Joel Osteen Podcast - Investing In People | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: February 1, 2024

The best legacy we can leave behind is our investment into others. When you make time to invest in those around you, you're creating influence that will last for generations. 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 visitJoelOsteen.com/GiveHope.You are not average, not ordinary. You Are a Masterpiece created in God’s image. Our February offer has extraordinary promises of God to give you mental, physical, and spiritual strength. Grow stronger each day seeing yourself the way God sees you!Request your copy now, https://bit.ly/490TjEF.   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 so much for listening to the podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. We believe you're going to have an awesome 2024, healthy, productive, and favor filled. God bless you today and enjoy the message. Well, God bless you. It's always our joy to come into your homes. We love you and we know God has great things in store for each one of you. If you're ever in our area, I hope you'll stop by and be a part of Lakewood. I say it often, but these are the finest people in all of Houston right here at Lakewood. So come on out whenever you can. I like to start with something funny. I heard about this hillbilly family that had never left their small town, never watched television, never listened to the radio. One day they decided to

take a vacation to New York City. The first day the father took his son to see a famous skyscraper. They were so impressed. They were especially intrigued by the elevator. They didn't know what it was. They saw this very old woman walk up and punched the button. All of a sudden the walls opened up. She stepped into this small room and the walls closed back up. They sat there contemplating what they had just seen. About that time, the walls opened back up and outstepped a beautiful 24-year-old woman. Almost in disbelief, the son said, Dad, what just happened?

The dad said, I don't know, son, but go get your mother. 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 investing in people. When we hear the word invest, we often think of investing in the stock market, investing in real estate, investing for retirement. And that's good, but all of those investments will eventually fade away. The only investments that are going to last is our investments in other people. And we are all leaving a legacy, either intentional or unintentional. When it's unintentional, we just live life and wait to stay. see what's going to happen. But when it's intentional, we're constantly looking for ways that we can

invest in somebody else. Lou Holtz, the famous football coach, said, when I die, my accomplishments will eventually be forgotten. But what I've invested in my players will continue to live on. The best legacy is not what we leave for people, it's what we leave in people. We all have things that we've learned, skills, talents, life experiences, wisdom. You have a wealth of knowledge that God has entrusted you with. You are not supposed to keep that to yourself. You should be passing that on to somebody else. We have a responsibility to transfer what we know to the next generation. Are you taking time to invest in your children? Are you mentoring someone? Are you training that coworker teaching them the skills

you've learned? Are you sharing your wisdom, your experience, your insight with a neighbor, a friend, a young person, so they don't make the same mistakes that you made? God expects us to impart to others. And friends, you and I have an opportunity

to leave a mark that cannot be erased. Yes, eventually we're all going to die, but when you invest in somebody else, you will continue to live on. You Your life can have influence for generations to come if you will take time to invest in people. You remember the story Jesus told about the talents.

Two of the men took their talents and went out and multiplied them. The master was very pleased. But this third man buried his talent in the ground. You could say he took his talent to the grave. He didn't share it with anyone. He didn't multiply it. He just lived to himself. Luke 1922, the master calls him an unfaithful servant.

And when we're not taking time to share what we know, we're not mentoring, training, teaching, developing, modeling, then we are not being faithful with what God has given us. The next generation should not have to start over. They shouldn't have to relearn what you've already learned. You should be pouring everything you know into your children. children into a young person, into that co-worker that's under you at the office. Well, you say, Joel, I'm busy. That takes a lot of time. I'm trying to reach my own goals. No, when you help others accomplish their dreams, God will help you accomplish your dreams.

He'll multiply your time. He'll multiply your talents. He'll make sure that you rise higher. And I've discovered you never stand taller than when you reach down and help somebody else seed. When you add value to others, you are adding value to yourself. Don't go to your grave with your talent buried. Find somebody to share it with. After all, none of us got to where we are by ourselves. From the moment we were born, somebody was investing in us. Somebody was sharing their gift. The doctor that delivered you. The nurse that wrapped you up. The mother that loved you. The Sunday school teacher that trained you, the coach that taught you, the neighbor that befriended you, the boss that gave you a good break. None of us got to where we are on our own. Somebody took time

to train us. Somebody sacrificed so we could succeed. Now, our job is to reach back and help someone else succeed. I think about all the people that have invested in me. My grandfather was very disciplined. and he had a very strong work ethic. He taught me by example the importance of being diligent and giving every job my very best. My grandmother, she was so full of joy, I never saw her upset. She constantly had a song of praise coming up out of her heart. And she is a big part of who I am today. She's one of the main reasons why I smile practically all the time. I can still remember my basketball coach in seventh grade, I was the smallest player on the team. One day I was in the hallway at school with all of my friends and he called me over. He's a big gruff guy, never showed

much emotion. He looked me in the eyes and he said, Joel, it's not the size of the person that matters. It's the size of their heart. And let me tell you, you have a big heart. You're going to do great this year. When he said that, it was like I turned into Michael Jordan. That did more for my confidence, more for my self-esteem than he could ever imagine. What was he doing? Investing in me. If you could see all the people that have made me into who I am today, the line would be 100 yards long. Parents, grandparents, coaches, Sunday school teachers, aunts, uncles, relatives. Even my brother Paul. He has taught me by example what not to wear, how not to play sports.

Paul's invested in me. Growing up, my mother not only loved and cared for us children, but every day before we left for school, she would say, Father, thank you that my children have your favor wherever they go. I learned to expect God's favor

from my mother. You know what I'm doing today? Telling other people to believe for God's favor. I'm not going to take the gift that she gave me and bury it. I'm going to pass it on to my children, my friends, my colleagues, my associates. My father was constantly telling me how great he thought I was and how I could do anything. He took time to mentor me. He was busy, but he gave me his attention. As a little boy, he used to go up to the hospital to visit people

that were sick. He would always take me with him. He had me join hands with the family when we prayed. As a teenager, I would come down to the church during the summer and sit in meetings with him at the office. Half the time, I didn't know what was going on, but on the way home, he'd always explain it. Joel, this is what we were doing. This is the reason we were doing it. He didn't have to. He had a lot going on, but he understood this principle, that he had a responsibility to pass on everything he possibly could. It's kind of funny. My father knew nothing about mechanics. and how things operated. That wasn't one of his strengths.

And one day our back doorknob, the whole unit messed up. So we went to the hardware store and bought a new one. I was about 12 years old and I was there trying to help him get the new one on and my father worked and worked and he couldn't get the old one off and he had the hammer and he was beating that doorknob.

And we ended up using kitchen utensils, knives, fork, spatula. Finally, after about two hours, Daddy got that new doork, that whole unit on, he was so proud. He said, Joel, I told you if you just stick with it, you'll get it done. He went to slam it and to shut it, to show me how it worked. And when he did, that doorknob hit the wood frame, it chipped the trim, bounced back open.

He had put the whole thing on totally backwards. But what I appreciated about my father is he did his best to teach me everything he knew. And even sometimes things he didn't know. But I'm constantly telling my children, you're not only getting everything I have, not only everything I know, but you're getting everything granddaddy imparted into me, everything grandmother gave me. They put it in, and I'm going to do my best to pour it into you. Think about how high our children would go if we would all live like this. This is the way it's supposed to be. Every generation should build on the next.

My children shouldn't have the same struggles that I've struggled with. They're starting at a higher level. There's more wisdom, more depth, more experience in our family line. They should take what I know and run with it. The only way this is going to happen is if we are taking time to invest. We have to transfer what we know into them. And really, I believe this is the best inheritance we can leave them. Not leaving something for them, but leaving something in them.

Don't get me wrong. I'm all for leaving resources, but that's not all I'm going to leave. I'm going to make sure I teach them everything I know about life, about ministry, about marriage, business, economics, anything I know I'm going to pour it into them. My prayer and my declaration for all of our children is that they are going to start where we finish and God's going to take them places we've never even dreamed of. Our children are going to be mighty in the land. But so often today, instead of investing in our children and giving them the attention they need,

we give them activities. We're running them here and there, taking them to this activity and got to get them back to this special function and then to this other activity. It's like we're running a bus service. And we sit back and watch them play sports and watch them do ballet, watch them in the school play. And that's fine. I've played a lot of sports. But if we're not careful, we will substitute activity for attention. Understand your children need you more than they need another activity. Studies tell us by the age of five, our children have already developed their sense of reasoning. By the age of 12, 95% of who they are and what they believe has already been established. Don't let the television be a babysitter for your children.

Don't allow sports, ballet and band to take the time from you spending with them and you imparting into them. Well, you say, Joel, I really wanted to hear about my dreams today, not somebody else says, no, your dreams are connected to other people. If you will help someone else rise higher, God will help you to rise higher. Take time to invest in others. Share what you know. even in simple things, I think about how in Victoria's family, they've had a special recipe that's been in the family line for four or five generations. It's called Senator Russell's sweet potatoes. They are the best sweet potatoes in the world. They've got a crust of cinnamon and sugar and nuts. We don't even like the sweet potatoes. We just like the crust. But what happened is

generations back, somebody came up with that great recipe. They cut a fall. this is my special dish. I'm just going to keep it to myself. No, they were living with this mindset. I've got to pass down everything good I possibly can. So one day that mother taught her daughter the recipe and that daughter taught her daughter. Eventually it got down to Georgine, my mother-in-law. She taught her daughter Victoria. Now every Thanksgiving, Victoria and our daughter are in the kitchen making Senator Russell's sweet potatoes. Let me ask you, are you transversive. Are you transferring your wisdom, your experiences, your shortcuts, your recipes down to the next generation so they can start ahead of you? Do you have skills and gifts that you're just keeping to

yourself? You're kind of taking that for granted? No, pass them down. Just the other day, I was talking to our son, Jonathan. He's 14, about how to prepare a message and how to study and how to communicate. I thought, I've been doing this for 10 years. I want to make sure he at least knows what I know. You may think, well, Joel, I don't have any special expertise. I don't know that much. Sure you do. You know about life. You know what works and what doesn't. You know the mistakes you've made and what you've learned from it. You have experience. You have skills. Many times what we take for granted is a big deal to someone else. Remember this older lady that used to come to Lakewood. Now she's since gone to be with the Lord. She wasn't very wealthy. She's, she's a very wealthy.

She didn't have a quote, expertise. Not many people would consider her to be very successful, but she was an expert in one thing. This lady knew how to pray. She used to come to the services early, sit in her chair and pray. I was eight or nine years old, and when she would see me walking through the auditorium, she would call me over and say, Joel, come over and let me pray for you.

I'd sit there for three or four minutes, and she would pray God's blessings, God's favor, God's wisdom, God's victory in my life. That lady not only taught me how to pray, but she modeled for me the importance of reaching out to others and speaking faith into their lives. She didn't have to call me over. In fact, I never wanted to go.

It embarrassed me. I wanted to be out playing with my friends. I tried to avoid that. But invariably, she would seek me out. Joel, come over and just give me five minutes. I'd walk over toward her like I was so excited. Down deep, I was thinking, why did I come this way? Not again.

But all that time, even subconsciously, I was taking it in. It was being ingrained in me. Reach out to others. Speak faith into their lives. She never prayed fancy prayers. She never prayed anything super spiritual. She just said, God, give Joel wisdom. Help him to fulfill his destiny for his life.

life. What's my point? She had a gift. She had a skill. No, she wasn't a computer expert. She wasn't a master mechanic. She wasn't a medical doctor, but she was a prayer warrior. And I don't know if that lady had children of her own, but I know this today. She is living on on the inside of me. Every time I get up and speak faith into people, a part of her is alive. She put something in me. She didn't have to. could have prayed at home. She could have prayed silently, but she took time to invest in others. What do you have that you could be passing on? Maybe a great gift. Maybe you're skilled in the arts and music, communication in sales. Pass it on to somebody else. Maybe your gift is what you'd consider to be something more simple like this lady. You've got a gift of kindness.

You're an excellent mother. You're a skilled cook. You're an expert when it comes to of fixing things. Instill those qualities in those around you. Take time to share what you know. I was in the grocery store a while back and I noticed how they now have something called seedless fruit. You can buy an orange without any seeds. We've eaten at our home many times, seedless watermelon. It's not natural. It's been organically altered. And it's nice to eat because you don't have to worry about the seeds. I won't have to worry about swallowing anything. But the fact is, without the seeds, the fruit cannot reproduce. Once you eat it, it's gone. The life is over. You know how a normal orange, if you ate it, you could take the seeds and plant them in the ground

and a certain amount of time, you would have dozens and dozens more oranges. It would continue to live on, continue to perpetuate. That's the way God designed it. The problem with many people today is like this organically altered fruit is they are living seedless lives. Yes, they look successful. Yes, they're accomplishing their dreams, but they're not sharing what they know with anyone else. They're just living to themselves. When their time is over, because they haven't sown any of these seeds, they won't continue to live on. They may leave a mark, but it will be quickly forgotten. I was reading about a young boy that was growing up in Ghana, West Africa. He was extremely poor. And at 16 years old, he decided to leave home, determined to find some way to help better his people. Seven years later,

he returned back to his village. The people were so excited. They saw him coming down the road, ran out to meet him. They were sure that he had brought wealth, riches, and abundance. They said to him, show us what you brought. Without saying a word, he reached. into his pocket and pulled out three tiny seeds. They looked at him confused. They said, is this all you brought us? You've been gone seven years. This is it. He planted those seeds in the ground. Not long after that, Ghana had its first cocoa plants. They multiplied and multiplied. Today, many years later, cocoa is one of the major products in Ghana. That young man left a mark that cannot be erased. do it by planting three simple seeds. Friends, you and I have the same opportunity.

When you live your life planting seeds in others, imparting what you know, your skills, your wisdom, your love, your kindness, your encouragement, then as that seed takes root, it'll grow. That person will touch another person, and that person another on and on. Before long, your life will be influencing thousands of people, even long after you've gone. What happened? Because you took time to invest in others, you will continue to live on. My grandmother is living on today through me. That coach that spoke faith into me, he's living on through me. Now I'm asking you to not live a seedless life. That orange without seeds, it may taste good for a moment while it lasts, but once it's gone, it's over. The

pleasure is far too temporary. It's the same way in life. When we live without mentoring, training, teaching, modeling, we may have some success, but it's very short compared to what God had in store. When you reach out and touch others and they touch more people, all that's accumulated to your account. One day you'll look up and hear God say, you left a mark that cannot be erased. You sowed so many seeds that three generations later, four generations, five generations, people are still being influenced by your life. And every one of us should have a project, someone that we've taken under our wing. We're encouraging them. We're teaching them our skills. We're giving them our advice. Should start with our own children or another young person, a co-worker at the office.

They could easily make it to the next level. They just need a little mentoring, a little training, take time to invest. I've heard it said, there is no greater occupation than in helping someone else succeed. 1932, a baby was born to an unwed mother. Six weeks later, he was

adopted by this loving couple. The age of five, this adopted mother suddenly died. For the next 10 years, the little boy with his father traveled the country searching for work for the father. The little boy told how growing up, his favorite thing to do was go out to eat and watch the other families sitting

together, enjoying each other. He became fascinated with restaurants and he began to study the menus and how everything worked. At the age of 15, the owner of a local restaurant gave him a job. This man took him under his wing and he began to teach him everything he knew about the restaurant business. At 18, the young man got drafted. After serving our country for four years, he came back home, and once again, that gentleman gave him a job. This time, he put him in charge of four of his restaurants. They continued to flourish. In 1969, that gentleman sold his business, and this young man decided to take everything he had learned and start his own restaurant. He called it Wendy's old-fashioned hamburgers. Today, there are over

6,000 Wendy's, and the owner, the late Dave Thomas, is still one of the most beloved and endeared people in all of America. Mr. Thomas gave millions and millions to charities. He started numerous foundations to help adoption agencies, children learn skills, mentoring programs, on and on. Dave Thomas made a huge difference with his life, but it would have never happened if that loving couple had not adopted him, and if that restaurant owner had not taken time to mentor him, to train him, to teach him his skills, to show him his shortcuts, to impart into a young man. They didn't leave

something for Dave Thomas, they left something in Dave Thomas. By investing in this young man, they left a mark that will not be erased. Look around. Is there a someone in your life that you could easily take under your wing, you could mentor them, you could teach them your skills, you could speak faith into them. There is no greater giving than the giving of yourself. It's great to give money, that's important, but when you give yourself, your time, your energy, your advice, that is the ultimate gift. Now I've learned this. the greater the giving, the greater the living. You will never be more fulfilled than when you're making a difference in somebody else's life.

I have a good friend that was raised in a very dysfunctional home. Her father was never around. Her mother had plenty of problems on her own. At the age of 16, she was basically raising her younger brother. The mother was not responsible and never at home. This young lady was just crying out for help on the inside. one day a friend at school mentioned that her father owned a small store and maybe he would give her a job. She went and applied him. This man not only

gave her a job, but he began to watch after her like she was his very own daughter. He would make sure she would change the oil in her car at the right time. Make sure she was doing okay in school. Make sure she could balance the checkbook. He didn't realize it, but

he was the father figure that she had so long for. Years later, when the young lady went to get married, the father was still not around. You know who she chose to give her away at the wedding, the man from the small store. He took time to make a difference. He shared what he knew. He didn't take for granted simple things like knowing when to change the oil in a car. And today, I'm benefiting because this young lady is healthy and whole. Her friendship, her encouragement has made my life better. man invested in her, she invested in me, and now I'm investing in others. He made a mark

that cannot be erased. My challenge to you today is don't live a seedless life. Take time to share what you know. Mentor someone. Teach your skills. Invest in others. Friends, we're all leaving a legacy. Let's make sure it's an intentional legacy. Remember, we didn't get to where we are on our own, somebody invested in us. Now make it a goal to invest in someone else. You can leave a mark that cannot be erased. If you will take time to invest in people, mentoring, teaching, training, modeling, then those seeds that you sow will be multiplied back to you. God will make sure you rise higher. He'll make sure you accomplish your dreams, you overcome your obstacles. I believe and declare you will live that life of victory

that he has in store. 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. 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 you've never dreamed of. Breatthaking. That's what you feel when you look out at majestic mountain peaks. Yes, God's creation truly is a masterpiece. But even as you consider his handiwork, you might also feel less that, not good enough, or not valuable. The image before you is incredible, but the confidence inside is lacking.

How do you overcome this? The opinion you have of yourself is your most important opinion. Too often we see ourselves as ordinary, not talented, unattractive. That wrong self-image is setting the limits for our life. The key is to get an agreement with who God says you are. He calls you a masterpiece, strong, talented, valuable. If you'll have the right image of yourself, you'll rise higher and become who you were created to be. We have a new resource that will help you do just that.

It's called You Are a Masterpiece. It's filled with inspiration and incredible. that will remind you who you really are. Gifted, chosen, approved. It will help you get rid of the wrong self-image and start seeing yourself as the masterpiece God created you to be. Azar thank you for your gift of any amount

to the ministry this month. We want to send you Joel's inspiring new book. You are a masterpiece. God made you unique with a divine purpose and a bright future. As these truths sink down in your spirit, the majesty of God's glory will arise within you. Yes, God has breathed his life into you.

He approved you, equipped you, empowered you. Stop believing the lies about you and start hearing what God says about you. Thanks so much for being a part of the ministry. Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day. Believing it's going to be a favor-filled 2024. We appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity is impacting. people around the world. Remember, you can watch the services live online Sunday mornings, see all the

music and ministry. Download our daily podcast. Until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of the You Were a Masterpiece Today. Visit joelowstein.com.