12/12/23

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
TODAY’S WORD

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
If anyone…sees his brother and fellow believer in need, yet closes his heart of compassion against him, how can the love of God live and remain in him?
1 John 3:17, AMPC

A HEART OF COMPASSION
In Matthew 20, when two blind beggars cried out for Jesus to have mercy on them, it says that “Jesus stopped and called them,” then He healed them. Jesus always took time for people. He was never too busy with His own agenda, with His own plans. He wasn’t so caught up in Himself that He was unwilling to stop and help any person in need. He could have easily said, “Listen, I have a schedule to keep.” But no, Jesus had compassion on people. He freely gave of His life.

Make sure that you keep your heart of compassion open. We need to be willing to be interrupted and inconvenienced if it means we can help meet someone’s needs. Sometimes if we would just take the time to listen to them, we could help initiate a healing process in his or her life. If you can open your heart of compassion and be that person’s friend—without judging or condemning—and simply have an ear to listen, you could make a difference in that person’s life.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You that You have poured Your love into my heart through the Holy Spirit. Thank You that You have opened my spirit to be compassionate and kind and merciful to others like You are. I want to do the things that are on Your heart for others. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

One of my favorite stories is of Jesus healing a woman bowed over with a spirit of infirmity for 18 years. Imagine never being able to see the sky or rainbows, but only the dust of the earth and the grubby feet of people—what a painful existence!

I love how Jesus saw her and immediately called her over to receive a miracle from Him. The woman had been bound in this condition for 18 years, a number which represents bondage in the Bible.

When Jesus said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity,” He was proclaiming liberty over her and setting her free from the bondage of the devil. He laid hands on her and she immediately received her healing.

Today, you have already been set free from the curse of disease by Jesus’ one perfect sacrifice at the cross. Proclaim your liberty won by His finished work!

11/12/23

In many places today, all you hear is more teaching on right doing, right doing, and more right doing! But I believe what we need is more teaching on right believing. What we need to do is keep pointing people to Jesus, His grace, His finished work, and His forgiveness.

I have no doubt then that their right believing will produce right living. They will become people whose hope is not in the righteousness they can produce, but in the gift of righteousness from Jesus Christ and what Jesus can produce in them.

Let me share with you a testimony I received from Lucas that demonstrates this truth:

“Even though I was raised in a Christian home with parents who are both totally dedicated to Jesus, I fell into drug abuse. I tried attending church, but listening to the sermons made me feel like I just couldn’t confess my sins enough, repent enough, or hate my sins enough to get God’s forgiveness.”

“Then one day a very dear friend gave me a copy of your book, Destined To Reign. The book rocked my spiritual world. I saw that sin was not the issue. The issue was not understanding the grace of my wonderful Lord and Savior. When I saw the finished work of Jesus, I realized that God is not up there with a big stick waiting for me to mess up so that He can beat me with it.”

“As I continued reading your book and feeding on the gospel of grace, I was set free from a five-year drug addiction in just five days! And I know it’s all through the sweet, sweet grace of Jesus being revealed in my life.”

“Thank you, Pastor Prince, for your book, resources, and sermons. I want to know this God of grace more, and I want my family to also know Him as a God of grace and not a God of law who condemns His children. I have never known a loving God as I do right now!”

Can you see how powerful living with a consciousness of Jesus’ forgiveness can be? Sin has no dominion over your life when you are under grace. Sin cannot take root in your life when you are established in God’s forgiveness.

Receiving His forgiveness and gift of righteousness puts you in a cycle of victory over sin, whereas those who receive condemnation for every wrong thought in their mind enter into a never-ending cycle of defeat. Do you see the difference?

10/12/23

Are you among the people who think that when you fail, God leaves you and only returns when you get your act together? Some people think that they must clean up their lives and overcome all their struggles on their own before they can come before the presence of God.

Well, I have a simple question for you: Do you clean yourself before you take a bath? Of course not!

In the same way, God wants you to come to Him just as you are, with all your weaknesses, idiosyncrasies, wrong beliefs, hang-ups, and all your bondages, fears, and addictions. He is the bath! You don’t have to try to clean yourself up before you come to Him.

But Pastor Prince, what if the mess I’m in is entirely of my own doing? Can I still just come to God as I am and expect Him to help me?

Yes, even if your trouble is due to your own willfulness or a mistake of your own making, He is still with you. He has never left you, and He never will. He will never forsake you (Heb. 13:5).

You are precious in His eyes. Can you imagine living life with the kind of confidence, assurance, and peace that comes when you are truly anchored in this truth?

Today, even if you find yourself in the Valley of Trouble, know that you will not remain there for long. You will walk through it and not remain or camp there (Ps. 23:4).

God is opening a door of hope in your life today for you to step out of your darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). Things are going to get better. The breakthroughs that you have been waiting for are coming your way.

Step through the door of hope and out of your Valley of Trouble today. Jesus is your door of hope! Believe in His love for you and allow Him to lead you to freedom.

In His loving presence, you will find forgiveness, healing, and restoration. He will mend your life and transform you from the inside out.

08/12/23

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
TODAY’S WORD

Today’s Scripture
No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
Romans 8:37, NLT

OVERWHELMING VICTORY
During the thirteen years between when Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers to when he was made prime minister of Egypt, practically every day he suffered and had to fight having a victim mentality. Thoughts would whisper, “You keep doing the right thing and yet you’re the victim of others’ wrongs.” But Joseph’s attitude was: “I refuse to be a victim of my brothers, of the slave traders, of Potiphar’s wife whose lie sent me to prison, of the butler who forgot about me after I helped him. They tried to harm me, but I know God means it for my good.”

Despite what people do and say, nobody can force you to have a victim mentality. You have to give permission to become a victim. “I’m at a disadvantage. I’m going to feel sorry for myself. This bad break has stopped my future.” Don’t allow that victim mentality to enter your thinking. You have to dig down deep and say, “No, thanks. Despite what’s been done, I am going to see an overwhelming victory through Christ Jesus.”

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You for the promise of an overwhelming victory through Jesus. Thank You for Your love and that I am Your child, a victor and not a victim of circumstances. I’m going to stay in peace knowing that no obstacle that stands in my way can stop Your plan. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

SECTION TWO

With each of the Lord’s blessings you experience, be encouraged to know that many more blessings are coming your way. Just as there are many seeds in one fruit, so each of Jesus’ blessings contains many seeds that will go on to provide many more blessings for you and your family.

Consider Jesus’ healing of the man with the withered arm. The Gospel of Luke tells us that it was the man’s right hand that was withered. Now, the right hand is a picture of strength and provision.

This man had lost not only his strength, but also his ability to provide! So when Jesus healed this man’s right hand, He not only performed a healing miracle, but He also restored to this man the power and the ability to provide for himself and his family! Hallelujah!

Is your strength and ability to provide “withered” today? Jesus says to you, “Stretch out your hand, be healed and completely restored with the power to provide for yourself and your family!”

07/12/23

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
TODAY’S WORD

Today’s Scripture
“All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”
1 Samuel 17:47, NIV

DECLARE VICTORY

When David went out to face Goliath, before he slung that rock, he got his sword out. Not a physical sword, but the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. He looked at Goliath and said, “This day I will prove to everyone here that the battle is the Lord, that the victory is not by sword or spear.” He declared victory. He declared God’s favor. He could have said, “God, why is this giant in my path? He’s twice my size. I don’t have the training in warfare. This is not a fair figbght.” If David would have talked like that, you wouldn’t be reading about him today. David knew how to swing his sword. Before he slung that rock, he had already defeated Goliath.

Here’s the point: If you swing your sword, God will direct the rock. If you declare victory, He’ll bring down the giants. Every day you need to declare victory over what opposes you, declare your purpose and destiny. Don’t be passive. God has the favor, the healing, the abundance.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You that no matter what I face, no matter how big it looks, that the battle belongs to You and not to me. Help me use my words to declare victory. I believe that as I speak words of faith out loud that I will see You release Your promises in my life. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

V

It is the Lord’s manifested presence, His glorious power working in your heart and through your hands that will cause everything you touch to prosper with the Jesus-kind of results. In fact, even your harshest critic will have to conclude that the Lord is with you and is prospering the work of your hands!

Beloved, stop looking at your outward circumstances or the position you are in. Whether your employer is a believer or not, Jesus can make ALL that you do prosper when you depend on His unmerited favor in your career! And believe me, when that begins to happen, your employer will sit up and notice that there is something special about you. You will stand out in a crowd!

Remember that the same Lord who was with Joseph is with you today. His name is Jesus and because Jesus is with you, you can expect good success in everything that you do!

For example, when you are placed over a sales project, believe that your sales team will hit record levels of sales never achieved before in your organization. When you are overseeing the finances of a company, believe that you will find legal ways to help your company save on operating expenses and increase its cash flow like never before. When you are placed in a business development role, believe that Jesus will cause doors that have always been closed to your company to be opened to you because of His unmerited favor upon your life.

Perhaps your company is just a small IT start-up, but for some reason, all the big boys in the market, the tech giants, like you. They can’t put their finger on it, but there is just something special about you that makes them compete to find ways to collaborate with you, leaving you spoiled for choice!

Perhaps you are a homemaker. You can also expect Jesus’ presence in your life to give you favor with your children. Instead of constantly resisting and arguing with you, they will find you and your words irresistible. God can increase your influence over them.

My friend, that’s the unmerited favor of God in action. In the natural, you may be unqualified and inexperienced, but remember that all your disqualifications exist in the realm of the natural. You, beloved, live and operate in the supernatural realm!

The Lord Jesus is with you 100 percent. You are a successful person in the Lord’s eyes and as you depend on Him, He will cause everything that your hands touch to prosper.