Build Yourself Up

0:00:01.440 --> 0:00:04.360 Hi, this is Joelan Victoria. Thanks so much for listening 0:00:04.360 --> 0:00:07.960 to the podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. We 0:00:08.039 --> 0:00:11.920 believe you're going to have an awesome twenty twenty four, healthy, productive, 0:00:12.080 --> 0:00:16.200 and favor filled. God bless you today and enjoy the message. Well, 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:18.759 God bless you. It's great to be with you today, 0:00:18.880 --> 0:00:21.319 and I hope you'll stay connected with us during the 0:00:21.360 --> 0:00:25.320 week through our daily podcast or YouTube channel, social media, 0:00:25.760 --> 0:00:28.520 and you can come visit us in person. We'd love 0:00:28.560 --> 0:00:30.920 to have you be a part of one of our services. 0:00:31.400 --> 0:00:33.559 I like to start It was something funny and I 0:00:33.600 --> 0:00:36.320 heard about this little girl. She was sitting on her 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:40.120 grandfather's laugh and she noticed how wrinkled his face was. 0:00:40.720 --> 0:00:45.160 As she contemplated the difference between his and hers, she said, granddaddy, 0:00:45.560 --> 0:00:49.120 did God make you? And he gotta laughed and said, yes, honey, 0:00:49.200 --> 0:00:52.320 he made me a long time ago. She then asked, 0:00:52.440 --> 0:00:55.440 did God make me? He said yes, he made you 0:00:55.560 --> 0:00:59.160 just a little while ago. She thought about it in a minute, said, grandaddy, 0:00:59.400 --> 0:01:04.440 God's getting better, isn't it all right? Y'all say it 0:01:04.480 --> 0:01:07.399 like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am 0:01:07.480 --> 0:01:10.080 what it says, I am, I have what it says 0:01:10.120 --> 0:01:12.840 I have, I can do what it says I can do. 0:01:13.200 --> 0:01:16.200 Today I will be taught the word of God. I 0:01:16.400 --> 0:01:20.720 boldly confess my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. 0:01:21.040 --> 0:01:24.839 I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God 0:01:24.880 --> 0:01:29.039 bless you. I want to talk to you today about 0:01:29.240 --> 0:01:33.120 building yourself up. It's good to have people that cheer 0:01:33.200 --> 0:01:36.120 us on and speak faith into our life, and a 0:01:36.200 --> 0:01:40.039 spouse that compliments us, a neighbor with an uplifting word, 0:01:40.440 --> 0:01:44.400 a friend that's always there to encourage. It's healthy when 0:01:44.400 --> 0:01:47.760 you have people that make you feel valued and appreciated, 0:01:48.480 --> 0:01:52.160 but it becomes unhealthy if you start depending on them 0:01:52.480 --> 0:01:55.760 to keep your cheer. Now, if they don't complement you, 0:01:55.760 --> 0:01:58.200 you don't feel good about who you are. If they're 0:01:58.200 --> 0:02:01.720 not there to encourage, you don't have the passion. That 0:02:01.840 --> 0:02:05.360 coworker doesn't tell you did good on your project, you're 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:09.880 down thinking you're not enough. We can become addicted to 0:02:10.000 --> 0:02:13.840 approval and addicted to compliments, to where we base our 0:02:13.960 --> 0:02:18.040 value our worth on what people are telling us, kind 0:02:18.040 --> 0:02:20.359 of like a drug. We need them to feel good 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:23.960 about who we are. But God didn't create you to 0:02:24.040 --> 0:02:27.960 be dependent on someone else. To keep you fixed. He 0:02:28.080 --> 0:02:31.359 uses people in those ways, but at some point he's 0:02:31.400 --> 0:02:34.000 going to pull them back. He's not going to let 0:02:34.080 --> 0:02:37.160 them keep giving you that. Otherwise you would get stuck. 0:02:38.120 --> 0:02:41.400 The problem with relying on people is people can let 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:44.880 you down. People can be busy and they're not there 0:02:44.880 --> 0:02:48.640 when you need them. People have their own issues, raising 0:02:48.639 --> 0:02:52.760 their children, struggling with their marriage. If you're counting on 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:55.480 them to call you each morning and prop you up 0:02:55.560 --> 0:02:57.960 and tell you how good you look at work, and 0:02:58.320 --> 0:03:03.080 encourage you in every difficult see, that's a codependent relationship. 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:06.079 You need them to feel good about who you are. 0:03:06.760 --> 0:03:10.359 Here's the key. If nobody is complimenting you, you need 0:03:10.400 --> 0:03:14.360 to learn to compliment yourself. If nobody told you that 0:03:14.440 --> 0:03:16.760 you look good today, why don't you look in the 0:03:16.800 --> 0:03:20.560 mirror and say, wow, you look good. You're a masterpiece, 0:03:20.800 --> 0:03:24.480 want of a kind, a prize possession. Nobody made you 0:03:24.560 --> 0:03:28.760 feel special. Your friend didn't call, that neighbor didn't come over. 0:03:29.080 --> 0:03:32.600 Good news. You can make yourself feel special. I am 0:03:32.639 --> 0:03:36.320 a child of the most high. I've been handpicked by 0:03:36.320 --> 0:03:39.840 the creator of the universe. I have royal blood flowing 0:03:39.880 --> 0:03:44.160 through my veins. Quit putting how you feel about yourself, 0:03:44.600 --> 0:03:49.240 your mood, your value in someone else's hands. The scripture says, 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:53.800 build yourself up. Don't rely on other people to affirm, 0:03:54.120 --> 0:03:59.040 to approve, to validate. Approve yourself. I'm made in the 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:03.800 image of all my God. I'm approved, I'm worthy, I'm valuable. 0:04:04.880 --> 0:04:07.800 When you're trying to get your approval and your validation 0:04:07.960 --> 0:04:11.560 from other people, you're at their mercy. They're having a 0:04:11.600 --> 0:04:15.360 bad day, they're upset, mad at their spouse. You're not 0:04:15.400 --> 0:04:18.000 gonna get what you were hoping for. But when you 0:04:18.080 --> 0:04:22.000 learn to build yourself up, what they give or don't 0:04:22.040 --> 0:04:26.320 give doesn't affect you. You already built up. You already 0:04:26.360 --> 0:04:29.279 know who you are. You don't need other people to 0:04:29.360 --> 0:04:33.880 keep you fixed. You encourage yourself. You complimented yourself, You 0:04:33.920 --> 0:04:38.600 approved yourself. This is a powerful way to live. Nobody 0:04:38.640 --> 0:04:42.760 else is controlling your mood, your self worth. You've taken control. 0:04:43.720 --> 0:04:46.360 Every morning before you leave the house, you need to 0:04:46.360 --> 0:04:50.240 build yourself up. Don't go out hoping to get encouraged, 0:04:50.760 --> 0:04:54.000 hoping someone makes you feel good. Maybe my coworker will 0:04:54.000 --> 0:04:58.320 compliment me and make me feel valuable. They don't control 0:04:58.360 --> 0:05:02.600 your value. Give them that power. If you're trying to 0:05:02.640 --> 0:05:05.040 get those things from people. You're going to live on 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:08.480 a roller coaster. One day people will love you, and 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:12.000 next day they're talking behind your back. One day, your 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:15.159 friend is full of compliments, the next day they're full 0:05:15.279 --> 0:05:18.160 of a lot of other stuff. One day, your spouse 0:05:18.240 --> 0:05:22.200 is so encouraging, uplifting, the next day she's dealing with PMS. 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:28.039 That means pretty mean, sisters. When you build yourself up, 0:05:28.600 --> 0:05:32.040 you're not moved by the negative chatter. You're not bitter 0:05:32.120 --> 0:05:35.560 over who didn't give you credit. You're not frustrated because 0:05:35.600 --> 0:05:40.920 people didn't approve you. You've already approved yourself. Nobody said anything 0:05:40.960 --> 0:05:44.159 good about all your hard work. That's okay, you already 0:05:44.160 --> 0:05:49.760 complimented yourselves. Nobody clapped for your excellent presentation. The ones 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:52.760 that should have been so encouraging happy for you, they 0:05:52.800 --> 0:05:56.360 got jealous. They found fault. That's all right, You already 0:05:56.360 --> 0:06:01.800 clapped for yourself. They didn't celebrate you, but you celebrated yourself. Father, 0:06:01.960 --> 0:06:04.560 thank you for helping me to shine. Thank you for 0:06:04.640 --> 0:06:09.440 my gifts, my talents causing me to excel. You're not 0:06:09.560 --> 0:06:12.640 dependent on what others do to feel good about who 0:06:12.680 --> 0:06:16.279 you are. Every time I walk off this platform and 0:06:16.680 --> 0:06:20.520 finish another message. I said, Joel, that was good today. 0:06:21.000 --> 0:06:24.640 You did excellent. And I don't mean that arrogantly, but 0:06:24.680 --> 0:06:27.840 I've learned to celebrate myself. May not have been as 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:30.839 good as what someone else could do. There are ministers, 0:06:30.880 --> 0:06:34.080 more skilled, more experienced, but I did to the best 0:06:34.160 --> 0:06:38.760 of my ability. It's healthy to clap for yourself, to 0:06:38.880 --> 0:06:42.920 celebrate what you've done. You're not bragging on you. You're bragging 0:06:43.000 --> 0:06:46.280 on the gifts, the talents, the abilities that God has 0:06:46.320 --> 0:06:49.599 given you. For some people, no matter what they do, 0:06:49.960 --> 0:06:54.200 it's never enough, there's always a nagging voice telling them 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:57.359 they should have done better. They live with this inner 0:06:57.440 --> 0:07:01.800 critic that's constantly putting them down, pointing out their faults, 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:06.080 magnifying the negative. You gave a good message, Joel, but 0:07:06.120 --> 0:07:08.800 it's kind of slow at times. Or you worked out 0:07:08.880 --> 0:07:11.239 four times this week, you really should have done five. 0:07:11.400 --> 0:07:13.760 Or yeah, you look all right today, but not like 0:07:13.800 --> 0:07:17.320 you used to look. Do yourself a favor. Tune out 0:07:17.320 --> 0:07:21.160 that inner critic. You have enough people on the outside 0:07:21.240 --> 0:07:25.880 trying to push you down, limit your potential, lessen your value. 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:30.160 You don't need one on the inside. Nobody should be 0:07:30.200 --> 0:07:34.600 more for you than you. That's not being selfish, that's 0:07:34.640 --> 0:07:38.640 being responsible with the gift God has given you. Learn 0:07:38.720 --> 0:07:42.880 to celebrate yourself. You clap for others, When was the 0:07:43.000 --> 0:07:47.160 last time you clap for yourself? You compliment your friends. 0:07:47.720 --> 0:07:51.320 When was the last time you complimented yourself? You brag 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:54.400 on your coworker that was excellent, You did great. When 0:07:54.520 --> 0:07:57.600 was the last time you bragged on you? You told 0:07:57.640 --> 0:08:02.320 yourself you did great? Healthy to clap for you. The 0:08:02.400 --> 0:08:06.480 more you applaud yourself, the less dependent you are on 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:10.760 other people's applause. If you approve yourself, you're not going 0:08:10.840 --> 0:08:14.520 to be needy for other people's approval. If you're free 0:08:14.560 --> 0:08:18.440 with your compliments to yourself, then you won't be insecuring 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:21.760 trying to play up to people to win their compliments, 0:08:22.040 --> 0:08:24.520 get them to validate you. Tell you that you're good. 0:08:24.880 --> 0:08:28.560 You won't need that. You've already built yourself up with 0:08:28.640 --> 0:08:32.480 who God says you are. You already know you're valuable, 0:08:32.640 --> 0:08:37.720 you're worthy, you're talented, attractive, you're exceptional, and yes, it's 0:08:37.800 --> 0:08:41.160 nice when people reaffirm that, but you're not dependent on 0:08:41.280 --> 0:08:44.120 it to feel good about who you are. You know 0:08:44.200 --> 0:08:47.200 who you are one time I was talking to a 0:08:47.240 --> 0:08:50.360 man after the service, and he was very nice, but 0:08:50.440 --> 0:08:53.840 he said, Joel, I just didn't understand that point that 0:08:53.920 --> 0:08:56.720 you made in your message didn't make sense to me. 0:08:57.679 --> 0:08:59.600 If I would have heard that the first couple of 0:08:59.679 --> 0:09:03.160 years i'd been ministering, I'd been depressed for two months, 0:09:03.800 --> 0:09:07.719 gone home, defeated, feeling inadequate. But I've learned what I'm 0:09:07.760 --> 0:09:11.280 telling you. I didn't need his applause. I had already 0:09:11.280 --> 0:09:15.360 clapped for myself. I wasn't basing my joy, my worth, 0:09:15.520 --> 0:09:18.880 my confidence on what he did or didn't give me. 0:09:19.400 --> 0:09:22.760 I had already built myself up. And yes, I'm always 0:09:22.800 --> 0:09:25.920 open for suggestions. Here are things I can do better. 0:09:26.559 --> 0:09:30.040 But you're never going to please everyone. No matter how 0:09:30.080 --> 0:09:34.000 good you do. Someone's going to find fault, try to discredit, 0:09:34.360 --> 0:09:38.160 not give their approval. I love what Jesus said. Your 0:09:38.200 --> 0:09:44.120 approval or disapproval means nothing to me. He wasn't being disrespectful. 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:47.280 He was simply saying, I know who I am, and 0:09:47.360 --> 0:09:51.040 I know where I get my value. That's the place 0:09:51.160 --> 0:09:53.600 we need to get to. We don't have to have 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:57.760 people's approval to feel good about who we are. Sure 0:09:57.760 --> 0:10:00.920 there will be those that disapprove. That doesn't phase us. 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:03.960 We don't get defensive and try to straighten them out. 0:10:04.559 --> 0:10:07.280 We don't get discouraged and go around feeling less than. 0:10:07.920 --> 0:10:10.800 We keep our shoulders back. We know who we are. 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:15.480 They didn't approve us, but we've approved ourselves. They didn't 0:10:15.520 --> 0:10:19.960 compliment us, but we complimented ourselves. When that man told 0:10:20.000 --> 0:10:23.760 me that he didn't understand my point, I thought to myself. 0:10:23.800 --> 0:10:26.360 I didn't say it, but I thought, I can't help 0:10:26.400 --> 0:10:29.400 it if there's something wrong with you. I didn't take 0:10:29.440 --> 0:10:32.840 it personally. I didn't let it ruin my day. When 0:10:32.840 --> 0:10:36.120 you're built up on the inside, that's going to protect 0:10:36.160 --> 0:10:40.040 you from what comes on the outside. The first thing 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:42.960 I do every morning after I thank God for what 0:10:43.040 --> 0:10:47.240 he's done, is I remind myself who I am. Lord. 0:10:47.320 --> 0:10:50.199 I thank you that you chose me before I could 0:10:50.280 --> 0:10:53.920 choose you. That I am a person of destiny, redeemed 0:10:54.000 --> 0:10:58.280 and forgiven. You've made me worthy, you've approved me, you've 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:02.720 accepted me, crown me with your favor. You've planned out 0:11:02.760 --> 0:11:05.920 all of my days for good. I never leave the 0:11:06.000 --> 0:11:10.199 house without building myself up that way. I'm not waiting 0:11:10.240 --> 0:11:12.880 for someone else to build me up, Hoping that my 0:11:12.960 --> 0:11:16.000 spouse says something to cheer me up. Hoping that my 0:11:16.080 --> 0:11:19.800 coworker claps for me so i'll feel valuable, Hoping my 0:11:19.840 --> 0:11:24.520 friend compliments me so i'll be secure. No quit depending 0:11:24.559 --> 0:11:28.040 on people. That's no way to live. That's putting your 0:11:28.080 --> 0:11:31.640 self worth, your mood into their hands. Put it in 0:11:31.720 --> 0:11:35.920 God's hands. Go to him to get your value, your approval. 0:11:36.640 --> 0:11:39.679 See the scripture says, out of your belly shall flow 0:11:39.760 --> 0:11:43.560 rivers of living water. We're looking to others to keep 0:11:43.600 --> 0:11:48.040 us filled up, keep me encouraged, keep me secure, keep 0:11:48.040 --> 0:11:52.400 me feeling valuable. Here's the key. Nobody can give you 0:11:52.640 --> 0:11:57.400 everything you need. Nobody can keep you fixed. Your spouse, 0:11:57.679 --> 0:12:01.079 your friends, your boss, they can love you more than anything, 0:12:01.320 --> 0:12:04.880 be totally for you. But only God can give you 0:12:04.960 --> 0:12:08.880 what you need. He'll use people, but people are limited. 0:12:09.559 --> 0:12:12.600 If you're depending on a person, it's not only going 0:12:12.640 --> 0:12:15.280 to frustrate you, but it's a lot of pressure on 0:12:15.440 --> 0:12:19.040 them when they take that weight of thinking I got 0:12:19.040 --> 0:12:23.000 a call and encourage and be there and cheer up 0:12:23.080 --> 0:12:26.480 and approve, and I can't let them down. That's a 0:12:26.559 --> 0:12:29.840 load they can't carry. You're trying to get from them 0:12:30.120 --> 0:12:33.439 what only God can give. The sooner you start building 0:12:33.480 --> 0:12:36.280 yourself up, the better off it's going to be for 0:12:36.400 --> 0:12:40.280 you and the others in your life. You weren't created 0:12:40.360 --> 0:12:44.200 to live relying on someone else, basing your work on 0:12:44.280 --> 0:12:48.920 who approves you. Approve yourself. Turn off that inner critic 0:12:49.080 --> 0:12:52.760 that's always putting you down. You're supposed to feel good 0:12:52.800 --> 0:12:55.720 about who you are now. I know you have flaws 0:12:56.240 --> 0:12:58.959 areas you need to improve in, so do I. But 0:12:59.000 --> 0:13:01.480 you don't have to wait till you're perfect to feel 0:13:01.520 --> 0:13:05.479 worthy and to feel approved. In the Book of Genesis, 0:13:05.800 --> 0:13:09.079 the earth was without form and voiding. God said, let 0:13:09.080 --> 0:13:12.360 there be light. And light came. And God saw the 0:13:12.440 --> 0:13:16.920 light and said that was good. He stopped and clapped 0:13:16.920 --> 0:13:21.240 for himself. I did good. What's interesting is there were 0:13:21.240 --> 0:13:26.240 no planets, no oceans, no animals, no people. He wasn't finished. 0:13:26.800 --> 0:13:28.680 There were still a lot of things that needed to 0:13:28.679 --> 0:13:32.160 be done, but he didn't wait till it was all complete. 0:13:32.480 --> 0:13:36.720 He celebrated along the way. On the second day, God 0:13:36.760 --> 0:13:40.560 separated the waters from the sky. He still hadn't made 0:13:40.559 --> 0:13:44.720 any fish, still no mountain ranges, still no sunsets. But 0:13:44.840 --> 0:13:47.680 at the end of the day, God said that was good. 0:13:48.280 --> 0:13:52.840 He stopped and applauded, complimented himself same thing after day three, 0:13:52.960 --> 0:13:56.680 day four, day five, even though it wasn't finished, he 0:13:56.760 --> 0:14:00.000 said it was good. The truth is none of them 0:14:00.120 --> 0:14:04.040 us or finished products. But God is still working on us, 0:14:04.480 --> 0:14:07.040 even though we have things we need to improve in. 0:14:07.559 --> 0:14:12.120 You shouldn't feel unworthy go around down on yourself trying 0:14:12.160 --> 0:14:16.080 to get people to approve you. God has already approved you. 0:14:16.559 --> 0:14:20.520 He's already accepted you. Why don't you start believing that 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:25.600 you're worthy, that you're valuable. Have you ever clapped for yourself? 0:14:26.320 --> 0:14:29.320 Or you too focused on your weaknesses? How you don't 0:14:29.360 --> 0:14:32.520 measure up and you're not as talented as that coworker. 0:14:33.360 --> 0:14:36.440 The enemy would love for you to feel unworthy, when 0:14:36.480 --> 0:14:40.760 in fact you're a masterpiece. The creator of the universe 0:14:40.800 --> 0:14:44.640 applauded for you. Why are you depending on people to 0:14:44.760 --> 0:14:49.000 tell you that you're good, you're talented, you're attractive. You're 0:14:49.040 --> 0:14:52.280 trying to get from them what God has already given you. 0:14:53.040 --> 0:14:56.960 Why don't you start building yourself up, declaring who God 0:14:57.000 --> 0:15:00.640 says you are. See, if you're relying on this from people, 0:15:00.840 --> 0:15:04.040 it's going to limit you. If you're basing your joy, 0:15:04.240 --> 0:15:07.760 your attitude, your self worth on who compliments you, and 0:15:07.800 --> 0:15:11.080 who claps for you, and who thinks you're attractive. Can 0:15:11.120 --> 0:15:15.000 I tell you don't need their applause. You can clap 0:15:15.040 --> 0:15:20.040 for yourself. You don't need their compliments. You can compliment yourself. 0:15:20.480 --> 0:15:23.560 Out of your belly shall flow rivers of living water. 0:15:24.560 --> 0:15:28.120 Some people that river is stopped up. They've lived their 0:15:28.160 --> 0:15:31.840 whole life trying to gain their approval and earn their 0:15:31.960 --> 0:15:35.560 value and convince people to clap for them. They live 0:15:35.680 --> 0:15:40.840 frustrated letting people manipulate them down on themselves because they're 0:15:40.880 --> 0:15:44.440 not getting the applause. Today can be a turning point. 0:15:45.120 --> 0:15:49.160 Quit looking to people and start looking to God. Nobody 0:15:49.240 --> 0:15:54.400 is complimenting you. Learn to compliment yourselves. Nobody buying you flowers, 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:58.280 Buy yourself some flowers. Nobody taking you to dinner, Take 0:15:58.280 --> 0:16:01.840 yourself to dinner. I know a young woman when she 0:16:01.960 --> 0:16:04.440 was in junior high. She didn't have a lot of friends. 0:16:04.960 --> 0:16:07.440 She had just moved to a new school and most 0:16:07.480 --> 0:16:10.600 of the students had grown up together and been friends 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:13.640 for years. She couldn't seem to break in and connect 0:16:13.720 --> 0:16:18.040 with anyone. During Valentine's Week, the school had a tradition 0:16:18.600 --> 0:16:22.000 where you could send another student a carnation. They were 0:16:22.040 --> 0:16:25.160 just twenty five cents. They would be delivered during home 0:16:25.240 --> 0:16:28.880 room on Valentine's Day in front of the whole class. 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:31.720 She knew she wasn't going to receive any because she 0:16:31.720 --> 0:16:35.800 didn't know anybody. She was dreading that day, knowing she's 0:16:35.840 --> 0:16:39.080 gonna feel left out and embarrassed by it all. Then 0:16:39.160 --> 0:16:42.240 she came up with an idea. She decided to send 0:16:42.240 --> 0:16:45.880 herself some flowers. She took five dollars and went down 0:16:45.920 --> 0:16:49.880 to the office and got twenty different forms so nobody 0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:53.320 would know it was the same person. On Valentine's Day, 0:16:53.840 --> 0:16:56.560 most of the girls got four or five carnations. The 0:16:56.640 --> 0:17:00.560 real popular girl got seven. But this young lady had 0:17:00.600 --> 0:17:04.600 every other carnation delivered to her. People were thinking, who 0:17:04.680 --> 0:17:07.960 is this girl? She has so many friends. They asked, 0:17:08.000 --> 0:17:11.399 who's this one from. She smiled and said, from someone 0:17:11.440 --> 0:17:16.679 that really thinks I'm special. You celebrate others, do you 0:17:16.680 --> 0:17:21.280 ever celebrate yourself? You're good to your friends, you encourage them, 0:17:21.640 --> 0:17:24.760 you build them up. Do you ever build yourself up? 0:17:25.600 --> 0:17:29.240 It's not selfish to be good to you. The more 0:17:29.320 --> 0:17:33.320 you applaud yourself. The less dependent you are on other 0:17:33.359 --> 0:17:36.479 people's applause, and the more secure you're going to be. 0:17:37.560 --> 0:17:40.800 I have a pastor friend in another state that used 0:17:40.840 --> 0:17:44.560 to call me every Sunday afternoon. He would speak at 0:17:44.560 --> 0:17:48.159 his two services in the morning, then come home and 0:17:48.320 --> 0:17:52.040 watch the replay of my message online. He's always so 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:55.840 encouraging and uplifting. He would tell me how good I 0:17:55.920 --> 0:17:59.119 did and how impactful it was. Man, I really like 0:17:59.200 --> 0:18:02.639 this point on, You'd think I was the greatest pastor ever. 0:18:02.920 --> 0:18:06.280 That was his personality. His whole nature was to build 0:18:06.320 --> 0:18:10.040 people up. But he told me later he would drive 0:18:10.119 --> 0:18:14.000 home every Sunday from his church thinking about how he 0:18:14.040 --> 0:18:17.879 didn't do good. That was too long, and that wasn't clear. 0:18:18.240 --> 0:18:21.399 I forgot to say this, he said. I never left 0:18:21.440 --> 0:18:25.760 my church one time feeling good about myself. I always 0:18:25.800 --> 0:18:30.520 went home disappointed. He knew how to compliment others, but 0:18:30.600 --> 0:18:33.960 he didn't know how to compliment himself. He clapped for 0:18:34.080 --> 0:18:37.720 me all the time, he was my biggest cheerleader, but 0:18:37.800 --> 0:18:41.040 he never clapped for himself. He was great at building 0:18:41.080 --> 0:18:45.159 me up, making me feel valuable, well able, but he 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:48.840 never built himself up. He listened to that inner critic, 0:18:49.200 --> 0:18:53.240 always finding fault, pushing him down. Don't go your whole 0:18:53.280 --> 0:18:56.600 life being good to others but never being good to you, 0:18:57.640 --> 0:19:02.080 encouraging them but not encouraging you, thinking highly of your friends, 0:19:02.080 --> 0:19:05.400 but not thinking highly of you. And yes, it's good 0:19:05.400 --> 0:19:08.479 to applaud others, but you have to learn to clap 0:19:08.520 --> 0:19:13.000 for yourself. They may be more successful, have more talent, 0:19:13.200 --> 0:19:16.679 more looks, but you have something they don't have. You 0:19:16.760 --> 0:19:20.679 are unique. You are one of a kind. Don't discount 0:19:21.080 --> 0:19:25.400 who you are. God didn't make anything second class, subpar. 0:19:26.040 --> 0:19:30.240 He calls you a masterpiece. When he created the solar system, 0:19:30.760 --> 0:19:34.080 he said that was good. The mountain range is good, 0:19:34.640 --> 0:19:38.360 the ocean's good. But when he breathed life into you, 0:19:38.800 --> 0:19:43.040 he said that was very good. Put your shoulders back, 0:19:43.680 --> 0:19:46.720 hold your head up high. When you clap for yourself, 0:19:47.040 --> 0:19:51.080 you're clapping for your creator. When you compliment yourself, you're 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:55.600 complimenting the God who've made you. When you build yourself up, 0:19:56.040 --> 0:20:02.919 you're saying God, I thank you for who I am. Blessed, wrong, talented, worthy, victorious. 0:20:03.359 --> 0:20:07.600 That's giving praise to God. Several years later, I was 0:20:07.640 --> 0:20:10.960 with this same pastor friend and I just finished an 0:20:11.040 --> 0:20:14.439 interview on a national network and it was live, a 0:20:14.480 --> 0:20:17.480 real big deal, and he came along with me. We 0:20:17.560 --> 0:20:20.119 got in the car afterwards and it was me and Victoria, 0:20:20.440 --> 0:20:23.359 him and one other close friend. I looked at them 0:20:23.359 --> 0:20:26.560 and said, wow, y'all, I did really good. I don't 0:20:26.560 --> 0:20:29.960 think I could have done any better. And I wasn't bragging. 0:20:30.000 --> 0:20:32.400 I was just grateful that I'd done well. I didn't 0:20:32.400 --> 0:20:36.280 think anything about saying that. He told me later that 0:20:36.400 --> 0:20:39.960 moment changed his life. He had never once said to 0:20:40.080 --> 0:20:43.800 himself that he had done good. He'd grown up with 0:20:43.840 --> 0:20:47.760 that negative recording playing in his mind. When he heard 0:20:47.800 --> 0:20:52.720 me being positive toward myself, a stronghold was broken in 0:20:52.800 --> 0:21:00.080 his thinking. He started applauding himself, approving himself, encouraging himself. 0:21:00.080 --> 0:21:03.320 You have enough people in life against you. Don't be 0:21:03.400 --> 0:21:07.760 against yourself. You need to be for you. You won't reach 0:21:07.840 --> 0:21:11.680 your destiny. Letting that inner critic always put you down. 0:21:12.320 --> 0:21:16.359 That causes you to feel inferior, insecure where you're trying 0:21:16.359 --> 0:21:19.520 to get approval and a pause from those around you, 0:21:20.000 --> 0:21:23.800 depending on them to keep you fixed. You can fix yourself. 0:21:24.720 --> 0:21:29.320 Every morning, reminds yourself who God says you are. Don't 0:21:29.359 --> 0:21:33.359 rely on other people build yourself up. When I first 0:21:33.359 --> 0:21:38.639 started ministring, I was very insecure and intimidated. I'd been 0:21:38.680 --> 0:21:41.920 behind the scenes for many years and I liked it there. 0:21:41.960 --> 0:21:44.560 I was comfortable, But now is out in front of people. 0:21:45.320 --> 0:21:48.800 I was very unsure of myself and I lived off 0:21:48.840 --> 0:21:52.560 of people's compliments. After the service, people would tell me Joel, 0:21:52.800 --> 0:21:56.560 that was so good today. I really enjoyed it. Those 0:21:56.640 --> 0:22:00.800 words help give me the strength the confidence to keep going. 0:22:01.600 --> 0:22:04.680 When I get up to minister that first year, people 0:22:04.720 --> 0:22:08.800 would cheer and cheer. They were so loyal to my parents. 0:22:09.000 --> 0:22:12.760 They wanted me to succeed so badly that they poured 0:22:12.800 --> 0:22:16.399 all their encouragement and support into Meand I could have 0:22:16.440 --> 0:22:20.240 talked about Moses defeating Goliath and David parting the red, 0:22:20.280 --> 0:22:23.520 say God it backwards, they still would have cheered. God 0:22:23.640 --> 0:22:29.200 knew that I needed that external applause, that outside validation 0:22:29.440 --> 0:22:33.720 and approval to keep moving forward. God will make sure 0:22:33.800 --> 0:22:37.320 that you have what you need every stage of your journey. 0:22:37.960 --> 0:22:40.520 And yes, there are times you need others speaking into 0:22:40.560 --> 0:22:44.320 your life, encouraging you, helping you to stay built up. 0:22:44.880 --> 0:22:47.879 But at some point God is going to remove that 0:22:48.560 --> 0:22:51.760 so it doesn't become a crutch to where you rely 0:22:52.000 --> 0:22:55.400 on others to keep you encouraged. You depend on your 0:22:55.440 --> 0:22:58.520 friends to keep your cheered up, your family to keep 0:22:58.560 --> 0:23:03.639 you feeling valuable. That's temporary provision. But like a mother 0:23:04.119 --> 0:23:07.159 wings a baby off the bottle, God is going to 0:23:07.200 --> 0:23:12.119 wean you off the external approval, the external applause. You 0:23:12.240 --> 0:23:15.240 have to learn to get that from the inside. Out 0:23:15.280 --> 0:23:18.959 of your belly shall flow rivers of living water. Instead 0:23:18.960 --> 0:23:23.320 of depending on others. You become self sufficient. That's what 0:23:23.359 --> 0:23:28.400 Paul said in Philippians. I am self sufficient in Christ's sufficiency. 0:23:28.880 --> 0:23:31.960 When you go to God, you're not dependent on others. 0:23:32.680 --> 0:23:35.639 In the first few years, every time I finished my 0:23:35.760 --> 0:23:39.879 message and walked off the platform, Victoria would say, Joel, 0:23:40.119 --> 0:23:44.160 that was amazing today, you did so good. She would 0:23:44.160 --> 0:23:47.639 always compliment me and make me feel so encouraged, and 0:23:47.960 --> 0:23:51.520 I look forward to it. I knew, like clockwork, Victoria 0:23:51.560 --> 0:23:56.400 will have this kind uplifting word. I didn't realize that's 0:23:56.440 --> 0:24:00.359 where I was getting my validation, my approval from people 0:24:00.400 --> 0:24:03.520 telling me I did good. One day, I walked off 0:24:03.520 --> 0:24:07.920 the platform and Victoria didn't say a word. I waited 0:24:08.119 --> 0:24:12.119 and waited and waited. She started asking me about something else. 0:24:12.680 --> 0:24:15.919 I answered real quickly, then kind of hinted about the 0:24:16.000 --> 0:24:20.199 message and trying to pull a compliment out. Unfortunately, she 0:24:20.240 --> 0:24:23.000 didn't get the hint. She turned in with the other way. 0:24:23.320 --> 0:24:26.600 I out, all, maybe she just preoccupied, has something else 0:24:26.640 --> 0:24:29.840 on her mind. I went to the lobby the old church, 0:24:30.080 --> 0:24:33.440 shook hands with several hundred visitors. Not one of them 0:24:33.880 --> 0:24:38.480 said anything about my message. Usually every other one just 0:24:38.520 --> 0:24:42.280 being courteous. Oh that was so good. The funny thing is, 0:24:42.359 --> 0:24:45.160 I knew it was a good message. I was confident, 0:24:45.680 --> 0:24:48.040 but I was waiting for someone else to tell me. 0:24:48.720 --> 0:24:52.600 I needed outside approval to feel good about it. I 0:24:52.680 --> 0:24:55.919 left the church that day feeling so discouraged. I got home. 0:24:56.600 --> 0:25:00.399 Our dog can hear the garage door going up, always 0:25:00.400 --> 0:25:03.600 at the back door, jumping up on me, so happy 0:25:03.600 --> 0:25:05.760 to see me. That's one thing I can count on. 0:25:06.240 --> 0:25:09.000 I opened the door and the dog was overlaying in 0:25:09.040 --> 0:25:13.399 her bed. She didn't even get up. She turned her 0:25:13.440 --> 0:25:15.840 head to look at me for like two seconds, then 0:25:15.920 --> 0:25:18.760 turned and looked away like she is saying, ah, it's 0:25:18.800 --> 0:25:23.560 just you, rolled over and went back to sleep. God 0:25:23.600 --> 0:25:27.639 will use your dog to work on you. What was happening. 0:25:28.320 --> 0:25:32.159 God was weaning me off having to have compliments and 0:25:32.240 --> 0:25:38.120 approve on validation from the outside. Yes, there may be 0:25:38.200 --> 0:25:41.600 seasons where you're getting that. Don't be surprised if God 0:25:41.640 --> 0:25:46.120 pulls it back. You can't reach your highest potential depending 0:25:46.160 --> 0:25:50.080 on others. It's great when people compliment you, but it's 0:25:50.119 --> 0:25:54.640 even more powerful when you can compliment yourself. It's nice 0:25:54.680 --> 0:25:58.960 when they applaud, they approve, they validate. The problem is 0:25:59.040 --> 0:26:02.600 you can't depend on people if they're keeping you fixed. 0:26:02.800 --> 0:26:06.359 That's temporary. God didn't create you to have to rely 0:26:06.560 --> 0:26:10.480 on someone else for your self worth, your approval, or 0:26:10.520 --> 0:26:14.439 even your encouragement. I love to encourage, but at some 0:26:14.560 --> 0:26:18.600 point you have to learn to encourage yourselves. Can't find 0:26:18.600 --> 0:26:21.800 me on television, Your cousin's not there. Your neighbor that 0:26:21.880 --> 0:26:25.040 you can always count on, it's not available. Take it 0:26:25.080 --> 0:26:28.760 as a compliment. God is growing you up. He's getting 0:26:28.800 --> 0:26:32.199 you ready for higher levels. The less you depend on 0:26:32.400 --> 0:26:37.040 other people, the more mature you are. My challenge today, 0:26:37.440 --> 0:26:41.679 start building yourself up. Nobody's clapping for you. Start clapping 0:26:41.720 --> 0:26:46.479 for yourself. No one is approving you, approve yourself. You 0:26:46.520 --> 0:26:49.639 don't have to go to people, go to your heavenly Father, 0:26:50.040 --> 0:26:53.200 the God who created you. If you'll do this, I 0:26:53.359 --> 0:26:59.440 believe in declare chains of insecurity, low self esteem, unworthiness, 0:26:59.560 --> 0:27:05.440 or being broken. Right now, God is breathing strength, value, freedom, healing. 0:27:05.760 --> 0:27:10.160 You're about to rise higher, accomplish dreams, and reach new 0:27:10.240 --> 0:27:14.359 levels of your destiny in Jesus' name, And if you 0:27:14.400 --> 0:27:18.600 receive it, can you say amen? I'd like to give 0:27:18.600 --> 0:27:21.760 you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. 0:27:22.040 --> 0:27:25.760 Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord, Jesus, I 0:27:25.880 --> 0:27:29.880 repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make 0:27:29.960 --> 0:27:33.640 you my Lord and savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, 0:27:33.680 --> 0:27:36.240 we believe you got born again and we'd love to 0:27:36.240 --> 0:27:38.560 send you some free information on your new walk with 0:27:38.600 --> 0:27:41.080 the Lord. You can text the number on the screen 0:27:41.160 --> 0:27:43.480 or go to the website. But I hope you'll get 0:27:43.480 --> 0:27:47.480 into a good Bible based church and keep God first place. 0:27:48.680 --> 0:27:52.320 Sometimes the difficulties of life can be so overwhelming you 0:27:52.359 --> 0:27:55.640 feel like you're stumbling around in the dark. Things are 0:27:55.640 --> 0:27:58.120 so bad you would need a miracle to change your 0:27:58.119 --> 0:28:01.200 situation even possible. 0:28:02.400 --> 0:28:05.480 We all face situations where we don't see a way out. 0:28:05.880 --> 0:28:08.320 It's easy to get discouraged and give up on what 0:28:08.320 --> 0:28:11.960 we're believing. For that's how we felt. In nineteen eighty one, 0:28:12.440 --> 0:28:15.600 my mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer and given a 0:28:15.600 --> 0:28:19.240 few weeks to live. Nothing could be done medically speaking, 0:28:19.600 --> 0:28:23.119 but she chose to believe that God is a miracle worker. Today, 0:28:23.160 --> 0:28:25.880 forty three years later, by the grace of God, she's 0:28:25.920 --> 0:28:29.479 still healthy and strong. I'm so grateful to be alive. 0:28:29.640 --> 0:28:32.919 I'm ninety years young. I thank God every day that 0:28:33.000 --> 0:28:35.320 he still does miracles. I'd love to send you by 0:28:35.400 --> 0:28:39.160 new book. It's called Miracles Happen. It's filled with powerful 0:28:39.200 --> 0:28:42.640 stories of miracles from the Scripture and real life stories 0:28:42.640 --> 0:28:45.400 of people that have seen the hand of God. It'll 0:28:45.440 --> 0:28:49.080 help build your faith so you can believe what seems impossible. 0:28:49.480 --> 0:28:51.840 God did it for my mother, He'll do it for you. 0:28:52.360 --> 0:28:54.600 As our way of saying thank you for your gift 0:28:54.640 --> 0:28:57.880 of any amount to the ministry this month, Joel and Victoria, 0:28:58.000 --> 0:29:01.240 we'd like to send you this powerful book, Miracles Happen 0:29:01.640 --> 0:29:06.400 your journey to supernatural breakthrough. This new book details thirty 0:29:06.440 --> 0:29:09.520 different miracles from the Word of God, and each one 0:29:09.680 --> 0:29:12.920 comes with an encouragement and application to your own life. 0:29:13.200 --> 0:29:18.760 God has miracles stored up for you, healing, freedom, favor, breakthroughs. 0:29:19.840 --> 0:29:24.080 Miracles still happen today, and faith is what activates God's power. 0:29:24.320 --> 0:29:27.560 When you believe all things are possible, that's when you'll 0:29:27.560 --> 0:29:30.840 see the hand of God do supernatural things in your life. 0:29:31.520 --> 0:29:34.000 Victory and I are standing in faith with you. We 0:29:34.080 --> 0:29:37.600 pray for you every day. We appreciate your prayer and support. 0:29:38.080 --> 0:29:41.640 Your generosity is impacting so many lives. Remember you can 0:29:41.720 --> 0:29:45.520 watch the services live online every Sunday morning. Download our 0:29:45.600 --> 0:29:50.040 daily podcast, watch on YouTube the new Joelosting Network, listen 0:29:50.080 --> 0:29:53.680 on Serious XM until we meet again. May the Lord 0:29:53.720 --> 0:29:55.000 bless you and keep you. 0:29:55.600 --> 0:29:58.760 Be sure to request your copy of Miracles Happen your 0:29:58.840 --> 0:30:03.400 journey to Supernatural Breakthrough today. Visit Joelostein dot com or 0:30:03.520 --> 0:30:06.440 call eight eight eight five six seven Joel