The Power Of Association

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See terms and conditions at UNEs 0:01:29.760 --> 0:01:30.080 dot co. 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:33.959 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to 0:01:34.000 --> 0:01:36.759 our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. 0:01:36.880 --> 0:01:39.240 If you enjoy today's message, why don't you be a 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:40.399 blessing and share it with. 0:01:40.360 --> 0:01:43.720 A friends, reappreciate you and pray for God's very best 0:01:43.760 --> 0:01:57.920 in your life. Oh God bless you. Always a joy 0:01:58.000 --> 0:02:01.480 to come into your homes. You and we're believing for 0:02:01.520 --> 0:02:04.560 God's very best in your life. If you're ever in 0:02:04.600 --> 0:02:06.760 our area, I hope you'll come out and be a 0:02:06.800 --> 0:02:09.520 part of one of our services. These are the finest 0:02:09.560 --> 0:02:11.920 people in all of Houston, right here at Lakewood, So 0:02:11.960 --> 0:02:14.560 come on out. We'd love to have you. But thanks 0:02:14.639 --> 0:02:17.320 for tuning in. I like to get started each week 0:02:17.360 --> 0:02:19.760 with something funny, and I heard about these three men 0:02:19.919 --> 0:02:22.880 that were out hiking through the wilderness. They came upon 0:02:22.919 --> 0:02:26.200 this very violent, raging river. They needed to get to 0:02:26.240 --> 0:02:29.239 the other side. The first man prayed, God, please give 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:32.200 me the strength to make it across, and poof God 0:02:32.200 --> 0:02:35.160 gave him big arms and strong legs, and he was 0:02:35.160 --> 0:02:38.280 able to swim across in two hours. Seeing this, the 0:02:38.320 --> 0:02:41.320 next man said, God, please give me the strength and 0:02:41.400 --> 0:02:44.120 the tools I need to make it across, and poof 0:02:44.320 --> 0:02:46.560 God gave him a boat. He was able to row 0:02:46.600 --> 0:02:50.079 across in thirty minutes. The next man said, God, give 0:02:50.120 --> 0:02:53.520 me the strength, the tools, and the intelligence to make 0:02:53.560 --> 0:02:56.920 it across, and poof God turned him into a woman. 0:03:00.000 --> 0:03:03.120 He looked at the map heightd five minutes upstream, and 0:03:03.160 --> 0:03:08.600 then walked across the bridge, and yes, that was sent 0:03:08.639 --> 0:03:12.040 to me by a woman. Hold up your Bible, say 0:03:12.040 --> 0:03:14.840 it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I 0:03:14.880 --> 0:03:17.400 am what it says, I am. I have what it 0:03:17.440 --> 0:03:20.000 says I have, I can do what it says I 0:03:20.040 --> 0:03:23.280 can do. Today I will be taught the word of God. 0:03:23.760 --> 0:03:28.519 I boldly confess my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. 0:03:28.880 --> 0:03:32.760 I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God 0:03:32.840 --> 0:03:35.840 bless you. I want to talk to you today about 0:03:35.840 --> 0:03:40.680 the importance of having the right associations. Who your friends 0:03:40.720 --> 0:03:44.040 are and who you choose to associate with will have 0:03:44.080 --> 0:03:46.920 a great impact on whether or not you fulfill your 0:03:46.920 --> 0:03:51.400 God given destiny. We become like the people we continually 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:56.200 associate with. If you associate with successful people, there's a 0:03:56.240 --> 0:03:59.720 good chance you're going to be successful. If you associate 0:03:59.760 --> 0:04:02.720 with people that have a big vision, people that have 0:04:02.760 --> 0:04:06.720 a dream, people that are going places, they will inspire 0:04:06.800 --> 0:04:10.520 you to accomplish more than you thought possible. But just 0:04:10.600 --> 0:04:15.240 the opposite is true. If you hang around lazy, undisciplined people, 0:04:15.720 --> 0:04:19.040 people that are negative and critical, people that are always 0:04:19.080 --> 0:04:22.120 having a problem, that defeat is going to rub off 0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:25.400 on you. It's so important that we choose the right 0:04:25.520 --> 0:04:29.160 people to associate with, and it's good to have friends 0:04:29.279 --> 0:04:32.560 that you encourage and you build up. Maybe you're helping 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.160 someone overcome in a certain area You're an inspiration to them. 0:04:36.760 --> 0:04:39.400 We should be reaching out to others. But what I 0:04:39.440 --> 0:04:43.120 want us to see today is it's equally important that 0:04:43.160 --> 0:04:47.680 you have someone in your life that inspires you, someone 0:04:47.800 --> 0:04:51.599 that's more successful than you are, someone that's been where 0:04:51.640 --> 0:04:54.720 you're trying to go. You need a friend or a 0:04:54.800 --> 0:04:58.720 mentor that you can learn from. You should study that 0:04:58.839 --> 0:05:03.279 person how they treat other people, see how disciplined they are, 0:05:03.640 --> 0:05:08.160 how they carry themselves, and over time, those good qualities 0:05:08.200 --> 0:05:11.279 are gonna rub off on you. There's this lady I know. 0:05:11.760 --> 0:05:14.960 She's in the business world, and we become friends, and 0:05:15.000 --> 0:05:18.880 every time I'm around her, she inspires me. I thought 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:22.120 I was a big thinker, but I'm small compared to her. 0:05:22.240 --> 0:05:24.800 She thinks on a whole different level. And the other 0:05:24.880 --> 0:05:28.360 day we were discussing this project to help the needy. Now, 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:31.000 I said, well, I'm gonna call some of my minister 0:05:31.120 --> 0:05:33.279 friends and see if they want to join in and help. 0:05:33.800 --> 0:05:36.120 She said, that's fine, but I'm gonna call the CEO 0:05:36.400 --> 0:05:39.480 of this corporation, one of the biggest in the world. 0:05:39.720 --> 0:05:41.960 Then I'm gonna call my friend that runs this network 0:05:42.320 --> 0:05:43.919 and see if he wants to turn it into a 0:05:44.000 --> 0:05:47.240 television special. I'll talk to him about getting sponsors to 0:05:47.320 --> 0:05:50.320 underwrite the whole thing. The more she talked, the more 0:05:50.360 --> 0:05:55.320 I thought, you go, girl. I like the way she thinks. 0:05:55.600 --> 0:06:00.279 She inspires me to think bigger. You need people like 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:03.560 this in your life. If you're the smartest one in 0:06:03.600 --> 0:06:07.440 your group, your group is too small. If you're the 0:06:07.480 --> 0:06:10.200 one always coming up with the best ideas and giving 0:06:10.240 --> 0:06:14.520 the advice and solving the problems, you've outgrown that circle. 0:06:15.200 --> 0:06:18.359 You need people in your life speaking vision into you. 0:06:19.040 --> 0:06:21.840 There should be someone in your circle of friends that 0:06:21.920 --> 0:06:25.960 has more wisdom, more experience, more insight than you do. 0:06:26.320 --> 0:06:29.559 If not, it's limiting your growth. Now. I know people 0:06:29.560 --> 0:06:32.160 that like to feel like a big fish. The only 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:35.160 problem is they're in a little bitty tank. Their circle 0:06:35.279 --> 0:06:38.040 is too small. They've always got to be the smartest, 0:06:38.080 --> 0:06:42.000 the greatest, the wisest. They're insecure if anybody's above them, 0:06:42.480 --> 0:06:45.599 too proud to ask for advice. All that's doing is 0:06:45.680 --> 0:06:48.680 limiting them. You take a fish, put it in a 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:52.720 five gallon aquarium. It can only grow so big. Its 0:06:52.800 --> 0:06:56.560 growth is being restricted by its environment. The circle is 0:06:56.600 --> 0:06:59.320 too small. You take that same fish and put them 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:03.200 in the ocean where he belongs. He has unlimited potential, 0:07:04.040 --> 0:07:07.640 and God has already ordained the right people to come 0:07:07.640 --> 0:07:11.400 into your life to speak vision, to challenge you, to 0:07:11.560 --> 0:07:15.320 inspire you. You need to stay open. I'm the first 0:07:15.400 --> 0:07:19.280 to admit I don't know everything. One reason I am 0:07:19.360 --> 0:07:23.000 where I am today is because I found people that 0:07:23.040 --> 0:07:25.800 were a whole lot smarter than I am. God brought 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:28.840 them across my path, and I watch them, I study them, 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:31.440 I learn from them. They help me go to a 0:07:31.440 --> 0:07:34.920 new level. You need to stay open to who God's 0:07:35.000 --> 0:07:38.560 bringing across your path. I like to have people around 0:07:38.600 --> 0:07:41.800 me that, just by their example, just by the way 0:07:41.800 --> 0:07:45.200 they live their life, they challenge me to come up higher. 0:07:45.960 --> 0:07:49.480 I have this one friend he loves to give. Every 0:07:49.480 --> 0:07:52.880 time I'm around him, I'm inspired. I leave thinking I'm 0:07:52.880 --> 0:07:55.160 going to be a bigger giver. I love the fact 0:07:55.320 --> 0:07:58.880 he always has giving on his mind. I have another 0:07:58.960 --> 0:08:02.880 friend that is so nice to his wife. He treats 0:08:02.880 --> 0:08:06.360 her so good. At first, it almost made me sick. 0:08:08.280 --> 0:08:11.600 I mean, he is so goody everything is. Honey, let 0:08:11.640 --> 0:08:14.120 me do this for you. Hang on, honey, there may 0:08:14.120 --> 0:08:17.119 be a little dust on the seat. Just a second, honey, 0:08:17.160 --> 0:08:19.760 you may get a little wet. I'm thinking to myself, 0:08:19.800 --> 0:08:25.200 she is not going to melt. But after a month 0:08:25.280 --> 0:08:30.480 or two of being around all that good, it began 0:08:30.600 --> 0:08:33.000 to convict me. I thought, maybe I can come up 0:08:33.080 --> 0:08:37.680 higher in this area. And don't you say amen, Victoria. 0:08:38.679 --> 0:08:42.480 We need friends like that in our lives. Not friends 0:08:42.760 --> 0:08:46.120 that are running around on their spouse, friends that are disrespectful, 0:08:46.120 --> 0:08:49.480 friends that compromise, friends that don't have any goals. You 0:08:49.600 --> 0:08:52.360 have enough things trying to pull you down in life. 0:08:52.600 --> 0:08:55.120 Surround yourself with people that are going to help you 0:08:55.200 --> 0:08:58.199 rise higher. People that are more respectful, people that are 0:08:58.200 --> 0:09:01.680 more disciplined that I have a bigger vision than you do. 0:09:03.240 --> 0:09:05.800 I've made up my mind. I'm not gonna hang out 0:09:05.800 --> 0:09:09.160 with critical people. I hear somebody that always has a 0:09:09.200 --> 0:09:13.080 bad report, They're always complaining, always finding fault. That's a 0:09:13.120 --> 0:09:15.960 red flag. I know they're not for me. I don't 0:09:16.000 --> 0:09:18.520 need that in my life. I'm not gonna hang around 0:09:18.760 --> 0:09:21.640 stingy people. I'm not gonna spend a lot of time 0:09:21.920 --> 0:09:25.640 with people that are never happy, people that don't have integrity, 0:09:26.120 --> 0:09:29.200 knows the people, people that don't have any goals. I 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:33.880 may not have any friends, why I don't want those 0:09:33.960 --> 0:09:37.200 qualities to rub off on me. And we need to 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:40.559 set these boundaries in our own thinking. You don't have 0:09:40.600 --> 0:09:43.280 to announce it to anybody. Do you hear somebody that's 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:47.760 always gossiping, always stirring up trouble. Cross them off your list. 0:09:47.920 --> 0:09:50.280 They're not for me. And sure you can still be 0:09:50.400 --> 0:09:53.200 kind and polite, Hey, how you doing, but you shouldn't 0:09:53.280 --> 0:09:57.040 let them into your inner circle. Life is too short 0:09:57.120 --> 0:09:59.840 to spend it with the wrong people. Young people, this 0:09:59.920 --> 0:10:03.760 is is extremely important. Choosing the wrong friends can steal 0:10:03.800 --> 0:10:07.200 your destiny. Don't hang around with people at school that 0:10:07.280 --> 0:10:10.560 have a bad attitude, that are always getting into trouble, 0:10:10.600 --> 0:10:13.920 always bucking the system. You need to find friends that 0:10:13.960 --> 0:10:16.600 are going to make something out of their life. Hang 0:10:16.640 --> 0:10:20.120 around people that are disciplined, people that are focused, people 0:10:20.160 --> 0:10:23.840 that are going places. Don't be concerned about fitting into 0:10:23.840 --> 0:10:26.160 the right crowd and being the most popular, having the 0:10:26.160 --> 0:10:29.959 most friends. It's not the quantity of our friends that matter. 0:10:30.280 --> 0:10:34.280 It's the quality of our friends that really counts. I 0:10:34.320 --> 0:10:37.480 would rather have one friend that has his head on 0:10:37.559 --> 0:10:41.200 straight that's going places than twenty friends that are just 0:10:41.240 --> 0:10:45.000 floating downstream doing what everybody else is doing. The Scripture 0:10:45.000 --> 0:10:49.720 says here in Proverbs twenty seven seventeen, as iron sharpens iron, 0:10:50.400 --> 0:10:54.600 so a friend sharpens a friend. Notice, our friends should 0:10:54.640 --> 0:10:59.079 be sharpening us. Some of you today. You've outgrown your tank, 0:10:59.760 --> 0:11:02.960 out grown that circle of friends. They were fine for 0:11:03.080 --> 0:11:06.560 a time. You blessed them and they blessed you. But 0:11:06.679 --> 0:11:09.920 now God's trying to increase you, and those friends are 0:11:09.920 --> 0:11:13.320 holding you back. They were in your life for a season, 0:11:13.880 --> 0:11:16.440 but you've grown, You've come up to a higher level. 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:19.400 And if you're going to continue to rise, you have 0:11:19.480 --> 0:11:22.760 to break out of the rut and cultivate some new friendships. 0:11:23.480 --> 0:11:26.320 I know this pastor. He started a church years ago, 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:29.360 and for a long time he was happy and growing. 0:11:29.679 --> 0:11:32.760 He knew he was fulfilling his destiny. But a while 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:35.040 back he began to feel like he was stuck in 0:11:35.080 --> 0:11:38.200 the rock. He had several hundred members, but he knew 0:11:38.320 --> 0:11:41.160 God had put bigger things in his heart, and so 0:11:41.200 --> 0:11:43.559 he talked to the people that helped him start the church, 0:11:43.760 --> 0:11:47.720 his inner circle of friends, about trying some new things 0:11:47.760 --> 0:11:51.560 and starting some different programs. But man, they discouraged him. 0:11:51.760 --> 0:11:54.280 They said, that'll never work here. We need to just 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:58.200 keep doing what we've been doing. That man knew he 0:11:58.320 --> 0:12:01.840 needed to get different people speaking into his life. He 0:12:01.920 --> 0:12:05.240 knew he was the biggest fish in his tank, and 0:12:05.280 --> 0:12:08.320 that's never healthy. And one day he met this minister 0:12:08.600 --> 0:12:12.320 that was extremely successful. He had been where this man 0:12:12.400 --> 0:12:15.199 was trying to go. This minister was so kind he 0:12:15.240 --> 0:12:19.040 took him under his wing, and for several years, this pastor, 0:12:19.480 --> 0:12:23.080 once a month flew across the country to spend just 0:12:23.120 --> 0:12:26.480 a few minutes with this other minister. He studied him. 0:12:27.000 --> 0:12:29.360 He watched how he led the staff, he talked to 0:12:29.760 --> 0:12:32.640 different members of his church. He took in everything he could, 0:12:33.320 --> 0:12:35.480 all the while his friends back in home they didn't 0:12:35.520 --> 0:12:38.840 understand it. They said, you're wasting your time and your money. 0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:41.280 It's so expensive, you don't need to fly out there. 0:12:42.000 --> 0:12:46.559 But no, this man understood the power of right associations. 0:12:46.920 --> 0:12:49.120 He knew the more time he spent with that man, 0:12:49.559 --> 0:12:52.400 the more his faith was growing, the more his vision 0:12:52.559 --> 0:12:56.560 was increasing. Something was happening on the inside. And today 0:12:56.600 --> 0:13:00.439 that pastor has a church with thousands of people. In fact, 0:13:00.640 --> 0:13:04.319 his ministry is much larger than the men that mentored 0:13:04.400 --> 0:13:08.280 him all those years. But what happened He found somebody 0:13:08.400 --> 0:13:11.800 that had what he wanted, He got around him, learned 0:13:11.840 --> 0:13:15.800 from him, those same qualities, those same characteristics, got off 0:13:15.840 --> 0:13:18.520 on him, and he not only went to his level, 0:13:18.800 --> 0:13:21.680 he took it above and beyond. And could it be 0:13:21.800 --> 0:13:24.760 today that the thing that's holding you back is you 0:13:24.800 --> 0:13:27.720 don't have the right people in your life. You don't 0:13:27.760 --> 0:13:32.320 have anyone inspiring you, anybody that's modeling what you want. 0:13:32.679 --> 0:13:35.600 If this man would have stayed in that same group 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:39.360 of small minded thinkers, I don't mean they weren't good people, 0:13:39.360 --> 0:13:43.319 because they were, but he had outgrown that tank. If 0:13:43.320 --> 0:13:46.400 he had not gotten into a bigger circle, he would 0:13:46.440 --> 0:13:50.760 have those same frustrations, those same struggles. Today. He had 0:13:50.800 --> 0:13:54.840 to get around somebody that had what he wanted, somebody 0:13:54.840 --> 0:13:57.400 that had been where he was trying to go, so 0:13:57.480 --> 0:14:01.240 he could be inspired and challenged. You need to surround 0:14:01.280 --> 0:14:06.040 yourself with people that motivate you to go forward, and 0:14:06.080 --> 0:14:09.640 not people that are constantly tempting you to shrink back. 0:14:10.520 --> 0:14:13.520 You shouldn't sit around at work all day and let 0:14:13.559 --> 0:14:17.320 somebody fill your mind with gossip. Don't go home every 0:14:17.440 --> 0:14:20.600 night and spend hours on the phone with a friend 0:14:20.760 --> 0:14:24.080 that's dumping all their problems on you, singing their sad song. 0:14:24.840 --> 0:14:27.040 That's fine. Once in a while we should be loving 0:14:27.080 --> 0:14:30.000 and caring. You can pray for them and encourage them. 0:14:30.320 --> 0:14:33.080 But what I'm saying today is if you're going to 0:14:33.080 --> 0:14:36.200 become all God's created you to be, you have to 0:14:36.320 --> 0:14:42.160 eliminate any kind of toxic relationships. If somebody is always 0:14:42.280 --> 0:14:46.400 taking and never giving, that's not a healthy relationship. When 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:50.160 you leave, if you feel drained and tired and depressed 0:14:50.200 --> 0:14:52.640 and worse than you were before, that should be a 0:14:52.680 --> 0:14:56.720 red flag something is not right. Recognize they are stealing 0:14:56.760 --> 0:14:59.400 your victory. Well, you say, Joel, I don't want to 0:14:59.440 --> 0:15:02.560 hurt their feet. I've known them a long time. No, 0:15:02.720 --> 0:15:06.320 you can be kind, you can be polite, but little 0:15:06.360 --> 0:15:09.120 by little you need to spend less and less time 0:15:09.200 --> 0:15:11.960 with that person. You may not want to hurt their feelings, 0:15:12.120 --> 0:15:14.600 but let me ask you this, what if they keep 0:15:14.640 --> 0:15:18.320 you from fulfilling your God given destiny? Now I found 0:15:18.640 --> 0:15:21.440 some people don't want to come up higher. Some people 0:15:21.520 --> 0:15:24.400 don't want to change. They're too comfortable where they are. 0:15:25.200 --> 0:15:28.400 They want discipline themselves to make the right choices. So 0:15:28.480 --> 0:15:31.800 you have to be strong and have the attitude I 0:15:31.880 --> 0:15:34.800 have a destiny to fulfill You may not want to 0:15:34.840 --> 0:15:37.000 come up higher, that's fine, but you're not going to 0:15:37.120 --> 0:15:39.480 keep me from coming up higher. You may not want 0:15:39.480 --> 0:15:42.760 to be happy, fine, but I'm gonna live my life happy. 0:15:43.400 --> 0:15:47.560 We have to separate ourselves from relationships that are holding 0:15:47.640 --> 0:15:51.600 us back. And I'm not talking about a marriage relationship. 0:15:51.680 --> 0:15:54.160 That's a different story. Some of you are thinking you 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:59.160 got the words you needed today. I'm talking about the 0:15:59.200 --> 0:16:03.120 people we choose to spend our free time with. If 0:16:03.160 --> 0:16:06.920 you're spending all your time with negative, critical people, people 0:16:06.960 --> 0:16:10.640 that compromise, people that always see the worst, you're not 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:13.920 going to be able to form the right friendships. You 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:19.160 have a responsibility first and foremost to keep yourself happy, 0:16:19.560 --> 0:16:22.920 healthy and whole. God has entrusted you with a gift. 0:16:23.400 --> 0:16:26.880 You have a treasure on the inside, something that nobody 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:30.479 else has. But if you don't make the right connections, 0:16:30.880 --> 0:16:34.160 you won't make it to the right destinations. And God 0:16:34.160 --> 0:16:37.400 has already ordained the right people to come into your life, 0:16:37.880 --> 0:16:41.280 but you'll never meet them if you're constantly hanging around 0:16:41.280 --> 0:16:44.120 the wrong people. You need to look at your friends 0:16:44.440 --> 0:16:47.600 and see if they have anything that you want. If 0:16:47.600 --> 0:16:50.600 they don't have any joy, they don't have any victory, 0:16:50.600 --> 0:16:53.120 and they're always complaining and they're not as far along 0:16:53.160 --> 0:16:57.080 as you are. Recognize they're not adding anything to you. 0:16:57.840 --> 0:17:01.920 And yes, maybe they're there. You can inspire them. Maybe 0:17:01.920 --> 0:17:04.560 your job is to help them come up higher. But 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:07.240 what I'm saying is you should not spend all your 0:17:07.280 --> 0:17:10.320 time with people like that, because if you're going to 0:17:10.359 --> 0:17:13.600 continue to grow, if you're going to rise higher, you 0:17:13.720 --> 0:17:16.840 have to have people that inspire you, people that are 0:17:16.840 --> 0:17:19.720 further down the road than you are. I think about Daniel. 0:17:19.920 --> 0:17:23.400 The scripture says that he had an excellent spirit. If 0:17:23.440 --> 0:17:28.120 you study is life, you'll find that Daniel chose excellent friends. 0:17:28.680 --> 0:17:31.639 You know who he hung out with, Shadrack me Jack 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:35.840 a Bendigo, the three Hebrew teenagers that refuse to bow 0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:39.720 down to the King's golden idol. No wonder. Daniel was 0:17:39.760 --> 0:17:43.560 a person of excellence. His friends were people of courage, 0:17:44.000 --> 0:17:47.880 people of integrity, people that wouldn't compromise, people that had 0:17:47.880 --> 0:17:50.520 a big dream for their life. You need to make 0:17:50.560 --> 0:17:54.440 sure the people you're choosing to spend time with have 0:17:54.560 --> 0:17:58.359 qualities that you want, because whether you realize it or not, 0:17:58.880 --> 0:18:02.360 it's rubbing off on you. Don't think you can sit 0:18:02.400 --> 0:18:05.080 at the lunch room every day for an hour and 0:18:05.160 --> 0:18:07.760 let people fill your mind with gossip and bad mouth 0:18:07.800 --> 0:18:11.400 the company and not have it affect you. Ah, you say, Joel, 0:18:11.480 --> 0:18:14.560 I just listen, I don't join in. Know that poisons 0:18:14.800 --> 0:18:18.040 going into the inside. If you stay there long enough, 0:18:18.520 --> 0:18:21.960 by default, more often than not, you'll become a gossiper 0:18:22.119 --> 0:18:25.720 just like them. What's the solution. Find somewhere else to 0:18:25.760 --> 0:18:29.760 eat lunch, sit at a different table, go outside. Yes 0:18:29.840 --> 0:18:32.600 they may talk about you, Yes they may think you're odd, 0:18:32.840 --> 0:18:35.960 but listen, people like that. If they're not talking about 0:18:36.000 --> 0:18:38.040 you now, they're going to be talking about you later. 0:18:38.200 --> 0:18:40.760 Your time's coming. You need to just rise above it. 0:18:41.359 --> 0:18:45.800 You have a destiny to fulfill. You are going places. 0:18:45.960 --> 0:18:50.080 Keep that poison out of your life. Psychologists tell us 0:18:50.280 --> 0:18:53.439 there's something called the law of the group. That is, 0:18:53.680 --> 0:18:57.560 we associate with people the way we see ourselves. Have 0:18:57.640 --> 0:19:00.560 you ever noticed how most of the time people that 0:19:00.640 --> 0:19:05.040 gossip find other people that gossip. Negative people gravitate to 0:19:05.080 --> 0:19:09.159 other negative people. Complainers seem to always find the other complainers. 0:19:09.600 --> 0:19:12.439 That's where that saying comes from. Birds of a feather 0:19:12.840 --> 0:19:17.040 flock together. We find people just like us. Knowing this, 0:19:17.840 --> 0:19:21.880 I would encourage you to evaluate your friendships. If your 0:19:21.920 --> 0:19:26.359 friends are all negative, they always compromise, they're always having problems. 0:19:26.800 --> 0:19:30.359 You need to get some new friends. Because victorious people 0:19:30.680 --> 0:19:34.320 associate with other victorious people. That's why we're all here today. 0:19:34.680 --> 0:19:39.680 Overcomers hang out with other overcomers. Happy people gravitate toward 0:19:39.760 --> 0:19:46.280 other happy people. Successful people associate with other successful people. 0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:51.320 I was reading how Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harry 0:19:51.359 --> 0:19:55.080 Firestone all had summer homes next door to each other 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:58.560 in Florida. They spent much of their summers together. You 0:19:58.640 --> 0:20:01.360 think about there are three of the most brilliant minds 0:20:01.359 --> 0:20:04.480 that have ever lived. They helped change the course of history. 0:20:04.960 --> 0:20:07.399 You notice they didn't spend a lot of time with 0:20:07.680 --> 0:20:12.159 negative can't do it people. They associated with other dreamers, 0:20:12.480 --> 0:20:15.679 with other men of big vision, no wonder. They soared 0:20:15.720 --> 0:20:18.200 to new heights. If you want to know what you're 0:20:18.240 --> 0:20:20.360 going to be like five years from now, just take 0:20:20.400 --> 0:20:23.800 a look at your friends. That's a good indication. I 0:20:23.840 --> 0:20:26.600 have a friend that just got a big promotion. God 0:20:26.640 --> 0:20:29.440 blessed him, and something that he had been hoping for 0:20:29.560 --> 0:20:32.679 and working toward for years finally came to pass, and 0:20:32.840 --> 0:20:35.680 he was so excited about it. We have this other 0:20:35.800 --> 0:20:39.280 friend that had been hoping and praying for this same 0:20:39.480 --> 0:20:44.159 type of opportunity, probably for even a longer period of time. Now, 0:20:44.160 --> 0:20:47.639 I was wondering what he was going to think. Sometimes 0:20:47.680 --> 0:20:52.639 it's easy when you see somebody succeed, especially at something 0:20:52.640 --> 0:20:56.600 that you want, it's easy to get jealous and critical 0:20:56.640 --> 0:21:00.000 towards them. I was so happy that my friend Will 0:21:00.160 --> 0:21:03.400 is genuinely happy for this other man. He called him 0:21:03.400 --> 0:21:06.840 and congratulated him. I could tell that he was sincere 0:21:06.880 --> 0:21:10.240 about it, and I thought, that's the kind of friends 0:21:10.359 --> 0:21:14.119 we need to cultivate, people that will celebrate our victories. 0:21:14.600 --> 0:21:17.840 Not people the moment God promotes you, they start talking 0:21:17.960 --> 0:21:22.280 and criticize and get all jealous. It's already enough haters 0:21:22.320 --> 0:21:26.399 in the world. It's already enough cynical, sarcastic, critical people. 0:21:26.960 --> 0:21:31.520 Less surround ourselves with friends that are secure enough to 0:21:31.720 --> 0:21:36.400 celebrate each other's victories. When you hear people talking about somebody, 0:21:36.440 --> 0:21:39.760 you know you have a responsibility to put an end 0:21:39.800 --> 0:21:41.560 to it. You should say, you know what, I'm not 0:21:41.600 --> 0:21:44.200 going to talk about them. I'm glad they got promoted, 0:21:44.320 --> 0:21:46.800 because I know if God did it for them, He'll 0:21:46.800 --> 0:21:51.359 do it for me. One thing I found is you 0:21:51.400 --> 0:21:55.680 cannot help a person that will not separate himself from 0:21:55.720 --> 0:21:59.800 toxic influences. No matter how much you pray or encourage 0:21:59.880 --> 0:22:02.960 or advise. They've always got that poison going into them. 0:22:03.600 --> 0:22:05.679 They've got to be willing to get rid of the source. 0:22:06.200 --> 0:22:08.760 It may not be something terribly big or abusive, but 0:22:09.320 --> 0:22:12.560 just hanging around somebody that's got a jealous, critical spirit 0:22:12.760 --> 0:22:18.040 that's poisoning your life, or hanging around someone that's arrogant, condescending, 0:22:18.119 --> 0:22:21.680 always looking down on others, that's polluting you on the inside. 0:22:22.280 --> 0:22:25.360 And I realize there are no perfect people. We all 0:22:25.400 --> 0:22:28.560 have something that we're dealing with. I heard somebody say 0:22:28.920 --> 0:22:33.199 every person has a little dysfunction. But what I'm saying is, 0:22:33.280 --> 0:22:38.360 don't get around people that empower that dysfunction. Your friends 0:22:38.480 --> 0:22:41.439 should bring out the best in you and not the worst. 0:22:42.280 --> 0:22:45.760 If you struggle with being impatient, don't hang around other 0:22:45.880 --> 0:22:50.760 impatient people. That's empowering the wrong things. If you tend 0:22:50.760 --> 0:22:53.920 to be a little negative and you struggle with discouragement 0:22:54.000 --> 0:22:57.159 and depression, don't go find five other friends that are 0:22:57.200 --> 0:23:00.480 depressed so you can sit around talk about your problems. 0:23:00.640 --> 0:23:03.439 You need to find friends that are happy, friends that 0:23:03.480 --> 0:23:07.040 are positive, friends that are full of faith. What you're 0:23:07.200 --> 0:23:12.720 around is contagious. Do you realize faith is contagious? Joy 0:23:12.800 --> 0:23:16.280 is contagious, Hope is contagious. That's why when you come 0:23:16.320 --> 0:23:20.000 in here and get around all these other faith filled believers, 0:23:20.040 --> 0:23:23.399 these victories are not victums. You can't help but leave 0:23:23.920 --> 0:23:26.399 full of more faith, full of more joy, full of 0:23:26.440 --> 0:23:31.719 more hope, full of more victory. It's contagious. What are 0:23:31.760 --> 0:23:35.520 we doing. We're empowering the right thing. I know this 0:23:35.600 --> 0:23:38.400 man that struggled with his temper for years and years. 0:23:38.800 --> 0:23:41.560 His father was hot tempered, and other people in his family. 0:23:41.920 --> 0:23:44.600 For the longest time, it didn't look like he could overcome. 0:23:45.040 --> 0:23:49.439 But eventually, through prayer, through counseling, through right thinking, he 0:23:49.520 --> 0:23:52.320 was able to change. He's a totally different person. His 0:23:52.400 --> 0:23:55.399 wife and family are so thrilled. And one day up 0:23:55.440 --> 0:23:58.040 at the gym he met this other men playing ball 0:23:58.080 --> 0:24:01.560 and they became over time good friends, and he liked 0:24:01.600 --> 0:24:05.399 everything about him. The only problem was this new friend 0:24:05.760 --> 0:24:08.960 had an anger issue. On the court. At times, he'd 0:24:08.960 --> 0:24:11.640 lose his cool and get all upset, and people would 0:24:11.640 --> 0:24:14.080 have to come try to calm him down. Other times 0:24:14.119 --> 0:24:17.200 during the week, he saw his friend have these angry, 0:24:17.440 --> 0:24:21.560 emotional outbursts, just what he was set free from, and 0:24:21.640 --> 0:24:23.680 he reached out to him, tried to get him to 0:24:23.720 --> 0:24:25.280 come to church, tried to get him to see some 0:24:25.359 --> 0:24:29.639 of our counselors. But over time he realized his friend 0:24:30.160 --> 0:24:33.880 was not willing to change, and even though he enjoyed 0:24:33.920 --> 0:24:37.000 his company, even though he really liked him, he made 0:24:37.040 --> 0:24:40.520 the difficult decision to put an end to that relationship. 0:24:40.960 --> 0:24:44.199 He said, Joel, I couldn't take the chance. That's just 0:24:44.280 --> 0:24:46.760 what I came out of and I knew if I 0:24:46.800 --> 0:24:49.760 didn't get away from him, I would go right back 0:24:49.880 --> 0:24:54.640 to being hot tempered and angry myself. He recognized if 0:24:54.680 --> 0:24:58.919 he stayed in close relationship with that man, all it 0:24:58.960 --> 0:25:04.439 would do enable his dysfunction. I'm asking you today to 0:25:04.640 --> 0:25:08.439 separate yourself from people that are bringing out the worst 0:25:08.480 --> 0:25:12.240 in you. May be difficult, but here's the key. What 0:25:12.320 --> 0:25:15.320 you want walk away from is where you stop growing. 0:25:16.200 --> 0:25:20.480 If you want separate yourself from toxic influences, you won't 0:25:20.520 --> 0:25:24.240 rise any higher. And some of you, even two years ago, 0:25:24.720 --> 0:25:27.879 you felt an uneasiness down in here about that relationship. 0:25:28.320 --> 0:25:30.520 You knew back then that was God talking to you 0:25:30.720 --> 0:25:33.919 about making a change. It was causing you to compromise, 0:25:34.359 --> 0:25:37.440 bringing out the worst. But again and again you put 0:25:37.440 --> 0:25:40.240 it off until you do what you know in your 0:25:40.240 --> 0:25:43.520 heart you should do. You're going to be stuck. And 0:25:43.560 --> 0:25:46.200 sometimes we think, why isn't God blessing me? Why don't 0:25:46.240 --> 0:25:49.080 I see God's favor? Well? Are we doing what God 0:25:49.160 --> 0:25:52.480 has asked us to do? Today is a day of decision. 0:25:53.280 --> 0:25:56.120 If you have the wrong people in your life, God 0:25:56.200 --> 0:25:59.760 can't bring the right people in. You may be thinking, well, Joe, 0:26:00.080 --> 0:26:02.919 if I make these changes, I may not have any friends. 0:26:02.920 --> 0:26:06.359 I may be lonely. No, just the opposite is true. 0:26:06.520 --> 0:26:09.879 That act of obedience is what allows God to open 0:26:09.960 --> 0:26:13.080 new doors to bring the people He's ordained to be 0:26:13.160 --> 0:26:16.680 in your life, the right people. And yes, you may 0:26:16.720 --> 0:26:19.720 go through a season of being lonely. But I'd rather 0:26:19.800 --> 0:26:22.399 be lonely for a little while knowing that I'm so 0:26:22.560 --> 0:26:25.240 in a seed to come up higher, then go year 0:26:25.280 --> 0:26:28.760 after year with a bunch of friends that I know 0:26:29.280 --> 0:26:32.800 are keeping me from being my very best. You need 0:26:32.800 --> 0:26:36.640 to make sure you have people speaking vision into you, 0:26:37.320 --> 0:26:40.320 people that have been where you're trying to go. I've 0:26:40.359 --> 0:26:43.800 been blessed my whole life to be around good mentors 0:26:43.840 --> 0:26:46.520 and people that I could look up to. I grew 0:26:46.560 --> 0:26:48.760 up with a great father, he was my best friend, 0:26:48.800 --> 0:26:54.280 and Daddy modeled excellence, integrity, compassion. I like to believe 0:26:54.320 --> 0:26:57.919 that rubbed off on me. Recently, I've been honored to 0:26:57.920 --> 0:27:02.160 spend time with Billy Graham, to hear his heart and 0:27:02.280 --> 0:27:05.639 see his love and just his compassion for people. That 0:27:05.800 --> 0:27:09.679 inspires me to become everything God's created me to be. 0:27:10.480 --> 0:27:13.440 You need some heroes in your life, people you can 0:27:13.480 --> 0:27:16.280 look up to, people you can admire, people that will 0:27:16.320 --> 0:27:20.520 help bring the seeds of greatness out of the inside. 0:27:20.600 --> 0:27:25.440 I think about how Elisha hung around the prophet Elijah. 0:27:25.720 --> 0:27:27.520 He was with him day in and day out. He 0:27:27.680 --> 0:27:31.399 served him, took care of him. In the end, Elisha 0:27:31.640 --> 0:27:36.480 received a double portion of Elijah's annoying. You become like 0:27:36.520 --> 0:27:40.760 the people you hang around, even Joshua. He stayed closely 0:27:40.920 --> 0:27:43.960 with Moses. When Moses went on the mountain to receive 0:27:44.000 --> 0:27:46.439 the Ten Commandments, he couldn't go up there, but he 0:27:46.520 --> 0:27:48.960 waited at the base of the mountain. He didn't want 0:27:49.000 --> 0:27:52.880 Moses out of his sight. The scripture says Moses put 0:27:52.880 --> 0:27:55.919 his hands on Joshua, and he received a part of 0:27:55.960 --> 0:27:59.560 Moses annoying, a part of his authority, a part of 0:27:59.600 --> 0:28:03.240 his aunt. Who you associate with will have a great 0:28:03.280 --> 0:28:06.600 impact on whether or not you fulfill your destiny. Now 0:28:06.640 --> 0:28:09.560 I believe, and I don't mean this arrogantly, but even 0:28:09.680 --> 0:28:13.840 being associated with our ministry here the favor of God's 0:28:13.880 --> 0:28:17.800 put on us because of your association, that favors rubbing 0:28:17.800 --> 0:28:25.080 off on you blessings, honor, promotion, integrity, joy, peace, You 0:28:25.200 --> 0:28:31.080 can increase through association. So I challenge you evaluate your friendships. 0:28:31.600 --> 0:28:35.400 Make sure you have some kind of mentor someone speaking 0:28:35.520 --> 0:28:39.120 vision into you. Don't be the smartest one in your group. 0:28:39.320 --> 0:28:43.960 Get a bigger circle, eliminate any toxic relationships. It may 0:28:44.040 --> 0:28:47.520 be difficult, but remember you're going places you have a 0:28:47.600 --> 0:28:50.920 destiny to fulfill. Get around people that will bring out 0:28:50.960 --> 0:28:54.680 the best, not people that enable that dysfunction. And if 0:28:54.760 --> 0:28:58.400 you'll be selective about who your friends are, make sure 0:28:58.440 --> 0:29:01.320 you choose people that build you up, people that inspire you. 0:29:01.760 --> 0:29:04.560 Then I know you'll rise, hire and hire. God will 0:29:04.600 --> 0:29:07.240 pour out his blessings, his favor, and you'll live the 0:29:07.240 --> 0:29:09.960 life of victory he has in story. Amen, do you 0:29:10.000 --> 0:29:13.800 receive it today? Well, we never like to close our 0:29:13.840 --> 0:29:17.080 broadcast without giving you an opportunity to make Jesus the 0:29:17.120 --> 0:29:20.920 lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord, Jesus, 0:29:21.960 --> 0:29:26.080 I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I 0:29:26.280 --> 0:29:29.840 make you my Lord and savior. Friends, if you prayed 0:29:29.840 --> 0:29:32.640 that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get 0:29:32.680 --> 0:29:34.080 in a good Bible based church. 0:29:34.600 --> 0:29:37.480 Thank you for listening to the joel OUs Deine podcast. 0:29:37.840 --> 0:29:40.440 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:29:40.560 --> 0:29:44.520 those all over the world. Visit Jolusdin dot com slash 0:29:44.640 --> 0:29:46.640 give Hope to give a gift today. 0:29:47.920 --> 0:29:50.840 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:50.840 --> 0:29:54.200 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:54.320 --> 0:29:57.480 keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. 0:29:57.680 --> 0:30:00.120 I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you 0:30:00.200 --> 0:30:00.640 next time.