Joel Osteen Podcast - Trouble Is Temporary | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: December 11, 2023

If you want to experience breakthrough, you have to live with a “soon” mentality. What you’re up against may look permanent in the natural, but we serve a supernatural God. In a moment, He can make things shift in your favor. 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.Daily inspiration. Scriptural promises. Get ready for a new year of faith with the Hopes & Dreams 2024 Planner. Our special December offer will let you journal your thoughts, record your prayers, and hold on to the dream God has placed in your heart. Request your copy today! https://bit.ly/3T8xgqS 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 the podcast. We want to tell you how much we love you. Trusting you're going to have a blessed Christmas season with you and your family. Know that we pray for you every day. Just speak in God's blessings and favor. We love you. We are praying for you, and we hope you have a very merry Christmas.

Enjoy the podcast today. Well, God bless you. It's great to be with you today. I hope you'll stay connected with us throughout the week. We have a daily podcast. that you can download. You can go to our YouTube channel, listen to the messages anytime, or you can follow us on social media. I promise you, we'll keep you encouraged and inspired. But thanks for tuning in, and thanks again for coming out today. I like to start with something funny. And I heard about these

three men that were traveling together. It was a Hindu priest, a Jewish rabbi, and a televangelist. They stopped at a farmhouse for lodging. The farmer said, I only have room for two of you in the house. somebody will have to stay in the barn. The Hindu priest said, I'll do it. A few minutes, there was a knock on the door. He said, I can't stay out there. There's a cow, and cows are sacred in our religion. The Jewish rabbi said, I'll do it.

A few minutes later, a knock on the door. Said, I can't stay out there. There's a pig. That wouldn't be kosher. The televangelist finally said, all right, I'll do it. In a few minutes, there was a knock on the door. It was the cow and the pig. I'm the only one that got it.

Here we go. 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. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want to talk to you today about trouble is temporary. We all face difficulties that don't look like they'll ever change. It seems like the more we pray, the worse it gets. We don't see any sign of things improving. It's easy to live discouraged and accept that it's not meant to be. But Paul said in 2 Corinthians, our present troubles are small and won't

last very long. These troubles will soon be over, but the joy to come will last forever. And what you're up against may look permanent. Seems like it's going to take years to get well, years to get out of debt, years to meet the right person. Don't be full by what you see. God is saying the trouble is only temporary. It's not going to last very long. Soon it's going to be over. Soon you're going to see the breakthrough. Soon your health is going to turn around. Soon you're going to meet the person of your dreams. You may not see how this can happen. Everything in your reasoning says it's not possible. You're looking at it in the natural. We serve a supernatural God. He can can make things happen that you can't make happen.

Instead of thinking of all the reasons why it's not going to work out, how it's going to take forever, try a different approach. Father, thank you that this difficulty will soon be over. Thank you that this sickness, this depression, this family problem will not last very long. Joel, it's already been a long time. That means you are very close to seeing it turn around. You're on the verge of a breakthrough. You're about to see freedom.

promotion, problems suddenly resolve. Dreams suddenly come to pass. Not in the sweet by and by, but soon things are going to change. Soon that child is going to get back on course. Soon that new door is going to open. Soon the right person is going to show up.

Soon you're going to come into overflow. Now you have to get an agreement with God and have a soon mentality. As long as you think it's going to take years, that's going to stop God. from working. When you have this soon mentality, you get up each morning with expectancy, knowing

that this could be the day that God shows out in your life. When is your health going to turn around? I don't know, Joel. This medical report doesn't look very good at all. That's one report. I'm giving you another report. Soon, things are going to change in your favor. When are you going to get out of debt?

Looks like it's going to take me 112 years to pay everything off. You're going to be in heaven by then. How about soon I'm coming out of death? Soon I'm on lend and not borrow. How can that happen? God owns it all. One touch of his favor and you'll have more than enough.

One good break, one idea, one contract, and everything will change. When are you going to overcome that addiction? Soon. When are you going to meet the right person? Soon. When is that legal issue going to resolve? Soon. When are you going to sell that property?

Soon. When are you going to start? your business soon. Your mind will tell you all the reasons it's not going to happen. Your problem's too big. The people that you're up against are too powerful. It's been that way too long. Don't believe those lies.

Receive this into your spirit. The problem will soon be over. The loneliness will soon be gone. The anxiety, the grief, the barrenness, not able to have a child is coming to an end soon. These present troubles will not last very long. Job went through a great difficulty. He was doing the right thing, honoring God, and the bottom fell out.

He lost his business, lost his children, lost his health. He had boils all over his body. And just because we're people of faith doesn't mean we won't have difficulties. You can be doing the right thing and come into trouble. The scripture says rain falls on the just and the unjust. Just. When it rains at my house, my property gets wet, my next door neighbors, people across the street, everyone in the neighborhood. The rain doesn't discriminate. Don't get discouraged by difficulties. It's just life. The promise we have is not that trouble won't come, but the trouble is not going to last. Soon the trouble will be over. When you're in difficulties, things happen like with Job that you don't understand. He came down with. You with an illness. People at work turned on you. You had a setback in your business. It's easy to live worried, thinking that it's never going to work out. You have to remind yourself, it is not

permanent. It is not going to last long. Soon it will resolve. All through the day, you need to keep this in your heart. Father, thank you that this trouble is only temporary. That it didn't come to stay. It came to pass. Think you that it will soon be over. When Job looked at all his circumstances, everything that went wrong, all that he had lost, he got depressed. He sat down in the ashes and wanted to die. One reason he was so discouraged is he saw the trouble as permanent. He didn't see any way he could get out. As long as he had this forever mentality, this is how my life is always going to be,

he felt overwhelmed. When you have a setback, thoughts will tell you, it's permanent. You'll never get well. you'll never be happy again, you'll never meet someone. If you believe those forever lies, you'll get discouraged and lose your passion. But God won't let you get in a situation that he can't bring you out of. If the trouble was too much, the sickness too great, the opposition too strong, he wouldn't have allowed it. It's a test. What are you going to do? Get discouraged, give up on dreams, live defeated. Or are you going to believe that? Or are you going to believe that,

God is on the throne, that he's bigger than what you're facing, that the trouble is temporary, that it's not going to last long. What you believe in times of trouble will determine whether you come out or whether you get stuck there. And at one point, Job changed his attitude. Instead of sitting around defeated, he got up out of the ashes, looked up toward the heavens, and said, I know my Redeemer lives. He was saying, I know God is still on the throne. I know this difficulty can't stop my destiny. What he has purpose for my life will come to pass. He shifted to an attitude of faith.

God let us see both sides of Job, him discouraged, despondent, then him switching over to faith to let us know it's okay to feel things. It's okay to have times when you feel discouraged. You don't see how it can work out. It's okay to start there, but don't finish there. Don't stay in the ashes. Don't stay defeated. At some point, you have to do like Job and say, I know my Redeemer lives.

I know God didn't bring me this far to leave me. I know this problem is not permanent. Lord, thank you that it will soon be over. Do you know what that does to the enemy? When he hits you with his best shot, but you don't start complaining. You don't stay in the ashes. You start declaring soon it's going to turn around. soon I'm going to get well

soon I'm going to meet someone new soon my business is going to take off soon I'm going to laugh again love again lead again run again when you live with this soon mentality all the forces of darkness cannot keep you down

in Job's situation look permanent look like he had seen his best days but God not only turned it around but Job came out with twice what he had before the scripture says he had twice the cattle, twice the sheep, he got his business back. God never brings you out the same. He makes the enemy pay for bringing the trouble. We hear a lot about the suffering of Job and all that he went through. Seems like that was his whole life. The entire book of Job is about his struggle.

You would think it went on for 40 years, trouble, heartache, pain. But some commentaries believe the whole struggle was only nine months. All the sickness, all the trouble, all the trouble didn't last years, it was months. And what you think is going to take years. What looks like it's going to be a long time to resolve, like with Job, it's going to happen sooner than you think. That trouble looks permanent, but God is saying it's not going to last very long. You're about to see his hand bring healing, restoration, divine connections, promotion.

It's not by your might, not by your power, but by the spirit of the living God. 2003, the Houston City Council voted for us to have the compact center. This was a city-owned building. We had worked for two years presenting our case and trying to convince council members. When we won the vote, we were so excited. It was like God opened a door that we never dreamed would open. The next day, a company that owns all the high rises around this property filed a federal

lawsuit to try to keep us from moving in. They were the largest taxpayer in Texas, a huge real estate company with property all over the state. It was like David versus Goliath. Our attorneys told us that it could be tied up in the courts for 10 years, how these kinds of legal proceedings can be extremely slow. That meant we couldn't move in, we couldn't start our renovations, our future concerning this building was on hold. The problem, was I had already presented the compact center to the church. People had already given to support it. Everyone was excited asking when are we moving in? I would wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Thoughts telling me, you're going to look like a fool. What are you going to do if you don't

win the lawsuit? I was tempted to live worried, stressed, but I did what I'm asking you to do. despite what the experts were saying, despite how permanent it looked, I said, Father, I want to thank you that this trouble is only temporary, that it won't last very long. Lord, I know you're working behind the scenes, fighting our battles, making our crooked places straight, shining down your favor on us. I would check with the attorneys every week, looking for some sign of hope. Is there anything new? Nothing. We haven't heard from them. They didn't want to negotiate. They were going to sit back and wait, drag it out for years until we had to do something

else. I could hear that promise. That's still small voice saying, Joel, trust me, this trouble is only temporary. Soon it will be over. But my mind would say, are you kidding? Nothing is improving. You're years away from even finding out if it's going to be yours. The battle is taking place in our thinking.

don't accept the lies that it's permanent. It's going to take a long, long time. You have to turn it around and say, Father, thank you that this will resolve sooner than it looks. About eight months after the lawsuit was filed, we received a call from the other side saying they wanted to meet. I was excited.

I believed it was the hand of God. Our attorneys were more skeptical. They said it was a ploy. They were just trying to complicate things. We met with them. Not only did they agree to let us have this building, but to lease us 9,000 covered parking spaces. They dropped the lawsuit. The facility was ours free and clear. What looked like would take years to happen, took place in a few months. God is saying to you, what you're up against is going to resolve much sooner than it looks.

that trouble is not going to last long, that addiction is not going to hinder you your whole life, the sickness, depression, anxiety is not going to stop your destiny. Soon it's going to be over, not years, but months. Why don't you get in agreement with God? You may not see how. The giant looks too big. The sickness is too great. The opposition too strong.

You're not in this by yourself. The most high God is fighting for you. He knows how to move people out of the way. He can do what medicine cannot do. He can restore what's been stolen. Sooner than later, you're going to see the hand of God, making things happen that you couldn't make happen, opening doors that no person can shut,

turning situations around that look impossible. But it's easy to live with this forever mindset. It's never going to work out. Or maybe years down the road. Maybe one day, Joel, I'll get a good, break, switch over to a soon mentality. Now, I know some things take time, but God promises us in this verse, soon the trouble will be over. He's about to do something out of a normal time frame, something unusual sooner than you think. Well, what if I believe in this doesn't happen? What if you

believe and it does happen? It probably won't happen if you've already accepted. It's going to be a long time to get out of this trouble. A long time to get well, to meet the right person, to accomplish that dream. That's limiting what God will do. I'm asking you to believe for sooner than later, even if it doesn't happen as soon as you like. Yes, we all have to wait, but I've made up my mind, I'm going to live with a soon mentality. I'm going to keep releasing my faith, reminding God what he promise that this difficulty will soon be over. There are 42 chapters in the book of Job. All 42 talk about what he went through.

Seems like this struggle with his whole life. But the last two verses of the book of Job are very significant. After describing the trouble, the heartache, the loss for 42 chapters, the last thing written says, after this, Job lived 140. years and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. Then he died an old man having lived a long good life. Job's struggle was approximately nine months, but after that struggle, he lived 140 good years, happy years, healthy years, years, years where he enjoyed his children,

years where there was great joy and laughter in his house. God was showing us the trouble. is temporary. The trouble is not going to last forever. You may be in a difficult time, but that's not how your story ends. That loss is not going to define you. That sickness is not going to ruin the rest of your life. That person that walked away, the bad break, the unfair situation, is not going to stop your purpose. God has an after this for you. After the trouble, there's going to be great joy in your life. After the loss, after the sickness, after the legal battle, you're going to see new friendships, new opportunities, new growth. Don't be discouraged by

the trouble. It's not stopping anything God has for you. God is storing up all the joy, all the good breaks, the favor, the resources that have been put on hold because of this temporary trouble. You're not losing anything. What belongs to you, is still coming your way. Your latter days will be better than your former days. Your story doesn't end in defeat. Doesn't end in failure, injustice, sorrow. Those are temporary seasons.

Your story ends in victory. God has already lined up and after this for you. He said what was meant for your harm, he's turning to your advantage. Even now, God is turning some things. He's turning the trouble, turning the sickness. turning the people that are against you.

You're about to step in to an advantage, step into favor that God has already lined up for you. When we walked into that meeting, the CEO of the company had already changed his mind. God had already turned his heart. He was against us, but no person can stand against our God. No bad break, no sickness, no trouble. God controls the universe. He said, weeping may endure for a night, but joy is coming in the morning. You may be in a night season.

Can I encourage you? It's temporary. Joy is on the way. God is going to turn your morning into dancing, your sorrow into joy. What's holding you back is not going to last much longer. Soon it will be over. One time I was flying to India with my father. It was a 15-hour flight.

Everything was going fine, cruising along very smoothly. But about 12 hours in, the plane hit this turbulence and started bouncing around like a roller coaster, up and down. Everything started flying. Laptops hitting the ceiling. Some of the flight attendants had gone up in the air, landed on top of other passengers. People were screaming, panicking. For about 10 minutes, it was chaos.

You had to hold on for dear life. Eventually, it all calmed down. Thankfully, nobody was injured, went back to smooth sailing. The last several hours were as peaceful as can be. This is how it is in life. We're going along fine. Everyone is healthy. We're getting good breaks. Then we hit some turbulence. An unexpected challenge. A sickness, a layoff, a friend betrays you. You didn't see it coming. It's easy to panic. God, what's happening? Can I encourage you? It's just a part of your 10 minutes of turbulence. It's not going to last. It may be chaotic, feel stressful, but it's going to calm down. There's going to be an after this for you.

After the turbulence, you're going to come out just fine. I've discovered we're all going to have about 10 minutes of turbulence. Not at once, but a minute here, a minute there. Our mind will tell us it's permanent. I'll never get through this difficulty. It's bumpier than I've ever felt. God is still in control. He's not only flying your plane, but he controls the weather. He speaks to storms and they calm down. A friend of mine recently lost his job. He'd been there for many years and wasn't about his performance. They just didn't have the funds to pay him. He was tempted to panic, be upset. I told him what I'm telling you, this is not how your story ends. The trouble is going to pass and the rest of your flight, is going to be smooth.

God has it already figured out. There's another position already lined up. Has your name on it. If you'll stay in faith and keep being your best, you're going to come in to your after this. You'll say, after the layoff, I got a better position. After they walked away, I met someone better. After the sickness, I came out stronger.

What's interesting is that 10 minutes of turbulence felt like 10 hours to me. I was sweating, holding on for dear life, praying the sinner's prayer 42 times. God, please forgive me, I'm about to come see you. I was afraid and stressed out. If I had known it was temporary, I would have enjoyed the ride. Pay a lot of money to go to Disneyland to ride a ride like that. If I had known it wasn't going to last very long.

If I had known everything was going to be all right, I would have stayed in peace. said, Lord, thank you. I know this too shall pass. I know this temporary problem is not going to stop your plan for my life. I could have relaxed and saved myself a lot of heartache if I had only remembered the trouble was temporary. Maybe you're in part of your 10 minutes of turbulence now. It feels like it's going to be 10 years. You're worried, losing sleep, trying to figure it all out. Come back to a place of peace. It's not permanent. Things are going to work out. God is going to get you to your destiny. You may not see how. The winds are strong. The plane is bouncing around. God controls the winds. That cancer is not bigger than our God. That breakup didn't stop your purpose. The trouble at work

is not going to last. God is behind the scenes right now working in your life. Your time is coming. It's going to happen sooner than you think. In the book of Genesis, God told Noah that there was going to be a great flood. He was to build an ark, a huge boat, take two of every kind of animal on it. While he was building, I'm sure people made fun of him. Thought, what's this crazy man doing? There's no water around here. At that time, it had never rained. The dew came up from the ground and watered the earth. You can imagine how odd that seemed. But the scripture says, Noah did exactly what God asked him to do. He was obedient.

The rain came for 40 days. The whole earth was flooded. Noah and his family were on the boat. Months and months went by. Noah didn't know if he was going to be like that the rest of his life. He sent a bird out to see if the waters were receding, but the bird came back. It couldn't land. This happened again and again.

It looked like this was permanent. But chapter 8 says, God remembered Noah. He sent a wind to blow across the waters and the floods begin to disappear. God remembers your faithfulness. He remembers your obedience. The times like Noah, you did the right thing when it was hard. You kept giving, serving, being good to people, not seeing anything change. Nothing was getting better.

Don't worry, your time is coming. God sent a wind and the waters begin to disappear. A year later, Noah and his family were able to get off the boat. I believe, like with him, God is about to breathe on your life and problems that look permanent are about to disappear. That sickness you've been dealing with, the child you're so concerned about, the trouble at work that's hindering you, by faith, I can see the wind of God's spirit causing it to disappear. Addictions disappearing. Depression disappearing. Lack. Not having enough. Disappearing. This is a new day. God is breathing his favor, his blessing, his healing on your life right now. The next verse says, the underground water sources cease. They're gushing. The torrential rain stop flowing. There are things that you can't see. They're underground, so to speak. They're about to cease.

your life. God is going to cut off the source of what's limiting you, the source of what's holding you back. The sickness is about to cease. The addiction is about to cease. The trouble is about to cease. When those waters ceased, it took a few months before Noah and his family could come off the boat. You may not see anything happening yet, but that doesn't mean things haven't changed. It's just a matter a time before you see what God was up to. Now keep the right perspective, the trouble is temporary. It's not going to last as long as it looks. Live with this soon mentality. Not it's way off in the future. Soon things are going to change in my favor. If you'll do this, I believe and declare healing is coming. Freedom is coming. Breakthroughs are coming. Soon you're going to get well.

Soon you're going to meet the right person. Soon that problem's going to turn a around, soon you're going to see God's favor in new ways. In Jesus' name, if you receive it, can you say amen today? I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my Lord and Savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love to send you some free information, text the number on the screen, or go to the website. I hope you'll get planted in a good Bible-based church and keep God first place. Do you have a dream that's waiting to happen, but it often feels like you'll never get there.

Is your dream? To start a business? To see a loved one come to the Lord. Are you asking God, will it ever happen? Sometimes it feels like our dream is so far off, but I believe you're closer than you. you think. You're on the verge of seeing things change in your favor, new doors opening, the right people showing up. I'd love to send you our new hopes and dreams, 2024 planner. It's not only a calendar, but it has scriptures and inspiration, a place to journal. It'll help you stay focused and encouraged

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