Reverse The Order | Joel Osteen

the week to our daily podcast, our YouTube channel, social media. We'll keep you encouraged and inspired. I'd like to start with something funny. I heard about this minister. He was driving down the road when he was pulled over by a policeman. The officer came to the window and smelled alcohol. He saw a thermos and said, "Sir, what are you drinking?" The minister said, "Just water, officer." He asked to see the thermos. He took one sniff and said, "Smells like wine to me." The minister said, "What do you know? Jesus did it again." Say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. I have what it says I have. I can do what it says I can do. Today I will be taught the Word of God. I boldly confess my mind is alert. My heart is receptive. I will never be the same in Jesus' name. God bless you. I want to talk to you today about reverse the order. We all face times where we feel like we're at a disadvantage. Others have more experience, more qualifications, more resources. Seems like they get the good breaks, the best positions. It's easy to feel overlooked and left out. Friend told how it worked. People take everyone's opinion except his. They see him as secondary, too young, not much to offer. But Jesus said in Matthew, "The last shall be first." God knows how to reverse the order. He loves to promote people who are not next in line, to take those who are overlooked, discounted, and push them into their destiny. One shift, one good break, and you'll go from being overlooked to being in charge, from being left out to leading, from being disrespected to being honored. Don't get discouraged if you feel like you're at the last, so to speak. You're in perfect position for God to show out in your life. The last is a setup. Being discounted is not how your story ends. A reversal is coming. What looks permanent is only temporary. It's like they have the upper hand. They have the advantage. But what God has purpose for you cannot be stopped. He didn't create you to live at a disadvantage. He didn't breathe life into you to go around being overlooked. He didn't crown you with favor for you to be discounted. Yes, we all go through seasons where these things happen, but don't think it's permanent. There's going to be a reversal, a shift, a suddenly where God catapult you from the back to the front, from borrowing to lending, from businesses slow to businesses booming, from no customers to get in line, we're in the overflow. Don't judge your situation too soon. A reversal is coming. Something uncommon. You couldn't have made it happen. People that were against you are now suddenly for you. They wouldn't give you the time of

the day. Now they look up to you. Your marriage looked too far gone. You had given up on it, but suddenly a reversal. You thought your business was done. The pandemic set you back, then one shift, and suddenly things are stronger than ever. Now get in agreement with God. No more I'll never get ahead, Joel. Nobody gives me the time of day. How can I break out? Look how I was raised. No, turn it around. Father, thank you that a reversal is coming. Thank you that you are shifting things in my favor, that what was meant for harm, you turn into my advantage, that I will come out stronger, healthier, promoted, honored. Don't live with a victim mentality, a lack mindset. I'm overlooked. I'm at a disadvantage. This is just my lot in life. No, your lot in life is to excel, to be the head and not the tail. You may be the tail now, but that's temporary, a reversal is coming. To be above and not beneath. You may be beneath now, but above is on the way. Good breaks, divine connections, favor that will catapult you from the last to the first. Now you don't have to make this happen. You don't have to strive, manipulate people, force doors to open. You just keep honoring God. You and the right thing when it's hard. Being good to people that are not being good to you. Keep smiling, praising, thanking God. You do your part and God will do his part. Promotion doesn't come from people. It comes from the Lord. He lifts up one and sets down another. He sees you being overlooked. He sees when you discount it, not treated fairly, raised in a rough environment. You'll never accomplish your dreams. You'll never have respect and honor. Don't believe those lies. The God we serve knows how to reverse the order. You should have been defeated. You should have lived struggling, but the reversal took place. You went from the back to the front. From being overlooked to being honored. From struggling to succeeding. It may not have happened yet, but your time is coming. Your reversal is already on the schedule. This is what happened to David.

He was the youngest of eight brothers. His father Jesse saw him as the least, not up to par. He didn't have the talent, the size, the experience of these other brothers. He discounted him and left him out. When the prophet Samuel came to Jesse's house to anoint one of the sons as the next king, Jesse didn't bother to call David in. I thought there's no way it's David. If our destiny only depended on people who likes us, who believes in us, who thinks we're talented, we'd get stuck. Because it will always be people that discount you, leave you out. Sometimes they're intimidated. They don't want you to pass them up. They're jealous. They don't want your gifts to come out. They'll try to push you down. The good news is they don't control your destiny. The most high God is ordering your steps. He's working out his plan for your life. David was the last son, the youngest. All the brothers were ahead of him. But notice what God did. Samuel looked at the seven sons, said to Jesse, "It's none of these seven. Do you have any more sons?" Even when people try to leave you out. Even when they overlook you, God doesn't overlook you. Jesse had David come in from the shepherd's fields. Samuel said, "That's the next king." I'm sure Jesse, the other sons, they thought, "How could that be?" He's not next in line. He's not the biggest, strongest, most talented.

But God doesn't choose the way we choose. David went from being left out in the shepherd's fields by himself. Nobody thinking he'd ever do anything great? Then God showed up and said, "David, don't worry. I'm about to reverse the order. I'm about to take you from the back to the front. From the least to the leader. From being discounted to being looked up to." Like David's father, you may have family members that don't believe in you. Relatives that look down on you. Co-workers that don't give you the time of day. It's easy to be offended. Want to get in there and fight with them. Try to prove to them who you are and prove that you have something to offer. That's not your battle. You keep doing the right thing and Samuel will show up. When it's your time, promotion will come looking for you. Vindication, honor, respect will come knocking on your door. David didn't go looking for Samuel. He didn't say, "Sam, you'll come anoint me, man. I'm talented." He didn't start a campaign, elect me as the next king. He didn't go debate three other candidates. He knew God was ordering his steps and ordering the steps of the people he needed. God has already lined up your Samuels. Things you couldn't make happen that will take you from the last to the first. From the background to the foreground, the good breaks, the right people, the ideas. There are shifts that will suddenly cause people to see you in a new line. Suddenly a door opens. Suddenly things turn in your favor.

After David was anointed to be king, he went back to the shepherd's fields. I'm sure now he felt approved, valuable, vindicated. Finally someone pointed out to his father that he was talented, that he had great things to offer. If that wasn't enough, not long after that, King Saul needed someone at the palace that could play the heart for him. One of the assistants knew that David was great at it. The scripture says, Saul sent messengers to Jesse saying, "Send me your son David who is with the sheep." Imagine how Jesse must have felt. First this prophet randomly showed up and chose the son he thought was the least likely. Now the king is saying, "Send me your son to the palace." God knows how to take you from the back to the front. He knows how to send people who will use their influence to honor you, to give you new levels of respect, credibility. A few months earlier, Jesse didn't think enough of David to even bring him in when Samuel showed up. David was overlooked, discounted, but look at how God works. Now the king of the whole nation is calling for David. limited by your environment by how you were raised by what you didn't get. Stay encouraged. A reversal is coming. God loves to take the overlooked and cause them to shine to take those that have been discounted, left out, put them in positions of honor, respect, influence. The last will be first. The discounted will be celebrated. The ignored will be admired. Now one thing about David is he kept a good attitude when he wasn't being treated right. He didn't get better. God, why do these people always leave me out? This isn't fair. He just kept doing the right thing. Deep down, he understood this principle. I may be the last son. I may be discounted. Seeing is not talented, but I know a shift is coming. I know a reversal is on the way that what God put in my heart will come to pass. Stay faithful in the silent seasons. Stay faithful when you're in the shepherd's fields. Be in your best, but nobody's given your credit. You're being overlooked. People may not see you, but God sees you. He's the one that matters. He controls the universe. He speaks to the Samuels. He talks to the kings. He opens doors that no person can shut. One shift, and you'll go from being overlooked to being celebrated, from no one paying attention to the king calling for you. Friend of mine graduated from high school. She was planning to go to college, but she got engaged. Things moved very fast,

ended up getting married, having a baby. Now college was put on home. Then she had another child. She loved being a mother, loved raising her children, but she had this dream of doing something professionally. Maybe working in the medical field or some kind of sales. 20 years had passed since high school. She saw this job opportunity online for a marketing executive at this prestigious firm. The problem was it required a college degree, years of experience, all these references, which she had none of. Despite that, she applied anyway. She did a phone interview with them and had a short conversation. They really liked her, but they immediately told her no. She didn't have the qualifications. There were people applying that not only had college degrees, but they had their masters, all these impressive credentials from Ivy League schools. She knew in one sense she didn't measure up. All she had was a high school diploma, but God is not limited by what you don't have. He's not limited by what you didn't get. The dream he put in your heart is not dependent on you having all the qualifications, the experience, the training, the people being for you. Sometimes on purpose, God will let the odds be against you. He'll let you be over your head, the back of the line, the least likely, that's a setup. That's a sign that a reversal is coming. The Scripture says God chooses the foolish to confound the wise. He loves to take the unqualified and cause them to excel, to take those that people disregard and cause them to shine. Well, my friend was passed over for the job. While she was disappointed, she understood that, on paper, she didn't have what was required. Companies have standards, they have policies, but when God is ready to promote you, he'll cause rules to bend, policies to change, people to make an exception. He's not bound by natural laws, by policies. He controls the universe, he can change people's minds, he can cause them to want to be good to you. They may not even know why it's God shining his favor on you, pushing you into your purpose. Three months later, this company called back and said, "After doing all of our research, interviewing all these candidates with more experience, more degrees, more credentials, we've changed our mind. We want to offer you the position." That's God reversing the order. That's God taking you from the back to the front, from being overlooked to being in charge. I believe there are some reversals coming for you. You may think you could never accomplish your dream, never meet the right person, never break the addiction. You tried, it didn't happen. You don't have the qualifications. Now you've accepted being in the back, getting by in life. God is saying, I'm about to take the last and make them the first. I'm going to take those that are overlooked and cause them to be seen.

position of influence, honor with resources, with abundance. Things are about to shift. It's going to happen suddenly. It's going to be out of the ordinary divine reversals. A reversal in that sickness. Suddenly your health improves. A reversal in that relationship. It was falling apart. Suddenly it gets better. A reversal in your finances. Suddenly new clients. New opportunities. Blessings chasing you down. When we put our program on television each Sunday, we purchased that airtime. When we first started, the only time we could get was early Sunday morning before 6 a.m. Very few people watching. Over time God's given us favor. Now we have good airtimes all across the nation. Many people watch but it's very expensive. It takes a big portion of our budget. Eight years ago a large network called and said they wanted to enter our program. It's a very influential popular network and I thought wow God that's amazing. That's your favor. They're calling us. After I got over the excitement, I came back to reality and said to my media director how much is it going to cost? They may want us but we can't afford it. He said no, Joel, this deal is different. We don't have to pay anything. They're asking if they can pay us to put the program on. He's been in the media business over 40 years, bought airtime for all the TV ministries. He said I have never seen anything happen like this. God is doing a new thing from borrowing to lending, from hoping to get on to can we pay you for the content, from being down at the bottom, overlooked, to being promoted, honored, given a position of influence. Get ready for some reversals. Well Joel man, I'm hoping just make it through this year. Gas prices, inflation, the pandemic, not me. I'm expecting an abundant year, a bountiful year, a favor filled year. God is about to shift some things. It's going to be something you've never seen, something that will make your mind go tilt, tilt, tilt. I didn't see that coming. Instead of paying rent, owning your property. Instead of working for others owning your business. Instead of struggling to make ends meet, having an abundance. I don't see how this can happen. You don't have to see how all you have to do is believe. Father thank you that you're a God who reverses the order, a God who can make the last first. Lord I thank you

for doing what only you can do, for taking me where I can't go on my own. Second Kings chapter 7, the Syrian army had surrounded the city of Samaria. They cut off the Israelites food supply, clogged up their waterways so they couldn't get water. The Israelites were so distraught, it looked like that was the end. The prophet Elisha showed up and said by this time tomorrow, there will be so much food that bread will be a penny a loaf and five quarts of flour will be just ten cents. They looked at Elisha like he had lost his mind. They were surrounded by the enemy out of supplies, starving. One of the main leaders said Elisha, that's impossible. Even if God opened the windows of heaven, that couldn't happen. Elisha said to him, in effect, because you didn't believe it's not going to happen for you, everyone else is going to see it, but your doubt is going to keep you from seeing it. Now you may not see how your situation could ever change, how God could reverse the trouble, the marriage, the finances. It doesn't look possible in the natural, but God is supernatural. He has ways that we've never thought of. Don't do like this man and talk to yourself out of your miracle. Be a believer and not a doubter. There were four lepers sitting out inside the gates of Sumerian. They decided to walk toward the enemy's camp to see what the Syrians were doing. God multiplied the sound of their footsteps. The Syrians thought they were being attacked by a huge army. They panicked and took off running for their lives. They left all their food, supplies, equipment. The lepers went back and told the Israelites. They all came and gathered up the spoils, just like Elisha promised in less than 24 hours. They had more food, more supplies than they ever imagined. God knows how to reverse things. What you're up against may look permanent. Thoughts tell you, you'll always struggle. You never get ahead, never be healthy, never meet the right person. No, there's about to be a divine reversal. in your health, in your relationships. I received an email from a woman that had been separated from her husband for over a year. He had moved out of the house.

They hadn't spoken to each other. Looked like it was over. She saw that we were coming to Yankee Stadium. She reached out to her husband and asked if he would come. Against all odds, he said yes. They saw each other for the first time in a year and sat together. At the end, with tears running down their cheeks, they both stood up to recommit their life to Christ. For a new beginning, for a fresh new start. That night, he went back home with her and the children. Now they're together as a family. She said, I didn't think this would ever happen. We had been through so much. God knows how to reverse things, what looks permanent, what seems unlikely, one touch of God's favor and suddenly things shift. Suddenly your child turns around. Suddenly your health improves. Suddenly your dreams come to pass. When we acquired the Compact Center, this place, we signed a 60-year lease with the city of Houston. We always wanted to own the building, but the lease was the best way to get the facility at the time. While we were thrilled to have it, it always bothered me a little bit that in 60 years, the building would go back to the city. I was 42 years old when we'd signed a lease. I thought, man, when I'm 102,

I don't want to be down at the city negotiating another lease, especially when I'll be taking care of my brother Paul, who'll be 144 at that time. But I always prayed, God, I don't know how this can happen, but I know you can make a way where we can purchase the building so that generations to come will have Lakewood as a lighthouse of home. Seven years after we signed the lease, the mayor called, said the city was short on tax revenue and asked if we were interested in purchasing the building. I knew that was God opening the door, but I didn't know what it was gonna cost. To build this facility would cost a half a billion dollars. We're on one of the busiest freeways. Millions of people have been in this building. The rockets have won two world championships here. They're very prestigious. I told her we would love to buy it, but we just need to see if we can make it work financially. She said that they would run the appraisal and get back with us. Well, they had to appraise the building based on us having a 60-year lease, meaning whoever bought it wouldn't get it for over 50 years. They came back in a few weeks and said they would sell it to us not for 300 million, not for 100 million, not 50, not 25. They said you can purchase it for seven million dollars. My mind was going tilt, tilt, tilt.

I didn't see that coming. What was that? A divine reversal. A 60-year lease suddenly shifted to an unbelievable purchase price. God is about to reverse some things in your life. Things that look like they'll never change. You'll never own your own house. You'll never get married, never break the addiction, never start that ministry, get ready for a reversal. Things are going to suddenly shift in your favor. Samuel is going to show up looking for you. The mayor is going to call, so to speak, the people you need to open the right doors to move you into your destiny. Sometimes what's limiting us are negative things in our family lines that keep getting passed down. Addictions, low self-esteem, divorce, lack, can't get ahead. We get used to it. Think it's just who we are. But part of this reversal is God is going to put an end to these negative cycles that keep going from generation to generation. This is a new day. God's doing a new thing. It may have been in your family for years, but every force that's trying to stop you is being broken. You're the one that's going to see the reversal.

You're going to set new standards. You're going to step into new levels. You're going to go places no one in your family has ever gone. This is what happened with Rahab in the scripture. She was a good woman that got off course. She came from a family that worshiped idols. They were very poor. They lived right inside the walls of Jericho. She ended up as a prostitute. She never dreamed she would live this kind of life. She didn't like who she was. She knew she was made for more, but it was like she couldn't get out of this negative cycle. She had heard about the God of Israel, how he parted the Red Sea and protected the Israelites. I could imagine at night, Isaac and Jacob, if you're real, help me get out of this trouble. Deliver me from this dysfunction. She wanted to change, but it seemed impossible. One day Joshua sent two men to spy off the city of Jericho. Word got out that they were there. They knocked on Rahab's door, looking for a place to hide. She could have called the authorities, turned them in, but she sensed this was a destiny moment. She hid them and later helped them escape. In return, the Israelites spared Rahab and all of her family. Now Rahab is listed as one of the heroes of faith. She's in the family line of Jesus Christ. But out of all the places the spies could have not,

somehow they chose Rahab's door. God has not forgotten about you. You may have been pushed down, left out, feel like you're at the very back. If Rahab were here today, she would tell you, stay encouraged, God knows how to reverse things. She went from being looked down on, despised, not valuable, to being honored, respected, influential. Maybe there's negative baggage in your past. Things you've done you're not proud of. Dysfunction in your family line that keeps getting passed down. Don't believe that lie that is always going to be that way. A reversal is coming. God's about to reverse the dysfunction, reverse the shame, reverse the compromise. You wouldn't be hearing this if he wasn't about to shift some things. I believe and declare like Rahab, like with David, God's gonna take you from the background to the foreground, from being overlooked to in charge, in Jesus' name. And if you receive it, can you say amen? I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come into my heart, I make you my Lord and Savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love to send you some free information

on your new walk with the Lord. You can go to the website, text the number on the screen. I hope you'll get into a good Bible-based church and keep God first place. Be sure and I'll be right back to speak a blessing over you.