Joel Osteen - Supersized
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I wanna talk to you about "Supersized". A few years ago I went to a fast food restaurant with our children, and we pulled into the drive thru and placed our order. And just when I was about to pull up to the main window where you pay, the young lady said, "Would you like to supersize that"? I didn't know what that meant. And I asked her about it. She said, "That means you'll get more French fries, a larger drink, a bigger hamburger. Instead of the normal portions, it will be supersized, bigger than expected". That's what God wants to do for you. His dream for your life is much bigger than your own. He's going to take you further than you're expecting. He's going to open doors that you could've never opened. He's going to give you more influence than you thought possible.
Paul said in Ephesians 3: "God will do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think". He's saying in today's language, "God is going to supersize your life". Whatever you're dreaming about, whatever you're believing for, God's going to take that and make it bigger, better, more rewarding, than you've ever imagined. Maybe your dream is to get out of debt, to be able to pay your house off. That's good, but God is going to supersize it. He's going to bless you in such a way that you can not only pay off your house, but you can help other people pay off their house, where you don't just have enough for yourself, you have an abundance so you can be a blessing to somebody else.
That's what happens when God supersizes. Your prayer may be for your son to get back on course. He's running with the wrong crowd and making decisions that are not good. And you'd be happy if he just got back to where he was. But when God supersizes it, he's not only going to bring him back to the right course, he's going to use him to help other people in that same situation. You're going to be amazed at the difference that your son will make. Or maybe you're single. Your dream is to meet the right person. You have this specific criteria that you're looking for, and these qualifications that you would be happy with. But when God supersizes it, he's going to bring you somebody better than you've imagined.
That's what happened to me. When I met Victoria in my early 20s, she exceeded my expectations. She was not only smart, talented, funny, beautiful, but she had the best taste in men. She was a supersize blessing. Your dream may be to work your way up to management, to one day to lead that department, but when God supersizes it, you're not going to be working for that company, you're going to own your own company. You're going to look up and say, "This is exceeding abundantly above anything I could ask or imagine". But what you're dreaming about may seem big to you. You don't see how it can happen, how you could get out of debt, break the addiction, accomplish that goal. You have to stretch your faith to just believe that it will happen. But what you're believing for is just the starting point. God is going to exceed your expectations. He has a supersize life in front of you.
I know a young lady that came from a low-income family. Her parents and relatives had always struggled to make it. Her father worked the night shift as a janitor, cleaning large buildings. Her mother would get odd jobs here and there, babysitting children. All she had seen growing up was lack and mediocrity. Her dream was to one day work in a professional environment. She thought if she could just get something better than those low-level jobs that her parents had, she would be doing good.
A friend of hers worked at a movie studio. She said there was a position available as a secretary. And this young lady had put herself through college, the first one in her family to get a degree. And she applied for that position and she got it. She was on cloud nine. Not only did she work in a professional office, but she made twice what her parents made combined. In her mind, she had accomplished her goal. God had blessed her in incredible ways. She was satisfied, but God wasn't satisfied. He's in the supersizing business. What he has for you is bigger than you've imagined.
She got one promotion, and another promotion, and another. Today she's the vice president of one of the largest movie studios in the world. She has incredible influence. She decides which movies will be made, and works with the biggest names in Hollywood. She told me, "Joel, I can't even fathom where I am. Every day I go to work, I have to pinch myself to make sure this is real". That's God's dream for you. If you will keep honoring him, being your best right where you are, then get ready for a supersized life. Get ready for doors to open that you couldn't open. Get ready to go places that you've never dreamed.
One day you're going to say, like her, "I can't even fathom that I'm here. Never dreamed I'd be running my own business. Never dreamed I'd be living in this house. Never dreamed my children would be this successful". Or, "I never dreamed I'd be this healthy again". Every time I drive up to the Compaq Center, this place, like that lady I have to pinch myself. I had season tickets growing up to watch the rockets play basketball. I never dreamed one day this would be Lakewood. Never dreamed that I would be a minister. Never dreamed, after 35 years of being diagnosed with terminal cancer, my mother would still be alive today. What is that? The exceeding abundantly above and beyond favor God has in store.
In acts chapter 3 there was a crippled man that was carried to the temple each day. And they put him next to the main door. He would sit there and ask for money. This is how he survived. Year after year, people would give him donations. Looked like this was his lot in life. He didn't complain about it. He was doing his best with what he had. But one afternoon Peter and John came to the temple. As they were about to walk in, this man asked them for money. He must have been looking down because Peter said, "Look at us".
And the scripture says, "The man looked up, expecting to receive a gift". Peter said, "I don't have any money for ya, but I can give ya something better. In the name of Jesus, rise and walk". Peter took him by the hand. He helped the man up. When he did, instantly, his legs were healed. He started walking, running, leaping, so grateful for what God had done. But here's my point. When Peter said, "I have something for you," the man expected the ordinary. He expected what he had always seen. It had happened again and again the same way. He would ask. People would give him a few donations. But this day, God came along and did something out of the ordinary. He was expecting a few coins, but God said, in effect, "I'm going to exceed your expectations. I'm going to do above and beyond what you're asking for".
That one moment of favor thrust him to the next level. And like this man, you may be expecting the ordinary. You're going through the routine of life, being your best with what ya have. But where you are looks like that's the way it's always going to be. There's no sign of anything changing. You're expecting more of the same. But God is saying, "I'm about to exceed your expectations. Yes, it's been routine, but you passed the test. Now you're coming into a new day where I'm about to thrust you to a new level. I'm about to increase you beyond your normal income".
Blessings are about to chase you down. Good breaks are going to come finding you. God is going to supersize what you're believing for. You didn't ask for it. You weren't expecting it. You didn't see it coming, it's just the goodness of God. The scripture talks about how we'll be blessed, pressed down, shaken together, and running over. You're going to come in to those running over blessing, running over with influence, running over with creativity, running over with resources, running over with good health. God is a running-over God. He's not a get-by God. He's a more-than-enough God. And you may not see how this could happen, but God has ways to bless you that you've never thought of.
In the scripture, when Peter needed money to pay his taxes, Jesus told him to go down to the lake. The first fish he caught had the money in it that he needed. When the Israelites wanted meat out in the wilderness, God shifted the winds and caused millions of quail to come into their camp. These 2 million people had a steak dinner out in the middle of the desert. Experts tell us, "Quail don't normally travel that far away from water". That goes against their natural instinct. This was God making something happen that should have never happened. Friends, God controls the whole universe. You don't have to figure it out. Just dare to believe. All through the day, "Lord, thank you for supersizing my life. Thank you for exceeding my expectations. Thank ya for those running-over blessings".
I talked to a man that owns a landscape company. Their specialty is bagging grass clippings and disposing of them. And he had an agreement with a local farmer where he would take those grass clippings and feed his herd of cattle. And this worked well for many years. Everything was going great until this farmer became sick. He was an older gentleman, and decided to sell his farm. And this man got bids of getting rid of his grass clippings in conventional ways, but the lowest one was tens of thousands of dollars a year, and he couldn't afford that kind of overhead.
It looked like he was stuck, like he didn't have any options. But instead of getting discouraged, instead of complaining, his attitude was, "God, I don't see a way, but I know you have a way. I know you're a running-over God, a more-than-enough God, an overflow God". And like the blind man, he was expecting something ordinary, something usual, maybe the farmer would change his mind. Maybe he'd find another farm where he could feed their cattle. But God's ways are not our ways. There are set times where God is going to exceed your expectations, where he is going to supersize your life.
And several major developers were interested in this farm. It looked like it would sell quickly, and maybe even turn out to be a bidding war. But they found out the property was in a flood plain. And even though it'd not flooded there in years and years, no bank would give anyone a loan. And this farmer didn't have any options, so he sold the property to this man for hardly anything. It had several tenants on it. Their rent not only pays his monthly payment, but there's profit left over each month. So instead of having to put his money out to purchase the property, now they're actually paying him to take the property.
God can make things happen that you could never make happen. One touch of his favor will put you at another level. And you may be thinking, "Ordinary". God's thinking, "Overflow". You're thinking, "The way it's always been". God is about to exceed your expectations. He's about to do a new thing. Like this man, you're going to come into these running-over blessings. You didn't have anything to do with it. It's just the favor of God. It's what the scripture talks about, how, "You'll live in houses that you didn't have to build". How, "You'll reap from vineyards that you didn't plant".
This is what happened in the scripture to a young lady named Ruth. Her husband was killed in a battle. And she'd back to her mother-in-law's hometown to help take care of her. They barely had enough food to survive. She would go out in the fields and pick up the leftover wheat that the workers had missed. And one day, the owner of the field noticed Ruth. He told his workers to leave handfuls of wheat on purpose for Ruth. Now she didn't have to work nearly as hard. She could gather up the wheat they needed in a fraction of the time. And when Ruth went out each morning, she was expecting more of the same. She was grateful. God was meeting their needs. But God is full of surprises.
Just when you think you've reached your limits, God's been good to you, you're satisfied, God has something bigger in mind. And the owner of that field, Boaz, was one of the wealthiest men in that area. He fell in love with Ruth. They ended up getting married. Now, instead of working in the field, Ruth owned the field. What happened? God supersized her life. This is especially important because Ruth had gone through a lot of heartache and pain. Loosing her husband at in early age, I'm sure she thought, "Wow, life's not fair. God, why did this happen to me"? It looked like she had seen her best days.
And if she would've heard this message, she could've said, "Ah, Joel, this sounds good, but God's not going to supersize my life. I've been through too much. Things haven't turned out the way I had planned. I'm content to just survive". And you may feel that way, but like Ruth, God hasn't forgotten about you. He's seen the heartache you've endured. He's seen the lonely nights, the unfair situations. You may have accepted it, but God has not accepted it. He not only has some handfuls on purpose for you, he has some Boazes, some explosive blessings that are going to make up for the difficulties you've been through.
God knows how to balance the books. You may have taken a big hit over here, a big loss. Well, get ready for some big blessings. God is a just God. When he supersizes your life, you're going to be so amazed at where you are, you don't even think about where you've been. But many of you can say, like me, that you're living a supersized life. God's been good to you. You never dreamed you would be where you are. But can I tell ya, you haven't seen anything yet. You're on the runway, about to take off. You're just getting your engines revved up. Your rockets haven't kicked in. Your boosters haven't activated.
God never performs his greatest victories in your past. They're always in your future. Why don't you get your hopes up? You may not see how it can happen. But here's the whole key: you can't see what God sees. You don't know what God knows. Ruth could've said, "It's not gonna happen to me. I'm a widow taking care of another widow. We don't have a job. We don't have any retirement. We don't have any income. We're done". But what you don't have doesn't stop God. He is not limited by what you think you're lacking.
"Well, I don't have the resource. I don't have the talent, the education, the experience". You may not, but God does. He has everything you need to get you to where you're supposed to be. All the odds were against Ruth. It looked like she was done, but she came in to those running-over blessings. She went from having barely enough to having more than enough. And here's how amazing God is. Ruth married Boaz. They had a son named Obed. Obed had a son named Jesse. Jesse had a son named David. That means this young lady that looked like her life was over, a widow, barely making it, God not only blessed her with abundance, but she ended up in the family line of Jesus Christ.
God knows how to make more out of your life than you've ever imagined. Quit making excuses. Quit thinking you've reached your limits. God has something big coming your way. What he's going to do in your future is like nothing you've seen in your past. It's going to exceed your expectations. It's going to be above and beyond what you're thinking. Now, the real question is, will you let this seed take root? The scripture says, "Jesus couldn't do any miracles in his hometown because of their unbelief". It doesn't say, "He wouldn't do it". It says, "He couldn't do it".
And I wonder how many times we're stopping God from supersizing our life because we don't believe it will happen. We let our circumstances, what we can see, what's happened in the past, talk us out of it. Your mind may tell ya that, "You've reached your limits. You've gone as far as you can go". But if you'll listen down in here, you'll hear another voice saying, "Increase is comin'. Favor is comin'. Healing is comin'. Promotion is coming". That's why, when you hear a message like this, something comes alive on the inside. It's the seed that God put in your spirit. And when you live with this expectancy, you go through the day saying, "God, I believe you can take me where I've never dreamed. I believe you can do what medicine cannot do. God, I believe you can supersize my life". And that's when you'll see the surpassing greatness of God's favor.
Luke chapter 1, appeared to a teenage girl named Mary. He told her that she was highly favored, and she was going to have a baby without knowing a man. Mary was kind of taken aback. This seemed far out and unusual. It had never happened before. She asked the angel, "How could this be"? And he explained how the Spirit of the Lord would come on her and she would conceive. Mary accepted it. She believed, but I'm sure there were times that she started to doubt, thinking, "Is this really going to happen? This seems too good to be true".
See, Mary didn't come from an influential family. She wasn't wealthy. She didn't have an impressive resume. She was a poor girl living in a low-income neighborhood. And as she was doubting, a little bit confused, the angel said to her in verse 30: "'Mary, don't be frightened. God has decided to bless you'". And when you hear this promise, that God is going to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond, that he's going to supersize your life, in a way, it's like what Mary heard. It seems far out, unusual. It's easy to think of all the reasons why it's not going to happen. But if that angel were to show up today, he would say the same thing to you that he said to Mary: "God has decided to bless you".
And you may not see how it can happen. You may not think you deserve it. You've made too many mistakes. You're too young. You're too old. You come from the wrong family. Instead of dwelling on all that, why don't you say, by faith, "God, I wanna thank you that you've decided to bless me. Lord, thank you that you've decided to be good to me". See, it's one thing when we decide we're going to take hold of God's promises. We decide we're gonna live a blessed, abundant life. That's good. That's important. But when you realize the Creator of the Universe, the God who spoke worlds into existence, the God who flung stars into space, he has decided to bless you. He has decided to forgive you. He has decided to favor you.
Here's the key: God's idea of blessing you is very different than what you think being blessed is. We think, "Natural". God thinks, "Supernatural". We think, "Let me find another farm to put these grass clippings". God thinks, "How 'bout I give ya that farm and have them pay you instead of you paying them"? We think, "Handfuls on purpose are a great blessing," and they are. But God thinks, "How 'bout I give you the whole field so you own all the wheat to begin with"? We think practical terms, signing a 60-year lease with the city of Houston for the Compaq Center is pretty amazing, and it is. But God thinks, "How 'bout I get rid of that lease so you could have the building for generations to come"? Like God did for us. That's the running-over God, the more-than-enough God, the exceed-your-expectations God.
A few days after the angel appeared, Mary went to see her cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth said, "Mary, you are blessed because you believed God would do what he said". God decided to bless Mary, but what activated the blessing, what allowed it to happen, was she believed she would blessed. If she'd have gone around thinking, "Oh, this is impossible. It's never going to happen. I never get any good breaks. Besides, I'm not even qualified". She could've talked herself out of what God had already decided. And when God says he's going to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond. When he says, "As for you and your house, you will serve the Lord," when he says he's going to restore health back into you, that means God has already decided it.
Now, my challenge is don't talk yourself out of what God has already decided for you. Well, you say, "Joel, this sounds good, but I'm 75 years old. I still hadn't been supersized". There's still time for you. Moses was 80 when he started to deliver the Israelites, he didn't see the Red Sea part, those supernatural signs that God showed to Pharaoh, until much later in life. You wouldn't be alive unless God had something amazing up in front of you. "Well, I don't wanna get my hopes up. That way, if it doesn't happen, I won't be disappointed". The problem with that approach is if you don't get your hopes up, you will be disappointed. You'll miss the exceeding greatness of God's favor that belongs to you.
I've seen this in my own life. God has taken me from behind the scenes all those years, and brought gifts out of me that I didn't know I had, and put me in front of a lot of people. I can tell ya firsthand, God knows how to supersize your life. It wasn't because I have all this talent, experience, ability. It's because I've done my best to honor God, and I dared to believe what God has already decided for me.
When my dad went to be with the Lord in 1999, I could hear God saying, "Joel, step up. Pastor the church". I didn't think I could do it. Every voice said, "You're making a mistake". But deep down, I knew that if God had decided it, I wasn't going to go by what I felt, by what I saw, by what people were telling me. I simply chose to get in agreement with God, to believe what he had already decided for me. That's when God will supersize your life. That's when he'll take you places that you've never dreamed.
Friends, God has already made his decision. He's already decided to bless you, to forgive you, to take you further than you can imagine. Now it's up to you. What's you decide will determine whether or not it happens.
I'm asking you to take the limits off of God. Quit making excuses. If you'll do this, I believe and declare you're about to come in to those running-over blessings. God is going to supersize what you're believing for. You may be expecting the ordinary. Like that blind man, God's going to do something out of the ordinary. He's going to exceed your expectations. In Jesus' name.