by Joel Osteen
When you are going through tough times, even if your situation looks impossible, stay in an attitude of faith. Before long God’s favor is going to show up, turning that difficult situation around to your benefit. Stay in an attitude of faith and declare the favor of God instead of being discouraged and developing a sour attitude. One touch of God’s favor can turn everything around in your life.
NEVER GIVE UP ON GOD.
DEVELOP
a Healthy Self-Image
True self-esteem can be based
only on what God says about me—
not on what I think or feel about myself.
I am who God says I am.
You were made in the image of God.
SEE YOURSELF AS GOD SEES YOU
Carly was the lone woman employed in a largely male-dominated field. She had to earn her right to be heard nearly every day. Overweight, with a halting walk from one leg being slightly shorter than the other, she heard the laughs and snide remarks made behind her back. But Carly paid little attention. She knew who she was, and she knew she was good at what she did. She walked past her detractors, receiving one promotion after another, eventually becoming the CEO of her company and a highly-sought-after expert in her field.
Carly’s secret is her incredibly positive self-image. She believes that she has been made in the image of God, and that He gives her intrinsic value. She doesn’t strive for the approval of others or depend on compliments to feel good about herself. Bright, friendly, articulate, and extremely competent at her work, Carly is living her best life now!
Learn to love yourself as your
heavenly Father loves you.
HOW DO YOU SEE YOURSELF?
Your self-image is much like a self-portrait; it is who and what you picture yourself to be, which may or may not be an accurate reflection of who you really are. How you feel about yourself will have a tremendous impact on the person you become, because you will probably speak, act, and react as the person you think you are. The truth is, you will never rise above the image you have of yourself in your mind.
God wants us to have healthy, positive self images, to see ourselves as champions. You may feel you’re a failure, but that doesn’t change God’s image of you. You may feel unqualified, weak, and fearful, but God sees you as a victor! He created us in His image, and He is continually shaping us, conforming us to His character, helping us to become even more like the person He is.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
We must learn to love ourselves, faults and all, not because we are egotists, but because that’s how our heavenly Father loves us. You can walk with confidence, knowing that God loves you unconditionally. His love for you is based on what you are, not what you do. He created you as a unique individual—there has never been, nor will there ever be, another person exactly like you, and He sees you as His special masterpiece!
Don’t focus on your weaknesses; focus on your God.
BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS
Perhaps you know the story. Ten of the twelve Hebrew spies sent by Moses into Canaan to check out the opposition came back and said, “It is a land flowing with milk and honey, but there are giants in the land. Moses, we were in our own sight as grasshoppers. They’re too strong. We’ll never defeat them” (Numbers 13). Compared to the giants, the mental image they had of themselves was as small helpless grasshoppers. The battle was lost before it started.
Joshua and Caleb had a totally different report. “Moses, we are well able to possess the land. Yes, there are giants there, but our God is much bigger. Because of Him, we are well able. Let’s go in at once and possess the land.” Faced with the same giants, Joshua and Caleb believed God and refused to see themselves as grasshoppers. Instead, they saw themselves as God’s men, led and empowered by God.
DON’T BE A GRASSHOPPER
Friend, are you allowing your weaknesses and insecurities to keep you from being your best? God already has enough “grasshoppers.” He is not pleased when we mope around with a “poor me” mentality. When you do that, you’re allowing your self-image to be shaped by nonbiblical concepts that are contrary to God’s opinions of you. This sort of poor self-image will keep you from exercising your God-given gifts and authority, and it will rob you from experiencing the abundant life your heavenly Father wants you to have.
You and I are “well able” people. Not because we are so powerful, but because our God is so powerful. He wants you to be a “can do” person, someone who is willing, ready, and “well able” to do what He commands. When we face adversity and hardships in life, we can rise up with boldness and confidence, knowing we can overcome them. God loves to use ordinary people just like you and me, faults and all, to do extraordinary things. If God chose to use perfect people only, He’d have no one to use.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:14 NKJV).
You can change the image you have of yourself. Start by agreeing with God. God sees you as strong and courageous, as a person of great honor and valor. Quit making excuses and start stepping out in faith, doing what God has called you to do.
KEEP GOING; KEEP GROWING. GOD HAS MUCH MORE IN STORE FOR YOU!
Learn to be happy with who God made you to be.
BE AN ORIGINAL
I recall talking with Steve, a young man who suffered severe rejection as a child. His parents continually beat him down verbally, telling him he’d never amount to anything. Those destructive words crushed his self-image. Steve later discovered that his parents had hoped for a baby girl and were sorely disappointed when he was born. Sadly, Steve was convinced that he was to blame for all the heartache in his family and his parents’ unhappiness.
I told him, “Steve, you cannot allow your self-esteem and your sense of value to be determined by how other people treat you. God accepts us even if everybody else rejects us.” It took a while for Steve to accept the truth, but today he is well on his way to living a happy, productive life.
DARE TO BE HAPPY WITH WHO YOU ARE
God doesn’t want a bunch of clones. You should not let people make you feel badly about yourself because you don’t fit their image of who you should be. You were created to be you. You were not created to mimic somebody else. If God had wanted you to look like a perfect model or have a different personality, He would have made you that way. When you go around trying to be like somebody else, not only does it demean you; it steals your uniqueness.
An important factor in seeing yourself God’s way is to understand your intrinsic sense of value. Your sense of value cannot be based on your successes or failures, how your friends treat you, or how popular you are. It is not something we earn; indeed, we cannot earn it. God built value into us when He created us. As His unique creation, you have something to offer this world that nobody else has, that nobody else can be. Your sense of value should be based solely on the fact that you are a child of the Most High God.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “We are God’s workmanship” (Ephesians 2:10). The word workmanship implies that you are a “work in progress.” God is continually shaping us into the people He wants us to be.
Be an original, not a copycat. Be secure in who God made you to be and then go out and be the best person that you can be. Even if everybody else rejects you, remember, God stands before you with His arms open wide.
IF YOU RUN THE RACE AND BE THE BEST THAT YOU CAN BE, THEN YOU CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT YOURSELF.
God has everything you need.
BECOME WHAT YOU BELIEVE
Perhaps at this point you are saying, “Joel, I don’t want to get my hopes up. I’ve prayed. I’ve done everything I know to do. Nothing’s changed. If I don’t get my hopes up and nothing good happens to me, at least I won’t be disappointed.”
Friend, you must get your hopes up, or you won’t have faith.
Consider the fascinating account of two blind men who heard that Jesus was passing by. Despite a lifetime of blindness, they must have thought, We don’t have to stay like this. There’s hope for a better future. So they began to cry out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” (Matthew 9:27).
When Jesus heard their cries, He posed an intriguing question, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” (v. 28 nasb). Jesus wanted to know whether they had genuine faith. The blind men answered, “Yes, Lord; we believe.” Then the Bible says, “[Jesus] touched their eyes and said, ‘Become what you believe’ ” (the message). What a powerful statement about their faith! You will become what you believe!
SO WHAT ARE YOU BELIEVING?
Are you believing to rise above your obstacles, that you can live in health, abundance, healing, and victory? One of the most important aspects of seeing ourselves God’s way involves developing a prosperous mind-set. Understand, God has already equipped you with everything you need to live a prosperous life and to fulfill your God-given destiny. He planted “seeds” inside you filled with possibilities, incredible potential, creative ideas, and dreams. But you have to start tapping into them. You’ve got to believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that you have what it takes.
God created you to excel, and He’s given you ability, insight, talent, wisdom, and His supernatural power to do so. You don’t have to figure out how God is going to solve your problems or bring it to pass. That’s His responsibility. Your job is to believe.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “Let the Lord be magnified, Who takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servant” (Psalm 35:27).
Start looking through eyes of faith. See yourself prospering, and keep that image in your heart and mind. You may be living in poverty at the moment, but don’t ever let poverty live in you. God takes pleasure in prospering His children. As His children prosper spiritually, physically, and materially, their increase brings God pleasure.
WHAT YOU BELIEVE HAS A MUCH GREATER IMPACT ON YOUR LIFE THAN WHAT ANYBODY ELSE BELIEVES.
DISCOVER the Power of Your Thoughts and Words
Keep your mind set on the reality
that God is a miracle-working God.
Start talking to your mountains
about how big your God is!
Choose to dwell on the promises of God’s Word.
WIN THE VICTORY IN YOUR MIND
I heard a story about two farmers. When the rain fell, one farmer said, “Thank You, Lord, for watering our crops.” But the other farmer said, “Yeah, but if the rain keeps up, it’s going to rot the roots.”
When the sun came out, the positive farmer said, “Thank You, Lord, that our crops are getting the vitamins and minerals they need. We’ll have a wonderful harvest this year.” But the negative farmer said, “Yeah, but if it keeps up, it’s going to scorch those plants. We’re never going to make a living.”
SO WHO DO YOU SOUND LIKE?
Whether or not you are aware of it, a war is raging all around you, and the battle is for your mind. Your enemy’s number-one target is the arena of your thoughts. If he can control how you think, he’ll be able to control your entire life.
Indeed, thoughts determine actions, attitudes, and self-image. Really, thoughts determine destiny, which is why the Bible warns us to guard our minds. Almost like a magnet, we draw in what we constantly think about. Whether we dwell on depressing, negative thoughts or positive, joyful thoughts, our life follows our thoughts.
And our thoughts also affect our emotions. We will feel exactly the way we think. You cannot expect to feel happy unless you think happy thoughts. Conversely, it’s impossible to remain discouraged unless you first think discouraging thoughts. So much of success and failure in life begins in our minds.
To win the victory in your mind, you can’t sit back passively and expect this new person to suddenly appear. If you don’t think you can be successful, you never will be. When you think thoughts of mediocrity, you are destined to live an average life.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “As [a man] thinks within himself, so he is” (Proverbs 23:7 NASB).
When you align your thoughts with God’s thoughts and you start dwelling on the promises of His Word, when you constantly dwell on thoughts of His victory and favor, you will be propelled toward greatness, inevitably bound for increase and God’s supernatural blessings. Begin by agreeing with the psalmist, “This is the day the Lord has made, and I’m going to be happy. This is going to be a great day.” Magnify your God, and go out each day expecting good things.
EVERY DAY, WHEN YOU FIRST GET UP, SET YOUR MIND FOR SUCCESS.
God works where there is an attitude of faith.
THINK ABOUT YOUR THINKING
I realize that life is tough, and the demands on your life can be overwhelming. We all get knocked down occasionally and get discouraged. I am not so unrealistic as to pretend that nothing bad ever happens to us. Bad things happen to good people. Obviously, we can’t ignore problems and live in denial.
But I am saying that if we get depressed or discouraged, we need not remain there. We can choose our thoughts. Nobody can make us think a certain way. If you’re not happy, nobody is forcing you to be unhappy. Nobody’s coercing you to be sarcastic or sullen. You decide what you will entertain in your mind.
WE NEED TO STOP THE ExCUSES
We must take responsibility for our lives. As long as we keep blaming our problems on our family tree, our environment, past relationships with other people, our circumstances, and attributing blame to God, Satan, anyone, or anything, we will never be truly free and emotionally healthy. To a large extent, we can control our own destinies.
Simply because the enemy plants a negative, discouraging thought in your brain doesn’t mean you have to nurture and help it grow. If you do, though, that thought will affect your emotions, your attitudes, and eventually your actions. You will be much more prone to discouragement and depression, and if you continue pondering that negative thought, it will sap the energy and strength right out of you.
So how do you ascertain the source of a thought? Easy. If it’s a discouraging, destructive thought; if it brings fear, worry, doubt, or unbelief; if the thought makes you feel weak, insecure, or inadequate, I can guarantee you that thought is not from God. You need to get rid of it immediately, or it will take root and create an enemy stronghold in your mind from which attacks can be launched.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “Be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude]” (Ephesians 4:23 AMP).
It’s not your circumstances that have you down; your thoughts about your circumstances have you down. It is possible to be in one of the biggest battles for your life and still be filled with joy and peace and victory—if you simply learn how to choose the right thoughts. Stay full of faith. Stay full of joy. Stay full of hope. If you will transform your thinking, God will transform your life.
WE CAN CHOOSE TO BELIEVE THAT GOD IS GREATER THAN OUR PROBLEMS.
There is a miracle in your mouth.
SPEAK TO YOUR MOUNTAINS
I love what David did when he faced the giant Goliath. He didn’t complain and say, “God, why do I always have huge problems?” He didn’t dwell on the fact that Goliath was a skilled warrior and he was just a shepherd boy. Rather than focus on the magnitude of the obstacle before him, David looked Goliath right in the eyes and changed his whole atmosphere through the words he spoke aloud. He said, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty” (1 Samuel 17:45).
Now, those are words of faith! He didn’t merely think them; he didn’t simply pray them. He spoke directly to the mountain of a man in front of him and said, “Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air” (v. 46). And with God’s help, he did!
WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE SAID TO GOLIATH?
Our words have tremendous power and are similar to seeds.
By speaking them aloud, they are planted in our subconscious minds, take root, grow, and produce fruit of the same kind. Whether we speak positive or negative words, we will reap exactly what we sow. That’s why we need to be extremely careful about what we think and say.
The Bible compares the tongue to the rudder of a huge ship (James 3:4). Although the rudder is small, it controls the ship’s direction. Similarly, your tongue will control the direction of your life. You create an environment for either good or evil with your words, and you are going to have to live in that world you’ve created. If you’re always murmuring, complaining, and talking about how bad life is, you’re going to live in a pretty miserable world.
However, God wants us to use our words to change our negative situations. If you want to change your world, start by changing your words.
Quiet your heart and receive God’s Word: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (Proverbs 18:21 NASB).
The Bible clearly tells us to speak to our mountains (Mark 11:23–24). Maybe your mountain is a sickness or a troubled relationship with someone you love. Whatever your mountain is, you must speak to that obstacle. Start calling yourself healed, happy, whole, blessed, and prosperous. Stop talking to God about how big your mountains are, and start talking to your mountains about how big your God is!
GOD IS A MIRACLE-WORKING GOD.
Your words have the power to make or break you.
CONFESS GOD’S WORD
In 1981, my mother was diagnosed with metastatic cancer of the liver and given just a few weeks to live. After the best doctors in the world had exhausted their efforts, they basically sent my mom home to die. However, we serve a supernatural God, and He can make a way in our lives where it looks as if there is no way.