All Is Well - Joel Osteen

Well, God bless you. It’s always a joy to come into your home. And if you’re ever in the Houston area, please stop by and be a part of one of our services. These are the finest people in all of Houston, right here at Lakewood Church. We will make you feel right at home. But thanks for tuning in, and thank you again for coming out.

I’d like to start with something funny. I heard about these three men that were traveling together—a Hindu priest, a Jewish rabbi, and a televangelist. They stopped at a farmhouse for lodging. The farmer said, “I only have room for two of you in the house. Somebody will have to stay out in the barn.”

The Hindu priest said, “I’ll do it.” In a few minutes, there was a knock on the door. He said, “I can’t stay out there. There’s a cow, and cows are sacred in our religion.”

The Jewish rabbi said, “I’ll do it.” A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. He said, “I can’t stay out there. There’s a pig, and that wouldn’t be kosher.”

The televangelist said, “Okay, I’ll do it.” A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. It was the cow and the pig.

Hold up your Bible. 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’ll 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 "All Is Well." It’s easy to go through life worried about the future, frustrated because a dream has taken so long, or upset because somebody did us wrong. But instead of complaining about the difficulty, instead of being sour because your plans didn’t work out, you need to remember these three simple words: "All is well." God is still on the throne. He’s directing your steps. He wouldn’t have allowed it unless He had a purpose for it.

When you’re tempted to get discouraged, keep reminding yourself: "All is well."

I lost my biggest client? I’m not stressed over it. I know something better is coming—all is well.
I was cheated in a business deal? That’s all right. God is my Vindicator—all is well.
I prayed for my loved one, but they didn’t make it? I’m not bitter. I know they’re in heaven rejoicing, where there is no pain—all is well.
When you have this "all is well" attitude, there’s a peace, a rest. It takes the pressure off. You don’t live on a roller coaster. You know all is well when you’re on the mountaintop, and all is well in the valley. All is well when business is great, and all is well when it’s not so great. You have a made-up mind. You know God is bigger than any obstacle. As long as you stay in faith, nothing can keep you from your destiny.

That’s what three Hebrew teenagers did in the Scripture—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They refused to bow down to the king’s golden idol. They were about to be thrown into a fiery furnace. They could have complained, “God, this is not fair. We’re doing Your will, and look what happens.” No, they said to the king, “We’re not going to bow. We know our God will deliver us. But even if He doesn’t, we’re still not going to bow.” They were saying, "All is well."

All is well if it goes our way, and all is well if it doesn’t go our way.
All is well if our prayers get answered, and all is well if they don’t get answered.
The king had them thrown into that furnace. It should have instantly killed them. But he came back and checked a little later and said to the guards, “Didn’t we throw three men in, bound? I see four men loose, and one looks like the Son of God.”

When you know "all is well," the Creator of the universe will make things happen that you could never make happen.

Like these teenagers, you may be in a situation where you don’t see a way out. You could be discouraged, upset, stressed. No, you need to start declaring, "All is well."

I’m struggling in my marriage, but I’m not living stressed—all is well.
I’m dealing with this addiction. Not where I thought I’d be in life, but I’m not discouraged. God is still working on me. I’m not a finished product—all is well.
I never thought I’d be facing this legal problem, this sickness, this divorce, this bankruptcy, but can I tell you? All is well.
I’m at peace. I know God is in complete control. Maybe you’re single, and you thought you would have met somebody by now. Let me encourage you—all is well. God already has the right person lined up for you. They are in your future. Now stay in agreement with God. Don’t go around thinking, Oh, it’s never going to happen. No, have this attitude: "All is well."

Maybe your child made some poor choices. Worrying is not going to help. Losing sleep doesn’t make it better. All through the day, let this phrase play in your mind: "All is well."

You’ll hear the voice: “What if he doesn’t change?” Answer back: "All is well."
“What if he gets in more trouble?” "All is well."
“What if it doesn’t work out?” "All is well."
Replace the thoughts of worry with "All is well."

Maybe the medical report wasn’t good. It would be easy to let those words play all day long: You’re not going to make it. Learn to live with it. No, turn off that recording. Put on this new recording: "All is well."

The number of my days God will fulfill. Nothing can snatch me out of His hands. Or perhaps it’s a legal situation. You don’t like it. It wasn’t fair. But all is well. It says in Psalms: The trap the enemy set for me—they will fall in themselves.

When you meditate on this simple phrase—"All is well"—you’re saying, “God, I trust You. You’re bigger than this problem. You can turn any situation around.”

It’s interesting: the Hebrew teenagers were doing the right thing when the wrong thing happened to them. Being in God’s perfect will doesn’t mean we won’t have difficulties. You can’t reach your destiny without opposition, unfair situations, people doing you wrong.

When things come against you, it’s easy to think, Joel, all is not well. Look at these difficulties. No, the truth is, the enemy wouldn’t be fighting you unless he knew God had something amazing in your future.

You can stay in faith. You can declare, "All is well," knowing that opposition is a sign that something great is coming. In fact, the Scripture says: Don’t be surprised when you face various trials. Don’t get bent out of shape because life threw you a curve, or you had an unexpected challenge.

Sometimes we face difficulties not because we’re doing something wrong, but because we’re doing something right. Jesus told a parable about this in Matthew chapter 13. A farmer went out and planted wheat in his field. He sowed good seed—he was doing the right thing. But at night, while he slept, an enemy snuck in and planted weeds in his soil.

When it came time for harvest, the weeds popped up with the wheat. He thought, Where did this come from? I didn’t sow these seeds. Anytime you’re doing the right thing—honoring God, being productive, helping others—don’t be surprised if you find some weeds among your wheat.

Like this farmer, it doesn’t mean you’ve done anything wrong. We think: I’ve been loyal to this company for 20 years. How could they treat me badly? Or, I raised my child right, and now he’s veering off course. I just don’t understand it.

Those are simply weeds that the enemy has sown into your field. The good news is, those weeds cannot keep you from your destiny. If that trouble was going to stop God’s plan, He would have never permitted it.

What I’ve learned is, the weeds always pop up right before the harvest. Your business slows down. A child acts up. You have trouble in a relationship. Don’t panic. You are close to your breakthrough. Your harvest is about to come. That’s why the weeds are popping up.

Instead of falling apart, thinking, God, why did this happen? Know that your attitude should be: It’s no big deal. It’s just another weed. I didn’t sow it. I don’t have to reap it. God said He would take care of it for me.

If, for some reason, you were to lose your job, don’t panic. That’s just a weed popping up. You stay in faith, and God will give you a better job. If the medical report is negative, don’t get discouraged. See that sickness as a weed. It cannot stop you. You’re a child of the Most High God. You have the most powerful force in the universe breathing in your direction.

Maybe somebody walked out of a relationship, did you wrong, caused you a lot of pain. Next time you see them, under your breath just say, Hello, weed. You don’t need them to become who God’s created you to be. (I didn’t say to say it to their face!)

This parable ends with the workers asking the farmer, “Should we go pull up the weeds?” He said, “No, just wait. At the right time, they will be destroyed.”

God is saying that to us: the weeds that pop up—the unexpected challenges, the sickness, the trouble at work—you don’t have to fight those battles. Don’t spend all your life trying to pull up the weeds.

You can't fix everything in your own strength. If you're constantly trying to straighten this person out, fix this problem, or resolve this situation, you'll be frustrated. The scripture says, those who have believed enter into rest. At some point, you’ve got to say, “God, I’m trusting You to take care of my weeds.” You keep honoring God, being your best, and God will move the wrong people out of the way. God will restore what’s been stolen. God will straighten out the situation at work or at home for you.

The battle is not yours—the battle is the Lord’s. Be still and know that He is God.

See, we shouldn’t always be uptight, worried, or frustrated, trying to fix this, rebuking that, and resisting everything. A mature attitude says, “Hey, everything’s not perfect in my life. I have some struggles, some situations I wish were different. But can I tell you? All is well. I’m at peace. I’m not worried. I know that, at the right time, God will take care of my weeds. Until then, I’m going to relax and enjoy my life.”

But too often, we’re frustrated by the difficulties. We have to realize we can’t have a harvest without a few weeds. David would have never made it to the throne without Goliath—a big weed. We would have never acquired this beautiful facility without a three-and-a-half-year lawsuit. There will be weeds in all of our lives. We’re not always going to understand where they came from or why they happened. Don’t get discouraged—just keep moving forward, knowing that all is well and that God promises He will take care of your weeds.

I know a young couple. For ten years, they had been saving up to buy their first house. They were so excited. At one point, everything came together—they found the house they wanted, they had the funds—but on the day they were to sign the closing papers, the young lady was at the realtor’s office finalizing the details when she got a phone call from her husband saying that he had just lost his job.

He’d been with this company for six years, always had a great attitude, and did his best, but his supervisor didn’t like him and, for years, treated him unfairly. What was that? A weed. Just before the harvest came, that weed popped up.

They could have been discouraged. “God, I can’t believe this happened.” No, they had this same attitude: "All is well."
“God, we don’t understand it, but it’s not a surprise to You.”

When he wasn’t interviewing for another job, he’d come up to Lakewood and volunteer, week after week. It didn’t look like anything was happening. But when you see those weeds popping up, those unexpected challenges—when you’re doing the right thing, but the wrong thing is happening—that’s a sign that your harvest is getting closer.

Five months later, he got a call from his old company. He hadn’t spoken to them since he was let go. An executive from the headquarters informed him that they had fired his old supervisor, put a new management team in place, and wanted him to come back. They not only offered him his same position, but they restored all of his benefits, all of his seniority, and all of his retirement.

They went back and checked on the house they wanted to buy—it was still there, just like it had been waiting for them. Today, he’s not only excelling in his career, but they’re living in that house of their dreams, as happy as can be.

God knows how to get rid of the weeds in your life.

Ladies, quit looking at your husband—that man is not a weed!

In 2 Kings chapter 4, Elisha prophesied to a lady that she would have a baby. She had been barren her whole life. Sure enough, the next year she had a son. She was thrilled.

When the boy was about ten years old, he was out in the field playing, and his head began to hurt. They carried him to his house, where he later died in his mother’s arms. You can imagine how heartbroken and distraught this woman must have been. After waiting all these years, now her only son was gone.

She got on a horse and took off full speed toward Elisha’s house at Mount Carmel. Elisha saw her coming from a great distance, the dust billowing in the air, and he was concerned. He said to his assistant, Gehazi, “Go check with the woman and see if something is wrong.”

He jumped on his horse, Gehazi did, and cut the woman off on the path. “Ma’am, let me ask you. Elisha is concerned—is anything wrong?”

Without hesitating, she said, “No, all is well,” and kept going full speed toward Elisha’s house.

Gehazi thought, That doesn’t make sense. He caught back up to her a second time. “Ma’am, let me ask one more time—is everything okay at your house?”

She said, “Yes, all is well.”

“Is everything okay with your husband?”

“Yes, all is well.”

Then he asked, “Is everything okay with your son?”

She said it again: “All is well.”

Well, Joel, I’m not going to lie. If it’s not well, I’m not going to say that it is well. But really, this is what faith is all about. The scripture says, You have to call things that are not as if they already were.

When the situation doesn’t look good—you don’t see how you could accomplish a dream, your child is off course, every voice says it’s not going to happen, it’s too late, just accept it—you dig your heels in and say, like this woman, “All is well.”

That’s not just being positive. You are prophesying your future. You are speaking faith into your future. Don’t use your words to describe your situation. Use your words to change your situation.

It’s easy to talk about the problem, how it’s not going to work out. Well, I just believe in telling it like it is. My back’s been hurting for 13 years—I’ll never get better. Had this addiction since high school—I’ll never break it.

That’s prophesying defeat. Why don’t you do like this lady? In spite of the difficulties, when you don’t see any sign of it changing, dare to say, “All is well.”

You lost a loved one—you should be depressed. No, all is well. God’s still on the throne.

You didn’t get the promotion. Your friend says, “It’s not right—you deserved it.” Don’t join in. Yeah, I can’t stand my boss. No, all is well. Something better is coming.

The medical report wasn’t good. Yes, but God is good—all is well.

You’ve been in a drought, haven’t had a good break in a long time. Yes, but I’m not worried—I know the abundance of rain is coming—all is well.

This lady finally got to Elisha’s house. She told him that her son had died. Elisha got on his horse, went to her home, prayed for the little boy, and he came back to life—a great miracle.

But I don’t believe this would have happened if she had sat around in self-pity, discouraged. “God, it’s not fair.”

It happened because she believed all is well before she saw any sign of it being well.

You may be in a situation right now that is not well. It is not well with your health, it is not well in your finances, or maybe it’s not well in a relationship. You have a choice—you can accept it, get discouraged, complain, or you can do like this lady. In spite of what it looks like, in spite of what your mind is telling you, in spite of the negative reports, you can dare to say, “All is well.”

This is what Paul and Silas did in the scripture. They were in prison. They had just been beaten with rods, hadn’t done anything wrong, but at midnight they were singing praises to God. They were saying, We’re not distraught. We’re not upset. All is well.

About that time, there was a great earthquake. The prison doors flung open. Chains fell off their feet, and they walked out as free men.

Job went through a season of great trouble. He lost his health, his business—everything went wrong. But Job didn’t get bitter. He said, Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. He was saying, If it goes my way or doesn’t go my way, all is well.

Here’s the key: if you have to have everything happen your way in order to be happy, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.

A mature attitude is: All is well if my prayers get answered, and all is well if they don’t get answered. All is well if people are good to me, and all is well if they’re not good to me.

You’re not moved by the circumstances. That takes away the enemy’s power. When you don’t have to have your way, he can’t control you. You’re saying, “God, my life is in Your hands. You know what’s best for me.”

Daniel did this. He was about to be thrown into a den of hungry lions. His attitude was, If I get eaten by these lions, I’ll go to be with the Lord today—all is well. If not, I’ll stay here and finish my course—all is well.

The next morning, the guards came to check on him. I can imagine Daniel lying there in the den of lions, asleep, at peace, at rest. He knew the enemy doesn’t determine our destiny—God determines our destiny.

When you have this all is well attitude, you’re not moved by the weeds. You’re not upset because of a disappointment.

You don’t lose sleep because somebody did you wrong. You don’t live sour because your prayers didn’t get answered your way. You know God is still on the throne, and He will get you to where you’re supposed to be.

I read a story about a man by the name of Horatio Spafford. He was a wealthy businessman who lived back in the 1800s. One night, his wife and four daughters were on a ship crossing the Atlantic. They collided with another ship, and all four of his daughters were killed. His wife sent him a telegram with the terrible news.

A few weeks later, Mr. Spafford was traveling across the Atlantic to meet his wife. At one point, the captain of the ship informed him that they were at the exact place where his four daughters had lost their lives. He took out a pen and wrote these words:

"When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll,
Whatever my lot,
You have taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul."

No matter what comes our way, we need to be able to say with him, “It is well with my soul.” Life may have thrown me a few curves, but “It is well with my soul.” All my dreams haven’t come to pass yet, but “It is well.” Went through a divorce? I’m not bitter—“It is well.” Lost a loved one? Don’t understand it, but “It is well with my soul.”

Fifteen years ago this Thursday, my father went to be with the Lord. I received a call from my mother that night: “Joel, come over quick. Daddy’s had a heart attack.” He died the next day. It seemed like everything was out of control. We didn’t know what was going to happen to the church. Would people keep coming? Who would the pastor be? There were all these variables.

In the midst of that storm, the waves seemed so big, the winds were howling. We could have gotten discouraged and depressed, but really, we did what I’m asking you to do. We said by faith, “All is well.”

And sometimes you have to announce it—not only so you can hear it, not only so God can hear it, but so the enemy can hear it. He’s expecting you to fall apart, get depressed, give up on your dreams. But when you look that adversity in the eye, and you’re not moved by it, you’ve still got a report of victory, you’ve still got a smile on your face, you’re still being good to people—that gives him a nervous breakdown. He hit you with his best shot, but his best was not enough.

He doesn’t have the final say. God has the final say. And God has not brought you this far to leave you. You’ve seen God’s goodness, mercy, and favor in the past. You’re going to see it again in the future. When it’s all said and done, you’ll still be standing strong.

Now, you’ve got to do your part and speak victory into your future. If you don’t talk to yourself the right way, negative thoughts will try to talk you out of it. The “what ifs” will bombard your mind: What if people don’t keep coming, Joel? What if you don’t meet the right person? What if you don’t have the funds? What if your health doesn’t improve?

No, declare it by faith: “All is well. God, I may not see a way, but I know You have a way. This may be a surprise to me, but it’s not a surprise to You.” Week after week, month after month, I kept meditating on that simple phrase: “All is well.”

Today, we don’t have to say it by faith—we can say it as a fact: Lakewood is well. The church is strong. Our greatest days are still out in front of us. The future is bright.

How you respond in the difficult times will determine whether or not you reach the fullness of your destiny. If we would have gotten depressed, discouraged, or stuck in self-pity, we would not be here today.

Friends, there will be obstacles on the way to your Promised Land. We all have weeds sown into our fields—things that don’t make sense, things we don’t like: loss, unfair situations, disappointments. But don’t complain. Don’t get bitter.

Do like Daniel. Do like Job. Do like the young couple with the house. Dare to say, “All is well.”

That shows God that you’re trusting Him. That’s what allows Him to give you beauty for ashes, to turn what was meant for your harm into your advantage.

Maybe you’re in a situation now where you could be discouraged or upset. You don’t see how it could ever work out in your favor. But Isaiah 3 says, “Say to the righteous: it shall be well with you.”

You are the righteous. God says to say this to you: “It shall be well.” Not “I hope so.” Not “maybe.” Not “if you get lucky.” No, God promises: “It shall be well with you.”

Amen?

Maybe you lost a loved one. You don’t see how you can go on. That is not the end—that is a new beginning. It shall be well with you.

The job situation didn’t work out. You lost a client, you got let go. Don’t worry. God has something better. It shall be well with you.

You’re struggling in your finances. You don’t know how you’re going to make it. God’s got it all figured out. He’s called the Lord our Provider. He clothes the lilies of the field, He feeds the birds of the air—it shall be well with you.

I’m asking you, all through the day, to let this phrase play in your mind. When you’re tempted to get upset, to be worried or offended, just smile. “No, thanks. I know all is well.”

Friends, God has promised that all things—not some, all things—are going to work out for your good. That means even the weeds are going to work to your advantage. You may have some weeds in your life right now. Remember, that’s a sign that you are close to your harvest. You’re about to see a breakthrough—healing, restoration, promotion.

You may have to say it by faith today, but one day, like the lady with Elisha, you will say it as a fact: “All is well in my health—I got a good medical report. All is well in my career—dreams are coming to pass. All is well with my children—they’re fulfilling their destinies.”

You will see the faithfulness of God. Promises will be fulfilled. Negative situations will turn around. Believe and declare: you’re coming into your harvest, the fullness of your destiny.

It shall be well with you. In Jesus’ name.

If you receive it, can you say Amen 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. Wash me clean. 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 you’ve never dreamed of.