Still I Rise | Joel Osteen

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“We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life.”

So God bless you, it's great to be with you today, and I hope you'll stay connected with us during the week through our daily podcast, or YouTube channel, social media, and you can come visit us in person. We'd love to have you be a part of one of our services. I like to start with something funny, and I heard about this man. He called the church office, said, "I want to speak to the head hog at the trough."

The secretary was offended. She said, "If you mean the pastor, you're going to have to call him pastor, but you may not call him the head hog at the trough." He said, "Well, I was thinking about making a $5,000 donation to your church." She said, "Hang on, porky just walked in."

"All right, you all 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 still our rise. In life, things are going to happen that we don't understand. That are not fair. They can knock the wind out of us. A bad medical reporter, the loss of a loved one, a setback in our business. I can't promise you that life won't knock it down, but I can promise you you can get back up again.

The scripture says, "The same power that raised Christ from the dead lives on the inside of you. God is put bounce back in your spirit. He knew we would face disappointments and things that could sour our future. He put in you a fire that cannot be put out. A determination to overcome was trying to hold you back. A street to rise up when every voice is telling you to settle. In when life knocks you down, it's okay to process it and grieve the loss.

I'm not telling you to ignore the pain, just be strong. God made us with emotions. We feel things. What I'm saying is don't stay there. Don't let the loss become your location.

“Don't let what happened to you become your identity. You need to have this still our rise mentality.”

Yes, life knocked me down, but it can't keep me down, still our rise. Yes, I had a bad break. The door closed. I don't understand it, but still I believe. Still I trust. Still I smile. Still I praise. You have to have a made up mind that when life knocks you down, you're not going to live defeated and think about what didn't work out. You declare in the face of those circumstances still I rise. I was in my kitchen the other day and I had a glass of water and I reached over to pick something up and somehow the glass slipped out of my hand and hit the countertop.

It broke into a dozen pieces. The glass had a thick bottom. Maybe an inch of solid glass, but it was shattered. After I cleaned it up, I went over to the countertop to see if it was damaged. I thought it probably didn't hit it or chipped it. The glass was so hard, but there was no dent, no ding looked perfect. It's because the countertop is granite. Granite is one of the hardest stones, much harder than glass. You can drop glass on granite all day long.

Even though the glass is hard and seems so sturdy and tough, it'll never break the granite.

In the same way God made you harder than anything that will come against you. There are things you would think would break you. The sickness, the addiction, the trouble, it feels bigger, stronger, but can I encourage you? You are unbreakable. You are like that granite. You are harder than what's trying to break you. You are stronger than what's trying to stop you. You are more powerful than what's trying to hold you. Greater is he that's in you than what's coming against you. Now you may not have the strength on your own, but there's something greater in you.

That bad break may seem like it's sour in your future, knocked you down, but there is bounce back in your spirit. The same power that raised Christ is going to raise you back up. Now you can't have a weak defeated mentality. But I don't know Joel, I can't handle this, it's too much, have a new perspective. Yes, I'm hurting, but I know a secret still I rise.

“Yes, it looks bad, but still I believe. Yes, I'm outnumbered, still I trust.”

Yes, I got the wind knocked out of me, but this is not how my story ends. I'm not settling here, still I move forward. Still I dream, still I expect God's goodness.

Jacob had stolen his birthright. Isol was going to take revenge, so Jacob fled to a faraway city and lived with his uncle for many years.

“That's where he met his wives, Rachel and Leon. They had many children. Jacob was blessed with cattle and livestock.”

After everything cooled down, God said to him in Genesis 31, "Return to the land of your fathers and I will be with you." When Jacob always wanted to go back home, so he gathered his families, flocks, his children, he headed toward Hebrew, where his father Isaac lived, was a long journey and they made it to the city of Bethel and camp there. That's where God changed his name from Jacob, which means deceiver and trickster, that's who he was in the past, to Israel, which means Prince with God, was a destiny moment where he had this new identity.

I'm not who I used to be, I'm a new man. He built an altar there, worship God. That left Bethel and continued on the journey. His wife, Rachel, was pregnant. She began to have labor pains. They stopped and the midwives began to help her. She went into labor. It was very hard. There were complications. Rachel gave birth to the child. I healthy baby, but Rachel didn't make it. She died during childbirth. Here it was the best of times, new baby boy, and the worst of times. Jacob lost his beloved wife.

In those days, they had multiple wives, and he had married her sister, Leah. He was tricked into that, but Rachel was the love of his life. First time he saw Rachel, it was love at first sight. So much so that he told her father, "Label, that he would work for him seven years just to be able to marry her." After the seven years, Lavin didn't keep his word. He gave him the oldest daughter, Leah, instead.

“Jacob said, "That's not what we agreed to." Well, Lavin said, "Then you have to work for me seven more years to have Rachel."”

Jacob did it. That's how much he loved Rachel.

Now his world is shattered. He never dreamed he would lose the thing he loved the most.

This one thing, if she passed from old age, at their home, they'd reach their destination, but he lost her along the way, while they were in transition, while they were dreaming about what was to come. Sometimes, on our journey in life, the unexpected happens. A dream dies. A door closes. A loved one doesn't make it. We didn't see it coming. We get knocked down. It's easy to stay down and wonder why it happened.

“Live defeated, give up on dreams. We were doing the right thing, but the wrong thing happened. God, where were you? Why didn't you stop this? There will always be unanswered questions.”

Faith is about trusting when you don't understand. Not trying to figure everything out. Don't put a question mark where God has put a period. He's still in control. He's still ordering your steps. He still has a purpose for you to fulfill. It's not like Jacob was off course, doing something he wasn't supposed to be doing. God told him to go back home. He was being obedient following God's plan for his life. You can imagine the pain he felt, the grief, the sense of loss being overwhelmed.

This is the woman he worked 14 years for. This was the mother of Joseph, a son that would impact the world. Suddenly, she's gone. Here they were planning on seeing their family, having a big reunion, all being together again, then life happened. What made it even worse is he couldn't bury her with his family. The custom in those days is you had to bury the body within 24 hours. They were weeks away from their destination. So right there on the side of the road, he dug a grave. He set a memorial stone and he marked her passing.

This was a critical point. Jacob could have settled there. He could have canceled his plans and thought no need for me to go any further.

My dreams are shattered. I'm too heartbroken. He could have lived in mourning. But verse 21 says, after honoring her passing, Israel journeyed on. The verse before says, Jacob set a marker on her grave. When Moses wrote this, he used two different names. It's not a coincidence. God was showing us, Jacob represents the human part of us. Our emotions, the pain, the grief, the heartbreak, that's Jacob. He set up this pillar to mark her passing. God didn't say, Jacob, you've got to get going. Don't feel anything. Be stronger.

There's a time for mourning, time for weeping, a time to process so you can heal. If you don't grieve your losses and you hold everything in, just try to override it.

It's not healthy. There needs to be a release. Weeping indoors for a night, then joy comes. Don't bypass the process. But here's the key. The enemy would love for a season of mourning to turn into a lifetime of mourning.

“To where you set up camp at the memorial stone. You always think about what you lost. You relive the hurt, give up on dreams and settle in the sorrow. That's how Jacob fell. Those are normal emotions.”

Then the scripture switches his name and says, "Israel journeyed on?" Israel is the spirit inside you. It's who God called you to be. When Jacob wants to settle in defeat, Israel moves forward in faith.

When Jacob has overcome with sorrow, Israel rises up, wipes the tears and presses on. Weeping indoors for a night, that's Jacob.

But joy is coming in the morning. That's Israel. Jacob will feel overwhelmed by the loss, but the Israel in use there's still a rise. Still a belief. Still a trust. Still a journey on.

“We see this with Job. He lost everything in the middle of the trouble. When he should have been depressed, he looked up and said, "Though he slaved me yet will I trust him?" That was Israel coming out.”

But when we have bad breaks and we have to bury a dreamer, bury something that you're dearly loved. Jacob will be there, the grieving, the weeping, the sorrow. But can I encourage you? There's an Israel in you as well. Israel carries the power, the fortitude, the strength that causes you to rise back up, to defy the odds, to journey on when all the circumstances tell you to settle.

Man, look what's happened. It's not fair. This is sour to your life. When Jacob wants to sit down, Israel stands up.

Jacob feels the pain, but Israel carries the promise that no weapon formed against you will prosper, that there are beauty for those ashes. Jacob will try to convince you that you're done. You've seen your best days. You can't handle this, but if you're listening carefully, you'll hear Israel saying, "No, no, still a rise." Still a move forward. Still a pursuit. Yes, that door closed. I'm disappointed, but I'm not going to another door. That's Israel. And trouble with your child or the difficulty it worked. She would have given you an nervous breakdown, taking your joy, your victory, but you felt a strength, a power that you can't explain, to keep moving forward. That's Israel. That's God sustaining you.

“That's his spirit causing you to overcome. Maybe a relationship didn't work out. You lost a loved one. You should get stopped thinking, "Why? It's not fair. I don't understand it."”

That's where Jacob was, but what happened with him is going to happen to you. Israel is going to show up. Jacob couldn't have done this on his own. It was too much, too overwhelming, but when he came to the end of his ability, Israel stepped in, has the spirit of God causing you to move forward, to continue on despite what's tried to stop you. Now don't be down on yourself when things feel heavy. Some people say, "If you have faith, you shouldn't grieve. You shouldn't feel the pain. Feel the sadness. No Jacob doesn't go away. We're human."

Jesus wept when his friend Lazarus died. He felt sorrow and heartache. In the garden of Gassimini, he was so overwhelmed, he swept drops of blood. He's God, yet in his body, he had these emotions. Not a lack of faith to feel things. The Jacob in you feels pain. Jacob reacts to loss and betrayal. Jacob carries wounds and questions. That's the natural part of us. On our own, by ourselves, we would get stuck. The good news is, there's not just Jacob in you, there's an Israel in you. That's who I'm calling out. Israel gets up after being knocked down. Israel moves forward while they're still hurting. Israel trust, even though there's unanswered questions, Israel praises through the pain and speaks victory in the middle of the trouble.

Sure, Jacob bears the dream, mourns the loss, acknowledges the disappointment, but Israel journeys on. You may be in a tough season too, and you feel that pain, discourage over the difficulty.

I won't keep Israel from showing up. He's in you, but you have to let him come alive. Try a different approach. God, this was a bad break. I don't understand it, but God, I trust you. You said you've armed me with strength for every battle. You said I can do all things through Christ. I may be down, but I'm not staying down, still I will arise.

“See, Jacob had every reason to settle on the way to his destiny, doing the right thing, pursuing what God told him, and he lost what mattered most to him.”

Peter became bitter, overcome a sorrow, stuck in unanswered questions, but he did what we all have to do. He let Israel rise up. He was saying, "In effect, I'm hurting, but I'm still moving. I'm grieving, but I'm going forward. I've lost something precious, but I didn't lose my purpose. We all had these times like Jacob that don't seem fair. You may feel the pain, but don't forfeit the promise. What God has spoken over your life is still going to come to pass. It may be difficult, but the Israel in you is saying, journey on. Keep dreaming. Keep pursuing. Keep expecting. You can't keep a good person down. Despite what's happened, you will still arise. You will still see the goodness of God.

My father was pastoring a church back in the late 1950s and it was very successful. They just built a beautiful new sanctuary, seeing a thousand people.

He was on the state board for his denomination on his way out. Then my sister Lisa was born with a birth injuries. Something like cerebral palsy and the doctors told my parents that she would probably never be able to speak, walk or even feed herself.

“They didn't see that coming. Jacob was there. There are human emotions and they were discouraged. They felt this sorrow, heaviness, wondering why it happened.”

But inside each one of us, there's not just Jacob, there's an Israel. My father told how he felt this holy anger, this fire, this passion to pray and believe that Lisa could be healed. That when he gets everything, he was taught back then. In seminary, he was told that the day of miracles was over. That it ceased when the last disciples died. He went to a hotel downtown to pray and read the scripture. Jacob was grieving, but Israel journeyed on. My father saw how Jesus went around healing people with great power and victory. Faith was in his heart.

He came back to his church and started preaching with a new fire and passion, encouraging them to believe that God can do what seems impossible. He thought they would be excited and on board, but it was just the opposite. They didn't like it when against their tradition. They ended up asking my father to leave. My parents had poured their heart into those people and given them their very best.

My mother told me, "Life long friends never spoke to her again."

Like Jacob on the way to their destination, doing what God called them to do, a dream died. Didn't seem fair. God could have stopped it. There were unanswered questions. My parents grieved the loss. They mourned what didn't work out, but they didn't get bitter. They didn't hold on to the hurt and talk bad about the people and try to get revenge. They realized God put a period there that that season was over.

See, God is our doorkeeper. He opens and closes the doors in our life. It doesn't always make sense to us.

He numbers our days. Our times are in His hands. Daddy had to bury that dream, except that it didn't work out. But just because one dream dies, doesn't mean God doesn't have another dream. Losing a job or relationship or love one, that doesn't stop God's purpose for your life. Your destiny is not in what you've lost. It's in what you have left.

“But here's a whole key. If you focus on the loss, what didn't work out, what they did, you're going to get stuck.”

Sure, you're going to feel the emotion, disappointment, sadness, Jacob is there, but Israel's in there too. After you process the loss, you go through the healing. Israel is going to rise up and stay journey on. Move forward. Don't stay here and mourn this any longer. It's a season. Don't let it turn into a lifetime.

My sister Lisa kept getting better and better, defined the odds and, of course, today she's perfectly normal. Lakewood is still going strong, 67 years later. What the enemy means for harm, God knows how to turn to your advantage. Sometimes what we think is the enemy is really the divine plan of God. Things we don't understand, but it's all working for his purpose.

But had my father not journeyed on, we wouldn't be here today. Had my mother gotten better, lived with a chip on her shoulder, she would have never seen all the blessing and favor.

They were knocked down, but they made this decision, we're not going to stay down. They felt the sting of rejection, being misunderstood, pushed out, but they also felt Israel inside. Despite the opposition, they had the attitude still we rise, still we believe, still we journey on.

“The scripture says, "A good man falls seven times, but he gets back up again." The question is not, are you going to get knocked down?”

Life happens to us all. The question is, are you going to get back up again? When it says Israel journeyed on, it means he rose up with a new attitude, a new courage, a new determination that said, "This bad break is not going to defeat me.

This loss is not going to define me. I know I am stronger than what's trying to stop me. I am more powerful than what's trying to keep me down.

You have bounced back in your spirit, resurrection power. Don't settle in the disappointment, journey on to the new things God has for you. I heard about this five-year-old boy. His name was Johnny, and he was in church one Sunday morning with his family. The pastor was up speaking. Johnny kept standing up. He couldn't sit still.

“His mother whispered, "Johnny, please sit down." He would sit, 30 seconds later, he'd stand back up. This happened again and again.”

At one point, he stood up and wouldn't sit back down. His mother reached over, put her hands on his shoulders, pushed him down, and held him down.

He was so upset. He looked at her and said, "I may be sitting down on the outside, but I'm standing up on the inside."

Sometimes life will push you down. It's like the circumstances won't let you get back up. The medical report is holding you down. He had trouble with your child. That loss. You may not be able to get up on the outside, but like little Johnny, you have to get up on the inside. In your attitude, in your thinking, you have to talk to yourself the right way. Not this is too much. I'll never get well. This bad break has sourred my future. You're defeating yourself. He's real is in you. Supernatural strength, courage to get back up to Johnny on.

“But if you're only focusing on the hurt, the disappointment, Israel will stay silent. You've got to wake him up. Get your fire back. Get your passion back.”

God didn't bring you this far to leave you. He knows what's come against you. He feels the pain. He collects your tears. This is not the end of your story. This is one chapter. He had to bury something on the road in transition to where God is taking you. Wasn't a surprise to him. He didn't cancel your destiny. Do like Israel in journey on. He continued to his hometown and he was reunited with his father Isaac, hadn't seen him for decades. He left as Jacob the deceiver, the trickster. He was known for his poor choices, but he came home as Israel, a patriarch, a man of great honor and respect.

I'm sure when he was very in Rachel, the side of the road in transition, he thought he'd seen his best days, but he'd just have to survive. Here's how good God is. After the loss of Rachel, after the heartbreak, he went on to see his 12 sons become the 12 tribes of Israel. Benjamin, the son Rachel gave birth to when she passed. He was called the son of Stringt. His tribe became known for courage and loyalty. After the loss, Jacob saw his son Joseph rise to power and become the prime minister of Egypt.

Joseph was the one God used to save the Israelites during the famine. This all happened after the bad break. If Jacob were here today, he would tell you, loss is not the end of your story. When life knocks you down, Israel steps in. There's a power in you, you can't explain, a force to push you forward, a grace to make it through what should stop you.

There are new beginnings in the path in front of you. Sure it's okay to bury something, acknowledge the season, grieve the loss, but don't let the loss become your location. It's not okay to stay. Israel is there to help you journey on, to move forward.

“When things come against you, you think or too much, you have to remind yourself, you are unbreakable.”

God has made you harder, stronger, more resilient than anything that tries to stop you. And don't have a weak defeated mentality, have a still-our-rise mentality. Despite the loss, despite the bad break, still a belief, still a praise, still a trust, still a journey on. If you'll do this, I believe in declare Israel is going to show up. God will not only bring you through, but you will flourish again. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy is coming, strength is coming, healing, new relationships, victory is coming, in Jesus' name.

And if you receive it, can you say amen? I'd like to give 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. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love to send you some free information on your new walk with the Lord.

You can text the number on the screen or go to the website, but I hope you'll get into a good Bible-based church, and keep God first place. We all go through disappointments and things that are not fair. But God sees every hurt, every injustice, and He's promised to pay you back for the unfair things. Now, not to send you my new resource, double for your trouble. It's filled with inspiration, dampness, stay in faith, and not get bitter and think, "Why me?"

“No, that setback may have been painful, but the fact is, it sets you up for double.”

God will make the enemy pay and bring you out better than you were before. This ministry is reaching people around the world with a message of hope, and is our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount. We would like to send you a copy of Double for your trouble, a daily guide for restoration. This 31-day spiral-bound resource is an invitation into healing, restoration, and the abundant life God has promised.

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“None of us like difficulties, but if you'll stay in faith, you won't come out the same, you'll come out with double.”

Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day. Thank you for your prayers and support. Your donations are bringing hope to people around the world. Special thank you to our champion of hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. Until we see you again next week, middleboard bless you, and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of Double for your trouble. Available this month by simply visiting us at jolostene.com or call 888-567-Jol.

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If you've never been to Lakewood, we have a great opportunity to come.

We call it Homecoming Weekend. We'd love to meet you and your family.

Looking forward to seeing you at Homecoming Weekend.