Joel Osteen — You Are Anointed
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I want to talk to you today about how you are anointed. We don't have to go through life doing everything on our own, trying to accomplish our dreams only in our own ability, trying to overcome challenges in our own strength, our own intellect, our own hard work. We have an advantage. God has placed his anointing on you.
The anointing is a divine empowerment. It enables you to do what you could not do on your own. It will cause you to accomplish dreams even though you didn't have the talent. It will help you overcome obstacles that looked insurmountable.
Isaiah said, "Because of the anointing the yoke is destroyed". A yoke is anything that is holding you back: addictions, bad habits, people pushing you down, unfair situations. In the natural you may feel stuck. Thoughts will tell you, "Oh, just accept it. Just learn to live with it". No, the anointing on your life can break every yoke. The anointing is more powerful than any addiction. It's stronger than any person trying to push you down. It's greater than any injustice. In your own ability you may not be able. In your own might you may not have the strength.
What I want you to see is you're not on your own. The Most High God has anointed you. He has put a power in you that cannot be defeated. It can break every yoke. It can take you where you could not go on your own. But here's the key. The anointing doesn't do any good if you go around thinking, "I'll never break this addiction". "I can't raise these children. It's too much". "Joel, I'm stuck in my career. I never get any good breaks". When you think like that you're making the anointing ineffective. You're taking away all of your power.
I've heard it said, "The anointing to us is like gasoline to a car". You can have the most expensive car with a huge engine, beautiful exterior, fine on the inside, but if you don't put gasoline in it, it's not going to do much good. In the same way, you've been made in the image of almighty God. You are full of incredible potential. You have seeds of greatness. The fuel you need to release your greatness, to overcome obstacles, to accomplish dreams, is the anointing on your life.
The anointing is only activated where there is faith. Instead of complaining about how it's not going to work out, how you'll never accomplish your dreams, turn that around and start declaring, "I am anointed. I am equipped. I am empowered. I am well able". When you have this attitude of faith, speaking words of victory, you are putting fuel in your car. You're stirring up your anointing. That's when you'll go places that you couldn't go on your own. That's when you'll see breakthroughs. Situations suddenly change in your favor.
You may work around people that are negative, hard to get along with. It's easy to think, "Ah, I can't stand going to work. These people get on my nerves". That's draining your fuel. Your car is not going to run properly. God wouldn't have you there if you couldn't handle it. Have a new perspective. You've been anointed to work in that difficult environment. You're anointed to put up with cranky co-workers. You're anointed to deal with a grouchy boss.
Quit telling yourself how difficult it is and start declaring, "I am anointed. I'm going to enjoy my job. I'm going to put a smile on my face. I'm going to be good to people. This is the day the Lord has made. I'm going to choose to be happy". When you do that God will fight your battles. God will move the wrong people out of the way. He will get you to where you're supposed to be.
Maybe you're raising a child that's difficult. It's taking a lot of time and effort. You don't see how you can keep doing it. You have to remind yourself that you are anointed to raise your child. God didn't just put you there and say, "Alright. Good luck. You're on your own. Let's see what you can do". No, he has already equipped you and empowered you for every situation. Stop talking about how hard it is and start declaring, "I can do all things through Christ. I am strong in the Lord. I'm well able to raise my children". You've got to stir up the anointing. That's what keeps you moving forward.
Perhaps you're dealing with an illness. It hit you unexpectedly. You could be discouraged, let it overwhelm you and "I can't believe this is happening". No, have a new perspective. That sickness is not a surprise to God. It didn't catch God off guard. He has already anointed you. You have the strength you need. You have the peace, the determination, the confidence. You're not lacking. You're anointed. The forces that are for you are greater than the forces that are against you.
In those difficult times you have to say like Isaiah, "The anointing on my life is breaking every yoke". "The anointing is greater than this cancer". "The anointing is greater than this depression". "The anointing is causing me to overcome". Every time you say, "I am anointed," chains are broken. Fear has to leave. Depression has to go. Healing comes. Strength comes. Faith comes.
When David was a teenager the prophet Samuel came to his house and anointed him to be the next king of Israel. Out of all of his older brothers, Samuel picked out David, poured the anointing oil on his head. What's interesting is after he anointed him he sent David back to the shepherd's fields to take care of the sheep. David lived as a shepherd for years even though he had a king's anointing. The scripture tells us to, "Reign in life as a King".
Every one of you has a King's anointing. You have a Queen's anointing. Maybe not to physically sit on a throne. This means to live an abundant life, to accomplish your God given dreams, to raise children that will be mighty in the land, to leave your mark on this generation. But like David, even though you've been anointed, on the way to your destiny there will be times of testing where you don't see anything happening, times of waiting where you have to be patient and keep doing the right things, times where it doesn't look like it's ever going to change. But you have to stay in faith and keep believing, "My time is coming. God has spoken it over me. He has put the promise in my heart. I may not see how it can happen. The odds may be against me. But I have a secret weapon. The anointing is on my life".
If you will stay in faith and not get discouraged, not talk yourself out of it because it's not happening on your timetable, God will get you to where you're supposed to be. God knows what he is doing. God hasn't forgotten about you. You may think you don't have the skill, the talent, the experience, to accomplish what's in your heart. But that's okay.
The anointing on your life will make up for what you don't have. You can have less talent but with the anointing you will go further than people that have more talent. It is not just your intellect, your expertise, your experience, that determines how high you're going to go. It's the fact that almighty God is breathing on your life. The anointing will cause you to accomplish dreams you could never accomplish on your own. It will propel you into your destiny.
This is what happened to a young lady in the scripture named Deborah. The Book of Judges describes her as, "A mother in Israel". This was significant. It was saying she wasn't working in the corporate world. She didn't have impressive position, title, influence, prestige. She wasn't necessarily super talented or highly educated. She was a mother raising her children. Back in those days women didn't have the leadership roles that they have today. They were seen as secondary, no influence.
Deborah would have been considered, "Just a mother". But can I tell you, you're not "Just" anything? You're a child of the Most High God. People may try to dismiss you and discount you, push you down. "You don't have the talent, the training, the position, the title, you come from the wrong family". What they can't see is that God has put something on you that supersedes all of that, something that causes you to break barriers, to excel, to accomplish dreams, to do what you could not do.
And it's good to have education. I'm all for that. Develop your talents, improve your skills, but you are not limited to your own ability, your own education, your own intellect, your own experience. That will take you to a certain level but to reach your highest potential you need the anointing on your life. You need God to open doors that you could not open. You need favor that you didn't have to work for, good breaks that you didn't deserve, wisdom that you didn't learn in school. That's what the anointing does. It takes you where you could not go on your own.
This mother, Deborah, was living in a city that was overcome with violence and all kinds of mayhem. The main roads had gotten so bad you couldn't even travel on them. People were constantly being attacked and robbed; no order. It looked like that's the way it would always be. But God put a dream in Deborah's heart to do something about it. She could have come up with plenty of excuses. "God, I'm a woman. Nobody is going to listen to me. I'm a mother raising my child. I'm not into government. I don't have anybody backing me up, a police force, an army". No, Deborah understood this principle. She knew God had put something on her that would cause her to excel.
The scripture says there in Judges that the highways were unoccupied. The city was shutting down until Deborah, a mother in Israel, arose. Deborah took a step of faith. Other people began to join in. Before long order was restored. Everything had turned around. The city was calm and peaceful.
How could this mother affect the whole city? It was the anointing on her life. You are not limited by who you know, by how influential you are, by how much income you have. There is something that supersedes talent, income, experience. It's the anointing God has placed on your life.
Now quit making excuses as to what you can't do. "Joel, I'm just a mom". Listen, a mom with the anointing is more powerful than a CEO without it. "Well, Joel. I'm just a student". "I'm just a businessperson". "I'm just an accountant. I can't do anything great". Why not? Deborah, a mother, changed her whole city. I can tell you firsthand I'm not the most talented person. I don't have the most experience, the most training, the most education but I do have the anointing.
When my father went to be with the Lord back in 1999 and I stepped up to pastor the church I had never ministered before. Every voice told me, "Joel, you are not a minister. You can't get up there in front of people. You're not going to know what to say. Nobody is going to listen to you". Instead of dwelling on those thoughts I would go and look at myself in the mirror and say, "Joel, you are anointed. You're the man for the job. This is your moment. You've been raised up for such a time as this".
What was I doing? Adding fuel to my car. I was stirring up the anointing. There will always be negative voices to try to talk you out of your dreams, try to convince you to settle where you are, but let me encourage you. You're the man for the job. You're the woman for the job. You've been raised up. You've got what it takes. You're qualified. You're anointed. You're approved. You're talented enough. You're strong enough. You're experienced enough. You and God are a majority. Quit discounting yourself. Quit making excuses. If you will start taking steps of faith, doing what you can, God will do what you can't. He will bring the right people. He will open the right doors. He will give you the wisdom, the creativity. He will make it all come together.
Now don't settle for mediocrity. You were created for greatness. You have a Hing's anointing. You may be in the shepherd's fields right now. It feels like you're doing something insignificant but where you are is not where you're staying. That's not permanent. That's temporary. You are going to come out. You haven't reached your highest potential. You've got to start talking to yourself the right way. "I'm the man for the job. This is my moment. I've been raised up. I'm going to step into the fullness of my destiny".
See, David spent years in the shepherd's fields but the key was he never forgot he had a king's anointing. It would have been easy for him to think, "I must have heard Samuel wrong. I know he anointed me but I sure haven't become the king. He must have missed it this time". No, every day he kept reminding himself, "I am anointed. My time is coming. I will make a difference with my life".
What was he doing? Adding fuel to his car. It didn't look like he was going anywhere. It looked like he was just wasting his breath, getting his hopes up, but God sees what you're doing. Every day you live in faith, with expectancy, you are one day closer to seeing your dreams come to pass. God knows when the right time is. If it hasn't happened yet that means it's still on the way. God is getting you prepared. You're growing. You're getting stronger.
Sometimes God knows the blessing is going to be so big we couldn't handle it if it happened right now so he is getting us matured. What God has in your future is going to be greater than anything you've seen in the past. Paul said it this way. "Don't get tired of doing what's right. In due season you will reap if you don't give up". Your due season is coming. You're going to step into that king's anointing, that queen's anointing. You're just getting started. God's dream for your life is so much bigger than your own. If he would have done it earlier you wouldn't have been prepared.
Now is your time. You're about to step in to what you were created to do. You're going to step in to a new level of your destiny. And the disappointments in the past, the delays, the setbacks, they were all a part of the plan to get you prepared for right now. Nothing was wasted. It strengthened you. You developed trust, endurance, confidence. Now you're prepared for this time. You're on the runway about to takeoff. You're going to see the exceeding greatness of God's favor.
David was out in the shepherd's fields. It didn't look like anything was happening but he came into his due season. King Saul sent a message saying, "Send me David who is with the sheep. I need him in the palace". David started working for Saul. That was another step on the way to his destiny. He wasn't on the throne yet but at least he made it to the palace.
Notice this phrase, "Send David, who is with the sheep..." You may feel like you're with the sheep today. In other words, you're in that shepherd's field. You're doing something that feels insignificant. You know you've got more in you but you've been in the background year after year. Don't get discouraged. Your time is coming. You're not going to stay with the sheep. God is going to take you from the background to the foreground.
You may be in the shepherd's fields but don't put your stakes down. Don't get comfortable there. You've got a king's anointing. You are destined to do great things. The palace is coming. Victory is coming. Promotion is coming. People can't stop it. Bad breaks can't stop it. Sickness can't stop it. Almighty God has anointed you. What he has spoken over your life will come to pass.
I talked to a single parent mother a few years ago. She told how it was such a struggle to make ends meet. She was having to work two jobs, long hours. She felt badly she couldn't be there with her children. She had no free time for herself to date or have any kind of social life. That's the way it looked like it would always be. She was "With the sheep" so to speak. She was in the shepherd's fields.
And she could have gotten discouraged and settled there but she knew deep down she had this Queen's anointing. She knew she was made for more than just constantly struggling, enduring, not having enough. She kept reminding herself that the anointing can break any yoke.
Listen, poverty, lack, barely getting by is a yoke. Do not accept that as your destiny. Jesus came that you might live an abundant life. That we could be the head and not the tail. And yes, we all go through dry seasons but they are not permanent. They are temporary. At some point the drought will come to an end and you will see an abundance of rain, an abundance of favor.
I like how David put it in Psalm 23. He said, "God anoints my head with oil". He went on to say, "Because I am anointed my cup runs over". When you walk in your anointing knowing who you are and whose you are, at some point, your cup will run over. You will see God pour out blessings that you cannot contain. Now don't you dare settle with the sheep in the shepherd's fields. The palace is coming.
One day this couple that lived down the street from her, she had only met them one time, they invited her to their house for dinner. That night they handed her the keys to a brand new car that they had bought for her. She was able to sell her car, pay off most of her debts to where she didn't have to work so much. Just recently I learned she married this executive from a large company. Now she and her children are no longer with the sheep. They're in the palace. God has blessed them. Done exceedingly, abundantly above and beyond.
My point is, you are not created to barely get by, to take the leftovers, to live out in the shepherd's fields. You were created for victory, for abundance, for the palace. The same God that increased her can increase you. The anointing on your life will cause people to be good to you. It will cause you to be at the right place at the right time, bringing favor, promotion, increase.
David was in the palace playing the harp for king Saul. It was a temporary position. He wasn't supposed to be there long. But David was so good at what he did king Saul created a new position exclusively for David. He became an armor bearer. If you will be your best right where you are and excel in what you do, the right doors will always open for you. There may not be room for promotion at your work as far as you can see right now but don't worry. Your gifts will make room for you. If there is not a position, God can cause them to create a new position.
Some of you are part time. You're believing for more work. You need to get ready. Like David, you're going to become full time. You've passed the test. You've been faithful in the shepherd's fields. You knew you had more in you but you didn't slack off. You didn't complain. You stayed in faith trusting God's timing. Now your due season has come. You're going to step into that king's anointing. What God promised you, he will bring to pass.
Years later king Saul was killed in a battle. Now it was David's time. He was 30 years old and about to take the throne. At this time Israel was divided into two kingdoms; Judah and Hebron. Second Samuel 2 says, "The men of Judah came and anointed David king over Judah". He served there seven and a half years. David brought the two kingdoms together. When he was 37 years old, the men of Hebron joined the men of Judah and they anointed David again to be the king over all of Israel.
What's interesting is David was anointed as a teenager to become the king. When the men of Judah came to anoint him again he could have said, "Guys, I've already been anointed. No need. It happened when I was a teenager. Samuel did it". Seven and half years later when the men of Hebron came to anoint him king over all of Israel he could have said, "This is not necessary. I was anointed as a teenager. I was anointed when I'm 30 years old. I don't need to be anointed again". No, David understood the importance of having a fresh anointing.
You can't win today's battles on yesterday's anointing. You need to have a fresh anointing. Too often we are trying to do things in our own strength. It's a struggle. No promotion. No increase. It's weighing us down. We don't realize all we have to say is, "God, I need a fresh anointing. God, fill me with new strength, new ideas, new creativity, new passion". When you do that God will breathe freshness onto your life.
The reason things get stale and we just endure our marriage, endure the job, drag through the day, is we're not stirring up the anointing. On a regular basis we need to pray, "God, I need a fresh anointing in my marriage, a fresh anointing on my career, a fresh anointing on my mind, my thoughts. God, help me to see things from the right perspective".
If David would have taken the throne without the fresh anointing he wouldn't have had the success and the favor that he had. When you humble yourself and say, "God, I can't do this on my own. I need your help. I need your favor. I need your wisdom. God, I need a fresh anointing". You're showing your dependency on him. When you acknowledge God like that he will give you wisdom beyond your years. He will help you accomplish things that you could have never accomplished on your own.
Whenever you start a new job or even a new position always ask for that fresh anointing. Ladies, when you have a baby, "God, give me a fresh anointing to raise this child". Students, when you start a new class, "God, give me a fresh anointing for this semester". You're saying, "God, I'm ready for new opportunities, new abilities, new friendships, new ideas".
Maybe you're facing a challenge today: your health, your finances, a relationship. Instead of complaining about it, why don't you say, "God, give me a fresh anointing to overcome this challenge". It's the anointing that breaks the yoke.
Just like the men of Judah anointed David for his new season I believe today God is releasing a fresh anointing in your life. You're going to go where you've never been. You're going to see negative situations turn around. Chains of addictions and bad habits are being broken. Healing, promotion, restoration, is coming. You're going to step in to the fullness of your destiny.
Friends, you have a King's anointing, a Queen's anointing. Don't settle for mediocrity. Stir up the anointing. Every morning remind yourself, "I am anointed. I am equipped. I am empowered". Remember to always ask for that fresh anointing. If you do this, I believe and declare, like David, you will make it to your throne. You will defeat your giants, overcome your obstacles and become everything God has created you to be. In Jesus' name.