Most High God has designed you with everything that you need. You will never face a situation that you cannot bear. Now, when you're tempted to think I'm overwhelmed, I can't handle this. If you could only see your mechanical room, if you only knew what God put in you, you would realize you can handle it. You've been designed to withstand. I believe and declare strength is coming into you in a new way. Courage is rising up.

You will withstand every storm, outlast every attack, overcome every obstacle, and become everything God's created you to be in Jesus' name. And 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'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. Thank you for listening to the Joel O'S-Deen podcast.

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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 not. Now join nearly 50,000 people, just like you, who've enrolled in the Mental Health Coach Training Program and become equipped to help.

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