Welcome to the Joel O'Steen podcast helpless. Can We need to share the message of hope with those all over the world visit Joe hosting dot com, give hope to give a gift today. Just want to encourage you today that you had the power of the living God on the inside of you. Pretty tired of hearing that uh either, and I think we constantly need to be reminded that God's power. Lives in us. You say you're a this morning, I want to announce that you're equipped, for your unique assignment God has left nothing out that you're going to need for each anything thing that he's called you to do

and not only has he thought about you. I liked what Cindy said that his thoughts for you his plans for you Are good thing he thought about us, he knew our assignment and he put everything in us that we would need every gift. Every town our personalities are dispositions. Everything is just right and then he did something one step greater. He put his power in us, he put, this power in us. So you have the living God on the inside of you, if you're a believer today, so I don't want you to feel ordinary, because we all- Sometimes it's just an ordinary life. We go to work We come home, we eat dinner here. We do it again. We get up in the morning. We go mow, the lawn we do this. We do, it can feel ordinary. But I want to tell you something: God didn't save you.

He didn't call you. He didn't choose you to the ordinary. He called you to be. Extraordinary. You gotta understand, because you have the living God. You are extraordinary, you're set apart your called by God. And he has assignments for you to do you see it's so interesting, because sometimes people don't recognize. The call God on our life? They don't understand. The call of God or like We may feel ordinary. We wonder if we're accomplishing what God even wants us to accomplish. So often we determine the power of God within us, but what's going on around us. You see if I was maybe doing a little better. If God, like me, a little more, this wouldn't be happening, or maybe, if I could get a little closer to God. I wouldn't be going through this. This trial. Can I tell you something? That's the

a man, looks at things, in fact, God told the prophet Samuel. He said, you're going to know the next king of israel- and I want you to know this one- about this anointing you're. Going to the man that I call, but I don't want you to yeah to look for what you think would be the key. I don't want you to look for Man, that's the right height, the man. That's in a certain position. The man that has the telling that you think would make a good key. He said because I don't look at things that way. That's the way you look at, He said you look from the outside. You were I want a life from the outside but see I am a god of the inside- Man looks on the outside, but God looks on the heart senior you're qualified today, because God chose you to be qualified, he looked,

your heart, and he said that's my child. You know what I love about. That is that God is the God of second chances. God is always inside of us working from the inside out he's working on our thoughts, he's working on our actions, he's working all the time. God never sleeps. He never slumbers he's always at work in the heart of a believer to David said it like this. He said UT teach me wisdom in my innermost parts? That's you're speaking to me, God in my innermost parts, you see, God communicates with us in our inner most parts, and I want to remind you today that you house the greatest power in the universe, I don't want you to neglect or not protect

What's on the inside of you you're, not ordinary, your extraordinary You walk with humility because you know the God that you serve. But he hasn't made you like anybody else. He separated you. I just want you to get this in your heart today. Because I think when we realize what we carry well protect, what we carry well Nick knowledge. We carry will allow what we carry to teach us, wisdom in our innermost parts. Well, I we don't have to react to the boss when he's putting us down he's trying to make us feel less than we can understand that the critics don't have to define us. God is teaching us all the while in our in most parts, I wanted use one of the greatest mother since it's mother's day right. I wanted

talk about one of the greatest mothers in the Bible. In fact, this mother was the first mother that God lived in the first mother that God live Her name is Mary. You know, Mary, you know the story of Mary. He she was. Mother of Jesus. She was, young girl. She was about to get married to the man of her dreams. Now. Somebody might not think she was anything special if they looked at her from the outside she's she's, just a girl. She has a lot to learn, but you see, God wasn't looking at Mary's outside He wasn't even looking at Mary's plans. He was looking at Mary's heart. And he had a unique assignment for mary- see, that's so Christine, because God wasn't concerned about Mary's plans, God, I wasn't concerned that she was about to get married, the in the

we're already out. The caterers were coming the venue is already paid for. You see what so looking at all that he was looking at her heart and he had a special assignment. Have you ever been interrupted by God? Well, Mary was interrupted. The angel came to her and announced that she was a. Only favored woman and that she would give birth to a son She said. How can this be? I'm a virgin I've, never known a man, and he said the Holy Spirit will come upon you and God will empower you to bring forth this you see. That's what happens when you know who you are? You know you got God on the inside of you, power shoe so you can bring forth the things on this earth that he wants you to do. Plans that he's already established CI.

Don't know how it all works, but I can You that, God is always working he's uh he's working and you know Mary instead of giving a lot of excuses. So you can we do this little bit later, it's kind of inconvenient God. God wait this man a long time. You don't know all my girlfriends got the man at their job and waiting for this man a long time, Mary said being into me, as you said She literally made a decision that she was going to embrace this, see that God had just planted the seed of promise and that she was going to accept it. No matter of it interrupted her plans or not, no matter how difficult it was. She said, I'm all the way with God, and I love that about Mary and, as I was reading the story about Mary, I just want to get to some practical things that Mary did and I think these things can help us. We've heard them for. But you know, we think that marry just

these the old you know she she was chosen by God to have the Son of God. So I'm sure you know she had everything she needed. What can I tell you? It was rough. It was rough to birth, the promise of God. It was rough to do what God had called her to do, but God said she was favored and highly blessed, so I guarantee you she. Favorite and highly blessed. No matter how difficult it was, no matter how many battles she had to fight, no matter how many times she had to talk or herself into it, because God said she was blessed and highly favored, and God says you are blessed and highly favor. You are blessed, and highly favored. You may be going through some difficult times right now. Your may be interrupted. I want you to hear that loud and clear God chose to live in Mary and God chose to live in you, God chose to live in you, that's powerful,

that's powerful, because Mary fulfilled her assignment and brought the film into the scriptures. God chose to live in his people. I believe that was a foreshadowing of what God wants to do in the earth. He wants to live in his people, but as soon as Mary, accepted, that seed of promise the scripture says that she immediately went to her cousin Elizabeth House yeah, her cousin Elizabeth Was- right to a man, name Zachariah and they were promised in her very old age, that she would have a baby. She was pregnant with her baby. When Elizabeth got there and when Elizabeth saw Mary, the scripture should that she immediately began to encourage Mary Sheehan. Media tly began to speak faith into Mary. Now. Where am I going with? This a long time ago,

tell you what I believe. God is showing us one, He is showing us when he puts a seed. Promise in you? You need to protect that seed of promise. Need to get into an environment that it can grow you need to get into good church, where the people know what God does, and they can speak encouragement to your heart because that's exactly where God had merry go. He had her in an environment where that Environment news, the power of God, you know it's in This is just a side note, but I don't know if you find this as interesting as I did, but Bob is that Mary was at Elizabeth's house for three months. You know it's interesting because when a woman gets pregnant, that twelve week period is very crucial many times you can miscarry for that twelve weeks and back you know some people don't even like to announce that they're pregnant until after the twelve weeks, because

it is a safe zone and you know: okay, it's it's probably going to be okay. Thinking, isn't that interesting that God had her there for twelve weeks, but he didn't want her to miscarry this seed. He wanted to keep that seat environment that it can grow in a strong, foundation to think about what God said to you think about the dreams he's put in your heart, Think about him being on the inside of you. What environment? Do you put yourself in? Do you let people talk down to you. Do you put yourself in an environment that God wouldn't want to be in, are you careful? Do you protect it? there were many naysayers when Mary showed up pregnant, see she is a virgin and

I did an immaculate birth in her, but the people didn't recognize it, I'm sure they were saying Did you hear about Mary and Joseph go away? he's also what very been doing, but you see, God took her out of that environment and he put her into a protective environment and I just want it suggest to you- and I today that we begin to put words in us in a protected environment, it's not easy to birth, the promises of God, Listen Mary had to go out of her way, I had to change her plans. To do some things that maybe a lot People wouldn't want to do, but Mary was willing to see this thing to the end. It also says that marry

treasured up all of these things and pondered them in her heart. See. That tells me that Mary fought discouragement that Mary fought the critics, that Mary fought the hardships by pondering all of this in her just imagining and talking to God about all that was about to happen, and all that would happen in the future. You see that's what we need to do. We need to not just run around telling everybody our problems, not just try to get man to fix us. Oh can you help me now? We need to ponder what God has spoken to us did his word build a foundation of true so that when we go out to birth, what God is in us will withstand.

Challenges that are out there. You know what this is mother's day and I just want to honor sorry I want to just say: Merry: God saw your heart, you saw it through you fulfill the scriptures and I dishonored the fact that God chose marry among all the women. She was qualified and can I tell you, the goddess chose you among all the people and he's qualified He chose to live in you today, just like he lived in Mary, protect what he's giving you birth, what he's put in you- and I believe, you'll see god- do the impossible just like Mary did amen, amen, he's an awesome guy,

now were available from New York Times. Bestselling author Victoria O'Steen, her brand new thirty day, audio devotional embracing everyday in this of lifting thirty day, audio devotional you'll be challenged and inspired to start living with greater faith and favor everyday request. Your copy of embracing every day today at Joelosteen DOT, com, slash embracing or call eight hundred and eighty eight thousand five hundred and sixty seven Joel.