Expect Good Things

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The units 0:01:11.560 --> 0:01:14.080 stap makes it easy for grandparents and family friends to 0:01:14.160 --> 0:01:17.160 give funds to a child's investment account for a limited time. 0:01:17.240 --> 0:01:19.440 Download the uns stap and use the code I heeart 0:01:19.440 --> 0:01:21.720 fifty at sign up to receive a fifty dollars bonus 0:01:21.720 --> 0:01:24.280 when you fund your account. That's code iHeart fifty when 0:01:24.319 --> 0:01:27.280 you sign up at unest dot co for a fifty 0:01:27.319 --> 0:01:30.120 dollars bonus. See terms and conditions at UNEs dot co. 0:01:31.280 --> 0:01:34.000 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to 0:01:34.040 --> 0:01:37.200 our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you 0:01:37.280 --> 0:01:39.880 enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and 0:01:39.920 --> 0:01:42.720 share it with a friends, reappreciate you and pray for 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:58.400 God's very best in your life. Well, God bless you. 0:01:58.960 --> 0:02:01.840 It's a joy into your home. If you're ever in 0:02:01.920 --> 0:02:04.200 our area, stop by and be a part of one 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:06.640 of our services. I promise you will make you feel 0:02:06.680 --> 0:02:09.360 right at home. But thanks for tuning in today. I 0:02:09.480 --> 0:02:11.480 like to get started each week with something funny, and 0:02:11.800 --> 0:02:14.480 I heard about this nun. She worked in the home 0:02:14.560 --> 0:02:18.079 healthcare field and she traveled from house to house taking 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:20.880 care of people. One day, as she was making her rounds, 0:02:20.960 --> 0:02:23.520 she ran out of gas. There was a station just 0:02:23.560 --> 0:02:25.680 a couple blocks away, so she walked up there and 0:02:26.000 --> 0:02:28.520 asked the attendant for a gas can, but it had 0:02:28.560 --> 0:02:30.679 been checked out. He said it'll be two or three 0:02:30.680 --> 0:02:33.320 hours before it gets back. She didn't have time to wait, 0:02:33.360 --> 0:02:35.360 so she went back to her car and got a 0:02:35.400 --> 0:02:39.160 bedpan and filled it up with gasoline. She got back 0:02:39.200 --> 0:02:41.240 to her car, and as she was pouring the gas 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:44.480 into her tank from that bedpan, two men were passing by. 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:47.440 One man said to the other, if that car starts, 0:02:47.600 --> 0:02:50.480 I'll be in church every Sunday the rest of my life. 0:02:51.480 --> 0:02:53.799 All right, hold your bibles up. Say it like you 0:02:53.919 --> 0:02:57.080 mean it. This is my Bible. I am what it 0:02:57.080 --> 0:02:59.720 says I am. I have what it says I have. 0:03:00.240 --> 0:03:03.000 I can do what it says I can do. Today 0:03:03.040 --> 0:03:06.600 I will be taught the word of God. I boldly confess. 0:03:07.120 --> 0:03:11.080 My mind is alert, my heart is receptive. I'll never 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:15.760 be the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.960 want to talk to you today about living with expectancy. 0:03:19.840 --> 0:03:23.760 Our expectations set the limits for our life. And too 0:03:23.800 --> 0:03:27.200 many people are not expecting the right things. They don't 0:03:27.240 --> 0:03:30.320 expect to rise any higher, they don't expect to get 0:03:30.320 --> 0:03:33.639 good breaks. They go through the day expecting to get 0:03:33.639 --> 0:03:36.920 the short end of the stick. They don't realize their 0:03:37.000 --> 0:03:41.560 own wrong thinking is keeping them in mediocrity. God meets 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:46.440 us at the level of our expectations. If we expect little, 0:03:46.680 --> 0:03:50.400 we're going to receive little. If we don't expect anything 0:03:50.440 --> 0:03:53.800 to get better, it probably won't get any better. We 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:57.320 need to pay attention to what we're expecting. If we 0:03:57.400 --> 0:04:01.520 will learn to raise our level of expectancy and start 0:04:01.560 --> 0:04:06.160 expecting more favor, more good breaks, then we'll see God 0:04:06.240 --> 0:04:09.200 do greater things. And every morning, when we first get 0:04:09.200 --> 0:04:12.720 out of bed, we should say something good is going 0:04:12.760 --> 0:04:15.920 to happen to me today. We have to set the 0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:19.039 tone for the day right at the very beginning. Then 0:04:19.080 --> 0:04:22.400 all through the day we should have an attitude of expectancy, 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:25.799 like a little child that's about to open up a present. 0:04:26.320 --> 0:04:28.920 Be on the lookout thinking what's God going to do today? 0:04:29.560 --> 0:04:33.120 Instead of dragging around thinking nothing good ever happens to me. 0:04:33.680 --> 0:04:36.400 Start expecting to be at the right place at the 0:04:36.440 --> 0:04:41.520 right time. Start expecting to get good breaks, expect God's favor. 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:45.080 Don't go to the store not expecting to find what 0:04:45.160 --> 0:04:48.600 you need. Don't go interview for a job not expecting 0:04:48.640 --> 0:04:52.839 to get it. Your expectations is your faith at work. 0:04:53.480 --> 0:04:56.839 When you expect to get good breaks, you expect people 0:04:56.880 --> 0:04:58.920 to like you, and you expect to have a great 0:04:59.000 --> 0:05:02.840 year releasing your faith, and that's what allows God to 0:05:02.880 --> 0:05:07.320 bring it to pass. But our expectations work in both directions. 0:05:07.640 --> 0:05:10.120 If you get up in the morning expecting to have 0:05:10.160 --> 0:05:14.560 a lousy day, expecting people to be unfriendly, expecting not 0:05:14.640 --> 0:05:17.000 to get any breaks, then you're going to draw that 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:21.039 in Your faith is working, you're just using it in 0:05:21.080 --> 0:05:24.400 the wrong direction. I had a young person tell me 0:05:24.440 --> 0:05:26.680 a while back how he was about to take his 0:05:26.800 --> 0:05:30.080 final exams, and he had studied and studied, but he 0:05:30.160 --> 0:05:33.280 was very worried because every time in the past he 0:05:33.320 --> 0:05:36.840 would take an important test, he'd get very uptight and 0:05:36.880 --> 0:05:39.400 he couldn't remember what he had studied, and he'd ended 0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:42.159 up doing poor on that test. And he said, Joel, 0:05:42.480 --> 0:05:44.480 I wish you'd pray for me, because I know it's 0:05:44.520 --> 0:05:47.520 going to happen again. I told him what I'm telling you, 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:51.200 you're expecting the wrong things. You need to change your 0:05:51.279 --> 0:05:56.240 expectations and throughout the day start telling yourself, I'm expecting 0:05:56.360 --> 0:05:59.560 to do great on this test. I'm expecting God to 0:05:59.600 --> 0:06:03.040 bring them my memory everything that I've studied. I'm expecting 0:06:03.080 --> 0:06:06.240 to stay calm and be in peace. I saw him 0:06:06.279 --> 0:06:08.760 not long ago, he said, Joel, That's the best I've 0:06:08.760 --> 0:06:12.520 ever done on one of my final exams. Jesus said 0:06:12.520 --> 0:06:16.479 this in Matthew nine twenty nine. According to your faith, 0:06:16.839 --> 0:06:20.440 be it done unto you. One translation puts it so simple. 0:06:21.000 --> 0:06:24.760 Have what your faith expects. Let me ask you today, 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:29.080 what are you expecting in life? Big things, little things, 0:06:29.200 --> 0:06:33.120 nothing at all. It's easy to expect the worst. But 0:06:33.160 --> 0:06:36.200 if you can just switch over into faith and start 0:06:36.240 --> 0:06:41.160 expecting to excel, start expecting to accomplish your dreams, then 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:44.760 you will draw out God's blessings and favor. But some 0:06:44.920 --> 0:06:48.080 people have had a negative mindset so long they don't 0:06:48.120 --> 0:06:50.640 even realize they're doing this. It's just natural to them. 0:06:50.880 --> 0:06:53.920 They expect the worst, and they usually get it. They 0:06:53.960 --> 0:06:57.640 expect people to be unfriendly, and they usually are. I 0:06:57.680 --> 0:06:59.880 know this lady that had a lot of negative things 0:07:00.080 --> 0:07:02.320 happened to her and it was just like she was 0:07:02.360 --> 0:07:06.120 on autopilot. She expected people to hurt her, and they 0:07:06.200 --> 0:07:09.720 usually did. She expected to get laid off from her job, 0:07:10.080 --> 0:07:14.640 and eventually she did get laid off. Her own expectations 0:07:14.800 --> 0:07:18.040 were drawn in all the negative. One day she learned 0:07:18.040 --> 0:07:22.440 this principle and she started expecting God's favor. She started 0:07:22.480 --> 0:07:25.640 expecting people to be good to her. She started expecting 0:07:25.680 --> 0:07:29.240 to get breaks. Today it's a totally different story. She's 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:32.560 living a victorious life. You may have had a lot 0:07:32.600 --> 0:07:35.720 of disappointments in the past, but don't fall into that 0:07:35.840 --> 0:07:39.800 trap of staying in a negative frame of mind. Instead 0:07:39.800 --> 0:07:43.160 of expecting more of the same, start expecting God to 0:07:43.200 --> 0:07:46.880 turn it around. Don't expect to barely get by. Start 0:07:46.880 --> 0:07:51.960 expecting to excel. Don't expect to be overcome. Start expecting 0:07:52.240 --> 0:07:55.680 to be the overcomer. You may not always feel like it, 0:07:55.720 --> 0:07:57.760 but when you wake up in the morning, you need 0:07:57.800 --> 0:08:01.680 to remind yourself you are more than a conquer God 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:04.600 has great things in store, and you should go out 0:08:04.640 --> 0:08:09.000 excited about the day, expecting things to change in your favor. 0:08:09.760 --> 0:08:13.040 Our attitude should be I may have difficulties, but I'm 0:08:13.080 --> 0:08:16.920 expecting God to turn them around. My dreams may look impossible, 0:08:17.080 --> 0:08:20.320 but I'm expecting God to make a way. My finances 0:08:20.360 --> 0:08:23.440 may be kind of low, but I'm expecting supernatural increase. 0:08:24.080 --> 0:08:26.680 My child may not be doing right, but I'm expecting 0:08:26.800 --> 0:08:31.520 him to change. Get your faith out there. Our expectations 0:08:31.760 --> 0:08:34.880 are setting the limits for our life. I had somebody 0:08:34.920 --> 0:08:37.319 tell me one time, Joel, I don't like to expect 0:08:37.360 --> 0:08:40.400 anything good that way. If it doesn't happen, then I'm 0:08:40.400 --> 0:08:43.520 not disappointed. But that's no way to live. If you're 0:08:43.520 --> 0:08:47.800 not expecting something good, you're not releasing your faith. And 0:08:47.880 --> 0:08:50.080 if it doesn't happen the way you want or on 0:08:50.120 --> 0:08:53.600 your timetable, just know God has something better in store. 0:08:54.360 --> 0:08:57.160 Don't go through life trying to protect yourself from a 0:08:57.200 --> 0:09:01.200 disappointment by not expecting anything good. Well, you say, Joel, 0:09:01.240 --> 0:09:05.240 I'm not expecting anything bad. But really it's not enough 0:09:05.320 --> 0:09:09.200 to just not expect anything bad. You cannot be in 0:09:09.320 --> 0:09:13.040 neutral in your thought, life, in your expectations and have 0:09:13.160 --> 0:09:18.800 God's best. My question is are you aggressively expecting something good? 0:09:19.400 --> 0:09:22.000 Do you go out of the house expecting God's favor? 0:09:22.559 --> 0:09:25.719 Are you expecting your dreams to come to pass? Are 0:09:25.720 --> 0:09:28.480 you expecting to be better off this year than you 0:09:28.520 --> 0:09:32.880 were last year. Pay attention to what you're expecting. Maybe 0:09:32.880 --> 0:09:34.920 you're hearing you're single today, and if you have a 0:09:34.960 --> 0:09:37.760 desire to get married. Don't go around thinking this never 0:09:37.800 --> 0:09:41.640 gonna happen. I'm getting too old, I'm never gonna meet anybody. No, 0:09:41.800 --> 0:09:44.120 you need to start expecting to be at the right 0:09:44.200 --> 0:09:47.520 place at the right time. Start expecting God to bring 0:09:47.559 --> 0:09:52.400 you divine connections, the right people across your path. You say, Joel, 0:09:52.400 --> 0:09:54.800 what if I do this and nothing happens? What if 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:57.360 you do it and something does happen. I can tell 0:09:57.360 --> 0:10:01.560 you nothing's gonna happen. If we don't fir believe and 0:10:01.640 --> 0:10:04.960 I found, if we're not disciplined in our thought life, 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:09.240 in our expectations, then our mind will just default back 0:10:09.520 --> 0:10:14.679 into expecting the worst, expecting failure, expecting bad news. I 0:10:14.760 --> 0:10:17.800 know people that are just waiting for the next disaster. 0:10:18.440 --> 0:10:21.640 They live in fear. Everything can be going great, but 0:10:22.080 --> 0:10:24.599 they're sitting around thinking instead of enjoying it. When's it 0:10:24.640 --> 0:10:27.480 going to come to an end? I had somebody ask 0:10:27.600 --> 0:10:30.640 me a while back, Joe, you've got a beautiful family, 0:10:31.120 --> 0:10:33.559 You've been blessed in your life, you've had some success. 0:10:34.080 --> 0:10:36.720 Don't you ever worry that it's almost too good to 0:10:36.760 --> 0:10:39.360 be true. Don't you ever worry that something bad is 0:10:39.360 --> 0:10:41.800 going to happen. It's not gonna last. And I thought 0:10:41.840 --> 0:10:45.559 to myself, I don't even think like that. I've learned 0:10:45.840 --> 0:10:48.640 to not put my faith in the negative. I'm not 0:10:48.760 --> 0:10:53.040 expecting it to end and expecting failures and tragedies and mistakes. 0:10:53.360 --> 0:10:57.360 I'm expecting God's goodness. I know God is going before 0:10:57.440 --> 0:11:02.200 us making crooked places great. I know God has said 0:11:02.240 --> 0:11:05.000 no weapon formed against us is ever. We're gonna prosper. 0:11:05.600 --> 0:11:08.439 I'm not gonna live in fear, expecting the worst. I'm 0:11:08.440 --> 0:11:11.720 gonna live in faith and expect the best. And the 0:11:11.760 --> 0:11:15.480 fact is, even if the worst happens, I'm not gonna 0:11:15.520 --> 0:11:18.840 fall apart, get all upset, and so I just my luck. 0:11:18.880 --> 0:11:21.000 I should have known it wasn't gonna last. Now I'm 0:11:21.000 --> 0:11:23.720 gonna stay in faith and expect God to turn it around. 0:11:24.000 --> 0:11:26.320 I'm gonna expect to come out better off than I 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:30.920 was before. Don't go around expecting the worst. Somebody told 0:11:30.960 --> 0:11:33.880 me once, Joel, you're in a season of favor. You 0:11:33.960 --> 0:11:37.040 need to enjoy it. It's not gonna last forever. They 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:41.160 were trying to encourage me, but I just assume they 0:11:41.280 --> 0:11:45.640 kept that encouragement to themselves. There's a scripture in Psalms 0:11:45.800 --> 0:11:48.880 that says God's favor is not for a season, It's 0:11:48.880 --> 0:11:53.800 for a lifetime. When you're seeing God's goodness, When you're 0:11:53.840 --> 0:11:57.400 seeing God's blessings in favor, don't you dare go around thinking, well, 0:11:57.440 --> 0:11:59.560 I better enjoy it. I know it's not gonna last. 0:12:00.000 --> 0:12:02.920 You know, as long as you keep believing God's favor 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:05.600 is going to be on you for a lifetime, doesn't 0:12:05.640 --> 0:12:09.360 come and go. Even when it's difficult, his favor's there 0:12:09.440 --> 0:12:12.680 to help bring you out. The scripture says in Deuteronomy, 0:12:13.000 --> 0:12:16.760 if we will obey God's commands and keep him first place, 0:12:17.360 --> 0:12:21.800 his blessings will chase us down and overtake us. We 0:12:21.840 --> 0:12:26.960 need to start expecting God's goodness to overtake us, not failure, calamity, 0:12:27.280 --> 0:12:31.360 bad breaks. Don't sit around thinking nothing good ever happens 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:34.000 to me. I tried and I failed. It happened once, 0:12:34.040 --> 0:12:38.760 It'll probably happen again. No, don't expect setbacks, don't expect 0:12:38.760 --> 0:12:43.360 trouble and heartache. Release your faith by expecting God's favor, 0:12:43.640 --> 0:12:48.040 God's blessing, God's increase. Several years ago, I was in 0:12:48.080 --> 0:12:51.240 a difficult situation. Some things had come against me and 0:12:51.640 --> 0:12:54.280 they had the potential to turn out really bad. And 0:12:54.320 --> 0:12:56.720 it went on and on month after month, and my 0:12:56.840 --> 0:12:59.680 mind was going ninety to nothing, telling me all the 0:12:59.679 --> 0:13:02.360 reasons why it wasn't going to work out, how bad 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:05.160 it was going to be. And I was very tempted 0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:10.040 to expect the worst. If we're not disciplined in our expectations, 0:13:10.080 --> 0:13:13.120 in our thoughts, most of the time our mind will 0:13:13.120 --> 0:13:16.240 play out the worst case scenarios. And I was reading 0:13:16.240 --> 0:13:18.840 the scriptures one day and saw one twelve and it 0:13:18.960 --> 0:13:22.960 says we do not have to fear bad news. I 0:13:23.040 --> 0:13:25.240 made a decision that day. I wasn't going to live 0:13:25.280 --> 0:13:28.160 in fear. I wasn't going to expect the worst anymore. 0:13:28.400 --> 0:13:31.160 I turned it over to God and started expecting for 0:13:31.240 --> 0:13:33.920 him to turn it around. Every time I was tempted 0:13:33.920 --> 0:13:36.679 to worry, every time I was tempted to lose my joy, 0:13:36.800 --> 0:13:39.880 I'd say, no, God is in control, and I'm expecting 0:13:39.920 --> 0:13:43.079 this to work out to my advantage. Years so later, 0:13:43.320 --> 0:13:45.600 I got a call out of the blue telling me 0:13:45.640 --> 0:13:48.400 that it had totally resolved. God had changed it in 0:13:48.440 --> 0:13:51.760 my favor. But it's easy to expect the worst. You 0:13:51.800 --> 0:13:53.959 know how, you have a pain in your side, something 0:13:53.960 --> 0:13:55.120 I'll tell you that's cancer. 0:13:55.200 --> 0:13:55.400 Man. 0:13:56.080 --> 0:13:58.679 They're laying off people at your company, even in another state. 0:13:58.760 --> 0:14:01.040 Something will tell you your next You better pack up. What 0:14:01.040 --> 0:14:04.679 are you gonna do? Don't expect the worst, don't fear 0:14:04.760 --> 0:14:08.760 bad news, keep expecting God to turn it around. And 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:12.000 even if it doesn't work out, even if you do 0:14:12.120 --> 0:14:15.480 get bad news, you don't have to get all upset. 0:14:15.559 --> 0:14:18.280 God is still on the throne. He's given you strength 0:14:18.320 --> 0:14:22.400 for every battle. Instead of saying I knew this wasn't 0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:24.840 gonna work out, no, just say God, I know you're 0:14:24.880 --> 0:14:28.080 bigger than this problem. I'm not gonna get discouraged. I'm 0:14:28.120 --> 0:14:30.960 expecting any moment for you to show up and change 0:14:31.000 --> 0:14:34.400 things in my favor. What I'm saying is, let's stop 0:14:34.720 --> 0:14:38.640 expecting calamity and trouble to overtake us, and let's start 0:14:38.680 --> 0:14:43.400 expecting God's blessings and favor to overtake us. David put 0:14:43.440 --> 0:14:46.960 it this way, what would have become of me had 0:14:47.000 --> 0:14:50.560 I not believed to see the goodness of God? What 0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:52.800 he was saying, was what would have happened to me 0:14:53.240 --> 0:14:55.920 if I had not had the right expectations? Where would 0:14:55.920 --> 0:14:58.960 I be if I had not believed and expected God's 0:14:59.000 --> 0:15:02.360 blessings and faith. I know some of you feel like 0:15:02.400 --> 0:15:05.600 you've had a thousand things go wrong. Life has dealt 0:15:05.640 --> 0:15:08.920 you some tough blows. That dark cloud tries to follow 0:15:08.960 --> 0:15:12.120 you around, kind of like a heaviness. It's constantly telling 0:15:12.160 --> 0:15:15.280 you it's never gonna change, it's never gonna get any better. 0:15:15.320 --> 0:15:18.360 You can't expect good things. You need to shake off 0:15:18.400 --> 0:15:22.040 those lives. God is saying today, this is a new day, 0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:25.000 and I have great things in store for you. You need 0:15:25.040 --> 0:15:27.640 to draw the line in the sand, say it may 0:15:27.680 --> 0:15:30.160 not have happened in the past, but that's not gonna 0:15:30.200 --> 0:15:32.920 keep me from believing for the future. This is my 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:35.600 time for increase, this is my time for favor. I'm 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:40.800 expecting to have a blessed and prosperous new year. It 0:15:40.920 --> 0:15:45.000 says in Psalms that goodness and mercy will follow us 0:15:45.080 --> 0:15:47.600 all the days of our lives. In the past, you 0:15:47.680 --> 0:15:51.280 may feel like disappointments and setbacks have followed you around, 0:15:51.680 --> 0:15:53.760 but you need to let go of everything that didn't 0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:56.600 work out. Let go of every disappointment, let go of 0:15:56.640 --> 0:16:01.200 every person that hurts you, and start expecting goodness and 0:16:01.280 --> 0:16:04.600 mercy to follow you everywhere you go. Matter of fact, 0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:06.720 sometimes it's good to look back and say, hey, goodness, 0:16:06.720 --> 0:16:09.680 hey mercy, how y'all doing back there? Make sure you 0:16:09.800 --> 0:16:14.360 keep up with me. But some people are constantly looking 0:16:14.680 --> 0:16:18.080 for the next disaster. They're looking for the next bad break, 0:16:18.120 --> 0:16:21.680 looking for the next failure. No change what you're looking for. 0:16:22.120 --> 0:16:27.640 Start looking for goodness, mercy, favor, blessings, promotion. That's what's 0:16:27.640 --> 0:16:30.520 supposed to be following us around. And when I think 0:16:30.560 --> 0:16:34.760 about how God is going before us, making crooked places straight, 0:16:35.480 --> 0:16:39.840 goodness and mercy are following us. Favor is surrounding us. 0:16:40.360 --> 0:16:42.520 No wonder we can stay in faith, no wonder we 0:16:42.560 --> 0:16:47.200 can expect good things. God is in control, He has 0:16:47.280 --> 0:16:49.960 us in the palm of his hand. He knows the 0:16:50.200 --> 0:16:54.520 end from the beginning. He's already said he has arranged 0:16:54.880 --> 0:16:57.840 the good life for each one of us. When we're 0:16:57.920 --> 0:17:02.080 positive and hopeful expect in good things, then we're in 0:17:02.400 --> 0:17:06.440 agreement with the creator of the universe. But when we're negative, worried, 0:17:06.520 --> 0:17:09.840 expecting the worst, we're in agreement with the enemy. We 0:17:09.960 --> 0:17:12.520 have to choose who we're going to get in agreement with. 0:17:13.480 --> 0:17:15.840 And I'm not saying that when we expect good things, 0:17:16.000 --> 0:17:18.439 we'll never have a problem and every day we'll be perfect. 0:17:18.600 --> 0:17:22.359 Of course not. But when we expect the best, even 0:17:22.400 --> 0:17:25.399 when negative things happen, we can say, God, I know 0:17:25.440 --> 0:17:28.719 you're still in control, and I'm expecting this to turn around. 0:17:29.600 --> 0:17:32.320 Every morning. I've gotten into a habit. I never leave 0:17:32.400 --> 0:17:36.280 the house without saying something good is going to happen 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:40.560 to me today. It's important to declare that over your life. 0:17:41.240 --> 0:17:44.840 Words have creative power. Well, you say, Joel, does something 0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:47.520 good happen to you every single day? Not at all? 0:17:47.800 --> 0:17:49.960 Some days everything in the world that can go wrong. 0:17:50.040 --> 0:17:52.159 Does you know what I do? I get up the 0:17:52.160 --> 0:17:55.160 next morning and say, something good is going to happen 0:17:55.160 --> 0:17:58.120 to me today. You got to be determined. You've got 0:17:58.160 --> 0:18:02.080 to be persistent. I'm not talking about trying this for 0:18:02.160 --> 0:18:06.000 three days to see if it works. I'm talking about 0:18:06.040 --> 0:18:11.440 developing a lifestyle of expecting the best, not expecting things 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:14.520 to not work out, things to go wrong. I'm expecting 0:18:14.520 --> 0:18:17.720 to have a productive day, not expecting to barely get 0:18:17.760 --> 0:18:21.840 by I'm expecting to live an abundant life, not expecting 0:18:21.960 --> 0:18:25.560 problems and always be struggling. I'm expecting God to turn 0:18:25.600 --> 0:18:29.439 it around. I know we are victors and not victims. 0:18:29.920 --> 0:18:32.280 It's all in our mindset, it's all in our approach 0:18:32.359 --> 0:18:35.880 to life. The scripture says in Isaiah thirty verse eighteen, 0:18:36.520 --> 0:18:39.919 God is longing to be good to the people that 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:43.000 are looking for his goodness. Let me ask you today, 0:18:43.560 --> 0:18:47.000 what are you looking for? What are you expecting? Do 0:18:47.080 --> 0:18:51.879 you go out expecting favor, promotion, God's blessings, or do 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:55.480 you go around expecting the worst, thinking that you've reached 0:18:55.480 --> 0:18:58.320 your limits. You've got so many problems you don't think 0:18:58.359 --> 0:19:02.159 it'll ever change. You know you're missing out. God is 0:19:02.320 --> 0:19:05.560 longing to be good to you. He wants to show 0:19:05.600 --> 0:19:08.280 you more of his favor. He wants to do more 0:19:08.320 --> 0:19:10.600 than you can even imagine. But you've got to do 0:19:10.680 --> 0:19:14.000 your part. Number one, we have to walk in obedience, 0:19:14.040 --> 0:19:17.360 of course, and number two, you have to be looking 0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:21.440 for God's goodness. Some of you, this is exactly what's 0:19:21.480 --> 0:19:25.080 holding you back. You're not expecting anything good. You're not 0:19:25.200 --> 0:19:28.520 expecting your marriage to get better. You're not expecting your 0:19:28.600 --> 0:19:33.440 dreams and desires to come to pass. Without the right expectations, 0:19:33.600 --> 0:19:37.040 we lose our enthusiasm for life, we lose our passion. 0:19:37.480 --> 0:19:40.520 That's why many people are just dragging through the day. 0:19:40.640 --> 0:19:44.800 The scripture says, this hope deferred makes the heart sick. 0:19:45.680 --> 0:19:50.280 One definition of hope is happy anticipation of something good. 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:54.320 When you're anticipating something good, it's going to give you joy. 0:19:54.520 --> 0:19:57.560 It's going to give you enthusiasm. When you know God's 0:19:57.600 --> 0:20:01.639 working behind the scenes, arranging things in your favor, about 0:20:01.640 --> 0:20:04.320 to bring your dreams to pass. Then you'll go out 0:20:04.320 --> 0:20:08.199 with expectancy, with the spring in your step. But if 0:20:08.240 --> 0:20:12.280 you're not anticipating anything good, you'll just rag through the day, 0:20:12.720 --> 0:20:16.120 going through the motions of life. No joy, no enthusiasm, 0:20:16.200 --> 0:20:21.160 no passion. Friends, God has created us to have something 0:20:21.320 --> 0:20:24.440 good to look forward to. You need to stir up 0:20:24.480 --> 0:20:27.520 the dreams and desires that He's placed in your hearts, 0:20:27.920 --> 0:20:32.359 and every day you should anticipate God's showing up and 0:20:32.400 --> 0:20:36.119 doing great things in your life. He's longing to be 0:20:36.200 --> 0:20:40.359 good to you. He's searching right now for someone to 0:20:40.520 --> 0:20:44.320 shower his blessings and favor. The question is are you 0:20:44.440 --> 0:20:48.760 looking for God's goodness. Somebody asked me one time, Joel, 0:20:48.800 --> 0:20:52.119 what's the secret of your success, what's the secret of 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:55.480 God's favor on your life? I told him two things. 0:20:55.680 --> 0:20:57.879 Number One, I've always done my best to keep my 0:20:57.960 --> 0:21:02.840 heart pure before Godnumber Two, I've learned this principle of 0:21:02.920 --> 0:21:07.160 expecting good things. I've done it so long it's ingrained 0:21:07.280 --> 0:21:10.640 in my thinking, even in my subconscious mind. All through 0:21:10.640 --> 0:21:14.440 the day. I'm expecting God's favor. I'm expecting blessings. I'm 0:21:14.480 --> 0:21:18.439 expecting good breaks. And just as you train yourself to 0:21:18.520 --> 0:21:21.879 expect the worst, you can train yourself to expect the best. 0:21:22.440 --> 0:21:25.760 And I don't say this arrogantly, but I expect people 0:21:25.800 --> 0:21:28.439 to like me. Maybe I naive, I don't know, but 0:21:28.480 --> 0:21:30.640 do me a favor and lead me in my ignorance. 0:21:32.240 --> 0:21:38.600 When I go somewhere, I don't have these walls up, defensive, intimidated, insecure. 0:21:38.840 --> 0:21:41.440 They're probably not gonna like me. They're probably talking about 0:21:41.480 --> 0:21:45.359 me right now. No, I expect God's favor to cause 0:21:45.400 --> 0:21:48.520 people to be drawn to me. I expect when people 0:21:48.600 --> 0:21:50.960 turn me on on the television, they won't be able 0:21:51.000 --> 0:21:55.960 to turn me off. I expect. I expect when people 0:21:56.000 --> 0:21:58.119 see my books in the stores, They'll be drawn to it, 0:21:58.200 --> 0:22:01.600 want to read them. I'm talking to having an attitude 0:22:01.720 --> 0:22:05.000 of expecting good things. I don't know about you, but 0:22:05.080 --> 0:22:07.960 I'm expecting this year to be better than last year. 0:22:08.560 --> 0:22:13.640 I'm expecting God's blessings to overtake us. I'm expecting us 0:22:13.640 --> 0:22:17.200 to rise to new levels in our careers, in our finances, 0:22:17.200 --> 0:22:21.359 in our relationships. I'm expecting our children to be mighty 0:22:21.400 --> 0:22:25.040 in the land. I'm expecting God to take our ministry 0:22:25.200 --> 0:22:29.520 where no ministry's gone before. I'm expecting us to overcome 0:22:29.640 --> 0:22:34.840 every obstacle. I'm expecting us to fulfill every dream, every 0:22:34.880 --> 0:22:37.959 desire God's put in our hearts. Some of you today 0:22:38.240 --> 0:22:41.240 you need to get your expector out. That thing needs 0:22:41.240 --> 0:22:43.520 to be overhauled. You hadn't used it in six months. 0:22:44.440 --> 0:22:47.840 You need to start expecting greater things for your own life. 0:22:48.440 --> 0:22:52.679 Start expecting to rise higher. Start expecting every enemy in 0:22:52.760 --> 0:22:57.919 your life to be defeated. Start expecting supernatural opportunities. Start 0:22:57.960 --> 0:23:02.600 expecting favor at work, favor at home, favor at the 0:23:02.600 --> 0:23:06.560 grocery store, favor on the freeway. God's longing to be 0:23:06.640 --> 0:23:09.639 good to you. He's looking out over the heavens right now. 0:23:09.800 --> 0:23:14.200 But you've got to get in position. What's the position expectancy, 0:23:14.600 --> 0:23:17.639 that's what gets God's attention. You remember the lady in 0:23:17.680 --> 0:23:20.919 March chapter five. She had been sick for twelve years 0:23:20.920 --> 0:23:23.800 with some kind of bleeding disorder. The doctors had told 0:23:23.800 --> 0:23:26.640 her there's nothing more they could do. Now she's at home, 0:23:26.720 --> 0:23:29.359 no doubt, thinking that it's over. She could have easily 0:23:29.400 --> 0:23:33.440 gone back to bed, depressed, defeated, but she did exactly 0:23:33.480 --> 0:23:36.840 what we're talking about. She heard that Jesus was passing 0:23:36.880 --> 0:23:40.680 through her town, and she started saying to herself over 0:23:40.800 --> 0:23:43.680 and over, I know if I can get to him, 0:23:44.160 --> 0:23:47.679 I will be made home. What was she doing? Releasing 0:23:47.720 --> 0:23:51.720 her faith, expecting to get better. She fought her way 0:23:51.760 --> 0:23:54.840 through the crowd and eventually got to Jesus and touched 0:23:54.840 --> 0:23:58.040 the edge of his robe, and instantly she was made home. 0:23:58.840 --> 0:24:02.159 And Jesus stopped, said to his disciples, who just touched me? 0:24:02.800 --> 0:24:05.480 They were kind of confused, they said, Jesus, his crowded, 0:24:05.480 --> 0:24:09.359 everybody's touching you. He said, no, somebody touched me with 0:24:09.400 --> 0:24:13.840 such faith, with such expectancy that they drew the supernatural 0:24:13.880 --> 0:24:18.679 power right out of me. Friends, When we live with expectancy, 0:24:19.119 --> 0:24:22.240 we can stop God in his tracks. When we expect 0:24:22.320 --> 0:24:26.119 good things, it gets God's attention. If you're facing a 0:24:26.200 --> 0:24:30.240 sickness today, don't sit back expecting the worst. Hell, Joel, 0:24:30.280 --> 0:24:32.680 I'll probably never get better. I got a bad report. 0:24:33.080 --> 0:24:36.040 Now let me give you another report. With God, all 0:24:36.119 --> 0:24:41.320 things are possible. God's report says you will live and 0:24:41.359 --> 0:24:44.040 not die and declare the works of the Lord. Why 0:24:44.080 --> 0:24:47.320 don't you start expecting God to turn it around instead 0:24:47.320 --> 0:24:50.480 of expecting the worst. Start expecting God to bring you 0:24:50.560 --> 0:24:53.680 out of it better off than you were before. Some 0:24:53.720 --> 0:24:57.520 of you today you are not expecting enough. You need 0:24:57.560 --> 0:25:02.400 to raise your level of expectancy. You've gotten too easily satisfied. 0:25:02.920 --> 0:25:05.520 God's been good to you in the past. You feel 0:25:05.640 --> 0:25:08.680 very blessed, and there's this tendency to just sit back 0:25:08.720 --> 0:25:12.000 and kind of coast. But let me assure you God 0:25:12.040 --> 0:25:15.960 has more in store. He's trying to stir your faith. 0:25:16.400 --> 0:25:19.760 He's trying to convince you to believe for new levels. 0:25:20.359 --> 0:25:24.240 You have not seen your greatest accomplishments yet. There are 0:25:24.280 --> 0:25:28.240 new mountains to climb, there are new horizons to explore. 0:25:29.000 --> 0:25:31.840 God's dream for your life is so much bigger than 0:25:31.840 --> 0:25:37.160 your own. Don't stop believing. Don't let past disappointments steal 0:25:37.240 --> 0:25:40.520 the dreams out of your heart. Don't let what somebody 0:25:40.560 --> 0:25:43.800 did to you cause you to get soured on life. 0:25:43.880 --> 0:25:47.160 God is still in control. He's saying, if you will 0:25:47.280 --> 0:25:50.679 raise your level of expectancy, he'll take you places that 0:25:50.720 --> 0:25:53.760 you've never even dreamed of, says in Isaiah fifty four 0:25:53.760 --> 0:25:57.439 to two. Enlarge the place of your tents. Let the 0:25:57.480 --> 0:26:01.720 curtains of your habitation be stretched forth. Spare not lengthen 0:26:01.760 --> 0:26:06.000 your cords, strengthen your stakes. What's God saying, get ready 0:26:06.040 --> 0:26:12.040 for more, make room for increase, enlarge your tents. In 0:26:12.080 --> 0:26:17.360 other words, start expecting more favor, start expecting supernatural breaks, 0:26:17.760 --> 0:26:22.040 Start expecting negative situations to turn around. It may not 0:26:22.080 --> 0:26:24.679 have happened in the past, but God is saying it 0:26:24.720 --> 0:26:27.560 can happen in the future. Don't get stuck in a rut. 0:26:27.920 --> 0:26:30.080 God doesn't want us to be at this same place 0:26:30.160 --> 0:26:33.359 next year as we are right now. He wants to 0:26:33.440 --> 0:26:38.000 increase you. He wants to give you more influence. He 0:26:38.080 --> 0:26:40.639 wants you to be better off in your health, in 0:26:40.680 --> 0:26:44.640 your relationships, in your finances. You've not reached your limits. 0:26:44.920 --> 0:26:47.359 There are gifts and talents on the inside of you 0:26:47.440 --> 0:26:50.400 right now that you've not yet tapped into. You are 0:26:50.440 --> 0:26:53.360 full of incredible potential, and some of you have had 0:26:53.359 --> 0:26:56.240 a lot of negative things come against you, and it's 0:26:56.320 --> 0:26:59.480 tried to steal those seeds of greatness. But I believe 0:26:59.520 --> 0:27:03.880 today something new is happening on the inside. Those seeds 0:27:03.920 --> 0:27:07.240 are taking root in a greater way. Faith is rising 0:27:07.320 --> 0:27:09.639 in your hearts. You need to draw the line in 0:27:09.680 --> 0:27:13.480 the sand and say that's it. I'm done with low expectations. 0:27:13.760 --> 0:27:17.240 I'm done with living in mediocrity. I'm expecting more of 0:27:17.320 --> 0:27:22.200 God's favor. I'm expecting his goodness to overtake me. I'm 0:27:22.240 --> 0:27:26.560 expecting this year to be my best year so far. Friends, 0:27:26.600 --> 0:27:29.200 God works where there's an attitude of faith. If we're 0:27:29.240 --> 0:27:32.040 not expecting to rise any higher, then it'll keep us 0:27:32.080 --> 0:27:36.000 right where we are. Psalm thirty one nineteen says God 0:27:36.080 --> 0:27:39.960 has blessings stored up for those that honor him. I 0:27:40.040 --> 0:27:43.040 believe today you're going to begin to walk into your 0:27:43.080 --> 0:27:46.800 blessings that God has already stored up for you because 0:27:46.840 --> 0:27:50.160 you've honored God by living a life of integrity, by 0:27:50.240 --> 0:27:53.440 expecting good things, and I believe you're gonna come into 0:27:53.480 --> 0:27:57.119 new levels of favor. I believe that you're gonna see 0:27:57.160 --> 0:28:01.199 supernatural doors begin to open. You're gonna overcome obstacles that 0:28:01.280 --> 0:28:04.199 you once thought were impossible. You're gonna see God do 0:28:04.359 --> 0:28:08.560 new unusual things in your life. When you go out 0:28:08.600 --> 0:28:11.959 each day, you need to just imagine, right now in 0:28:12.000 --> 0:28:17.080 your path, there are blessings favor, increase, promotion. They already 0:28:17.119 --> 0:28:19.240 have your name on it. It's just a matter of 0:28:19.280 --> 0:28:23.119 time before you come across them. Keep believing, keep expecting, 0:28:23.720 --> 0:28:26.440 don't fear bad news, don't expect the worst. We're gonna 0:28:26.480 --> 0:28:29.600 have exactly what we expect. Let's get up every morning 0:28:29.640 --> 0:28:32.280 and just declare it by faith, something good is going 0:28:32.359 --> 0:28:34.760 to happen to me today. Then all through the day. 0:28:34.840 --> 0:28:38.400 Don't expect trouble to overtake you. Expect God's blessings to 0:28:38.440 --> 0:28:42.680 overtake you. Don't expect calamity to chase you down. Expect 0:28:42.680 --> 0:28:46.120 goodness and mercy to chase you down. If you'll raise 0:28:46.160 --> 0:28:49.840 your level of expectancy instead of expecting the worst, expect 0:28:49.880 --> 0:28:52.840 the best. I know God's gonna pour out his blessings 0:28:52.840 --> 0:28:55.479 in favor. You're gonna rise to new levels and you're 0:28:55.480 --> 0:28:58.160 gonna live the life of victory he has in story. Amen. 0:28:58.600 --> 0:29:02.320 Can you say then today? Well, we never like to 0:29:02.360 --> 0:29:05.720 close our broadcast without giving you an opportunity to make 0:29:05.840 --> 0:29:08.480 Jesus the lord of your life. Would you pray with me? 0:29:09.160 --> 0:29:14.320 Just say, Lord, Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come 0:29:14.360 --> 0:29:19.160 into my heart. I make you my Lord and savior. Friends, 0:29:19.160 --> 0:29:21.440 if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got 0:29:21.440 --> 0:29:24.640 born again. Get in a good Bible based church. Keep 0:29:24.680 --> 0:29:27.239 God first place. He's going to take your places that 0:29:27.280 --> 0:29:28.240 you've never dreamed of. 0:29:29.000 --> 0:29:31.880 Thank you for listening to the joel OUs Deine podcast. 0:29:32.200 --> 0:29:34.840 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:29:34.960 --> 0:29:38.920 those all over the world. Visit Joelostin dot com slash 0:29:39.000 --> 0:29:41.000 give Hope to give a gift today. 0:29:42.280 --> 0:29:45.200 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:45.200 --> 0:29:48.600 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:48.680 --> 0:29:51.880 keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. 0:29:52.040 --> 0:29:54.520 I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you 0:29:54.560 --> 0:29:55.160 next time. 0:30:02.400 --> 0:30:04.720 We live in a world of information overload. When it 0:30:04.720 --> 0:30:07.120 comes to your health and wellness, it can be overwhelming 0:30:07.120 --> 0:30:10.200 to differentiate between sound advice and harmful faths. Let A 0:30:10.240 --> 0:30:12.800 Sense of Wellness Podcast be your trusted go to for 0:30:12.880 --> 0:30:16.120 discerning health and wellness information. 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