WEBVTT - Pulled Strings | Joel Osteen 0:00:00.680 --> 0:00:03.600 Hi, this is Jolan Victoria. Thanks so much for listening 0:00:03.600 --> 0:00:05.680 to the podcast and thanks. 0:00:05.360 --> 0:00:08.440 For supporting the ministry. We believe you're going to have an. 0:00:08.320 --> 0:00:12.520 Awesome twenty twenty four, healthy, productive, and favor filled. 0:00:12.800 --> 0:00:15.800 God bless you today and enjoy the message. Well, God 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:16.400 bless you. 0:00:16.920 --> 0:00:19.320 It's a joy to come into your homes. And if 0:00:19.360 --> 0:00:22.119 you're ever in our area, please stop buying. Be a 0:00:22.120 --> 0:00:24.759 part of one of our services. I'll promise you we'll 0:00:24.760 --> 0:00:27.640 make you feel right at home. I like to start 0:00:27.680 --> 0:00:31.000 with something funny, and I heard about this airplane. 0:00:30.440 --> 0:00:32.040 That was about to crash. 0:00:32.200 --> 0:00:36.840 There were four passengers, but only three parachutes. First passenger said, 0:00:37.080 --> 0:00:40.720 I'm a leading heart surgeon. My patients need me. Took 0:00:40.720 --> 0:00:44.240 the first parachute and jumped. Second passenger said, I'm a 0:00:44.360 --> 0:00:48.239 rocket scientist, one of the smartest men alive. My country 0:00:48.280 --> 0:00:50.800 needs me. Took the second parachute and jumped. 0:00:51.280 --> 0:00:52.400 The third passenger. 0:00:52.640 --> 0:00:56.080 Pope John Paul said to the fourth passenger, a ten 0:00:56.160 --> 0:00:59.400 year old boy scout, son, I'm old and frail. I 0:00:59.400 --> 0:01:02.440 don't have much time left. You can have the last parachute. 0:01:02.880 --> 0:01:05.880 The boy scout says, sir, don't worry, there are still 0:01:05.959 --> 0:01:08.840 two parachutes left the smartest man alive. 0:01:09.120 --> 0:01:11.120 He just jumped out with my backpack. 0:01:13.080 --> 0:01:15.640 Say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. 0:01:16.040 --> 0:01:18.360 I am what it says I am. I have what 0:01:18.400 --> 0:01:20.840 it says I have. I can do what it says 0:01:20.880 --> 0:01:23.680 I can do. Today I will be taught the word 0:01:23.720 --> 0:01:27.840 of God. I boldly confess. My mind is alert, my 0:01:27.959 --> 0:01:32.360 heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, 0:01:32.840 --> 0:01:36.080 God bless you. I want to talk to you today 0:01:36.120 --> 0:01:40.800 about pulled strings. It's easy to go through life wondering 0:01:40.920 --> 0:01:43.840 how things are going to work out, hoping we make 0:01:43.959 --> 0:01:48.760 right decisions, stressed over our finances, concerned about a child. 0:01:49.520 --> 0:01:52.240 But you don't have to worry about your future. 0:01:52.880 --> 0:01:57.720 Your life has been divinely orchestrated. God has determined the 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:01.840 end from the beginning. He's already laid out your plan, 0:02:02.520 --> 0:02:06.360 drawn up your blueprint. He knows everything that's going to happen. 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:11.720 The scripture says God works all things according to his will. 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:15.280 It's not according to who likes you, according to what 0:02:15.400 --> 0:02:19.000 family you come from, according to even how many mistakes 0:02:19.040 --> 0:02:19.560 you've made. 0:02:20.000 --> 0:02:21.840 It's according to his will. 0:02:22.440 --> 0:02:27.079 He is working behind the scenes, not only directing your steps, 0:02:27.520 --> 0:02:29.600 but he's directing the steps. 0:02:29.240 --> 0:02:30.440 Of the people you need. 0:02:31.080 --> 0:02:34.440 He's not just in control of you, He's in control 0:02:34.639 --> 0:02:39.720 of your circumstances. Nothing randomly happens. You're not at the 0:02:39.800 --> 0:02:43.040 mercy of bad breaks. You don't have to get upset 0:02:43.280 --> 0:02:46.680 because a door closed. Give up on a dream because 0:02:46.680 --> 0:02:49.920 you went through a loss. God knew about it. He 0:02:49.919 --> 0:02:53.200 wouldn't have allowed it if it wasn't on your blueprint. 0:02:53.880 --> 0:02:56.880 We may not like it, we don't understand it, but 0:02:56.960 --> 0:03:00.280 God knows what he's doing. It's not keeping you from 0:03:00.360 --> 0:03:04.760 your purpose. It's leading you to your purpose. And sometimes 0:03:04.800 --> 0:03:08.720 the reason God closes a door is because he's about 0:03:08.760 --> 0:03:09.440 to open. 0:03:09.160 --> 0:03:12.800 A bigger door. Where we were was too small. We 0:03:12.840 --> 0:03:14.720 couldn't see it. We were happy. 0:03:15.320 --> 0:03:17.960 But God loves you too much to let you miss 0:03:17.960 --> 0:03:21.639 your destiny. His dream for your life is bigger than 0:03:21.680 --> 0:03:25.720 your own. That friend that left you, they didn't walk 0:03:25.760 --> 0:03:29.880 away on their own accord. God directed their steps. He 0:03:29.919 --> 0:03:33.800 moved them away because they were limiting your growth. They 0:03:33.840 --> 0:03:36.720 would have kept you from becoming who you were created 0:03:36.760 --> 0:03:41.360 to be. When you know your life is divinely orchestrated, 0:03:41.880 --> 0:03:45.960 that nothing happens without God's permission, then you don't get 0:03:45.960 --> 0:03:48.960 discouraged when things don't go your way. 0:03:49.120 --> 0:03:50.680 You know God is at. 0:03:50.560 --> 0:03:57.119 Work, controlling, manipulating, arranging things according to his will. Now 0:03:57.160 --> 0:04:01.360 this takes faith because we can't see the blueprint. We 0:04:01.400 --> 0:04:04.400 don't know what God is up to. His ways are 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:07.440 not our ways. All we know is the door closed. 0:04:07.640 --> 0:04:09.800 It wasn't fair. It set us back. 0:04:10.560 --> 0:04:14.000 What we can't see is really it's setting us up 0:04:14.080 --> 0:04:18.560 for something better, or we would going along being our best, 0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:23.400 honoring God. Out of nowhere, a promotion, a good break, 0:04:23.720 --> 0:04:26.320 a contract that catapults us ahead. 0:04:27.120 --> 0:04:30.520 We didn't see it coming, but God did. It was 0:04:30.600 --> 0:04:31.880 on the blueprint. 0:04:32.360 --> 0:04:35.719 You have no idea what God has in your future, 0:04:36.320 --> 0:04:39.279 the doors he's going to open, the people he's going 0:04:39.360 --> 0:04:41.839 to bring, the places he's going to take you. 0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:44.680 It may seem like you've reached your limits. 0:04:45.160 --> 0:04:48.400 You could never accomplish a dream, never get out of debt, 0:04:48.560 --> 0:04:49.839 never meet the right person. 0:04:50.440 --> 0:04:52.120 You don't know what God is up to. 0:04:52.920 --> 0:04:56.159 If he showed you the blueprint, if you could see 0:04:56.320 --> 0:05:00.000 into your future, it would amaze you. The good news 0:05:00.120 --> 0:05:03.680 is God is working it out. You don't have to 0:05:03.760 --> 0:05:07.640 do this just in your own strength. Try to manipulate 0:05:07.720 --> 0:05:14.320 people manipulate circumstances. You have someone manipulating things for you. 0:05:14.839 --> 0:05:19.160 It just so happens. He controls the universe. Why are 0:05:19.200 --> 0:05:21.799 you worrying? Why are you live in stress? 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:26.719 The most tigh God is directing your steps, moving the 0:05:26.760 --> 0:05:30.000 wrong people out of the way, lining up the breaks 0:05:30.040 --> 0:05:33.000 you need, turning negative situations around. 0:05:33.800 --> 0:05:33.920 You. 0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:38.559 Don't have to worry. It's on the blueprint, Jeremiah said. 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:43.039 God's plans for you are for good, to bring you 0:05:43.240 --> 0:05:46.839 to an expected end. You are not going to come 0:05:46.880 --> 0:05:49.919 to a random end. God is not up in the 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:53.159 heavens thinking I wonder what's going to happen in their life. 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:59.040 God has already established your end. Your steps are being ordered, 0:05:59.400 --> 0:06:02.279 You are at the right place at the right time. 0:06:02.839 --> 0:06:04.479 Everything is on schedule. 0:06:05.120 --> 0:06:08.800 All the details are coming together, and things may have 0:06:08.880 --> 0:06:10.760 happened that you don't understand. 0:06:11.120 --> 0:06:13.400 Stay in faith. It's on the plans. 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:18.120 It may not make sense now, but when it comes together. 0:06:18.279 --> 0:06:21.839 It will make sense. His plan is in process. 0:06:22.720 --> 0:06:25.920 You don't have to be frustrated because it's not happening 0:06:25.960 --> 0:06:30.640 fast enough, get upset because somebody did you wrong. The 0:06:30.680 --> 0:06:35.159 God who breathed life into you has not only established 0:06:35.200 --> 0:06:37.800 your end, but he is working all. 0:06:37.600 --> 0:06:39.559 Things according to his will. 0:06:40.400 --> 0:06:43.200 When I was a little boy, my father would travel 0:06:43.240 --> 0:06:46.400 overseas for a couple of weeks at a time to minister. 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:50.520 When he returned home, my siblings and I were always 0:06:50.600 --> 0:06:54.920 so excited to see him, not just because we missed him, 0:06:55.320 --> 0:06:58.680 but because he always brought us a gift, something from 0:06:58.720 --> 0:07:02.760 that country. One trip, he opened his suitcase and he 0:07:02.880 --> 0:07:06.440 handed me a puppet. It was a cowboy made out 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:10.120 of wood, had two gloves where you could put your fingers. 0:07:10.480 --> 0:07:14.000 All these strings were attached to different parts of the puppet. 0:07:14.240 --> 0:07:17.320 I could move my little finger, make the puppet wave. 0:07:18.000 --> 0:07:20.200 Move another finger and cause him to shake his head, 0:07:20.600 --> 0:07:23.280 move them all together, make him run, make him dance, 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:26.920 make him lie down. I love this puppet. I would 0:07:27.000 --> 0:07:30.320 put on puppet shows for my little sister. I was 0:07:30.400 --> 0:07:34.240 behind the curtain, hidden. All she could see was the puppet. 0:07:34.680 --> 0:07:38.160 She would laugh when the puppet danced, wave when the 0:07:38.200 --> 0:07:42.440 puppet waved. She was so engrossed in the show she 0:07:42.520 --> 0:07:46.360 would forget I was pulling the strings. I was the 0:07:46.400 --> 0:07:51.120 one orchestrating his every move in the same way you're 0:07:51.120 --> 0:07:54.360 not doing life on your own. God is behind the 0:07:54.480 --> 0:08:00.640 SEMs pulling the strings orchestrating your steps. Sometimes we think 0:08:00.760 --> 0:08:03.920 we got to where we are by ourselves, our talent, 0:08:04.080 --> 0:08:05.640 our strength, our determination. 0:08:06.400 --> 0:08:08.400 We don't realize God. 0:08:08.200 --> 0:08:11.880 Has been pulling strings our whole life, bringing talent out, 0:08:12.360 --> 0:08:16.320 giving us ability, causing us to shine. When we were tired, 0:08:16.480 --> 0:08:19.559 he pulled a string and lifted us. When we felt 0:08:19.600 --> 0:08:22.000 like quitting, he pulled a string and caused us to 0:08:22.000 --> 0:08:24.960 try again. When we didn't have the training, he pulled 0:08:25.000 --> 0:08:28.320 a string and gave us the position. When we're tempted 0:08:28.360 --> 0:08:30.560 to take the credit, think we did. 0:08:30.440 --> 0:08:31.200 It on our own. 0:08:31.640 --> 0:08:34.160 It's good to look up and say, Father, thank you 0:08:34.360 --> 0:08:39.800 for pulling strings. I realize you're giving me strength, You're 0:08:39.800 --> 0:08:43.480 making me dance, You're causing me to shine. The great 0:08:43.520 --> 0:08:46.840 thing about God is he doesn't just have a string 0:08:46.920 --> 0:08:50.960 on you. He has a string on all of your circumstances. 0:08:51.640 --> 0:08:54.600 Like in a puppet show, there's a string on the curtain, 0:08:55.040 --> 0:08:57.520 a string on the door, a string on the table. 0:08:58.080 --> 0:09:02.440 The person running the show can control everything on the stage. 0:09:03.160 --> 0:09:04.680 That's the way it is with God. 0:09:05.080 --> 0:09:08.559 He has a string on all your props, a string 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:12.160 on everything you need. When it's your time to shine, 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:13.920 God has a string on the curtain. 0:09:14.160 --> 0:09:16.120 He'll open that door, and there you are. 0:09:16.840 --> 0:09:19.240 When he's ready for you to be promoted, he has 0:09:19.280 --> 0:09:20.800 a string on that promotion. 0:09:21.160 --> 0:09:22.880 He'll bring it to you. 0:09:22.880 --> 0:09:25.880 You're not feeling well, don't worry. God has a string 0:09:26.040 --> 0:09:30.439 on your healing. You've heard that phrase no strings attached 0:09:30.960 --> 0:09:31.880 with God. 0:09:31.760 --> 0:09:33.040 Is just the opposite. 0:09:33.160 --> 0:09:36.520 He has a string on everything on your stage. 0:09:36.720 --> 0:09:39.240 How did you get to where you are? It's very simple. 0:09:39.480 --> 0:09:40.800 God pulled the strings. 0:09:41.559 --> 0:09:45.480 How did my father rise out of poverty, no future 0:09:45.520 --> 0:09:49.560 to speak of, very little education, Yet he was able 0:09:49.600 --> 0:09:53.320 to leave that limited environment go on to pastor great 0:09:53.440 --> 0:09:57.319 churches and live an abundant life. God pulled the strings. 0:09:58.120 --> 0:10:01.360 There was no way in the natural. All the odds 0:10:01.360 --> 0:10:05.480 were against him. But the one who controls your strings 0:10:05.960 --> 0:10:07.880 is not limited by the natural. 0:10:08.160 --> 0:10:10.960 He's supernatural. You can't see him. 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:15.120 He's behind the scenes, but he's working all things according 0:10:15.160 --> 0:10:18.760 to his will. When God is ready to promote you, 0:10:19.280 --> 0:10:22.960 he doesn't check with your boss, he doesn't get approval 0:10:22.960 --> 0:10:26.360 from your family, he doesn't take a vote from your critics. 0:10:26.600 --> 0:10:28.640 He simply pulls the strings. 0:10:29.200 --> 0:10:34.000 He controls what door's open, He controls what breaks come 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:37.960 your way. Don't be discouraged by your boss. God has 0:10:38.000 --> 0:10:41.560 a string on your boss. Don't lose sleep over those 0:10:41.600 --> 0:10:42.720 people who are against you. 0:10:43.200 --> 0:10:44.000 God has a. 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:47.640 String on who's trying to stop you. When it's time, 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:50.280 he'll pull that string move them out of the way. 0:10:51.000 --> 0:10:52.000 You don't have to live. 0:10:51.960 --> 0:10:55.920 Stressed out because you have opposition and things haven't worked out. 0:10:56.600 --> 0:11:00.640 You're still connected. God has a string on you and 0:11:00.800 --> 0:11:05.720 everything that's affecting you. The psalmist said, God's hand is 0:11:05.840 --> 0:11:10.120 outstretched towards you when you're tempted to get discouraged. 0:11:10.360 --> 0:11:12.040 I think it's never going to work out. 0:11:12.400 --> 0:11:17.800 Just imagine God's hand outstretched above you, pulling strings, directing 0:11:17.840 --> 0:11:22.120 your steps, orchestrating your life. He not only has a 0:11:22.120 --> 0:11:25.680 string on you, he has a string on your finances. 0:11:26.320 --> 0:11:29.960 He has a string on your opportunities, on your house, 0:11:30.400 --> 0:11:34.680 on your health, on your family, on your promotion. Get ready, 0:11:35.080 --> 0:11:38.360 God is about to pull some strings. He's about to 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:40.760 make things happen that you couldn't make happen. 0:11:41.480 --> 0:11:44.480 You didn't see it coming. The opposition was bigger. 0:11:44.679 --> 0:11:47.480 But God pulled a string and you came out with 0:11:47.559 --> 0:11:51.600 the victory. The medical report didn't look good. God pulled 0:11:51.600 --> 0:11:55.360 a string. Now you're healthy in whome, the school said 0:11:55.360 --> 0:11:58.640 they had no more funds. God pulled a string and 0:11:58.679 --> 0:12:02.200 you received a scholarship. You'd been lonely a long time. 0:12:02.320 --> 0:12:06.480 God pulled a string, brought a divine connection. The string 0:12:06.559 --> 0:12:09.880 puller is about to show out in your life. You're 0:12:09.880 --> 0:12:12.400 going to look back and say, like me, how did 0:12:12.400 --> 0:12:16.319 I get up here? I didn't have the training, the experience. 0:12:16.600 --> 0:12:17.920 I wasn't next in line. 0:12:18.440 --> 0:12:19.800 God pulled my strings. 0:12:20.440 --> 0:12:22.720 He brought ability out of me that I didn't know 0:12:22.800 --> 0:12:27.520 I had. You see me up here, speaking, moving my hands. 0:12:27.800 --> 0:12:31.559 I know it's the stream puller, God working out his purpose. 0:12:32.400 --> 0:12:33.760 How did I meet Victoria? 0:12:34.040 --> 0:12:37.880 God pulled some strings when I needed a battery for 0:12:38.000 --> 0:12:41.920 my watch. I could have chosen any jewelry store, there 0:12:41.920 --> 0:12:45.400 are hundreds in Houston, but I just so happened to 0:12:45.520 --> 0:12:49.640 walk into her mother's jewelry store and there was Victoria 0:12:49.720 --> 0:12:55.160 waiting for me with open arms. God pulled my string, 0:12:55.640 --> 0:12:59.240 but I had to help God pull her string. What 0:12:59.360 --> 0:13:04.760 am I saying? Nothing randomly happens. Your steps are being ordered. 0:13:05.760 --> 0:13:06.760 I talked to a lady. 0:13:07.040 --> 0:13:09.920 Her son was in a special program in high school 0:13:10.240 --> 0:13:13.559 that was a part of a very prestigious university. If 0:13:13.559 --> 0:13:16.280 he did well, there was a chance he would receive 0:13:16.320 --> 0:13:19.960 a scholarship. But his father came down with an illness. 0:13:20.440 --> 0:13:24.280 He was so distracted that his grades dropped. He was 0:13:24.360 --> 0:13:27.040 normally an excellent student, at the top of his class, 0:13:27.440 --> 0:13:30.080 but now he was in danger of failing and having to. 0:13:30.120 --> 0:13:31.199 Leave the program. 0:13:31.679 --> 0:13:34.680 His mother knew it was because of the situation with 0:13:34.760 --> 0:13:38.160 his father, so she went to the school to explain 0:13:38.400 --> 0:13:41.720 what was going on. She was very concerned about how 0:13:41.760 --> 0:13:44.959 they would respond. They could have said, we have rules 0:13:45.160 --> 0:13:48.160 if he doesn't make the grades too bad, but the 0:13:48.200 --> 0:13:52.240 man in charge was as kind as can be. He said, 0:13:52.360 --> 0:13:55.920 we'll give your son free tutoring to help him get 0:13:55.960 --> 0:13:56.760 back on course. 0:13:57.440 --> 0:14:01.400 Should have cost thousands of dollars, but God pulled a stream. 0:14:01.640 --> 0:14:04.280 Caused that man to be good to them. The young 0:14:04.320 --> 0:14:07.960 men's grades came back up. He applied for college and 0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:10.520 was accepted into six universities. 0:14:11.000 --> 0:14:12.840 These were partial scholarships. 0:14:13.160 --> 0:14:15.480 He had not heard back from the school he really 0:14:15.520 --> 0:14:19.280 wanted to attend, been so long they thought that door 0:14:19.320 --> 0:14:22.560 had closed. But while he was making plans to attend 0:14:22.560 --> 0:14:27.040 another university, the main one emailed back and said that 0:14:27.080 --> 0:14:30.800 they were not only accepting him into their engineering school. 0:14:31.200 --> 0:14:33.840 That was his dream, but they were giving him a 0:14:33.880 --> 0:14:39.800 full scholarship. God knows how to pull the strings. You 0:14:39.920 --> 0:14:43.480 may not see how it can happen. Don't get discouraged. 0:14:43.760 --> 0:14:45.240 The string puller. 0:14:44.960 --> 0:14:48.360 Is at work. He has a string on all. 0:14:48.200 --> 0:14:51.040 The doors you need to be opened, a string on 0:14:51.160 --> 0:14:53.320 all the people that need to be good to you. 0:14:53.760 --> 0:14:57.560 He's working out his purpose lived from a place of peace, 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:01.440 a place of rest. You don't have to manipulate things. 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:04.040 God is manipulating them for you. 0:15:04.720 --> 0:15:06.720 Our job is to trust him. 0:15:07.000 --> 0:15:10.360 God, you're in control of my life. I know you're 0:15:10.400 --> 0:15:13.960 pulling the strings. You're opening doors no man can shut. 0:15:14.320 --> 0:15:17.280 You're bringing the right people, taking me to where I'm 0:15:17.320 --> 0:15:20.120 supposed to be. Well, Joel, I've had a lot of 0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:23.880 bad breaks, a lot of unfair situations. Haven't seen God 0:15:23.920 --> 0:15:27.520 pulling any strings from me. This is what happened with job. 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:31.520 He was doing the right thing, honoring God. When the 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:35.520 bottom fell out. He lost his health, lost his business, 0:15:35.560 --> 0:15:36.440 lost his family. 0:15:36.760 --> 0:15:38.560 Everything that could go wrong did. 0:15:39.240 --> 0:15:42.360 But life is not always fair, and on the way 0:15:42.400 --> 0:15:45.920 to our destiny there will be twist and turns. 0:15:46.280 --> 0:15:47.840 Things we don't understand. 0:15:48.440 --> 0:15:52.560 God doesn't send the trouble, but he allows things. You 0:15:52.640 --> 0:15:56.520 may get thrown into the fiery furnace, but God controls 0:15:56.600 --> 0:16:00.160 the thermostaff He won't let it take your life for 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:03.560 your time. He has a string on the trouble, a 0:16:03.640 --> 0:16:07.720 string on the opposition. The scripture says Satan had to 0:16:07.800 --> 0:16:12.480 ask God for permission to test Joe. God told him yes, 0:16:12.720 --> 0:16:15.720 but he could only take it so far. This tells 0:16:15.760 --> 0:16:18.960 me God is not just in control of your life. 0:16:19.120 --> 0:16:23.680 He's in control of your enemies. Everything on your stage 0:16:24.000 --> 0:16:27.800 is on a stream. Not just the good things, the promotion, 0:16:28.400 --> 0:16:32.320 the blessings, the favor, but even the sickness, the betrayal, 0:16:32.760 --> 0:16:36.960 the bad breaks. They don't have total access in your life. 0:16:37.440 --> 0:16:40.520 They can't do whatever they want. They couldn't even be 0:16:40.680 --> 0:16:45.160 on your stage without permission. In difficult times, you have 0:16:45.240 --> 0:16:48.800 to remind yourself God is still working all. 0:16:48.760 --> 0:16:50.560 Things according to his will. 0:16:51.080 --> 0:16:53.760 The enemy didn't come in and somehow get a hold 0:16:53.760 --> 0:16:57.880 of your strings. He didn't wrestle away control. And now 0:16:57.920 --> 0:17:01.440 God is on the sidelines watching what's happening. Know your 0:17:01.520 --> 0:17:05.000 steps are still being ordered. And in the middle of 0:17:05.040 --> 0:17:08.120 this difficulty, Job said, I know. 0:17:08.600 --> 0:17:11.919 My redeemer lives. He could have been complaining. 0:17:12.560 --> 0:17:15.959 Instead, he was saying, God, I know you're still on 0:17:16.000 --> 0:17:19.639 the throne. I know your hand is still outstretched toward me. 0:17:20.200 --> 0:17:23.480 I don't understand this, but I know you're still working 0:17:23.560 --> 0:17:25.480 all things according. 0:17:25.119 --> 0:17:26.560 To your will. 0:17:26.640 --> 0:17:29.880 It's easy to give God thanks for pulling strings when 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:31.040 things are going our way. 0:17:31.320 --> 0:17:33.600 It's easy to have a good attitude. 0:17:33.720 --> 0:17:37.640 But the real test comes in these tough times, when 0:17:37.680 --> 0:17:41.040 it feels like God has forgotten about you. That's when 0:17:41.119 --> 0:17:43.879 you have to dig your heels in and do like Job, 0:17:44.400 --> 0:17:46.560 I know my redeemer lives. 0:17:46.840 --> 0:17:50.040 I know this didn't come to stay. It came to pass. 0:17:50.680 --> 0:17:52.360 When you stay in faith. 0:17:52.560 --> 0:17:55.600 God will not only pull your strings, but he'll pull 0:17:55.640 --> 0:17:58.360 the strings of that sickness, the strings. 0:17:57.920 --> 0:17:58.720 Of the opposition. 0:17:59.080 --> 0:18:03.920 He'll pull back what's hindering you. Nine months later, Job 0:18:04.040 --> 0:18:08.240 came out of that difficulty, not beat up and bedraggled. 0:18:08.800 --> 0:18:11.360 He didn't even come out the same. He came out 0:18:11.560 --> 0:18:15.200 with twice what he had before. When it was all over, 0:18:15.600 --> 0:18:20.440 Job said, I am convinced that nothing and no one 0:18:20.960 --> 0:18:25.080 can stop God's plan. You may be in a difficult time, 0:18:25.359 --> 0:18:28.600 but if Job were here now, he would tell you 0:18:28.960 --> 0:18:33.360 stay in peace. Nothing can stop God's plan. He has 0:18:33.400 --> 0:18:36.679 a string on you, a string on the sickness, a 0:18:36.720 --> 0:18:39.720 string on the opposition life with job. 0:18:40.080 --> 0:18:42.840 You're about to see God pull some strings. 0:18:43.560 --> 0:18:47.240 That sickness is about to turn around, That trouble at 0:18:47.280 --> 0:18:51.400 work is about to resolve in your favor. Those forces 0:18:51.440 --> 0:18:53.680 that are trying to stop you. I can see by 0:18:53.760 --> 0:18:57.320 faith God pulling them back and pulling healing to you, 0:18:57.680 --> 0:19:01.280 promotion to you, favor to you. Get ready for some 0:19:01.400 --> 0:19:05.520 pulled strings, things that you couldn't make happen. It's the 0:19:05.600 --> 0:19:10.639 outstretched hand of God working all things, not according to 0:19:10.680 --> 0:19:15.040 your circumstances, but according to His will. His will is 0:19:15.040 --> 0:19:17.720 that you be healthy. His will is that you break 0:19:17.760 --> 0:19:21.520 the addiction. His will as you be free from the depression, 0:19:22.160 --> 0:19:24.960 His will as you rise higher, come out of debt, 0:19:25.080 --> 0:19:26.400 accomplish your dreams. 0:19:27.240 --> 0:19:28.679 What can stop our God? 0:19:29.400 --> 0:19:32.280 Do you think the trouble at work is bigger, the 0:19:32.359 --> 0:19:36.240 sickness is stronger, Those people are more powerful. They are 0:19:36.520 --> 0:19:39.439 palms in the hands of God. He has a string 0:19:39.520 --> 0:19:44.200 on them. That car that almost hits you, they swerved 0:19:44.200 --> 0:19:46.639 at the last moment. You don't know how they missed you. 0:19:47.040 --> 0:19:51.919 God pulled a string he controls the universe. Moses asked 0:19:51.920 --> 0:19:55.480 God his name. He said, my name is I Am. 0:19:56.240 --> 0:20:00.800 He was saying, I am anything you need. I am protection, 0:20:01.240 --> 0:20:05.119 I am provision, I am healing, I am strength, I 0:20:05.160 --> 0:20:10.159 am favor, I am deliverance. Nothing can stand against our God, 0:20:10.840 --> 0:20:14.240 the most powerful force in the universe, has a. 0:20:14.240 --> 0:20:15.800 Stream on you. 0:20:15.800 --> 0:20:19.359 You are connected to the Creator. He's working out his 0:20:19.520 --> 0:20:23.399 purpose for your life. Quit worrying, think it is not 0:20:23.480 --> 0:20:26.679 going to happen, talking about how big the problem is. 0:20:27.080 --> 0:20:29.560 Start talking about how big your God is. 0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:32.640 When the thoughts say it's never going to work out, 0:20:32.960 --> 0:20:33.760 turn it around. 0:20:34.280 --> 0:20:34.600 Father. 0:20:34.720 --> 0:20:37.040 I want to thank you that you're about to pull 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:39.840 some strings in my life. Thank you that you're taking 0:20:39.920 --> 0:20:43.440 me where I could not go on my own. Joel, 0:20:43.480 --> 0:20:45.920 I don't think it's going to happen for me. I've 0:20:45.920 --> 0:20:49.879 made too many mistakes. I've gotten way off course. Do 0:20:49.960 --> 0:20:54.399 you think your mistakes can override God's will, that what 0:20:54.600 --> 0:20:58.400 you've done can cancel your blueprint, That somehow you can 0:20:58.440 --> 0:21:03.240 disconnect from this stream. I say this respectfully. You're not 0:21:03.359 --> 0:21:07.439 that powerful. Just ask Jonah. God told him to go 0:21:07.520 --> 0:21:10.400 to the city of Nineveh and minister. He didn't want 0:21:10.440 --> 0:21:12.600 to go there. He got on a boat go in 0:21:12.600 --> 0:21:16.840 the other direction. A huge storm arose. He told the 0:21:16.880 --> 0:21:20.280 crew it was his fault. They threw him overboard. Should 0:21:20.280 --> 0:21:23.280 have been the end. But God had a string on. 0:21:23.200 --> 0:21:26.399 A big fish. Just so happened. The fish was waiting 0:21:26.480 --> 0:21:29.520 swallowed Jonah. He spent three days in the belly of 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:31.400 the fish, the bottom of the ocean. 0:21:31.920 --> 0:21:35.439 Third day, the fish came up spit Jonah on dry ground. 0:21:36.119 --> 0:21:39.280 First thing, God said, Jonah go to Nineveh. Gave him 0:21:39.320 --> 0:21:43.280 another chance. But I love that God not only had 0:21:43.280 --> 0:21:46.119 a string on Jonah, not only wouldn't let him go 0:21:46.240 --> 0:21:49.120 too far, but he had a string on the fish. 0:21:50.200 --> 0:21:52.720 God has a string on everything you. 0:21:52.800 --> 0:21:54.560 Need to fulfill your purpose. 0:21:55.240 --> 0:21:58.439 You may run, but you'll never get away from the string. 0:21:58.880 --> 0:21:59.879 It'll always full you. 0:22:00.000 --> 0:22:03.719 God will have somebody or someone to keep you from 0:22:03.760 --> 0:22:09.280 missing your destiny. Years later, Jesus said, as Jonah was 0:22:09.359 --> 0:22:12.199 in the belly of the fish for three days, so 0:22:12.440 --> 0:22:14.679 I will be in the heart of the earth for 0:22:14.800 --> 0:22:15.479 three days. 0:22:16.320 --> 0:22:18.640 Jonah was a foreshadow of Christ. 0:22:19.280 --> 0:22:22.400 He didn't stay in the fish two days or four days, 0:22:22.760 --> 0:22:26.520 but on the third day he went down right on schedule. 0:22:26.880 --> 0:22:29.760 He came up right on schedule. What am I saying? 0:22:30.160 --> 0:22:33.359 Even when we make mistakes, God is still. 0:22:33.119 --> 0:22:38.199 Working all things according to his will. Maybe you have 0:22:38.440 --> 0:22:41.520 loved ones that are off course, children that aren't making 0:22:41.560 --> 0:22:45.000 good decisions. Don't worry. God has a string on them. 0:22:45.520 --> 0:22:47.720 He's not going to let them go too far. The 0:22:47.760 --> 0:22:51.000