Joel Osteen Podcast - Don't Be Limited By The System | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: October 31, 2025

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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 it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. Well, God bless you and welcome. Thanks so much for letting us come into your homes. We love you. If you're 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. I love to have you come out whenever you can. But thanks for tuning in and thank you again for coming out today. I like to get started each week with something kind of funny and I heard about this man. He was walking up to a country store. There was a little boy sitting on the front porch

with a big dog sitting next to him. The man said, son, does your dog bite? He said, no, sir, my dog doesn't bite. He reached down and started to pet him and the dog took about half of the man's arm off. He pulled it back. He said, I thought you said, said your dog didn't bite. The little boy said, that's not my dog. All right, hold up your Bible.

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 not being limited by the system. When I say the system, I'm talking about the normal ways things are done. You go to work, get a paycheck, and that set your limits. Or you have dreams and desires, but you don't have the right connections. You don't have the right education.

And it's tempting to think, I'll never rise any higher. I'm limited by the system that I'm in. But one thing I've learned is God likes to go outside the system. He likes to do unusual, extraordinary things. No matter where you are in life, no matter what environment you're in, no matter how impossible your dreams may seem, you need to know God already has a plan. He already has a way. And if you will stay in faith, God will go outside the system and take your places that you never thought possible. When God needed a new king for Israel, he didn't choose the most qualified person.

He didn't go to the most influential family and choose one of the proven military leaders, someone that had all this knowledge, all this expertise. He found a teenager, a young shepherd boy that was out taking care of his father's sheep, the least likely person, and he chose this young man, David, to be the next king. God likes to take ordinary people

and use them to do extra-react. ordinary things. Don't be limited by your system. You may look around today and think, my dreams will never come to pass. I don't have the money. I don't have the right connections. I don't have the education. I guess it just wasn't meant to be. No, actually, you're just the kind of person God loves to use. And instead of being discouraged by all that, you should turn it around and be encouraged knowing that you are prime material. God likes to go outside the system. when Jesus chose his 12 disciples. There were great schools of the prophets back in those days.

They were very influential places where people studied religion, all the laws and the traditions. These people were called the Sadducees and the Pharisees. They were the prestigious religious leaders of that day. They walked around the city in their distinguished robes. They got the best seats at the city functions. But it's interesting, Jesus didn't choose any of them. He didn't choose the most qualified, the most educated, even the most influential.

And certainly, God can use people like that. It's good to have education. It's good to have influence. But very often, God will do things outside of the traditional, ordinary ways. Jesus ended up choosing a fisherman, a tax collector. He chose the equivalent of business people, carpenters, schoolteachers. He went outside the citizens. He went outside the citizens. He went outside of system and use them to do extraordinary things. When God needed a pastor, a man that would touch people around the world, he didn't choose somebody that came from a long line of religious people, someone that had all the right connections, all the right experience. He chose a 17-year-old boy that had dropped out of high school. My father knew nothing about God. He wasn't raised in church.

His parents were cotton farmers. They lost everything they had. during the Great Depression. They were extremely poor people. My father had no money, no education, no future to speak of. The system said he would just barely get by in life, never succeed, never amount to much. But God had another plan.

God went outside the system and took a 17-year-old boy that was selling popcorn in a theater in Fort Worth, Texas, and God put a dream in his heart. My father told, how when he first gave his life to the Lord, he knew one day he would minister to thousands of people. That was unheard of, but something new was birthed on the inside. He let the seed take root.

He believed he had what it takes. He knew if God before him, who dare even be against him? He didn't really know how to minister, but six weeks after he gave his life to the Lord, He was ministering on the street corners, in the prisons, in the senior citizens' homes. He didn't know anything about the Bible. He called Job Job. He called the Psalms the Pizlums. One time he preached a whole message on Samson, and when he got finished, he realized he'd been calling him Tarzan.

But that didn't bother my father. He just kept on, keeping on, being his best, giving it his all. Daddy went back to school. He not only got his high school diploma, he went to college and got his master's degree. God went outside the system. Don't allow where you are in life right now and the things that are not going your way

to cause you to give up on your dreams. It may not happen overnight, but if you'll stay in faith, God will move heaven and earth to get you to where you're supposed to be. No person can keep you from your destiny. no obstacle can keep you from accomplishing your dreams. It may look impossible, but God can do the impossible.

Stay in faith and just keep pressing forward. I think about how Lakewood was even started. God went outside the system to birth this ministry. It was Mother's Day in 1959. My father had just left a beautiful church that he had been pastoring for many years. He knew God was doing something new in his life. And he and a handful of people came to an abandoned feed store.

It was a little rundown building that actually had holes in the floor so you could sweep the hay and the feed through. Here they had just come from a beautiful traditional church. You would have thought God would have had something more impressive, something more prestigious. But God went outside the system and Lakewood was birthed in those humble beginnings. People told my father back then, you're making a big mistake. nobody's going to come out here. You're in the wrong part of town. My parents just shook it off and stayed faithful year after year, stuck with it, persistent, determined. Here we are today, nearly 50 years later, still going strong. But what if my father would have said, I'm not going to a feed store.

That's out of the ordinary. People may criticize, people may look down on me. He would have missed his destiny. When God puts a promise in your heart, doesn't matter. what it looks like in the natural. Doesn't matter who's criticizing, doesn't matter what's coming against you. You've got to stick with it, be faithful, and you will see God bring that to pass. This is what Mary had to do, the mother of Jesus. She was a teenage girl living in a town called Nazareth. That was one of the poorest, most run-down cities of that region. You would think if God was going to choose somebody to give birth to his son, he would surely choose someone from a better location from a more prestigious environment. But once again, God went outside the system. He didn't

choose a prominent, influential young lady. Mary was just a common girl living in an average family in a lower income neighborhood. And in Luke 1 verse 30, an angel appeared under her. And he said, Mary, you have found favor with God. You're going to give birth to a son. You're to call him Jesus. And of course, Mary was startled by it all, and she asked the question, how can this be seeing that I know not a man? She was saying, in effect, that's impossible. That defies the laws of nature. I can't have a baby without a man. How could that be? The angel answered back, the power of the most high will come upon you and cause you to conceive. I love what Mary said. As odd as this seemed, as impossible as it looked, Mary simply said, be it unto me even as you have said. One translation says, let it happen just as you say so.

That moment the seed took root in our heart. When God gives us a promise, it may not make sense to our mind, it may be out of the ordinary, but if we could just do like Mary and say, God, I receive this, It may look impossible, but God, I know you can do the impossible. So I come into agreement with you and believe it will happen just as you say so. It's interesting what Mary asked. How can it happen without a man? She was asking in the physical, but I believe there's a deeper meaning. God is saying, you don't have to have people to see your dreams come to pass.

Your friends may not believe in your dreams. Your coworkers may not think you have what it takes. Your own family may think you're just wasting your time. But the good news is, God does not need them to bring that promise to fulfillment. Don't allow people to talk you out of what you know you feel on the inside. Your dream is not dependent on other people. God is saying it can happen without a man. It can happen without a banker.

It can happen without a doctor. It can happen without the right boss. It can happen in spite of what people are saying. you and God are a majority. You may not feel like that you have the right connections. You don't know the right people. You don't come from the right family. That's okay.

The scripture says, promotion doesn't come from the north, the south, the east, and the west. That means promotion doesn't come from people. Doesn't come from your boss. Doesn't come from your environment. Promotion comes from Almighty God. When God's ready to promote you,

when he's ready to take you to a new level, it doesn't matter who you do or don't know it is going to happen. No person can stand against our God. You may not know the right people, but you do know the right God, and that's all that really matters. But so often we think, well, if I could just get this person to like me, maybe they'll give me a break. Maybe they'll give me a promotion. Maybe they'll give me a loan. No, it's fine to be good to people, but you don't have to have them. Your dream is not dependent on the other people. And our attitude, should be, God, I know you put this promise in my heart. And I believe it'll come to pass regardless of who I do or don't know, regardless of who is or who isn't behind me. And when you get

outside of the system, don't be surprised if you face some judgment and criticism. Don't be surprised if people start talking, trying to make you look bad. When you have a big dream in your life, it stirs up small-minded people. Small-minded people get jealous. They're intimidated, they're so insecure, they feel like they have to push you down so they can feel okay about who they are. They don't realize God has an individual plan for each of our lives. We're not all going to give birth to the son of God. God chose Mary for that,

but I've got to be big enough to celebrate what God's doing in her life, while at the same time knowing that God has something great in store for me. God hasn't left any of us out. When you see somebody that's out of their box, doing their best to do what they're doing, they feel God's put in their heart, be secure enough to cheer them on. You may not understand it, but just give them the benefit of the doubt and stand with them, not against them. This is what happened to Mary. Everybody started talking. You can imagine what she had to put up

with, all the gossip people talking behind her back. Well, she's having a child, not married. Even her fiance, Joseph, when he first heard that she was pregnant, he was going to just walk away. Mary had to endure all this criticism, all this ridicule, but she didn't allow it to phase her. She kept her eyes on the prize. Her attitude was, God put this promise in my heart. It's out of the ordinary. Sure people are going to criticize. Sure, they're not going to understand. But the good news is, my dream is not dependent on them. The power of the most high has come upon me, and it will come to pass. You can't be moved by the critics and the naysayers. This is where so many people get distracted.

They lose their focus and start trying to defend themselves and convince everyone that they're right. But some people, no matter how hard you try, no matter how sincere you are, they're never going to agree with you. One thing I've learned is everyone doesn't have to accept me and everyone is not going to understand me. And you know what, that's okay.

Don't spend all your time trying to win over your critics, just run your race. After all, God didn't put the promise in them. He put it in you. You cannot expect them to understand. You think about Jesus. He was one of the most controversial and criticized people that ever lived.

And it's interesting. He got more criticism from the religious crowd than he ever did the secular crowd. The Sadducees and the Pharisees were so small-minded and so caught up in policing their doctrine, thinking that they were the know-it-alls, they practically spent all their time

trying to straighten Jesus out. While he was out changing the world, bringing hope, bringing healing, making a difference, they were constantly trying to find fault, trying to tell him what he was doing wrong. In case you haven't noticed, the Sadducees and the Pharisees

are still alive today. Some of you say, I know they live next door to me. People that any time you get outside of their box, do something out of the norm, they're going to find fault and tell you what you're doing wrong. We've got to learn to do like Jesus, just shake it off and move on. You may get criticized. You may even be controversial, but just remember, if God said it's going to happen, there's nothing other people can do to keep it from happening.

Don't abort your baby. Don't give up on that dream. It may be difficult. It may not be fair. people may be talking behind your back. But what I've learned is when you're uncomfortable, when things are coming against you, that pain is an indication that you're getting closer to the birth. The enemy would not fight you so hard if he didn't already know God was about to do something that he's never done before in your life. I remember when I first started ministering nine

years ago. It was very difficult. I was not only dealing with the death of my father, but I was learning how to minister. This was all very new to me. And at one point, I felt like there was so much coming against me. People were talking. I was already not sure if I was able to do this. And I thought to myself, why am I facing this opposition? I'm just trying to do my best and carry on what my parents have started. I'm not bothering anybody else. But looking back now, I realize the was coming against me, not because of where I was, he was coming against me because of where I was going. The enemy, he doesn't fight you for the present. He fight you for your future. He didn't want me to make it to the compact center. He didn't want me to have a voice of hope that go around the

world. He didn't want us to come in here every week and celebrate the goodness of God. You may think, Why am I having these problems? I'm doing my best, being good to people, giving it my all each day, not bothering anybody else yet. Things are coming against me in my finances, in my health, in my relationships. It's because of where you're headed.

It's because in your future, there are so many great things the enemy's trying to discourage you right now and get you distracted so you will give up on those dreams. When times get tough and things aren't going your way, that's when you've got to dig your heels in and say this may be difficult. It may not be fair. People may be talking,

but I'm not going to lose my joy. I know the enemy is not fighting me because of where I am. He's fighting me because in my future, there's favor, there's increase, there's promotion, there's God's blessings. He knows I'm about to give birth to this baby. I can imagine with Mary,

the bigger the baby got. The more she showed, the more people talk, the more people criticize, made fun. Sure she hasn't known a man. She's probably been running around behind Joseph's back. But Mary wasn't bothered by the criticism. She didn't get down because of the opposition. She knew things were coming against her, not because of where she was, but because of where she was going. When God puts a promise in your heart, you've got to be willing to press through the opposition, press through the unfair accusations. And keep reminding yourself, there's nothing

anyone can do that can keep that dream from coming to pass. When it's difficult, when you're uncomfortable and you're kind of tempted to give up, you need to realize you are getting close to birthing that baby. The greater the pain, the closer you are to giving birth. And so when things are coming against you and every time you turn around, you face opposition, that just means your contractions are getting faster and faster. You're going to give birth before you know it. You're got to have that promise so deep on the inside, nothing's going to cause you to quit and give up. The promise may be, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Even if your family member makes fun of you, even if the more you pray, the worst they get, that's okay, that's just a contraction.

You're getting closer. It's a matter of time before they come in. Maybe it's in your health. The promise is God is restoring health into me. I'm going to come out of this sickness. Your natural mine will tell you, you're a goner. Nobody's ever done it before. No, you can be the first. With God, all things are possible. Well, Joel, the doctors have told me there's nothing more medical science can do. That's okay. The good news is man has nothing to do with that promise from coming to pass. It's not up to people. It's up to God. And that's just what they told my mother. Back in 1981, cancer of the liver, a few weeks to live. My mother, she fought the good fight of faith. It was difficult. She didn't feel well, but she kept pressing through.

The harder it got, the more she realized, the closer she was to giving birth to that miracle. It didn't happen overnight, but little by little, God intervened. Today, she's perfectly healthy and whole. 26 years later, don't allow the opposition and the tough times to cause you to get discouraged. Just see it as another contraction. I'm pushing this baby out. It's getting a little bit closer. Well, it finally came time for Mary to have her baby, but isn't it interesting? The

scripture says there was no room for her in the end. In today's language, there was no hospital available, no clinic that had any space, no hotel, not even a home. But Mary was so full of that promise, she knew great things could be birthed outside the system. She basically went to a barn. With the other animals, she gave birth to the son of the living God. You may feel like sometimes in life that the system is shutting you out. You work so hard, but you didn't get the promotion you deserved. You got overlooked. Or a good friend betrayed you. Did you wrong? That's how Mary must have felt. But God said, Mary, don't worry about it. I'm still in control. They don't have to let my son in. I'll go outside the system and you can still give birth to that baby. When it comes time for

your promise to be born, all the forces of darkness cannot stop. it from coming. The system may not let you in, but God will go outside the system and still bring it to pass. Sometimes the system is too small for your dream. Sometimes God has to move you away from the people you're around because they're limiting you. Maybe a little uncomfortable. You may not like it, but God knows he has to get you out of that narrow-minded environment so you can give birth to the great things he's put in your heart. You may not be birth in a baby, but you're birth in a dream, birth in a vision, birth in a ministry, birth in a business. Be willing to get outside your system. It may be too small. That's what happened to us. A few years back, we were looking for property to build a new sanctuary on,

and I did the normal thing, went out and tried to find a place close to our other location. We needed 100 acres to accommodate all the parking, and after some time, we found two tracks of land, but both times that property was sold right out from under us. It looked like the system was shutting us out. There were no more big tracks of land, not in close in a big city like Houston. I was very discouraged. I said, God, I know you put bigger things in my heart. I know we're not supposed to stay here and turn people away, but it looked like we had hit a dead end. It looked like there were no more options, but no, God still had a plan. Even though the system shut us out, God went outside the system. He did something outside of the ordinary. It was about six months after that that I got worded at this place. The former compact center was coming available. My first thought was, that's a sports arena. That's not a church. We can't do that. It's out of the norm. I had to enlarge my vision. I had to make room for it in my thinking. I had to conceive it in my heart. When I finally did that, I thought, how much money is that place going to cost?

That's the city's premier facility. It's on the main freeway. Even if they were to sell it to us, how could we possibly afford it? All these doubts were filling my mind. I was tempted to give up before we even started. I was saying like Mary, how can this be? It's never happened before. But instead of staying in my little box with that narrow-minded thinking, I said, okay, God, if you say it can happen, I'm going to get on board. Be it unto me even as you have said. And it's interesting to build a new facility like this from the ground up would cost $400 million. We ended up getting this place for $12 million. The land alone is worth more than that.

God went outside the system and he did more than we could even ask or think. You may feel like today that the system is shutting you out. One door after another keeps closing. that I found sometimes God closes doors because we're thinking too small. It's not that it's not going to happen, but when God does it, it's going to be bigger and better and greater than you've even ever imagined. When you look at your situation today, in your finances, in your relationships, maybe in your health, it's tempting to say, Joel, I don't see how it can happen.

Medical science has told me there's nothing more they can do for me. No, God is saying, I can go outside the system. I can heal you without taking the treatment. I can give you a loan without the banker that you're counting on. I can give you a sports arena when you're looking for an empty piece of property. The system does not set the limits. You may have a dream in your heart that's bigger than your finances. It's bigger than your education, bigger than anything that your family has ever done. And it's easy to think, well, I don't have the expertise. I don't have the connections. I don't have the right people behind me. No, it may be bigger than your system, but be encouraged today. God specializes in going outside the system and doing

extraordinary things. You may not have the right connections, but you and God are a majority. Your dream is not dependent on other people. When it gets difficult, when you're uncomfortable, remember, that's just another contraction. You're getting closer to give birth to that baby. stay in faith. God loves to take ordinary people and use them to do extraordinary things. You have not seen your best days yet. God is about to propel you into new levels. He's going to take you places that you've never even thought possible. I declare over each one of you that every dream, every desire, every promise, I'll say it for all of us. God, be it under us, even as you have said. You will see that come to pass. Amen. Do you receive it 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, come into my heart. Make me clean. I make you my Lord and Savior.

Amen. Well, 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 even dreamed of. Are you in a situation where you feel lost, afraid, hopeless, where there seems to be no solutions, no answers, no way out. It's time for your turnaround. We all face situations that look like they'll never change. It's easy to get discouraged. I'd love to send you my book, Turnaround, How God Can Take You from a Setback to a Comeback, where you'll discover how God can turn sickness into health, lack into abundance, addictions into freedom.

It'll inspire you to keep believing and have an expectancy for things to turn in your favor. Recent weeks, we've been celebrating the incredible life of my mother. Her miraculous turnaround story of overcoming terminal cancer over 40 years ago, it's a testimony of the power of God's promises. Just because you don't see a way doesn't mean God doesn't have a way. Stay in faith, your turnaround is on the way. Our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount this month, we would like to send you a copy of Joel's brand new book, Turnaround, how God can take you from setback to comeback.

Through biblical examples, real-life applications, and practical encouragement, you'll learn to see challenges through a faith-filled perspective. Each section highlights a faith turnaround point to help you see a positive change in your life. As you meditate on His promises, You'll begin to see your greatest challenges turn around. These power-packed life-transforming stories will shift your mindset, strengthen your faith, and turn your trials into triumphs. Request your copy today and see the turnaround and breakthrough you've been waiting for. God won't let you get in a problem that he can't bring you out of.

There are turnarounds in your future. Thanks so much for being with us today. Victoria and I pray for you and your family. We sure appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity is helping bring hope to people around the world. Special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners for your monthly gifts. If you're not a partner, I hope you'll consider the coming one. Remember, you can watch the services online every Sunday morning.

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