Joel Osteen - Protect Your Peace (02/27/2019)
Joel Osteen urges us to protect our peace by deciding ahead of time to stay calm and unoffended despite bumps in life—using a «spare tire» mentality. Through stories of a rude clerk, a security guard, David’s brother Eliab, Saul’s critics, Nehemiah’s detractors, and Paul’s opposition, he teaches not taking bait into conflict, ignoring distractions, walking away from petty battles, and trusting God to fight the real ones for greater destiny.
Expect Good but Prepare Your Spare Tire
I want to talk to you today about protecting your peace.
We should get up each morning believing for a good day, expecting favor, knowing that God is directing our steps.
At the same time we should realize: everything may not go perfectly; every person may not treat us right; our plans may not stay on schedule.
There may be some bumps in the road and things that we did not see coming.
If you are only going to enjoy the day if your plans work out, then you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
In our cars we have a spare tire.
When I drive somewhere I am not expecting to have a flat; I am not expecting to hit a pothole; I am expecting to get to my destination as planned.
But even though I am expecting things to go my way, I have made provision in case it does not.
I have taken steps ahead of time in case the tire goes flat.
In the same way—even though you are expecting your plans to work out, even though you are expecting good breaks—you need to have your spare tire.
You need to make provision in case things do not go your way.
Well, how do you get your spare tire?
At the start of the day you need to make a decision that no matter what comes against you, you are not going to get upset.
No matter what someone says, you are not going to be offended.
No matter what delays, disappointments, bad breaks, you are not going to be sour.
You have already made up your mind to stay in peace—that is making sure you have your spare tire.
If someone is rude to you, your attitude is no big deal—I am not going to sit on the side of the road and sulk; I am going to put my spare tire on and keep moving forward.
If you hit a pothole—something unexpected happens—your loved one has an illness, your child forgot his homework, the loan did not go through—you could be upset, worried.
But you have your spare tire; you decided ahead of time to stay in peace.
Give People Room to Be Human
And the people in your life—as good as they are—there are no perfect people.
There is no perfect boss, no perfect friend, no perfect neighbor, no perfect spouse.
Victoria says that I am, but I know she is either lying or saying it by faith.
Give people room to be human; quit expecting them to perform perfectly all the time.
«Well, they hurt my feelings.»
If you have your spare tire, you forgive them and move on.
Do not have unrealistic expectations.
That person that loves you so much—no matter how good they are—at times they are going to disappoint you; they are going to say things that they should not.
Do not be easily offended.
«Well, my spouse did not tell me he loved me today. This neighbor does not invite me over like she used to. My coworkers did not congratulate me on my big presentation.»
You do not know what is going on in their lives; do not take it personally.
Here is a key: your happiness is not someone else’s responsibility; you are responsible for your own happiness.
Too often we are counting on other people to keep us cheered up, encouraged, feeling good about ourselves.
That is putting too much pressure on the people in your life.
Let them off the hook.
Nobody can keep you fixed except our Heavenly Father.
Do not go to people for what only God can give.
Are you going through life without a spare tire—only happy if things go your way?
The problem is the roads are bumpy; there will be some potholes, unexpected challenges.
Without a spare you will get stuck on the side of the road—bitter over a breakup, upset because a coworker left you out, stressed over the traffic.
Life is too short to live offended, upset, discouraged.
This day is a gift from God.
We are not always going to be here.
You have to put your foot down: I am not going to let these same things keep upsetting me.
I am going to stay in peace—even if the boss is unfair, even if my spouse is grumpy, even if my flight is delayed, even if the medical report is not good.
This is the day the Lord has made; I have made up my mind I am going to enjoy it.
When we go around offended, upset, discouraged—really it dishonors God.
He has entrusted us with life.
He could have chosen anyone to be here, but before time began in His great mercy He hand-picked you.
He not only chose you, but He created you in His own image; He has planned out your days; He has crowned you with favor; now He is directing your steps.
The way to honor God is to get up each day with passion—being your best, pursuing what He put in your heart.
Do not get stuck in the potholes of life.
Shake off the offenses; shake off what somebody said; shake off self-pity, bitterness.
God saw everything that happened to you; He knows what was unfair; He knows how you were treated.
Nothing is a surprise to Him.
If you will keep moving forward, He will not only bring you out—He will bring you out better.
You Control Your Response
«Well, Joel, I would do this, but these people at work do not treat me right. They are unfair; they get on my nerves.»
You cannot control what other people do, but you can control what you do.
If you let them upset you, you are giving away your power; you are letting them control you.
The scripture says, «God has given us the power to remain calm in times of adversity.»
You do not have to let the same things keep upsetting you.
Quit telling yourself: I cannot help it; they just know how to push my buttons.
Try a new approach: decide ahead of time that you are going to stay in peace, and you will tap into that power to remain calm.
The Rude Clerk Story
A man was walking down the street with his friend to buy a newspaper.
They came to the corner store where the man bought the paper every day.
The clerk behind the counter was as unfriendly as can be—cold, inconsiderate, acted like the man was bothering him.
The man bought the paper, smiled, and said, «I hope you have a great day.»
The clerk did not even look up; did not even acknowledge that he said anything.
His friend said, «Man, what was wrong with that clerk? Is he always that rude?»
The man said, «Every morning.»
The friend said, «Are you always that nice?»
He said, «Every morning.»
The friend looked kind of puzzled and said, «Why?»
The man said, «I have made up my mind I am not going to let another person ruin my day.»
He was saying: I have my spare tire.
Yes, I hit this pothole every morning, but I am not going to get stuck here arguing, being rude, letting him ruin my morning.
There may be people you see every day that have the gift of getting on your nerves—they feel like it is their calling in life to make you miserable.
The good news is you are in control.
They cannot make you unhappy unless you allow them to; they cannot make you frustrated—it is your choice.
Now do not go the next thirty years letting the same things upset you, giving away your power.
Make a decision like this man: you are not going to let another person ruin your day—not the guy that cut you off in traffic, not the clerk that is rude, not the family member that is disrespectful.
When someone is critical, condescending, rude—they have issues that they are not dealing with.
They have become poisoned, and now that poison naturally comes out.
The key is: do not let their poison get into you; do not let their bad attitude sour your day.
You overcome evil with good; you do not overcome evil with more evil.
If you join in—you are rude back, you argue—then you have allowed their poison to contaminate you.
But when you take the high road—when you are kind to those that are unkind, respectful when people are disrespectful—you are being an eagle.
God will take you to heights that you have never imagined.
The Security Guard Encounter
Years ago I promised a friend that works in local news that I would be on their morning program.
I had to be at the station at 6:30 on a Monday morning.
I woke up that day and I was tired; I did not feel like going; it was cold and raining—but I made the commitment.
I was told to park inside the fence close to the main doors.
I pulled in—dark outside, nobody was there—I was about to park and get out.
This lady came running over—a security guard—waving both of her arms like I had committed a major crime.
She said, «What are you doing? You cannot park here. This is reserved for our special guest.»
I thought: God, I am going to need three spare tires for this lady—she is like a wrecking ball.
I said, «Ma’am, I am on the program this morning; I was told to park here.»
She said, «Did you hear what I said? You cannot park here!»
I had to remind myself, «Joel, you are a pastor; your church is right across the freeway.»
I smiled and said, «That is fine.»
I parked in the neighborhood a couple hundred yards away—still raining—had to run to the building and did the program.
She must have seen it because afterwards she came running up and said, «Oh, Pastor Osteen—if I would have known that was you, I would have let you park there. Do you have time to pray for me?»
I thought: I would, if I did not have to walk so far.
I said, «Sure, I will.»
What am I saying: do not let another person ruin your day.
Do not let a grouchy boss make you grouchy to where you come home and be sour with your family.
You cannot keep it from happening, but you can keep it from getting on the inside.
You have to guard your heart.
Offenses Are Bait
Jesus said offenses will come.
He did not say they might come—if you are a good person, if you are kind enough, if you quote enough scriptures, then you will not have to deal with grouchy people, you will not have to hit any potholes.
No, He said they will come on a regular basis.
You will have opportunities to get upset, live bitter, offended—arguing, trying to pay people back.
The word offenses in the scripture comes from a Greek word that means bait.
It is used in reference to how they would catch animals—it was actually the bait that lured the animal into the trap.
When you are tempted to be offended—somebody says something derogatory, they leave you out—recognize the enemy is offering you the bait; he is trying to deceive you into the trap.
Come on—get upset, get bitter, argue back.
Many people take the bait; they go around bitter, upset, offended.
Next time that happens—instead of letting those same things upset you—just say: no thanks; I am not taking that bait; not falling into that trap; I am going to enjoy this day.
But it is easy to get baited into conflict—argue with people, try to prove our point.
You have to be selective which battles you fight.
You are not supposed to engage in every conflict.
If that battle is not between you and your God-given destiny, you should ignore it.
Most of the things that come against us are simply distractions.
Ask yourself: if I win this battle, how would it benefit me? What will it accomplish?
That person that cut me off in traffic—if I rush up and cut them off, what did it gain me? I do not even know the person. It is a distraction.
If I am rude back to the person that sold me the paper—yes, it makes the flesh feel good, but it does not put me further down the road. It is a distraction.
You need to choose your battles wisely.
If you make the mistake of engaging in every conflict—straightening out coworkers, proving to people who you are—you will not have time to fight the battles that do matter.
David and Eliab
When David was a teenager he was out working in the shepherd’s fields.
His father asked him to take lunch to his brothers.
They were in another city serving in the army.
When David arrived he saw Goliath taunting the Israelites, making fun of them.
He asked the men there: what is the prize for the man that defeats this giant?
They said the reward is that person will get one of the king’s daughters in marriage plus they will not have to pay taxes.
Well, that got David’s attention.
He realized that was a battle worth fighting—there were spoils, there were benefits.
But when David’s older brother Eliab heard him inquiring about fighting Goliath, he tried to embarrass David.
He said in front of all the people: David, what are you even doing here? And what have you done with those few sheep you are supposed to be taking care of?
He is trying to make David feel small—saying: David, you are unimportant; you will never do anything great.
Now David had killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands.
I have no doubt he could have taken care of Eliab.
But the scripture says David turned and walked away.
One reason David did great things is he knew which battles to fight.
He could have gotten into strife—arguing, trying to prove to Eliab that he was important.
But if he would have been engaged in that conflict—if he would have taken the bait—he would have gotten distracted, wasted time, and who knows—maybe he would have never faced Goliath.
Are you fighting battles that do not matter—that are keeping you from battles that do matter?
You have to learn to walk away from things—walk away from petty arguments, walk away from disrespect, walk away from jealous people.
Proverbs says, «Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor"—not winning a fight, but walking away from a fight.
That is not being weak; that takes a strong person—that is a mark of honor.
In your marriage you need to do what you can to stay in unity.
It is easy to argue over every little thing—live bitter, offended.
The problem is there will be some big giants that you and your spouse have to face.
On the way to your destiny there will be Goliaths—that is how we go to new levels.
But if you are distracted arguing over little things, you will not be able to defeat those big giants.
You have to pass the test of biting your tongue—walking away when you feel like telling somebody off, overlooking an offense.
The scripture says, «One can chase a thousand; two can put ten thousand to flight.»
When you are in agreement with your spouse, you are ten times more powerful.
When Eliab insulted David, David was able to bite his tongue.
Wonder why?
David prayed in Psalm 141: «Lord, take control of what I say; help me to keep my lips sealed.»
He was saying: God, help me to not say things I should not; help me to walk away from rude people; help me to stay on the high road.
Yes, it is good to pray for favor; it is good to pray for wisdom, for protection.
But I wonder how much further we would go if we would do like David and start praying: God, help me to shut my mouth?
That is a powerful prayer!
God, help me to not say hurtful things; help me to not be critical; help me to not argue.
When God can trust you to walk away from the Eliabs—the people that are disrespectful, people that try to bait you into conflict—then He can trust you with the Goliath.
You will come into destiny moments where you will defeat giants that catapult you ahead.
Handling Critics
As I have become more known I have had more critics.
And some of them were people that had large followings.
When you hear negative things—especially that are not true or where it is taken out of context—it is tempting to respond.
But by the grace of God I have always been real good at letting it go—it has never bothered me in the least bit.
I have learned: when I stay on the high road—not trying to prove to people who I am, not living defensively—that God will get me to where I am supposed to be.
But some of the people that were so against me—today they do not have their platforms; they do not have their followings.
Things have happened where it did not last.
And I am not happy about it; my point is: God will take care of the Eliabs; God will deal with the people that are trying to discredit you.
It is not your job to straighten them out.
Walk away from them and let God fight those battles.
David said: God prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies.
When you have an enemy, that means God has a table for you.
When someone is coming against you—when you have an Eliab, somebody at work trying to discredit you—recognize there is a table there.
You can go argue with them—be rude back to those that are rude to you—or you can sit at the table that God prepared.
When you are saying: God, I am trusting You to fight this battle—it is not between me and my destiny, so I am not going to worry about these people at work that are trying to make me look bad; I am going to keep honoring You, being my best—and I know while I am seated at the table You prepared, while I am in peace, You will take care of what is coming against me.
The apostle Paul did this.
He had all kinds of opposition: religious leaders did not accept him; the government thought he had too much influence; people lied about him; he was put in prison.
He had plenty of opportunities to live bitter, offended.
One place we see his attitude—he said, «Alexander the coppersmith has done me great wrong, but God will repay him.»
He was saying: that battle is not between me and my destiny; I am not going to take the bait; I am not going to get distracted; I am going to sit at the table and let God fight my battles.
Are you fighting where you should be sitting—trying to straighten somebody out, prove to them who you are?
That is not your battle; that battle is the Lord’s.
You do not have to pay people back; you do not have to get even.
God is your vindicator; He will make up for the wrongs that were done to you.
If you will stay in faith—stay in peace on that high road—God will vindicate you better than you can vindicate yourself.
Saul and His Critics
In 1 Samuel 10 the prophet Samuel chose Saul as the next king of Israel.
Most people were happy and congratulated Saul.
But when Saul returned to his hometown, some of the people that knew him the most were not happy with Samuel’s decision.
They began to laugh and make fun: Saul will never be our king; he does not have what it takes.
The truth is they were jealous of Saul.
They were so insecure, so small-minded, they thought they had to push Saul down so they would not look bad.
Do not ever fight battles with small-minded people.
Do not waste your time with people that are jealous—people that do not value who you are, people that do not respect the anointing, the favor, the talent on your life.
They are not between you and your destiny.
If you engage in those conflicts, it will keep you from becoming who you were created to be.
Verse 27 says, «They despised Saul and refused to bring him gifts, but Saul ignored them.»
If you are going to fulfill your purpose, you have to get good at ignoring things—ignore negative comments, ignore disrespect, ignore the naysayers.
They do not control your destiny; they are distractions to try to keep you from God’s best.
Instead of being upset over who is not for you and frustrated over who is trying to make you look bad—do like Saul: ignore it.
Jealous people cannot keep you from your destiny; small-minded people cannot stop your purpose.
Nehemiah and His Detractors
When Nehemiah was rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem, there were two men at the bottom of the mountain—Sanballat and Tobiah—that did not like Nehemiah.
They were constantly criticizing him, spreading rumors, trying to ruin his reputation.
All day they would shout insults—making fun, trying to bait Nehemiah into coming down.
Nehemiah could have come off the mountain and defeated them; he could have shut them up.
But he knew as long as he was fighting with them he would not be making progress on the wall.
He knew they were not between him and his destiny.
He did not get upset; he did not try to straighten them out—he simply ignored them.
He went on to finish the wall in record time.
When God puts a dream in your heart, there will always be Sanballats and Tobiahs—people that are critical, jealous, disrespectful; people that try to get you riled up.
Do not take the bait.
That is not a battle you have to fight; they are distractions to try to get you off course so you miss your purpose.
Do like Nehemiah: learn to ignore the Sanballats and Tobiahs.
Your assignment is too important to be distracted by jealous, small-minded people.
Put On Your Shoes of Peace
In the scripture it tells us to put on the whole armor of God.
Part of that armor is the shoes of peace.
It is interesting that God chose our feet for peace.
It implies everywhere we go we are going to have to choose to stay in peace.
Because you can have your helmet of salvation on, your shield of faith, your belt of truth—but if you do not put your shoes of peace on, if you do not make this decision that you are not going to get upset, you are not going to live offended, you are not going to get baited into conflict—then even though you have all the other armor on, without peace it is not effective.
Every morning you need to make sure you put on your shoes of peace.
Too many people go through the day barefooted—offended, discouraged, upset.
But when you make this decision at the start of the day that nothing is going to upset you—really you are putting your shoes on.
You are saying: God, I trust You; I know You are directing my steps.
And even if things do not go perfectly today, I believe all things are going to work out for my good.
When you are in peace, you are in a position of power.
When you are upset, discouraged, offended—just the opposite—you will not have the strength you need.
Next time you are tempted to be offended—recognize what is happening; do not take that bait.
When someone says something derogatory—instead of trying to pay them back—ignore them; take a seat at the table God prepared.
When you walk away from the Eliabs—the battles that do not matter—you will come into your Goliath—opportunities that will thrust you ahead.
I am asking you to protect your peace.
If you will do this, I believe and declare you are not only going to enjoy your life more, but God is going to take care of what is coming against you.
He is going to vindicate you, promote you, and take you to new levels of your destiny—in Jesus’ name.