The Generational Blessing | Joel Osteen
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Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks so much for listening to the podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. We believe you're going to have an awesome 2024, healthy, productive, and favor-filled. God bless you today and enjoy the message. Well, God bless you. We welcome you. It's always a joy to come into your homes. We love you. We pray for you every single day, and we're believing that this year is going to be your best year so far. But

Thanks for tuning in. If you're ever in our area, stop by and see us. I promise you, we'll make you feel right at home. But God bless all of you today.

I'd like to start with something kind of funny. And I heard about these three sons that left home, went out and prospered. And they came back to talk about the gifts that they gave their elderly mother. The first one said, I bought mother a big, beautiful house. The second son said, well, I bought her a brand new fancy car. The third one said, well, since I know mother loves to read the Bible and now she can barely see, I got her a specially trained parent that can quote the entire Bible.

A few days later, they got a letter from their mom. It said, Milton, the house you built me was way too big. Gerald, the car you bought me was way too small. But my dearest Donald, your simple gift was my favorite. The chicken was delicious.

Hold up your Bibles and say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. I have what it says I have. I can do what it says I can do. Today I will be taught the Word of God. I boldly confess my mind is alert. My heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus' name. God bless you. I want to talk to you today about the legacy that you're leaving.

We need to learn to think more generationally. The decisions that we make today, they don't just affect us. They affect our children, our grandchildren, even generations to come. And too often, we just think about the here and now. Well, Joel, it's my life. I know I have some bad habits. I know I'm kind of hot-tempered. I know I don't treat everybody right, but that's okay. I can handle it.

But the problem with that kind of thinking is it's not just hurting you, it's going to make it more difficult on those that come after you. The things that we don't overcome, the issues we leave on the table, so to speak, they get passed down for the next generation to deal with. No man, no woman dies unto themselves. The addictions, the bad attitudes, the wrong mindsets, they all get passed down. But the good news is every right decision we make

Every time we resist temptation, every time we honor God, not only are we going to come up higher, but we're making it a little easier on those that come after us. And each one of us has a spiritual bank account. And by the way we live, we're either storing up equity or we're storing up iniquity. And equity would be anything good. Our integrity, our determination, our godliness, that's storing up blessings.

On the other hand, iniquity would be our bad habits, addictions, selfishness, lack of discipline. But all of these things, either good or bad, are going to be passed down to future generations. And when we think about our legacy, we need to see it as being more than just our life.

A better way to look at it is our life is just a few laps in the marathon that our family line is running. When I get done with my life, I'm going to hand that baton to my children. And in that baton, it's going to be full of not only my physical DNA, my traits, my hair color, my size, my weight, it's going to have in it my spiritual and emotional DNA. It's going to have my tendencies, my attitudes, my habits, my mindsets.

My children will take the baton, run a few laps, hand it to their children, and on and on. And every lap that we run with purpose and passion and integrity is one less lap for those that come after us. And we need to think about the big picture. I don't know about you, but I want to leave my family line better off than they were before. I don't want to drag around being selfish, with addictions, with bad habits. I want to make it easier on those that come after me.

And I realize you don't all have children, but you're going to live on through the people you influence. You have a family line. Your habits, your attitudes, what you stand for, that's going to all be passed down. It's transferred through our blood. Even medical science is starting to confirm this. I read an interesting study the other day. It was done in 1993 by the United States military. And I don't know that I fully understand it all, but it's very fascinating.

They were curious about what really does get passed down. We know that our physical traits do, but what about emotional, mental, spiritual characteristics? What about bad attitudes and addictions? Or what about integrity, compassion, godliness? Can that really be passed down? Well, they took some white blood cells from a volunteer and they carefully placed them in a test tube.

And then they put a probe from a lie detector test down in that test tube. And of course, the probe measures a person's emotional response. And they had this same volunteer go a couple of doors down and watch some very violent scenes on television. It was an old war movie. And when this man watched the scenes, even though the blood that was being tested was in another room, when he got all uptight and tense, that lie detector test shot off the page.

It was detecting his emotional response, even though the blood was no longer in his body. They did this with person after person and had the exact same results. Their final conclusion was the blood cells seemed to remember where they came from.

And I was thinking about if sicknesses and addictions and wrong mindsets can be passed down, how much more can God's blessings and favor and good habits be passed down through our blood? And it's good to understand the generational curse, but we need to make sure that we understand the generational blessings.

And I know right now much of the favor and blessing on my life, I didn't accumulate all on my own. It was because my father passed it down. My mother, they left me not just a physical inheritance, they left me a spiritual inheritance. We build on the past. My father put me 40 years down the road when he handed us this ministry.

And my dream would be to place my children far, far down the road. And I'm not talking about just financially. I'm talking about in their attitudes, in their work habits, in their character, in their walk with God. And what I want us to see today is it's all connected. You are sowing seeds for future generations. And whether you realize it or not, everything you do counts.

Every time you persevere, every time you're faithful, every time you tithe your income, every time you serve others, you are making a difference. You're storing up equity. It's easy in life to think, well, Joel, I'm just a businessman. I'm just a housewife. Or Joel, I'm just a single mom raising my kids, going to work. Don't kid yourself. I'm not going to do anything great. Be realistic.

Now you got to learn to think more generationally. The fact that you're a hard worker, the fact that you're faithful, the fact that you're giving it your all, you are sowing seeds for those that come after you. And the truth is, you may not see it all come to pass in your lifetime. You may very well be sowing a seed for a child or for a grandchild to do something great. Don't get discouraged. It's your family legacy. It's not just you, it's even generations to come.

I think about my grandmother on my father's side. She was a very hard worker. My grandparents were cotton farmers and they lost everything they had in the Great Depression. They didn't have any money, any food, any future really to speak of. And my grandmother worked 12 hours a day making 10 cents an hour washing people's clothes. $1.20 a day. But do you know, grandmother never complained about it.

She didn't go around with a poor old me mentality. She just kept doing her best, giving it her all. She was determined. She was persistent. And she may not have realized it way back then, but she was sowing seeds for her children. She was passing down hard work, determination, persistence. And my father was able to build on those qualities. And not only that, he took it one step further.

Because grandmother laid the foundation, daddy was able to break out of that rut. And he took our family to a whole new level. And the fact is, my grandmother never really enjoyed the blessings and the favor that we're seeing today. But had she not been willing to pay the price, I don't know that I'd be standing here today. And a lot of times we tend to get the credit, but we need to learn to look back and say, you know what? Somebody gave me some help along the way. I know. I know.

Today, I can see some of those same qualities that she had in my life. And I'm not bragging. I know I didn't get them on my own. She helped to pass them down. And my grandmother, she didn't have a lot of fanfare. She didn't get a lot of glory. But I can tell you, she ran some very important laps in our family legacy. When she passed that baton down, it had in it determination.

persistence, a never give up attitude, a can do mentality. Now it's instilled in our blood. And I believe four or five generations from now, people in my family line are going to be better off all because of grandmother Osteen. And in the same way, when you get up early and work hard and you come to church, even though you didn't feel like it, you dig your heels in and resist that temptation. Please understand you are making a difference.

Don't be so short-sighted and so ingrown that if it doesn't happen right now, you're not going to be happy. No, you're sowing seeds. Hey, you say, Joel, man, I'm working hard trying to send my kids to college and I'm so tired. Don't complain about that. Keep being faithful. You don't know what your child's going to do. You don't know how God might use them to impact the world.

Somebody in your family line is going to be a great businessman, a great leader, a great teacher, a great minister, a great author. It may be this generation or it may be four or five generations, but you know what? It's going to be in part because you were willing to pay the price. And anytime you see somebody that's successful, anytime you see somebody that's accomplished something great,

They may be smart. They may be talented. But don't kid yourself. They didn't do it all by themselves. Somebody along the way paid the price. Somebody passed down those qualities that they needed. And when you live your life with excellence, when you go the extra mile, nobody else may be seeing it. It may look like you're not reaping any of the benefits. But know this, in your blood...

Being formed in your DNA is that fortitude, that strength, that excellent spirit. And it's going to be passed down from generation to generation. You are making a difference. I have a friend that pastors a church in another state. He and his wife started the church 14 or 15 years ago. They have a couple of thousand people come and it's a strong, healthy church. But this friend has big dreams in his heart.

He wants to see his church grow to thousands and thousands. He has a dream of writing books that will impact the world and on and on. And a few months back, he was very discouraged. Things had kind of leveled off. Not too much exciting was happening. The church wasn't growing very much anymore. And on top of that, when he drives to his church, he has to pass by another very large church.

And this other church has 15, 20,000 people coming. Big, beautiful campus, all these buildings. Really, it's exactly what he's dreaming for.

And on this one particular day, he was sitting there in traffic, looking at this big, beautiful campus. And it was kind of like rubbing salt in the wound. He was so discouraged. And he said, God, it's just not fair. Here I've poured my heart and soul into this dream that you've given me, but I don't think I'll ever measure up to this man's success. Why won't my church grow? He was being very honest. He said, God, I feel like I'm being lapped two or three times. I don't even know if I should stay in the race.

And he said God spoke something back to him, not out loud, but right down in here. He said, son, what would you think if your son saw your dream come to pass? What would you think if your daughter wrote a book that impacted the world? How would you feel if your children had the same success that you were longing for? His eyes lit up. He said, God, that would be great. That would be a dream come true.

And this changed his perspective. He began to think more generationally. He began to think, maybe I'm sowing the seeds for my children. Maybe I'm laying the groundwork for my grandchildren to do something great. Remember, every lap that we run is one less lap for those that come after us.

Every day you stay faithful. Every test you pass. Every obstacle you overcome. You're not only coming up higher, but you're storing up equity. You're storing up blessings. You're making it easier on your children, on your grandchildren. And I believe what God was saying to him and to us is never give up. Keep pressing forward. You got big dreams. It may not come to pass exactly like you would have thought, but you don't know the seeds that you're sowing for your sons and your daughters.

The interesting thing is the pastor of the church where this man had to pass, the big church, he was a fourth generation pastor. His father, his grandfather, and his great-grandfather all had smaller churches, a few hundred people.

Why did all of a sudden this man have such a large church making such an impact? I believe it's because somebody paid the price. Yes, he's talented, he's gifted, but his forefathers, those that went before him, they stored up the equity and now the favors being released on him. Now he's receiving the benefits. Let me ask you today, are you willing to pay the price?

so that your children, your grandchildren, generations to come can go up higher and accomplish more. I know if you're like me, there's nothing that would make you any happier than to see your children go further than you thought possible or to see your grandchildren go further than you ever even dreamed of. So my message to you is to stay faithful. Keep pressing forward because you're sowing seeds for those things to come to pass.

And don't get frustrated if you don't see it all come to pass in your lifetime. I've found many times you're going to see further than you're going to go. God's going to put something bigger in you than you can accomplish on your own. And don't be surprised if your children or your grandchildren don't come along and finish what you started. I heard somebody say, nothing truly great can ever be accomplished in just one lifetime.

I think about even with my father, many times he said, one day we're going to build an auditorium for 20,000 people. One day we're going to have a big place where we can all come together and worship. Well, daddy had the vision, but God used his children to complete it. And had daddy not stayed faithful, had he not stayed determined and just kept that excellent spirit, then I don't believe it would have ever come to pass. He had to sow the seeds. He had to pave the way.

And I know you've got big dreams in your heart. I know you've got a big vision. Keep pressing toward it. Stay faithful. In the natural, you may not see how it could ever come to pass, but you don't know. God may have put that in you to get it started. And your children, your grandchildren are going to come and take it further than you ever even thought possible.

I love something that our son Jonathan said. One day when he was just about four or five years old, he and I were driving on the freeway right here in front of the compact center. And I slowed down and I pointed, I said, look, Jonathan, there's a compact center. One day that's going to be yours. One day you're going to be in their ministry. Without missing a beat, he said, no, daddy, when I get old enough, I'm going to get the Reliant Stadium. I thought he's got a big vision.

But keep pressing forward. You're sowing seeds for that to come to pass. You remember David. He had a dream to build the temple. He even gathered the supplies. He brought in the big cedars of Lebanon. But do you know he was never allowed to build it? His son Solomon built the temple. That's just the way that God had it planned out.

And if everything's not happening in your timing the way you want, again, just keep doing your best. Keep staying faithful. God's still in control. And as you keep living that life of excellence and sowing those seeds, know this, you are making a difference. And in God's perfect timing, it's all going to come to pass.

And I know some of you today, you have a lot of negative things to overcome. You weren't raised by parents like mine. And in your family line, you've been passed down all kinds of defeat, mediocrity, addictions, negativity. But thank God you can start a new family line. Don't you dare sit back and just settle for a life of mediocrity. Don't keep storing up that iniquity. Get out from under the curse and make a decision that you're going to start living under the blessings.

And the best thing you can do for your family line is to live a life of integrity. Stay on the high road. Do the right thing even when it's difficult. When you do that, you're making a difference not only for yourself, but for generations to come. There's a scripture in 1 Chronicles 4, verse 40. It says that the people left the place better off than it was before.

That should be the goal of every one of us. Our attitude should be, I'm not going to leave my family a bunch of junk to deal with. I'm not going to leave them the same place right where they are. No, I'm going to leave them better off. I'm going to leave them with more integrity, with more joy, with more faith, with more favor, with more victory. I'm going to leave them free from bondages, closer to God. See, it's easy to get stuck in a rut in life.

It's easy to sit back and think, well, everybody in my family is negative. Everybody's addicted in my family, Joel. Nobody's marriage lasts past two years. Nobody's successful. Nobody's healthy. No, please get that junk out of your mind. Don't allow that to become a stronghold. It doesn't matter what anybody has or hasn't done. You are a child of the Most High God. You do not have to live under the curse. You've already been set free.

And it may not have happened in the past, but thank God it can happen right now. The power in you is greater than any obstacle that you're facing. You can be the one to set a new standard. But here's the key. Somebody has to be willing to pay the price. Somebody has to step up and take the junk off the table. It may have been in your bloodline, but it doesn't have to stay in your bloodline. All it takes is for one person to rise up and start making better choices.

Every right choice you make begins to overturn the wrong choices of those that have gone before you. Nobody else may have done it, but if you'll dig your heels in and overcome that habit, if you'll forgive the wrongs, if you'll dream bigger dreams.

Then one day, people in your family line will look back and say, you know what? It was because of this man. It was because of this lady. They were the turning point. We were all defeated up to here. We were all addicted up to here. But look what happened when they came along. Everything changed. We came up higher. What really happened? The curse was broken and the blessings began. That's what you can do for your family. And I know I am where I am today because somebody prayed.

Somebody took a stand for righteousness. Somebody stuck with their commitments. Somebody lived a life of integrity. Seeds have been sown into my life. Oh, you say, Joel, man, you just got some lucky breaks. No, there's no such thing as a lucky break. It's because somebody was praying. Somebody persevered. Somebody honored God.

If you have godly parents, godly grandparents, you should be extremely grateful because you have advantages today. You have more of God's favor, more of His blessings because of what they've done. They paid the price.

When you have this godly heritage, you will stumble into blessings. Great things will happen. You can't even figure out why. Supernatural doors open don't make sense. You got the promotion and you didn't deserve it. That's not a lucky break. It's because that grandmother was praying. It's because your parents lived a life of excellence. I don't know, maybe some great grandparents, they sowed all those seeds.

The Bible talks about when we have this heritage of faith, we will live in houses that we didn't build. We'll enjoy vineyards that we didn't plant. God's blessings will chase us down and overtake us. I thank God every day for my parents, my grandparents. Because of what they've done, I know I'm not living under a generational curse. I'm living under a generational blessing. That's what you can do for your family.

And I can't think of anything that I'd rather leave my children and my grandchildren than the blessings and favor of God. Money, houses, cars, that's all great. But living a life of integrity and excellence that honors God is worth more than all of that. And what I'm saying today is don't take the easy way out.

Keep doing your best even when it's difficult. Keep loving, keep giving, keep serving. Your faithfulness is not going unnoticed. You are storing up equity, not just for yourself, but for generations to come. First Samuel chapter 25, there's a story about David. He and his men had been out protecting the family and the workers of a man by the name of Nabal. And one day David sent his men to ask Nabal for some food and supplies.

David thought for sure that Nabal would be grateful for what they were doing. They were protecting them from their enemies. He'd freely give them what they'd asked for. But when those men got there, Nabal treated them very rude and disrespectfully. He basically said, you know, I don't even know who you are. I never asked you to do any of this, so just be on your way. Don't bother me with this.

And when those men got back and told David how bad they'd been treated, David was furious. He said, all right, men, get your swords. We're going to go take care of Nabal. We're just going to wipe him out.

But on the way there, Nabal's wife stopped David. She had heard what had happened and she brought all these gifts and supplies and foods. And she said, David, my husband is a very rude and an ungrateful man. And I know he shouldn't have treated you like this. And in verse 28, she said, but David, if you will just forgive this wrong.

I know that God will give you an enduring house. And I like that phrase, an enduring house. She was saying, David, I know you have a right to be angry.

I know my husband paid you back evil for your good. But if you can just dare overlook it and take the high road and let it go, I know God will bless you for generations to come. I know he'll give you an enduring house. And she convinced David. He swallowed his pride. He walked away. He let it go. And throughout life, we're all going to have situations like that where we can find some reason to be angry, some reason to be bitter.

You may be here today and you say, Joel, I got a good reason to walk out of my marriage. I've been treated wrong. I got a good reason to live life with a chip on my shoulder. I've had so much unfair. I got a good reason to have these addictions. Everybody in my family has it. But I'm asking you to do like David and take the high road. You may have a good reason, but don't give into it. That junk can get into your blood. It can be passed down.

And our children, our grandchildren, they already have enough to overcome without us adding our pile of junk on top of it. It may be difficult, but know this, you have the power to overcome. And every wrong that you forgive, every bad habit you break, every victory you win, that's one less lap for those that come after you.

And even if you don't do it for yourself, I'm asking you today, do it for your children. Do it for your grandchildren. Do it so you can have an enduring house. I heard somebody say, your blood always speaks. What they meant is your blood is charged with your experiences. It remembers like that study where it's come from.

A hundred years from now, your blood is still going to be talking. In some way, shape, or form, it's going to be affecting others in your family line. Let me ask you, what's your blood going to be saying? Defeat, mediocrity, unforgiveness, bitterness. No, I believe your blood's going to be saying determination, persistence, integrity, godliness, generosity, favor, faith, and victory.

Let me challenge you again. Pass down a godly heritage. Leave your family a legacy of good things. You may have a lot of negative in the past, but thank God today is a new day. Why don't you draw the line in the sand and say, I am done with the generational curse. As for me and my family, we're going to live under the generational blessing. And remember this.

Everything you do counts. You may not see it all come to pass in your lifetime, but don't get discouraged. You're sowing seeds for those that come after you. Stay passionate about your life. Don't lose your enthusiasm. Get up every day and give it your very, very best. And if you do that, not only will you rise higher, not only will you accomplish more, but God has promised your seed, your family line for up to a thousand generations is

is going to have the blessings and the favor of God all because of the life that you've lived. Amen. Do you receive it today? We never like to close our broadcast without giving you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my Lord and Savior.

Friends, if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible-based church. Keep God first place. He's going to take you places that you've never dreamed of. Sometimes the stresses of life can feel like you're just getting by. God wants to bless us. But how do you move from barely enough to just enough to more than enough?

We all face difficulties and people that are hard to deal with. You can't eliminate all the stress, but if you'll handle it the right way, you don't have to live stressed out. Much of our frustration is we're trying to control things that we can't control, letting things stress us that don't have to.

I'd love to send you my new book, 55 Ways to Be Blessed and Not Stressed. I'll show you practical things you can do to live more peaceful and enjoy each day. You can move from stressed to blessed and fully realize God's goodness, favor, and blessings. As our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount to the ministry this month, Joel and Victoria would like to send you this powerful gift.

Life transforming resource. 55 ways to be blessed and not stressed.

With this book, you'll not just see one pathway forward, but 55 powerful, life-changing ways to kill the stress and give life to a life of blessing. These 55 promises will open God's floodgates and release double the impact of His divine direction, opportunity, and blessing every day. Now expect, declare, and receive a blessed, not stressed, over-the-top outpouring in your life.

How much time are you spending worried, upset and frustrated? Life is too short to live stressed. If you'll make some simple adjustments, you can live blessed and not stressed. Victoria and I want you to know we're praying for you, that you'll experience peace and joy and see your dreams come to pass. Thank you so much for your prayers and support. Your generosity is impacting lives all over the world.

Remember, you can watch the services online Sunday mornings, download our daily podcast, listen on Sirius XM, YouTube, social media. But until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of 55 Ways to Be Blessed and Not Stressed today. Visit joelostein.com or call 888-567-JOEL. Walmart Plus.

Walmart Plus members save on meeting up with friends. Save on having them over for dinner with free delivery with no hidden fees or markups. That's groceries plus napkins plus that vegetable chopper to make things a bit easier. Plus, members save on gas to go meet them in their neck of the woods. Plus, when you're ready for the ultimate sign of friendship, start a show together with your included Paramount Plus subscription. Walmart Plus members save on this plus so much more.

Start a 30-day free trial at walmartplus.com. Paramount Plus is central plan only. Separate registration required. See Walmart Plus terms and conditions.