Joel Osteen - Doing Business In Deep Waters

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Those thoughts that are limiting, defeated, intimidating. They are lies
to try to keep you from the greatness that's in you.
Do yourself a favor. Start ignoring the roar. Yes it's loud,
Yes it's convincing. This is where faith has to kick in.
I'm going to believe what God says about me. I

(00:20):
am who he says I am. I can do what
he says I can do. 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. Well,

(00:42):
God bless you. It's great to have you with us today,
and if you're ever in our area, please stop by
be a part of one of our services. We would
love to have you. I hope you'll stay connected with
us during the week. We have a daily podcast. You
can download our YouTube channel, watch the messages anytime, follow
us on social media. We'll keep you encouraged and inspired.

(01:03):
But thanks for tuning in. Thanks again for coming out
in person. I like to start with something funny, and
I heard about this senior citizen. He was driving down
the freeway in his brand new Corvette with the top down,
going eighty miles an hour, when he saw flashing red
lights in his rear view mirror from a state trooper.
Without thinking about it, he floored it took it up

(01:25):
to one hundred miles an hour. He heard the soiriens
behind him and finally came to his senses and pulled over.
He said, Officer, I'm so sorry. I don't know what
I was thinking. The trooper said, listen, it's Friday, four o'clock.
My shift is over in thirty minutes. If you'll tell
me a reason you're speeding that I've never heard before,
I'll let you go. The man thought about it, said officer.

(01:47):
Years ago, my wife ran off with a state trooper,
and I thought you were bringing her back. The officer said,
have a great weekend. Say it like you mean it.
This is my vie. 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'll boldly confess my mind

(02:11):
is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be
the same. In Jesus's name, God bless you. I want
to talk to you today about ignore the roar. Anytime
we try to move forward, thoughts will come telling us
what we can't do, and how it's not going to
work out, how the problem is too big. We know

(02:32):
what God promised, we believe it in our heart, but
all these doubts start to bombard our mind. The scripture
says the enemy goes about as a roaring lion, seeking
whom he may devour. The purpose of a lion's roar
is to intimidate their opponents, to strike fear and terror,
so much so that it will paralyze the other animal.

(02:56):
There are animals that are larger an elephant, a hippopotamus.
They're much bigger, stronger, But when the lion roars, it's
so powerful, so intimidating, they back down. In the same way.
Our enemy loves to roar, not out loud, but in
our thoughts. He uses intimidation, fear, doubt to try to

(03:18):
paralyze us. Thoughts like you'll never get well. You saw
the medical report, You'll never break the addiction. Everyone in
your family struggles. You can't accomplish that dream. You don't
have the talent. How you handle the roar will determine
whether or not you reach your destiny. If you believe
the lies, let the fear take root, it will keep

(03:40):
you from seeing the promise. You have to learn to
ignore the roar, don't pay attention to the threats. The
enemy is all bark and no bite. He goes about
as a roaring lion. He's not a lion. He doesn't
have any power over you. The only power he has
is the power you give him by believing the roar.

(04:04):
When those thoughts of worry come, fear anxiety, recognize what's happening.
It's simply the enemy roaring. That's what he does. You
can't stop the roar. You can't pray away the negative thoughts.
Get so determined that you're never going to feel fear,
not going to allow the threats in. You're going to

(04:24):
hear the roar. But you don't have to be intimidated.
You don't have to live worried. The roar doesn't mean
you're not in faith, doesn't mean you'll never see the dream.
The roar is a sign that what God promised is
on the way. The enemy wouldn't be worrying. If he
didn't sense there were great things in your future, he

(04:44):
wouldn't be shouting those threats. If he didn't know you
were a giant killer, he wouldn't be telling you those
lies if healing, freedom, abundance wasn't around the corner. The
scripture says, the enemy is a liar, and there is
no tree truth in him. When he roars, you can
take the opposite of what he's saying. You'll never meet

(05:06):
the right person. You've been single so long, Lord, Thank you. Now,
I know the right person is on the way. I
believe they're already headed my direction. You hear that roar,
your child will never get back on course. You raised
him right, But look at where he is. Now take
the opposite, Father, Thank you. Now, I know that as
for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,

(05:28):
that my child will fulfill his purpose, that he will
do great things. The reason the enemy is roaring is
because you're closer than you think. He's trying to threaten
you with intimidation fear. The truth is the roar means
you're a threat to him. Start ignoring the roar. Quit
living worried about your health, your finances, how you can

(05:52):
accomplish that dream. God has not brought you this far
to leave you. He's taken care of you in the past.
He's going to take care of you in the future,
says The enemy goes about seeking whom he may devour.
That means he can't devour everyone. What determines whether or
not you can be devoured is what do you do

(06:12):
with the roar. If you believe the roar, then you'll
be defeated. If you dwell on the lies, live worried, intimidated, afraid,
you won't see the promises come to pass. When my
mother was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer back in nineteen
eighty one, the medical report didn't look good, but she

(06:33):
believed what God promised, that he would restore health back
into her, that she would live and not die. But
just because she believed that didn't stop the roar. Just
because you have faith you're declaring promises, does it mean
you're not going to hear lies, threats, thoughts of fear.
It's not going to work out. Just give up. It's over.

(06:57):
You can't stop the roar, but you can't ignore it.
You don't have to dwell on all the negative thoughts
telling you that it's not going to work out, you're
not going to get well, not going to see your
family restored. Those thoughts will be loud. The enemy can
be compelling, persuasive, intimidating. Don't pay it any attention. He

(07:18):
wouldn't be roaring if victory wasn't in your future. My
mother would be lying in bed in the middle of
the night, and the thought would come saying, you can
wear that new pink dress you bought to your funeral.
You can be buried in that outfit. She had plenty
of opportunities to listen to the roar, live, worried, depressed.

(07:40):
If she had done that, she wouldn't be here today.
How you handle the roar determines whether or not you
can be devoured. Don't let the negative thoughts play, the threats,
the fear, the intimidation. Start ignoring the roar. Keep your
mind positive, hopeful, faith filled. I read where lions are territorial.

(08:03):
One reason they roar is to keep other animals off
their territory. If a leopard, a cheetah, a giraffe starts
to get close, then they get loud. It's to try
to intimidate them, invoke fear. That roar is saying, stay
off my territory. If you come closer, there's going to
be a fight. The same principle is true with our enemy.

(08:26):
When you start to take new ground, you go after
your healing, your freedom, your abundance. The enemy thinks that's
his territory. He thinks that belongs to him, So you'll
hear that roar louder than ever. He's hoping to intimidate
you to where you turn back and don't go after
what God put in your heart. How many people hear

(08:48):
the roar and give up on their dream, quit believing
for their healing, think they could never get out of debt.
Have a new perspective. The roar is a sign that
you're moving to war what God promised. You wouldn't hear
the roar if you weren't about to go where you've
never been, see favor influence like you've never seen. When

(09:10):
my father went to be with the Lord, I had
never ministered, but I knew I was supposed to step
up and pasture the church. Thoughts started bombarding my mind.
You can't, minister Joel. Nobody's going to listen to you.
You don't have the training. The experience. You're going to
get up there and look like a fool. The enemy
started roaring, trying to keep me from stepping into my purpose.

(09:33):
And those thoughts were loud, intimidating, compelling. In one sense,
everything they were saying was true. But God will put
things in your spirit that don't make sense to your mind.
You don't have to figure it all out. All you
have to do is believe, get in agreement with God
and not the fear in doubt. The enemy didn't want

(09:54):
me to go further. He didn't want to give up
that ground. That's why he roared so loud, in the
same way he's sitting on your promised land. Don't be
surprised if you hear all kinds of doubt fear you
can't do it. You're not that talented. You've had that
problem too long. Nobody in your family is successful. You

(10:15):
had a disadvantage. Tune that all out. What God put
in your spirit belongs to you. Now go after it.
You have to get in agreement with your heart and
not your head. If I would have listened to the roar,
I would have turned around and never made it into
my promised land. If I would have let the fear,
intimidation take root. I wouldn't be up here. I wouldn't

(10:38):
have seen the books, would have seen the compact center,
wouldn't have seen serious radio. Are you missing out on
something because you're listening to the roar? Are you watering
down dreams, playing it safe, stuck in your comfort zone,
not believing you can beat the cancer, accepting the addiction.

(10:58):
My prayer is you'll recognize it's only a roar. Those
thoughts that are limiting, defeated, intimidating, they are lies to
try to keep you from the greatness that's in You.
Do yourself a favor. Start ignoring the roar. Yes it's loud,
Yes it's convincing. This is where faith has to kick in.

(11:20):
I'm going to believe what God says about me. I
am who he says I am. I can do what
he says I can do. I was afraid, I was intimidated,
didn't know if I could do it. But I started
speaking victory. I started declaring the promises over my life.
I am strong in the Lord. I can do all

(11:40):
things through Christ. I've been raised up for such a
time as this. I'm equipped, empowered, anointed. Sometimes you need
to ignore the roar. Other times you need to roar
back when those lies say that you'll never get well.
Instead of accepting it, roar back, no thanks. God is
restoring health backing to me. I will live and not die.

(12:04):
The enemy is good at roaring. You need to get
good at roring. Well, you've seen your best days. Man,
it's all downhill from here. No things. You must have
the wrong person. My latter days will be better than
my former days. God has taken me from glory to glory.
With your family, it's never gonna get back on course,
look how long it's been. Just accept it. Instead of

(12:27):
letting that discourage you. Why don't you roar back, no thanks.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
My children will be mighty in the land. What God
started he will finish. Quit letting the roar dominate your life.
Take control of your thought life. The battle is taking
place in our mind. The enemy knows if he can

(12:48):
control your thoughts, he can control your life. You can't
keep him from roaring. But when you recognize his tactics,
when you know he goes about as a roaring lion,
then you can with them properly. You won't let the
roar keep you from your purpose. It may be intimidating,
but it cannot stop what God has ordained for you.

(13:10):
Ignore the roar, keep moving forward, and God will get
you to your destiny. Second Chronicles thirty two. The king
of Syrium had his army surround the city of Judah.
They were camped around the walls, about to break through
and take the city. His plan was to go to
Jerusalem next and attack it. King Hezekiah told the Israelites

(13:33):
not to worry that God was going to take care
of them. The Syrian king sent a letter to Hezekiah saying,
what makes you think we're not going to defeat you
like we're defeating all these other cities. Their gods didn't
save them. Your God is not going to save you.
He sent this letter trying to intimidate them. Then he
sent some of his men to Jerusalem. They came to

(13:56):
the walls. Verse eighteen says they shouted threat trying to
terrify the people so it would make them easier to capture.
They knew if they could defeat them in their thinking,
if they could get the Israelites fearful, intimidated, then they
could defeat them in real life. The Israelites hurt, all
the threats, the insults, mocking their god, making fun of them.

(14:21):
The Syrians thought they would panic fall apart, but King
Hezekaya knew how to ignore the roar. He said to
the people, do not be afraid of the King of
Syria or his mighty army, for there is a power
far greater on our side. He may have a great army,
but they are just men. We have the Lord, our
God to fight for us. The Syrians shouted the threats,

(14:45):
but they fell on deaf ears. They tried to intimidate,
but the Israelites didn't take the bait. The enemy has
no new tricks. He's not creative. He uses the same tactics,
the roaring lion, loud threat, loud thoughts. It's not gonna
work out. This problem's too big. Give up, surrender, quit believing.

(15:08):
He's expecting these negative thoughts to make it easier to
defeat you. What he doesn't realize is you're like Hezekiah.
You know his tactics, You're aware of his schemes. He's
all bark and no bite when you call his hand
on it, when you say no thanks, I'm not afraid
I'm not intimidated. The problem may be big, but I

(15:29):
know my God is bigger. The medical report may not
look good, but God can do what medicine cannot do.
He has the final saying. Or these people against me
may be powerful. I'll admit that, but my God is
all powerful. He flung stars into space, He spoke worlds
into existence. Him being for me is more than the

(15:50):
world being against me. God won't let you get in
a problem that he can't get you out of. He
won't give you a dream that you can accomplish out
all the negative, the threats, the doubt, the fear, intimidation,
that's to be expected. That's the roaring lion doing what
he does to try to stop you. Now do your part.

(16:12):
Ignore the roar. Hezekiah went and found the prophet Isaiah,
and they started praying. When you feel bombarded by doubt, fear, opposition,
find someone full of faith that will stand in agreement
with you. The scripture says one can chase a thousand,
but two can put ten thousand to flight. In these

(16:34):
times when the lion is roaring, you don't need people
that will agree with the lion. Well, I'll pray, but
my grandmother died of that same illness. Joel, I don't
see how you can get the compact center. That other
company is so much bigger. No find in, Isaiah. Find
someone that says, if you believe you're gonna get well,

(16:54):
you believe you're gonna see overflow in a pandemic, you
believe you're gonna do great things. Count me in. I'm
a believer. I'm in agreement with God. All things are possible.
Isaiah and Hezekiah, they ignored the threats. They started praying
faith filled prayers. What you're saying when the enemy is

(17:15):
roaring is very important. If you're speaking defeat, giving life
to the negative, you're going to get stuck. You're drawing
in what you're saying. I can't believe this happened. I'm
so afraid. I don't know what I'm going to do.
I don't see a way out. Don't get in agreement
with the roar. Speak victory in the face of defeat.

(17:37):
As this enemy was shouting threats, Hezekiah said to the
people be strong and of good courage, for our God
will deliver us. When he could have been complaining, he
was prophesying victory when he could have been panicked. He
was declaring God's favor. Verse twenty one says the Lord

(17:57):
sent an angel that destroyed the whole Syrian army, all
of its commanders and all of its officers. The Israelites
didn't have to fight, They didn't have to defend themselves.
The threats were loud, they were intimidating, but they weren't real.
And what's playing so loud in your mind? Telling you

(18:17):
that the sickness is permanent. The depression will hinder you
your whole life. Your business will never go to a
new level. That roar is to try to convince you
to give up on what God promised. The reason is loud,
The reason it's consistent is because the enemy knows he's
on your territory. He's threatening you, hoping you'll shrink back,

(18:39):
believe the lies and settle for mediocrity. Why don't you
start ignoring the roars and go after what God put
in your heart. See, the enemy is a bully. Bullies
are loud. Bullies are intimidating. Bullies will try to threaten you,
to control you and keep you down. Told her about

(19:00):
this bully when he was in the third grade. This
bully was bigger than everyone, always throwing his weight around,
being tough, mean, mistreating people. One day they were on
the playground at school. This bully had a piece of
paper he was writing down names on it. He had
a couple dozen people written down. This one student. He

(19:22):
was a very small boy. They were in the same grade,
but he was little wiry, didn't weigh much, but he
would fight a tiger. He had no fear. He asked
the bully what he was doing. The bully said, I'm
making a list of all the people that I can whoop.
That little boy looked at him, kind of perplexed, a

(19:42):
little concerned. In a few seconds, he said, let me
see that list. He took the list, went down it
and saw his name on it. He was so bent
out of shape. He put his shoulders back, got up
in the bully's face and said, you have my name
on here. You know you can't whoop me now? Dare
you put my name on it? The bully shrunk back

(20:03):
and said, oh, I'll take your name off. You have
to stand up to a bully. You have to stand
up to your enemy. Your threats don't FaZe me, your
intimidation doesn't move me. I know who I am and
I know whose I am. You may have a loud roar,
you may seem big, but I know me and God

(20:25):
or a majority, what is destined for my life will
come to pass. Don't be intimidated by a bully that
has no power over you. Ignore the roar, Quit believing
the threats, living worried, letting all the negative play in
your mind. I know it's loud, but the way you
turn it down is by playing what God says about you.

(20:48):
When the enemy roars, you'll never get any good breaks.
You'll never rise any higher. Father, you said the path
of the righteous. My path gets brighter and brighter. Thank
you that my latest victories are still in front of me. Well,
you'll never break the addiction. You've had it too long.
Tell the enemy take my name off your list. You

(21:09):
can't defeat me. You can't limit my destiny. You can roar,
you can threaten, you can be loud, but that doesn't
intimidate me. I know a secret. You're all bark and
no bite. I am free, I am whole. I will
become who I was created to be. I was in
Africa one time visiting my brother Paul, and we went

(21:31):
on a safarian saw all these wild animals. The guide
was telling us what they had learned about the animals.
He said, if you're ever approached by a lion, never
to turn your back, but to stand your ground. The
instinct will be to turn and run, but lions can
run up to fifty miles an hour. He said, if

(21:52):
you run, you'll just die tired. A great thought, right.
He explained that even if the lion there's a couple
hundred yards away charging towards you, the best thing you
can do is stand your ground and keep looking the
lion in the eye. He said something fascinating. Ninety percent
of charges are mock charges. The lion is seeing what

(22:17):
you're going to do. If you run, they're going to
have a state dinner. If you stand your ground, they're
going to back off. It's going to be a mock charge.
It's not a coincidence that our enemy is called a
roaring lion. He roars to see what you're going to do.
Are you going to run, be intimidated, give up on

(22:38):
your dreams, turn your back on what God's promised you,
then he can defeat you. But if you'll stand your
ground like Hezekiah, like my mother, and say I'm not
moved by these threats, not letting this fear, this intimidation
cause me to shrink back, live worried. Then you'll find

(22:58):
it was a mock charge. It was a lot of bark,
but there was no bite. And see, I've learned the
enemy will never quit roaring. I've seen God take me
places that I've never dreamed. It's open up big doors,
defeated great enemies. You would think he'd say, Okay, Joel,
he's not gonna listen. God's been good to him. But
even now I still hear the roar. You've made it

(23:21):
this far, but you can't keep this up. You've seen
your best days. The opposition is too much. The roar
still comes, but I've trained myself to not pay any
attention to it. My attitude is if someone saying something,
do I hear some noise. You can get to the
point where you don't give it the time of day.

(23:41):
My sister Lisa used to live in an apartment by
train track, just a couple hundred feet away. At night,
the train would come by and shape the whole place.
You could feel the rumble of the cars going by,
the roar of the engine. She would wake up every time,
but after a couple of months she started getting used
to it. There's something in the brain called a reticular

(24:05):
activating system that can tune out certain things that are routine.
She got to the point where the train never woke
her up at night. The train was just as loud,
just as powerful, but it never affected her. It can
be the same way with the enemy's roar. They will come,
threats of intimidation, thoughts of fear, you're not going to

(24:28):
get well, you'll never get out of debt, what if
your child gets off course, rules of doubt, rules of worry.
But if you'll just keep ignoring them, not giving them credibility,
keeping your mind on the promises, positive, hopeful, knowing that
God's in control, knowing that he's ordering your steps, you're

(24:49):
going to get to the point where you don't notice
it anymore. Yes it's still there, but it's not a
big deal. Those thoughts come, but it doesn't affect you.
Sometimes the roar is subtle, it's not loud and strong.
It's just a whisper of doubt, just enough to make
you think, maybe it won't work out, maybe it wasn't

(25:11):
meant to be. In the Book of Genesis, Adam and
Eve were in the garden of Eden. God told them
that they could eat any of the fruit except the
fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
If they ate that fruit, they would surely die. The
serpent came to Eve and set in chapter three, Really
did God really say you can't eat that fruit? This time?

(25:34):
The roar wasn't loud, It wasn't overwhelming. It was just
a question, really, a whisper of doubt. When God puts
the promise in your heart that you're going to get well,
don't be surprised if you hear the whisper You really
think so? Did you hear the medical report? You really
think you're going to have a good year during the pandemic,

(25:56):
You really think you're going to get that scholarship. So
how many other students there are be aware of these
subtle roars, just hints of doubt. He's hoping that it
will grow and get bigger to where you defeat yourself.
He knows if he roared real loud, you would recognize
what he was doing. These whispers of doubt can be

(26:18):
just as harmful. The scripture tells us to be aware
of his schemes to be knowledgeable of his strategies. Recognize
this roaring, loud or small, is not the truth. It's
trying to create doubt, fear, confusion, so you'll miss who
you were created to be. My question is, how are

(26:40):
you handling the roar comes to all of us? Are
you letting these negative thoughts discourage you, intimidate you, convince
you that it's not going to work out. Your child's
not going to get better, You can't accomplish that dream.
The reason he's roaring is you're close to your promised land.
You're about to step into a new level of your destiny. Now,

(27:02):
don't let the enemy bully you. Tell him to take
your name off his list. Stand up, and you'll discover
it was a mock charge. What he's rooring about is
not the truth. If you'll start ignoring the roar, I
believe and declare like Hezekiah, God's about to defeat enemies
for you. You're going to see him show out in your

(27:24):
life breakthroughs, freedom, healing, abundance, the fullness of your destiny
in Jesus's name, And if you receive it, can you
say him in 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

(27:45):
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 love to send
you some free information on your new walk with the Lord.
Just text the number on the screen or go to
the website. I hope you'll get involved in a good
Bible based church. Keep God first place. Thanks so much

(28:09):
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(28:29):
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