Joel Osteen - Leave It Alone
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Joel Osteen teaches that in difficult situations we didn’t cause, the wisest move is often to leave them alone and trust God to fight our battles, using the parable of the wheat and weeds in Matthew 13 where the farmer refuses to pull weeds to avoid damaging the harvest, and the Israelites at the Red Sea where Moses calls them to stand still. He concludes that forcing change brings frustration and lesser outcomes, while resting in faith allows God to remove obstacles at the perfect time for a greater harvest.
Why Forcing It Is Making Things Worse
I want to talk to you today about leaving it alone. We all have situations that we are believing will change: a child is off course, someone is not treating us right, a door is closed. We feel this pressure to fix it: I have got to straighten this person out, I have got to force this door to open, I have got to make this problem resolve.
We take matters into our own hands; we strive and strain, and often end up frustrated. We have good intentions; we want to do our part, but there are times when the best thing you can do is leave it alone. You have to be still and know that he is God. That battle is not yours. The battle is the Lord’s.
Some things you cannot fix, no matter how hard you try, how much pressure you put, how many favors you call in—it is not going to change. If you keep forcing it and manipulating things, trying to convince this person to do right, it is not only going to bring more stress, but you are making matters worse; you are going to do more damage than good.
The Faith It Takes to Do Nothing
«Well, Joel, I am trying to use my faith.» Sometimes it takes more faith to do nothing than it does to get it all stirred up. It takes more faith to leave it alone than it does to try to force it to happen. But there will be this urgency, this underlying pressure telling you, «You have to do something; you have to defend yourself; do not let them get away with it. You have to manipulate things so you can get that promotion. You have to make your loved one do what is right.»
Do not fall into that trap. After you have prayed, you believed, you have done what you can, you have to take your hands off of it. «God, I trust you. I know you have got this. You are working all things for my good. God, while I am waiting, I am going to stay in peace. I am going to be still and let you do what only you can do.»
Why Doers Struggle With This the Most
This was hard for me because I am a doer. My personality type is not to sit back. If I have a problem, a goal, a dream, I am going to find six solutions, call three experts, line up four options, come up with a strategy, the plan. That is all in the first half of the day; the next half I am going to really work.
I believe in being on the offensive, taking steps of faith, but I have learned some things only God can change. The more you try to force it, the more frustrated you are going to be. The Psalmist said (Psalm 127:1), «Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain.»
Are You Laboring in Vain Right Now?
How many of us are laboring in vain, constantly struggling, always trying to force things to happen, trying to change our spouse, convince this co-worker to like us, harping on our kids to get back on course? It is like we are running uphill with leg weights on; everything is a burden.
We are trying to control things we cannot control. Working harder than ever, not seeing any improvement—that is laboring in vain. But if we are not putting forth all this effort, trying to make it work out, you can kind of feel guilty. «I got this problem, Joel; I got to do something.»
But it says in Hebrews 4:3, «Those who have believed enter into rest.» It is okay to leave it alone. You do not have to make it happen in your own efforts.
Give Yourself Permission to Rest
Give yourself permission to rest, to not worry about it, not strive, not come up with twelve solutions. You have done your part; now take your hands off. It is not going to happen just by your might, by your power, by your intellect. It is going to be the hand of God.
You do not have to force the favor. You do not have to beat down doors, make your business grow, make yourself get well, pay somebody back for doing you wrong, prove to them who you are. All that is going to do is drain your energy, take your joy, steal your creativity.
God’s Promise When You Let Go
God is saying to you today, «Leave it alone. Trust me to handle it. I am going to bring the right person. I am going to turn your business around. I am going to change that child. I am going to restore your health. I am going to give you that baby you have been dreaming about.»
When you turn it over to God, it takes the pressure off. You do not have to figure it all out; you do not have to strive in strength. It is not up to you to make it all happen. You can live in peace, knowing that God has got this; he is in control. When it comes time for things to change, all the forces of darkness cannot stop what God has for you.
The Parable That Changes Everything
Jesus told a parable in Matthew 13. A farmer went out and planted wheat in his field. He did the right thing; he sowed good seed. He was expecting the wheat to come up and have a great harvest, like he had seen year after year. But in a few months he not only saw the wheat, but there were weeds coming up everywhere.
When the workers saw it they were puzzled. He said to the farmer, «What happened? You did not sow this; we saw you plant good seeds.» It did not make sense. He said in verse 28, «An enemy came in at night and planted these weeds.» It was not the farmer’s fault; he had to sleep. It was not like he was lazy, slacking off, not watching over his land. He did the right thing, but still the wrong thing happened.
Weeds Don’t Mean You Did Something Wrong
Just because you have difficulties does not mean you have done something wrong. You may have sown good seed; you have been faithful, you honor God, you give, you serve, you go the extra mile, but now you have some weeds popping up in your field—things you did not sow. You do not understand it.
You raised your child right, but he has gotten off course. You could blame yourself, «What did I do wrong?» You did not do anything wrong. The enemy came in at night and sowed some weeds. Or you worked hard in your business; you got in early, stayed late, you have done more than you have to, but you had a setback—you lost a client, a competitor moved close, took some of your business. You could be frustrated, wondering why this happened. It is just a weed.
Why the Enemy Plants Weeds in Your Field
The good news is: the reason you have weeds is because the enemy knows you are going to have a great harvest. He would not have snuck in at night and planted the weeds if he did not know abundance is coming, healing is coming, promotion is coming, the right people are coming.
Do not get discouraged over the weeds; that is a sign that something amazing is in your future. «Well, Joel, I was doing the right thing, but this door closed, these people did me wrong, I came down with this illness. Why did this happen?» Have a new perspective: the enemy would not have wasted his time sowing weeds into your field if you were not destined for greater things, destined for new levels, destined to take your family where they have never been.
The Surprising Advice the Farmer Gave
When the workers saw all the weeds, they asked the farmer, «Should we go pull up these weeds?» He said, «No, if you pull up the weeds, you are going to damage the wheat. Let them grow together, and when the harvest is ready, then they will be separated.»
The workers wanted to fix the problem; they wanted to help, get rid of these weeds, but this farmer said, «Leave it alone. You did not sow the weed; you do not have to pull up the weed.» If they would have been stubborn—“We are not going to let these weeds stay; we are going to fix this problem”—if they had taken matters into their own hands, they would have ruined the harvest.
The Temptation You Face Every Day
I can imagine the farmer seeing those weeds every day; that had to have bothered him. «I do not like these weeds; things are out of order; people are going to think I am lazy, I am not a good farmer. I need to make this right.» He had to fight the temptation to pull up the weeds—something he could have done. He had the ability to correct the problem, but he knew it would have damaged his harvest.
It takes faith to leave it alone. When you take your hands off and not pull up what you know you can fix, but you let God take care of it, that is not a lack of faith; that is great faith.
Trust God With Your Weeds
When you can say, «God, I trust you with my weeds. I trust you with things I do not understand. I am not going to get in a hurry and try to fix things that will damage my harvest. I am going to leave it alone”—that is a powerful position.
But maybe today there are weeds in your life—things you do not understand; you know you did not sow it; the enemy came in at night. You could live worried and feel this pressure to pull up the weeds and fix the problem, change this person, manipulate this situation. There is an urgency saying, „Do it now; these weeds are not right.“
God is saying, „Be still and let me take care of it.“ That is not your battle: you did not sow it; you do not have to pull it up.
The Test That Can Change Your Future
One of the greatest tests you will ever face is to be still and know that he is God, to leave things in his hands. One critical thing said in this parable is: if you do not leave it alone, you are going to damage the harvest. Doing it your way—forcing things, manipulating, striving—you may get something done, but it will be less than God’s best.
You have to know at the right time, when your harvest is ready, God will take care of your weeds: he will turn your child around; he will vindicate you in front of your enemies; he will promote you to levels you never saw coming.
Why You Feel That Urgent Pressure
There are a couple of situations I am praying about now and believing that they will turn around. There is this underlying pressure, this feeling that, „Joel, you need to make a decision right now. You better take action. If you delay it is going to get worse.“ The enemy would love to get us all worked up to where you are in a hurry; there is this urgency; you have to do something now. „Come on, there are weeds popping up: your child, your finances, your health.“
Sometimes we hear that phrase, „Do something, lest you do nothing”—that is not always good advice. Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing. You do not have to fix it today. You do not have to decide this minute. You are not supposed to pull up the weeds right now.
Put That Problem on the Shelf
Take all that pressure off. It is very freeing when you say, „God, my life is in your hands. I trust you to take care of my weeds. I am not going to take matters into my own hands. I know you are fighting my battles. I am going to be still and know that you are God.“
When my father had a big decision to make, something that was concerning him, maybe a problem where he did not see a solution, instead of being pressured to make a move, he told how he would put that problem up on a shelf and pray about it. Every voice would say, „What are you going to do? You have to decide now.“ He would say, „No, I am going to wait on the Lord. This is not my battle; he is taking care of my weeds.“ Over time he would see those situations work themselves out.
Are there some things you need to put on a shelf?
God Knows the Perfect Timing
You feel this pressure to figure out things where there is no good solution, come up with strategies, change things that only God can change—that is not your job. And sometimes there is no logical solution. God is going to supernaturally turn it around. If we take matters into our own hands, we are going to be frustrated.
And too often we are fighting battles that we are not supposed to fight; we are trying to pull up weeds when God said he would be our gardener; he will take care of the weeds. He has many advantages; one is: he knows when the harvest is ready. If you pull it up too soon, that will lessen what God has for you.
Smoking Weeds Are Coming!
This parable ends by saying: when it is the right time, the farmer—who represents God—will separate the weeds from the harvest. He will bundle up all the weeds and throw them into a fire. If you will leave the weeds alone, then at the right time you are going to see some smoking weeds—things that have hindered you.
You are going to see some smoking weeds—things that have hindered you, people that tried to stop you, close doors—all those weeds are going to go up in smoke. God is going to turn things around and make ways where you do not see a way.
Why God Waits for a Bigger Harvest
Here is the key: the reason God is waiting to deal with those weeds is because your harvest is going to be greater than you thought. God could have pulled that weed earlier, but he has something bigger than you have imagined. The question is: will you trust him with your weeds?
It is tempting to take matters into our own hands—“I got to pull up this weed.» You prayed, you believed, you have done what you can; God is saying, «Leave it alone; let me take care of it.»
The Israelites’ Panic at the Red Sea
When God brought the Israelites out of slavery, they started toward the Promised Land, but the Pharaoh changed his mind and came chasing after them with 600 of his strongest warriors and fastest chariots. The Israelites could see them coming way off in the distance. They were at a dead end at the Red Sea and nowhere to go.
They began to panic—so afraid and distraught. They ran to Moses to get a plan. They said, «We have to do something right now; they are going to be here by nightfall; we have a few hours to come up with a strategy.» They felt this pressure, this urgency; they were on the verge of being recaptured. They were waiting with great anticipation for Moses’ reply, «What is the word from the Lord? We are ready to fight; tell us the plan.»
Moses’ Shocking Strategy: Stand Still
Moses said in Exodus 14:13–14, here is what the Lord says our strategy is: «Stand still and you will see the salvation of the Lord. Hold your peace, remain at rest, for the Lord himself will fight for you.»
I am sure they looked at him and said, «Moses, are you kidding us? These powerful warriors are quickly approaching; you are telling us your strategy is to do nothing, leave it alone? Can you go back and get a second opinion? We have to do something; we have to defend ourselves; we have to find some weapons; we have to at least create a barrier.» Moses said, «No, we did not sow this weed; we do not have to pull up this weed. This is not our battle.»
God Hides You and Confuses Enemies
Proverbs 20:22 says, «Do not say, ‘I will get even for the wrong’; wait for the Lord to handle the matter.» If you will wait, God will vindicate you better than you can vindicate yourself. His solution is better than your solution. Hold your peace; remain at rest. You may not see anything happening, but God is up to something.
As these two million people were camped at the Red Sea, the scripture says the angel of the Lord who had been leading the Israelites moved to a position behind them. This thick cloud that was leading them also moved behind them. It was between the Israelites’ camp and Pharaoh’s camp.
Now Pharaoh’s army could not see the Israelites; God had them hidden. The cloud was so thick they could not travel through it; they did not know where they were. It looked like the Israelites were running out of time, but God knows how to hide you; he knows how to confuse your enemies.
When God Shows Up in Impossible Moments
One minute the Israelites were right in front of them; the next moment they have disappeared. That is when Moses raised the rod; the waters parted; the Israelites walked through on dry ground. At that point the cloud lifted; Pharaoh’s army came chasing, «There they are, ” but when they got in the sea, the waters closed back up and they all drowned.
What am I saying? God knows how to take care of your weeds. If you will stand still, you will see him show out in your life. And I am not saying be passive. We need to pray, believe, do what you can, but there comes a time where you have to turn it over to God.
Stop Trying to Force the Impossible
Quit worrying about it; quit trying to make it happen, make people like you, make the door open, make the business turn around: leave it alone. If you try to do it in your own strength, it is going to be labor in vain: a lot of work, frustration, disappointment.
Do not fall into that trap. God is in control. He sees what you are going through; he knows who is not treating you right, the doors that have not opened, the child that is breaking your heart, that medical report that is not good. These are things that only God can change.
It takes all the pressure off to say, „God, I am turning it over to you. I am going to quit trying to force it, not going to take matters into my own hands. God, I trust you with my life.“
The Prodigal Who Came Home Unexpectedly
A friend of mine raised his family in church. They are great people—faithful and loving. Their children were involved in the kids’ programs where they lived. They went to the camps and volunteered on their teams. These parents did everything right; it looked like a model family.
But in college the son got involved with the wrong people and started making bad decisions. He ended up dropping out, on drugs, getting into all kinds of trouble. And he got to the point where he would barely even see his family.
This friend of mine, like any parent, was doing everything he could to try to convince his son to get back on track. He had had so many heated conversations where he had let him have it and tried to get through his stubbornness, but he realized the more he did that the worse it got. He was trying to help; he had good intentions, but he was damaging the relationship further.
When Leaving It Alone Healed a Family
He finally did what this farmer had to do. He said, „God, I am going to leave it alone. I cannot change him; only you can.“ He and his wife kept praying, believing, declaring God’s promises, but they quit trying to force him to change and make him do what is right.
And as a parent he kind of felt like he had failed. He tried to be a good example and tried to guide and teach his son. He never dreamed it would turn out like this. But sometimes the enemy comes in at night and sows a weed. There are things that do not make sense, things that are not fair.
The good news is: that is not how your story ends. The enemy does not have the final say. He may sow some seeds, but that does not stop your harvest.
God Sees You Doing the Right Thing
There is a day coming when those weeds are going to be pulled. God is faithful. He sees you doing the right thing.
Years went by and they did not see anything improving; nothing was getting any better, but they just kept loving their son, encouraging him. They sent him to rehab again and again. Not long ago he was watching our service on television; he called his father and said, „Dad, I just prayed that prayer with Joel at the end of the program. I am turning my life back over to God.“
These parents never saw it coming; it was more than they could imagine. They are so grateful and so happy. It is like he is a different person. He is back in church, honoring God, fulfilling his purpose.
The Best Strategy Is Sometimes Doing Nothing
We all have these times where we find weeds—things popping up that we did not sow. We were being our best, doing the right thing, and now there is opposition, conflict at work, a situation in our health, setback in our finances.
It is easy to get frustrated and try to straighten people out, try to force the door to open, defend ourselves against what was said. That is when you have to hold your peace. Remain at rest and let God fight that battle.
Sometimes the best strategy is to do nothing. Leave it alone. It can also be the hardest strategy. We want to fix things; we want to vindicate ourselves; we want to push that door open, but you have to stand still to see the salvation of the Lord. If you will not take matters into your own hands, you will see God do things that you could never do.
The Critics I Chose to Ignore
A couple of years after I started ministering, the church began to grow, and more and more people were watching on television. I was amazed at what all was happening; I had been behind the scenes all those years, and I did not even know this was in me.
But with greater influence came more opposition. There were several very well-known people with large followings that did not like my message of hope and how I believed that God is good and that we can live a blessed, victorious, favor-filled life. They came out against me very strongly and wrote articles and talked about me at their meetings.
And much of what they were saying was not accurate; it had been exaggerated, misconstrued. And human nature is you want to get in there and set the record straight. I thought, „Let me tell you who I am. I am not going to let you mischaracterize me, ” but deep down I could hear a still small voice saying, „No, Joel, leave it alone. They do not control your destiny; they are just a weed.“
Don’t Waste Time on Weeds
But the enemy would love to get us distracted, fighting battles that do not matter. You do not have time to waste responding to people that are never going to be for you. Some people are determined to misunderstand you. They do not like the favor on your life. They do not like the fact that you are happy, that you are blessed, you are successful.
Do not spend your valuable time dealing with a weed. The enemy would not have sown the weed if he did not know you were a world changer, a history maker, a giant killer. Ignore the weeds. Do not read the comments. Do not dwell on what they said.
If I had not done what I am asking you to do and leave it alone, I would not be up here today. If I had tried to straighten everyone out, convince every critic to change their mind, make them like me, I would not have had the energy, the creativity, the anointing to do what God has called me to do.
Where Those Critics Are Now
It is interesting now, years later, those that were so vocal against me and had such a big platform—they are no longer around. They had issues, made choices that have caused things to fall apart. It is too bad, sort of, but my point is: you are not supposed to fight every battle. You will not reach your destiny dealing with all the weeds.
When the enemy comes in at night and sows weed in your good soil—things that are not fair, you do not understand—do not panic; do not get upset; let God deal with the weeds. Life is too short, your time too valuable, your assignment too important to spend it on things that do not matter.
What You Need to Leave Alone Today
Are there some things today that you know you need to leave alone? You are striving, trying to force it, living stressed, nothing is changing. Why do you not come back to a place of peace? You have to give yourself permission to rest.
This takes all the pressure off—that urgency that makes you feel like it is up to you to keep the world rotating, making everything happen. God is in control. You keep honoring him, being your best, and God will take care of your weeds. He will bring the right people; he will open the right doors; he will turn your child around.
He has not brought you this far to leave you. Those weeds are not stopping your harvest; they are a distraction to try to steal your peace, get you to live all worked up, frustrated, bitter.
A Freer You Starts Right Now
Try a new strategy: leave it alone.
You can go out of here today a lot freer, with that load lifted off of you, knowing that pulling weeds is not your job. Making everything work out is not your assignment. You do not have to force the favor.
When your harvest is ready, all the forces of darkness cannot stop what God has for you. The reason it has taken longer is because your harvest is bigger than you think. What God has for you is going to supersede what you have in mind.
The question is: will you trust him while you are waiting? Will you be still and let him fight your battles?
If you will leave it alone, I believe and declare: like with the Israelites, God is going to deliver you from powerful enemies—sickness, addictions, debt, people. He is about to turn your child around, break strongholds that have held your family back. Freedom is coming, wholeness is coming, abundance is coming, the fullness of your destiny, in Jesus’ name. And if you receive it, can you say amen?