By: Joel Osteen
Remember...double for your trouble means TWICE the LIFE!
Without a doubt, the last few weeks of December is one of my favorite times of the year!
The end of a year and the cold winter season always serve to remind me to focus on what really matters in life. We worship God by celebrating the birth of Christ. We create lasting memories as we spend unforgettable moments with family and loved ones. We reflect on all that God has done in our lives over the past year. And we look forward to an even greater level of the promises of God in the year to come!
More than any other time, Christmas and New Year's are filled with hope, love, joy, peace and promise. There's a life lesson for us to learn in all of this. During the holiday season, challenges, difficulty and problems may still surround you, but if you will take a moment every day to focus on God and all the ways He's blessed you, you can take your life to a new level, higher than ever before.
Isaiah 61:7 promises that instead of shame and trouble, God will double the inheritance of His people and they'll be filled with everlasting joy.
This is God's promise to you: double for your trouble, or as I like to call it, TWICE the LIFE! A "double portion" of God's goodness, a "double portion" of His favor and wisdom on your life. That is our prayer for you in 2009.
It's time for you to trust God for the destiny that the enemy has tried so hard to convince you was impossible. It's time to believe God for the unimaginable. It's time to move beyond your past. If you've been hurt, it's time to forgive. If you've been discouraged, it's time to put on a garment of praise and experience the joy of the Lord. If you've been worried and afraid, it's time to have faith like never before in the provision and purposes of God. It's time to live with confidence that God wants to give you a blessed and prosperous future in every area of your life!
The power of God's promises and His love for you is so much stronger than the pain of your past. Victoria and I know this in our hearts. God wants you to use your troubles as a springboard into your future. Your troubles are what God often uses to take you to a new, higher level of living. This is what is so great about our God. He takes any trouble we have and says, "I will give you double the inheritance for your trouble." Twice the joy, twice the fulfillment, twice the impact . . . twice the life!"
In all of our outreaches, we are praying for a double portion of effectiveness so more hurting people will find hope in Christ, the name of Jesus will be lifted high, and His Kingdom will advance in the earth!
We're believing for twice the life. We're asking God to open twice as many doors this year for hope to find its home in twice as many hearts.
With all of the challenges in the world today, what we have done in the past won't be able to take us to where God is calling us to go in the future. We need God to multiply us — He's the source of every blessing, every gift and every hope for tomorrow.
We know we can't do this on our own. We rely on the grace of God and the support of friends and partners like you who join with us to spread this message of hope. Please pray and consider making a special tax deductible, year-end gift. I ask you to pray because I want you to give what God impresses you to give. I want you to give with joy, knowing that your gift will make a difference in this world.
Thank you so much for continuing to stand with Victoria and me. Your generous financial support and fervent prayer are bearing lasting fruit in people's lives all over the earth. We're believing God to give you double for your trouble in the coming year...in 2009 you will experience TWICE the LIFE!
Expecting God to do greater things,
Joel and Victoria
