The Power to Obey | Joel Osteen

God bless you. It's great to be with you today. And I hope you stay connected with us during the week through our daily podcast, our YouTube channel, social media, and you can come visit us in person. We'd love to have you be a part of one of our services. I'd like to start with something funny. And I heard about this little girl. She asked her mother how the human race got started. She explained how God created Adam and Eve and they had children on and on. Here we are today. A few weeks later, she asked her father the same question. He explained how many years ago there were monkeys and little by little they became more like people. And here we are. Confused, she went back to her mother and said, mom, you said God created people. Dad said we came from monkeys. How can that be? The mother said, oh honey, that's easy. I told you about my side of the family. I told you about his. All right, y'all 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 the power to obey. Sometimes God asks us to do things that are hard. To forgive someone that doesn't deserve it. To take the management position but we're not qualified. To quit hanging around a friend that's pulling us down. Deep down, we know we're supposed to. We feel that nudging but we don't think we can. We don't have the discipline. It's easy to talk ourselves out of it. But Paul said in Philippians 2, God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey Him and the power to do what pleases Him. God will never ask you to do something and not give you the ability to do it. He not only gives you the desire, the nudging, the challenge, but He gives you the power to obey. Now quit telling yourself, I can't do this, Joel. I can't start my business. I can't control my temper. I can't quit eating six bowls of ice cream each night. The reason you're not able is you're telling yourself the wrong thing. You're defeating yourself with your own thoughts. You have to have a new mindset. This may be difficult but I have the power to obey. Yes, they hurt me but I have the power to forgive. This dream seems over my head but I have the power to accomplish it. My family all deals with these bad habits but I have the power to overcome. Don't talk yourself out of it. Get an agreement with God and talk yourself into it. If you've ever been to the store and bought a small electronic device, flashlight, a clock, often it says batteries included. The device on

its own won't do you any good unless you have those batteries to power it. In the same way, when God gives you instruction, when you feel that still small voice telling you to do something, the good news is you don't just get the instruction, batteries are always included. God always gives you the power to obey. Now here's the key, you activate the power by acting on it. As long as you're waiting, you're not going to tap into it. When you make a move, you will feel the grace, the strength, the favor to do what God's asking you to do. Anytime you obey, there's a blessing that follows. God is not asking you to do something hard for his benefit, it's for your benefit so he can release more favor and influence in your life. Whenever you feel that prompting, that knowing, telling you to call a friend and encourage them, stop staying up so late at night, you need the rest, start treating your spouse better, quit being so harsh and condescending, that's not you just thinking up things, that's God putting the desire in you, wanting you to come up higher. The beauty is he not only gives you the challenge, but with that instruction comes the power and the anointing to accomplish it. The batteries are always included, but you have to act on it. Every thought will tell you, you don't need to give them a gift, they're doing fine, it's okay to stay up, it's not hurting anything. You've always had a temper, you've always been sarcastic, you'll never change. Don't believe those lies, there is power in you to do what God's asking you to do. The enemy doesn't want you to hear this, he wants us to stay stuck, defeated with a weak mindset. I'll always be hot-tempered, I'll always be out of Shape Joel, I'm quiet and reserved. I can't reach out to others. You don't know what you can do until you take that step That's when you'll discover the power to break the addiction The power to get out of your comfort zone and accomplish that dream the power to treat your spouse with kindness and respect See, it's one thing to know the right thing to do. We feel God speaking to us calling us to come up higher But often we feel inadequate Like we're not able But when you understand that God didn't just give you the desire. He gave you the power to obey That's when you'll have the boldness and confidence to take steps of faith Is God asking you to do something that seems hard over your head to forgive someone? To not be so critical and judgmental to start the business to teach the class to get back in shape But you keep making excuses Thinking of all the reasons you can't you're not qualified

You don't have the discipline your metabolism is too slow. Nobody will support you Get rid of those excuses. This is a new day There is power in you right now. Just waiting to be energized if you'll make a move you'll activate that power Philippians 2 in one translation says for God who is working in you both to will and to do his good pleasure You have the most powerful force in the universe working in you to do his good pleasure Now get rid of a weak mentality. I can't break the addiction. I can't quit complaining. I can't leave my department No, turn it around father. Thank you that you are working in me right now This may be too much for me, but I know it's not too much for you. I am strong bold Confident well able to do what you're telling me to do See the real battle takes place in our mind If you think you're stuck and limited you don't have the discipline. You'll never get off dead center You have to have this new perspective Because sometimes God puts things in our spirit that don't make sense to our mind It's not logical. We don't have the training. It's never happened in our family This is when you have to trust that God knows what he's doing He wouldn't have given you the desire without the ability to do it and at times you have to turn your mind off Yes, we should use wisdom, but sometimes it's not going to make sense if you reason it out Rationalize it and get advice from four friends. You'll talk yourself out of it Where God has taken you is bigger than you can go on your own The doors he's going to open the dreams you're going to accomplish The gifts in you that you're going to discover are much greater than you can imagine When he whispers something in your spirit, it may seem impossible You have to bypass your mind and let that seed take root The power is there to obey but you have to tap into it This is what Noah did God told him there was going to be a great flood that would cover the whole earth and That he was to build an ark a huge boat to save his family Back in those days it had never rained the dew came up from the ground to water the earth They had never seen water coming down from the sky The concept of a flood and needing a boat would have been so unusual and so illogical

And this was no small boat Something common you see down at the local lake. It was to be 450 feet long a football field and a half big enough to house thousands of animals On top of that Noah wasn't by a lake by a river by a big ocean. He was out in the desert There were no large bodies of water Every circumstance said this doesn't make sense. You must have heard God wrong He had plenty of good excuses to ignore it, but God doesn't give you the desire without giving you the power to obey He won't ask you to do a hard thing and then not give you the faith and the courage to do it Now there will be voices that tell you all the reasons you can No, well, you don't have the tools the supplies the manpower you didn't hear from God you had too much pizza last night Noah had to tune all that out God I may not understand how this is going to happen But I know you have it all figured out you wouldn't have given me this assignment and not given me the power to obey He took that step of faith and started building You can imagine people coming by saying look at that fool He's building a boat in the desert Doesn't he know it doesn't rain? He was ridiculed, made fun of, the talk of the town. This wasn't a three-week project. It took a hundred and twenty years to build the boat. Some historians say he planted the trees before he could build. When they grew big enough, he cut them into pieces to construct the ark. How could Noah have that kind of fame? To not talk himself out of it, not be swayed by the ridicule of others and how impossible it looked? It's because when God gives you the assignment, when he plants that dream in your heart, he also gives you the anointing, the faith, and the power to accomplish it. The batteries are always included. Now it's up to us to activate that power. There will be forces trying to convince us to settle where we are. It's too big. It's never happened in your family. You've always had that addiction. You must have heard God wrong. No, don't talk yourself out of it. Do like Noah and take that step of faith. The reason we think it's amazing, how could he do that? I could never have that much faith and confidence. It's because we're looking at it from the outside. God

didn't give us the power to obey what he told someone else to do, but when God gives you the instruction, when he challenges you to do something that your family has never done, there will be a power in you, a strength, a confidence, a knowing that you've never experienced, a power to break barriers, a power to set new standards, to accomplish what seems impossible. Has God asked you to do something that doesn't make sense? May not be to build a big boat, but how about to forgive that person that did you wrong? You've held that offense for years. It's not hurting them. It's poisoning your life. The reason you're stuck is you're telling yourself you can't do it. You have to change the mindset. You have the power to forgive. This is the time to step into that grace. You have to activate the power by acting on it. Is God asking you to not hang around those friends that are pulling you down, causing you to compromise, bringing out the worst in you? You keep putting it off, thinking you're not gonna have any friends, you're gonna be lonely. Well, you may be lonely for a season, but what will happen is God will bring you new friends, friends that will lift you up and not pull you down, friends that will bring out the best in you, cause you to blossom, not bring out the worst. But you have to get rid of the wrong people before you meet the right people. You make a move and God will go to work. Is God asking you to have a better attitude, quit being so contentious, so argumentative, hard to get along with, always having to be right? I've heard it said a woman always has the last word in an argument. Anything after that is a new argument. Do you hear that still small voice saying, keep your mouth closed, be more respectful, be more loving, more considerate? The power is there to zip it up. The self-control is in you, the discipline, the grace. Now start tapping into it. Don't go the next 20 years with things you know are hindering you, limiting your potential. On the other side of obedience is the blessing. On the other side of doing the hard thing is a new level of your destiny. Now here's a key. It seems harder than it is because you haven't activated the power. You think I can't forgive them? Joel, that was so wrong. But when you say, Father, help me to forgive, I'll release this into your hands. Lord, I know you're my

vindicator. You'll make my wrongs right. That's when you'll feel the power and the ability that you've never felt. I can't break this addiction. Everyone in our family struggles with alcohol. Try a new approach. Father, thank you that greater is he that's in me than what's trying to stop me. Father, thank you that no weapon formed against us will prosper, that whom the Son sets free is free indeed. When you activate that power, you're not doing it by yourself. The Most High God is working in you. Maybe the hard thing for you is what it was for me to get out of your comfort zone, step up and write that book that God put in your spirit, teach that class, expand your business. You hear God whispering, there's more in you, greater things are ahead. But you're afraid. You don't have the connection, the experience, the funding. It's much easier to play it safe, but you can't reach your destiny staying comfortable all the time. God will only Purpose put things in your spirit that are over your head Like Noah, you'll think I can't build a boat. I can't start the business. I can't pastor this church We can't get the compact center. God wouldn't have given you the desire if he had not given you the power to obey You have to push past the doubt Push past the fear push past the can't do it thoughts. You are well able you are strong in the Lord God has surrounded you with his favor. He's going before you making your crooked places straight Now when you activate that power, you will go places. You've never gone Accomplish more than you ever thought possible When I heard the compact center was coming available and we needed a larger auditorium Everything in my mind said there's no way The city's not gonna let a church have it. We don't know the right people It's gonna be too expensive the opposition's too strong I thought of a hundred good excuses Compelling reasons why it wasn't going to happen all this doubt and discouragement bombarded my mind But down in my spirit I could hear a still small voice saying that building is ours. God is making a way Joel You are well able. I didn't just have the desire I had the faith to believe for the faith to go after it Like Noah, I had to turn my mind off

Logically speaking we didn't have a chance the opposition the people that wanted it were so much bigger But when you believe the Most High God goes to work you and God are a majority The good news is he has everything you need He has the good breaks the right people the funding he will make ways where you don't see a way Hebrews 11 says Noah being divinely instructed of things not yet seen Moved with reverence for God preparing an art Notice God spoke to him about things not yet seen never been a flood before Never had rain from the clouds God's going to do things in your life that your family hasn't seen He's going to open doors of influence and favor greater than what's happened in the past There are things you're about to step into that are going to seem beyond your capability Illogical too good to be true. Don't talk yourself out of it with that dream comes the power to obey You don't have to figure it all out. All you have to do is believe Maybe there's been dysfunction in your family. You've just learned to live with it thing and this is just who we are That's not who you are God created you to be free and healthy and joyful Others may have talked themselves out of it, but you're the difference maker You know this truth that you have the power to obey you can set a new standard You can be the one to affect generations to come That's what Noah did he didn't just save himself by building the ark he saved his family his children future generations It says Noah being instructed about things not yet seen Moved with reverence the whole key is when he heard the instruction he moved he acted on it Sometimes we hear God speaking to us, but we put it off like I know I should forgive I know I should eat healthier. I know this addiction is harming me, but you know, I'll deal with it later Are you putting something off? Waiting to move for some other time Waiting to be more disciplined waiting to treat your family better waiting to get out of your comfort zone There's power in being prompt the longer you wait to do what God's asking you to do the more difficult It's going to be

When David saw Goliath taunting the Israelites He heard God speaking to him telling him to go defeat the giant the scripture says David ran quickly toward Goliath if David would have put it off and gone back home and let me think about it for a few months He's really big. I don't have the experience. There are others that are more qualified. What if I get hurt? If he would have delayed he would have talked himself out of it When God speaks do it right then there's a grace for it There's a window of opportunity where you'll have the strength and the favor to act on it Well Joel man, I think I missed my chance. I know I should have been more disciplined I shouldn't have quit compromise and I should have gone back to school I put up a lot of things the reason you're hearing this is because God is giving you another chance There's a window of grace Opening to do What he's telling you to do. He's not holding against you the fact that you haven't done it But this is the time to make things right. This is the time to act on it God didn't just give you the desire. He gave you the power to obey It may not make sense may feel over your head. It's never happened in your family This is a destiny moment If you will make that move God will step in and help you do what you couldn't do The scripture says when you hear his voice do not harden your heart for today while there is still opportunity Listen to what he's saying Acts chapter 24 Paul was brought to Caesarea to stand trial for sharing his faith and he was standing before the governor a man named Felix Presenting his case and Felix was very intrigued by Paul. The main trial was going to start later So he had Paul taken into custody But in a few days he sent for Paul to come visit with him Paul discussed his faith and what it meant to be a believer and how to live a godly life Felix felt convicted. He knew he was compromising Not having integrity and there were these areas he needed to change But he didn't want to deal with it. He didn't want to be uncomfortable have to be more disciplined

He said to Paul go away for now for when a more convenient time comes I'll call for you Two years later. He was out of office. We never read anything more about Felix We don't know if a more convenient time ever came Who knows what he could have become if he just tapped in to that power to obey? If he'd have been willing to make changes and deal with what God was bringing to light Don't be like him Don't put off what you know God is speaking to you about Whether it's to come up higher in your character not compromise or to take that step of faith Go after your compact center build your boat like Noah you activate the power by taking action When I was a young boy Lakewood was still meeting in the original building It was a small Rundown feed store that we had cleaned up and made into a sanctuary that would hold the 90 members Few years had passed and the church started growing. We had over 200 people coming and needed a larger place My father told the congregation that in a few months. He was going to take a special offering to build a new auditorium He encouraged the people to stretch their faith and get behind the vision Well that Sunday came and people were so generous they gave about $20,000 this is back in the 70s and it's like ten times that amount today They were so excited that was enough to pour the foundation get the building started Well, there was a Spanish-speaking church about a half a mile down the road from Lakewood They had started a new building several years earlier, but they had run out of funds Every time we drove to church we would drive by it One day as my father was passing by he heard God speak to him not out loud But just an impression saying I want you to give that offering for your new building to the Spanish Church So they can finish theirs His first thought was get behind me Satan. I could not be God But sometimes God will ask you to do things that don't make sense It's a test on the other side of that obedience is a level of your destiny that you've never seen This is where faith comes in God. I don't understand this. We need the funds for our building

You want me to build a boat when it's never rained? You're saying go fight a giant twice my size. You want us to go after the compact Center Do you know how much that's going to cost? Seem far out to my father But when God gives you the desire with that instruction always comes the power to do it My father told the congregation they were going to sow that offering as a seed He drove down gave them the funds and they finished their building Wasn't long after that that people started giving for Lakewood's new building the money came in for the foundation Once we poured the concrete money came in for the steel We got that up money came in for the walls the chairs the sound system He built the whole building Totally debt-free not only that building but my father went on to build six more sanctuaries Including one that seated 8,000 all debt-free Here we are today in the former compact Center But it all started with that act of obedience Doing something that he didn't understand that seemed illogical who knows what God will do with In your life if you'll tap into that power to obey who knows how your children will benefit Because you did a hard thing You gave when it didn't make sense. You broke the addiction that kept getting passed down You forgave the wrong you shook off the doubt and went after your compact Center No more. I can't do this. I'm not disciplined enough strong enough focused enough. No try a new approach I have the power to obey God is working in you right now to do his will and to bring about his good pleasure Have that attitude of faith. That's how you're going to reach your destiny. That's how you're going to defeat your Goliaths That's how you're going to break the dysfunction. That's how you're going to build your boats not weak Defeated you are a can-do person. You are well able to do what God's called you to do. No more putting it off No more waiting for more convenient time This is your time to move if you'll do this I believe and declare like with Noah you're gonna accomplish dreams that look impossible You're gonna break addictions that have held your family back

Freedom is coming healing is coming abundance is coming the fullness of your destiny 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 text the number on the screen or go to the website But I hope you'll get into a good Bible based church and keep God first place