Daily Readings from It's Your Time

Joel Osteen

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780857203656
• eBook ISBN: 9781471102998
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

With this devotional, Joel offers 90 days of thought-provoking messages, words of encouragement and valuable scripture that emphasize the lessons of It's Your Time. This specially selected collection of biblical passages illuminates different points of Joel's messages and is designed to inspire you to seize all of the opportunities that God can provide. Joel draws upon personal anecdotes to illustrate the passages of scripture, and illustrates how he and others have used found ways to take control of their lives and deepen their relationship with God. As you incorporate Joel's easy-to-grasp concepts into your life, you will be pleasantly surprised at how much more God has in store for you and how quickly you become able to seize your moment!

PART ONE

IT’S TIME TO BELIEVE

GOD IS ON YOUR SIDE

DAILY READING 1:1

SCRIPTURE READING TO IT’S YOUR TIME GALATIANS 6

So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.

GALATIANS 6:9 (THE MESSAGE)

WHILE ON VACATION IN COLORADO, I woke up early for a hike. The three-mile trail ran to the peak of Beaver Creek Mountain. At the base a sign said it should take about three hours to reach the top. Looking up to my destination, I was intimidated. The trail was extremely steep. The altitude at the base was about 8,000 feet above sea level. The peak stood at more than 11,000 feet.

Just walking up the first set of stairs I began breathing heavier than normal. I had to remind myself to take it easy. At home in Houston, I run several miles a few times a week and play a lot of basketball. But the elevation there is only 50 feet above sea level. The thinner air in Colorado had me doubting whether I could make it to the top.

I started out with just my cell phone and a bottle of water. Determined, I set a pretty good pace. The first fifteen minutes seemed fairly easy. The next fifteen minutes were increasingly difficult. I felt as though I were carrying an extra load. I had to stop every so often to catch my breath.

About forty-five minutes into my hike, the trail got extremely steep—almost like I was climbing straight up. My pathway snaked skyward through thick stands of aspen and ponderosa pine. The view was both beautiful and daunting. Despite being in shape, my legs were burning and my chest was pounding.

As I climbed over a big ridge, I had to stop for air. Sweat was pouring off my body. I thought, If there’s another two hours like this, I don’t know if I can make it.

Up to that point, I had not seen anyone else on the path. Suddenly, an older gentleman heading down the mountain came around a curve. He wore a T-shirt, shorts, and hiking shoes and carried a walking stick. He seemed cool and calm. And he read me pretty well. As we passed, he said something that changed my whole perspective. He smiled kindly and said in a calm voice, “You are closer than you think.”

Hearing those words, I felt rejuvenated, as if he’d breathed new life into my lungs. Energy surged through my body. My legs grew stronger. I caught a second wind. From that point forward, with every stride, I repeated those words of encouragement: “I will make it. I’m closer than I think.”

God has put dreams and desires in every person’s heart. We all have goals we want to accomplish and situations we believe will be turned around. Sometimes it seems to take longer than we thought. Sometimes things don’t work out the way we planned, and it’s easy to lose enthusiasm. Negative thoughts come to us that say, “It’s never going to change.” If we’re not careful, we’ll get discouraged and end up just settling where we are.

Don’t let that be you today! Don’t give up just because things seem hard. You are closer than you think! You’ve invested so much and you never know, just another few days of believing, another few weeks of doing the right thing, another few months of staying in faith, and you could see that situation turn around. Remember, God is on your side!

Today’s Prayer to It’s Your Time

Father God, today I come to You again, believing that You are working behind the scenes on my behalf. Give me Your strength to keep moving forward into the place of victory You have for me. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Today’s Thought to It’s Your Time

I must keep standing and keep believing because I am closer than I think to fulfilling every desire He’s placed inside of me!

TODAY IS THE DAY!

DAILY READING 1:2

SCRIPTURE READING TO IT’S YOUR TIME HABAKKUK 2

This vision is for a future time.
It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.
If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently,
for it will surely take place.
It will not be delayed.

HABAKKUK 2:3 (NLT)

DOWN IN THE FLORIDA KEYS, there was a treasure hunter whose motto was “Today’s the day.” Every day for sixteen years, Mel Fisher sent his divers out with those encouraging words to find a Spanish ship that sank off the Keys in 1622. He often had to pay his men in promises while dodging bill collectors. He and his family lived on a leaky houseboat for years. One of his sons, a daughter-in-law, and a diver were lost at sea as they searched for the treasure.

Still, Fisher never gave up. He refused to abandon his dream or to give in to critics and doubters. He held on by declaring that each day would be the day. Then, in 1985, Mel’s divers found “the Mother lode” of gold and silver and jewelry from the wreckage of the Spanish galleon. Nearly thirty years later, divers were still bringing up treasure from that site.

Is today the day for you to accomplish your goal, to land your dream job, to find love, to restore your health? You are closer than you think to a better life, a richer relationship, a healthier body.

Rewards await you if you stay steadfast in your faith.

Don’t let doubters ruin your optimistic spirit. If somebody says to you, “What is it with you? What makes you think everything will work out? Do you really believe you will always succeed?” just tell the doubters, “I don’t think it will happen. I know it will happen! I’m a prisoner of hope. I can’t get away from it. I just can’t make myself get negative. I just can’t make myself complain. Hope feeds my faith and lifts my spirits.”

The doubters may say, “Well, I don’t know why. I saw the medical report. It doesn’t look good for you.”

“Yes, but I have another report,” you can tell them. “It says God is restoring health back unto me.”

“Well, I saw your child. I don’t think he’ll ever do what’s right.”

“Really? I have another report. It says as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

You may not see any of this in the natural world. It may not look like it will come to pass. But that’s okay. The Scripture says, “We walk by faith and not by sight.” That means we don’t have to see it to believe it. It’s just the opposite. If we believe it, then we see it.

Take your dreams and the promises God has put in your heart and every day declare that they will come to pass. Just say something like, “Father, I want to thank You that my payday is coming. You said no good thing will You withhold because I walk uprightly. And I believe even right now You are arranging things in my favor.”

Are you a prisoner of fear? Worry? Self-pity? Negativity?

Break those chains and become a prisoner of hope. Expect God’s favor. Believe that He is working in your life, even right now.

God has put dreams and desires in your heart. We all have goals we want to accomplish and situations we believe we will turn around. But often when it’s taking a long time and things are not working out, it’s easy to lose our enthusiasm. That’s when the negative thoughts come, saying:

It never will change.

You never will get well.

You never will climb out of debt.

That child never will straighten up.

If you listen to those negative thoughts, you will likely become discouraged and give up on your dreams. Many times we miss out on God’s best because we give up too soon. We don’t realize how close we are to victory.

Hold on to your faith. Another few days of believing, another few weeks of doing the right thing, or another few months of staying in faith and you will see that promise come to pass.

Right now, you are so close to seeing that situation turn around. That answer you’ve been praying about is just right around the corner. You can’t afford to get discouraged. You can’t afford to give up now.

That’s what the scripture says in Hebrews 10:35. It tells us not to cast away our confidence, for it will be richly rewarded. That’s saying if we will stay in faith, if we will keep believing, keep hoping, keep doing the right thing, God promises there will be a reward.

One translation says, in effect, “Don’t get discouraged. Payday is coming.”

When you’re tempted to get down and things...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Flap
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Part One: It’s Time to Believe
• Part Two: It’s Time For Favor
• Part Three: It’s Time For Restoration
• Part Four: It’s Time to Trust
• Part Five: It’s Time to Stretch
• Back Flap
• Back Cover