Joel Osteen Podcast - Osteen Family Christmas | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: December 24, 2022

The Savior is born. Hope has Come! Join us for a special Osteen Family Christmas. Joel, Victoria, and the Osteen family have an inspirational Christmas message to share with 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.

No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if you could unlock insights about your finances in less than five minutes with a clear picture of where you stand today and where your money can work harder? Now you can.

Visit facet.com to take the free quiz and get your financial wellness score today. That's facet.com. This ad is sponsored by Facet Wealth Incorporated is an SEC registered investment advisor. This is not an offer to buy or sell securities, nor is an investment, legal, or tax advice. You're ready for a comeback And with Purdue Global You can do more than take classes You can take charge

Of your story, of your career, of your life Earn a degree you can be proud of And get an education employer's respect It's time, your time Not just to go back to school But to come back and move forward with Purdue Global

Purdue's online university For Working Adults Start your comeback at PurdueGlobal.edu He'll forget about the video game you gave him on his birthday. Wow, thanks, Grandpa. But he'll never forget how you invested in his future with the UNEST app. Wow, thanks, Grandpa.

The UNEST app makes it easy for grandparents and family friends to give funds to a child's investment account for limited time. Download the UNEST app and use the code IHeart50 at sign up to receive a $50 bonus when you fund your account. That's code IHeart50 when you sign up at UNEST.co for a $50 bonus. See terms and conditions at UNES. See you. Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoy 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. Merry Christmas to you and your family. We are so blessed to come into your homes on this Christmas day. Hope you're having a great Christmas season. Have something a little bit different on the program today. I have some of my family with me, my beautiful wife, Victoria. My mom's here, my sister April, my brother, Dr. Paul, my sister Lisa, and my sister Tamara. So we thought we would just share some holiday memories,

maybe some things that will encourage and inspire you, but we're going to have a good time together. Thanks for joining us. We just wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and we want to thank you for always being a part of this ministry. It means so much to us. Know that we're praying for you,

and we know God's best is still in store. We believe that. Well, it was 41 years ago Christmas time that we got the news that my mother wasn't healthy. You probably heard me tell the story many times if you watch, but Mama, I remember that so clearly because my brother Paul called me. I was in college and he said, Joel, mother's sick. And I'd never seen my mother sick a day in her life. But come to find out, you were diagnosed with terminal cancer, but that was a difficult time. It was right at Christmas time, especially. And I was in the hospital until just a few days till Christmas time. But,

then I just remember God's word works. It never fails, Joel. But Daddy and I laid on the floor of the foot of our bed and prayed that Jesus would touch and heal me. And do you know what he did? It's been 41 years now. I got some scriptures. I have them on my phone. I read them every day. And then I put scriptures in the house and pictures of me, like wanting to ride a horse that I rode 25 years ago. And I did that. And you know what? Jesus was so good and so merciful. And Joel, if it had not been for that, maybe I wouldn't be praying for the sick today. But 41 years later, Jesus gave me my life back. And he can do it for you. He doesn't love me anymore than he loves anybody else. So he can do that for anybody. That's amazing. Paul, I remember, you know, Paul,

you're a medical doctor when you called, and it wasn't good news. No, Joel, the biopsies were clear. She had metastatic adenocarcinoma to her liver, which means that a tumor had spread to her liver multiple areas at that time. And even now, there's not really good treatment for it. So when they said she had a few weeks to live, that was right. Our prognosis was just very, very grim. And it didn't happen overnight, Mama, but you just, you fought the good fight of faith. You stayed in that attitude of faith. You didn't go back to bed except at normal times. And I remember I'd hear my mom walking through the house quoting scriptures, I will live and not die. And God's restoring health back into me. But I believe that, you know, it's easy to give in to the defeat and, you know,

let negative words spoken over us, limit our life. And, you know, Paul, you're a doctor. We believe in, you know, doctors and medicine, but sometimes they come to the end of what they can do. And so when you believe all things are possible, and that's what we saw our mother do. And like we said, you know, many, many years later, 89 years old, still healthy and strong. Thank God. You know, I remember one thing, Joel, that I did one night when Daddy was sleeping, I got up in the middle of the night, about 12, 30 or something like that, went into his office and I wrote some notes apologizing to people that maybe I hadn't even done anything too, but I felt in my heart that it was so important to ask God to forgiveness, ask Jesus to forgive me of things that I'd done

wrong. And I wrote all the children, and I'm sure all of you had something that I had done wrong through the years. But I asked them to forgive me. I asked daddy to. I asked my mother and daddy to. And then I asked a man who was a pastor, was a good friend. And he didn't even know what I was talking about. But I got those off in the mail, and I felt so good. because I felt like I'd forgiven everybody that I'd done anything to. And, you know, asked them to forgive me. I think unforgiveness is one of the hindrances, although I'm not a specialtist on this.

I just think it's so important to forgive people. And so I did. And I just felt good about it. That's so good. That's a key to healing, I believe, and to live in a healthy and fulfilled life. Lisa, you know, you bought mom those dishes during that time that Christmas season.

Tell that story. Yeah, it was really interesting because even though was a real sad time for all of us. I remember how Daddy especially and Mama sort of set the tone for the whole environment and atmosphere. I mean, from the beginning, Daddy said, we're going to get a miracle. We believe that God's words is true and that healing comes from God. And so after they prayed for healing, it was like, in my mind's eye, as a young person, it was like, she's going to get her miracle. And just in the home, there was just this atmosphere. of faith and expectancy and miracles.

And so when we went to buy a gift, it was a 12-piece set of China because mama likes to collect China. And it was so pretty, and they didn't have the full 12-piece setting. And so they said, but within five or six weeks, the other will come. So we took what we had, we wrapped it up.

And I'll never forget, I didn't think anything about that because I thought my mother is going to live. She's not going to die. She's going to declare the glory. the Lord. And so when we gave it to her, I remember how she teared up when I told her that, you know, the rest wouldn't come in the next few weeks. Well, she said later, she said, I had the thought, I'm so glad my children think I'm going to live. And that encouraged her.

And I think that it's because my mom and dad, you know, they knew the word of God. They knew the faithfulness of God. And instead of just going down that road of depression and hopelessness, they just set that tone of faith and expectancy. And we knew Jesus is our hope. And if Jesus is all we have, Jesus is all we need. And so she got to enjoy that China, and she still has it to this day. And it's a testament of God's faithless. That's so good. I remember, Mama, you said you put pictures up in the house from a time when you were healthy. And I came home from college and I thought, what are all these pictures doing? Mama riding a horse and her wedding pictures. But you know what she was doing? She was creating a new image of victory on the inside. In other words, she was seeing herself the way she wanted to be.

And I think that's a, you know, that's a part of becoming who you were created to be. You have to have the vision in front of you. I've heard it said, you'll never rise any higher than the way you see yourself. So she saw herself on that horse again. She saw herself healthy and whole. Even in the scripture, God told Abraham, look up from where you are and all the land that you will see, I will give it to you. And I think sometimes, you know, we can be looking down in life at our problems and what's not working out.

But God's saying, look up, have a vision for it. Then he can do some awesome things in your life. That's what he's done for our mother and our family. I'm sure he's done it for you as well. Victoria, I've been married to for 35 years. We've had 35 great Christmases. Yeah, you know, some of the Christmases, we've had great Christmases. But one of the things that really sticks in my mind is with our own children.

And through the years we did this as a tradition. we would make clues, we called it a scavenger hunt, we would put little clues all around the house to where their gift was. And so each clue would lead them closer to their gift. And we have so many home videos because we did it year after year after year. They would find those clues and they would get their gift. But the interesting thing about that is not long ago, our kids are grown now, they're in their 20s. They made clues for us to find our gifts. And so we're running through the house trying to find our gifts. The thing about that is, you know, it's interesting that you can pass things down.

Traditions. You can pass things down to your children. In fact, the Bible talks about how we're to talk about the Lord, how we're to sit and talk about the Lord, how our life should be passing things down to them. And so just like the tradition of Christmas, we can also pass attitudes down. we can pass fear down, we can pass anger down. So it's a matter of do we want to pass the good things down or do we want to pass the not-so-good things down? And so I think this Christmas season, we ought to realize that we are such examples to our family and we can set new standards.

We can change old ways and old mindsets by just living this out. And I think about the story we were just talking about, Doty, about you being ill. I believe that taught the whole family that we can pray and we can believe. So what are you passing down to your kids today? You know, I think that we can all have a new start at Christmas and we can make decisions that say, you know what, I'm going to pass down good. I'm going to pass down love. I'm going to pass down kindness.

But that's some of my greatest Christmas memories. And I just wonder what we're going to get for Christmas this year when we go on our scavenger hunt. They made it a lot harder than I did for them. But Paul, I remember you talked. told this story the other day in church about you called Daddy at some point in your life. Can you remember that? Can you tell him he was sitting in his chair? Yeah, that's exactly what you're talking about. Vic, you know, one Saturday morning I was reading my Bible in my lazy boy recliner in my robe drinking coffee. And I decided I just,

I thought I'm going to call Daddy and see what he's doing. So I called him. I said, Daddy, what are you doing? He said, oh, Paul, you know what I'm doing. It's just Saturday morning. I'm fine. I said, but I want to know what exactly you're doing. He said, Paul, well, I'm sitting in my lazy boy, I'm in my robe, I'm drinking coffee, and I'm reading my Bible. I realized that I had become him. I had seen that model, Victoria, just like you said, all those years. And you know what? We had, I'm sure we all have just, you know, learned to do that because of the example of my mom and dad. But it was a wonderful example of me. What you see is what you're teaching as you're raising your kids. I love that. What we can pass down, pass down

love, pass down generosity, pass down hope and kindness and raising your children in church as Well, I think that's good. One quick memory from me, and then I'll get to you guys. Alexander's going to sing in a moment, our daughter with Lakewood music, but I remember one time Daddy was going to buy April a gift, and he's going to buy you a bicycle. And so we went up to the hardware store, wherever you bought him during those days, and we picked out this bike.

I got to pick out your bike, April, and I picked out the one I wanted. I got you what I wanted. But so we picked out this bike, and so we brought it home. He came back and got it. I picked it out, and he wrapped it in a big sheet on the patio. And this was like two weeks before Christmas, and so, you know, I was like eight years old. And so every day I wanted to go out there and look at it. And I said, Daddy, can I go look at it?

It was covered. He said, no, no, you can't look at it. I said, why? I've already seen it. I want to see the bike. You know, I was curious. It just was kind of bugging me. It was out there and I couldn't see it.

Well, he never let me see the bike. Well, Christmas morning, you know, we get up at six or seven. We all slept in the den, and I ran out there, you know, when it was time, and we pulled the sheet off. the reason why I's had two bikes under it, one for me and one for her. What he hadn't told me is, you know, he wanted to see what bike I really wanted. And I liken that sometimes, well, you know, my dad was generous and my mom and all. But I liken it sometimes in life, sometimes God, you know, it kind of feels like he's withholding. Why can I do this now?

Why is it? Well, I have to wait. It's because he has something better in store. It's because he's, you know, he's in control. He's guiding your life. And so I think just being patient, trusting God's timing. know that you're having to wait is because something better is coming. Hope you're enjoying the program today with my family.

Take a listen to our daughter, Alexandra, and Lakewood Music, a great music group. You're going to enjoy this Hock the Herald Angels Sing. Beautiful and so great having you with us today. Merry Christmas again, from our family to yours. My sister Tamara, her husband, Jim, they pastor Faith Family Church in Victoria, Texas. And Tamara, I'm always blessed to have you. Thanks, thanks. Well, talking about memories, one of the things that I have this special,

that I remember is our grandparents and how they were with us always on the holidays. Grandma and Granddaddy, and we loved them. And, you know, we were, Mommy, you were an only child, so we were all they had, and I think they kind of spoiled us at times. But they were always, you know, so good to us. I remember, you know, grandma coming and cooking her coconut pie and cornbread dressing, whatever she cooked.

It was always good. But one time you reminded us the other day that she came from Baytown one time for a holiday and forgot the turkey. So I know. I know that that probably wasn't, you probably wasn't too happy about that. But, you know, I just remember how good they were to us in life. And just their consistency, their simplicity, their simplicity. They never forgot our birthdays, our Christmases.

They gave us a car. You know, if all you had a car, I had a car. I had to sit on a pillow to reach the pedal. But they were always so good. And I just, it's made me now that I have grandkids and so maybe had grandkids, you think about the mark you make. And really the investment in their life. Because they had a great investment.

And the Bible says in the Proverbs that a good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children. So it's not just money, but it's memories. And they left memories of loving us well. And so they were a great example for us. And that's what I remember about Christmas. That's so good, Tamara. I love you. A grown and granddaddy, granddad who retired early at 55. We're talking about my mom's parents. And he would come down to the church and work. I'd see him under the buildings. You know, the old buildings were up on blocks and he'd be under there doing plumbing and things like that. My little sister, April, she's probably taller than me, but my little sister, April, April goes around speaking. We'll talk about your book a little later, April, better every day.

Or better than ever. Better than ever. I gave her a better title, but April, how about a Christmas memory? You know, I can think about one time it was near Christmas and we were going to go Christmas shopping and I got sick. And I had a fever and I was in bed. I was about seven years old. And, you know, I was so used to mom and daddy just praying over me. And we had grown up in miracles, seeing miracles, growing up with kind of that faith.

And I heard Daddy come home. I don't know where you were, but I heard Daddy come home. I'm sure you were there. And I thought, good, he can come pray for me because I was wanting to go shop. That started young. And he came back there, and I'll never forget what he said. He kind of felt my head. And he said, April, I agree with you that you're going to be healed.

And I thought, that doesn't sound just right, but go ahead and pray. So he didn't pray for me. He said it again, I agree with you that you're going to be healed. out and I thought, what in the world is wrong with him? And so I realized what he was trying to do is to teach me how to pray. And although I thought I should call someone, I just said a simple prayer. I said, God, I don't feel good, just heal me. And, you know, I got healed. I mean, my fever went away. I don't know how long it was, but I felt good. And I realized that day, I remember it very well in my canopy bed that it wasn't just about the God of Mama and Daddy. It wasn't about

their faith. But Daddy, through that little bit of what I thought he was not being very kind to me, you know, taught me that it's my God, it's my faith, and God hears and he answers my prayers. And that's just something that made a mark on me. And I take to this day. Yeah, that's so good, April. I love that. We grew up going to my grandmother's house in Columbus, Georgia, every Christmas, and all of our cousins were there. And we slept under the Christmas tree waiting, you know, for the next morning so we could get up. But I have an interesting story about that is I did that all growing up. I mean, it's some of my best memories being with my cousins and my grandmother's big old house. And one year I went back with one of my cousins and we went to the

old house where my grandmother was and they had turned that house into a church. Someone had bought it. And so we went into the church service. And we were sitting in the big room with the fireplace We knew where the Christmas tree was. We're sitting in the back. They had set up chairs, and we're sitting in the back. And we're just crying. And after the service, some of the minister and some of them came up to us, and they said,

are you okay? Can we pray with you? Can we help you? And we were just a mess because we had just thought about all those Christmases that we had spent there with my grandmother. They would cut a tree down and bring it in. And we just told the man, we said,

you know what? We're fine. We love the Lord, we serve the Lord, but this was my grandmother's house. And how it could be turned into a church is unbelievable. And he said, when my wife and I came to see this house, he said, my wife said, there's peace in this house and this is a house of prayer. And they bought that house and had church service in it. So it was just remarkable to us sitting in there thinking about all the Christmases. We all laid on that floor in our little pallets and all the joy we were.

had in that house. So it's another, just tribute to God's faithfulness and the fact what is passed down from generation to generation. And I think to myself, it was my grandmother's prayers and maybe hers before that that have gotten me even to where I am now. That's so good. That's amazing, Victoria. It's funny, we were in my office about a year or two ago and I was cleaning out some things and I keep my old Bibles and I had one of Victoria's old Bible. Anyway, I'm flipping through this. And the first Bible that I got was on December. the 25th, 1969. It was my red Bible, and we wrote all in it and had all those funny notes. Well, and it was given to her by mom and daddy. I came across Victoria's Bible, and I looked at the date.

It was December the 25th, 1969. Same day from your mom and dad. Yeah, that's crazy. That's God's divine destiny. I think about that, how he makes things cross our paths that we don't even realize. And I love the story about what Paul said, because God will give you the desire. of your heart when you submit to him and when you ask him. I know I've heard so many times people say, well, I don't know what God wants me to do. I don't have a dream for my life, but it's as simple as asking God to place his desire in your heart and to really receive that desire and believe that he, if it doesn't come immediately, that God is going to direct your path. Not to worry, don't lean on your own understanding, but really in all your ways.

acknowledge him and he'll direct your path. You know, life is full of ups and downs. It's not always a straight course. There's all kinds of winding roads. Sometimes you're down, sometimes you're up, but God's always faithful. That's so good. I think about, you know, when I work behind the scenes at the church doing the television production, I never had any, you know, any desire to be in front of people, but when Daddy would speak a message, you know, he'd speak like maybe 40 minutes and we'd have to cut it down to like 25 minutes. it's for the TV program. So I would have to listen to that message three or four, maybe five times to think, what should I cut out? Because I thought, I want to make sure it makes sense and try to hear all those stories and hear all those scriptures, never realizing that God was getting me prepared

for what I'm doing now. So, you know, Paul, it's just God, God knows how to connect the dots in our lives. One thing I've learned, you know, I should have learned it earlier, but this, trust God's timing and trust his ways. It may not always happen your way, but I've learned God's ways are better. God has the right time. And I found if there's a right time, then any other time is the wrong time. And that's hard for us to swallow, because I'm sure you're like me, you want it right now. And God come on and make it happen. But you know what? God knows what he's doing. And I think in the meantime when it's not happening, I think a real key is to be your best way you are, to honor God. You're not at the job you want. You're not in a relationship you want or you've, you know,

got some difficulties. But I think, you know, I like to think of it like this. If you're not faithful in the wilderness, how can God take you into the promised land? So I'd encourage you to be faithful where you are. I hope it's a great Christmas and a fun Christmas, but even if there's some difficulties in your life, just know that God's still ordering your steps. I mean, we had that Christmas, 1981. That was a difficult Christmas.

You know, we planned to come home and celebrate and have fun and goof off, but, you know, it was a somber Christmas when your mom's just been told you has a few weeks to live. But you know what? You keep moving forward and you come into other chapters. You know, don't get stuck on a chapter.

You keep turning that page and you watch what God will do. You know, I think too, part of that vision can be the people that you surround yourself with and the people you get around. And sometimes it's difficult. If you are in a situation where you are with people who are defeated and they have so much doubt and they don't speak victory, but you decide where you go. You decide the environment you put yourself in, whether it's going to a community where people

have faith and they can speak vision over you. can teach you to pray. They can teach you how to read the Bible because I think all of us would say here today, spending time with God has totally changed our lives. Getting in the word of God, when we feel defeated, when we have setbacks, we can pull a promise out. And it helps us change our perspective because if God said it, he'll do it. And it may not be the way we see him do it. But if we can hold on to that promise, God can bring that promise to pass in his way. So today, you know, there is hope. And I love these stories of victory and I love these memories because we need to put this hope in us because we need to rise above the status quo and what the world would like to tell us,

you know, that this is a terrible world. This is this. We are the lights of the world. I think about, like have you ever been in a room or a hotel room and that one little light, the little green light that's shining or the little light that's on the wall, your eye goes straight to that light, The room can be dark, but your eye goes straight to that light. And that's how we are in the world. When we carry hope and we carry Christ, people's eye goes to that light. It doesn't matter how dark it is. The smallest light can shine and change things.

So that's what I would say this Christmas season. Know that you've got a light on the inside of you that shines brightly. And that people see that light and it's making a difference. You may not feel like it is, but you have to have the confidence and the confidence and the reassurance in God that your light is shining brightly, and it's making a difference not only for you, but for your family and the people around you. Yeah, it's so awesome being with you today.

We believe that you're going to finish 2022 strong, but here's what we declare over you and your family that 2023 will even be better. I love that scripture. It says God's taking us from glory to glory. So let's keep our hopes up. Know that God's in control. He's got you in the palm of his hand.

You wouldn't be alive unless God had some. amazing up in front of you. I shared the other day on the scripture in Romans 12. It says, be glad for all that God is planning for you. Like Lisa said, let's get our hopes up for 2023. Let's start dreaming again, believing again, hoping again. I believe when you do that, you're getting in agreement with God. That's not just being positive. That's releasing your faith for the awesome future that he has in store. We love you. We're going to keep praying for you. Merry Christmas to you and your family. May it be a blessed one. Thank you for listening to the Joel Osteen podcast.

Help us continue to share the message of hope with those all over the world. Visit joelosteen.com slash give hope to give a gift today. Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you next time. Ever wonder which foods can act as medicine, or maybe you're looking to start meditation?

How about finding foods that supports brain health? If you want to improve your well-being, listen to the trusted, tangible advice brought to you by A Sense of Wellness podcast, with host Susan Greeley, a wellness expert of more than 25 years. This podcast is brought to you by Cass O'Connellie Private Health Partners, a premier concierge medicine organization that partners with exceptional physicians to deliver an unrivaled health care experience while empowering members to achieve. optimal wellness. More than ever before, people are turning to the church for their mental health struggles. Unfortunately, the church has largely been ill-equipped to help. That is, until now. Join nearly 50,000 people, just like you, who've enrolled in the mental health coach training

program and become equipped to help. For a limited time, apply for a full tuition scholarship and only pay a one-time tech fee of $54, if accepted. Apply now at mentalhealthcoach.org. That's mentalhealthcoach. work. Summer is here, and our sleep is just as important as our weekend plans. So we're here to help you get the sleep you deserve with Lisa. Lisa mattresses are made to order for exceptional comfort and support at every price point. See why Lisa is the New York Times number one pick for four

years running and has over 20,000 five-star reviews. Lisa makes buying a mattress super easy. Check out online in just a few clicks. The mattress is delivered to your door. And check out our original hybrid mattress designed to keep you cool during those hot summer nights. Lisa also offers free shipping and a risk-free 100-night trial. For a limited time, save up to $700 off select mattresses plus two free pillows during our summer sale. Get the sleep you deserve. Shop our summer sale now and save up to $700 off select mattresses plus two free pillows at Lisa.com. That's l-e-esa.com. Exclusion supply. Visit Lisa.com for more detail. videos.