Being Happy Where You Are | Joel Osteen

Hi, this is Joel in Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoyed today's message, why don't you be a blessing and share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. God bless you. It's great to be with you today and I hope you'll stay connected with us during the week to our daily podcast, YouTube channel, social media, and you can come visit us in person. We'd love to have you be a part of one of our services. I'd like to start with something funny and I heard about these four Catholic mothers. They were bragging on their sons. The first one said, my son is a priest. When he walks in the room, everyone calls him father. The second one said, my son is a bishop. When he walks in the room, everyone calls him your grace. The third said, my son is a cardinal. When he walks in the room, everyone calls him your immanence. The fourth one said, my son is six foot three, has broad shoulders, and is incredibly handsome. When he walks in the room, all the ladies say, oh my God. 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 being happy where you are. We can always find a reason to put off our happiness. When my business grows, then I'll be happy. When I lose 10 pounds. When I have a baby. When my health improves. Or maybe if I was married, I'd be happy. Another person, if I wasn't married, I'd be happy. If you're putting conditions on your happiness, you're going to live a lot of your life unhappy because there will always be something you don't like that bothers you, that you wish was different. There are blessings and burdens in every season. There are great things in your life that you could be happy with right now. If you have your health, your family, you have a job, opportunity, and there are things you could be discouraged over. You get to choose what you're going to focus on. If you focus on the burdens, you're going to put off your happiness. I've got to fix this problem before I can be happy. I've got to move into a better house. I can't be happy with this co-worker. He gets on my nerves. When he leaves, when God moves him out of my life, then I'll be happy. But here's the truth, and I don't want to depress you, but he may never leave. What if some of those burdens never change? Are you going to spend your life unhappy, waiting for people and circumstances to do what you want? Then you'll enjoy your life. It's the wrong way to live. You're putting your happiness in other people's hands. You're letting your joy be dependent on the circumstances. You have to take control of your happiness. You are responsible to keep yourself happy. It's not up to other people. Enjoy my spouse, my boss, my neighbor. They're the problem. They aggravate me. They leave me out. You can't control all that. They may not change, but you can change. You can be happy right where you are. You can enjoy your life despite what's not going your way. Paul said in Philippians chapter four, I have learned how to be content whatever state I'm in, whether I'm a based or a bounding. People are saying whether I have a lot or a little, whether people are treating me right or wrong, whether my plans have worked out or they haven't, I'm still going to be happy. I'm still going to keep my joy. His happiness wasn't dependent on his conditions. Wasn't dependent on what people said or if they did what he wanted, or if he's in a blooming season, seeing growth and promotion, then he'd be happy. Seasons change. Days don't always work out. People can let us down. Doors can close. A mark of maturity is that you're happy whatever state you're in. Your happiness is not based on your circumstances. It's based on a decision. The fact that you're a child of the Most High God. You recognize he's given you another day to be alive and the strength to get out of bed, breath to breathe. So you focus on the good. You thank God for the blessings. You choose like David to rejoice and be glad. See happiness is not a feeling. It's a decision that we make. If you're going to be happy, you have to be happy on purpose. Paul said, I have learned how to be content. He didn't say, I woke up content. I'm just naturally content. It's easy for me to stay happy no matter what. This took practice. This took training. Ruling over his emotions and getting up in the morning when he didn't feel joy. Things weren't going his way. People weren't treating him right. Prayer's not being answered. Yet he made the decision, I'm going to be happy today. I'm going to enjoy where I am. He learned to do it. My question is, have you learned how to be content? Have you trained yourself to be happy, to see the good, focus on the blessings, to start each day positive and full of joy? The enemy would love for us to go through life discontent, unhappy, discourage, always something to keep us from enjoying where we are. Don't fall in that trap. This day is a gift. This honors God to go through it sour and offended, no passion. Everything may not be perfect. We all have things that come against us. The key is to enjoy where you are while God is in the process of changing things. If you don't get happy where you are, you probably won't get to where you want to be. It's easy to complain, live sour, win this changes, I'll be happy. No, you can be happy right where you are. What are you focused on, the blessings or the burdens? If you focus on what's wrong, how long it's taken, who hurts you, you're going to be discouraged. It's your focus to the blessings. You're alive, you're healthy, you have people to love. See, you never get to the place where all the burdens are gone and all you have are blessings. With the blessings come burdens. If you're waiting for the burdens to leave, then you'll be happy, you'll be waiting your whole life. In my situation, God has taken me further than I've ever imagined. I have the honor to speak to you guys and many people. You've given me influence and resources and have a beautiful family, good health and extremely good looks. But with all these, why are you laughing? But anyway, but with all these incredible blessings come some burdens. There are two or three things I could be worried about, discouraged over, offended. How's this going to work out? If I dwell on the burdens, I'm not going to have any joy. I'm going to go through the day discouraged and worried. What I'm learning to be content is to focus on the blessings and not the burdens. What you focus on gets bigger. You're always thinking about the person at work that gets on your nerves and how that's not fair. You need to pay them back. You make it it bigger and the blessings are getting smaller. The fact is you have a job, you have talent, you have health, change your focus. When Paul wrote this passage, I've learned to be content. He was in a prison cell. He'd been arrested for sharing his faith and was awaiting trial. If anyone had a reason to be discontent, unhappy, at least in the natural, would have been Paul. He was beaten three times for teaching about Jesus. He was falsely accused and misunderstood by the believers. They wouldn't accept him. He was opposed by the religious leaders. He'd been shipwrecked and bitten by a poisonous snake. This was all while he was fulfilling his purpose, doing what God called him to do. But his attitude was, these prison walls aren't going to take my joy. These bad breaks are not going to cause me to be sour. I'm not focused on the burdens. I'm focused on the blessings. I'm still alive. I still have a purpose to fulfill. I still am in the palm of God's hand. He couldn't leave the prison. He couldn't go out and share his faith anymore. They thought they had him stopped, but Paul got his pen out and started writing. He wrote much of the New Testament from a prison cell. The enemy thought he was shutting Paul up, but God knows how to take what was meant for harm and use it to your advantage. In that cell, Paul wrote, rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say rejoice. He wrote, may the God of hope fill you with all joy. He wrote, I think myself happy. He was telling us the location doesn't have to determine your happiness. How you're being treated, what's not working out, that doesn't dictate your joy. You determine your happiness. You can think yourself happy, or you can think yourself depressed. You can think yourself grateful, or you can think yourself sour. When you focus on the blessings and magnify the good things in your life, thank God, for where he's brought you to, his favor, his protection, then you're going to enjoy where you are despite what's coming against you. After Paul wrote that passage, I've learned to be content. The next verse is the one we quote all the time. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. He wrote it in the context of keeping you joy and staying content when things come against us. How can I be happy in a hard place through Christ who gives you strength? How can I enjoy my life, Joel, despite these burdens through Christ? How can I keep a good attitude with this cranky co-worker through Christ? You're not doing it on your own. When you choose to be happy where you are, God will breathe on your life and strengthen you and empower you. See Paul wasn't happy about being in prison, but he was happy in prison. He didn't let the circumstances stop his happiness. You're not happy about being in the hospital, but you can be happy in the hospital. Just because you're in a difficult place doesn't mean you have to be unhappy. You can count it all joy. You're not happy with that person at work that's trying to make you look bad, but you can be happy despite what they're doing. There is grace for every season. When you're happy in a place where you should be discouraged, you are passing the test, and at the right time, God will vindicate you. He'll promote you. He'll turn it around. But Paul could have thought, man, when I get out of this prison, then I'll be happy. When people stop attacking me, when they understand who I really am, then I'll be in a good mood. No, he said, I'm happy right where I am. I'm gonna write some books. I'm gonna leave my mark. It's very powerful when you are content in every situation, when you're not waiting to be happy one day, when I get through this trouble, when my health turns around, when my career takes off. Even though it's not happening yet, you're still happy, you're still enjoying the day, you've learned how to be content. A lady came down for prayer one time, and she was very discouraged because her husband wouldn't come to church with her. She'd been trying for years to convince him, but he wouldn't do it. We prayed and asked God to change his heart. She came down the next week, more frustrated. Same thing. Month later, she was back, still worried, upset. God, why won't you do anything? Six months later, same thing. She wasn't going to be happy until it worked out her way. She was putting her happiness on hold, basing it on what her husband did. Life is too short to live that way. You can't make people change, and you can't make situations turn around. Pray, believe, do what you can, then leave it in God's hands. Proverbs says, those who trust in the Lord will be happy. When things aren't changing, the only way you're going to be happy is by trusting that God is working, believing that He's fighting your battles and making those crooked places straight, that He's your provider, your healer, your waymaker. When you're trusting, you can be happy while you're waiting knowing that God is in the process of changing things. If you're dealing with an illness, you could be worried, losing sleep. No way I can be content, Joel. You don't know what I'm facing. Try a different approach. Father, thank You that You're my healer, that You're restoring health back into me, that the number of my days You will fulfill. When Your trust is in Him, you can be happy while you're waiting. Maybe you have a child off-courser, business is struggling her. You're dealing with an addiction. It's easy to put your happiness on hold, live worried, discouraged. The right attitude is, Father, I thank You that You're working behind the scenes, doing things I can't see, that what You have purposed for my life is on the way, freedom, breakthroughs, the right people, abundance. Having the greatness of God and speaking His promises, that's going to build your faith. That's how you can enjoy where you are and not just endure where you are. When you don't have joy, you don't have strength. It's hard to keep a good attitude, hard to believe, but when you're happy where you are, despite what's coming against you, you're going to have the strength you need to stay in faith while you're waiting for things to change. And the truth is, most of our lives we're waiting for something to get better, waiting for a problem to turn around, waiting to meet the right person, waiting to advance in our career. If you don't learn to enjoy the waiting seasons, times like with Paul when you're in the prison, so to speak, then you'll live so much of your life unhappy. What a tragedy to come to the end of life and realize that we've lived way too long worried, discouraged, offended. Jesus said, He came that you might enjoy life. This is going to happen. You have to put your foot down and say, that's it. I'm going to start being happy where I am. Yes, I have some problems at work, but that's okay. I'm going to be happy today. Yes, I'm dealing with this health issue, but I'm not going to spend another minute worried about it. God, my trust is in you. Our doors haven't opened for my dreams yet. Still haven't met the right person. Still have this legal problem. I'm not putting my happiness on hold. This is the day the Lord has made. I'm going to be happy today. But sometimes we're waiting for the destination to be happy, you know, when I accomplish the dream, when I meet the right person, when we get that breakthrough. How about enjoying the journey? How about enjoying where God has you right now? This is a great day to be alive. There are blessings God has given every one of us. And sure, we all have some burdens, but don't let the burdens keep you from seeing the blessings. Don't let what you don't have keep you from appreciating what you do have. Don't let what hasn't worked out keep you from enjoying what has worked out. This day is a gift from God. One way we honor him is by being content in every situation, being happy in the good times and happy in the tough times. Several years later, that lady that was believing for her husband, she came back and I saw her out in the lobby after service and she was so happy. She had a big smile. She came over and gave me a hug. I thought she must have good news. I said, wow, it's so great to see you again. Seemed like you're so excited, so cheerful. I'd only seen her when she was down, discouraged, complaining. I said, your husband must be coming with you now. She said, no, Joe, he still won't come. He hasn't changed, but I've changed. I don't let that take my joy anymore. I'm not discouraged over it. I don't complain. I know it's in God's hands. I wonder if like her, you're unhappy about something you can't control. You're not enjoying where you are because someone won't do what you want. You're not content because the door hasn't opened. The medical report hasn't improved. But the child is still off course. That's in God's hands. That's not your responsibility. You pray, believe, do your best, then you have to trust. Trust God's timing and trust His ways. If you're only going to be happy if it happens your way, you may be frustrated. It may take longer than you thought. But when you've made up your mind to be happy where you are, continuing every situation, then life's not a drag. You're still enjoying the day, being good to your family, thanking God for His blessings. That's a freeing way to live. Happy while you're waiting. Joyful despite what's not working out. I don't want to come to the end of my life and look back and think, man, I wasted a lot of years being worried. So much time stressed over that situation and so long wondering about how that's going to resolve. Let's make adjustments now. Once we live this day, we can't get it back. I've learned you're as happy as you want to be. You determine your happiness is not the circumstances. It's not other people. You get to choose whether you enjoy this day or endure this day, whether you focus on the blessings or focus on the burdens. When I first started pastoring, I had never ministered before and it was very difficult for me to write a message. I had no experience doing it and on Wednesdays and Thursdays, I would listen to teaching CDs and read books and it was like cramming for a test. I felt this pressure to come up with something good for Sundays. I would write my messages on Fridays and Saturdays and deliver it on Sunday. Driving home from church, I'd be so relieved. Thank God. And then that thought would come, what are you going to speak on next Sunday? It's six days away. I got to where I dreaded Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. Every week I thought, oh, here we go again. I was planning on it being hard. I was expecting it to be difficult. After about two years of doing that, it dawned on me that I'm dreading half my week. That means half my year I'm not enjoying and if I don't make a change, half my life, I'm going to be unhappy. I had to do what I'm asking you to do. I put my foot down and said, that's it. No more dreading. God, I trust you to give me the words to speak. You said you're your disease and you're burden's lie. You've given me grace for every season. I'm going to enjoy what you've called me to do. I shifted my mindset from enduring to enjoying, from I have to write a message to I get to write a message, from what a big challenge this is to what a big opportunity this is. But that simple shift not only got easier, my message not only got better, but now I look forward to getting to write. Now it's a joy to be able to do this. I don't think it would be this way if I had not changed my mindset. I had conditioned myself it's going to be hard. I don't like this. When we dread things, we're inviting the negative. We're giving permission for it to be harder, more stress, take longer. God has given you the grace for everything that you face, not to endure it, but to enjoy it, to be happy even in hard places. How much of your life are you enjoying and how much are you enduring? Have you learned to be content? Are you happy where you are? Or are you letting the circumstances and people determine your happiness? Doing like I used to do, dreading things. I don't want to go to work today and I don't want to have to deal with these children. I don't like having to take this treatment. Let's make it it harder. That's giving away your power. If you'll approach it with faith, with joy, knowing that you're well able, then you're going to have the strength that you didn't have, ability, favor, not just to excel, but to be happy where you are. It says in Ecclesiastes that you are to enjoy the fruit of your work. This is a gift that God has given you. You're not supposed to dread your work, dread cleaning your house, dread going to the grocery store, dread writing that proposal. There's grace for it. Quit telling yourself it's going to be hard. Quit planning on having a difficult day. Change your mindset. I'm grateful to get to go to work today. I'm blessed to be able to raise these children. God, I thank you for the strength to clean this house. I'm going to enjoy this day. I'm going to live it to the full. If you're going to be happy, you have to be proactive because dread is going to show up. Discouragement is going to come knocking on your door and worry is going to text you. What about this situation? What if it doesn't work out? Tell them no thanks. I've already decided I'm going to live this day happy. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a teenager engaged to Joseph, was one of the best times of her life. She was planning her wedding, lining up the bridesmaid, picking out the flowers, the food. When an angel appeared and said she was highly favored, she's going to have a baby without knowing a man. He would be the Messiah. Mary was excited. She said, let it happen. But what she didn't know was all of her plans were about to be interrupted. When Joseph found out she was pregnant, he's going to call off the wedding and quietly walk away. An angel appeared to him and told him the baby was the Messiah to go through with it. Well King Herod called the senses. They had to travel to Bethlehem to Joseph's hometown. Mary was nine months pregnant riding a donkey 80 miles, bouncing up and down. A difficult assignment. But you never read where Mary complained. You never read where she got upset. They arrived in Bethlehem looking for a place to have the baby, but no hotel available. They were turned down again and again. They found a stable where they kept animals. She gave birth to Jesus, our Savior. Well a few months they had to flee to Egypt. Another interruption, disappointment. Mary could have been discouraged. This is not what I had planned. God where are you? She was content at every stage. Even things she didn't understand. She trusted in the difficult times. She was happy in the hard places. Not I'm going to be happy when I get off this lousy donkey, get me an escalade next time. I'm going to be happy when I have this baby, happy when Herod quits chasing us. I'll be happy when these people quit gossiping, talking bad about me. She learned to be content in whatever state she was in. That's why God could trust her with something so important. God may have assigned you to a difficult task, something you didn't see coming, raising a difficult child or dealing with an illness, a tough season in your career. It's because He can trust you. He's counting on you to carry out His purpose so you can go where you've never been. Don't let the difficulty sour your life, take your passions. God won't put you somewhere without the grace to be there with a good attitude. You can be happy even in hard places. When you choose to be content, to stay full of joy, God breathes on your life. He'll make things happen that you couldn't make happen. Mary could have focused on the burdens, look at all these things coming against me, but she focused on the blessing, the promise God gave her. What you focus on in the hard seasons will determine whether you endure it or you enjoy it. God has not brought you this far to leave you. What's going to help you get through the tough seasons is the joy. That's what gives you the strength. I'm asking you to quit putting off your happiness. Quit waiting until the challenge is over, until you get married, you get the promotion, until you see the healing. How about being happy right where you are? How about being content in every season, whatever comes your way? Friends, life is short. Time is flying by. If you're going to be happy, you're going to have to do it on purpose because there will always be something to take your joy. People, traffic, delays, turn on the news, that'll depress you. You have to choose joy each morning. Choose to be content whatever comes your way. If you'll do this, I believe and declare, like Paul, you will flourish, you will excel, you will leave your mark, favor is coming. Healing, the right people, the fullness of your destiny in Jesus' name. And if you receive it, can you say amen? I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins, come into my heart, I make you my Lord and Savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love to send you some free information on your new walk with the Lord. You can go to the website or check the number out on the screen, but I hope you'll get into a good Bible-based church and keep God first place. It's easy to feel stuck in life, wondering why things aren't changing and worrying if it'll ever happen, but there's a better way to wait. I'd love to send you my new resource called Pray It Forward. This book is a collection of prayers and promises from the Scripture to help you pray boldly to strengthen your faith. While you're waiting, it's important to keep your mind filled with hope and expectancy. When you pray in faith, believe in what God promised, that's what moves the hands of God and that's when you'll see doors open. Healing begins to come, breakthroughs in your family. Don't let doubt hold you back. Pray it forward. As our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount, we'd love to send you a copy of Pray It Forward, guided prayers for faith and breakthrough. Inspired by real-life answered prayers, Pray It Forward will help you speak God's promises over your life and over the people you love, trusting that when you ask in faith, God is already at work preparing victory ahead of you. You can take these prayers and scriptures and pray them forward. They'll build a momentum of faith that carries you past obstacles and into the promises God has spoken over your life. As you meditate on these truths, you won't be tossed back and forth by finances, health challenges, or relationship struggles. Instead, you'll be able to boldly pray with faith that is immovable and strong, and you'll be filled with peace, assurance, and joy. Don't let circumstances control your future. Pray the truth of God's word forward in faith and watch the mountains in your life begin to move. When you pray the promises and what God has spoken over your life, those are powerful prayers, and that's when God shows up and does what only He can do. Thanks so much for being with us. Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day, and we appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity helps us take this message of hope to people around the world. A special thank you to our champion of hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. If you're not a partner, I hope you'll consider becoming one. But until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of Pray It Forward, guided prayers for faith and breakthrough, available this month by simply visiting us at JoelLostine.com or call 888-567-JOL. You can also receive the Pray It Forward companion prayer journal designed to help you engage in scripture, personalize faith-filled prayers, and put God's promises into action. With an additional gift, you can receive the Pray It Forward prayers essential collection that centers around a prayer bowl with scripture cards designed to help you physically release what's been weighing on your heart. This collection creates a powerful prayer rhythm for your life, helping you focus your thoughts, speak God's word boldly, and stay anchored in hope when circumstances try to shake you. You can request these inspiring resources by calling 888-567-JOL or logging on to JoelLostine.com today. Call or click anytime, 24 hours a day.