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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry.
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We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. Well, God bless you. It's a joy to come into your homes. If you're ever in our area, please stop by and be a part of one of our services. I promise you we'll make you feel right at home. I like to start with something funny and I heard about this lady that died and she was at the pearly gates and Saint peter said you can't come in yet.
You have to correctly spell a word She said what word he said any word so she spelled the word love l-o-v-e He said welcome to heaven Then peter asked her if she would take his place for just a moment He instructed her if anybody came up just to follow the same procedure A few minutes, she sees her ex-husband walking up. She can't believe it. Says, what are you doing here?
He said, I just had a heart attack. Did I really make it to heaven? She said, not yet. You have to spell a word correctly. He said, what word? There was a long pause and she said, Czechoslovakia. I want to talk to you today about emptying out the negative. It's easy to go through life holding on to things that are weighing us down. Guilt, resentment, doubt, worry.
The problem is when we allow these things in, they're taking up space for the good things that should be there. Imagine your life is like a container. You were created to be filled with joy, peace, confidence, creativity. But if you allow worry in, it pushes out the peace. There's not space for both. You can't go above 100%. You have a limited amount of room.
If you allow guilt to take up space, that's space that you don't have for the confidence you need. And the reason some people don't enjoy their lives is because their container, their heart is contaminated with so many things.
They have 10% worried, stressed out over their job, 12% bitterness, mad at their neighbor, 20% guilt, beating themselves up for past mistakes, 9% jealousy, their coworker is more beautiful, They don't realize 70% of their container is negative. They wonder why they don't have joy, creativity, passion. They only have room for 30% of what they should have.
And the scripture says, give no place to the enemy. It's not just talking about forces of darkness. That means give no place to guilt. Give no place to worry. Give no place to bitterness. It can't come in and automatically take over. You control what's in your container. You control what you think about, what you choose to allow in. And we all have negative emotions, negative feelings.
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Chapter 2: What does Joel Osteen mean by emptying out the negative?
David said in Psalm 103, God fills my life with good things so I stay young and strong. Now I've learned if you'll empty out the negative, if you'll make room, God will fill you with good things. You empty out the worry, God will fill you with peace. You empty out the insecurity, negative things people have said about you, God will fill you with confidence.
My question today is, is God trying to fill you with good things, but there's no room? Your container is full of worry, regret, bitterness, jealousy. Why don't you start emptying that out? Somebody did you wrong. You could hold onto that bitterness. Instead, God, I forgive them. I let it go. You didn't just forgive, you made room for God to fill you with good things.
That's when he'll give you beauty for ashes, joy for mourning. You're in a tough season. The medical report wasn't good. You should be stressed, worried. Instead, God, I trust you. You said you would restore health back into me. You just made room for God to fill you with healing. You empty out the worry, God will give you peace in the midst of the storm.
Perhaps a coworker got the promotion that you worked so hard for. Envy, jealousy will come. I wish that was me. I'm smarter than they are. I don't understand that. Instead of letting that stay, God, I know you're no respecter of persons. You did it for them. I know you can do it for me. The good news is God doesn't run out of favor. He doesn't have a limited supply.
If you will empty out the jealousy, then when it's your time to be promoted, God will open doors that no man can shut. And if somebody got what you wanted, that simply means it wasn't supposed to be yours. If they got the promotion, be happy for them. God has something better for you. If they got the man you wanted to date, let's make it real.
If they got the girl you were interested in, don't be upset. God knows what he's doing. If it worked out your way, it would be second best. Bottom line, what has your name on it is not going to go to anyone else. Don't go around bitter with jealousy and self-pity. That will poison your life. Empty it out.
God is in control, he's directing your steps, and at the right time, what has your name on it will show up. God promises, if we will make room, he will not only fill us with good things, but he will keep us young and strong.
And the reason some people are not young and strong, and I don't mean just young physically, but young in their spirit, vibrant, passionate about life, is because they're filled with the negative. Worry will make you weak.
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Chapter 3: How can negative emotions affect our lives?
Living stressed out will make you old, give you wrinkles, take your passion. Being bitter, angry, resentful will shorten your life. Proverbs says a relaxed attitude lengthens life. You can be 80 years old and young at heart. Your spirit never ages. I met a woman in the lobby a while back. It was her 100th birthday.
She was standing there dressed impeccably, beautiful, hardly had any wrinkles, full of joy. Her mind was as sharp as can be. I asked her what her secret was so I could tell Victoria. She said... I don't worry. I let things go and I laugh a lot. She's lived by this principle. You know, in a hundred years, she's had trouble. People have heard her. She's made mistakes. Life has happened.
Offensives have come, but she hasn't held onto them. She's kept emptying them out. And like God promised, he's filled her life with good things, kept her young and strong. I don't want to get old, grouchy, grumpy, fall apart. I want to stay young, strong, good looking, full of faith and joy and energy. The way this happens is give no place to the negative.
Get in a habit of emptying out the offenses, empty out the worry. You make a mistake, empty out the guilt. You didn't do your best, empty out the regret. Do better next time. Nobody gave you credit, empty out the self-pity. You had a bad break. You don't understand it. Empty out the questions.
If you'll get good at emptying out the negative, you'll be like this lady, strong, young, vibrant, full of faith and full of joy. Jesus said, blessed are the pure in heart, they will see God. That word pure in the original language is where we get our word cathartic. It means cleansing, releasing. If you have surgery, sometimes the doctor will put in a catheter, same root word.
It's a tube that drains out the impurities of the body. You can't get up to use the facility. That catheter automatically takes what's not beneficial, the toxins, the infections, the waste, and flushes them out of the body. The doctor knows there will be contaminants. He's not alarmed that the body has waste and infection.
He's only alarmed when it's not being released, when we're holding on to things that should be flushed out. When God says blessed are the pure in heart, he's saying you're going to be blessed when you learn how to release the impurities of life. When you get in a habit like this catheter of emptying out things that will infect you. You know what bitterness is to our spirit? It's infection.
Guilt is infection, worry, doubt, self-pity. These things are not unusual. Impurities come, you have to push them out. It's when we hold onto them that it contaminates our spirit and causes us problems. You weren't created to carry around guilt, regret, bitterness, anger that poisons your life. Well, Joel, I'm bitter because I had a bad break. I'm sour because somebody walked out on me.
I say this respectfully, that's simply an impurity.
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Chapter 4: What strategies can help us let go of negative feelings?
Why don't you release it so it doesn't infect the rest of your life? Don't let a disappointment, a divorce, a layoff, a loss poison your future. Well, Joel, I'm worried about my health, worried about my finances, worried about my children. Worry is a part of life. Those thoughts come to us all. The key is to not hold onto them. Recognize they're not beneficial. They're not moving you forward.
That's an impurity that wasn't meant to stay. You have to release it. God, I don't see a way, but I know you're still on the throne. I know you're bigger than this problem. I know you're supplying all of my needs. You just released the toxin. Are you holding on to infection, to impurities, angry, jealous, worried, discouraged? Maybe you had a disappointment. Something didn't work out.
Imagine there's an angel that has a delivery with your name on it. It says, beauty for ashes, new beginning, new opportunities, new friendships. He's in route with one of those good things. The problem is if you're holding on to the old, there's no place for him to deliver it. I wonder how many things are in route right now.
The angel is standing by with our joy, our peace, our confidence, our creativity, our spouse, but because there's no room, because we're not releasing the toxins, the anger, the bitterness, the jealousy, the worry, then he can't deliver those good things. Instead of living blessed, excited about our future, we become infected. The good news is you can get rid of that infection.
It is not permanent. If you'll start releasing the regret, the worry, the bitterness, the anger, then it's just a matter of time before that angel shows up with your delivery. When you make room, God promises he will fill your life with good things. This is what David did. He was an expert at emptying out the negative. His family looked down on him, treated him like he was second class.
He could have let that infection take root, lived insecure. Instead, he let it go in one ear and out the other. He knew if he held onto it, it would keep him from his destiny. David went to the palace, served faithfully King Saul. He would play the harp when Saul was sick to make him feel better. In return, Saul tried to kill him.
Saul was jealous of David and chased him through the desert, made his life miserable. David could have become bitter, thought, what's the use? Everybody's against me. Life is not fair. Instead, he kept his heart pure and emptied out the self-pity. Like David, We all have impurities, infections that come, people come against us. Our plans don't always work out.
It's easy to think, why is this happening? It's just life. The scripture says offenses will come. They're not a problem unless you don't know what to do with them. Too many people make the mistake of hold onto them. They get bitter, live guilty with a chip on their shoulder. that's going to poison your future. You have to release the toxins of life.
You may not be able to keep them from coming, but you can keep them from staying. David had a pure heart. That means he kept the infections out. It doesn't mean that he was perfect. David made mistakes. One time he committed adultery, had the lady's husband killed. For one year, he tried to cover it up, swept it under a rug.
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Chapter 5: Why is it important to forgive others and ourselves?
I'm moving forward. I'm not where I used to be. Don't let guilt poison your future. Empty it out. Sometimes it's hard to empty out the negative. When a person does us wrong, human nature wants to hold onto the hurt, become bitter, carry around a grudge. We think, I'm not gonna forgive them. They don't deserve it. But you're not forgiving for their sake. You're forgiving for your sake.
As long as you hold onto the hurt, the anger, the bitterness, it's not affecting them. It's infecting you. Unforgiveness is like a poisonous toxin. May feel good to hold on to it, but it will contaminate your life. Now, a lot of times the reason we don't forgive is because what the other person does was wrong. They were clearly at fault. But when you forgive, you're not excusing their behavior.
You're not lessening the offense. You're simply getting the poison out of you. You have to forgive so you can be free. Quit looking at it like you're doing them a favor. You're doing yourself a favor. See, it takes a lot of emotional energy to hold a grudge, to live with unforgiveness. You wake up, it's always on your mind, thinking about how they did you wrong.
You may not realize you are spending emotional energy that you need for your dreams, for your goals, for your children. You won't become all you were created to be if you are wasting emotional energy on things that don't matter. That unforgiveness is an impurity. Yes, what they did was wrong, but you have to let it pass. You have to release it.
When you do, you'll not only feel a new freedom, not only have more energy, but God will be your vindicator. He will make your wrongs right. You don't have to pay people back. You're not the judge. God is. Leave it up to him and he'll vindicate you better than you could vindicate yourself. This is what a lady did named Mary Johnson. She was the single mother of one son.
When he was 20 years old, he was out late one night at a party. This young man came up that he had never met. His name was Oshi. He was 16 years old and had been drinking. There was an altercation. In the heat of the moment, Oshi pulled out a gun and shot Mary's only son. He was instantly killed.
Mary was so filled with anger and hatred, she told the judge that 16-year-old boy was an animal and he needed to be caged. When he was only charged with second-degree murder, Mary was even more angry. She became a recluse, stayed in her house, wouldn't look at her son's picture. Ten years passed. She knew it was time to forgive. She could hear the still small voice telling her to let it go.
She contacted the prison to see if she could visit Oshi. They said yes, but Oshi said no. He wouldn't do it. She kept asking and asking. Finally, he agreed. She showed up at the prison. When she saw Oshi, he came around and gave her a big hug and held onto her. They wept and wept. Mary said... As I was embracing Oshie, I could feel hatred and bitterness rising up out of me and leaving my body.
It was so strong that she fell over. Oshie had to hold her up. That day, Mary not only emptied out the unforgiveness, but she found a new son. Seven years later, Oshie was released on parole, didn't have any place to live. Mary said, you can live next door to me. She calls him her spiritual son.
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Chapter 6: How can we make room for positive things in our lives?
I saw a lady on television recently, several years earlier, her son had been killed in an accident. They asked her how she was doing and she made the statement, you never really get over it, but you can get past it. She was saying, yes, it's difficult. Yes, there was a season of mourning, but you don't have to stay in mourning. You don't have to live bitter.
You don't have to get stuck in grief, in depression. You can move forward. When you go through a loss, things happen you don't understand. It's easy to think, I just need to get over this. But sometimes that's too strong. It can put more pressure on us. We think, why do I feel this way? I must be doing something wrong. Take the pressure off. You don't have to get over it, just get past it.
Just keep moving forward, taking it one day at a time. God said he will never give you something that you cannot handle. You may not understand why it happened, but the scripture says God will give us a peace that passes understanding. You're not going to figure everything out. If you'll let go of the questions of life, you will have a peace that goes beyond what you can understand.
toward the end of Jesus' life. He'd been betrayed by a disciple, mocked by the soldiers, falsely accused. Now he was hanging on the cross, wearing a crown of thorns, about to breathe his last breath. He did something significant. He could have just died and went on to heaven, that was it. But he said, father, before I go, I need to take care of one last thing.
Forgive them for they know not what they do. They didn't ask for forgiveness. They didn't deserve it. Jesus was saying, in effect, I'm not going to leave this earth with anything negative in me. He was showing us by example how we should release the toxins, release the impurities. I read where Leonardo da Vinci was painting a portrait of Christ.
He let some small children in the room to watch him paint. One of them accidentally knocked over the easel. He became very upset and ushered them out of the room. He sat back down to finish, but he said he could not paint the face of Christ with anger in his heart. That's what happens when we hold onto the negative. It stifles our creativity. We don't do our best work.
It's because there's infection that's slowing us down. Are you allowing negative things in your container? To reach the fullness of your destiny, you need to operate at your maximum potential. If you have a little bitterness, a little guilt, a little jealousy, a little worry, if you add up all the space the little is taking, you're only operating at a fraction of what you could.
I'm asking you to empty all that out. God is ready to fill your life with good things. He wants to keep you young and strong. Do your part and make room for him. Every morning, empty out the guilt, empty out the worry, empty out the discouragement. And when the impurities come, when the infection comes, don't let it stay. Let it pass on through. Keep your heart pure.
If you do this, I believe and declare you're going to step up to a new level with more joy, more peace, more favor, healing, wholeness, the fullness of your destiny. In Jesus' name. 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.
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Chapter 7: What role does faith play in overcoming negativity?
You haven't seen the best version of you yet. It's still in front of you.
As our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount, we would like to send you a copy of Joel's brand new book, Rediscovering the Forgotten You. Take back your passion, reignite your dreams, and embrace the life you were created to live.
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God is about to breathe new life, new passion, new dreams into your heart. What he started, he's going to finish. Thanks so much for being with us today. Victoria and I are praying for you and your family for God's very best. Thank you so much for your prayer and support. Your generosity helps people all over the world.
A special thank you to our Champion of Hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. If you're not a partner, I hope you'll consider becoming one. Until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you.
Be sure to request your copy of Rediscovering the Forgotten You, available this month by simply visiting us at joelostein.com or call 888-567-JOEL. You can also receive the God's Got You Rediscovery Duo. You'll receive Rediscovering the Forgotten You and God's Got You, Promises for Overcoming Fear.
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