Joel Osteen Podcast - Getting Prepared For Promotion | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: October 27, 2023

It’s natural to want change when things aren't going our way. But sometimes before we can see promotion, we have to pass through a test. If you’ll stay in faith and do the right thing, at the right time, God will promote you. Your best days are still ahead, and together we can make a difference in this world with the message of God's hope and love.To give visit JoelOsteen.com/GiveHope 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.

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. God bless you. It's a joy to come into your home. I say it often, but we come with good news. We know God rewards people that seek after him, and I believe that's you or you wouldn't be tuned in today.

But thank you for tuning in. If you're ever in our area, I hope you'll stop by and see us. We'll make you feel right at home. These are the finest people in all of Houston right here at Lakewood. So come by and see you sometime. But thank you again for tuning in. I like to start each week with something kind of funny. And of course, y'all know these are just jokes, so don't write me a letter, all right?

A couple celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary had never had an argument. And they were asked about the secret of their success. The man explained, as they were leaving the church on their honeymoon, the wife's horse refused to go. She got off, looked him in the eyes, and said, that's one. He went a little further and stopped again. She got off and said, that's two. He went a little more, but once again, he stopped. This time she got off, pulled out her revolver, and shot the horse dead.

The husband was appalled. He said, what do you think you're doing? You can't just shoot an animal. She looked him in the eyes and said, honey, that's one. They never had an argument after that. All right, hold of your Bible. Say it with me. Ready?

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. I am about to receive the incorruptible,

indestructible, ever-living seed of the Word of God. I'll never be the same, never, never, never, never, I'll never be the same in Jesus' name. God bless you. We've been talking about being our very best right where we are and how we need to be productive in spite of our adversities. When you're in a difficult situation and something's going on that you don't like,

very often that is simply a test of your faith. And the key to coming out is to just stay right where you are with a good attitude until God changes things. You have to stay under what God has you under until he releases you. And we all have times where we're not getting our way or somebody's mistreating us

or we're kind of uncomfortable. And the easy thing is to just run from it. The easy thing is to say, well, I'm out of here. I don't have to put up with this boss. I'll go find me another job. I don't have to put up with this marriage. He's not treating me right. Or I'm not going to work in this children's ministry.

Nobody ever appreciates me. No, those are all test of your faith. And you cannot just run from everything that's difficult. You've got to stay under where God has you until he releases you. And if you'll do that, God will not only bring you out, he'll bring you out with the promotion. He'll bring you out better off than you were before. And the scripture says here in 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 6, to humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. And in due time, he will exalt you. Notice what will happen if we'll just swallow our pride and do the right thing, even though the

wrong things happening. Then God promises in due season he will exalt us. He will promote us. But human nature is to run from everything that makes us uncomfortable, to leave a marriage that's difficult, to get out of a job where we're not being treated right, or even just to avoid a person in our life that kind of irritates us. Well, bless God, I don't have to put up with you. I'm a child of God. I'm out of here. But really, our attitude should be, God, I'm going to humble myself under your mighty hand. I may not understand all that's going on in my life, but God, I do know this. You're big enough to bring me out of this difficulty. And at the right time, after I've passed the test, after you've done the work in me, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you're going

to bring me out better off than I was before. See, God exalts the humble in due time. And humility almost always means we're going to have to come under some kind of authority or some kind a situation that we don't like and we're not getting our way. And isn't the natural, we're going to just want to do our best to try to get out of there. But understand, you cannot just pray away everything uncomfortable in your life. And so often when times get tough, we pray, we resist, we rebuke, then we get kind of frustrated because we don't see anything changing. But the truth is, sometimes God allows us to go through a difficulty in order to do a work in us. That's when we grow. That's when our character is really being developed. We don't grow when

everything's easy. We don't grow when we're always getting our way. We grow in the tough times. That's when we're being stretched. That's when God is doing a work in us. If you're ever going to get promoted, you have to first pass the test. You have to stay where you are with a good attitude and just keep being your best day in and day out, even though you don't see anything getting better. You have to humble yourself under God's mighty hand, knowing that at the right time he's going change things. But in the meantime, he's doing a work in you. He's going to get some good out of that.

And if you're in tough times today, you need to just recognize that's an opportunity to come up higher. That's God trying to promote you. And no, God doesn't necessarily send the trouble, but he will use it. And the fact is, before promotion, there will always be some kind of testing. And the good news is God will never allow you to be at a certain place, even if it's unfair, even if it's difficult, without giving you the strength and the ability to be there with a good attitude. God will always give you the help you need. I have this friend that pastors a church in another state, and he had really been praying and believing for years for his church to grow.

And he did everything he possibly could do, but it seemed like they were stuck. They had leveled off with a couple hundred people. Nothing wrong with that, but he had a much bigger vision in his heart. And that whole time he did his best not to get discouraged. He just kept giving it all he had day in and day out. But one day he and his family moved to another house in that same area. And so now every time he goes to his church, the only way to get there was to pass by one of the largest churches in the area.

And so not only would he see the beautiful campus and all the success they were having, but on Sunday mornings he would get six. stuck in their traffic. And he'd have to sit there and wait and wait and fight through the cars and thousands of people going to this other church just so he could get to his church and preach to a few hundred people. I mean, it was like rubbing salt on the wound. And he told how he was so tempted to thank God, this just didn't fair. Why don't you have a few hundred of these people come to my church? That's all I'm asking for. I mean, you talk about a test of his faith.

But no, this young man made a decision that he was just going to keep a good attitude. When he drove there on Sundays, instead of complaining, instead of getting sour, he just humbled himself. And he said, Father, I pray that you bless this church. Bless the pastor. Increased them, give them even more. And he did that faithfully month after month, even for several years. And this whole time,

his church didn't grow one bit. He didn't see anything getting better, but he just kept on blessing them. See, that was a time of testing in his life. Before promotion, there's going to be a test. And, Unfortunately, he just kept passing that test. He didn't get bitter. He didn't let it steal his joy.

He just stayed under where God had him with a good attitude. And do you know one day, for no apparent reason, his church took off. I mean, month after month, they got bigger and bigger. And today, he too is preaching to thousands. He's seeing those dreams come to pass. But my point is, we have to be faithful right where we are and keep a good attitude even when it doesn't seem fair. even when we don't see anything happening.

And another important thing is don't ever be jealous of other people's successes. If you are jealous, you will never get to where God wants you to be. Well, Joel, I just don't understand it. I deserve it more than they do. Well, maybe that's true, but have you ever thought about that could be a test of your faith? And don't be surprised if you're believing for something to change in your life, something to improve, that if four or five of your friends don't show up and have the exact same thing that you were believing for.

I talked to a man the other day, and he had been really standing in faith that God would bring the right person into his life. He really wanted to get married. And so he told me how he had been praying and believing and confessing 10 or 12 years. But a good friend of his that had just been praying for like six months

had just met somebody beautiful and they fell in love and they're about to get married. He was so down. He said, Joe, I don't understand it. It's just not fair. I said, no, listen, whatever you do, be happy for him. rejoice with him.

Nothing will keep our dreams from coming to pass any quicker than being jealous of somebody else's success. Well, Joel, they got the promotion that I was praying for and they don't even go to church. I don't understand that. Or Joel, they just bought a brand new house and they don't even give in the offering. I know, I'll watch them. No, first thing is quit being so nosy. The second thing is quit comparing your situation and learn to be happy for other people's successes. That's the only way you'll ever go up higher.

You have to pass that test. I know this lady that was saving up for a certain kind of coat. This was many years ago, and they didn't have much money, and she saw this real nice, long coat in a magazine. And so she had been really saving her money and doing everything she could to purchase that coat one day. And she had this neighbor that lived across the street that she didn't particularly care for.

This lady was a little more well-off, and she kind of liked to flaunt everything that she had. And one day, out of the clear blue, the neighbor rang her doorbell, and when she opened up the door, lo and behold, she was wearing the exact coat she'd been saving up for. And this neighbor knew nothing about it, and she was so excited, and she kind of twirled around and around. She said, look, you hear what my mother just bought me, kind of modeling it. And man, this lady, she had to bite her tongue. She said, oh, yeah, that's kind of beautiful.

But she said, in the back of her mind, she was thinking, I wanted to rip that coat off of her. She went inside and slammed the door, and she said, God, that is not fair. I pray, I believe, I go to church, I save my money, when is anything good ever going to happen to me? And she said God spoke to her right down in here and he said, as soon as you quit being so jealous, as soon as you get happy for other success. See, we got to pass the test. We got to stay under what God has us under with a good attitude. And there are going to be plenty of times in life where we just got to swallow our pride and say, you know what, I don't understand this, but I'm not going to be jealous.

I'm not going to be critical. I'm not going to get upset. Even if I never get what I want, I'm going to keep a good attitude and just keep being my very best. That's what it means to pass the test. That's when God can promote us. I was thinking about this young lady that I know. One time she went through a very bitter divorce. It's a very dark time in her life.

And every day, on her way to work, she had to drive by the home of her ex-husband. And she tried moving. She tried getting another job. It just didn't work out. And so every day, she had to pass by that place. But see, that was a test of her faith. Was she going to get angry? Was she going to blame God?

Was she going to just relive all the hurts and pains? Or was she going to let it go and just move on with her life? And don't you know God could have opened up another path? God could have moved her ex-husband. God could have given her a job in another city? I mean, after all, he's God. But no, that was a time of testing. And she had to stay under where God had her

and pass that test before she could get promoted. And she did exactly that. And today she's seeing great things with her life. Well, what are you up against today? Maybe you're dealing with a situation that seems unfair and you've been there for a long time and now you're starting to get a little bit discouraged. I'd challenge you to just make a decision

that you're going to stay right where you are with a good attitude until God turns it around. Let God be your vindicator. And sometimes even with a sickness or even with a major problem, we let it totally consume us. And we spend every minute, at praying, believe, and resisting.

But I really believe a better way is to simply say, God, my life is in your hands. I know nothing's too difficult for you. And at the right time, you're going to turn this around. But in the meantime, I'm going to keep living my best life. I'm going to keep being good to people. I'm going to have a smile on my face.

I'm going to have a grateful attitude in spite of these adversities. See, you shouldn't always be fighting on the inside, upset about this, worried about that, discouraged because it's taken so long. Now, why don't you just relax and stay under where God has you until he changes things? And always remember this. God created the whole universe.

He can turn any situation around in a split second of time. There's no sickness too big, no obstacle too high, no circumstance too difficult. God is well able. We simply have to do our part and get prepared for that promotion. Let me ask you today, are you passing the test in your life? Are you keeping a good attitude even though you're not getting your way? Are you staying under the authority God has you under? By that, I mean, are you respecting your boss,

respecting your parents, respecting your spouse, respecting your leaders? I know when I worked here with my father for those 17 years, I was in charge of the television ministry, and that was my passion. I loved production. I love doing big events and concerts and live TV specials. I had a lot of ideas that I was. wanted to try and just had a heart to see the church really grow. But toward the end of my father's life, he didn't want to do much of that anymore. And one time I had all these radio stations lined up

to carry our broadcast. I'd done a whole lot of work. I went to my father and said, Daddy, if you'll come down maybe once a week for just an hour, we can make these openings and closings, and this will go out all over the world. And I'll never forget what my father said. He said, Joel, I don't want to do that. I'm 75 years old, and I'm not looking for any more work. I just want to relax and enjoy my life and pastor this church. Man, I was kind of disappointed. I thought here I'm young. I've got big dreams.

I don't want to do less. I want to do more. I thought maybe I should just go out and do my own thing. Maybe I should go get a job somewhere else. No, I made a decision that day that I was going to stay under where God had me. Even though I wasn't getting my way, I knew this was where I was supposed to be. And I thought, after all, this is my father's vision. He spent 40 years building this place faithfully with God's help,

and I need to honor my father by doing what he wants and not by doing what I want. And in the natural, you know, I could have gotten discouraged. I could have just slacked off and kind of, you know, did as little as I could to get by. But, no, I'll tell you, I kept doing my very best day in and day out. Well, a couple of years later, Daddy went to be with the Lord, and I never dreamed that I would be up here. I never dreamed I'd be the pastor and I would be in charge. But looking back now, I realize God put those desires in my heart for my own ministry.

It just wasn't the right time. And had I not been faithful and stayed under that authority and just kept a good attitude and honored my father, I don't know if I would be standing here today. You have to pass the test before you'll ever get promoted. And one of the test is humbling yourself and staying where you know you're supposed to be even when you're not getting your way, even when it's not exciting, even when you don't see your dreams come into pass. And so often, you know, we like to run from everything that's difficult, but I'm convinced many times all we're doing is keeping God from promoting us. And I'm not saying we

should never leave. Of course not. I'm just talking today about not running from things that are hard in your life. Don't leave a marriage because your spouse is not perfect. If that was the case, we'd all leave. Don't leave a church because you didn't get your favorite parking spot or because the preacher preached a bad sermon. We know that doesn't happen around. here, right? Don't leave a job because they didn't take your idea, and now you got your feelings all hurt. No, stick with it. Be faithful day in and day out. Keep passing that test. Think about in our marriages today, the biggest excuse we hear is we're just not compatible. That's the number one reason people get divorced. We just can't get along. But with all due respect,

that is a cop-out. Because really, no two people are compatible. God made us all different on purpose. We are opposites. But have you, have you? you noticed how opposites attract? That other person has what you need. That's why God has brought you together. The whole key is we got to learn to adapt. We got to learn to adjust. We got to go the extra mile. The Bible talks about in marriages how we become one. That doesn't happen on the wedding day. That happens over time. And if you leave that marriage because you're uncomfortable and you're not getting your way and you go get off into another one, there's a good chance you're going to have the same problem. It would be far better to concentrate on making this marriage work than to

run off and just bail out because you think you can't get along. And I know there are exceptions. I don't think we should live under abuse. I don't think that's God's best. But for the most part, people like to take the easy way out thinking that the grass is greener on the other side. But that's not the case. The grass is not greener on the other side. The grass is not even greener on this side. The grass is only greener where you water it. Let me, ask you today, what are you doing to make your marriage better? I'm not asking what your spouse is doing to make you happy. I'm asking, what are you doing to make your marriage work? Are you going the extra mile? Are you being kind and considerate? Are you sowing seeds for change? If you will treat

your spouse differently, if you'll treat him or her better, they'll have to treat you differently. You will elicit a different response. And what I'm saying is don't wait for somebody else to change. You have to change. In that situation with my father, I had to change. Daddy was the boss. I had to stay under his authority. And really, in a marriage, we're all under God's authority. We said at the very beginning, till death do us part, for better or for worse. We made a commitment to each other, and really we made a commitment before God.

Well, are you going to keep your commitments? Husbands, are you going to honor your wife and stick with that woman? Or you're going to take the easy way out because you found somebody else. Or because you want to go party with the guys every night. No, be a real man and stay with that woman. that God has given you. She's given her life for you. She's born your children. She's been with you in the good times and the tough times. Why don't you start overlooking some of those differences? Quit making a mountain out of a molehill. Learn to let go of the unforgiveness.

Learn to swallow your pride and just start treating each other with more respect. If you want your marriage to work badly enough, it can work. But if you make the mistake and just run off and marry somebody else, unfortunately, studies tell us that eight, 80% of second marriages don't work out either. If you're in a second marriage today or a subsequent marriage, we're going to believe that you'll be the exception to the rule, but I'm just challenging each one of us to stick with our marriages. Divorce should not really be an option. Don't ever threaten your spouse with divorce. Don't ever even bring that up. God has brought you together, and what God's brought together, don't let anybody tear apart. And I know it may be uncomfortable.

I know some of you are thinking right now, Joel, if you knew my marriage, I could tell you about my husband, you'd be preaching a whole different sermon. I know it may be difficult, but I also know this. God has given you the grace you need to be right where you are. I said it earlier. God will not allow you to be in a situation without giving you the strength and the ability to stand strong and to overcome it. But this doesn't happen automatically.

We have to dig our heels in and say, you know what, I'm not going to bail out of this marriage. I'm going to stick with it. I'm going to do whatever I can to make it work. I believe some of you today, this can be a turning point in your marriage. If you'll just make up your mind that divorce is not an option, and so I'm going to start doing everything I can to make my marriage work. I'm going to start getting home at a decent hour and spending more time with my family. I'm going to start having a better attitude.

I'm going to start being more help around the house. I'm going to treat people kinder. I'm going to be more considerate. I'm going to be more friendly to my family. See, you hold the key to what kind of relationship you're going to have, not your spouse. You do. And when you do all you can do, you are passing the test. That's when God can bring that relationship up higher. And really, when you think about it, if divorce is not an option, that'll change how you approach your marriage many times. In other words, if you think about

the fact, I'm going to spend the rest of my life with this person, well, I might as well just swallow my pride and do everything I can to make them happy. After all, the happier they are, the happier I'm going to be. You know, as well as I do, it's no fun to live in a home with strife, contention, stressed out, and everybody's at each other's throats. No, it'd be far better to just make a decision and say, you know what, I'm going to quit being so selfish. I'm going to quit doing things that I know irritate them. I'm going to quit pouting when I don't get my way.

I'm going to let go of the past. I'm not going to keep a record of everything they've done to hurt me. I'm going to be the bigger person. And instead, I'm going to do whatever I can to bring out the best in my spouse. That may be difficult, but as I said, you've got to dig your heels in and do it anyway. Even Jesus, when he was about to be crucified, he was very uncomfortable. So much so, he sweat great drops of blood.

But isn't it interesting? He didn't say, oh, God, I don't want to do this anymore. This is too hard. These people aren't treating me right. I've changed my mind. No, he dug his heels in, and he stuck with it. He said, Father, not my will, but your will be done. And husbands and wives, we've made commitments to each other.

Are we going to keep those commitments? Well, you say, Joel, I found somebody else. Now I know I'm going to really be happy, but I don't believe that's the case. I believe those are lies from the enemy. And some people today, they're just playing with fire. They're about to get into a relationship outside their marriage. And listen, we've seen person after person do that, and it ends up practically ruining their life. They lose the respect to their children.

Their home falls apart. And it's all because they wouldn't stay where it was uncomfortable. They just took the easy way out. Now, why don't you spend that same time and effort and energy on your own spouse? As I said, your marriage can work if you want too bad enough if you're willing to do your part. And I'm not saying it's going to be easy. You may have to go get some more counseling than this. All I'm trying to do is light a new fire in you today and say, stick with it.

Don't let the enemy tear you apart. You know God has brought you together. Now you've got to do everything it takes to keep that marriage together. I think about David. One time he was in a very uncomfortable situation. He wasn't being treated right. the prophet Samuel had anointed him to be the next king of Israel. But King Saul was so jealous of him, he was trying to kill him.

Here, David had done nothing wrong. In fact, he had always only honored Saul. He was the one that when Saul was not feeling well, he would bring his harp in and play it, try to console him, try to make him feel better. But in return, Saul paid him back by chasing him through the wilderness, trying to get rid of him.

And so David is running from cave to cave. He's trying to escape Saul's fury. And one night Saul and his men were camped out, sleeping out there in the wilderness, and David's men saw this. And they came running to David. They said, David, here's your big chance. You can put an end to Saul. You can put an end to all this heartache and pain he's been causing you.

But do you know, David wouldn't do it. He knew that Saul was still the king, and he was still under his authority. And even though he wasn't treating him right, he knew he had to honor that authority and respect him anyway. In other words, David stayed under what God had him under. He just kept doing the right thing, kept passing the test. You know the story. One day, God took care of Saul, and David was made the king.

And you too may have a Saul in your life today. Somebody that's not treating you right. A spouse, a boss, a teacher. And you've got a good reason to just bail out of that situation. You could easily justify just walking away. But I'm challenging you to do like David and just stick with it and treat them with respect. anyway. Keep doing the right thing, even though you don't see anything changing. God is watching you.

And as you humble yourself under God's hand, in due season, he will exalt you. He said, Joel, when is due season? When's it going to change? When God knows you're ready? And only God knows that. God could have taken care of Saul many months before. But he must have known, David needed that to be prepared for what he had in store. And so wherever you are today, just make a decision, you're going to be your very best. You're going to be your very best. You're going to keep passing the test, you're going to keep being faithful day in and day out. When you're in tough times, you need to just remind yourself, God is getting me prepared for promotion. I'm coming up higher. Our attitude should be, I'm going to stay under what God has

me under until he's finished with it, until he changes things. So let me challenge you again, stay where you are with a good attitude. Don't be jealous when you see other people being blessed, learn to be happy for their successes. And don't just bail out of a difficult relationship. If you will humble yourself and stay where you know God wants you to be, then you are passing that test. And then at the right time, God promises he will promote you. You'll come up higher and you'll experience the joy, the peace, and the victories that he has in store.

Amen. How many of you receive it today? I know you do. 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 sin.

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. Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast

to keep you encouraged and inspired all through the week. Help us to continue to share the message of hope with those all around the world. Visit Joel Osteen.com or click the link in the description to partner with us today. We hope you'll share this message with a friend and be sure to follow us on social media. We're praying for you. I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you next time.