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Next Level Thinking Book Q&A

Joel Osteen
October 3, 2018 45m 15s

About this sermon

Joel and Victoria discuss topics and answer questions from Next Level Thinking, Joel's latest book. You can get Next Level Thinking now at JoelOsteen.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Source: Joel Osteen

Transcript

0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:02.880 No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.040 Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:07.760 in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.360 you could unlock insights about your finances in less than 0:00:10.360 --> 0:00:12.840 five minutes, with a clear picture of where you stand 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:15.720 today and where your money can work harder. Now you 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.759 can visit facet dot com to take the free quiz 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:23.400 and get your financial wellness score today. That's Facet dot com. 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:25.360 This ad is sponsored by Facet. Fast Wealth in Corporated 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.280 is an sec registered investment advisor. This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.120 Are you ready to move your career forward? Make your 0:00:33.159 --> 0:00:36.640 comeback with Perdue Global and get college credit for your work, school, life, 0:00:36.720 --> 0:00:39.840 or military e

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0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:02.880 No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.040 Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:07.760 in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.360 you could unlock insights about your finances in less than 0:00:10.360 --> 0:00:12.840 five minutes, with a clear picture of where you stand 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:15.720 today and where your money can work harder. Now you 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.759 can visit facet dot com to take the free quiz 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:23.400 and get your financial wellness score today. That's Facet dot com. 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:25.360 This ad is sponsored by Facet. Fast Wealth in Corporated 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.280 is an sec registered investment advisor. This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.120 Are you ready to move your career forward? Make your 0:00:33.159 --> 0:00:36.640 comeback with Perdue Global and get college credit for your work, school, life, 0:00:36.720 --> 0:00:39.840 or military experiences. With these credits, you may have already 0:00:39.840 --> 0:00:42.680 completed up to seventy five percent of your undergraduate degree. 0:00:42.720 --> 0:00:44.800 You've worked hard to get where you are. It's time 0:00:44.840 --> 0:00:46.920 to get the recognition you deserve and earn a degree 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:49.600 you'll be proud of, one that employers will trust and 0:00:49.720 --> 0:00:51.840 respect when you take the next step in your life 0:00:51.880 --> 0:00:55.040 and career. Make it count with Perdue Global produce online 0:00:55.120 --> 0:00:59.720 University for working adults. 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See terms and conditions at 0:01:29.360 --> 0:01:30.080 UNEs dot co. 0:01:40.880 --> 0:01:44.720 Hey welcome everybody. We are so glad to have your 0:01:44.800 --> 0:01:48.120 tuning in. We loved you, We're praying for you. We 0:01:48.160 --> 0:01:50.760 believe that twenty eighteen is going to be an amazing 0:01:50.880 --> 0:01:54.240 year in your life, a year where God exceeds your expectations. 0:01:54.400 --> 0:01:57.120 Thanks for tuning in. I'm here with my beautiful wife Victoria, 0:01:57.360 --> 0:01:59.440 my friend Nick Nielson. Nick. Can I see that I've 0:01:59.440 --> 0:02:02.240 got a new book out. It's called Next Level Thinking. 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:05.960 It's ten powerful thoughts for a successful and Abundant Life, 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:08.799 and it comes out this Tuesday, but hope you'll pick 0:02:08.840 --> 0:02:10.880 up a copy and we'll talk a little bit about it. Today. 0:02:11.200 --> 0:02:14.640 I'm sitting here with a couple of hundred of the finest, 0:02:14.800 --> 0:02:18.200 most powerful anointed pastors and all of America right here. 0:02:18.240 --> 0:02:20.400 So guys and ladies, thank you so much for being 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:22.239 with us. We're going to have a great time. But Nick, 0:02:22.280 --> 0:02:24.560 thanks for being a part in Victoria. Say hello, Dinbo, No. 0:02:24.600 --> 0:02:27.120 I'm excited about this webcast. We're going to have a 0:02:27.160 --> 0:02:28.840 great time. And who doesn't want to go to the 0:02:28.880 --> 0:02:30.920 next level in they're thinking, I know, I do. 0:02:31.160 --> 0:02:32.320 So we have. 0:02:32.360 --> 0:02:35.760 Amazing people here and Pastor Nick, you're always so great 0:02:35.760 --> 0:02:39.080 at like bringing out those great points and so you know, 0:02:39.080 --> 0:02:41.440 we're glad that you tuned in because you're really special 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:43.760 to this webcast. We know that we pray for you, 0:02:44.240 --> 0:02:46.440 know that we are for you. We know that God 0:02:46.520 --> 0:02:49.240 has amazing things in your future. So thank you for 0:02:49.280 --> 0:02:50.840 tuning in, and we're all going to go to the 0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:51.480 next level. 0:02:52.280 --> 0:02:54.200 You know, we just want to have a conversation about 0:02:54.200 --> 0:02:57.040 this book, Pastor and I just I think it's a 0:02:57.160 --> 0:03:01.000 very relevant book, applicable book. But what what do you 0:03:01.080 --> 0:03:03.600 hope people grab from this book. I mean, what's what's 0:03:03.639 --> 0:03:05.519 the heart, what's the what's the biggest thing that you'd 0:03:05.520 --> 0:03:06.600 hope people receive from it? 0:03:06.680 --> 0:03:09.320 Well, Nick, that I believe our life follows our thoughts, 0:03:09.720 --> 0:03:12.800 and so so many times we're thinking defeating thoughts and 0:03:12.919 --> 0:03:16.200 negative thoughts or limiting thoughts, and it's not God limiting us. 0:03:16.200 --> 0:03:19.800 We're limiting ourselves worth our thinking. And so I'm encouraging 0:03:19.840 --> 0:03:21.960 people in the book to you know, let's take the 0:03:22.000 --> 0:03:24.360 limits off of God. My father used to say, you 0:03:24.360 --> 0:03:27.400 will never rise any higher than the way you see yourself, 0:03:27.600 --> 0:03:29.840 than what's going on in your mind. And most of 0:03:29.919 --> 0:03:33.360 us know. But there's a recording that's constantly playing. You know. 0:03:33.400 --> 0:03:36.800 The experts tell us that we talk to ourselves more 0:03:36.840 --> 0:03:39.440 than we talk to anybody else because there's something playing it. 0:03:39.520 --> 0:03:42.200 Sometimes we don't realize it, but the recording is negative. 0:03:42.440 --> 0:03:44.080 It's just how we've grown up. As you know what. 0:03:44.280 --> 0:03:46.680 I'll never be successful or Joey, You've got a big church, 0:03:46.760 --> 0:03:49.120 but I'll never do anything great. I'll never get well, 0:03:49.160 --> 0:03:51.840 I'll never break the addiction, or you know, I'm not 0:03:51.880 --> 0:03:54.120 as talented as my brother, I'm not as good looking, 0:03:54.160 --> 0:03:56.880 as my friend. As long as those thoughts are negative, 0:03:57.160 --> 0:04:00.960 we are limiting ourselves. And so I'm just encouraging us 0:04:01.000 --> 0:04:03.120 to turn on the right recording. And that's what God 0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:06.040 says about us. That we are blessed, that we are strong, 0:04:06.120 --> 0:04:09.960 that we are fearfully and wonderfully made, that we're not average, 0:04:10.000 --> 0:04:13.000 we are masterpieces. And even I think about sitting in 0:04:13.000 --> 0:04:15.880 this building, you know what one thing we had to do. 0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:18.480 When they told me the Compact Center was coming available. 0:04:18.760 --> 0:04:21.479 My first thought, I told the guy, said, there's no 0:04:21.520 --> 0:04:24.240 way we could afford that. That'll be two hundred million dollars. 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:26.000 My first thought was, you know, I wasn't even going 0:04:26.040 --> 0:04:28.520 to pursue it. He said, no, Joel, the city only 0:04:28.560 --> 0:04:31.039 owes seven and a half million dollars, and that cost 0:04:31.040 --> 0:04:32.440 a little bit more than that for us to get it. 0:04:32.440 --> 0:04:34.599 But you know, when I heard that, I thought, you 0:04:34.640 --> 0:04:36.520 know what, I can believe for seven and a half 0:04:36.560 --> 0:04:38.479 million dollars. But you know what I had to take 0:04:38.520 --> 0:04:40.840 the limits off of God. You know, I had grown 0:04:40.920 --> 0:04:44.320 up here watching the Rockets play basketball, had season tickets 0:04:44.360 --> 0:04:47.320 right back over there. In my wildest dreams. If you 0:04:47.320 --> 0:04:49.719 would have told me, you know, twenty thirty years ago 0:04:49.760 --> 0:04:52.640 that one day we would own the Compact Center. I said, 0:04:52.640 --> 0:04:55.520 there's no way. That's not even fathomable. This is where 0:04:55.560 --> 0:04:58.520 the Rockets won two world championships. It's the premier auditorium 0:04:58.560 --> 0:05:01.359 in our facility. But you know what, only thing that 0:05:01.440 --> 0:05:04.080 limits us is our own thinking. I just said, God, 0:05:04.160 --> 0:05:05.920 you know what, I don't see how it can work out, 0:05:06.120 --> 0:05:07.919 but I know you're on the throne. I know you 0:05:08.000 --> 0:05:10.680 controlled the universe. So I took the limits off of God. 0:05:10.680 --> 0:05:14.680 And it doesn't happen automatically. But you know, when you 0:05:14.920 --> 0:05:17.240 think like God thinks, when you take the limits off 0:05:17.240 --> 0:05:19.080 of him, that's what allows God to do great things. 0:05:19.120 --> 0:05:21.040 So that's what the book is about. Wherever you are, 0:05:21.240 --> 0:05:23.919 God wants us to rise higher. He doesn't want us 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:26.360 to be at this same level next year as we 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:28.560 are right now. He wants us to go further. So 0:05:28.920 --> 0:05:30.560 I think the first thing we have to do is 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:32.280 we have to take the limits off in our thinking 0:05:32.320 --> 0:05:34.520 and say, God, I'm goost start thinking at the next level. 0:05:34.920 --> 0:05:37.760 I almost start believing for bigger things. Yeah, God, you 0:05:37.880 --> 0:05:39.360 being good to me. I'm not saying, you know, you 0:05:39.400 --> 0:05:41.680 don't have to have a dediction or have some big 0:05:41.760 --> 0:05:44.680 kind of problem. But sometimes you know how I do. 0:05:44.800 --> 0:05:47.280 Sometimes life can just get routine and okay, I kind 0:05:47.279 --> 0:05:48.840 of reach that level and that's kind of as good 0:05:48.839 --> 0:05:50.600 as it gets and all that. But you know what, 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:53.039 you take the limits off of God and you watch 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:53.960 where God will take you. 0:05:54.920 --> 0:05:57.760 There's ten thoughts, so each of them are phenomenal on 0:05:57.760 --> 0:05:59.920 their own. Right there, there's chapter two years when I 0:06:00.320 --> 0:06:01.880 I'm gonna just read a sentence. 0:06:02.040 --> 0:06:02.520 That you wrote. 0:06:02.520 --> 0:06:06.000 It says you are fully loaded and completely equipped for 0:06:06.080 --> 0:06:09.240 the race that God's designed for. You talk a little 0:06:09.240 --> 0:06:11.200 bit about what that means to you, being fully loaded. 0:06:11.440 --> 0:06:14.040 So many people that we meet feel inadequate to do 0:06:14.120 --> 0:06:16.479 the certain things that God's designed to do, step up 0:06:16.480 --> 0:06:17.800 in the workplace, wherever they may be. 0:06:18.080 --> 0:06:20.640 It's exactly how I felt, nick when my father went 0:06:20.680 --> 0:06:23.039 to be with the Lord, and I knew down in 0:06:23.080 --> 0:06:25.599 here I was supposed to step up and pasture the church. 0:06:26.080 --> 0:06:27.680 I don't know how to explain it. I just knew 0:06:27.680 --> 0:06:31.040 that I was supposed to. But every thought told me, Joe, 0:06:31.160 --> 0:06:33.880 you can't pass the church. You never been to seminary, 0:06:33.960 --> 0:06:36.960 you don't have the training. You've ministered one time, and 0:06:36.960 --> 0:06:39.400 you're going to take over your father's church of six 0:06:39.480 --> 0:06:41.640 thousand people. I mean, everything in my mind said there 0:06:41.720 --> 0:06:45.000 was no way. And part of it was just, you know, 0:06:45.080 --> 0:06:47.800 I didn't feel equipped. I didn't feel empowered. I mean, 0:06:47.839 --> 0:06:52.120 I'm naturally more quiet and reserved. I like being behind 0:06:52.120 --> 0:06:54.200 the scenes. I was the one running the camera and 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:56.279 doing all the production. And you know, I used to 0:06:56.279 --> 0:06:58.960 watch my dad and he was my hero. You know, 0:06:59.040 --> 0:07:02.200 he could get up there speak and so powerful, and 0:07:02.560 --> 0:07:04.839 you know he came out of that generation before me, 0:07:04.960 --> 0:07:07.560 and they were fiery and man, he'd give you goosebumps. 0:07:07.560 --> 0:07:08.960 And I thought, God, I don't have any of that. 0:07:09.320 --> 0:07:12.280 I don't have the personality, I don't have that fire 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:15.760 in me. But I realized that God would not have 0:07:15.880 --> 0:07:18.800 given you the dream if he had not already equipped 0:07:18.840 --> 0:07:21.720 you and empowered you. And so many of us have 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:24.880 things on the inside, gifts and talents that we've not 0:07:24.960 --> 0:07:28.160 yet tapped into their line dormant and even for me, 0:07:29.000 --> 0:07:31.040 I don't think I was supposed to be ministering those 0:07:31.080 --> 0:07:33.840 seventeen years. I was behind the scenes. It was all 0:07:33.840 --> 0:07:36.120 a part of God's timing. But I can say this, 0:07:36.240 --> 0:07:38.960 there are gifts in you that are dormant and at 0:07:38.960 --> 0:07:41.080 the right time, God's going to open some things up 0:07:41.080 --> 0:07:42.920 for you. He's going to open some new doors. But 0:07:43.360 --> 0:07:46.080 I think it's important rather than feeling you know, I 0:07:46.160 --> 0:07:51.120 kind of feel inadequate, not qualified, you know that insecure. 0:07:51.480 --> 0:07:54.239 You've got to change that recording again and know that, hey, 0:07:54.640 --> 0:07:57.840 I am equipped, I am empowered, I am fully loaded 0:07:57.920 --> 0:07:59.960 with everything I need to fulfill my desk. 0:08:00.320 --> 0:08:03.040 That's kind of the preparation part, isn't it. That whole 0:08:03.120 --> 0:08:06.880 speaking to yourself when that potential is calling out, you're scared, 0:08:06.960 --> 0:08:09.280 But it's when you start that recording going in the 0:08:09.320 --> 0:08:12.440 right direction. It's part of the preparation because you said 0:08:12.440 --> 0:08:15.120 yourself that. It took a little while and you had 0:08:15.160 --> 0:08:16.720 to look at yourself in the mirror and you had 0:08:16.720 --> 0:08:18.520 to just start talking to yourself and say, I. 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:19.480 Can do this today. 0:08:19.560 --> 0:08:20.200 I have you know. 0:08:20.280 --> 0:08:24.080 So I think sometimes people think, well, what's happening when 0:08:24.120 --> 0:08:27.240 I'm doing this, or you're preparing yourself. When God opens 0:08:27.280 --> 0:08:29.400 that door, then you're going to be ready to walk 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:29.800 through it. 0:08:30.120 --> 0:08:32.960 Yeah, I've learned you can talk yourself into your dreams 0:08:33.080 --> 0:08:35.360 or you can talk yourself out of your dreams. I 0:08:35.400 --> 0:08:37.840 would have to go on Saturday nights when I first started, 0:08:37.880 --> 0:08:39.960 and look myself in the mirror and said, Joe, you 0:08:39.960 --> 0:08:42.480 can do this. You are strong in the Lord. You 0:08:42.520 --> 0:08:44.840 are well able, you were equipped. You've been raised up 0:08:44.880 --> 0:08:47.240 for such a time as this. If I hadn't done that, 0:08:47.280 --> 0:08:49.400 if I would have let those thoughts play that you 0:08:49.440 --> 0:08:52.040 know what, you don't have what it takes. You're not 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:54.920 as talented, you're not, I wouldn't be standing here today. 0:08:55.000 --> 0:08:57.640 So I just encourage those of you and those of 0:08:57.679 --> 0:09:00.600 you watching, take the limits. Take the limit off of God, 0:09:00.600 --> 0:09:03.720 but take the limits off of yourself. Quit telling yourself 0:09:03.720 --> 0:09:06.440 that you're lacking or you don't have enough talent or 0:09:06.600 --> 0:09:09.920 enough experience. You may not, but God does. What He's 0:09:09.960 --> 0:09:13.359 put in you is what you need to fulfill your destiny. 0:09:13.640 --> 0:09:16.160 You are not lacking. You didn't get left out. God 0:09:16.640 --> 0:09:18.640 didn't make a mistake when he made you. You were 0:09:18.640 --> 0:09:22.400 not short changed. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. It's amazing. 0:09:22.640 --> 0:09:25.880 You talk a lot about knowing your value and knowing 0:09:25.920 --> 0:09:29.079 that your value doesn't come from you do or your paycheck, 0:09:29.920 --> 0:09:32.200 but just knowing that your value comes from your creator. 0:09:32.520 --> 0:09:33.079 Talk about that. 0:09:33.120 --> 0:09:35.320 It's here in chapter five, but just talk a little 0:09:35.320 --> 0:09:38.000 bit about recognizing your value and just where your value 0:09:38.040 --> 0:09:40.200 comes from, where it's based from. 0:09:40.559 --> 0:09:43.360 You know, Nick, just what you said that sometimes we're 0:09:43.400 --> 0:09:45.360 trying to get our value out of what we do, 0:09:45.679 --> 0:09:47.480 or how big my church is, or how big the 0:09:47.760 --> 0:09:50.240 you know, out of people as well. And you know, 0:09:50.280 --> 0:09:53.280 I think that's a hard way to live because you know, 0:09:53.320 --> 0:09:55.680 when you try to get your approval from people, the 0:09:55.720 --> 0:09:58.880 problem is people can change, you know. You think about Jesus. 0:09:58.920 --> 0:10:01.520 One day, wasn't Jesus coming into the town and they 0:10:01.520 --> 0:10:04.000 were all saying Hosanna. It seems like it was three 0:10:04.040 --> 0:10:06.960 days later. A week later they were saying crucifying. And 0:10:07.520 --> 0:10:09.640 if you try to get your value out of other things, 0:10:09.640 --> 0:10:12.120 even people. As much as I love Victoria, people can't 0:10:12.480 --> 0:10:14.439 fill you with everything you need. So you've got to 0:10:14.480 --> 0:10:17.120 go back to know that, you know what my approval 0:10:17.120 --> 0:10:20.120 comes from the most high God. People may not approve me, 0:10:20.360 --> 0:10:22.720 or you know, those thoughts try to push me down, 0:10:22.800 --> 0:10:25.240 but you know what, it's not. I love that even 0:10:25.280 --> 0:10:27.640 about Jesus here you know this, all these pastors, but 0:10:27.920 --> 0:10:30.880 Jesus when he was baptized in water, when John the 0:10:30.920 --> 0:10:34.280 Baptist baptized him, Jesus came up out of the water, 0:10:34.400 --> 0:10:37.760 and the voice from heaven said, this is my beloved son, 0:10:37.920 --> 0:10:40.600 whom I am well pleased. But when you think about it, 0:10:40.760 --> 0:10:43.520 at that point, Jesus hadn't done one miracle, he hadn't 0:10:43.520 --> 0:10:45.880 turned the water into wine, he hadn't opened a blind eye. 0:10:46.160 --> 0:10:48.880 His father was pleased of him because of who he was. 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:51.400 And sometimes we think, well, God's not pleased to me, Joe, 0:10:51.440 --> 0:10:54.520 I've got an addiction, or I've wasted years of my life, 0:10:54.600 --> 0:10:57.160 or I've made these mistakes. Listen, that's what you did. 0:10:57.200 --> 0:11:00.240 That's not who you are. God is smiling down on 0:11:00.280 --> 0:11:02.880 you right now. He's made you in his image. And 0:11:02.960 --> 0:11:04.880 if you'd get those thoughts out of your mind about 0:11:05.000 --> 0:11:07.600 you know what, God's not pleased with me, And you 0:11:07.600 --> 0:11:09.360 know what I'm not. I don't I don't measure up 0:11:09.440 --> 0:11:11.679 to other people. Well, you don't have to measure up 0:11:11.679 --> 0:11:14.079 to other people. You are uniquely made in your in 0:11:14.400 --> 0:11:17.160 who God made you to be. So turn tune all 0:11:17.200 --> 0:11:19.600 that out and know again that you are fearfully and 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:23.000 wonderfully made, that the creator of the universe breeds his 0:11:23.160 --> 0:11:25.760 life into you. He knew you before you were formed 0:11:25.760 --> 0:11:28.000 in your mother's womb. He didn't have you here in 0:11:28.080 --> 0:11:30.920 this by accident. And if you'd turn off that that 0:11:31.040 --> 0:11:33.360 old thinking and put some new thoughts that you know what, 0:11:33.400 --> 0:11:37.400 I'm approved, I'm valuable, I'm accepted. I am a masterpiece 0:11:37.760 --> 0:11:40.520 that's going to cause you to rise higher and become 0:11:40.600 --> 0:11:45.240 who God's created you to be. So Chester Charles used 0:11:45.240 --> 0:11:47.840 to leave us off. My friend, Pastor Charles Nieman. Pastor's 0:11:47.880 --> 0:11:50.280 a great church, abundant living in el Pastor, I've been 0:11:50.320 --> 0:11:51.920 there with you and we're very honored to have you here. 0:11:51.920 --> 0:11:55.280 Pastor Charles, here, go ahead, Pastor. 0:11:55.520 --> 0:11:58.439 Yeah, my uh. As you were talking today, and as 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:00.839 I was reading the book, and in particular I kind 0:12:00.840 --> 0:12:04.120 of got caught up in the fifth chapter as you 0:12:04.160 --> 0:12:07.320 were just mentioning there about value, and I couldn't help 0:12:07.360 --> 0:12:13.480 but think about speaking of your dad. An incredible series 0:12:13.520 --> 0:12:17.080 of teachings he did that really impacted my life years ago, 0:12:17.360 --> 0:12:23.960 called thinking the thoughts of God and bringing that idea 0:12:24.600 --> 0:12:27.360 I think is coming full circle in your book, this 0:12:28.120 --> 0:12:29.520 idea that you know we all. 0:12:29.400 --> 0:12:30.160 Have these thoughts. 0:12:31.160 --> 0:12:34.559 But how do people hearing what you just said, how 0:12:34.559 --> 0:12:38.000 would you say that people need to move from this 0:12:38.200 --> 0:12:43.680 life of negativity or a moment of negativity that is 0:12:43.760 --> 0:12:47.200 now taking control of their thinking. And you know, as 0:12:47.240 --> 0:12:49.480 you know Solomon said, as a man thinking in his heart, 0:12:49.559 --> 0:12:53.040 so is he. But where do they go? How do 0:12:53.120 --> 0:12:56.840 they get the thoughts of God into their mind? 0:12:57.040 --> 0:12:59.800 Yeah, Pastor, you know, I believe they go back to 0:12:59.840 --> 0:13:02.439 this scripture. They find out what God says about them. 0:13:02.640 --> 0:13:04.600 And I think you do it one, one thought at 0:13:04.600 --> 0:13:07.480 a time. You know, some people were, as I said, 0:13:07.480 --> 0:13:10.120 they're just naturally negative. That's just the way they grew 0:13:10.200 --> 0:13:12.760 up with. But I don't think we always realize that 0:13:12.840 --> 0:13:15.160 we don't have to think whatever comes to our mind. 0:13:15.480 --> 0:13:16.520 You know, you can get up in the morning thing, 0:13:16.559 --> 0:13:18.360 oh there's gonna be a lousy day and I don't 0:13:18.360 --> 0:13:20.880 feel like going to work. You don't have to think that. 0:13:21.200 --> 0:13:23.960 That next level thinking says, No, I'm wanna tune that out. Lord, 0:13:23.960 --> 0:13:25.480 I want to think you this is a great day. 0:13:25.840 --> 0:13:29.040 I'm grateful to be alive today. It's just taking control 0:13:29.080 --> 0:13:31.520 of our mind. Even the scripture. You know, y'all teach 0:13:31.559 --> 0:13:34.160 it better than me, But just about guarding your mind 0:13:34.200 --> 0:13:36.520 and what's playing all day and again going back to 0:13:36.559 --> 0:13:39.280 what God says about you and That's that's why every 0:13:39.360 --> 0:13:42.040 service I tell the congregation, here I go, I want 0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:43.640 to go over them all. But I am blessed, I 0:13:43.679 --> 0:13:49.480 am prosperous, I am redeemed, forgiven, talented, creative discipline, focus, accepted, approved. 0:13:49.720 --> 0:13:51.600 That's what needs to be playing in our mind all 0:13:51.600 --> 0:13:53.720 through the day. And just because the thought comes doesn't 0:13:53.760 --> 0:13:54.640 mean you have to think it. 0:13:55.040 --> 0:13:57.280 You know too, it's a habit. When you start to 0:13:57.400 --> 0:14:00.920 start thinking the right thoughts, you start recognizing when the 0:14:00.960 --> 0:14:03.760 wrong thoughts come. And it's not a matter of you know, 0:14:03.800 --> 0:14:05.520 you just stop, you say, oh, that's not the thoughts 0:14:05.520 --> 0:14:07.360 I want to think. So I think the more you 0:14:07.400 --> 0:14:09.240 do it, it's like you said, just a thought at 0:14:09.280 --> 0:14:11.880 a time, you can catch when the wrong thoughts come. 0:14:11.920 --> 0:14:12.960 And that's so important. 0:14:13.120 --> 0:14:14.600 I like to think of it. I've heard the example 0:14:14.600 --> 0:14:16.760 of it's like a river bed. Maybe that river bed 0:14:16.840 --> 0:14:20.640 has been flowing one way for forty years, just negative thoughts. Well, 0:14:20.960 --> 0:14:23.920 one thought at a time. Every day you think the 0:14:24.040 --> 0:14:26.800 right thoughts, you think positive faith, field, think on things 0:14:26.800 --> 0:14:29.040 that are truth. Well, you're digging that riverbed the other way. 0:14:29.120 --> 0:14:31.680 May not turn around overnight, but I believe over time, 0:14:31.720 --> 0:14:34.840 and I've talked to people that have been negative their 0:14:34.880 --> 0:14:38.240 whole life and just doubters and just down on themselves. Insecure, 0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:40.800 you start turning it one day at a time, one 0:14:40.800 --> 0:14:42.480 thought at a time, that riverbed is going to start 0:14:42.520 --> 0:14:44.760 running the other way. And two I think, you know, 0:14:45.040 --> 0:14:48.760 God's given us all different personalities, and I've naturally been 0:14:48.920 --> 0:14:52.840 optimistic and positive. You know, other people have a friend 0:14:52.840 --> 0:14:54.720 tell me, he says, I can take a positive message 0:14:54.880 --> 0:14:57.240 and preach it a negative way. I'm just negative, you know, 0:14:57.560 --> 0:15:00.520 But I think you can naturally. You can naturally change. 0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:02.840 And I think it's you know, so much of life 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:06.840 is is perspective. You know, it's what we're looking at today. 0:15:07.160 --> 0:15:08.920 We're looking at what's wrong or you know what I'm 0:15:08.920 --> 0:15:10.920 looking at what's right, looking at what I don't have, 0:15:11.040 --> 0:15:12.400 or looking at what I do have, And it's just 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:16.240 back to our thinking, and you know, thinking those right thoughts. 0:15:16.280 --> 0:15:18.520 You don't even have to be a negative person per se. 0:15:18.680 --> 0:15:21.000 I'm not a negative person. I would consider myself a 0:15:21.000 --> 0:15:24.760 positive person. But I know when I think positive thoughts 0:15:25.000 --> 0:15:29.400 on purpose, it changes the atmosphere of my mind. It 0:15:29.440 --> 0:15:33.040 takes and elevates me to that next level. So it's 0:15:33.080 --> 0:15:35.680 not that you can be saying, well, I'm not necessarily negative, 0:15:35.760 --> 0:15:38.520 but are you thinking positive thoughts on purpose? And I 0:15:38.560 --> 0:15:40.320 think that's that's a great key as well. 0:15:40.880 --> 0:15:42.640 I just like how you alluded to it's a journey. 0:15:42.720 --> 0:15:45.040 It's a process that we don't have to get this 0:15:45.080 --> 0:15:47.080 thing right away, that it's one thing at a time. 0:15:47.200 --> 0:15:50.400 Maybe maybe you think better right now than you did 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:52.880 a year ago, and it's just a journey for people. 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:55.360 Some people expect to be so perfect in their thought 0:15:55.440 --> 0:15:57.840 life right away, right around the corner, and it's like, 0:15:58.080 --> 0:16:00.520 this is a process, this is a journey beginning habitually 0:16:00.560 --> 0:16:01.200 do it. 0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:06.280 So that's awesome, Pastor Torey Roberts One Church LA One 0:16:06.400 --> 0:16:10.280 Church is what Potter's House Denver, and awesome to have you, tore. 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:13.120 Thank you so much, and thank you for writing this book. 0:16:13.600 --> 0:16:14.240 I like it. 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:16.960 It's next level thinking. And we all know that our 0:16:17.000 --> 0:16:20.400 insides determine our outsides, and so a lot of times 0:16:20.400 --> 0:16:23.840 the barrier, as you so eloquently wrote about in this book, 0:16:23.880 --> 0:16:26.640 the barrier is not that the opportunity isn't there, it's 0:16:26.760 --> 0:16:30.200 just their restrictions in our thinking. One chapter that really 0:16:30.240 --> 0:16:32.640 stood out to me was a chapter where you dealt 0:16:32.680 --> 0:16:35.480 with shame because a lot of times the opportunity is 0:16:35.520 --> 0:16:38.280 there and we want to think positively, but there's almost 0:16:38.320 --> 0:16:40.480 like a cap on what we believe that God can 0:16:40.560 --> 0:16:43.880 do for us because we've got shame about something that happened. 0:16:44.360 --> 0:16:45.680 How do you if there's. 0:16:45.480 --> 0:16:47.640 Someone out there that's dealing with shame, how do you 0:16:48.280 --> 0:16:51.320 attack shame? Get that cap off of your life so 0:16:51.360 --> 0:16:52.280 that you can move forward. 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:55.360 Yeah, I think Torey again, it goes back to that 0:16:55.600 --> 0:16:58.360 thought of you know, you are not what you did, 0:16:58.520 --> 0:17:00.960 You are not what happened to you. You you were 0:17:01.000 --> 0:17:03.400 a child of the Most High God. And I think 0:17:03.440 --> 0:17:06.439 even you know, from when we were little children, sometimes 0:17:06.440 --> 0:17:08.160 you know, shame on you. You shouldn't have done a shame 0:17:08.160 --> 0:17:09.680 on you, But you just got to rise up and say, 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:11.720 you know what, shame off me. I am a child 0:17:11.720 --> 0:17:13.879 of the Most High God. I'm going to I'm not 0:17:13.960 --> 0:17:17.120 going to live beating myself up. And you know it's 0:17:17.119 --> 0:17:19.679 funny how people beat themselves up and it wasn't their fault, 0:17:20.080 --> 0:17:22.760 you know, it's just a natural tendency. And so these 0:17:22.800 --> 0:17:25.640 are decisions we have to make. It starts in our 0:17:25.680 --> 0:17:28.440 mind and life is too short to live it. You know, 0:17:28.680 --> 0:17:31.399 full of shame and guilt, and you know whether you 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:34.000 messed up or whether somebody didn't treat you right or 0:17:34.040 --> 0:17:37.119 whatever it is. It's a new day. God's mercies are 0:17:37.119 --> 0:17:39.240 fresh and new every morning. Why don't you, you know, 0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:41.359 shame off you and start saying, you know what I'm 0:17:41.359 --> 0:17:43.440 going to be who God's called me to be. There's 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:46.440 no mistake you made that has to keep you from 0:17:46.480 --> 0:17:49.680 your destiny. And I really believe there's nothing somebody else 0:17:49.840 --> 0:17:52.000 has done to you that has to keep you from 0:17:52.040 --> 0:17:53.760 your purpose as well. It may not have been fair, 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:56.600 and I'm not saying that life is always fair, but 0:17:57.080 --> 0:17:59.480 God has that way of giving you beauty for ashes 0:17:59.720 --> 0:18:01.520 take and what was meant for harm in using it 0:18:01.520 --> 0:18:05.160 to your advantage. Pastor Keith and Sheila Kraft pastor Elevate 0:18:05.200 --> 0:18:08.160 Life Church in Frisco, Texas, and been friends of ours 0:18:08.160 --> 0:18:11.200 for many years. Thanks for being here and go ahead. 0:18:11.040 --> 0:18:13.080 Keith, thank you. It's an honor. I love the title 0:18:13.080 --> 0:18:15.240 of your book because we believe in you elevate your thinking, 0:18:15.280 --> 0:18:18.560 you elevate your life. So it's masterful. 0:18:18.600 --> 0:18:18.919 Really. 0:18:19.359 --> 0:18:23.160 In the first chapter, you tell a story about your 0:18:23.240 --> 0:18:27.920 dad and that he really did you a great service 0:18:28.000 --> 0:18:31.879 by taking you to the place where he was born 0:18:32.119 --> 0:18:34.600 and to the neighborhood where he was born, to know 0:18:34.720 --> 0:18:37.720 the house that he lived in wasn't there. There was 0:18:37.760 --> 0:18:41.840 a neighbor who had lived there his whole life. Was 0:18:42.560 --> 0:18:45.119 actually sitting on the front porch when you guys drove 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:48.320 up and your dad addressed him. And one of the 0:18:48.320 --> 0:18:51.200 things you say in your book is you say, when 0:18:51.240 --> 0:18:54.640 you break a barrier, you make it easier for those 0:18:54.680 --> 0:18:59.320 who come after you. And so talk about that because 0:19:00.400 --> 0:19:04.199 just about thinking a certain way, but it's understanding the 0:19:04.240 --> 0:19:07.719 way that you think, your next level thinking is going 0:19:07.760 --> 0:19:09.920 to determine how those that come after you think. 0:19:10.000 --> 0:19:12.800 Yeah, that's a powerful point, Keith, You're exactly right. And 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:14.679 I want you to tell that story about your dad too, 0:19:14.760 --> 0:19:16.680 real quick in a second, because that's real powerful. I've 0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:20.720 used that. But yeah, So my father was raised in poverty. 0:19:21.480 --> 0:19:23.800 He grew up during the Great Depression and his family 0:19:24.040 --> 0:19:27.280 had lost everything and just there were great people, but 0:19:27.359 --> 0:19:30.760 they were poor. He barely had enough food and you know, 0:19:30.800 --> 0:19:33.600 clothing to go to school. But at seventeen years of age, 0:19:33.680 --> 0:19:36.120 my father gave his life to Christ and the first 0:19:36.200 --> 0:19:39.320 one in his family and he you know, he felt 0:19:39.320 --> 0:19:41.399 like God called him to preach. He hitchhiked and he 0:19:41.400 --> 0:19:43.760 started preaching. And his family thought, you know, he's crazy. 0:19:43.800 --> 0:19:45.800 Why would you leave the farm. This is all you 0:19:45.840 --> 0:19:48.240 know how to do. But my dad went on, obviously 0:19:48.280 --> 0:19:51.359 to found Lakewood and pastor great churches all over the world. 0:19:51.440 --> 0:19:54.960 But one thing that what he told me, He said, Joel, 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:57.080 I when I gave my life to Christ at seventeen, 0:19:57.160 --> 0:20:00.600 I made a decision that my children would never be 0:20:00.680 --> 0:20:03.200 raised in the poverty that I was raised in. So 0:20:03.280 --> 0:20:06.520 my father he rose up by the decisions that he 0:20:06.640 --> 0:20:08.680 made and by the grace of God, and he broke 0:20:08.720 --> 0:20:11.520 the curse of poverty in our family. And you know, today, 0:20:11.560 --> 0:20:14.359 you know what, we're blessed because my father took a stand. 0:20:14.480 --> 0:20:16.280 So I am. I mean, I'll be the first to 0:20:16.320 --> 0:20:18.720 tell you I'm reaping seeds because my mother and my 0:20:18.800 --> 0:20:21.760 father have planted and sewed, and you know, broke that 0:20:21.800 --> 0:20:25.439 curse of poverty. But later in life, my dad, you know, 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:28.560 he loved to reminisce his Joel Victoria drive back to Paris, Texas, 0:20:28.560 --> 0:20:30.679 where he grew up. And so we went back and 0:20:30.720 --> 0:20:33.560 we found the old farm where he lived on the 0:20:33.600 --> 0:20:35.840 house was gone, but we found the well was still there. 0:20:35.880 --> 0:20:37.600 And he used to tell me he had to walk 0:20:37.640 --> 0:20:39.680 two miles to school. And we looked in this school 0:20:39.800 --> 0:20:43.479 was like one hundred yards away, not so big in 0:20:43.480 --> 0:20:46.680 your mind, but he could not convince the guy said, no, 0:20:46.880 --> 0:20:48.960 that was the school. No, it was two miles away. 0:20:49.040 --> 0:20:50.840 But anyway, so we got there, you know, then we 0:20:50.920 --> 0:20:53.119 drove around. He went to find some friends and this 0:20:53.240 --> 0:20:56.080 guy sitting on his front porch and house had a whole, 0:20:56.240 --> 0:20:58.479 you know, roof had leaks in and it was one 0:20:58.480 --> 0:21:00.320 of even hardly a house. It was a shit. And 0:21:00.359 --> 0:21:02.560 the guy was out there without his shirt on, just 0:21:02.640 --> 0:21:04.639 kind of killing time. And I said, you wasn't a 0:21:04.720 --> 0:21:06.760 good person. But my dad walked up and said, you 0:21:06.760 --> 0:21:08.760 know whatever his name was, and he said, hey, this 0:21:08.840 --> 0:21:12.199 is John Ostein. Hadn't spoken to him in like sixty years. 0:21:12.840 --> 0:21:14.960 And you know, my dad got to talk and what 0:21:15.320 --> 0:21:17.760 did you do? Sh worked at the boat shop a 0:21:17.800 --> 0:21:20.040 little way, and I did this for a little while, 0:21:20.200 --> 0:21:22.040 you know, and got laid off back then. My back's 0:21:22.080 --> 0:21:24.600 been hurting, but I just thought, man, what a difference 0:21:24.680 --> 0:21:28.359 when somebody raises up and sets a new standard. It 0:21:28.400 --> 0:21:31.520 didn't you know what, nothing against the gentleman there. You know, 0:21:31.640 --> 0:21:33.199 he didn't do it, But I thought, look at the 0:21:33.240 --> 0:21:35.560 two My dad had touched people all over the world, 0:21:35.600 --> 0:21:38.280 had a you know, a family that was doing great things. 0:21:38.320 --> 0:21:41.359 So it's so important that man. You can become a 0:21:41.400 --> 0:21:44.520 burier breaker, you can rise out of any dysfunction or 0:21:44.560 --> 0:21:47.440 just out of the I believe God wants every generation 0:21:47.600 --> 0:21:49.960 to increase. That's why when my dad went to be 0:21:50.040 --> 0:21:52.680 with Lord, people used to ask me, do you think 0:21:52.720 --> 0:21:55.880 you can continue on what your father started? And here 0:21:56.000 --> 0:21:58.760 I didn't have any experience, but something down in here. 0:21:59.320 --> 0:22:02.000 I would tell them, not arrogantly at all, I'd say, 0:22:02.040 --> 0:22:03.760 you know what, I think I can not only carry 0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:06.399 it on, but I think we can go further because 0:22:06.440 --> 0:22:08.719 it's the way God designed it. He didn't want us 0:22:08.720 --> 0:22:11.200 to go backwards. He wants every generation to increase. We 0:22:11.240 --> 0:22:14.120 want our children to go further as well. So why 0:22:14.160 --> 0:22:17.320 don't you go break some barriers for your family. You know, 0:22:17.359 --> 0:22:19.960 nobody broke the four minute mile for you know, forever 0:22:20.200 --> 0:22:22.639 in history. Then the guy broke it, and then after that, 0:22:22.680 --> 0:22:25.879 within like six months, forty three other people broke it. 0:22:25.960 --> 0:22:27.680 And it's like the burial was in our mind that 0:22:27.760 --> 0:22:30.760 we can't break a four minute mile. I can't be successful, 0:22:30.800 --> 0:22:32.760 I can't break this addiction. You know what, you have 0:22:32.840 --> 0:22:35.440 the power of the most time God on the inside 0:22:35.440 --> 0:22:38.160 of you. You'd be amazed at what you can do. Keith, 0:22:38.200 --> 0:22:39.720 tell us that story. It's really powerful. 0:22:40.080 --> 0:22:42.199 My dad. I was about eleven years old, and my 0:22:42.320 --> 0:22:44.480 dad said, hey, come get in the car, and I 0:22:44.480 --> 0:22:46.679 had no idea where we were going. Three hours later, 0:22:47.080 --> 0:22:49.639 we were in front of a house that was very similar 0:22:49.680 --> 0:22:53.000 to what you described shack. No wind is on the 0:22:53.240 --> 0:22:55.840 on the on the you know, no glass on the 0:22:55.880 --> 0:22:58.880 wind is the door is broken down going in the house, 0:22:58.920 --> 0:23:01.719 and we walk in the house and this floor was dirt. 0:23:01.800 --> 0:23:03.840 There was a one piece of furniture, and there was 0:23:03.840 --> 0:23:06.480 an old man sitting over in the corner. And we 0:23:06.520 --> 0:23:08.640 walked over there and I was holding my dad's hand, 0:23:08.680 --> 0:23:13.840 and he said, hey, Dad, I never I'd never met 0:23:13.880 --> 0:23:17.280 my grandfather. And my dad had a bag of money 0:23:17.320 --> 0:23:20.760 for him and some candy and my grandfather, which I 0:23:20.760 --> 0:23:23.359 didn't even know that's who it was, but didn't really 0:23:23.400 --> 0:23:27.160 if you acknowledged me, didn't say hello, but my dad 0:23:27.200 --> 0:23:28.439 just talked to him for a minute. I kind of 0:23:28.440 --> 0:23:30.560 walked away, and we were there for about ten minutes 0:23:30.960 --> 0:23:32.960 and we walked out of the house and I remember 0:23:33.000 --> 0:23:35.000 looking up at my dad and I said, Dad, I 0:23:35.040 --> 0:23:37.480 never want to go back there, and he said, that's 0:23:37.480 --> 0:23:40.639 why I brought you here, because this is where we're from. 0:23:40.920 --> 0:23:43.560 But this is not who we are. And it's so 0:23:43.800 --> 0:23:47.280 impacted my life that I said, you know what, I 0:23:47.320 --> 0:23:50.400 can be somebody. I can be somebody, And not that 0:23:50.400 --> 0:23:54.480 that my grandfather that I never saw again, never met again, 0:23:54.640 --> 0:23:57.320 never talked to him, Not that he wasn't a good man, 0:23:57.400 --> 0:24:00.200 that's not the The point is is that where wherever 0:24:00.240 --> 0:24:02.840 you come from, that doesn't have to be who you are. 0:24:03.000 --> 0:24:04.000 You can break a barrier. 0:24:04.560 --> 0:24:09.840 Yes, So right, wow, Tester Chad You up next, Sir 0:24:10.160 --> 0:24:14.800 Pester chad Row from Destiny World, Outreaching Colleen, Texas ministers 0:24:14.840 --> 0:24:17.320 to a lot of the soldiers and people that have 0:24:17.760 --> 0:24:19.320 away at the military. 0:24:19.440 --> 0:24:22.160 Largest armored base in the free world there in Colleen. 0:24:22.359 --> 0:24:26.720 So almost all the soldiers of military are come from there. 0:24:26.760 --> 0:24:29.080 And so we've taken an honor, you know, pastor Joe 0:24:29.080 --> 0:24:32.800 in your book next level thinking, it's just so amazing. 0:24:32.880 --> 0:24:35.800 And I noticed in the chapter two about being fully loaded, 0:24:35.840 --> 0:24:39.199 and how what I took out of that is about 0:24:39.359 --> 0:24:42.520 running your race and staying in your lane and not 0:24:42.600 --> 0:24:45.960 trying to run other people's races, because it's easy, I 0:24:46.000 --> 0:24:47.920 know in my life, to get caught up and seeing 0:24:47.960 --> 0:24:50.639 what everybody else is doing, how great everybody else is, 0:24:51.040 --> 0:24:53.520 and you might try to get in that race and 0:24:53.640 --> 0:24:57.520 run their race and their lane instead of being fully 0:24:57.560 --> 0:25:00.520 loaded and annoying it. As you've said, for the race 0:25:00.840 --> 0:25:03.760 that God has put in you. I grew up to 0:25:04.119 --> 0:25:07.639 honor vessels men of God. But one thing I noticed 0:25:07.640 --> 0:25:10.440 in reading your book, it's not so much the vessel 0:25:10.720 --> 0:25:13.760 but the anointing on the vessel. And that's what I 0:25:13.760 --> 0:25:17.520 loved about that is how how does somebody recognize that 0:25:17.880 --> 0:25:21.160 and stay focused on their race and in their lane 0:25:21.200 --> 0:25:23.800 when there's so much other things going on around you. 0:25:24.119 --> 0:25:27.119 Yeah, that's such an important point, Chad, it really is. 0:25:27.280 --> 0:25:28.480 Let me get to that question a minute, but it 0:25:28.520 --> 0:25:30.800 reminds me that I think I used the analogy in 0:25:30.840 --> 0:25:35.640 the Book of you know when King Saul killed thousands 0:25:36.040 --> 0:25:39.080 and then they started, well, yeah, the people started singing 0:25:39.320 --> 0:25:42.200 after this great victory. King Saul has killed thousands, and 0:25:42.680 --> 0:25:45.919 David had killed tens of thousands. I can only imagine 0:25:45.960 --> 0:25:49.200 when King King Saul has killed thousands, they're singing about me. Man, 0:25:49.240 --> 0:25:52.800 that's great. Everything was fine, I can imagine until he 0:25:52.800 --> 0:25:55.960 heard what they say David's killed tens of thousands. His 0:25:56.040 --> 0:26:00.000 whole attitude changed. He wasn't content with being one thousand 0:26:01.160 --> 0:26:05.080 person versus ten thousand, you know, defeated person. So you know, 0:26:05.400 --> 0:26:07.800 sometimes you have to accept, Hey, God, this is who 0:26:08.119 --> 0:26:10.600 you made me to be. I may not have killed 0:26:10.640 --> 0:26:12.680 ten thousand, but I've killed a thousand. I'm gonna be 0:26:12.680 --> 0:26:14.760 happy with with what you've given me to do with 0:26:14.800 --> 0:26:17.640 the gifts you've given me. And I really believe Saul 0:26:17.720 --> 0:26:20.359 missed his destiny because he was jealous of somebody else 0:26:20.800 --> 0:26:23.240 if he could have just celebrated them. And I think 0:26:23.240 --> 0:26:25.600 it is. And when you're talking about being fully loaded 0:26:25.600 --> 0:26:28.119 and totally equipped, hey, you may not be I may 0:26:28.160 --> 0:26:30.400 not be Tdjake, so I may not be somebody else, 0:26:30.440 --> 0:26:31.640 But you know what, You've got to be the best 0:26:31.640 --> 0:26:35.320 that you can be and celebrate somebody else. That's what 0:26:35.359 --> 0:26:37.040 I love about it. I've got a great team around me. 0:26:37.080 --> 0:26:39.639 I've got brothers and sisters and brothers in laws. You 0:26:39.640 --> 0:26:43.000 know what I'm the younger brother, the younger than some 0:26:43.040 --> 0:26:45.119 of them, but they all celebrate me. But when you 0:26:45.160 --> 0:26:47.920 recognize who you are and you're content and who God 0:26:47.960 --> 0:26:50.520 made you to be, I think it's so important. You know, Chad, 0:26:50.560 --> 0:26:53.679 it's the distractions. It's looking at that and you know 0:26:53.800 --> 0:26:55.760 somebody else, Well, God, why didn't you give me that? 0:26:55.960 --> 0:26:57.840 Or God, why am my church bigger? Well? God, why 0:26:57.920 --> 0:26:59.719 can't I? You know what, you got to tune all 0:26:59.760 --> 0:27:02.280 that up out and be content and be happy with 0:27:02.320 --> 0:27:04.520 who God made you to be. The fact is somebody 0:27:04.560 --> 0:27:07.120 would love to have what you have. Somebody would gladly 0:27:07.160 --> 0:27:09.919 trade places with you. And it's easy to be happy 0:27:10.000 --> 0:27:13.639 until you start comparing and competing with other people. I 0:27:13.680 --> 0:27:15.679 remember one time I was running through my neighborhood and 0:27:15.680 --> 0:27:18.040 I have this path I run. It's two mile path, 0:27:18.119 --> 0:27:21.639 and when there's this long boulevard, probably a mile, and 0:27:22.080 --> 0:27:25.000 I saw a guy about all two blocks in front 0:27:25.040 --> 0:27:26.840 of me, you know, a few hundred yards, and I 0:27:26.920 --> 0:27:29.119 just I just you know, I'm just feeling competitive. I 0:27:29.119 --> 0:27:30.800 want to raise somebody. I thought I'm gonna race him. 0:27:31.080 --> 0:27:33.560 And so he's running up there, and man, he's going 0:27:33.560 --> 0:27:35.919 pretty good, but I'm gaining on him and gaining on him, 0:27:36.119 --> 0:27:38.880 panting I'm just trying to beat him, and I finally 0:27:38.960 --> 0:27:41.679 just kept going and going and going. I finally beat him. 0:27:41.920 --> 0:27:43.760 Now he didn't know we're racing, but I beat him. 0:27:43.880 --> 0:27:46.159 But you know, the funny thing is when I finally 0:27:46.200 --> 0:27:48.240 beat him, I looked up and I thought, oh man, 0:27:48.240 --> 0:27:50.719 I'm this my turn. It was way back there. I 0:27:50.760 --> 0:27:53.119 was supposed to turn it three blocks before, but I 0:27:53.240 --> 0:27:55.560 was so focused and I'm gonna beat this guy that 0:27:55.720 --> 0:27:58.840 doesn't even know I'm racing him, but you know, you know, 0:27:58.960 --> 0:28:00.679 and I just turn. But I think that's what we 0:28:00.720 --> 0:28:02.919 do in life. A lot of times. I'm not racing 0:28:02.960 --> 0:28:05.920 after any of y'all. I'm not racing after anybody else. 0:28:06.000 --> 0:28:08.600 I'm racing against myself to be the best that God's 0:28:08.640 --> 0:28:10.720 called me to be. So I love that scripture. Don't 0:28:10.720 --> 0:28:12.360 look to the left nor to the right. Be who 0:28:12.359 --> 0:28:15.479 God's called you to be. Celebrate somebody that's ahead of you. 0:28:16.080 --> 0:28:21.240 God blessing them doesn't stop God from blessing you. Like 0:28:21.359 --> 0:28:23.760 God ran out of favor because he gave them so much, 0:28:23.920 --> 0:28:27.560 God has favor, and really, unlike Saul and David, God 0:28:27.600 --> 0:28:29.600 can do for you what he did for the others, 0:28:30.000 --> 0:28:32.639 God can take you further. We talked about earlier. I 0:28:32.640 --> 0:28:34.720 think off camera that did a lot of those times. 0:28:34.720 --> 0:28:37.320 It's just a test. I wonder if Saul would have 0:28:37.720 --> 0:28:40.840 celebrated King David. I don't know, but I just encourage 0:28:40.840 --> 0:28:43.200 you to be content with what God's given you. You're 0:28:43.240 --> 0:28:46.200 not lacking, but God's given us all different gifts and 0:28:46.240 --> 0:28:48.200 you have to be we have to be wise enough 0:28:48.200 --> 0:28:53.200 and contend enough to accept it. How you Joe Evan Connor, 0:28:53.560 --> 0:28:54.880 pastor of Tell Then of your church. 0:28:54.880 --> 0:28:57.640 We're a truth family church. We're in Arlington, Texas. 0:28:57.360 --> 0:29:00.280 And you got your new building opening up this in 0:29:00.360 --> 0:29:02.160 six weeks. That's awesome. 0:29:02.240 --> 0:29:03.040 We're excited about it. 0:29:03.080 --> 0:29:06.480 We are so happy for you. These guys, Evan and 0:29:06.520 --> 0:29:09.720 Sarah are great pastors there and just faithful people. And 0:29:09.760 --> 0:29:12.440 I love what God's doing. And you know, thirteen years 0:29:12.440 --> 0:29:15.800 being in a mobile church, setting up, tearing down a 0:29:15.840 --> 0:29:17.800 lot of people would have gotten discouraged. But man, I 0:29:17.880 --> 0:29:18.600 admire you guys. 0:29:18.680 --> 0:29:21.360 Almost seven hundred times we've had to do that. Wow, 0:29:21.600 --> 0:29:22.720 but God's been faithful. 0:29:22.920 --> 0:29:24.320 Well, we're blessed to have you here. 0:29:24.360 --> 0:29:29.240 Yeah, I'm excited about your new book. I'm just excited 0:29:29.320 --> 0:29:32.320 that you let me read the pre released version. It's 0:29:32.320 --> 0:29:33.920 so good, I'm going to buy the real one when 0:29:33.920 --> 0:29:34.440 it comes out. 0:29:36.680 --> 0:29:37.520 I was reading. 0:29:37.360 --> 0:29:41.080 Chapter eight and Approve Yourself, and you said something I 0:29:41.080 --> 0:29:43.840 thought was powerful. You said, the problem with not liking 0:29:43.880 --> 0:29:46.760 yourself is that you're the only person who can you 0:29:46.800 --> 0:29:48.400 can never get away from. 0:29:48.640 --> 0:29:49.680 And I thought, wow. 0:29:50.000 --> 0:29:52.040 I think that's one of the biggest things that hold 0:29:52.040 --> 0:29:53.880 people back, is that we. 0:29:53.840 --> 0:29:55.320 Don't like ourselves. 0:29:55.360 --> 0:29:58.600 And I think it's because we think God doesn't like us. 0:29:59.440 --> 0:30:02.600 And in your book, you really help us understand. One 0:30:02.600 --> 0:30:05.080 of the things you say in the book is God 0:30:05.120 --> 0:30:07.720 said about Jesus, this is my beloved son and whom 0:30:07.720 --> 0:30:10.280 I'm well pleased. And Jesus hadn't done one miracle. 0:30:11.160 --> 0:30:12.280 And I think if we. 0:30:12.240 --> 0:30:16.240 See through God's lenses like he sees us, then we 0:30:16.320 --> 0:30:17.400 will accept ourselves. 0:30:17.520 --> 0:30:18.760 He's not looking for perfection. 0:30:18.920 --> 0:30:22.040 Jesus already done that. He's looking you know, maturity is 0:30:22.040 --> 0:30:24.080 the life that we are to live and not perfection. 0:30:24.160 --> 0:30:25.720 And maturity is a destination. 0:30:26.240 --> 0:30:27.040 It's not a journey. 0:30:27.080 --> 0:30:28.640 It's a journey, not of destination. 0:30:28.760 --> 0:30:30.240 So I'm excited. 0:30:29.840 --> 0:30:31.920 About your new book, and I do believe it's going 0:30:31.960 --> 0:30:34.640 to bless a whole lot of people. My question would be, 0:30:35.920 --> 0:30:39.280 how important do you feel it's necessary for someone to 0:30:39.400 --> 0:30:40.640 approve of themselves? 0:30:40.760 --> 0:30:44.200 Yeah? I think Evan, it's incredibly important, because you can't 0:30:44.440 --> 0:30:46.720 if you go through life you got enough people, and 0:30:46.800 --> 0:30:49.680 we have enough people in life against us. You can't 0:30:49.680 --> 0:30:52.880 go through life being against yourself. I mean, I think 0:30:52.920 --> 0:30:56.480 the reason we don't have healthy relationships and a lot 0:30:56.520 --> 0:30:58.600 of times and not because somebody else, is because we 0:30:59.080 --> 0:31:01.440 don't get along with our selves, so we can't get 0:31:01.440 --> 0:31:04.160 along with somebody else. So again it goes back to 0:31:04.240 --> 0:31:07.600 what we've been talking about turning off the negative recording. Hey, 0:31:07.640 --> 0:31:09.600 you have some flaws and weakness, say so do I 0:31:10.120 --> 0:31:12.360 soor to Victorian more than me? So you all got 0:31:12.920 --> 0:31:15.320 we all have put we all have plenty of these. 0:31:15.320 --> 0:31:17.560 Why don't you turn off that recording and put beating 0:31:17.640 --> 0:31:21.000 yourself up? My goodness, life is too short to live 0:31:21.120 --> 0:31:24.280 beating yourself down and just being against yourself and thinking 0:31:24.360 --> 0:31:27.480 how everybody else is greater. But I just think you 0:31:27.520 --> 0:31:31.040 know everything you said, Evan is so important that you 0:31:31.080 --> 0:31:33.760 know when you're against yourself, you're not going to reach 0:31:33.880 --> 0:31:37.320 your full potential. Well, I'll explain it better in the book. 0:31:37.400 --> 0:31:39.920 But you know, I think the key is turning off. 0:31:39.960 --> 0:31:42.720 Get the right recording in your mind. Our thoughts are 0:31:42.760 --> 0:31:45.760 limiting us. It's not the enemy, it's not others. It's 0:31:45.840 --> 0:31:46.600 people like you. 0:31:46.800 --> 0:31:48.880 I like that you look at people like they all 0:31:49.000 --> 0:31:49.959 like you. 0:31:49.720 --> 0:31:52.320 You see people the way you see yourself. So you 0:31:52.360 --> 0:31:55.440 see your self defeated, you see yourself insecure, you see 0:31:55.440 --> 0:31:58.800 yourself unattractive. Then you're putting that out everywhere you go, 0:31:59.240 --> 0:32:02.120 even bodyline, you know, and this I don't measure up 0:32:02.120 --> 0:32:05.240 and stuff. You got to see yourself differently. And the 0:32:05.280 --> 0:32:07.360 story of the Ten Spies. They came back and they 0:32:07.360 --> 0:32:10.880 said we were in our own sits as grasshoppers as 0:32:10.880 --> 0:32:13.200 we were in their sights. They didn't say those guys 0:32:13.240 --> 0:32:16.120 over there in the Promised Land they called us grasshoppers. 0:32:16.200 --> 0:32:19.120 They said we felt like we were grasshoppers. And I 0:32:19.120 --> 0:32:21.920 think there's a lot of people living with that grasshopper mentality. 0:32:22.160 --> 0:32:24.480 When you're a child of the most taied God, when 0:32:24.520 --> 0:32:27.120 he's breathed life into you, when he's crowned you with favor, 0:32:27.360 --> 0:32:31.040 when you have seeds of greatness, imagine God, or imagine 0:32:31.280 --> 0:32:33.840 you know, an analogy of imagine your child coming up 0:32:33.880 --> 0:32:36.640 and oh Dad, please can I have something to eat? Please? 0:32:36.680 --> 0:32:39.440 Can I do this? I'm not worthy man. We would think, 0:32:39.760 --> 0:32:42.520 who are you? You know? Stand up tall, You're my son. 0:32:42.560 --> 0:32:44.480 And that's what God said to all of us, Stand 0:32:44.560 --> 0:32:47.800 up tall. I made you, I created you. Yeah, we've 0:32:47.840 --> 0:32:50.960 all made mistakes, we all have weaknesses, but I can't 0:32:51.000 --> 0:32:54.400 find hardly, hardly anybody in the Bible God's used that 0:32:54.480 --> 0:32:57.360 didn't have flaws and weaknesses, you know, that didn't make 0:32:57.400 --> 0:33:00.760 some mistakes, but that didn't disqualify them. God used them 0:33:00.760 --> 0:33:02.960 in spite of that. But you have to turn off 0:33:03.000 --> 0:33:05.680 that recording. If I'm not good enough and the insecurity 0:33:05.720 --> 0:33:07.720 and God could never use me, you turn that off. 0:33:07.760 --> 0:33:10.960 And that's what allows God to do great things. It's 0:33:11.040 --> 0:33:13.800 not that God's holding us back. So many times, were 0:33:13.800 --> 0:33:18.760 holding us back with the wrong thinking. Pastor rich Wilkerson 0:33:18.840 --> 0:33:23.680 from Trinity Trinity Fellowship in what city, CA? You? Miami? Yeah, 0:33:23.680 --> 0:33:25.840 I been friends of mine for friends of ours for 0:33:25.920 --> 0:33:30.240 so many years. Rich and Robert, your son Richie pastors in. 0:33:31.680 --> 0:33:33.000 About ten miles from us. 0:33:32.840 --> 0:33:35.040 Ten miles from you have another son pastors in New York. 0:33:35.160 --> 0:33:37.000 Yeah, hard with him the other day and I got 0:33:37.040 --> 0:33:39.080 another one pastoring in the Seattle area. 0:33:39.360 --> 0:33:41.720 Well, so we're real blessed. Well thanks for being here. 0:33:42.320 --> 0:33:45.320 I was really impressed with the chapter on Live as 0:33:45.320 --> 0:33:51.480 a bold Son. I just thought about your family because 0:33:51.640 --> 0:33:54.280 it was in nineteen eighty five and I was just 0:33:54.320 --> 0:33:57.200 about bleeding to death in the hospital and your dad, 0:33:57.360 --> 0:33:59.680 I don't even know how you got my number in 0:33:59.760 --> 0:34:05.240 a hospital, and brother John called and said, brother Rich, 0:34:06.080 --> 0:34:10.000 this is brother O's thing, and he said, Dode, he's 0:34:10.080 --> 0:34:11.279 got something to tell you. 0:34:12.680 --> 0:34:14.360 I'm like bleeding, you know. 0:34:15.239 --> 0:34:18.600 And your mom got on the phone said Rich, get 0:34:18.640 --> 0:34:20.000 out of that hospital. 0:34:20.200 --> 0:34:24.080 Now, that place may kill you. Get out. 0:34:24.120 --> 0:34:26.280 I'm gonna pray for you right now. She started praying, 0:34:26.800 --> 0:34:30.239 quoting verses over me. And I really I checked out 0:34:30.280 --> 0:34:32.880 that day. I literally checked out that day, and God 0:34:32.920 --> 0:34:36.880 heal me of a blood disease. And I think about 0:34:37.120 --> 0:34:41.400 that legacy that's on you. And I was just in 0:34:41.440 --> 0:34:45.279 Brooklyn and saw Jonathan and Alexandria on the stage and 0:34:45.360 --> 0:34:48.840 Jonathan got up and just started kind of preaching and 0:34:48.920 --> 0:34:51.239 everyone's just gonna go WHOA. And it just seems like 0:34:51.239 --> 0:34:55.239 it was a generational thing. And I want you to 0:34:55.280 --> 0:34:57.960 talk to that. But the chapter that got me was 0:34:58.160 --> 0:35:01.400 move up to next level thinking. The book is called 0:35:01.520 --> 0:35:03.080 next Level Thinking. 0:35:03.560 --> 0:35:07.600 But the chapter that I like, do it? Yeah, now 0:35:07.800 --> 0:35:08.120 do it? 0:35:08.160 --> 0:35:10.479 I mean, and I think that is where so many 0:35:10.480 --> 0:35:13.480 of us kind of have a roadblock. Yeah we want 0:35:13.520 --> 0:35:15.120 to have next level thinking? 0:35:15.200 --> 0:35:17.200 But how do you do that? 0:35:17.400 --> 0:35:19.839 And and in that chapter you just talk about, Hey, 0:35:19.880 --> 0:35:22.640 let's let's make the let's make a decision. Let's still 0:35:22.800 --> 0:35:23.600 talk about that, Joe. 0:35:23.800 --> 0:35:26.319 Yeah, I think Rich just what you said, It's just 0:35:26.360 --> 0:35:28.960 a decision we have to make. It's not maybe not 0:35:29.000 --> 0:35:31.080 going to fall on us, not going to you know, 0:35:31.200 --> 0:35:34.359 something supernaturally happened, but just by the act of your 0:35:34.400 --> 0:35:36.680 will to say, you know what I am going to 0:35:37.040 --> 0:35:38.839 you know, talk a lot about in that chapter about 0:35:38.840 --> 0:35:41.879 it is finished. This, this function is finished. This, this 0:35:42.080 --> 0:35:45.479 mediocrity is finished. This bad attitude is finished. This living 0:35:45.600 --> 0:35:48.080 negative and not enjoying my life, it is finished. Well, 0:35:48.080 --> 0:35:50.200 you've got to just like Jesus said on the cross 0:35:50.360 --> 0:35:52.319 when he said it is finished, he wasn't just talking 0:35:52.360 --> 0:35:54.520 about his life. He was talking about all the shame, 0:35:54.680 --> 0:35:57.680 the guilt, all the stuff that's trying to hold us back. 0:35:58.000 --> 0:35:59.920 Doesn't do us any good though, unless we get an 0:36:00.040 --> 0:36:03.000 agreement with God and say, Okay, tonight is going to 0:36:03.000 --> 0:36:05.040 be a new night of victory in my life. You 0:36:05.080 --> 0:36:07.640 just draw that line in the sand and you decide 0:36:07.680 --> 0:36:10.960 to make you start making better decision. But when I've 0:36:11.000 --> 0:36:12.880 learned this, when you do your part, God will do 0:36:12.960 --> 0:36:15.359 his part. He will kick in. But sometimes we're waiting 0:36:15.360 --> 0:36:17.640 with Joe when I feel better, or when I get 0:36:17.680 --> 0:36:19.839 a break, or when my husband starts treating me better. 0:36:19.880 --> 0:36:21.719 But you know what, you got to say, No, I'm 0:36:21.719 --> 0:36:24.120 gonna make the first move right now. I'm going to 0:36:24.800 --> 0:36:27.480 you know, change the way I'm thinking. I'm gonna look 0:36:27.520 --> 0:36:30.160 at things from a new perspective. I'm gonna thank God 0:36:30.200 --> 0:36:32.600 for what's right and not what's wrong. And really rich 0:36:32.719 --> 0:36:34.640 is a lot like my father when he gave his 0:36:34.719 --> 0:36:37.200 life to Christ. You know, I don't know what came 0:36:37.239 --> 0:36:39.279 over him, and maybe just the decision he made, but 0:36:39.320 --> 0:36:41.560 he said, you know what poverty has finished in my life. 0:36:41.920 --> 0:36:45.120 Seventeen years old, in the Great Depression, no money, no education, 0:36:45.680 --> 0:36:48.279 his parents telling him, don't leave the farm. But you 0:36:48.320 --> 0:36:51.520 know what, he made that decision. I know God gave 0:36:51.560 --> 0:36:53.080 him the grace to do it, but he had to 0:36:53.120 --> 0:36:55.400 step into it and Again, it's not like he had 0:36:55.440 --> 0:36:57.160 a big Oh I got a scholarship now to go 0:36:57.200 --> 0:36:59.680 to school or something. He hitchies and started preaching in 0:36:59.719 --> 0:37:02.480 prison and on the street corners and things like that. 0:37:02.600 --> 0:37:05.880 But again, when you make that decision, it's amazing what 0:37:06.000 --> 0:37:08.000 God will do. And I like that. I think that's 0:37:08.520 --> 0:37:10.800 part of that. I talked about that son or a slave, 0:37:10.880 --> 0:37:14.160 and it reminded me because because so many times, you 0:37:14.239 --> 0:37:17.600 know how the Israelites, God brought them out of slavery, 0:37:17.920 --> 0:37:20.520 but as they went toward the Promised Land, they never 0:37:20.560 --> 0:37:23.560 got rid of a slave mentality. God had called them 0:37:23.600 --> 0:37:26.040 a son. But it's like the enemy kept calling you 0:37:26.080 --> 0:37:28.360 a slave. And so it's like, you know, God is 0:37:28.400 --> 0:37:30.480 calling you a son, the enemy is calling you a slave. 0:37:30.840 --> 0:37:32.960 Who you're going to say you are a son or 0:37:33.000 --> 0:37:35.440 a slave? Well, we are sons, we are daughters of 0:37:35.480 --> 0:37:37.560 the Most High God. But as long as you have 0:37:37.640 --> 0:37:41.680 a slave mentality, a defeated mentality, look what I've been through, Joel, 0:37:42.120 --> 0:37:44.960 or look look at these giants on my promised land. Listen, 0:37:45.200 --> 0:37:46.799 God has brought you through in the past, He's going 0:37:46.880 --> 0:37:48.880 to bring you through in the future. Don't have a 0:37:48.920 --> 0:37:57.960 slave mentality. Have a son mentality. Stephen Hayes, pastor of 0:37:58.000 --> 0:38:00.879 Covenant Church, with his mom and dad said next to them, 0:38:01.200 --> 0:38:05.279 great people. And Mike and Kathy Hayes have passed there 0:38:05.280 --> 0:38:09.279 how many years forty years they transitioned to Steve and 0:38:09.320 --> 0:38:12.080 he has not run it down yet, but he's doing great. 0:38:12.280 --> 0:38:15.120 But these guys have pastors. Mike and Kathy are just 0:38:15.160 --> 0:38:18.000 great friends and great leaders and just been friends of 0:38:18.040 --> 0:38:20.399 ours and Steve. I love. We were talking even last 0:38:20.480 --> 0:38:23.600 night about how the church you've transitioned the last couple 0:38:23.600 --> 0:38:26.560 of years. The church is strong, and I love to 0:38:26.600 --> 0:38:29.560 see healthy transitions. That's what happened at Lakewood, and I 0:38:29.600 --> 0:38:31.560 believe that's what's going to continue to happen with our 0:38:31.640 --> 0:38:34.520 church and other churches. But thanks for being here, y'all. 0:38:34.520 --> 0:38:35.480 Great blessing to us. 0:38:35.640 --> 0:38:38.040 Absolutely, And just as you wrapped up your last point, 0:38:38.040 --> 0:38:41.640 Pastor Joel, while it's so clear from what Pasor Keith 0:38:41.680 --> 0:38:45.000 said and others on breaking barriers and blazing new trail, 0:38:45.520 --> 0:38:47.839 what he's done now for his children, what you're doing 0:38:47.840 --> 0:38:50.000 for yours and in your church. I told you last 0:38:50.040 --> 0:38:52.600 night that just what you've done as a son, succeeding 0:38:52.680 --> 0:38:55.920 your father and doing an amazing job. Taking it further 0:38:56.080 --> 0:38:58.239 has helped to blaze a trail for me as well 0:38:58.280 --> 0:39:01.000 as a son coming in and thank you for that. 0:39:02.040 --> 0:39:03.960 But as much as all that's so important, in the 0:39:03.960 --> 0:39:06.440 next level thinking the chapter chapter six, it stood out 0:39:06.440 --> 0:39:08.400 to me that you just alluded to not thinking like 0:39:08.400 --> 0:39:10.719 a slave but thinking like a son. It comes back, 0:39:10.760 --> 0:39:12.840 I think so much to being able to really connect 0:39:12.880 --> 0:39:15.880 to what's possible is knowing who you are. You know, 0:39:15.920 --> 0:39:17.920 you can have good strategies about loving yourself, that's all 0:39:17.960 --> 0:39:19.480 so important, But if you don't know that you are 0:39:19.520 --> 0:39:21.920 a son and a daughter of God, and your approval 0:39:22.080 --> 0:39:25.600 is not based on your performance, it's based on His greatness, 0:39:25.640 --> 0:39:28.000 his goodness, and until you can really connect to that, 0:39:28.120 --> 0:39:30.160 I don't know that any of the other stuff's even possible. 0:39:30.280 --> 0:39:31.719 I don't know that I can really fully even love 0:39:31.800 --> 0:39:34.239 myself if I don't know that He loves me. And 0:39:34.280 --> 0:39:36.440 so that old chapter really got me, and specifically the 0:39:36.480 --> 0:39:38.600 story you told about the maintenance guy coming to your 0:39:38.600 --> 0:39:41.120 house to fix an air conditioner, and he said, you know, 0:39:41.400 --> 0:39:43.319 maintenance guy shows up, He's not going to go to 0:39:43.320 --> 0:39:44.920 the fridge, He's not going to go sit down and 0:39:44.960 --> 0:39:47.640 watch TV. Because it's not his home, right, He's going 0:39:47.680 --> 0:39:49.120 to go and do the job I hired him to do. 0:39:49.320 --> 0:39:51.640 But when Jonathan comes home from college, he's not going 0:39:51.680 --> 0:39:53.880 to ask permission to go to the fridge. He's not 0:39:53.880 --> 0:39:56.160 going to ask permission to watch TV. Because he's a son. 0:39:56.239 --> 0:39:58.640 He knows who he is. And I was talking to 0:39:58.680 --> 0:40:01.320 Pastor Phil before this, and he reminded me of a 0:40:01.360 --> 0:40:03.960 story I shared with him back in high school. My 0:40:04.040 --> 0:40:06.160 parents told me, Steven, your job is to be a 0:40:06.200 --> 0:40:08.640 good student and be an athlete and be faithful at church. 0:40:08.719 --> 0:40:11.359 And and so they helped me get my first car. 0:40:11.400 --> 0:40:12.960 But I worked to raise some money and they made 0:40:12.960 --> 0:40:15.360 me put my you know, put my money forward for 0:40:15.440 --> 0:40:17.640 it and raise money. Well, then when I got the car, 0:40:17.760 --> 0:40:19.759 I was the only one of my friends that had 0:40:19.760 --> 0:40:22.000 a car. So I became the car pool guy, right. 0:40:22.080 --> 0:40:24.480 I took everybody to practice. And so then my dad 0:40:24.520 --> 0:40:26.400 got me. He made the mistake of giving me a 0:40:26.520 --> 0:40:29.399 Chevron gas card, and then all of a sudden, any 0:40:29.400 --> 0:40:31.840 of my friends that needed some snacks were buying Gatorade 0:40:31.880 --> 0:40:35.120 after practice. I the first month, the first month, it 0:40:35.160 --> 0:40:37.640 was like one thousand dollars I spent at Chevron I 0:40:37.680 --> 0:40:39.560 got creative. You could you could feed a few guys 0:40:39.600 --> 0:40:43.200 at Chevron, you know. And they sat me down, said Steve, 0:40:43.200 --> 0:40:44.959 when we understand what you're doing. But listen, you can't 0:40:45.000 --> 0:40:48.360 just feed everybody at the gas station. But I recognized 0:40:48.440 --> 0:40:51.200 I ordered it, but my dad's covering the bill, Like 0:40:51.280 --> 0:40:53.680 I know who my dad is, and he's paying the bill. 0:40:54.000 --> 0:40:55.920 And it taught me a lesson later in life that 0:40:56.400 --> 0:40:58.400 not everyone that was raised with great parents, but I was, 0:40:58.480 --> 0:41:00.840 and I had a father and mother that were providing 0:41:00.880 --> 0:41:03.320 for me. And because of that relationship, I was able 0:41:03.520 --> 0:41:06.359 to walk into boldness and a faith that otherwise I've 0:41:06.360 --> 0:41:08.880 seen people not be able to do. And your analogy 0:41:08.920 --> 0:41:13.040 with the Israelites having been rescued through miracles of the 0:41:13.040 --> 0:41:15.799 plagues and then even the cloud by day, fire by night, 0:41:16.080 --> 0:41:19.479 incredible red sea parted, but then they forgot who they were. 0:41:20.320 --> 0:41:22.840 And I've heard it said before that Jesus or that 0:41:22.880 --> 0:41:25.560 God took them out of Egypt, but it took forty 0:41:25.600 --> 0:41:27.879 years to take the Egypt out of them. I feel 0:41:27.880 --> 0:41:29.399 like a lot of people I experienced at a church 0:41:29.440 --> 0:41:31.879 where or people will leave a place because they think 0:41:31.920 --> 0:41:34.719 the place was the problem, but they wherever you go there, 0:41:34.760 --> 0:41:37.920 you are. I think that mentality is a big limiting factor. 0:41:38.040 --> 0:41:40.080 How do you help encourage people even when they come 0:41:40.120 --> 0:41:41.960 and they're excited to be here, but you recognize they 0:41:42.040 --> 0:41:44.160 still got some Egypt on them. How do you get 0:41:44.160 --> 0:41:45.799 them really to get over the fact that you know, 0:41:45.840 --> 0:41:47.520 you left and that may have been good, but you 0:41:47.840 --> 0:41:49.120 still brought some of that with you. 0:41:49.320 --> 0:41:51.520 Yeah. I think what you're saying is true. It's just 0:41:51.560 --> 0:41:54.160 a day at a time. Keep teaching them, keep encouraging them. 0:41:54.560 --> 0:41:57.800 And you know you said it so beautifully. But knowing 0:41:57.880 --> 0:42:00.000 that we are I like going back to that bay, 0:42:00.160 --> 0:42:02.319 knowing that we are children of the Most High God, 0:42:02.360 --> 0:42:04.799 that we are approved, that we are accepted, knowing that 0:42:04.840 --> 0:42:07.480 we are loved, knowing that we are masterpieces. That's that 0:42:07.600 --> 0:42:11.200 foundation for the next level thinking. So Stephen, thanks for 0:42:11.239 --> 0:42:14.279 sharing that. Thanks for all of our great pastors here 0:42:14.320 --> 0:42:16.960 and Victoria, Nick, and thank you guys for watching. Nick. 0:42:16.960 --> 0:42:18.560 Can I see a copy of my book one more time? 0:42:18.600 --> 0:42:20.120 I know it's out in a hard copy now, but 0:42:20.520 --> 0:42:22.600 next level thinking if you'll want to pick up a copy, 0:42:22.640 --> 0:42:25.400 But we loved you. Thanks being a part of our webcast, 0:42:25.520 --> 0:42:28.040 and we're going to be praying that you know, God's 0:42:28.080 --> 0:42:31.160 going to take you to new levels. As you think better, 0:42:31.280 --> 0:42:33.560 you're going to live better. You're going to see God's 0:42:33.600 --> 0:42:36.759 goodness in new ways. You're not watching this by accident. 0:42:37.000 --> 0:42:39.279 God had you hearing this. So why don't you take 0:42:39.320 --> 0:42:42.400 some principles, take these principles to heart, and let it 0:42:42.440 --> 0:42:45.839 be a new beginning, and just kind of reevaluate and say, God, 0:42:46.000 --> 0:42:47.960 I'm taking the limits off of you tonight. I know 0:42:48.000 --> 0:42:50.600 you've made me, you breathe life into me, and just 0:42:50.680 --> 0:42:52.839 kind of like that computer. You've got to get all 0:42:52.840 --> 0:42:55.520 the viruses out of your brain and all the wrong 0:42:55.600 --> 0:42:58.040 things people have said. You're not who people said you are. 0:42:58.080 --> 0:43:00.880 You are who God says you are. He says you're blessed, 0:43:00.920 --> 0:43:04.560 you're prosperous, your redeemed, You're forgiven. You're a child of 0:43:04.600 --> 0:43:06.719 the Most Time. God, Thanks so much. We'll see you 0:43:06.800 --> 0:43:11.000 next time. One touch of God's favor can catapult you 0:43:11.080 --> 0:43:11.960 to the next level. 0:43:12.160 --> 0:43:16.000 Number one New York Times bestselling author Joe Loastein delivers 0:43:16.000 --> 0:43:17.600 his new book Next Level. 0:43:17.640 --> 0:43:20.760 Thinking you're about to take off to a new level 0:43:20.760 --> 0:43:23.640 and start rising high. You'll see God promote you and 0:43:23.719 --> 0:43:26.160 take you to a new level of your destiny. 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