WEBVTT - Getting Unstuck | Joel Osteen 0:00:00.920 --> 0:00:03.320 I hope you and your family are having a great summer. 0:00:03.560 --> 0:00:06.800 Victorian are praying for you, believing for God's very best 0:00:06.800 --> 0:00:09.080 in your life, and it's always my pleasure to be 0:00:09.080 --> 0:00:11.120 able to share a message with you. I hope you're 0:00:11.200 --> 0:00:15.280 encouraged and inspired today. Well, God bless you. It's great 0:00:15.320 --> 0:00:17.919 to be with you today, and I hope you'll stay 0:00:17.920 --> 0:00:21.239 connected with us during the week through our daily podcast, 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:24.919 our YouTube channel, social media, and you can come visit 0:00:25.000 --> 0:00:27.159 us in person. We'd love to have you be a 0:00:27.200 --> 0:00:30.040 part of one of our services. I'd like to start 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:33.000 with something funny, and I heard about this wealthy man. 0:00:33.479 --> 0:00:36.479 He was known for being very eccentric. He's having a 0:00:36.479 --> 0:00:39.680 big party at his house and in his backyard he 0:00:39.760 --> 0:00:43.479 had a huge swimming pool filled with sharks and alligators. 0:00:44.000 --> 0:00:47.600 He announced his guest, anyone that will swim across my pool, 0:00:47.840 --> 0:00:50.640 I'll give you anything you want. In a few minutes, 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:53.159 there was a big splash and a man was in 0:00:53.200 --> 0:00:57.360 there going ninety to nothing, dodging sharks and maneuvering around 0:00:57.480 --> 0:01:00.120 alligators and made it to the other side just the 0:01:00.160 --> 0:01:03.440 nick of time. Helders said, Wow, you're the bravest person 0:01:03.480 --> 0:01:06.360 I've ever met. Now what do you want? The men said, 0:01:06.360 --> 0:01:08.800 what I want more than anything else is the name 0:01:08.800 --> 0:01:12.920 of the person that just pushed me in saying like 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:15.800 you mean it. This is my Bible. I am what 0:01:15.880 --> 0:01:18.680 it says I am. I have what it says I have. 0:01:19.160 --> 0:01:21.880 I can do what it says I can do. Today 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:24.920 I will be taught the word of God. I boldly 0:01:25.000 --> 0:01:29.120 confess my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. I 0:01:29.160 --> 0:01:33.520 will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. 0:01:34.920 --> 0:01:37.960 I want to talk to you today about getting unstuck. 0:01:38.920 --> 0:01:41.640 There are times that we all feel stuck. We've had 0:01:41.640 --> 0:01:44.520 a disappointment and we get stuck in a bad mood, 0:01:44.640 --> 0:01:49.080 or we've made mistakes, stuck in guilt. We can feel 0:01:49.080 --> 0:01:53.360 stuck in our career, stuck being single, stuck raising a 0:01:53.360 --> 0:01:57.360 difficult child. Thought's whisper, It's never going to change. This 0:01:57.440 --> 0:02:01.320 is permanent. Those are all lies us. God did not 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:04.960 create you to live stuck, to be limited by your 0:02:05.000 --> 0:02:09.600 circumstances and restricted because of what people have done. He 0:02:09.680 --> 0:02:13.640 created you to rise higher, to reach new levels, to 0:02:13.760 --> 0:02:17.640 break barriers of the past. And yes, there are seasons 0:02:17.680 --> 0:02:21.920 of waiting, times of testing where we go through struggle, 0:02:22.400 --> 0:02:25.920 but that's not how your story ends. There are seasons 0:02:25.919 --> 0:02:31.480 of harvest, coming, seasons of breakthrough, seasons of uncommon favor 0:02:31.800 --> 0:02:35.000 where God steps in and does what only he can do. 0:02:36.160 --> 0:02:38.680 You may feel stuck in some area of your life 0:02:38.680 --> 0:02:42.000 today and all the circumstances say it's not going to 0:02:42.160 --> 0:02:45.960 change that God must have forgotten about you. No, here's 0:02:46.000 --> 0:02:50.760 the key. God shows up when you're stuck. Just ask Paul. 0:02:50.800 --> 0:02:55.400 In Silas, they were stuck in prison, their feed in chains. 0:02:55.880 --> 0:03:00.320 It looked permanent. But at midnight, as they were singing praise, says, 0:03:00.480 --> 0:03:04.160 God showed up. There was a great earthquake. The prison 0:03:04.200 --> 0:03:08.320 doors flung open. They walked out as free men. Jonah 0:03:08.400 --> 0:03:11.240 was stuck in the belly of a well. He had 0:03:11.280 --> 0:03:15.760 made mistakes, was his own fault. But God doesn't abandon 0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:20.359 us when we get off course. That well suddenly had indigestion, 0:03:21.040 --> 0:03:24.160 went to the shore and spit Jonah out. God gave 0:03:24.240 --> 0:03:28.560 him another chance. Hannah in the scripture, she felt stuck. 0:03:29.280 --> 0:03:31.359 She had been trying to have a baby for years, 0:03:31.400 --> 0:03:35.120 but she was barren. She watched her sister have child 0:03:35.240 --> 0:03:38.680 after child and didn't seem fair. She went to the 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:42.560 temple and prayed the prophet. Eli said to her, God 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:45.880 heard your prayer, and you will have a child. She 0:03:46.000 --> 0:03:49.640 not only had one baby, but God gave her six children. 0:03:50.560 --> 0:03:54.480 This was after years of her feeling stuck, thoughts telling 0:03:54.520 --> 0:03:57.840 her that she would always be barren. Don't believe the 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:02.400 never lies. You'll never get well, never get married, never 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:06.360 accomplish your dream. You may be stuck now, but you're 0:04:06.360 --> 0:04:10.400 not gonna stay stuck. God's about to show up. Job 0:04:10.520 --> 0:04:14.080 thought he was stuck. He went through great difficulties, lost 0:04:14.120 --> 0:04:18.680 his health, his family, his business. He was so depressed 0:04:18.839 --> 0:04:21.480 he said, I hate my life. I wish I had 0:04:21.520 --> 0:04:25.080 never been born. His wife joined in and said, I agree. Job, 0:04:25.560 --> 0:04:28.760 just curse God and die. It's good to have supported 0:04:28.800 --> 0:04:33.440 people and all the circumstances said. Job was done. But 0:04:33.520 --> 0:04:37.640 God shows up to stuck people. He not only restored 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:41.680 what Job lost, but Job came out with double. God 0:04:41.760 --> 0:04:45.120 makes the enemy pay for bringing the trouble. And we 0:04:45.160 --> 0:04:48.159 all go through difficulties and things that are not fair. 0:04:48.240 --> 0:04:51.279 And those thoughts will tell you it's never going to change. 0:04:51.720 --> 0:04:53.919 But you have to keep this down in your spirit. 0:04:54.360 --> 0:04:58.800 Stuck is not your destiny. God came to loose the captives. 0:04:59.080 --> 0:05:03.560 He came to free from what has you restricted. Joseph 0:05:03.600 --> 0:05:07.279 thought he was stuck in a pit. His brothers left 0:05:07.360 --> 0:05:11.360 him there to die. A caravan of Ishmaelites came. He 0:05:11.440 --> 0:05:15.320 was sold into slavery in Egypt, where years later he 0:05:15.360 --> 0:05:19.159 would become the Prime Minister. Looked like he was stuck, 0:05:19.480 --> 0:05:21.800 but it was all a set up to move him 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:25.800 into his purpose. The enemy won't tell you that God's 0:05:25.839 --> 0:05:29.359 working behind the scenes, that is leading you to your purpose, 0:05:29.839 --> 0:05:34.279 that being stuck is only temporary. He'll whisper all you're done, 0:05:34.400 --> 0:05:38.520 it's never gonna change. Don't believe that God's purpose for 0:05:38.640 --> 0:05:43.240 your life cannot be overridden by a bad break, a delay, 0:05:43.680 --> 0:05:47.200 a loss, a hardship. And sure there will be times 0:05:47.240 --> 0:05:50.200 we feel stuck, but you have to remember God is 0:05:50.279 --> 0:05:54.359 still in control. He's still ordering your steps. At the 0:05:54.400 --> 0:05:59.640 appointed time, he will loose you. Suddenly, doors will open, suddenly, 0:05:59.640 --> 0:06:02.720 the well spit you out, Suddenly you have that baby, 0:06:03.240 --> 0:06:06.320 Suddenly you become the prime Minister. So to speak. You 0:06:06.400 --> 0:06:09.839 step in to a new level of your destiny, and 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:13.679 the scripture says, lift up your head and the King 0:06:13.839 --> 0:06:17.600 of Glory will come in. If you're going to get unstuck. 0:06:18.000 --> 0:06:20.960 You can't go around with your head down focused on 0:06:21.000 --> 0:06:24.960 your problems, thinking you've reached your limits. As long as 0:06:25.000 --> 0:06:27.360 your head is down, you're going to stay where you are. 0:06:28.120 --> 0:06:31.680 Do yourself a favor, lift up your head, have a 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:35.640 new perspective. You may be stuck, but we serve a 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:39.080 God who knows how to get you unstucked. He did 0:06:39.080 --> 0:06:41.600 it for all those people in the Bible. He's going 0:06:41.680 --> 0:06:44.800 to do it for you. You may have tried everything 0:06:44.839 --> 0:06:48.919 you can. You've done your best, but nothing improved. You 0:06:48.960 --> 0:06:52.440 don't have any more options. The good news is God 0:06:52.520 --> 0:06:55.560 never runs out of options. You don't see a way, 0:06:55.839 --> 0:06:59.160 but God has ways that you've never thought of. Instead 0:06:59.200 --> 0:07:02.280 of having a defeat, Joe man, I never get any 0:07:02.320 --> 0:07:06.240 good breaks. I can't get through this addiction. I don't 0:07:06.240 --> 0:07:09.520 think I'll ever get well or turn it around. I 0:07:09.600 --> 0:07:12.320 may be stuck now. I don't deny that, but I 0:07:12.360 --> 0:07:15.360 know this. I am coming out. Something good is going 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:19.400 to happen to me. Blessings are chasing me down. The 0:07:19.480 --> 0:07:23.120 battle is taking place in our mind. It's easy to 0:07:23.160 --> 0:07:27.920 become complacent to where we're comfortable with mediocrity. You had 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:32.440 big dreams, but it's been so long nothing has worked out, 0:07:32.560 --> 0:07:35.920 so you water down your dreams. I can live with 0:07:36.000 --> 0:07:39.120 this addiction. I'll never have more than enough, all my 0:07:39.200 --> 0:07:42.600 family struggles. I don't deserve to be blessed, Joel, I've 0:07:42.640 --> 0:07:46.160 made so many mistakes. There has to be a change 0:07:46.160 --> 0:07:50.080 on the inside before there will be change on the outsides. 0:07:50.680 --> 0:07:54.480 Victory starts in our thinkings. When you've been stuck a 0:07:54.520 --> 0:07:58.480 long time, it can create strongholds that keep us from 0:07:58.560 --> 0:08:02.280 God's best. You need to lift up your head, have 0:08:02.400 --> 0:08:05.560 a new vision. You may be stuck now, but can 0:08:05.600 --> 0:08:09.360 I encourage you? Where you are is not where you're staying. 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:13.120 You will beat the sickness, you will break the addiction. 0:08:13.720 --> 0:08:17.600 You will meet the right person. You're about to become unstuck, 0:08:18.000 --> 0:08:20.920 where what's held you back is broken off of you. 0:08:21.600 --> 0:08:24.480 There's going to be a release where God thrust you 0:08:24.560 --> 0:08:29.600 into your purpose, favor, blessing that you've never seen. This 0:08:29.760 --> 0:08:32.480 is what my mother did when she was diagnosed with 0:08:32.600 --> 0:08:36.440 terminal liver cancer back in nineteen eighty one. There was 0:08:36.480 --> 0:08:39.760 nothing more the doctors could do. They send her home 0:08:39.840 --> 0:08:42.400 saying that she had a few weeks to live. And 0:08:42.440 --> 0:08:46.320 it was around Christmas time, and our whole family felt stuck. 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:50.160 Medically speaking, they had run out of options, and my 0:08:50.240 --> 0:08:52.720 mother told how in the middle of the night, thoughts 0:08:52.760 --> 0:08:55.640 would come saying, you can be buried in that new 0:08:55.720 --> 0:08:59.040 pink dress that you bought. The enemy would love for 0:08:59.080 --> 0:09:02.839 you to start planning your demise, planning your going down, 0:09:03.280 --> 0:09:07.640 living lonely, addicted. His goal is to keep you focused 0:09:07.640 --> 0:09:11.880 on the problem, how impossible it looks, how long it's been. 0:09:12.760 --> 0:09:18.079 The scripture says, look away from all that distracts under Jesus, 0:09:18.280 --> 0:09:22.440 the author and finisher of our faith. In difficult times, 0:09:22.480 --> 0:09:25.120 more than ever, you have to look away from the 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:29.679 distractions and look up. Fix your thoughts on what God 0:09:29.760 --> 0:09:33.800 says about you. He's the author and the finisher. What 0:09:33.960 --> 0:09:38.040 he starts, he's going to complete. You may be stuck now. 0:09:38.280 --> 0:09:42.480 The good news is God is not finished. He's still working. 0:09:42.840 --> 0:09:47.479 Keep looking up, keep thinking him, keep declaring what he promised, 0:09:47.760 --> 0:09:58.600 keep talking like it's on the way. And despite the 0:09:58.840 --> 0:10:01.560 negative report, I would hear my mother going through the 0:10:01.640 --> 0:10:05.280 house saying, Father, thank you that you're restoring health back 0:10:05.320 --> 0:10:08.040 into me, that I will live and not die. That 0:10:08.160 --> 0:10:11.840 the number of my days you will fulfill. You know 0:10:11.920 --> 0:10:15.600 what happened. The King of Glory came in. God did 0:10:15.720 --> 0:10:19.000 what medicine couldn't do. That was forty four years ago. 0:10:19.520 --> 0:10:22.959 From a few weeks to live to over four decades. 0:10:23.880 --> 0:10:27.280 You're never too stuck for God to free you. You're 0:10:27.320 --> 0:10:32.920 never too addicted to depressed, medical report, too bad, child, 0:10:32.960 --> 0:10:36.720 too far gone. Lift up your head and chains will break. 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:42.120 Healing will come, supernatural turnarounds. There was a man in 0:10:42.160 --> 0:10:46.160 the scripture that had been crippled for thirty eight years. 0:10:46.440 --> 0:10:49.320 Every day his family would carry him to the Pool 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:53.600 of Bethesda. They'd lay there hoping to be healed. They 0:10:53.640 --> 0:10:57.280 believed that an angel would trouble the water, the first 0:10:57.280 --> 0:11:01.400 person in would be made well. Hundreds of sick people 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:05.319 and disabled gathered at this pool, But of all the people, 0:11:05.920 --> 0:11:08.839 Jesus came to this man who had been stuck for 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:12.760 thirty eight years. It's not a coincidence that the scripture 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:16.480 tells us how long he's been laying. Many of the 0:11:16.559 --> 0:11:19.960 people Jesus healed, we don't know how long they were 0:11:19.960 --> 0:11:23.120 blind or how long they had leprosy. We just know 0:11:23.240 --> 0:11:27.440 they got healed. But this length was included on purpose, 0:11:27.840 --> 0:11:30.680 so we would know that no matter how long you've 0:11:30.720 --> 0:11:33.720 been stuck. It's not too late for God to turn 0:11:33.760 --> 0:11:37.400 it around. Jesus asked the man, do you want to 0:11:37.440 --> 0:11:41.280 get well? Seemed like an odd question. Of course he did, 0:11:41.320 --> 0:11:44.240 That's why he came to the pool. But Jesus wanted 0:11:44.280 --> 0:11:47.079 to see his frame of mind. Was he looking up, 0:11:47.800 --> 0:11:50.400 was he believing he could get well, or was he 0:11:50.440 --> 0:11:54.200 looking down thinking it had been too long. He said 0:11:54.240 --> 0:11:58.040 to Jesus, I don't have anyone to help me get 0:11:58.040 --> 0:12:01.040 into the pool. He was saying, in effect, yes, I 0:12:01.080 --> 0:12:04.920 want to get well, but I'm at a disadvantage. Jesus 0:12:04.960 --> 0:12:07.560 could have said, man, you didn't answer right. If you'd 0:12:07.559 --> 0:12:10.840 have said, yes, I healed you. God's full of mercy. 0:12:11.080 --> 0:12:14.280 The fact is Jesus knew the man went to the 0:12:14.280 --> 0:12:18.640 pool every day. He saw his faith every morning. The 0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:22.160 man getting out of bed, putting his clothes on, being 0:12:22.240 --> 0:12:24.960 carried to the pool. He could have been at home, 0:12:25.559 --> 0:12:29.680 laying in bed self pity. Life's not fair. Every day 0:12:29.720 --> 0:12:33.559 he's out there hoping to get well, expecting the waters 0:12:33.600 --> 0:12:38.720 to move, believing for a supernatural tut. Jesus said to him, rise, 0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:42.960 take up your bed and walk. Some people say the 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:46.200 man didn't have much faith. But if you've never walked 0:12:46.200 --> 0:12:49.960 in your life, someone tells you to get up, do 0:12:50.040 --> 0:12:53.080 you know how much faith that would take? The man 0:12:53.080 --> 0:12:55.559 could have said, Jesus, what do you mean, I'm crippled. 0:12:56.120 --> 0:12:58.920 I've been this way my whole life. Or this man said, 0:12:58.920 --> 0:13:01.640 in effect, if you say I can walk, then I 0:13:01.720 --> 0:13:04.920 believe I can walk. If you say I'm not stuck anymore, 0:13:05.040 --> 0:13:08.680 then I believe it. As he started to rise up, 0:13:09.080 --> 0:13:14.520 suddenly strengthen healing flowed into him, energized his legs. He 0:13:14.640 --> 0:13:18.200 stood up, walked out of there first time thirty eight years. 0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:23.640 What's interesting is this all happened on the Sabbath. The 0:13:23.679 --> 0:13:26.720 religious law said that you can't do any work on 0:13:26.760 --> 0:13:30.840 the Sabbath. Jesus knew this, but he broke the rules 0:13:30.920 --> 0:13:34.800 to get the man unstuck. God will break rules to 0:13:34.880 --> 0:13:39.320 get you to your destiny. He'll break protocol. He'll do 0:13:39.480 --> 0:13:43.560 things that are unusual. Heal you without the treatment, like 0:13:43.640 --> 0:13:47.000 my mother. Choose you to be a pastor when you 0:13:47.000 --> 0:13:50.160 don't have the training. Give you the compact center, a 0:13:50.240 --> 0:13:55.040 sports arena for a church. Uncommon? How did the ordinary 0:13:55.679 --> 0:13:59.880 something you weren't expecting to get you unstuck to release 0:14:00.160 --> 0:14:03.520 you into your purpose. You don't have to figure out 0:14:03.720 --> 0:14:05.920 how this is going to happen. All you have to 0:14:05.960 --> 0:14:10.400 do is lift up your head, activate your faith. Saw 0:14:10.360 --> 0:14:14.400 one three, David talks about all kinds of opposition he 0:14:14.559 --> 0:14:18.040 was facing and how people were treating him very badly. 0:14:18.720 --> 0:14:21.400 This is when King Saul was chasing him through the desert. 0:14:22.080 --> 0:14:26.080 He was living on the run, stuck in an unfair situation, 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:29.840 stuck with someone trying to get rid of him that 0:14:29.920 --> 0:14:33.240 he had been good to. He said in verse three, 0:14:33.480 --> 0:14:36.680 my enemy has chased me. He's knocked me to the 0:14:36.720 --> 0:14:40.320 ground and forced me to live in darkness like those 0:14:40.440 --> 0:14:45.240 in a grain. I'm losing all hope. I'm paralyzed with fear. 0:14:46.400 --> 0:14:50.560 When you have doubts, fears, and uncertainties, don't get so 0:14:50.720 --> 0:14:54.960 down on yourself. Here's David, a man after God's own heart, 0:14:55.480 --> 0:14:59.480 a hero of faith. Yet he had times of discouragement, 0:15:00.160 --> 0:15:03.120 times where he felt like he was stumped, didn't see 0:15:03.120 --> 0:15:06.920 how it could ever change. The key is don't stay there. 0:15:07.760 --> 0:15:11.360 At some point you have to look up. David listened 0:15:11.440 --> 0:15:14.360 all these bad things that were happening. Then in the 0:15:14.400 --> 0:15:18.880 next chapter, when he still felt overwhelmed, still didn't see 0:15:18.880 --> 0:15:21.960 a way. He said. In verse nine, I will sing 0:15:22.120 --> 0:15:25.640 a new song unto the Lord. He was saying, I'm 0:15:25.760 --> 0:15:28.800 done talking about defeat. I'm gonna lift up my head. 0:15:29.160 --> 0:15:32.360 I'm going to get a new perspective. Listen to how 0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:36.000 he changed verse three. Great are you, o Lord. I 0:15:36.080 --> 0:15:39.800 will meditate on your awe inspiring deeds. For you help 0:15:39.880 --> 0:15:43.800 the fallen, you lift those under heavy load, You protect 0:15:43.880 --> 0:15:47.520 those who trust in you. He went from poor, oh me, 0:15:47.840 --> 0:15:50.760 I'm stuck to God. I think that you are fighting 0:15:50.800 --> 0:15:54.400 my battles, that you're my vindicator, that you're bigger than 0:15:54.400 --> 0:15:57.960 what's trying to stop me. When you feel stuck, it 0:15:58.080 --> 0:16:01.440 makes a difference what you're focused on. Are you dwelling 0:16:01.480 --> 0:16:04.320 on the problem or are you dwelling on the promises? 0:16:04.840 --> 0:16:07.680 Are you focused on how big the obstacle is or 0:16:07.720 --> 0:16:10.840 on how big our God is. If you'll lift up 0:16:10.880 --> 0:16:14.280 your head, the King of Glory will come in. God 0:16:14.320 --> 0:16:17.800 will make things happen that you couldn't make happen. A 0:16:17.800 --> 0:16:20.600 couple of years after we were married, Victoria and I 0:16:20.720 --> 0:16:23.880 were walking through this neighborhood close to where we lived. 0:16:24.360 --> 0:16:27.560 We came to this new house that was almost finished 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:32.080 being built in the last stages of construction. Nobody was around, 0:16:32.360 --> 0:16:35.120 so we walked up to it was this nice two 0:16:35.200 --> 0:16:40.080 story house and was so beautiful, this spacious entry and 0:16:40.640 --> 0:16:44.360 big windows in the back and high ceilings, and the 0:16:44.440 --> 0:16:48.520 kitchen was open to the den. It was amazing. As 0:16:48.560 --> 0:16:51.760 we were leaving, walking down the front porch, I'll never 0:16:51.840 --> 0:16:55.440 forget this, Victoria stopped and said, Joel, one day, we're 0:16:55.480 --> 0:16:58.320 going to live in a house just like that. She 0:16:58.480 --> 0:17:00.440 might as well have said one day we're going to 0:17:00.520 --> 0:17:03.200 go to the moon. We were living in an old, 0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:07.480 one story house. We could barely afford that. And being 0:17:07.520 --> 0:17:10.560 the great man of faith that I am, I started 0:17:10.600 --> 0:17:14.320 telling her all the reasons that it wasn't possible, how 0:17:14.359 --> 0:17:16.760 I worked for a church. I'm never going to have 0:17:16.800 --> 0:17:19.680 that income. If we saved one hundred and twenty four years, 0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:23.000 we won't have enough. That went in one ear and 0:17:23.119 --> 0:17:26.040 out the other. She acted like she didn't hear me. 0:17:26.600 --> 0:17:28.800 She said, no, Joe, I'm telling you, we're going to 0:17:28.840 --> 0:17:31.640 live in a house just like this. That made me mad. 0:17:31.840 --> 0:17:35.680 I did my best to convince her. We're stuck, we're limited, 0:17:35.840 --> 0:17:39.800 we're at a disadvantage. The difference was I had my 0:17:39.920 --> 0:17:43.879 head down. She had her head up. I was looking 0:17:43.920 --> 0:17:47.160 at what we could do. She was looking at what 0:17:47.240 --> 0:17:50.720 God can do. I was focused on all the facts, 0:17:51.280 --> 0:17:55.400 the numbers, what's logical. I didn't see a way. But 0:17:55.440 --> 0:17:59.320 God is not limited by what you don't have. He's 0:17:59.320 --> 0:18:02.880 not limited by your bank account, by the medical report, 0:18:03.160 --> 0:18:06.639 by what family you come from. He controls the universe 0:18:07.320 --> 0:18:11.440 when you believe, all things are possible in the natural. 0:18:11.600 --> 0:18:15.399 We may be stuck, but God is supernatural. He makes 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:18.800 streams in the desert, He brings water out of a rock, 0:18:19.160 --> 0:18:22.840 He parts red seas. Peter caught a fish that had 0:18:22.840 --> 0:18:26.199 a coin in it to pay his taxes. God is 0:18:26.240 --> 0:18:29.280 not scratching his head trying to figure out how to 0:18:29.320 --> 0:18:32.280 get you unstuck. He's going to do things that you 0:18:32.440 --> 0:18:38.480 never saw coming, that exceed your expectations, explosive blessings that 0:18:38.640 --> 0:18:43.120 catapult you into your destinies. Don't do like I did. 0:18:43.760 --> 0:18:46.600 Come up with all the reasons. You can't get out 0:18:46.640 --> 0:18:51.119 of debt, and you can't get well. Your dreams too big, 0:18:51.200 --> 0:18:54.080 and that child of yours will always be off course. 0:18:54.400 --> 0:18:58.399 Do yourself a favor. Lift up your head. God. I 0:18:58.440 --> 0:19:01.720 don't see away, but I know you have a way. 0:19:02.640 --> 0:19:05.640 Victoria finally convinced me to get in agreement with her. 0:19:06.680 --> 0:19:10.919 We were living in this old rundown house, had foundation problems, 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:15.399 crooked floors, some of the interior doors wouldn't shut. But 0:19:15.520 --> 0:19:18.400 it was on a nice half acre lot close into 0:19:18.440 --> 0:19:22.800 the city. The neighborhood changed the deed restrictions to where 0:19:22.840 --> 0:19:26.440 you could subdivide the property. A builder knocked on our door. 0:19:26.440 --> 0:19:29.600 A couple months later. He bought half of the property 0:19:30.000 --> 0:19:32.520 for more than we paid for the whole property. He 0:19:32.600 --> 0:19:36.280 built two homes there, one for us, just like that 0:19:36.440 --> 0:19:40.360 house that Victoria had seen. I could have never made 0:19:40.440 --> 0:19:44.600 that happen. I couldn't have put that on paper. What 0:19:44.680 --> 0:19:47.399 am I saying? God is going to do things that 0:19:47.440 --> 0:19:51.760 are uncommon that you didn't see coming. You may be 0:19:51.920 --> 0:19:55.080 stuck in some area, but here's a key. Being stuck 0:19:55.320 --> 0:19:57.560 is a set up for God to show out in 0:19:57.600 --> 0:20:01.240 your life, to do something out of the ordinary. Don't 0:20:01.280 --> 0:20:04.600 believe that lie that is permanent. It's been too long, 0:20:04.920 --> 0:20:08.119 your dreams too big. No, like the lame man that 0:20:08.240 --> 0:20:11.359 was there for thirty eight years, your time is coming. 0:20:12.119 --> 0:20:16.760 Keep looking up, keep believing, keep expecting. That's your faith 0:20:16.880 --> 0:20:21.960 being released Second Kings, Chapter seven. The Syrian army had 0:20:22.000 --> 0:20:25.919 surrounded the city of Samaria, cutting off its food supply. 0:20:26.720 --> 0:20:30.960 The people were starving. There were four lepers living outside 0:20:31.000 --> 0:20:35.439 the city gates. Leprosy was contagious. They weren't allowed to 0:20:35.520 --> 0:20:39.400 be around people. Not only were they outcast, but when 0:20:39.400 --> 0:20:42.159 the enemy army came, they would be the first ones 0:20:42.160 --> 0:20:45.800 to be killed. They had no protection, talk about stuck, 0:20:46.119 --> 0:20:51.680 no future, no food, dreaded disease. But sitting by the gates, 0:20:52.240 --> 0:20:54.679 one of them said to the others, why are we 0:20:54.800 --> 0:20:58.600 just gonna sit here like this till we die? They thought, 0:20:58.680 --> 0:21:02.040 if we stay here, we're gonna start to death. We 0:21:02.160 --> 0:21:05.159 have nothing to lose. Let's go to the enemy's camp 0:21:05.600 --> 0:21:08.919 and see if there's any food there. They started walking 0:21:08.960 --> 0:21:13.240 toward the other camp. God multiplied the sound of their footsteps. 0:21:13.720 --> 0:21:17.080 It sounded like a huge army was coming. The enemy 0:21:17.240 --> 0:21:20.760 army panicked and took off, running as fast as they could. 0:21:21.200 --> 0:21:24.800 Were they left behind all the supplies. The lepers showed 0:21:24.840 --> 0:21:29.800 up and couldn't believe it, a whole camp full of food, clothing, equipment. 0:21:30.520 --> 0:21:33.560 They went back and told the Israelites all their lives 0:21:33.600 --> 0:21:38.480 were spared, but Sometimes, like these lepers, we get stuck 0:21:38.480 --> 0:21:42.120 at a gate. We've had bad breaks and gone through 0:21:42.119 --> 0:21:45.919 a disappointment. Now we're stuck in self pity and holding 0:21:46.000 --> 0:21:51.280 onto hurts, made mistakes. We have regrets, stuck in guilt, 0:21:51.800 --> 0:21:57.000 stuck in shame. We can get stuck in an addiction, incompromised. 0:21:57.200 --> 0:21:59.760 We tried to do better, but we keep falling back. 0:22:00.840 --> 0:22:04.160 The challenge is we can get comfortable at the gate. 0:22:05.040 --> 0:22:08.800 We can learn to function in dysfunction. We have to 0:22:08.840 --> 0:22:12.399 ask ourselves what the leopers ask. Why am I going 0:22:12.480 --> 0:22:15.159 to sit here till I die? Why am I going 0:22:15.280 --> 0:22:22.280 to stay this way? Offended? Guilty, insecure, no passion. We're 0:22:22.320 --> 0:22:25.880 waiting for God to change things, but God's waiting for us. 0:22:26.680 --> 0:22:29.920 When you make a move, it sets off a chain reaction. 0:22:30.520 --> 0:22:34.800 That's when God begins to work open doors, bring healing, 0:22:35.320 --> 0:22:40.199 new relationships. A small act of obedience can lead to 0:22:40.280 --> 0:22:44.720 a big blessing. It may be forgiving that person that 0:22:44.840 --> 0:22:49.840 did you wrong, or forgiving yourself for the mistakes you've made. 0:22:49.920 --> 0:22:53.160 It may mean getting up in the morning and emptying 0:22:53.240 --> 0:22:57.679 out all the low self esteem, the insecurity, and reminding 0:22:57.720 --> 0:23:01.960 yourself who God says you are. A small act can 0:23:02.000 --> 0:23:05.720 get you unstuck. Maybe it's to quit hanging around that 0:23:05.880 --> 0:23:09.720 friend that's causing you to compromise, or not listening to 0:23:09.800 --> 0:23:12.960 the news driving to work all day it's causing you 0:23:13.040 --> 0:23:16.760 to be mad at the world. Instead, put on something inspiring, 0:23:17.320 --> 0:23:21.639 uplifting that feeds your faith. Don't go the next twenty 0:23:21.720 --> 0:23:25.360 years stuck at the gate. Do what you can, and 0:23:25.400 --> 0:23:28.240 God will do what you can. You make a move 0:23:28.720 --> 0:23:32.240 and he'll multiply your steps. You lift up your head 0:23:32.640 --> 0:23:35.800 and he'll turn things around that you thought were permanent. 0:23:36.800 --> 0:23:39.359 There was a man we knew growing up that could 0:23:39.359 --> 0:23:43.040 play the piano so beautifully. He would taught lessons to 0:23:43.119 --> 0:23:46.199 people and served at the church. But over time he 0:23:46.280 --> 0:23:51.359 developed rheumatoid arthritis, kept getting worse and worse, and he 0:23:51.440 --> 0:23:54.639 had trouble using his hands, and finally got to the 0:23:54.680 --> 0:23:58.239 point where his fingers were all shriveled up and he 0:23:58.240 --> 0:24:01.920 could no longer play the piano. He was so discouraged 0:24:01.960 --> 0:24:05.000 over it all. Well, twenty years went by and he 0:24:05.040 --> 0:24:08.399 had accepted that his days of playing the piano were over. 0:24:09.160 --> 0:24:12.680 But one day he heard my father speaking about forgiveness 0:24:12.680 --> 0:24:16.199 and how important it is to let things go for 0:24:16.320 --> 0:24:19.520 years he had been estranged from his parents. He felt 0:24:19.560 --> 0:24:22.160 like they hadn't raised him right, they'd let him down, 0:24:22.240 --> 0:24:25.639 and all these offenses had built up till what he 0:24:25.880 --> 0:24:29.680 pushed them out of his life. When he heard that message, 0:24:29.720 --> 0:24:33.439 he felt something so strongly telling him to forgive, to 0:24:33.560 --> 0:24:37.959 make things right. The next day he went to his parents' 0:24:38.040 --> 0:24:41.119 house and knocked on the door, and they answered and 0:24:41.119 --> 0:24:45.160 couldn't believe it was him. They hugged and wept, and 0:24:45.200 --> 0:24:50.320 there was healing and forgiveness. The relationship was restored when 0:24:50.320 --> 0:24:54.920 something interesting happened. Little by little, the men's fingers began 0:24:55.040 --> 0:24:59.040 to open up. He started having more flexibility, and the 0:24:59.080 --> 0:25:02.080 pain in his joint begin to lessen it. He kept 0:25:02.080 --> 0:25:05.880 getting better and better. Six months later, he could sit 0:25:06.000 --> 0:25:09.520 down and play the piano like he did twenty years earlier, 0:25:09.920 --> 0:25:12.720 like he had never missed a beat. He was stuck 0:25:12.960 --> 0:25:17.480 all those years, but a simple act of obedience caused 0:25:17.560 --> 0:25:21.840 him to get unstuck. Like those lepers, he was comfortable 0:25:21.880 --> 0:25:25.200