You Are God's Masterpiece

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 start your comeback at Purdueglobal dot edu. 0:01:00.680 --> 0:01:03.440 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to 0:01:03.480 --> 0:01:06.600 our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you 0:01:06.680 --> 0:01:09.280 enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and 0:01:09.360 --> 0:01:12.000 share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray 0:01:12.040 --> 0:01:26.080 for God's very best in your life. Oh God bless you. 0:01:26.560 --> 0:01:28.960 It is always a joy to coming to your homes. 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:32.000 We love you and we're believing for God's very best 0:01:32.000 --> 0:01:34.800 for you and your family. We pray for you every day, 0:01:34.880 --> 0:01:37.440 and if you're ever in our area, I hope you'll 0:01:37.440 --> 0:01:39.480 come out and be a part of one of our services. 0:01:39.640 --> 0:01:41.960 These are the finest people in all of Houston right 0:01:41.959 --> 0:01:44.319 here at Lakewood. We'd love to have you be a part. 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:47.600 Thanks for tuning in today. I like to get started 0:01:47.600 --> 0:01:49.920 each week with something funny, and I heard about this 0:01:50.080 --> 0:01:53.400 man that died and left his wife twenty thousand dollars. 0:01:53.880 --> 0:01:56.960 After the funeral, his wife told a friend that she 0:01:57.080 --> 0:01:59.920 was totally broke. She said, what do you mean you're broke? 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:02.000 I thought you had twenty thousand dollars. She said, well, 0:02:02.320 --> 0:02:05.920 I spent five thousand on the funeral and fifteen thousand 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:08.880 on the memorial stone. The friend said, Wow, that was 0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:11.360 some stone. How big was it? She held up her 0:02:11.360 --> 0:02:15.480 finger and said three and a half carrots. All right, 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:18.360 hold up your Bible. Say it like you mean it. 0:02:18.919 --> 0:02:22.000 This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:25.280 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:02:25.360 --> 0:02:28.040 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:02:28.120 --> 0:02:32.359 taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:36.080 is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 0:02:36.200 --> 0:02:40.760 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:02:40.800 --> 0:02:44.520 to talk to you today about not being critical toward yourself. 0:02:45.440 --> 0:02:48.559 So many people have a war going on on the inside. 0:02:49.080 --> 0:02:52.200 They're not really happy with who they are. They go 0:02:52.280 --> 0:02:55.200 around thinking if I was just a little taller, if 0:02:55.240 --> 0:02:58.280 I just had a more outgoing personality, if I just 0:02:58.360 --> 0:03:01.600 had green eyes instead of these brown eyes. They're always 0:03:01.680 --> 0:03:04.480 wishing they were something different. But if you're going to 0:03:04.680 --> 0:03:07.919 enjoy your life, you have to be happy with who 0:03:07.960 --> 0:03:10.720 God made you to be. If you don't get along 0:03:10.760 --> 0:03:14.160 with yourself, you'll never get along with other people. And 0:03:14.200 --> 0:03:17.400 the scripture says here in Ephesians two ten, we are 0:03:17.520 --> 0:03:22.280 God's masterpiece that means you are not average. You are 0:03:22.320 --> 0:03:25.760 not ordinary. You were one of a kind. When God 0:03:25.840 --> 0:03:29.280 created you, he went to great links to make you 0:03:29.840 --> 0:03:33.320 exactly like he wanted. You didn't just happen to get 0:03:33.360 --> 0:03:37.800 your personality. You didn't just accidentally get your nose, your 0:03:37.840 --> 0:03:42.640 skin color, your gifts. God on purpose designs you to 0:03:42.680 --> 0:03:45.120 be the way you are, and you need to see 0:03:45.160 --> 0:03:50.120 yourself as unique, as an original, as God's very own masterpiece. 0:03:51.000 --> 0:03:53.240 One time, when I was in my early twenties, I 0:03:53.320 --> 0:03:56.640 was in India sitting on the beach watching the sunset. 0:03:56.960 --> 0:04:00.760 It was a beautiful picture. The water was so crystal clear, 0:04:00.840 --> 0:04:03.000 and as far as I could see to my left 0:04:03.040 --> 0:04:05.200 and right, it was just miles of the beach and 0:04:05.280 --> 0:04:09.080 beautiful palm trees. The sun was huge on the horizon, 0:04:09.480 --> 0:04:12.000 just about to go down. And as I sat there, 0:04:12.080 --> 0:04:15.800 I thought about what a magnificent picture that was, and 0:04:15.840 --> 0:04:19.000 the thought came to my mind about how God is 0:04:19.040 --> 0:04:22.720 such an incredible painter. And as I was just reflecting 0:04:22.800 --> 0:04:25.880 and thinking about my life, I heard God speak something 0:04:25.920 --> 0:04:28.360 to me, not out loud, but right down in here. 0:04:28.839 --> 0:04:31.680 He said, Joe, you think this is a beautiful picture, 0:04:31.720 --> 0:04:34.719 do you? I said, yes, God, I think it's magnificent. 0:04:35.200 --> 0:04:37.120 He said, well, what do you think would be my 0:04:37.240 --> 0:04:42.400 most prized painting, my most incredible creation? I said, God, 0:04:42.440 --> 0:04:45.680 I think it would be this. This is magnificent. He said, no, 0:04:45.800 --> 0:04:48.960 it's not this. I thought about it a moment earlier 0:04:49.080 --> 0:04:51.640 that year, I'd been in the Rocky Mountains and that 0:04:51.760 --> 0:04:54.400 was so spectacular. I said, God, I bet it's the 0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:57.640 Rocky Mountains. He said, no, it's not that. I said, well, 0:04:57.680 --> 0:05:01.800 what is it? The solar system, the milky He said, Joel, 0:05:02.000 --> 0:05:05.320 if you want to know what my most prized painting is, 0:05:05.680 --> 0:05:08.279 the one that I'm the most proud of, it would 0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:11.919 be you. I thought, me, God, it couldn't be me. 0:05:12.160 --> 0:05:16.240 I'm just ordinary. I'm just like everyone else. He said, no, Joel, 0:05:16.279 --> 0:05:19.640 you don't understand. The sunsets are a dime a dozen. 0:05:20.200 --> 0:05:23.240 When I made the mountains and the solar system and 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:26.600 the oceans, that's good. I was proud of that. But 0:05:26.640 --> 0:05:29.680 when I made you, I breathed my life into you. 0:05:30.120 --> 0:05:33.720 I made you in my very own image. Friends, you 0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:39.159 are God's most prized possession. Don't go around feeling wrong 0:05:39.240 --> 0:05:42.960 about yourself on the inside, wishing you had more talent 0:05:43.080 --> 0:05:46.039 and wishing you were taller and wishing you could do 0:05:46.120 --> 0:05:49.200 something that a friend does. Now when God made you, 0:05:49.480 --> 0:05:52.599 he stepped back and said, that was good. You have 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:55.960 exactly what you need. You are not supposed to go 0:05:56.080 --> 0:06:01.040 around thinking negative thoughts toward yourself. I'm so slow, and 0:06:01.279 --> 0:06:04.359 I'm not attractive, and I don't like my nose. No, 0:06:04.600 --> 0:06:08.080 when God was passing out the noses and the years 0:06:08.560 --> 0:06:11.760 and the height and the personalities, you did not get 0:06:11.760 --> 0:06:15.120 in the wrong line. God made you like you are 0:06:15.160 --> 0:06:18.240 on purpose. I know. When I was growing up, I 0:06:18.360 --> 0:06:21.880 was very short. I graduated from high school at five 0:06:21.920 --> 0:06:25.760 foot six and I grewsome after that. But in school 0:06:25.800 --> 0:06:27.799 some of my friends kind of give me a hard time. 0:06:28.320 --> 0:06:31.760 My nickname was peanut, and don't you start calling me 0:06:31.800 --> 0:06:35.400 that either. But in school there were times I was 0:06:35.440 --> 0:06:38.320 tempted to think, God, that's a disadvantage, and why am 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:40.760 I so short? And how can I keep playing sports? 0:06:41.320 --> 0:06:44.000 But one day I read where short people live in 0:06:44.040 --> 0:06:49.599 averages six years longer than tall people, and I started thinking, God, 0:06:51.240 --> 0:06:53.839 if you're tall today, don't be discouraged. Just know you're 0:06:53.839 --> 0:06:58.800 gonna beat us to heaven. My brother Paul, when he 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:01.800 was growing up, he always felt like his nose was 0:07:01.880 --> 0:07:04.880 kind of large, and me, being his younger brother and 0:07:05.000 --> 0:07:08.880 the great encourager that I am. I used to tell him, Paul, 0:07:09.040 --> 0:07:12.200 when God was passing out noses, you thought he said 0:07:12.280 --> 0:07:16.880 roses and said I'll take a big red one. I've 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:20.360 always been an encourager. But what am I saying? You 0:07:20.360 --> 0:07:23.120 didn't get in the wrong line. Quit wishing you were different, 0:07:23.520 --> 0:07:27.000 you were taller, had more hair, or different personality. If 0:07:27.040 --> 0:07:29.840 God wanted you to be taller, I can guarantee you 0:07:29.880 --> 0:07:32.240 he would have made you taller. If God wanted you 0:07:32.280 --> 0:07:34.160 to be a different skin color, he would have made 0:07:34.200 --> 0:07:36.720 you that way. But it seems like these days we're 0:07:36.720 --> 0:07:39.880 always wishing that we were something different. I've known dark 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:42.680 skinned people that put cream on them to try to 0:07:42.720 --> 0:07:45.680 become lighter. Then I know light skinned people go lay 0:07:45.720 --> 0:07:49.000 in a tanning bed all day try to become darker. Now, 0:07:49.040 --> 0:07:50.920 I'm not saying to go overboard. If you want to 0:07:50.960 --> 0:07:53.560 get a tan, get a tan. If you have straight 0:07:53.600 --> 0:07:56.560 hair and you want curly hair, permit. If you have 0:07:56.640 --> 0:07:59.560 gray hair and you want brown hair, dyet. If you 0:07:59.640 --> 0:08:01.680 have no hair and you want hair, by it. 0:08:05.960 --> 0:08:06.480 Oh boy. 0:08:07.040 --> 0:08:14.360 But my point is made myself laugh today. My point 0:08:14.520 --> 0:08:18.120 is we have to accept who God made us to be. 0:08:19.120 --> 0:08:22.560 Don't you dare go through life with that negative recording 0:08:22.680 --> 0:08:26.280 constantly playing in your mind. You have been painted by 0:08:26.280 --> 0:08:29.600 the most incredible painter there could ever be. God not 0:08:29.720 --> 0:08:33.000 only designs you, but he breathed his life into you. 0:08:33.400 --> 0:08:35.960 When he got done, he stepped back and said, Wow, 0:08:36.160 --> 0:08:40.439 another masterpiece. He stamped his approval on you. You know how, 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:42.560 in the back of our shirts we have a tag 0:08:42.920 --> 0:08:46.320 says made in America, made in China, made in Mexico. Well, 0:08:46.360 --> 0:08:48.920 somewhere on you, you've got a tag that says made 0:08:49.040 --> 0:08:54.360 by Almighty God. When you get up every morning, you 0:08:54.440 --> 0:08:57.559 need to remind yourself. I have the fingerprints of God 0:08:57.679 --> 0:09:00.960 all over me, the way I walk, the way I smile, 0:09:01.320 --> 0:09:05.400 my personality, my gifts. I am God's masterpiece. That's a 0:09:05.400 --> 0:09:08.120 whole lot better than going around thinking, man, I'm slow, 0:09:08.520 --> 0:09:13.360 I'm unattractive, I'm not talented. No quit criticizing God's creation 0:09:14.240 --> 0:09:16.880 some of you. This is exactly what's holding you back. 0:09:17.240 --> 0:09:20.360 You're not at peace on the inside. You smile on 0:09:20.400 --> 0:09:24.400 the outside, but on the inside you're constantly beating yourself up, 0:09:24.800 --> 0:09:29.120 thinking negative thoughts. Towards yourself. I'm asking you today to 0:09:29.200 --> 0:09:33.160 put a new recording in your mind. Don't allow another 0:09:33.280 --> 0:09:36.439 negative word to come out of your mouth towards yourself. 0:09:37.120 --> 0:09:40.640 Don't lie in bed every morning thinking about everything wrong 0:09:40.720 --> 0:09:44.160 with you. Celebrate who God made you to be. Start 0:09:44.240 --> 0:09:47.960 meditating on the fact I am God's masterpiece. I am 0:09:48.320 --> 0:09:50.800 one of a kind, I am equipped, i am annoyted, 0:09:51.040 --> 0:09:54.800 I'm not average. I'm God's very own creation. Because so 0:09:54.800 --> 0:09:59.280 many people today live with this nagging, vague feeling on 0:09:59.320 --> 0:10:02.120 the inside, They've done it so long now it's in 0:10:02.160 --> 0:10:06.040 their subconscious mind telling them I'm not up to par 0:10:06.280 --> 0:10:08.320 and I'd never do anything right, and I've made so 0:10:08.360 --> 0:10:12.520 many mistakes. It's their own self defeating thoughts that are 0:10:12.600 --> 0:10:17.320 keeping them in mediocrity. The Scripture tells us our faith 0:10:17.600 --> 0:10:22.280 is made effective when we acknowledge everything good. You cannot 0:10:22.280 --> 0:10:25.880 go around acknowledging the wrong and expect your faith to 0:10:25.960 --> 0:10:29.160 work properly. You may have a dozen things you feel 0:10:29.160 --> 0:10:32.240 like are a disadvantage, a dozen things that you dislike 0:10:32.320 --> 0:10:35.640 about yourself. Well, I'm so shy, and I don't like 0:10:35.720 --> 0:10:38.920 my nose and I didn't finish college. As long as 0:10:38.960 --> 0:10:41.480 you're dwelling on that, you're adding fuel to the fire. 0:10:42.200 --> 0:10:45.400 Your faith is working, but it's working in the wrong direction. 0:10:46.040 --> 0:10:49.360 Those things will get bigger and bigger, and eventually there'll 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:52.280 be stumbling blocks that'll hold you back. But if you 0:10:52.360 --> 0:10:56.000 can just learn to retrain your mind and acknowledge the 0:10:56.040 --> 0:10:59.560 good things about you. In other words, I may not 0:10:59.679 --> 0:11:02.080 be as talented as they are, I may not be 0:11:02.120 --> 0:11:06.479 as attractive as they are, but you know what, I'm organized, 0:11:07.000 --> 0:11:10.600 I'm good with my family. I'm a hard worker. I'm disciplined. 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:13.840 If you will acknowledge the good things that God has 0:11:13.840 --> 0:11:16.680 put in you, then you'll see the good begin to increase. 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:20.079 A while back, I was in someone's home. They had 0:11:20.120 --> 0:11:23.719 all these paintings on the wall. And I'm not an 0:11:23.720 --> 0:11:27.200 expert in art, but they were not very impressive to me. 0:11:27.880 --> 0:11:30.679 In fact, some of them looked like they'd been painted 0:11:30.720 --> 0:11:34.400 by a child. They were very modern and abstract, paint 0:11:34.440 --> 0:11:37.760 thrown here and paint thrown there. But later that evening 0:11:37.800 --> 0:11:40.960 they told me how they had paid over a million 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:44.400 dollars for just one of those paintings. All of a sudden, 0:11:44.440 --> 0:11:48.200 I thought, Wow, that is beautiful, isn't it. My eye 0:11:48.240 --> 0:11:51.600 for art really came out come to find out it 0:11:51.640 --> 0:11:56.920 was an original Picasso painted by the famous artist Pablo Picasso. 0:11:57.640 --> 0:12:01.360 What dawned on me that night was it's not necessarily 0:12:01.400 --> 0:12:04.720 what the painting looks like, it's who the painter is. 0:12:05.559 --> 0:12:09.640 The painting gets its value from its creator. Somebody that 0:12:09.720 --> 0:12:12.559 halfway knew how to paint could accopy that and tried 0:12:12.559 --> 0:12:14.880 to sell it, but they wouldn't have gotten one percent. 0:12:15.400 --> 0:12:20.040 The painting was valuable because it had Pablo Picasso's fingerprints 0:12:20.080 --> 0:12:22.880 on it. It's the same way with us. We don't 0:12:22.880 --> 0:12:25.240 get our value from what we look like or what 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:28.400 we can do. Our value comes from the fact of 0:12:28.440 --> 0:12:32.160 who our painter is. Almighty God has breathed his life 0:12:32.240 --> 0:12:35.600 into each one of us. I love the way David 0:12:35.679 --> 0:12:40.240 said it. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. I wish 0:12:40.320 --> 0:12:42.440 you could get that down in your spirit. You are 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:46.320 extremely valuable. You are one of a kind. Don't go 0:12:46.400 --> 0:12:51.280 around criticizing yourself, wishing you were something different. Accept yourself, 0:12:51.520 --> 0:12:55.960 Approve yourself. You've been wonderfully made. I wonder what would 0:12:55.960 --> 0:12:58.560 happen if all day long we would focus on that 0:12:59.200 --> 0:13:02.040 instead of the next negative. We'd go around thinking about 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:07.600 I'm God's masterpiece. I'm talented, I'm creative, I've been wonderfully made. 0:13:08.480 --> 0:13:10.800 One thing I can tell you for sure is the 0:13:10.960 --> 0:13:13.439 enemy does not want you to feel good about yourself. 0:13:14.160 --> 0:13:17.120 You can do a thousand things right and do one 0:13:17.200 --> 0:13:20.400 thing wrong, and that mistake will play over and over. 0:13:20.960 --> 0:13:23.600 You can have a thousand good things about you, but 0:13:23.720 --> 0:13:26.880 one thing you dislike, and that'll stay on the forefront 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:29.600 of your mind. I dare you to get up each 0:13:29.720 --> 0:13:32.439 day and look in the mirror and say, good morning, you, 0:13:32.600 --> 0:13:37.920 wonderful thing you have been fearfully and wonderfully made. I 0:13:38.000 --> 0:13:41.679 read a story about a man that died in extreme poverty. 0:13:42.160 --> 0:13:44.800 He had been homeless at one time, living on the streets, 0:13:44.920 --> 0:13:47.839 but now he had this small, run down apartment. After 0:13:47.880 --> 0:13:51.040 the funeral, the family came over to take care of 0:13:51.080 --> 0:13:54.440 his belongings. He had this picture on the wall and 0:13:54.480 --> 0:13:56.760 they took it down and ended up selling it at 0:13:56.760 --> 0:13:59.640 a garage cell. The person that bought it took it 0:13:59.720 --> 0:14:02.560 up to the local art gallery. Come to find out 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:06.160 it was extremely valuable. It had been painted by an 0:14:06.240 --> 0:14:09.120 artist that lived back in the eighteen hundreds and he 0:14:09.200 --> 0:14:12.120 was very famous. They had it auctioned off. At this 0:14:12.240 --> 0:14:16.840 worldwide auction, that painting sold for over three million dollars. 0:14:17.760 --> 0:14:21.640 Sometimes we're living in defeat because we don't recognize the 0:14:21.800 --> 0:14:25.640 value of what we have. Every one of you has 0:14:25.680 --> 0:14:28.560 been painted by the most famous painter there could ever be. 0:14:29.280 --> 0:14:32.040 But if you don't understand your value, and you go 0:14:32.120 --> 0:14:34.880 around thinking, well, Joel, I'm not that talented and I'm 0:14:34.960 --> 0:14:37.760 just kind of ordinary, I've made a lot of mistakes. 0:14:38.200 --> 0:14:41.600 If you let that negative recording keep playing, just like 0:14:41.680 --> 0:14:45.080 this man, even though you have what you need, you'll 0:14:45.080 --> 0:14:47.960 never tap into it. Every morning when you get up, 0:14:48.120 --> 0:14:50.880 you need to remind yourself I am not average, I'm 0:14:50.880 --> 0:14:53.800 not ordinary. I'm one of a kind. I have God's 0:14:53.880 --> 0:14:58.120 fingerprints all over me. Start the day off by getting 0:14:58.120 --> 0:15:01.640 your mind going in the right direction. Don't focus on 0:15:01.680 --> 0:15:04.040 what you don't have, the mistakes you've made, and the 0:15:04.120 --> 0:15:07.520 chances you've blown. No, let all that go and start 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:11.320 focusing on the good. I think it's interesting. When God 0:15:11.360 --> 0:15:14.280 created the heavens and the earth, he said, let there 0:15:14.280 --> 0:15:18.040 be light, and light came and God said it was good. 0:15:18.720 --> 0:15:21.920 He separated the waters from the sky, and God said 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:24.800 it was good. He made night and day, and again 0:15:24.960 --> 0:15:28.440 God said it was good. What's my point? When God 0:15:28.480 --> 0:15:32.600 did something good, he praised himself. He looked back and said, 0:15:32.640 --> 0:15:35.600 I like that. That was good. We need to learn 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:38.520 to do what God did. When you accomplish something, when 0:15:38.600 --> 0:15:40.640 you give it your best, you need to look back 0:15:40.800 --> 0:15:42.960 and say, I'm proud of what I did. That was good. 0:15:43.960 --> 0:15:47.880 I know people that cannot compliment themselves. They're so hard 0:15:48.000 --> 0:15:51.920 and critical toward themselves. They can work hard and give 0:15:51.960 --> 0:15:54.920 it their best, but it's always well, I just didn't 0:15:54.920 --> 0:15:57.160 do it good enough. If I just had a little 0:15:57.200 --> 0:15:59.920 more time, if I could just do it again, then 0:16:00.080 --> 0:16:02.520 I would feel good. No, you've got to learn to 0:16:03.040 --> 0:16:06.240 not acknowledge what you didn't get done. Don't acknowledge the 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:10.320 mistakes you've made. Find something you did right, and acknowledge 0:16:10.400 --> 0:16:12.680 the good. It may not be what you're going to 0:16:12.800 --> 0:16:15.400 end up with, but still, after you work hard all 0:16:15.480 --> 0:16:17.400 day and give it your awe, you need to be 0:16:17.440 --> 0:16:20.480 able to say I did good today. I gave it 0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:23.560 my best, and I feel good about what I accomplished. 0:16:24.280 --> 0:16:27.400 Think about this. When God made the heavens and the earth, 0:16:27.680 --> 0:16:30.800 and he first said it was good, the fact is 0:16:31.160 --> 0:16:34.560 he hadn't separated the waters from the sky. It was 0:16:34.600 --> 0:16:37.240 still kind of a mess. It was still chaotic. He 0:16:37.280 --> 0:16:40.080 hadn't made the fish and the other animals, he hadn't 0:16:40.160 --> 0:16:44.400 created the beautiful mountains, the beautiful oceans. Yet God still 0:16:44.480 --> 0:16:47.600 paused for a moment. He still took time to say, 0:16:47.600 --> 0:16:50.200 you know what, it's not perfect, I'm not done yet, 0:16:50.320 --> 0:16:53.080 but it's still good. In other words, it's not where 0:16:53.080 --> 0:16:55.280 it's going to end up, but so far, so good. 0:16:56.240 --> 0:16:58.640 In the same way, you may not have reached all 0:16:58.680 --> 0:17:01.560 your goals just yet. You may not be exactly where 0:17:01.560 --> 0:17:03.680 you want to be in life, but you need to 0:17:03.760 --> 0:17:06.879 learn to pause on a regular basis and say, I 0:17:06.920 --> 0:17:09.919 did good today. I gave it my all. May not 0:17:09.960 --> 0:17:11.720 have God as much done as I would like to, 0:17:12.200 --> 0:17:14.880 may not have kept up with my coworker, but bottom 0:17:14.920 --> 0:17:17.119 line is, I did my best and I have to 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:20.960 say it was good. Have a lot of people tell me, Joel, 0:17:20.960 --> 0:17:23.720 I can't feel good about myself. I've got these addictions, 0:17:23.760 --> 0:17:26.439 things I'm struggling with. I'm so impatient, I'm kind of 0:17:26.440 --> 0:17:29.359 hot tempered. That's why I go around feeling lousy on 0:17:29.400 --> 0:17:32.600 the inside. But you have to recognize God is still 0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:36.480 working on you. You are not a finished product. Little 0:17:36.520 --> 0:17:39.600 by little, God changes us. As long as we are 0:17:39.640 --> 0:17:42.520 pressing forward, as long as we're doing our best, God 0:17:42.720 --> 0:17:45.920 is pleased with us. You need to take time every 0:17:46.000 --> 0:17:49.600 day to find something where you can say I did good. 0:17:49.880 --> 0:17:51.879 I may not have done it as well as my neighbor, 0:17:52.040 --> 0:17:53.760 but I did it to the best of my ability, 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:57.040 and I know it was good. And especially when you're 0:17:57.080 --> 0:18:00.359 struggling with something that you need to overcome, you have 0:18:00.400 --> 0:18:05.080 to stay positive towards yourself. And when that negative recording 0:18:05.119 --> 0:18:08.520 comes back telling y'all you're just a failure. You're never 0:18:08.560 --> 0:18:11.040 going to change, You're never gonna get over that, you 0:18:11.119 --> 0:18:13.760 need to just turn it around and say, no, I 0:18:13.840 --> 0:18:15.840 may not be where I need to be, but at 0:18:15.920 --> 0:18:17.760 least I'm not where I used to be. At least 0:18:17.800 --> 0:18:21.320 that's good. Too often we tend to focus on how 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:23.720 far we've got to go, but sometimes you've got to 0:18:23.760 --> 0:18:26.600 look back and thank God for how far you've already come. 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:30.080 Don't go around beating yourself down. Well, I went to work, 0:18:30.119 --> 0:18:32.639 but I didn't get enough done. I cooked dinner, but 0:18:32.720 --> 0:18:35.320 I burnt the bread. I gave in the offering, but 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:37.600 I didn't give enough. Don't get out of that critical 0:18:37.640 --> 0:18:40.760 frame of mind. Have the attitude. I may not have 0:18:40.800 --> 0:18:43.840 done perfect today. I may have made some mistakes, but 0:18:43.880 --> 0:18:46.720 I am not going to live negative toward myself. I'm 0:18:46.720 --> 0:18:49.480 gonna find something I did right so I can say 0:18:49.760 --> 0:18:52.480 it was good. In other words, I may have burnt 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:55.760 the bread, but the meat loaf was pretty good. I 0:18:55.840 --> 0:18:58.679 may have lost my temper in traffic this morning, but 0:18:58.760 --> 0:19:01.399 I didn't take time this afternoon to go help a 0:19:01.440 --> 0:19:05.399 friend in need. That was good. Years ago, Victoria and 0:19:05.440 --> 0:19:08.640 I built a home. This was before our children were born. 0:19:09.119 --> 0:19:12.080 We didn't have a main builder. We decided to contract 0:19:12.080 --> 0:19:15.080 it ourselves, and over all the home turned out great. 0:19:15.400 --> 0:19:18.160 We were very pleased. But after living there a couple 0:19:18.200 --> 0:19:21.199 of years, I noticed that part of my fence was 0:19:21.280 --> 0:19:24.520 sagging a little bit. I found out later that I 0:19:24.520 --> 0:19:28.240 didn't put the right size piers underneath my brick column, 0:19:28.440 --> 0:19:30.240 and it caused it to be a little bit crooked. 0:19:30.600 --> 0:19:32.600 And you know, year after year it had gotten worse 0:19:32.680 --> 0:19:35.439 and worse. And every time I drove up to my 0:19:35.520 --> 0:19:38.720 house and saw my sagging fence, a voice would say 0:19:38.760 --> 0:19:40.959 to me, why did you try to build this house? 0:19:41.240 --> 0:19:43.840 You are not a builder. You didn't know what you're doing. Now, 0:19:43.880 --> 0:19:46.720 You've got a crooked fence. Your neighbors are probably laughing, 0:19:46.760 --> 0:19:49.160 and how much is that gonna cost a fix? I mean, 0:19:49.240 --> 0:19:51.840 for a while, for months, every time I pulled in, 0:19:52.440 --> 0:19:55.679 I let that one mistake kind of sour me. But 0:19:55.760 --> 0:19:58.879 one day I learned what I'm telling you. Instead of 0:19:58.920 --> 0:20:02.000 focusing on one one thing that was wrong, I looked 0:20:02.000 --> 0:20:05.320 at all the other things that I did right. Yes 0:20:05.440 --> 0:20:08.800 it was a mistake, but overall, in the big scope 0:20:08.840 --> 0:20:12.120 of things, I did good. So when I drove in, 0:20:12.520 --> 0:20:15.679 I quit focusing on that, and I started focusing on 0:20:15.720 --> 0:20:19.600 the fact that my driveway is straight, my garage doors work, 0:20:20.080 --> 0:20:23.199 I've got hot water, the air conditioner is perfect, the 0:20:23.240 --> 0:20:26.639 floors are holding up, the windows are beautiful, the doorbell rings, 0:20:26.680 --> 0:20:30.000 the design is great. There are a thousand good things 0:20:30.040 --> 0:20:32.920 that I did right. I made a decision. I wasn't 0:20:32.960 --> 0:20:35.560 going to let that one mistake cause me to lose 0:20:35.560 --> 0:20:38.199 my joy. You got to learn to focus on what 0:20:38.280 --> 0:20:40.600 you did right and not the few things that you 0:20:40.640 --> 0:20:44.200 did wrong. A while back, I was in another state 0:20:44.680 --> 0:20:47.760 doing an interview with this very well known journalist, and 0:20:47.800 --> 0:20:50.439 a friend of mine met me there. He's a pastor 0:20:50.520 --> 0:20:54.240 as well. He has a real gift of encouragement. Anytime 0:20:54.320 --> 0:20:57.120 you're around him for fifteen minutes, he makes you feel 0:20:57.160 --> 0:20:59.200 like you're the greatest thing in the world. He's always 0:20:59.200 --> 0:21:02.439 building people up. And so I did the interview. We 0:21:02.520 --> 0:21:04.439 got in the car together with a group of us 0:21:04.440 --> 0:21:07.040 and we were driving back to the hotel. One of 0:21:07.040 --> 0:21:09.760 the first things I said was, man, I feel like 0:21:09.960 --> 0:21:13.160 I really did good. I wasn't trying to brag. These 0:21:13.160 --> 0:21:15.480 were all people I knew very well, But I said 0:21:15.520 --> 0:21:18.480 I think I answered really great, and the Lord helped 0:21:18.520 --> 0:21:20.919 me in. I just don't see how I could have 0:21:20.960 --> 0:21:25.160 done it any better. He told me later that conversation 0:21:25.520 --> 0:21:29.520 changed his life. When he saw how positive I was 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:34.240 toward myself. He recognized what his problem was. He could 0:21:34.280 --> 0:21:38.880 compliment everyone else, but he couldn't compliment himself. He would 0:21:38.960 --> 0:21:42.480 call me on Sunday afternoons and spend fifteen minutes telling 0:21:42.520 --> 0:21:45.560 me how great my message was. But driving home from 0:21:45.640 --> 0:21:48.760 his own church after he had spoken, he would think, well, 0:21:48.800 --> 0:21:50.920 I just didn't do it good enough, and I wasn't 0:21:50.920 --> 0:21:52.560 clear on this point, and if I just done a 0:21:52.600 --> 0:21:55.880 little better over here, then I would feel good. Why 0:21:56.000 --> 0:21:59.680 is that very often we have two sets of lenses. 0:22:00.359 --> 0:22:03.360 We look at other people a certain way. We can 0:22:03.400 --> 0:22:05.720 complement them, we can see the good that they do. 0:22:06.359 --> 0:22:08.760 But then we put on another set of lenses to 0:22:08.760 --> 0:22:13.240 look at ourselves. Usually we're much more critical. We tend 0:22:13.280 --> 0:22:16.399 to pick ourselves apart. We focus on the little things 0:22:16.400 --> 0:22:19.600 that we didn't do right. You need to give yourself 0:22:19.760 --> 0:22:22.640 the same credit that you give other people. It's all 0:22:22.640 --> 0:22:25.840 a part of our internal dialogue, the recording that's playing 0:22:25.880 --> 0:22:29.400 in your mind. When I walk off the platform each week, 0:22:29.560 --> 0:22:32.520 after I get done speaking, I say to myself, that 0:22:32.720 --> 0:22:35.879 was good. I gave it my all, and I pleased 0:22:35.960 --> 0:22:40.720 with what I'm done. I've found it's healthy to approve yourself. 0:22:41.320 --> 0:22:43.919 It's healthy to look back like God and say I 0:22:43.920 --> 0:22:47.359 did good. But too often we have to have this 0:22:47.560 --> 0:22:52.000 outside validation, this outside approval, so we can feel good 0:22:52.000 --> 0:22:55.840 about ourselves. I know, when I first started ministering seven 0:22:55.960 --> 0:22:58.879 or eight years ago, when I was done, if I 0:22:58.920 --> 0:23:01.840 didn't get a dozen compliments, if I didn't have a 0:23:01.880 --> 0:23:04.560 dozen people tell me they thought it was good, I 0:23:04.600 --> 0:23:07.920 would drive home feeling condemned, thinking, oh I didn't do good. 0:23:07.920 --> 0:23:11.040 I gotta do better next week. But now I've learned 0:23:11.400 --> 0:23:14.400 I don't have to have other people's approval to feel 0:23:14.440 --> 0:23:17.439 good about myself. I know I've been made in the 0:23:17.520 --> 0:23:21.680 image of Almighty God, and as long as I do 0:23:21.800 --> 0:23:24.720 my best, I can put my shoulders back and feel 0:23:24.720 --> 0:23:27.639 good about who I am. Now, I'm kind of naive 0:23:27.800 --> 0:23:29.720 when I get done each week, I think that was 0:23:29.760 --> 0:23:33.359 my best one so far. That's better than last week. Well, Joel, 0:23:33.359 --> 0:23:35.480 that's kind of arrogant in it. No, I don't announce 0:23:35.520 --> 0:23:38.680 it to anyone. I'm talking about on the inside. Your 0:23:38.800 --> 0:23:42.800 internal dialogue has got to be positive towards yourself, and 0:23:42.920 --> 0:23:48.320 we cannot rely on outside approval and outside compliments to 0:23:48.359 --> 0:23:51.480 feel good about who we are. Most of the time 0:23:51.600 --> 0:23:54.959 we fall into one of two categories. We're either a 0:23:55.119 --> 0:23:58.840 self validating person it's the way we should be, or 0:23:59.040 --> 0:24:02.439 we need this out side validation. That's when we have 0:24:02.560 --> 0:24:07.040 to have people constantly complimenting us, telling us we're okay, 0:24:07.280 --> 0:24:09.800 telling us we did good in order for us to 0:24:09.840 --> 0:24:13.560 be secure. But when you're not a self validating person, 0:24:14.040 --> 0:24:17.159 life is a roller coaster. You're up when people are 0:24:17.200 --> 0:24:20.359 complimenting you, and you're down when they're not. When we 0:24:20.440 --> 0:24:24.000 live this way, we end up sacrificing who we really 0:24:24.040 --> 0:24:26.920 are to try to please other people so we can 0:24:26.960 --> 0:24:30.639 win their approval. That's where we're getting our worth and value. 0:24:30.880 --> 0:24:33.600 Do they think that I did good today? Do they 0:24:33.600 --> 0:24:36.480 approve the way I look? Did they compliment me after 0:24:36.520 --> 0:24:40.600 my presentation? No, that's the wrong approach. Be secure in 0:24:40.680 --> 0:24:43.840 who God made you to be. I know now sometimes 0:24:43.920 --> 0:24:45.760 people come up to me after a service and I 0:24:45.800 --> 0:24:48.200 don't think they really mean it, but they'll say things like, Joel, 0:24:48.560 --> 0:24:51.199 I didn't get anything out of that today, and I 0:24:51.280 --> 0:24:53.320 just didn't understand that point. I'm not sure you were 0:24:53.359 --> 0:24:56.280 right on over here. Five years ago, that would have 0:24:56.320 --> 0:24:59.160 ruined my whole week. I'd have gone home so depressed. 0:24:59.320 --> 0:25:01.480 Now I've learned to just smile, say God bless you. 0:25:01.520 --> 0:25:05.200 I hope you come back next week. On the inside, 0:25:05.200 --> 0:25:07.359 I'm thinking I can't help it if something's wrong with you. 0:25:09.680 --> 0:25:14.040 Too often we let one negative comment cancel out a 0:25:14.119 --> 0:25:19.080 dozen positive comments. Why is that the negative voices always 0:25:19.160 --> 0:25:23.080 sound the loudest When we're insecure and we're trying to 0:25:23.080 --> 0:25:26.600 get our approval from the outside rather than the inside. 0:25:27.200 --> 0:25:30.720 We let other people and their opinions control us. There's 0:25:30.760 --> 0:25:33.360 such a freedom when you realize, as long as I'm 0:25:33.400 --> 0:25:36.160 doing my best being who God created me to be, 0:25:36.400 --> 0:25:39.120 I don't have to have other people's approval. And it's 0:25:39.119 --> 0:25:42.000 great when you get it, but if you start depending 0:25:42.040 --> 0:25:45.280 on it and it doesn't happen, if you're not careful, 0:25:45.440 --> 0:25:48.199 you'll start changing and trying to be something that you're not. 0:25:48.880 --> 0:25:50.879 You've got to be secure and who God made you 0:25:50.960 --> 0:25:54.840 to be. You want to honor God, accept yourself. You 0:25:54.840 --> 0:25:58.720 want to make God happy. Approve yourself, don't go around 0:25:58.720 --> 0:26:03.000 feeling wrong. On the indide the apostle Paul said we 0:26:03.040 --> 0:26:07.480 should be to the praise of God's glory in this passage. 0:26:07.520 --> 0:26:10.359 He's not saying that we should give God praise with 0:26:10.480 --> 0:26:14.760 our words, although that's important. The point he's making is 0:26:14.800 --> 0:26:18.640 our life should be a praise. When you understand your 0:26:18.760 --> 0:26:22.760 value and not only who you are, but who you are, 0:26:23.520 --> 0:26:27.040 then your very presence is giving God praise. You're saying, 0:26:27.080 --> 0:26:31.000 in effect, God, thank you for making me me. I 0:26:31.040 --> 0:26:33.880 don't wish I had green eyes. Thank you for these 0:26:33.880 --> 0:26:37.000 brown eyes. I don't wish I had a different personality. 0:26:37.200 --> 0:26:40.199 I like my personality. I don't wish that I was taller. 0:26:40.359 --> 0:26:43.879 I believe I'm the right height. When you're secure in 0:26:43.960 --> 0:26:46.360 who God made you to be, and you go out 0:26:46.359 --> 0:26:49.159 each day being your best with a smile on your face, 0:26:49.600 --> 0:26:53.479 your life is giving God praise. In other words, driving 0:26:53.520 --> 0:26:56.360 to work, you're giving God praise. Mowing the lawn you're 0:26:56.400 --> 0:26:58.840 giving God praise. Going to the grocery store, you're giving 0:26:58.880 --> 0:27:01.959 God praise. Walk through the mall, you're giving God praise. 0:27:02.520 --> 0:27:04.920 I can hear Victoria now, Joel, I'm going to the mall, 0:27:05.000 --> 0:27:09.720 got to give God praise. I'm asking you today to 0:27:09.840 --> 0:27:14.280 honor God by accepting yourself. You are valuable. You are 0:27:14.320 --> 0:27:16.760 one of a kind. Be the best that you can be. 0:27:17.600 --> 0:27:20.240 Don't ever wish that you were something else. If God 0:27:20.320 --> 0:27:22.439 wanted you to be different, he would have made you 0:27:22.520 --> 0:27:26.840 that way. Get up every morning and make positive affirmations 0:27:26.840 --> 0:27:29.640 over your life. I'm the apple of God's eye. I'm 0:27:29.680 --> 0:27:33.399 his masterpiece. His fingerprints are all over me. Get your 0:27:33.480 --> 0:27:36.680 mind going in the right direction. Remember, we don't get 0:27:36.720 --> 0:27:39.159 our value from what we look like or from what 0:27:39.240 --> 0:27:42.439 we can do. Our value comes because of who our 0:27:42.520 --> 0:27:46.200 painter is. God breeds his life into us. So don't 0:27:46.240 --> 0:27:48.359 ever go around and think, well, Joel, I'm just a 0:27:48.359 --> 0:27:51.560 business person. I'm just a school teacher. I'm just a 0:27:51.600 --> 0:27:54.840 stay at home mom. No, you're not just anything. You're 0:27:54.840 --> 0:27:57.960 a child of the most High God. Put your shoulders back, 0:27:58.000 --> 0:28:01.239 hold your head up high, and the cure and who 0:28:01.320 --> 0:28:04.320 God made you to be. If you will learn to 0:28:04.520 --> 0:28:08.800 accept and approve yourself and not have that negative recording 0:28:08.880 --> 0:28:12.560 playing in your mind, but instead have a right opinion 0:28:12.600 --> 0:28:15.720 about who you are, and you're gonna rise higher. God's 0:28:15.720 --> 0:28:18.119 gonna pour out his blessings and you will live that 0:28:18.200 --> 0:28:20.720 life of victory that God has in story. Amen, do 0:28:20.800 --> 0:28:25.639 you receive it today? We never like to close off 0:28:25.680 --> 0:28:29.240 broadcast without giving you an opportunity to make Jesus the 0:28:29.280 --> 0:28:33.640 lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord, Jesus, 0:28:34.760 --> 0:28:39.480 I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I'll 0:28:39.560 --> 0:28:43.200 make you my lord and savior. Friends, if you prayed 0:28:43.200 --> 0:28:46.240 that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get 0:28:46.280 --> 0:28:49.360 in a good Bible based church, Keep God first place. 0:28:49.600 --> 0:28:52.760 He's gonna take your places you've never dreamed of. Thank 0:28:52.800 --> 0:28:55.400 you for listening to the Julus Dean podcast. 0:28:55.760 --> 0:28:58.360 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:28:58.480 --> 0:28:59.840 those all over the world. 0:29:00.160 --> 0:29:01.720 Visit joelostein dot. 0:29:01.520 --> 0:29:04.560 Com slash give hope to give a gift today. 0:29:05.840 --> 0:29:08.760 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:08.760 --> 0:29:12.120 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:12.240 --> 0:29:15.440 keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. 0:29:15.600 --> 0:29:18.040 I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you 0:29:18.120 --> 0:29:18.680 next time. 0:29:25.960 --> 0:29:28.240 We live in a world of information overload. When it 0:29:28.280 --> 0:29:30.640 comes to your health and wellness. It can be overwhelming 0:29:30.680 --> 0:29:33.680 to differentiate between sound advice and harmful fads. Let A 0:29:33.760 --> 0:29:36.080 Sense of Wellness Podcast be your trust to go to 0:29:36.280 --> 0:29:39.160 for discerning health and wellness information. A Sense of Wellness 0:29:39.160 --> 0:29:43.600 Podcast hosted by Susan Greeley, registered dietitian, nutritionist, cookbook author, 0:29:43.640 --> 0:29:46.240 and wellness expert of more than twenty five years. Susan 0:29:46.280 --> 0:29:50.120 interviews experts across the pillars of wellness, sleep, exercise, nutrition, 0:29:50.320 --> 0:29:53.800 and stress management to bring listeners practical tips and trustworthy 0:29:53.840 --> 0:29:56.000 advice to help live healthier, fuller lives. 0:29:56.560 --> 0:29:59.040 More than ever before, people are turning to the Church 0:29:59.120 --> 0:30:02.840 for their mental health struggles. Unfortunately, the church has largely 0:30:02.880 --> 0:30:06.160 been ill equipped to help. That is, until now. Join 0:30:06.240 --> 0:30:09.280 nearly fifty thousand people just like you who've enrolled in 0:30:09.320 --> 0:30:12.480 the Mental Health Coach training program and become equipped to 0:30:12.560 --> 0:30:15.400 help for a limited time. Apply for a full tuition 0:30:15.520 --> 0:30:18.000 scholarship and only pay a one time tech fee of 0:30:18.000 --> 0:30:22.080 fifty four dollars if accepted. Apply now at mentalhealth coach 0:30:22.160 --> 0:30:25.479 dot org. Again, that's mentalhealth coach dot org.