The Second Touch | Joel Osteen

Well, God bless you always a joy to come into your homes and if you're ever in our area Please stop by and be a part of one of our services. I promise you we'll make you feel right at home But thanks so much for tuning in and thank you again for coming out today I like to start with something funny and I heard about this husband that died and he left his wife $20,000 after the funeral his wife told a friend that she was totally broke Friends said what do you mean you broke thought you said you had 20,000. She said well, I spent 5,000 on the funeral and 15,000 on the memorial stone Friends said wow, that's some kind of stone. How big was it? She held up her finger and said three and a half carats Hold up your Bible 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 second touch in the scripture some people brought a blind man to Jesus He'd never been able to see him. Jesus made some mud in his hands and put it on the man's eyes Instantly his eyes were opened You can imagine how thrilled he was for the first time he could see light Color the sky and people he was overcome with excitement. His life had just totally changed Then Jesus asked him an interesting question. He said what do you see? It's as if Jesus knew something wasn't perfectly right The man answered back I can see but I see men walking as trees He was saying I'm grateful that I can see but it's all blurry I'm thankful that I have any sight. I'm not complaining, but everything is out of focus Jesus could have walked away and said well, I made it much better be on your way Have a great life that could have been the end of the story But God didn't come to just make you better make you get by make you okay He came to make you totally whole to live an abundant healthy happy free victorious life the scripture says Jesus touched the blind man again on this second touch. His eyes were completely healed Everything came into focus now. He had perfect vision Many of us are like this blind man. We've seen God's goodness. He's helped to get us to where we are

We're grateful even though we haven't accomplished our dream even though we haven't broken the addiction Even though the child is off course, we're thankful for what God has done. We can say like the blind man He's made it a whole lot better While we should be content where we are. We shouldn't be satisfied with mediocrity Too often we settle for less than God's best Thinking I'll never break this addiction, but at least I've learned to live with it I'll never get married. But at least I have a few friends. I'll never get out of debt Joel But at least I can pay my bills. You're right where this blind man was Saying it's all blurry. But at least I can see something. I'm not gonna complain. I'm satisfied with better Here's the key. You may be satisfied, but God is not satisfied He has a second touch coming your way The second touch is when you come totally out of debt When you're free from the addiction when the medical report says no more sickness when your whole family comes to know the Lord The second touch is when God opens doors You never dreamed would open when he amazes you with his goodness. Don't be satisfied with better Be grateful for what God has done, but keep your faith stirred up for the fullness of what you're believing for God did not create us to reach half of our destiny three-fourths 90% what he started in your life. He's going to bring to completion And I'm not just trying to encourage you trying to get your hopes up I'm prophesying a second touch is coming your way When this second touch kicks in you're gonna see favor that you've never seen The right people are going to show up freedom from strongholds a new level of your destiny Now you have to receive this into your spirit. You have to let the seed take root You can't go around thinking you've reached your limits. You'll never get well never get promoted Joel. I'll never see clearly It's been blurry for so long Thinking like that will stop God's best Quit declaring defeat over your life quit prophesying mediocrity It may be blurry right now, but it is not a surprise to God He's not scratching his head thinking why didn't they get clear vision? He controls the whole universe He has all power what he's destined for your life will come to pass

Now it may not happen all at once While we're waiting that's a test of our faith. Don't get discouraged When things happen, you don't understand don't give up you always face the greatest Opposition when you're close to your breakthrough The enemy wouldn't be fighting you so hard if he didn't know God has something amazing right in front of you You have to dig your heels in Say it may be blurry right now may be taking a long time I don't understand it, but I know a secret the second touch is coming God is still on the throne his plans for me are for good any moment things could change in my favor Living with that kind of expectancy is what allows God to do great things You don't know the second touch could happen today You could meet the person of your dreams tomorrow That loan could go through this week. You could break the addiction get the promotion this month There are second touches already ordained to come across your path. God doesn't do things halfway He's the author and the finisher Quit believe in those lies that it's never going to happen. It may seem impossible, but God can do the impossible People may try to talk you out of it But people don't determine your destiny God does get up every morning and thank him for the second touch Lord, I'm grateful that I have a job. I'm grateful that I can pay my bills, but God I'm still in debt So Lord, I thank you for that second touch The second touch is when you come into overflow into more than enough or Lord, I'm doing better I'm feeling stronger, but I'm still dealing with this illness Lord Thank you for the completion of this healing for the second touch. Oh God. I went through a disappointment I lost a loved one. It's kind of blurry in my life right now But God I'm asking just like you did for that blind man touch me again Restore my joy my passion my purpose God. Give me a new beginning. I Spoke along these lines a while back about how God can suddenly shift things I've received a letter in the mail from a young man that plays high school football He told how when he heard me say the phrase that a shift is coming Something came alive on the inside of him. He didn't just hear it think. Oh, yeah, it's never gonna happen for me

He let the seed take root and started telling everyone that a shift was coming He was a running back on his team and people told him he was too small to play football He should try another sport. He would never be successful in that Their team was doing bad losing game after game, but he was so fired up He got his whole team saying before the games a shift is coming. Things are changing in our favor They started playing better and better. They made the playoffs In the state final this young man scored four touchdowns Most of his career plus he scored the game-winning touchdown with two seconds left He was named the ABC high school football player of the week in their yearbook under their picture They could all put one quote. The quote he chose was a shift is coming. I Wonder what would happen if we would go out with the same expectancy Knowing that the second touch is coming Not just hearing a message, but letting a seed take root Expecting dreams to come to pass Expecting to be healthy and whole Expecting God to finish what he started Well, Joel, this sounds good. It's encouraging, but I've had a lot of setbacks I've been taking this treatment for cancer on and off for 10 years. That's why I'm discouraged I don't think I'll ever get well But just because you gave up doesn't mean that God gave up. God is not satisfied with better He's going to take you to the fullness of your destiny David said God lifted me out of the pit and set my feet upon a rock Sometimes even though we're content in the pit. God is not content. He's not going to give you a choice He's going to lift you out of that pit and set your feet toward your destiny You didn't think it happened you believe those lies that you were stuck, but suddenly your health turned around Suddenly you meet met the right person Suddenly a new door opened up wasn't anything you did. It was simply the goodness of God his second touch 1st Kings chapter 19 the Prophet Elijah had just seen one of the greatest victories of his life 400 false prophets that worshiped the God Bale had come against him Elijah said to them,

since you think your God is real, let's have a contest. They both put wood on an altar and the God that started the wood on fire would be the true God. Elijah let them go first. They prayed and danced, sang, chanted hour after hour, still no fire. When it was Elisha's time, he prayed and God sent lightning from heaven, started that wood on fire. Later all 400 of those prophets were killed. It was a great victory for Elijah. But there was a lady there by the name of Jezebel. When she heard what happened to those prophets, she was furious. She sent word to Elijah saying, if I don't kill you by this time tomorrow, I'm going to take my own life. Elijah took off running for his life. It's funny, he wasn't afraid of 400 men, but he was scared to death of one angry woman. When you have a mad woman after you, you need God's help.

All the men can say amen there, but anyway. Elijah ran far away from that place. He was sitting under a tree so depressed that he didn't want to live anymore. He said, God, I'm done. It's over. Just take my life. Here he had just seen this great miracle, but the problem now is he's tired. He's tired of fighting, tired of believing, tired of standing strong. Maybe like Elijah, you've been doing the right thing, staying in faith, believing, praying. You've seen God's goodness, but now you're tired. You lost your drive, lost your passion. You don't think you'll ever really get well. You've had the sickness so long. You're not believing to start that business anymore. You've had too many setbacks. The good news is God doesn't give up on us because we get tired, get discouraged. When Jesus was on his way to the cross, about to be crucified, he got so tired. He was so weak

that he fell down and couldn't carry it anymore. God didn't say, Jesus, get up. What are you doing? You're making me look bad. God sent a man by the name of Simon to carry the cross for him. God knew there would be times we'd get tired, discouraged, fall down, give up on a dream. He doesn't say, too bad. You should have had more faith. He'll send somebody to help lift you back up, somebody to breathe new life into your dreams. Maybe I'm that somebody for you today. You're not here by accident. You're not listening by accident. God is saying the best part of your life is still up in front of you. He has new victories, new friendships, new opportunities, new mountains for you to climb. Sometimes we think because we're people of faith, we're supposed to be superman, superwoman, never have a moment of doubt, a moment of discouragement. Take the pressure off yourself. You don't have to be strong all the time.

Even Jesus fell down under the weight of the cross. You may be down today, not passionate about life, not pursuing your dreams. You're tired. God sent you here to lift you, to help you get back up, to know that he's not finished. He's going to take you out of that pit. He's going to set your feet on a rock, give you a new beginning. This season will pass. The second touch is coming. Elijah was sitting under that tree so depressed that he didn't want to live anymore. You would think God would say, come on, Elijah. I just rained down fire from heaven. I just showed you my favor. I protected you, and you mean you're going to let one woman, one bad outbreak, one disappointment cause you to get discouraged and give up? What's wrong with you? No, God doesn't disqualify us when we don't stand strong enough. The scripture says, the angel of the Lord came a second time to Elijah and touched him, saying, arise

and eat. When he woke up, he saw bread cooking over some coals and a jar of water. God not only brought him the bread and water, but God took it one step further and cooked the food for him. God could have just given him the strength to go out and hunt, find food, find firewood, cook it himself. That would have been nice. But here's how good God is. On this second touch, God is going to bring things to you. He's going to cause blessings to chase you down. He's going to make things happen that you could never make happen. You may have been through some disappointments. People circumstances come against you and now you've settled where you are. You're not expecting anything good. Every voice says it's never going to happen. Don't believe those lies. Just like with Elijah, the angel of the Lord is coming a second time. On this second touch, it's not only going to give you new strength, new passion, But it's gonna push you into the fullness of your destiny. The second touch is when you'll see clearly

You'll have wisdom the right doors will open Things will fall into place you'll step into your purpose Why don't you shake off the discouragement shake off the doubt and say god? I know you're still in control of my life. I may have had some bad breaks Things may not have gone my way, but i'm not going to give up on my dream I'm not gonna settle here. I know your second touch is coming If you'll do this God will not only bring you the provision He'll not only give you the food and water so to speak, but he'll cook the food for you He'll do more than you could ask or think But too often we stay focused on the negative and what didn't work out and how long it's taken who hurt us How unfair it was that causes us to get stuck You can talk yourself out of your destiny This is what abraham's father did his name was tara He had three sons One of his sons a young man named haran died at an early age Tara went through this great disappointment. He lost a son Later on god told him to leave the place. They were living and go to canaan the promised land Tara got all of his family and started out that way headed toward his destiny But when he came to the city of haran The same name of the son he lost Instead of passing through it continuing on to the promised land The scripture says that tara settled in the city of haran He started off good But when he came to that place that reminded him of the son he lost his greatest disappointment He got discouraged and settled there Told everyone I know we should go forward. I'm sure the promised land is probably up there But look i've been through so much i've been hurt in my life. Let's just settle here. It's never going to work out Tara could have become the father of many nations instead of abraham He was the original one that god said go to the promised land

We could talk about the god of tara abraham and isaac Instead of abraham isaac and jacob. It could have started one generation sooner, but tara chose to settle He didn't realize that god had a second touch That god can give beauty for ashes that god can turn mourning into dancing that he can take what's meant for harm And use it to our advantage He chose instead to stay focused on the pain And maybe he had a good excuse he lost a loved one But if only he would have dug his heels in and said I may not understand it This may be painful, but I am not going to settle in haran I'm not going to stay in the place of my greatest pain I'm gonna keep moving forward knowing that a second touch is coming knowing that god will pay me back for this trouble If he would have done that he would have been listed as one of the heroes of faith Friends don't let one disappointment one loss one bad break cause you to settle We all go through things. We don't understand Life doesn't always make sense. The key is you have to pass through the place of your greatest pain Pass through the disappointment the hurt the failure the rejection if you'll keep moving forward You'll come into your promised land. God will give you beauty for ashes The scripture says god will pay you back double for the unfair situation You remember job he went through a great setback. He lost his health his business his family But in the end god restored twice back what he had lost He had 10 children that were killed in a great storm terrible tragedy. He was devastated But later on god gave him 10 more children. He had 10 in heaven 10 on earth double And what's interesting is the scripture never says that job married a younger wife His same wife that had given him 10 children before gave him 10 more children God opened her womb once again That womb had been closed. She was too old in the natural. She couldn't have any more kids Her womb looked like it was dead But when god saw the trouble that the enemy caused her he said in effect, don't worry I'm going to bring your dead womb back to life that womb that's been closed I'm gonna reopen it and you're gonna have 10 more children

I don't know if she is happy or depressed If god did that for victoria he would have to bring me back to life Bottom line that woman had 10 more kids. What am I saying? The enemy cannot stop God's plan for your life. He may try but God has the final say You may have something that seems dead you tried and it didn't work out It's been a long time. You need to get ready for the second touch on the second touch God's going to reopen what was closed. He's going to bring to life what you thought was dead He's going to pay you back for that trouble. Don't settle in the place of your pain Keep moving forward. The second touch is coming. I was in Washington DC earlier this year and I talked to this mother She told me about her son. He's a soldier Serving in our military overseas She received a phone call in the middle of the night that he had been gravely wounded in action They were flying him to Germany not expecting him to make it through the night She and her husband took the next flight out. They arrived there in Germany. He was still alive In a coma hanging on barely by a thread The doctor said it was just a matter of hours before he would certainly pass Lot of people would have given up but this soldier had a praying mother She knew that God has the final say that God can resurrect it when it looks dead She was doing her best to stay in faith She asked God to give her a sign When all the doctors and specialists left the hospital room after giving her the grim prognosis about her son This nurse came in look the mother in the eyes. She said don't worry about your son He's going to be fine when he arrived last night He opened his eyes and looked at me when he did I could see God in his eyes He made it through that night Against all odds the next night and the next today several years later He's still alive on the road to recovery getting better and better When it looked like it was over the second touch kicked in God breathed new life into his body You may have something that seems dead your health a business of relationship You don't see how it could ever work out, but God hasn't brought you this far to leave you

There's a second touch coming the first touch got you to this point The second touch is when it turns around you see the breakthrough your health gets better Your business takes off the second touch is when you say I can see clearly now The dream came to pass the problem resolved what God started he finished Anybody can give up Anybody can get discouraged and think oh, it's never going to work out. That's easy Doubters are a dime a dozen it takes a man a woman of great faith Somebody like you that says I don't see a way, but I know God still has a way I'm not gonna settle where I am not gonna give up Not gonna get talked out of it. I know my second touch is coming. God's done it for others. He'll do it for me Moses said in Psalm 90 God show us gladness for our former misery Replaced the difficult years with good God show us miracles again. He was saying God. I'm in a tough time I've had some bad breaks things aren't going my way, but God I'm asking for your second touch give us miracles again When you face difficulties do like Moses God touch me again Strengthen me again Heal me again Amaze me again dare to ask for the second touch In the scripture there was a lady named Elizabeth She and her husband were well up there in years her husband was Zechariah and they had never had any children But God spoke to Zechariah and said they were going to have a son. They were to name him John He would later become known as John the Baptist and even though Elizabeth was too old to have a baby She conceived she got pregnant for six months. She didn't feel any movement in her womb She thought something was wrong with the baby But one day her young cousin Mary came to visit her Mary was pregnant with Jesus When Elizabeth saw Mary the scripture says the baby leaped in Elizabeth's womb She knew right then and there that little John the Baptist was alive and well That was the first time John ever met Jesus still in the womb fast forward 30 years John was baptizing people in the Jordan River. He sees Jesus come walking up. He says behold the Lamb of God Jesus asked John to baptize him when he came up out of the water. The scripture says the heavens opened up

the first time John met Jesus his mother's womb opened up a natural occurrence the Second time they met the heavens opened up a supernatural supernatural occurrence. This second touch is not going to be ordinary. It's not going to be natural. What you were thinking, it's going to launch you into a new dimension, into a new level. God's going to make things happen that you could never make happen. You may have seen God's goodness, but you need to get ready. You haven't seen anything yet. There's a second touch coming. It's not too late to accomplish your dreams. You can still live healthy and whole. You can still overcome that problem. Don't get discouraged and settle where you are. Don't get stuck in your place of pain, the place of disappointment. Keep moving forward. There's a promised land in front of you. The best part of your life is still in your future. I'm asking you to stir your faith up. Get your passion back. Get up every morning and say with Moses, Lord, thank you for your second touch. If you'll do this, I believe and declare, just like the blind man, you're going to see a completion of what God started. Like Elijah, God's not only going to give you strength, but he's going to bring you the provision, cook the food for you. And like John the Baptist, God's going to take you to a new dimension, into the fullness of your destiny. In Jesus' name, if you receive it, can you say amen today? We never like to close our broadcast without giving 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 life. I make you my Lord and Savior. Friends, if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible-based church. Keep God first place. He's going to take you places that you've never dreamed.