CHAPTER 12
Choosing the Right Thoughts
A war is raging all around you, yet, amazingly, you may not even be aware of it. The battle is not for a piece of land or for natural resources such as gas, oil, gold, or water. The prize in this war is much more valuable. The battle is for your mind.
The third step you must take if you want to live at your full poten¬tial is to discover the power of your thoughts and words. Let’s think about your thoughts first of all.
Your enemy5s number one target is the arena of your thoughts.1 He knows if he can control and manipulate how you think, he’ll be able to control and manipulate your entire life. Indeed, thoughts deter¬mine actions, attitude, and self-image. Really, thoughts determine destiny That’s why the Bible warns us to guard our minds. We must be extremely careful not only about what we ingest through our eyes and ears, but what we think about. If you dwell on depressing thoughts, you will live a depressing life. If you continually gravitate toward negative thoughts, you will gravitate toward negative people, activities, philosophies, and lifestyles. Your life will always follow your thoughts.
Almost like a magnet, we draw in what we constantly think about. If you’re always thinking positive, happy, joyful thoughts, you’re going to be a positive, happy joyful person, and you will attract other happy, upbeat, positive people.
Our thoughts also affect our emotions. We will feel exactly the way we think. You will never be happy unless you first think happy thoughts. Conversely, it’s impossible to remain discouraged unless you
first think discouraging thoughts. So much of success or failure in life begins in our minds and is influenced by what we allow ourselves to dwell on.
Set Your Mind on Higher Things
Many don’t realize it, but we can choose our thoughts. Nobody can make us think about something. God won’t do it, and the enemy can’t do it. You decide what you will entertain in your mind. Simply because the enemy plants a negative, discouraging thought in your brain doesn’t mean you have to “water” it, nurture it, coddle it, and help it to grow.
No, you can choose to cast it down and dismiss it from your mind. Granted, your mind is similar to a giant computer in that your brain stores every thought you5ve ever had. That’s encouraging when you5re trying to find your car keys, but it’s not such good news when you con¬sider the amount of smut, foul language, ungodly concepts, and other negative input with which we are inundated every day of our lives. Nevertheless, simply because a destructive thought is stored in your mental computer does not mean you have to pull it up and run it on the main screen of your mind.
If you make that mistake and start dwelling on it, that thought will affect your emotions, your attitudes, and——if you continue to give it free rein in your mind—it will inevitably affect your actions. You will be much more prone to discouragement and depression, and if you continue pondering that negative thought, it holds the potential to sap the energy and strength right out of you. You will lose your motivation to move forward in a positive direction.
The more we dwell on the enemy’s lies, the more garbage we will-ingly allow him to dump into our minds. It's as though we have flung the door wide open and put up a sign that reads: “Trash goes here!”
Anyone can be temporarily discouraged and depressed. Life is tough, and it sometimes takes a toll on us. We all get knocked down occasionally But you need not remain down. If you are depressed, you must understand, nobody is making you depressed.2 If you’re not happy, nobody is forcing you to be unhappy If you’re negative and you have a bad attitude, nobody’s coercing you to be bored, uncooperative, sarcastic, or sullen. You are choosing to remain in that condition, and the first step out of that mess is to recognize that the only person who can improve the situation is you!
We must take responsibility for our own actions. As long as we keep making excuses and blaming the family tree, our environment, past relationships with other people, our circumstances, and attributing blame to God, Satan, anyone, or anything, we will never be truly free and emotionally healthy We must realize that to a large extent, we can control our own destinies.
Some people say, “Well, my circumstances have me down. You just don’t know what I'm going through.”
Actually, your circumstances don’t have you down. Your thoughts about your circumstances have you down. On the other hand, you can be in one of the biggest battles of your life and still be filled with joy and peace and victory—if you simply learn how to choose the right thoughts. It’s time to think about what you’re thinking about.
It’s time to think about what you’re thinking about.
What are you allowing your mind to dwell on? Are you focused on your problems? Are you constantly dwelling on negative things? How you view life makes all the difference in the world—especially for you!
Obviously, we can’t ignore problems and live in denial, pretending that nothing bad ever happens to us. That is unrealistic. Bad things do sometimes happen to good people, just as good things often happen to bad people. Pretense is not the answer; nor is playing semantic games to make yourself sound more spiritual. If you are sick, it’s okay to admit it; but keep your thoughts on your Healer. If your body is tired, if your spirit is weary, fine; we all understand that. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is to get some rest. But focus your thoughts on the One who has promised, “Those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength.,
Tough times come to all of us. Jesus said, “In this life you will have trouble, but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world.”, He wasn’t saying that troublesome times wouldn’t come; He was saying that when they do, we can choose our attitudes. We can choose to be¬lieve that He is greater than our problems; we can choose the right thoughts.
As you dwell on the promises of God's Word, you will be filled with hope. You will develop a positive attitude of faith, and you will draw in the victory Like metal filings being pulled across a desk by a mag¬net, you will draw in the good things of God.
A lot of people say, “Well, as soon as my situation turns around, I’ll cheer up. As soon as I get out of this mess, I’ll have a better attitude.
Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen. You have the process backward. You must cheer up first, then God will turn your situation around. As long as you harbor that poor, defeated outlook, you will continue to live a poor, defeated life.
Interestingly, the Scripture says, “Strip off the old nature and put on the new man.” It says, “Be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind, having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.,You can’t sit back passively and expect this new person to suddenly appear; nor can you go through life in a negative frame o£ mind and expect anything to change for the better.
No, you need to strip off those old negative thoughts and “put on” a fresh new attitude. In other words, you must change your thought patterns and start dwelling on the good things of God. When you lose focus and start dwelling on negative thoughts, it becomes easy to get discouraged.
The first place we must win the victory is in our own minds. If you don’t think you can be successful, then you never will be. If you don’t think your body can be healed, it never will be. If you don’t think God can turn your situation around, then He probably won't. Remember, “As a person thinks in his heart, so he will become.5,6 When you think thoughts of failure, you are destined to fail. When you think thoughts of mediocrity, you are destined to live an average, just-get-by life. But friend, when you align your thoughts with God’s thoughts and you start dwelling on the promises of His Word, when you constantly dwell on thoughts of His victory favor, faith, power, and strength, nothing can hold you back. When you think positive, excellent thoughts, you will be propelled toward greatness, inevitably bound for increase, pro¬motion, and God’s supernatural blessings.
When you think positive, excellent thoughts, you will be
propelled toward greatness.
We must continually choose to keep our minds set on the higher things. The Bible says, “Set your minds on the things which are above., Notice again there is something that we are to dowe must continually choose, day in and day out, twenty-four hours a day to keep our minds set on the higher things. What are the things that are above, the higher things? Quite simply, they are the positive things of God. The apostle Paul provides a great list by which we can evaluate our thoughts: ''whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-一meditate on these things.”
People sometimes tease me, “Joel, you talk so much about being positive.”, But God is positive! There is nothing negative about Him. If you are going to live God5s way and be the person He wants you to be, you must line up your vision with His and learn to live in a positive frame of mind. Learn to look for the best in every situation.
No matter what you’re going through, if you look hard enough and keep the right attitude, you can find something good about the experience. If you get laid off at work, you can choose to be negative and bitter and blame God. Or, you can say, “God, I know You are in control of my life, and when one door closes, You always open a big¬ger and better door. So, Father, I can’t wait to see what You have in store for me.”
When you get stuck in traffic, you can choose to be mad and frus-trated, or you can choose to say, “Father, You said that all things work together for good to them that love the Lord. So I thank You for guid¬ing me and protecting me and keeping me in Your perfect will.”
You must make a choice to keep your mind focused on the higher things. It’s not going to automatically happen. You must be deter¬mined and put forth some effort if you’re going to keep your mind set on the good things of God and experience His best.
We must be especially on guard during times of adversity, in times of personal challenge. When troubles strike, often the first thoughts that come to mind are not higher thoughts; they’re not positive thoughts. Negative thoughts bombard us from every possible angle. Right there, we must choose to trust God for good things and not allow ourselves to be down and discouraged or just give up.
Our mind is similar to the transmission in a car. We have a forward gear, and we have a reverse gear; we can choose which way we want to go. It doesn't take any more effort to go forward than it does to go backward. It’s all in the decision process. Similarly, we determine, by our own choices, which way our lives are going to go. If you choose to stay focused on the positive and keep your mind set on the good things of God, all the forces of darkness are not going to be able to keep you from moving forward and fulfilling your destiny But if you make the mistake of dwelling on the negative, focusing on your problems and your impossibilities, it’s similar to putting that car in reverse and back¬ing away from the victory God has in store for you. You must decide which way you want to go.
Focus on the Positive
I heard a story about a positive farmer and a negative farmer. When rain fell on the land, the positive farmer would say,"Thank You, Lord, for watering our crops.”
The negative farmer said, “Yeah, but if this rain keeps up, it’s going to rot the roots away, and we’re never going to have a harvest.,”
The sun came out and the positive farmer said, ”Thank You, Lord, for the sunshine. Our crops are getting the vitamins and minerals they need. We’re going to have a great harvest this year.^^
The negative farmer said, “Yeah, but if it keeps this up, it’s going to scorch those plants. We’re never going to make a living.”
One day the two farmers went goose hunting together, and the pos-itive farmer brought along his new bird dog. He was so proud of that dog, he couldn’t wait to show him off. They went out in a small boat and waited. Before long, a big goose flew overhead. Boom! The posi¬tive farmer brought the bird down in the middle of the lake. He turned to his friend and said, “Now watch what this dog can do.” That dog jumped out of the boat and ran on top of the water, picked up the goose, ran back all the way on top of the water, and put the bird down perfectly in the boat. The positive farmer was beaming from ear to ear. He turned to his friend, and said, “What did you think of that?”
The negative farmer shook his head in disgust. “Just what I thought,” he said. “That dog can’t even swim!^^
Of course, that story is just a joke, but don't you know people like that?
They are always focused on the negative. If you must be around a pessimist, be sure to guard against their negative attitudes infecting your thinking!
Stay focused on the positive things in life. Psychologists are con-vinced that our lives move in the direction of our most dominant thoughts. If thoughts of joy, peace, victory, abundance, and blessings dominate your thoughts throughout the day, you will move toward those things, drawing them to yourself at the same time. Your life will follow your thoughts.
When your thoughts have been running in a certain pattern for a long period of time, it5s as though you have been digging a deep riverbed, and the water can flow in only one direction. Imagine a person who habitu¬ally leans toward negative thinking month after month, year after year. With every pessimistic thought, they dig that riverbed a bit deeper. The flow accelerates, growing stronger as it goes. After a period of time, the water is flowing so strongly every thought that comes out of the river is negative; that’s the only way the water is flowing. The person has pro¬grammed his or her mind into a negative thinking pattern.
Fortunately, we can dig a new river, one going in a positive direc¬tion. The way we do so is one thought at a time. When you dwell on God’s Word and start seeing the best in situations, little by little, one thought at a time, you are redirecting the flow of that river. At first, just a little water will be redirected out of the negative stream and trickle over into that positive stream. It may not look like much at first, but as you continue to reject negative thoughts and redirect the flow, as you choose faith instead of fear, expecting good things and taking con¬trol of your thought life, then little by little that negative stream will dwindle and the positive river will flow with much greater force. If 'you’ll keep it up, that old negative river eventually will dry up, and you will discover a whole new river flowing with positive, faith-filled thoughts of victory
Occasionally, you may be tempted to think discouraging thoughts, such as, “You’re never going to make it; your problems are just too big, they’re insurmountable.”
In the old days, you’d go back to the same old negative river and you’d think, Oh, my. What in the world am I going to do? God, how am I going to get out of this mess?
But not this time; you have a new river flowing. You can rise up and say, “No, greater is He that is in me than he that’s in the world. I can do all things through Christ, and I’m coming out of this.”
You can start tapping into that new river, and every time you do, you’re digging that new positive river a little deeper, and that water flows more freely
Negative thoughts assail you: You’re never going to get out of debt. You're never going to be successful.You’re always going to live in poverty and lack.
In the old days, you'd go back to that depressing river and say, “Well, yes, my family has always been poor. Nobody has ever amounted to anything. I guess it's just my lot in.
But not this time. Now, you go back to that positive river of faith. You say, “I thank You, Father, that You called me to be the head, not the tail. I’m above and not beneath. You said that I will be able to lend money and not have to borrow. You said that whatever I put my hands to do shall prosper. So Father, I thank You that I am blessed, and I can-not be cursed.,
What are you doing? You are reprogramming your mind.
Friend, don’t be passive, sitting back and allowing negative, critical, pessimistic thoughts to influence your life. Learn to dwell on the good; reprogram your thinking. The Bible tells us that we need to be “trans-formed by the renewing of our mind.’’ If you will transform your mind, God will transform your life.
If you will transform your mind,
God will transform your life.
Let’s be real, though. You may have dug a deep river of negativity, and it’s going to take a strong will to change. That river wasn’t formed overnight, nor will it be redirected without some conscious, strenuous effort on your part. God will help you, but you are going to have to make quality decisions every day, choosing the good, rejecting the bad. Determine to keep your mind set on the good things of God. Start ex-pecting good things. Get up each day knowing that God has great things in store for you. When you get out of bed., say, “Father, Fm ex¬cited about today This is a day You have made; I’m going to rejoice and be glad in it. God, I know You reward those who seek You, SO I thank You in advance for Your blessings, favor, and victory in my life today.55 Then go out and live with expectancy; live with faith.
Our thoughts contain tremendous power. Remember, we draw into our lives that which we constantly think about. If we’re always dwelling on the negative, we will attract negative people, experiences, and atti-tudes. If we’re always dwelling on our fears, we will draw in more fear. You are setting the direction of your life with your thoughts.
The choice is up to you. You don’t have to dwell on every thought that comes to your mind. The first thing you need to do is ascertain where that thought is coming from. Is that thought from God, is it your own thought, or is it a destructive thought from the enemy?
How can you tell? Easy If it’s a negative thought, it's from the enemy If it’s a discouraging, destructive thought; if it brings fear, worry, doubt, or unbelief; if the thought makes you feel weak, inade¬quate, or insecure, I can guarantee you that thought is not from God. You need to deal with it immediately
The Bible says, “We should cast down every wrong imagination and take into captivity every wrong thought.,，10 That simply means: Don’t dwell on it. Get rid of it immediately Choose to think on something positive. If you make the mistake of dwelling on the enemy5s lies, you allow the negative seed to take root. And the more you think about it, the more it’s going to grow, creating an enemy stronghold in your mind from which attacks can be launched. Night and day, the enemy will pummel your mind with notions such as: Xoure never going to be suc-cessful. Nobody in your family has ever amounted to much. You're not smart enough. Nour -parents were poor. Your grandmother was always depressed. Your grandfather couldn’t keep a job. Even your pet dog was always sick! You were just born into the wrong family.
If you believe those kinds of lies, you will set limits in your life that will be nearly impossible to rise above. You must get in the habit of casting down the thoughts of the enemy and start believing what God says about you. God is not limited by your family tree. He is not lim¬ited by your education, your social standing, economic status, or your race. No, the only thing that limits God is your lack of faith.
There is no such thing as the wrong side of the tracks with our God. If you will put your trust in Him, God will make your life significant.
God longs to make something great out of your life. He’ll take a no¬body and shape that person into a somebody But you must cooperate with God5s plan; you must start thinking of yourself as the champion God made you to be.
There is no such thing as the wrong side
of the tracks with our God.
God Has Confidence in You
If you can catch a glimpse of how much confidence God has in you, you will never again shrink back into an inferiority complex. You will rise up with boldness. When we know that somebody we respect has confidence in us, it often inspires us to believe better of ourselves. More often than not, we’ll rise to the occasion and meet that person's expectations.
One time I was playing basketball with a group of players that were a lot better than I am. Most of them had played in college; I had not. We were in a heated game, rough, and competitive. Toward the end of the game, the score was tied, and we called time out. As we huddled for one last play, one of my teammates whispered in my ear, “Joel, we want you to take the final shot. We’re being guarded too closely”
Now, that was quite a vote of confidence, but to tell the truth, I hadn’t taken a shot that entire game! The guy that was guarding me was about a foot and a half taller than I am.
At first, I thought, This is not a good idea. But then, I got to think¬ing, If my teammates have that much confidence in me, if they believe in me enough to want me to take the most critical shot in the game, then I must be able to do it.
We took the ball out, came down court, and sure enough, I worked myself into an open position, and my teammates fed me the ball. The guy guarding me towered above me, but I took a dribble and arched the ball high above his outstretched arms—I couldn’t even see the bas-ket—and that ball went way up in the air like a rainbow, much higher than I’d normally shoot it. I watched the ball soar through the air, al-most as if I were watching myself in slow motion. I think I even had time to pray, “Oh, God, please help that ball to go in!” The ball came down, swished right through the center of the hoop, and we won that game! (I knew then that God still answers prayer!)
When somebody has confidence in you and believes in you, things once thought impossible become possible. My wife, Victoria, thinks I can do anything. She has so much confidence in me. I wouldn’t be where I am today if she hadn’t constantly been telling me, “Joel, you can do it. You have what it takes.” Years ago, when she and I attended church services at Lakewood, Victoria used to tell me, “Joel, one day you're going to be up there leading this church. One day that’s going to be you.”
I said, “Victoria, please quit saying that. That makes me nervous just thinking about it. Besides, I don’t even know how to preach.
“Sure you do,” she'd say with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. “Just preach to the people like you preach to me!”
Year after year, Victoria encouraged me, “Joel, you’ve got so much to offer. God is going to use you. You5re going to be the pastor of Lake-wood Church.” That seed was being planted inside me. And when Daddy went to be with the Lord, I believe one of the main reasons I was able to step up to the plate so quickly was the fact that Victoria believed in me, and she had helped instill that confidence in me.
Victoria’s belief in me has not only helped, me to enlarge my vision, it5s helped me to understand how much confidence Almighty God has in me. Immediately after Daddy passed away, one of the first things I did was cancel our national television broadcast. We were on the Fam¬ily Channel on Sunday nights at that time. I thought, Fm not a na¬tional TV preacher. I don’t even know if I can preach. Who is going to want to listen to me? I called our representative and explained to him that my dad had died, and we were going to have to let go of that tele¬vision time.
When I told Victoria what I had done, she said, “Joel, I think you should call him back and tell him we want our time back. We’re not going to go backward. We’re not going to shrink back in fear. There are people all over the world who are watching to see what’s going to happen to Lakewood, and we need that TV time.”
I knew Victoria was right. Something just clicked in my spirit. That was a Friday afternoon, so I called the man, but I couldn’t get him.
I left him a message, and we also sent him some faxes and e-mails. We knew that time was of the essence if we wanted to rescue our television program. That program slot was extremely valuable; the cable network would be able to sell it easily and quickly to another pro¬grammer.
Monday was a holiday, but first thing Tuesday morning, we got a call back from the sales representative. He said, “Joel, I had already sold your time slot last week. But when I went to sign the contract on Friday, something inside me said, Don’t do it until next week.n He con¬tinued, “When I got here this morning, I knew what that something was. God wanted you to have that time period back.” He told me he’d torn up the other contract, and then he said, “You can have your orig¬inal slot.” I believe that decision was providential. Today, we are on more than two hundred television stations in various parts of the world. God has done more than we can even ask or think.
But the point I want you to see is that a key part of that process happened when somebody instilled confidence in me. Victoria helped me to enlarge my vision, to change my thinking. She believed in me more than I believed in myself. It’s one thing for people we love and re¬spect to believe in us, but when we comprehend how much God be-lieves in us, nothing can stop us from fulfilling our destinies.
The enemy in your mind says you don’t have what it takes; God says you do have what it takes. Whom are you going to believe? The enemy says you’re not able to succeed; God says you can do all things through Christ. The enemy says you’ll never get out of debt; God says not only are you going to get out of debt, you will lend and not borrow. The enemy says you’re never going to get well; God says He will restore your health. The enemy says you511 never amount to anything; God says He will raise you up and make your life significant. The enemy says your problems are too big, there’s no hope; God says He will solve those problems; moreover, He will turn those problems around and use them for your good. Friend, start believing what God says about you, and start thinking God’s thoughts. God’s thoughts will fill you with faith and hope and victory. God’s thoughts will build you up and encourage you. They will give you the strength you need to keep on keeping on. God’s thoughts will give you that can-do mentality
CHAPTER 13
Reprogramming Your Mental Computer
A little boy went out to the backyard to play with a baseball bat and a ball. He said to himself, “I am the best hitter in the world.” Then he threw the ball up in the air and took a swing at it, but he missed. With¬out a moment’s hesitation, he picked up the ball and tossed it in the air again, saying as he swung the bat, “I’m the best hitter in all the world.” He swung and missed. Strike two. He tossed the ball up again, con-centrating more intensely, even more determined, saying, “I am the best hitter in all the world!” He swung the bat with all his might. Whiff! Strike three. The little boy laid down his bat and smiled real big. “What do you know?” he said. “I’m the best pitcher in all the world!
Now that’s a good attitude! Sometimes you simply have to choose to see the bright side of situations. When things don't work out as you planned, rather than complaining, look for something good in your circumstances. Fill your mind with good thoughts.
Your mind is similar to a computer. What you program into it dic-tates how it will function. How foolish it would be to complain, “I hate this computer! It never gives me the right answer; it never does what I want it to do.” Think about it: You can have the most powerful computer in the world, but if you program it with the wrong software or with misinformation, it will never function as the manufacturer intended.
Beyond that, we now have a myriad of computer viruses lurking in cyberspace, waiting for an opportunity to destroy your hard drive and the information stored in your computer.
Such viruses can get into a perfectly good computer and contaminate the software. Before long the computer will develop a sluggishness; it will malfunction. You may not be able to get to the programs you need or retrieve important doc-uments. All too often, you unwittingly pass along the virus to a friend, family member, or business associate, exacerbating the problem by contaminating their systems with the same virus that infected yours. Usually these problems occur not because the computer is defective, but because somebody has reprogrammed the software or contaminated good, valuable programs or information within.
Similarly too often we allow negative thoughts, words, and other devious viruses to access our minds, subtly changing our software, or corrupting our information and values. We were created in the image of God. Before we were ever formed, He programmed us to live abundant lives, to be happy, healthy, and whole. But when our thinking be¬comes contaminated, it is no longer in line with God’s Word. We make serious mistakes and wrong choices. We go through life with low self-esteem, worries, fears, feelings of inadequacy and insecurity Making matters worse, we pass on our negative attitudes to others.
When you recognize these things happening, you must reprogram your computer. You must change your thinking. Understand, you are not defective. God made you, and He has programmed you for victory. But until you get your thinking in line with your owner’s manual, God’s Word, you will never operate to your full potential.
God made you, and He has programmed you for victory.
It’s a Thinking Problem
I talked to a man recently who said, “Joel, I5ve been watching your messages on television about being happy and enjoying your life, but it just doesn’t seem to work for me.” He explained that five or six years ago, he went through a very painful breakup in a relationship. He was heartbroken and devastated. He said, “I just can’t seem to get past those emotions. I get up every morning depressed. I go through the da' and I can’t shake the sadness. I come back home, and I go to bed de- pressed.” He informed me that he had been through several counseling sessions, but he was not seeing any progress.
“Do you think you can help me solve these emotional problems?,” he asked.
“Sir, I don’t really believe you have an emotional problem,” I an-swered straightforwardly “I believe you have a thinking problem. “What do you mean?”
“What is the first thing you think about when you get up in the morning?^^
“I think about how lonely I am and how hurt I've been” he replied. “What do you think most about as you go through the workday ?, “I think about how messed up my life is, how many mistakes I’ve made, and how I wish I could do it all over again.”
"So what do you think about when you go to bed?”
“Same thing.
“Sir, I’m not a psychologist or a psychiatrist, but I think your emo-tions are working just fine. They are working just the way God in¬tended them to. Our emotions simply respond to what we're thinking abouL They are neither positive or negative. They merely allow us to feel what we’re thinking. If you go around thinking sad thoughts all the time, you5re going to feel sad. If you go around thinking angry thoughts, you’re going to be angry But if you go around thinking happy thoughts, thoughts of victory you’re going to be happy You’re going to be victorious. You cannot go around all day long thinking about the people who have hurt you and all the mistakes you’ve made, and expect to live any kind of happy, positive life. You’ve got to let go of the past and start dwelling on the fact that God has a great future in store for you. He has a new beginning for you. Start dwelling on the fact that God has promised He will turn this situation around and use it to your advantage. Choose to think on good things. You have to re¬program your mental computer, and when you do, your emotions will follow.”
The Bible says, “I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses, positive and negative; therefore God says choose life.’’1 This is not a once-and-for-all matter. It’s a choice we have to make on a mo- ment-by-moment basis. We must choose to dwell on the positive, choose to dwell on the good. The negative is always going to be around us. We have to choose to dwell on what’s right, rather than on what’s wrong. Choose to dwell on what you have, not on what you don't have. Choose to think the right thoughts.
You cannot prevent negative thoughts from knocking at your door, but you can control whether or not you’re going to open the door and allow them to come in. If you will stand guard over that doorway and keep your mind focused on the good things of God, the Bible says that “God will keep you in perfect peace.’’2 You can have peace in the midst of your storms if you511 simply learn to choose the right thoughts. That means in the tough times of life, instead of dwelling on your problems, you must decide that you will dwell on your God. Dwell on the fact that Almighty God is on your side. Dwell on the fact that He’s prom¬ised to fight your battles for you. Dwell on the fact that no weapon formed against you can prosper. If you start thinking these kinds of thoughts, you will be filled with faith and confidence, no matter what comes against you in life.
You may have gone through some disappointments, and things in your life may not have turned out as you had hoped. People may have treated you wrong. You may have suffered some major setbacks. But you never come to a dead end with God. He always has a new begin¬ning available for you. Start dwelling on the solution. Dwell on the fact that God still has a great plan in store for your life. When one door closes, God will always open up a bigger and better door. But you have to do your part and stay in an attitude of faith, stay filled with hope.
Understand, this is an ongoing battle. We never get to a place where we don’t have to deal with negative, destructive thoughts. So the sooner we learn how to guard our minds and control our thought lives, the better off we will be.
No matter how many years we have trusted in God, or how posi-tively we live, we all will occasionally be susceptible to discourage¬ment. That’s part of the price we pay for living in a sinful world. As much as I attempt to keep my attitude positive, I am not immune from such attacks.
Stand Still
In December 2001, when Lakewood Church decided to lease the Com-paq Center in Houston, we signed a sixty-year lease with the city to move into the Rockets5 sixteen-thousand-seat basketball arena. Our congregation was excited and couldn’t wait to get started on renova-tions of the arena.
But another company that wanted the property filed a lawsuit to keep us from moving in. Naturally we were disappointed about the delay, but after we prayed about it, we knew that God wanted us to continue forward with our plans. In March 2002, our congregation made a major commitment toward that end.
Unfortunately in the fall of that year, the lawsuit started heating up. Throughout the winter, legal wrangling dragged on and on. Finally, we got word that we were scheduled to go to trial in the spring of 2003. Our attorneys had already warned us that there wasn’t a chance in the world our opponent would settle with us. They just had too much to lose. We discussed our options, laying out the various pos¬sibilities, with the attorneys clearly spelling out our chances of win¬ning or losing, the enormous amounts of money it might cost, and how much time it could take. When I looked at the bleak reports, it seemed to be an impossible situation. Even if we were to win the law¬suit, it could be tied up for years in the court system through appeals. All the while, large sums of our money remained at risk.
During that long, drawn-out period, I'd often wake up in the mid¬dle of the night, my mind bombarded by all sorts of disturbing thoughts: Man, you have made a terrible mistake. You told all those people you re going to get the Compaq Center. You showed them the plans. You had them give money. What}s going to happen if you lose the lawsuit? You're going to look like a fool. Worse yet, what's going to happen if it’s tied up for eight or nine years in the court system? You’ve got all that money at risk. You can3t make any plans.a hat are you going to do then?
Thoughts of failure and loss pelted my mind: Its impossible. Its never going to tuork out. You’d better just get your money back and move on. And I was tempted to try to figure it out in my own reasoning. I was tempted to lose my joy But during that time, I had to make a de¬cision whether I was going to dwell on the lies of the enem' get de¬pressed, and stop God from working, or keep my trust and believe that God was fighting our battles for us. Was I going to dwell on the fact that God was in control, and that He was guiding and directing our steps?
I made the decision to go with God. When those thoughts of doubt and unbelief assailed me, I did my best to cast them down, to reject them. I made a conscious decision not to focus on the problem, but to focus on God.
When that thought came saying, Its impossible, I rejected it and re-minded myself that with God all things are possible. When thoughts came saying, This was a poor decision； its never going to work out, I cast them down and reminded myself that all things work together for good to those who love the Lord. When thoughts came saying, The op-posing company is too powerful. You’ll never defeat them, I rejected that and reminded myself that no man—or company—can stand against our God. If God is for us, who dares to be against us? When thoughts threatened, This is going to be a mess. You re going to drag the church through all kinds of mud, and it's going to end in a big disap¬pointment, I learned to lift my hands and declare, “Father, You said when we walk in integrity You would keep our feet from stumbling. So Father, I thank You that You are preventing us from making a mistake.”
Every time those negative, discouraging thoughts popped into my mind, I used that as an opportunity to thank God that victory was on the way I knew that if we entertained doubt and unbelief, God could not work in that situation. And I didn’t want anything I was doing to keep God from bringing that victory to pass.
God works where there’s an attitude of faith.
When we’re always worried, upset, or depressed, all we’re really doing is delaying God in bringing the victory God works where there’s an attitude of faith. Jesus said, “If you believe, all things are possible,5, and the opposite of that is true as well. If you don’t believe, if you’re negative, fretting, worried, or upset, then supernatural changes will not be possible for you. When you are going through a tough time in your life, even if you don't feel like keeping a positive attitude—which, at times, you probably won’t——you should do it anyway knowing that every minute you allow yourself to lapse into a negative attitude is a minute that God cannot work in that situation.
In the midst of the Compaq Center lawsuit, one night I awakened and picked up my Bible. The Lord seemed to be prompting me toward a passage of Scripture in which the people of Judah were facing a for-midable foe, an impossible situation, really God said to them, “You don’t have to fight this battle. Stand still and you will see the deliver-ance of the Lord.” And when I read that, two words jumped off the page——stand still. That means to stay calm, to stay at peace. Don’t get all frustrated. Don't try to figure it out in your own reasoning. Instead, stand still. Be confident. Keep a good attitude. God says, "I’ll fight your battles for you.”
A few weeks later, we received a phone call from our attorneys一the same attorneys who told us our opponents would never settle. The company that had filed the lawsuit wanted to sit down and talk with us that next morning. In less than forty-eight hours, we came to an agreement and totally settled that lawsuit!
The Bible says, “When a man’s ways are pleasing to the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” And that’s just what God did for us. Not only did we settle the lawsuit, but the company that was once so adamantly opposed to our church leasing the arena agreed to lease us nearly ten thousand covered parking spaces at the Compaq Center for the next sixty years. Not only did that save us mil¬lions of dollars, but it allowed us to move into that new facility ap¬proximately a year sooner than we would have otherwise.
If you’ll keep your trust in God, He’ll fight your battles for you. If you’ll stand still, you’ll see the deliverance of the Lord. It doesn’t mat¬ter what you’re going through, or how big your opponents are. Keep an attitude of faith. Stay calm. Stay at peace. Stay in that positive frame of mind. And don’t try to do it all your own way Let God do it His way If you will simply obey His commands, He will change things in your favor.
You may be going through great difficulties, and you5re tempted to think, Vm never going to get out of this. This is never going to change, l’m never going to win in this situation.
No, the Bible says, “Don’t get weary and faint in your mind.” Re-member, you must first win the battle in your mind. Stand strong. When negative thoughts come, reject them and replace them with God’s thoughts. When you’re in that attitude of faith, you are opening the door for God to work in your situation. You may not see anything happening with your natural eyes, but don’t let that discourage you. In the unseen realm, in the spiritual world, God is at work. He is chang¬ing things in your favor. And if you’ll just do your part and keep be¬lieving, in due season, at the right time, God will bring you out with the victory
The key is to choose the right thoughts, to keep your mind set. Not just when you feel good, not just when things are going your way, not just when you don't have any problems, but even in the tough times of life一especially in the difficult times—you must keep your mind set on the good things of God. Stay focused. Stay full of faith. Stay full of joy Stay full of hope. Make a conscious decision that you are going to stay in a positive frame of mind.
Some people take one step forward and then two steps backward. They are happy and in a good attitude one day, then the next day they are negative and depressed. They make a little progress, then they back up. Because of their vacillating faith, they never really get to the place God wants them to be. They never experience the victories He has in store for them. Friend, you must be consistent. Set your mind for suc-cess, victory; and progress. Cast down anything negative, any thought that brings fear, worry doubt, or unbelief. Your attitude should be: I refuse to go backward. I am going forward with God. I’m going to be the person He wants me to be. I’m going to fulfill my destiny.
If you will do that, God will continually work in your life. He’ll fight your battles for you. He’ll give you peace in the midst of a storm, and He’ll help you live that life of victory that He has in store for you.
CHAPTER 14
The Power in Your Words
Jose Lima starred as a pitcher for the Houston Astros for several years in the late 1990s. Jose is an outgoing, energetic, likable young ballplayer who usually exudes a positive attitude. But when the Astros built their new ballpark, now known as Minute Maid Park, Jose was upset. The fence in left field was much closer than the fence at the Astrodome. In fact, Minute Maid Park has one of the shortest dis¬tances from home plate to the left-field fence of any ballpark in Major League Baseball. The hitters love it, but the short left field makes it tougher on the pitchers, especially when they are working against right-handed batters who tend to hit to left field.
The first time Jose Lima stepped onto the new diamond, he walked out to the pitcher’s mound, and when he looked into the outfield, he immediately noticed the close proximity of that left-field fence. “I’ll never be able to pitch in here,” he said.
The next season, despite the enthusiasm of the fans and the excite-ment of playing in that brand-new ballpark, Jose had the worst year of his career. He plummeted from being a twenty-game winner to being a sixteen-game loser in back-to-back seasons. Never in the history of the Astros franchise had any pitcher experienced such a pronounced negative turnaround.
Self-Fulfilling Prophecies
What happened to Jose? The same thing that happens to many of us every day—-we get what we say Our words become self-fulfilling prophecies. If you allow your thoughts to defeat you and then give birth to negative ideas
through your words, your actions will follow suit. That’s why we need to be extremely careful about what we think and especially careful about what we say Our words have tremendous power, and whether we want to or not, we will give life to what we're saying, either good or bad.
Sadly, many people are living discouraged lives because of their words. They say things such as:
• “Nothing good ever happens to me.
• “I’ll never be successful.
• “I dcm’t have what it takes. I can’t do it:’
• “I’ll never get out of this mess. ”
Some people even call themselves names! “What an idiot! You never can do anything right.” They don’t realize it, but their own words are paving the way for failure.
Words are similar to seeds. By speaking them aloud, they are planted in our subconscious minds, and they take on a life of their own; they take root, grow, and produce fruit of the same kind. If we speak posi¬tive words, our lives will move in that direction. Similarly, negative words will produce poor results. We can't speak words of defeat and failure yet expect to live in victory We will reap exactly what we sow.
The Bible compares the tongue to the rudder of a huge ship.1 Although that rudder is small, it controls the direction of the entire ship, and, in a similar manner, your tongue will control the direction of your life. If you habitually speak words of failure, you are going to move in the direction of a defeated, discouraged life. If your conversation regularly includes phrases such as “I can’t. Fm not able to. I don't have what it takes,” or other negative comments, you are setting yourself up for defeat Those negative words will keep you from being the person God wants you to be.
I heard about a doctor who understood the power of words. One prescription he gave to all his patients was for them to say at least once every hour, “I’m getting better and better every day, in every way” The doctor’s patients experienced amazing results, much better than the patients treated by many of his colleagues.
When you say something often enough, with enthusiasm and pas-sion, before long your subconscious mind begins to act on what you are saying, doing whatever is necessary to bring those thoughts and words to pass. Sadly, most people insist on saying negative things over their lives. They continually denigrate themselves with their own words. They don’t realize that their own words will decimate their confidence and destroy their self-esteem. In fact, if you are struggling with low self-esteem, you need to go overboard in speaking positive, faith-filled words of victory about your life. Get up each morning and look in the mirror and say "I am valuable. I am loved. God has a great plan for my life. I have favor wherever I go. God’s blessings are chasing me down and overtaking me. Everything I touch prospers and suc¬ceeds. I’m excited about my future!” Start speaking those kinds of words, and before long, you will rise to a new level of well-being, success, and victory There truly is power in your words.
We have to be particularly careful about what we say during times of adversity or hardship, when things aren’t going our way How you respond in the adversities of life and what you say in the midst of your difficulties will have a great impact on how long you stay in those sit-uations. As a rule, the more positive your thoughts and words, the stronger you will be and the sooner you will get over whatever ails you. Admittedly, when times get tough, our human nature tends to want to complain, to talk about the problem, to tell everybody who will listen how badly life is treating us. But such conversations are self-defeating. TO get through a tough time quicker and with better results, we must learn to speak as positively as possible.
What you say in the midst of your difficulties will have a
great impact on how long you stay in those situations.
Too often, we make the mistake of adopting negative attitudes and complaining.
“I knew my marriage wasn’t going to work out.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever get out of debt”
“I guess I’ll just have to put up with this health problem for the rest of my life”
When you start talking like that, you become your own worst enemy If there’s ever a time you must guard what you say, it's in times of trouble. When you feel overwhelmed, when you’re stressed out, when everything in the world has come against you, when that left¬field fence looms largely over your shoulder, that's when you need to be on high alert. That’s when you are the most vulnerable and the most likely to slip into a negative attitude, speaking negative comments. Your subconscious mind picks up your words, treats them as true, valid statements, and then sets about trying to fulfill them. When that happens, you have nobody else to blame but yourself; you've been under¬mined by your own thoughts and words.
Guard What You Say
If you’re in a storm today, now more than ever you need to guard what you say and not allow any negative, destructive words to come out of your mouth. Scripture says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and you will eat the fruit thereof.”2 In other words, you create an environment for either good or evil with your words, and you are going to have to live in that world you’ve created. If you’re always mur-muring, complaining, and talking about how bad life is treating you, you’re going to live in a pretty miserable, depressing world. You may be tempted to merely use your words to describe negative situations, but God wants us to use our words to change our negative situations. Don’t talk about the problem, talk about the solution.
The Bible clearly tells us to speak to our mountains.3 Maybe your mountain is a sickness; perhaps your mountain is a troubled relation-ship; maybe your mountain is a floundering business. Whatever your mountain is, you must do more than think about it, more than pray about it; you must speak to that obstacle. The Bible says, “Let the weak say I’m strong. Let the oppressed say Fm free. Let the sick say Fm healed. Let the poor say I’m well off.”4
Start calling yourself healed, happy, whole, blessed, and prosper-ous. Stop talking to God about how big your mountains are, and start talking to your mountains about how big your God is!
Stop talking to God about how big your mountains are, and start talking to your mountains about how big your God is!
I love what David did when he faced the giant Goliath. He didn't murmur and complain and say, “God, why do I always have these huge problems?” No, he changed his whole atmosphere through the words that came out of his mouth. He didn’t dwell on the fact that Goliath was three times his size. Nor did he dwell on the fact that Goliath was a skilled warrior and he was just a shepherd boy No, he didn’t focus on the magnitude of the obstacle before him. He chose instead to focus on the greatness of his God.
When Goliath saw how young and small David was, he began to laugh. He jeered, “Am I a dog that you’d come at me with a stick?”
But David looked him right in the eyes, and with great determina¬tion, he said, “Listen, Goliath, you come against me with a sword and a shield, but I come against you in the name of the Lord God of Israel.”
Now, those are words of faith! Notice, too, that he spoke the words aloud. He didn’t merely think them; he didn’t simply pray them. He spoke directly to the mountain of a man in front of him, and said, “I will defeat you and feed your flesh to the birds of the air this very day,” And with God's help, he did exactly that!
Those are the kinds of words you must learn to speak in your every-day circumstances, and especially in times of crisis and adversity When you’re facing obstacles in your path, you must boldly say, “Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world.6 No weapon formed against me is going to prosper.7 God always causes me to triumph.”, Quit wor¬rying and complaining about the obstacle, and start speaking to it. Quit complaining about poverty and lack and start declaring, “God supplies all of my needs in abundance.Quit nagging that friend or family member who is not serving God and start declaring, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Quit complaining that nothing good ever happens to you and start declaring, ''Everything I touch pros-pers and succeeds. We must stop cursing the darkness. Let’s start com¬manding the light to come.
Friend, there is a miracle in your mouth. If you want to change your world, start by changing your words. When times get tough, don’t give in to murmuring, disputing, and complaining. Speak to those prob¬lems. If you’ll learn how to speak the right words and keep the right attitude, God will turn that situation around.
You may be thinking, This sounds too good to be true, Joel. I know it’s true! I saw the power of our thoughts and words turn an impossi¬ble situation in my own family into a modern-day medical miracle. Come on, let me tell you about it.
CHAPTER 15
Speaking Life-Changing Words
In 1981, my mother was diagnosed with cancer and given just a few weeks to live. Fll never forget what a shock that news was to our fam¬ily I had never seen my mother sick one day in all my life. She was ex-tremely healthy and active. She loved being outdoors, working in the yard, working in her flowerbeds.
I was away at college when the doctor’s report came. My brother, Paul, called me and said, “Joel, Mother is very, very sick.”
“What do you mean, Paul? Does she have the flu or something like that?”
“No, Joel,” Paul replied. “She’s losing weight. Her skin is yellow, and she’s extremely weak; something is seriously wrong with her.”
Mother was hospitalized for twenty-one days, while the doctors ran test after test. They sent her lab work all over the country hoping to find some key to help her. Finally, they came back with the dreaded re¬port that she had metastatic cancer of the liver. They called my dad out into the hallway and said, “Pastor, we hate to tell you this, but your wife has only a few weeks to live. Not months, weeks . .
Medical science had reached the limits of what they could do. The best and brightest doctors in the world had exhausted their efforts, so they basically sent our mom home to die.
We expressed our sincere appreciation to the doctors and hospital staff for their hard work, but we refused to accept their opinions. Fm grateful for doctors, hospitals, medicine, and science, but the medical professionals can present only what their medical charts tell them.
Thank God, you and I can appeal to a higher Authority We can always have another report. God’s report says, “I will restore health to you and heal your wounds.”
We serve a supernatural God. He is not limited to the laws of na¬ture. He can do what human beings cannot do. He can make a way in our lives where it looks as if there is no way That’s what we prayed that He would do in Mother's life.
And my mother never gave up. She refused to speak words of de¬feat. She didn’t complain about how sick or weak she felt, or how awful her life was, or how hopeless her situation looked. She chose to put God’s words in her mind and in her mouth.
She started speaking faith-filled words. She started calling in health and calling in healing. All during the day, we’d hear her going through the house speaking aloud, “I will live and not die, and I will declare the works of the Lord.” She was like a walking Bible!
I'm say, “Mother, how are you doing?”
She’d say; “Joel, Fm strong in the Lord and the power of His might.”She pored over her Bible and found about thirty or forty fa¬vorite passages of Scripture concerning healing. She wrote them down, and every day, she’d read over them and boldly declare them aloud. We’d see her walking up and down the driveway saying, “With long life, He satisfies me and shows me His salvation.
Mother mixed her words with God’s Words, and something powerful began to happen. Her circumstances began to change. Not overnight, but little by little, she began to feel better. She got her appetite back and started gaining weight Slowly but surely her strength returned.
What was happening? God was watching over His Word to perform it. God was restoring health to her and healing her of her wounds. A few weeks went by and Mother got a little better. A few months went by^ and she was even better. A few years went by, and she just kept on confessing God's Word. Today, it has been more than twenty years since we received the report that Mother had just a few weeks to live, and as I write these words, Mother is totally free from that cancer, healed by the power of God’s Word!
And she is still confessing God’s Word. She gets up every morning and reviews those same Scriptures on the subject of healing. She still speaks those words of faith, victory and health over her life. She won’t leave the house until she does it. Beyond that, she loves to remind “Mr. Death’, that he has no hold on her life. Every time my mother passes a graveyard, she literally shouts out loud, “With long life He satisfies me and shows me His salvation!,5 The first time she did that when I was riding in the car with her, I nearly jumped out of my seat!
But Mother refuses to give the enemy a foothold.
Boldly Confess God’s Word
Mother used her words to change her world, and you can do the same thing. Maybe you are facing a “hopeless” situation. Don’t give up. God is a miracle-working God. He knows what you5re going through, and He will not let you down. He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. If you will trust in Him and start speaking words of faith, your circumstances will begin to change.
God is a miracle-working God.
Of course, we don’t have to be in life-threatening situations to use God’s Word. We can speak God5s Word in our everyday lives. Parents, you ought to speak God’s Word over your children every day before they go to school. Just say “Father, You promised me in Psalm 91 that You will give Your angels charge over us and that no evil would come near our household. So I thank You that my children are supernatu- rally protected, and You are guiding them and watching after them. Father, You said that we’re the head and not the tail, and You will surround us with favor. So I thank You that my children are blessed, and they will excel at whatever they put their hands to do.”
Speaking God’s Word over your children can make an enormous difference in their lives. I know my mother prayed over my siblings and me every day before we went to school. She prayed specifically that we’d never break any bones. She raised five healthy, very active chil-dren. We all played sports and did a lot of crazy things, but to this day as far as I know, not one of us has ever broken a bone.
Just as it is imperative that we see ourselves as God sees us and think about ourselves as God regards us, it is equally important that we say about ourselves what God says about us. Our words are vital in bringing our dreams to pass. It’s not enough to simply see it by faith or in your imagination. You have to begin speaking words of faith over your life. Your words have enormous creative power. The moment you speak something out, you give birth to it. This is a spiritual principle, and it works whether what you are saying is good or bad, positive or negative.
In that regard, many times we are our own worst enemies. We blame everybody and everything else, but the truth is, we are pro¬foundly influenced by what we say about ourselves. Scripture says, “We are snared by the words of our mouth.’’
“Nothing good ever happens to me. My dreams never come to pass. I knew I wouldn5t get promoted.,5 Statements such as these will literally prevent you from moving ahead in life. That’s why you must learn to guard your tongue and speak only faith-filled words over your life. This is one of the most important principles you can ever grab hold of. Sim¬ply put, your words can either make you or break you.
God never commanded us to repeatedly verbalize our pain and suffering. He didn't instruct us to go around discussing our negative situations, airing our “dirty laundry” with all our friends and neigh¬bors. Instead, God told us to speak constantly of His goodness, to speak of His promises in the morning at the breakfast table, in the evenings around the dinner table, at night before bedtime, continu¬ally dwelling on the good things of God.
You could experience a new sense of joy in your home, if you'd sim-ply stop talking about the negative things in your life and begin talk¬ing about God's Word.
If you are always talking about your problems, don’t be surprised if you live in perpetual defeat. If you're in the habit of saying, “Nothing good ever happens to me,” guess what? Nothing good is going to hap-pen to you! You must stop talking about the problem and start talking about the solution. Quit speaking words of defeat, and start speaking words of victory Don't use your words to describe your situation; use your words to change your situation.
Every morning, when I get out of bed, I say, “Father, I thank You that I am strong in the Lord and the power of Your might. I am well able to do what You have called me to do.” I quote several other pas-sages of Scripture regarding God5s favor in my life. What am I doing? I am starting off my day on a positive note, aligning my thoughts and words with His.
Set the tone for the entire day as soon as you get out of bed. If you wait until you have read the morning newspaper, you’ll start your day with all sorts of sad, dreary news. Try starting your day with some good news by speaking God’s Word over your life! Don’t wait till you've checked the stock report, or you’ll be up one day and down the next. The moment you wake up, begin to give new life to your dreams by speaking words of faith and victory
Understand, avoiding negative talk is not enough. That’s similar to a football team having a good defense but no offense. If your team is constantly playing defense, you stand little chance of scoring. You must get the ball and move it down the field; you must get on the of¬fense. You have to be aggressive.
Avoiding negative talk is not enough . . .
You must get on the offense.
Similarly, you must start boldly confessing God5s Word, using your words to move forward in life, to bring to life the great things God has in store for you. The Scripture says, “With the heart one be¬lieves unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”2 This same principle is true in other areas. When you believe God's Word and begin to speak it, mixing it with your faith, you are actually confirming that truth and making it valid in your own life.
If you are facing sickness today, you should confirm God’s Word concerning healing. Say something such as, “Father, I thank You that You promised me in Psalms that I will live and not die and I will de¬clare the works of the Lord.” As you boldly declare it, you are con¬firming that truth in your own life.
If you are struggling financially instead of talking about the prob¬lem, you need to boldly declare, "Everything I put my hands to pros¬pers and succeeds!”
Friend, when you make those kinds of bold declarations, all heaven comes to attention to back up God’s Word.
God has not given us hundreds of promises simply for us to read and enjoy God has given us His promises so we might boldly declare them to bring us victory, health, hope, and abundant life.
In 1997, Victoria and I had the opportunity to develop the last full power television station available in Houston, channel. It was a tremendous opportunity but also an enormous undertaking. All we had was a construction permit, basically a piece of paper giving us the right to build the station. We didn’t have a studio, we didn’t have a transmitter or a tower to put it on; oh, and we had no programming! We were starting totally from scratch. And we had less than a year to get the station on the air or we’d lose the license. We really needed God’s supernatural wisdom to deal with the day-to-day details of building a television station.
I decided to do what my mother did, and every morning when I read my Bible, I wrote down any verse or passage of Scripture that had to do with wisdom or guidance. After a couple of weeks, I had recorded twenty or thirty passages, and every day before we would leave the house, Victoria and I would read those Scriptures and boldly declare them.
One of my favorite passages was: “For the Lord grants wisdom! His every word is a treasure of knowledge and understanding. He grants good sense to the godly—his saints. He is their shield, protecting them and guarding their pathway He shows how to distinguish right from wrong, how to make the right decision every time.’’3 We’d say, “Father, .we thank You that we have Your supernatural wisdom, and we do have the ability to make the right decision every time. Father, You said the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, so we thank You that You are guiding and directing our steps.And I cannot tell you how many times during the development of that television station God supernat- urally protected us and kept us from making mistakes.
For instance, I was just about to pick up the phone and order an extremely expensive and critical piece of equipment, probably the most important piece of equipment in a television station. Just before I did, a man called me out of the clear blue, and we discussed numer¬ous issues. Toward the end of our conversation, he said something that gave me insight and totally changed the decision I was about to make.
What was happening? God was using that man to help guide us;
God was protecting us from making a poor decision, and He was giving us good sense to make the correct decision. God was watching over His Word to perform it.
God wants to do something similar for you, but you can5t be lazy Search the Scriptures and highlight those that particularly apply to your life situation. Write them down and get in the habit of declaring them.
God has already done everything He’s going to do. The ball is now in your court. If you want success, if you want wisdom, if you want to be prosperous and healthy, you’re going to have to do more than med¬itate and believe; you must boldly declare words of faith and victory over yourself and your family
In the next chapter, we will discover how you can do just that!
CHAPTER 16
Speaking a Blessing
As parents, we can profoundly influence the direction of our chil-dren’s lives by the words we say to them. I believe as husbands and wives we can set the direction for our entire family. As a business owner, you can help set the direction for your employees. With our words, we have the ability to help mold and shape the future of any¬one over whom we have influence.
And each of us has influence over somebody You may not consider yourself a leader, but you have a sphere of influence nonetheless—somebody or some group that looks up to you. Even if you’re a teenager, some¬body values your opinion. It is vital that we speak “good things”, into the lives of those over whom we have influence. That doesn’t mean we will never disagree with them or have to confront and correct them. But the general tenor of our words to them and about them should be positive.
A well-meaning mother was constantly nagging her teenage son. “You’re so lazy; you5re never going to amount to anything! If you don5t shape up, you’re never going to get into college. You’ll probably wind up getting into trouble.”
Those kinds of negative words will destroy a person quicker than you can imagine. You cannot speak negatively about someone on one hand, then turn around and expect that person to be blessed. If you want your son or daughter to be productive and successful, you need to begin declaring words of life over your children rather than predic¬tions of doom and despair. The Scripture reminds us that with our words we can bless people or we can curse them.
In the Old Testament, the people clearly understood the power of the blessing.
As the family patriarch approached senility or death, the oldest sons gathered alongside their father. The father would then lay his hands on each son’s head and speak loving, faith-filled words over them about their future. These pronouncements comprised what was known ever after as “the blessing/5 The family realized that these were more than Dad’s dying wishes; these words carried spiritual authority and had the ability to bring success, prosperity and health into their future.
Many times, children even fought over the father’s blessing. They weren’t fighting over money that they might inherit. Nor were they ar-guing over the family business. No, they were fighting over faith-filled words. They realized that if they received the father's blessing, wealth and success would be a natural by-product. Beyond that, they deeply desired the blessing from somebody they loved and respected.
One of the most amazing biblical records concerning the power o£ the blessing comes out of the lives of Jacob and Esau, the two sons of Isaac.1 Jacob wanted his father’s blessing—not just any blessing, but the blessing that rightfully belonged to the firstborn son in the family Isaac was old, near death, and he was practically blind. One day he called in his son Esau and said, “Esau, go kill some game, and prepare me a meal and I will give you the blessing that belongs to the firstborn son.” But Jacob's mother, Rachel, overheard this conversation. Rachel loved Jacob more than she loved Esau, so she told Jacob to put on Esau's clothes in an attempt to trick Isaac into giving him the blessing. Then she prepared one o£ Isaac’s favorite meals.
While Esau was out in the field hunting, she said to Jacob, “Go to your father and present him this food. And he’ll give you the blessing that really belongs to your brother.”
Jacob recognized the seriousness of this duplicity He said, “But Mother, what if he finds out that Fm lying, and he curses me instead of blesses me? I’ll be cursed for the rest of my
Think about that. Jacob understood that he was risking his entire future on this gambit. He recognized that the words his father spoke over him would impact him, for either good or evil, the rest of his life.
Declare God’s Favor
Whether we realize it or not, our words affect our children’s future for either good or evil. Our words have the same kind of power that
Isaac’s words had. We need to speak loving words of approval and ac¬ceptance, words that encourage, inspire, and motivate our children to reach for new heights. When we do that, we are speaking blessings into their lives. We are speaking abundance and increase. We’re declaring God’s favor in their lives.
Our words affect our children’s future,
for either good or evil.
But too often, we slip into being harsh and critical with our children, constantly finding fault in something our children are doing. “Why can’t you make better grades? You didn’t mow the lawn right Go clean your room——it looks like a pigpen! You can’t do anything right, can you?”
Such negative words will cause our children to lose the sense of value God has placed within them. As parents, we do have a responsibility be¬fore God and society to train our children, to discipline them when they disobey to lovingly correct them when they make wrong choices. But we should not constantly harp on our kids. If you continually speak words that discourage and dishearten, before long you will destroy your child’s self-image. And with your negative words, you will open a door, allowing the enemy to bring all kinds of insecurity and inferiority into your child’s life. Millions of adults today are still suffering as a result of the negative words their parents spoke over them as children.
Remember, if you make the mistake of constantly speaking negative words over your children, you are cursing their future. Moreover, God will hold you responsible for destroying their destiny With authority comes responsibility, and you have the responsibility as the spiritual au¬thority over your child to make sure that he feels loved, accepted, and approved. You have the responsibility to bless your children.
Beyond that, most children get their concepts of who God is and what He is like from their fathers. If their father is mean, critical, and harsh, inevitably the children will grow up with a distorted view of God. If the father is loving, kind, compassionate, and just, the child will better understand God’s character.
One of the reasons I talk so much about the goodness o£ God is because I saw it modeled by my dad. Nobody could have represented God any better to us Osteen kids than my dad did. Even when we made mistakes or got off track, while Daddy was firm, he was also lov¬ing and kind. He nurtured us back to the right course. He never beat us into line; he loved us into line. Although he was very busy, he always took time for us. He encouraged us to do great things, to fulfill our dreams. He used to say, “Joel, don’t do what I want you to do. Do what you want to do. Follow your own dreams.”
Daddy believed in my brother and sisters and me. He told us we were great, even when we knew we weren't. He referred to us as blessings when we knew we weren’t acting as blessings. Sometimes we’d make him mad, and he’d say, “Fm about to beat a little blessing to death!”
Mother and Daddy raised five children in our home. When we were growing up, we didn’t have children’s church programs such as many churches now have. We all met in the same auditorium. My little sis¬ter, April, and I used to sit on the front row of that little feed store that held about two hundred people. We5d play tic-tac-toe the whole ser¬vice. (Fm confessing to let you know there5s still hope for your chil¬dren. I didn’t pay attention, and God made me a pastor. Who knows what God is going to do with your children!)
Daddy would be up on the platform, and Mother would have all five o£ us kids lined up in a row. She’d have her hands raised in the air, worshiping God with her eyes completely closed. Yet she had an in-credible ability, even with her eyes closed, to know when we kids were cutting up. That amazed me. I think that was my first experience with the supernatural power of God! I’d watch Mother to make sure that her eyes were closed before I’d do something to aggravate my brother, Paul. Without missing a beat, Mother would slowly bring one hand down, very gracefully grab my arm, and pinch the fire out of me! I wanted to scream, but I knew better. And then she’d lift that arm back up and continue worshiping the Lord.
I used to think, Mama, you have a gift. Thats supernatural!
I’m joking (a little), but the point is my siblings and I were not per-fect kids. We made plenty of mistakes. But my parents never focused on our weaknesses or on the problems. They always focused on the so¬lutions. They constantly told us we were the best kids in the world. And we grew up secure, knowing that our parents not only loved each other, but they loved us and believed in us. They were going to stand behind us through thick and thin. We knew they were never going to criticize or condemn us, but would always believe the best in us.
Because I grew up with acceptance and approval from my parents, now, as a father myself, I’m practicing the same sort of things with my children. I’m speaking words of blessing into their lives that will be passed down to another generation. And I know my children will pass down the goodness of God to their children, and on and on.
One of the first things I do when I see my little boy, Jonathan, in the morning is to say, “Jonathan, you’re the best.” I’m constantly telling him, “Jonathan, you are God’s gift to Mother and me. We love you. We're proud of you. We’ll always stand behind you.” I tell our daugh¬ter, Alexandra, the same sort of things.
Before they go to bed, I tell both of our children, “Daddy will al¬ways be your best friend.” Victoria and I constantly tell them, “There’s nothing you can’t do. You have a bright future in front of you. You’re surrounded by God’s favor. Everything you touch is going to prosper”
Victoria and I believe that we have an opportunity and a responsi-bility to speak God’s blessings into our children now, while they are young. Why should we wait till they are teenagers, or in their twenties and about to get married, to begin praying for God’s blessings in their lives? No, we’re declaring God’s blessings over them all the days of their lives. And we are convinced that our words will impact our chil-dren long after they are grown and have children of their own.
What are you passing down to the next generation? It’s not enough to think it; you must vocalize it. A blessing is not a blessing until it is spoken. Your children need to hear you say words such as, “I love you. I believe in you. I think you’re great. There’s nobody else like you. You are one of a kind.” They need to hear your approval. They need to feel your love. They need your blessing.
A blessing is not a blessing until it is spoken.
Your children may be grown and gone, but that shouldn’t stop you from picking up the phone to call and encourage them, to tell them you are proud of them. Maybe you didn't do well at blessing your chil¬dren as they were growing up. It’s not too late. Start to do it now.
Words Can’t Be Taken Back
Jacob stood before his nearly blind father, Isaac, pretending to be his brother, Esau. Although Isaac’s eyesight was dim, his intellect was not. He questioned, “Esau, is that really you?”
“Yes, Father; it’s me,” Jacob lied.
Isaac wasn’t convinced, so he called his son closer to him. Only when he smelled Esau’s clothes that Jacob was wearing was he finally convinced. He then gave Jacob the blessing that really belonged to his older brother. He said something like this: “May you always have an abundance of grain and an abundance of wine. May nations bow low before you and people always serve you. May you be the lord over your brothers. May anyone that curses you be cursed, and anyone that blesses you be blessed.,， Notice, in Isaac’s blessing he declared great things concerning Jacob5s future, and a study of history will show that those things came to pass.
On the other hand, shortly after Jacob left the room, Esau came in. He said, “Dad, sit up; I’ve got the meal I’ve prepared for you.”
Now Isaac was confused. He said, “Who are you?”
“Dad, I’m Esau, your firstborn son.” At that point, the Bible records that Isaac began to shake violently He realized that he had been duped. He explained to Esau how his brother, Jacob, had come in and deceitfully tricked him out of his blessing.
Now, here's an amazing aspect of this awful story of treachery Esau began to cry with a loud voice, saying, “Father, can’t you still give me the blessing that belongs to the firstborn?”
Isaac’s answer was insightful and powerful: “No, the words have al-ready gone forth, and I cannot take them back. I said that Jacob will be blessed, and he will always be blessed.
Do you see the power of our words? Do you see the power of speak-ing blessings over your children? Isaac said, “Once the words go forth, I can’t take them back.” He gave Esau a lesser blessing, but it was not nearly as significant as the one he had given to Jacob.
We need to be extremely careful about what we allow to come out of our mouths. The next time you’re tempted to talk down to somebody, to belittle your child or degrade him, remember, you can’t ever get those words back. Once you speak them, they take on a life of their own.
Use your words to speak blessings over people. Quit criticizing your child and start declaring great things in store for her future.
We should never speak negative destructive words toward anybody, especially toward people over whom we have authority or influence. Just because you have your own business or supervise a large number o£ em¬ployees doesn’t give you the right to talk down to them and make them feel badly about themselves. Quite the contrary! God is going to hold you accountable for what you say to those individuals under your au¬thority and He is going to judge you by a stricter standard. You should go out of your way to speak positive words that build up and encourage.
Similarly, it is important for a husband to understand that his words have tremendous power in his wife’s life. He needs to bless her with his words. She’s given her life to love and care for him, to part¬ner with him, to create a family together, to nurture his children. If he is always finding fault in something she’s doing, always putting her down, he will reap horrendous problems in his marriage and in his life. Moreover, many women today are depressed and feel emotionally abused because their husbands do not bless them with their words. One of the leading causes of emotional breakdowns among married women is the fact that women do not feel valued. One of the main rea¬sons for that deficiency is because husbands are willfully or unwit¬tingly withholding the words of approval women so desperately desire. If you want to see God do wonders in your marriage, start praising your spouse. Start appreciating and encouraging her.
“Oh, my wife knows I love her,” one elderly fellow said. “I don5t need to tell her. I told her back when we got married forty-two years ago.”
No, she needs to hear it again and again. Every single da' a hus¬band should tell his wife, “I love you. I appreciate you. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.” A wife should do the same for her husband. Your relationship would improve immensely if you'd simply start speaking kind, positive words, blessing your spouse instead of cursing him or her.
Declare God’s Goodness
You must start declaring God’s goodness in your life. Start boldly de-claring, “God’s face is smiling toward me, and He longs to be good to me.” That is not bragging. That is how God says we’re going to be blessedwhen we start declaring His goodness.
Allow me to make some declarations in your life:
• I declare that you are blessed with Gods supernatural wisdom, and you have clear direction for your life.
• I declare that you are blessed with creativity, with courage, with ability, and with abundance.
• I declare that you are blessed with a strong will and with self-control and self-discipline.
• I declare that you are blessed with a great family, with good friends, with good health, and with faith, favor, and
fulfillment.
• I declare that you are blessed with success, with supernatural strength, with promotion, and with divine protection.
• I declare that you are blessed with an obedient heart and with a positive outlook on life.
• I declare that any curse that has ever been spoken over you, any negative evil word that has ever come against
you, is broken right now.
• I declare that you are blessed in the city. You are blessed in the country. You are blessed when you go in. You are
blessed when you come out.
• I declare that everything you put your hands to do is going to prosper and succeed.
• I declare that you are blessed!
I encourage you to receive these words and meditate on them; let them sink down deeply into your heart and mind and become a reality ¬in your life. Practice doing something similar with your family Learn to speak blessings over your life, your friends, your future. Remember, a blessing is not a blessing until it is spoken. If you’ll do your part and start boldly speaking blessings over your life and the lives of those around you, God will provide everything you need to live the life of abundance He wants you to have.
Learn to speak blessings over your life, your friends, your future.
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