Joel Osteen — Ease Is Coming
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I want to talk to you today about "Ease is coming". We all go through seasons of struggle when it feels like it's uphill. There's pressure raising children. Maybe you're believing for your health to improve, but it's not getting better. Too often we get discouraged and think, "That's just the way life is".
But in Matthew chapter 11, Jesus talked about how the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and you have to take it by force. He was telling us there will be seasons where you have to stand strong and really fight the good fight of faith. But a few verses later, in the same chapter, he said, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light". He was saying, "There will be times of struggle, pressure, difficulties, but don't get discouraged. What I'm putting on you, my yoke, it's easy. It's light".
And you may be struggling now, and you feel pressured, and you think that's the way it's always going to be. You'll always struggle with your health, struggle in a relationship, struggle in your finances. No, you're going to come in to an anointing of ease. And when you come into this ease, what once was a struggle won't be a struggle anymore. You're going to have a supernatural grace, a favor that will lighten the load and take the pressure off. God is going to make your would go before you and make your crooked places straight.
That means he's going to smooth things out. You're coming into a season where things are going to fall into place. You're going to get breaks that you didn't see coming. Problems that you thought were permanent are suddenly you are not going to go through life constantly struggling, pressured, weighted down by problems. This is a new day. Ease is coming.
David said, "God anoints my head with oil". Oil makes things flow. When there's friction and things that are stuck, it, to make it more fluid. God is going to oil your life. This anointing is going to cause things to to accomplish more with less effort. What stopped you in the past, what's caused friction, is not going to stop you anymore. You're going to flow right past that. You're going to accomplish goals and think, "That was easier than I thought. Never dreamed it'd happen that quickly".
That's this anointing of there's a large company that has a slogan that says, "That was easy". A few years ago, a friend of mine sent me their big red button. When you push it, it says...
That was easy.
And I keep this by my bathroom sink there on the counter. Every so often I reach over and push this button. I like to get that phrase down in my spirit. Because it's easy to go through life looking at our problems, focused on our obstacles, thinking, "Oh, man, this is going to be so hard. I dread dealing with this. It's never going to work out". That mindset is not only stealing our joy, but it's keeping us from seeing God's favor.
When my dad went to be with the Lord and I first started ministering, it took everything I had to write a message for that weekend, all my focus, my creativity, my energy. I was pressured and stressed. And when I finally finished, I felt like, "That's the last one that I could ever do". And if I wasn't careful, I was tempted to dread it and think, "This is too hard. I'm not going to know what to say. I can't do this anymore".
I had to turn it around. "Father, thank you that your yoke is easy. Thank you that I'm well able. Thank you that you've equipped me and empowered". I got my mind going in the right direction. And I went through seasons of struggle, strain, difficulty, but I didn't let it become permanent in my thinking. And one day, I came into this anointing of ease. What once was struggle is not a struggle anymore. Every week when I finish a message, I hit this button:
That was easy.
Just to remind me that it was easy. Quit telling yourself, "This is so hard". I'll never accomplish my dreams. I'll never get out of debt. This is a new day. You are going to have a strength that God did not create you to struggle your whole life. His yoke is easy. And you may have had that addiction for a long time. It's going to be easier than you think to break it. You're going to have a supernatural power.
Maybe you're struggling in your finances, pressured to pay the bills, pressured to get ahead. I believe that pressure is coming to an end. God is going to cause good breaks to find you. Your gifts and talents are going to come out in a new way. It's going to be easier than you think.
A couple of years after I wrote my first book, a man was walking by Madison Square Garden one evening there in New York. He was an executive at one of the largest publishing companies in the world. He saw my name on the marquee and people waiting in line to get in. He'd never heard of me, and he went home and did some research. He called my literary agent and said that he wanted to publish my next book. She told him that we already had a publisher and we were happy. He asked if he could make an offer. She said, "Of course you can".
He offered an amount more than I ever imagined. When she called and told me, I nearly passed out. I said, "Boy, you sure do great work". She said, "Actually, Joel, I didn't go to him. He came to me". I thought to myself, "That was easy". That was God lining up the right people, having him at the right place at the right time. If he had not left work late that night, he wouldn't have seen those people in line. If he had not taken that train home, he wouldn't have been in that area. If he'd a been preoccupied, he could a walked by the arena, just thought, "It's another ball game, another concert".
All these things had to fall perfectly into place. That was the hand of God. God has the right people lined up for you. He has the right breaks, the right opportunities. You may not have seen it yet. You keep honoring God, being your best, he's going to take you into overflow. You are not going to go through life pressured by bills and pressured to make ends meet, pressured to send your children to college. God is going to do something unusual, something unexpected, something that you couldn't make happen.
I know a single parent mother. She was working hard, raising her children, and trying to make ends meet. Every month she barely had enough to pay her bills. She told how she dreamed of taking a vacation. But every time she saved up extra funds, something would break that had to be repaired. She was being her best, but couldn't get ahead. And it seemed like she would struggle her whole life.
The right thing, you keep passing these tests, you're going to come in to this anointing of ease. God is going to make things happen that will lighten the load. He's going to take the pressure off. Unexpectedly took and early retirement and she was given that position. With it came a significant increase in salary. She was very grateful. Several years later, her manager, one of the vice presidents of this large company, suddenly resigned and she was given that position.
Today she makes more than ten times started. She doesn't live under constant pressure. She can take vacations whenever she wants. She supports other single-parent families. She said, "Joel, I don't really know how this happened. Everything just fell into place and here I am".
What she was really that's what God is going to do for you. He's going to put you at the right place at the right time. He's going to open doors that to cause people to want to be good to you. And you may be struggling in some areas, that is not permanent.
I talked to a young man. He was finishing up his masters. He had one final exam left. And it was the hardest class on his schedule. And he was very stressed out and concerned that he wasn't going to pass. And we prayed and asked God to give him wisdom, to help him to excel. He came back last week so excited. He had passed the test. And I asked him, "How was it"? He said, "It's funny because all of my classmates thought it was very difficult. But to me, it was easier than I expected". And he did his part. He studied. He prepared. Then God stepped in and made it easier than he thought.
Quit thinking "I'll never pass. I'll never get out of debt. This is too hard". Sometimes we're expecting to fail. We're expecting to struggle. We're expecting around. "Father, thank you for your anointing of ease. Thank you that you're causing me to excel. Thank you that you're breathing in my direction". Some of the things that you're worrying about, you don't see how it could ever work out, it's not going to going before you right now, making those crooked places straight. You're going to look back like him and say, "It was easier than I thought".
In the book of 1 Samuel the philistines had just defeated the israelites in a battle. And they captured the Ark of the Covenant. That's where the presence of God was back then. The israelites were so distraught. When the prophet Eli heard this bad news, he passed out, fell backwards, and broke his neck. All of Israel was in mourning. They had not only lost the Ark of the Covenant, their most important possession, but 30,000 men had been killed in that battle.
It looked like the ark was gone forever. And the philistines took the ark to their temple and placed it next to their god Dagon. He was a stone statue that they worshipped. In the middle of the night, Dagon fell over. They thought it was a coincidence, maybe the wind or something. They stood him back up. The next night, Dagon not only fell over, this time he broke into pieces. They realized their god couldn't stand in the presence of Israel's God. Plagues began to break out in the camp. People started getting boils and tumors.
They finally realized, "It's we have the Ark of the Covenant". They decided to move it to another city just to make sure. The same plagues and those people. They panicked and said, "We have to get rid of this ark. We can't mess with the God of Israel". And 7 months after they captured it, they built this wood cart, placed the Ark of the Covenant on it, hooked it up to 2 young cows. They turned it loose and let those cows go wherever they wanted. They started heading straight toward the israelites camp.
In a few days, when the israelites saw the ark coming, they couldn't believe their eyes. They started celebrating. They never dreamed they would see the ark again. They not only got it back, but they didn't have to fight for it. The ark came looking for them. If they would've had one of these red buttons, they would've pushed it. That was easy. But during those 7 months, I'm sure the israelites came up with plans and strategies how to get the ark back. They had lost thousands of men. They knew they were going to lose more. Then they saw the cows come walking up. Suddenly, their life got much easier. They were so relieved.
You're worrying about, trying to figure out how it's going to work out, how are you going to get well, how you're going to get out of debt? How are your families going to be restored? God is going to do for you what he did for them. He's going to cause those things to find you. You're not going to have to fight those battles. Good breaks are going to come after you. The right people are going to search you out. What you're believing for is going to track you down. God is saying, "Get ready. The cows are coming. What belongs to you is headed your way, the health, the freedom, the abundance, the contracts, the spouse". God is going to make things happen that you could've never made.
Those cows could've stayed there grazing. They could've wandered aimlessly month after month. But God controls the universe. That means God controls the what's yours into your hands. People can't stop him. Bad breaks can't stop him. Cows can't stop him. Enemies can't stop him. The philistines took the ark, but I love the fact they couldn't keep it. It made them miserable. Keep what belongs to you.
The enemy may take your health for a little while, but he can't keep it. You are God's property. God will send it back. He may distract your child and get them off course for a season, but he can't keep them there. Quit worrying. Quit losing sleep. They're coming back. He may have taken your dream temporarily. Had bad breaks, disappointments. Stay encouraged. What has your name on it some of you, your cows are going to show up what you thought was over and done, it would never work out, suddenly, things are going to fall into place. You don't have to fight. You don't have to struggle. "Father, thank you that my cows are coming".
Isaiah said to the israelites, "Your swords will be turned into plowshares, your spears into pruning hooks". God was saying, "You're coming into a season where you're not going to need your swords and your spears". You're not going to have to fight. You're not going to have to struggle, try to make things happen. Instead of a sword, you're going to need a plow to gather up the harvest. You you're not going to have to go attack, try to get back what belongs to you. He's putting pressure on those that have what's yours. You need to get ready. Not for a fight, not for a battle, get ready for a harvest. Get ready for a for healing. You're coming into this season of ease.
I have a friend that I grew up with that struggled with an addiction for a long time. He got mixed up with the wrong students in high school, and 20 years later he was still addicted. And he'd gone through rehab and all kinds of treatment, but it never worked. Like the israelites, he looked defeated. That addiction looked so much bigger, like nothing he could ever do.
But I saw him a couple of years ago and he told how, after 21 years of being addicted, he is now totally free. He looks better than he looked in high school. Skin had cleared up. He'd gained some weight. Had a smile on his face. I asked him how he did it. I thought he went through some type of special rehab. He said, "Joel, I didn't do anything different. I can't really put my finger on it. It was just like something broke on the inside, and I felt a strength that I had never felt before".
What was that? God causing God gave him the victory without him having to belongs to you. Wholeness belongs to you. Quit believing those lies that you're stuck. You'll never get well. It's been too long. It's too hard. This is a new day. That yoke of bondage is being broken. And you're getting a new yoke, a yoke of ease, a yoke of freedom, a yoke of victory. You're going to break habits that looked permanent. And it's not going to happen just by your might, by your power. It's going to happen because the most high God is breathing in your direction.
And it may have been difficult in the past. You tried and it didn't work out. Try again. You're in a new season. You've come into harvest. You can put those swords down. You don't have to do it in your own strength. God is fighting your battles. Dare to declare, "I am free. I am whole. I am victorious". Like this man, God is going to surprise you. What you thought would never turn around, suddenly, you're going to see it happen.
Several years before my father went to be with the Lord, we came across a construction permit for the last full-powered television the transmitter was going to be out north, but we needed a place to put the station here in the city. Had called me out of the blue and left a message saying that he was in commercial real estate and that if we ever needed anything, he would love to help.
And normally, I would've erased that, not thought much about it, just another sales call. But for some reason, I wrote his name and number down, put it in my desk drawer, never realizing in a few months we were going to need a place to put the station. And I called him. It was like we were old friends. He was so likable. And he took us to different office buildings. And they were nice, but our challenge was we needed a cell phone tower close by so we could microwave our signal down to the transmitter site. And we looked for several weeks and couldn't find anything.
One day he took us to this big office complex, about 50 acres and very beautiful, trees and lakes. There were new owners, and they were very excited about the possibility of having a television station there. They told us we would be their main tenants, and they would give us the signage out front. They showed us offices overlooking this lake. They wanted us so badly, their price was about half of anything we'd seen. And we loved it. We wanted to be there. The only problem was, we had to see if there was a cell phone tower close.
We went on top of the building and looked around and we didn't see anything. I was disappointed. I thought, "That would've been a perfect location". And everyone left, but Victoria and I stayed and we walked around the property for about 30 minutes. And as we were coming up the parking lot, on the side of the building, about 40 yards from the place they showed us, I could hear construction behind this wood fence.
I climbed up on the fence and looked over. They were pouring a foundation. I asked one of the men what they were building. He said, "A cell phone tower". I nearly fell off that fence. I said, "Is there room for other clients"? He said, "Yeah, it's brand new". I called the company. The next day, we had a contract to microwave our signal. What was that? God causing things to fall into place, going before us, making crooked places straight.
"Well, Joel, that's just a lucky break". Can I tell you, the lucky breaks you've been having, that's the hand of God. That's the yoke of ease. When you recognize God's say, "Lord, thank you for making my life easier, thank you for your goodness," then you will see more of God's and what's interesting is this man I met, this realtor, when we learned that the compaq center was coming available, he was one of the first people I called. He worked hand in hand on our behalf with the city. He was very instrumental in us getting this place.
What are the chances of him calling me out of the blue, me keeping his number, him taking us to an office building where they were building a cell tower? That wasn't random. That wasn't a coincidence. That was God causing our cows to find us. God is in control of your need, and he knows how to get it to you. And yes, we all go through seasons of struggle, seasons of pressure and difficulty. But that is not your permanent home. You are coming into this anointing of ease. Like with me, you're going to see things fall into place. You're going to know it's the goodness of God.
A friend of mine grew up very poor. His family lived in public housing and there was crime and drugs. His parents were migrant farmers and had no education. It didn't look like this young man would ever amount to too much. His mother saw that he had a love for music and encouraged him to join the band in school. He became one of their top tuba players. In the 6th grade, he already stood 6'6" tall. He was the star player on the basketball team. When he graduated from high school, he received 30 scholarship offers to play in college.
He was headed to the Portland trailblazers to play professionally when he suffered a career-ending injury. He ended up back at home, in the projects, no money, no education, working for the city as a dog catcher, making a little more than minimum wage. During his lunch hour, he would go up to the local music store and play the keyboards that were out on demo, wearing his dog catcher uniform.
Customers would gather around to listen to him play. They were mesmerized at his ability. One day, a customer told the owner she wanted to buy the keyboard that the dog catcher was playing. This happened again and again. The owner said to this young man, "People aren't buying my pianos. They're buying the dog catcher's sound. They love what you do". He offered him a full-time job to come in and play the piano all day. That was the first step in his musical career.
Today, my friend Ben tankard has become known as "The Godfather of Gospel Jazz". He's sold millions of albums, pastors a great church, goes around the world sharing his music. But like with Ben, God is working behind the scenes, lining up what you need. Where you're not going to have to struggle. You're not going to have to fight. You can put those swords down. You are coming in to a harvest season. You're going to see the goodness of God making your life easier.
And you may be in a difficult time. God is about to take the pressure off. You're going to have a strength that you didn't have before. People are going to go out of their way to be good to you. That yoke of bondage is coming off. The yoke of ease is coming on. What's hindered you in the past is not going to hinder you in the future. You're going to overcome obstacles easier than you think. You're going to accomplish dreams easier than you think. Like the israelites, those cows are going to find you. Ease is coming your way. In Jesus' name.