Joel Osteen - Trusting God's Ways

I want to talk to you today about Trusting God's Ways. We're not going to understand everything that happens in life. It's easy to get discouraged when our plans don't work out, and frustrated when a door closes, bitter over that person that did us wrong. The scripture says, "Everything serves his plan". Not just the good breaks, the times you're promoted, seeing favor, but even the closed doors, the person that walked away, the promotion you didn't get.

Doesn't make sense to us, but God has a master plan. He can see things that we can't see. And sometimes he'll take you backwards, so he can move you forward. He'll close a door to force us to change. We were comfortable where we were, we were satisfied, but God wasn't satisfied. He has something greater, something that we've never imagined.

The question is: will you trust him in the trouble? Will you stay in peace when things are happening that you don't understand? Now, the right attitude is, "God, I don't like this, but I trust you. I know you're in control. You wouldn't have allowed this storm if you weren't going to use it to my advantage. So, I'm going to stay in faith, I'm going to keep a good attitude, knowing that something greater is coming".

You're not going to understand everything God does. The scripture says, "His ways are not our ways". This is what faith is all аbout: trusting when it doesn't make sense, trusting when God takes you out of a blessed place. You come into a storm that looks like it's going to defeat you.

God never closes a door unless he's going to open a bigger and better door. It may not make sense at the time, we can't see what God is up to. This is when you have to trust him. Like the disciples, we think, "God, we don't want to get in that boat and cross the lake. We want to stay here where you blessed us". What God has in store is something greater than what you have in mind. You may have seen a blessing, but he's taking you to Gennesaret, a place of an abundant blessings.

If you don't realize that God is your doorkeeper, if you don't trust him with your open and closed doors, then you'll be frustrated when your plans don't work out, upset when you get into the boat or bitter when that person walks away. I used to just thank God for my open doors, but now I've learned to thank him for my closed door. God closing a door is not only protecting you, but it's setting you up for something better.

If God is closing a door, he's allowing you to be pushed out, that means he's up to something. Trust him in the trouble. Don't fight the winds of the storm. You can't override what God has purposed. Let those winds blow you to where God is taking you.

Now, trust him when you don't understand. Trust him when it doesn't make sense, when things don't seem fair. Thoughts will whisper, "Man you're going to Bethsaida, a barren place. You're always going to be struggle, be overlooked, always deal with the sickness, always be lonely". No, what you can't see right now is those winds are blowing you to Gennesaret, to a garden of abundance, to a bountiful place, a healthy place, a fulfilled place, a victorious place.

You haven't seen, heard or imagine what God has in store for you. Now, trust his ways. If you'll do this, I believe and declare: those winds that should have defeated you, God is shifting them right now. You're about to blow into favor, healing, breakthroughs. You're going to come into an abundant place, an abundance of health, an abundance of joy, an abundance of resources, the fullness of your destiny, in Jesus name.