Joel Osteen Book Excerpt: 'It's Your Time'

Nov. 3, 2009— -- Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church, one of America's largest and fastest-growing churches, writes about how people can grow in their faith.

In "It's Your Time: Activate Your Faith, Achieve Your Dreams, and Increase in God's Favor," Osteen says it's important to get one's hopes up. His new book is full of biblical references, practical advice and uplifting stories from people who have overcome challenges.

Read the excerpt below, and then head to the "GMA" Library to find more good reads.

Chapter 1You're Closer Than You Think!

While on vacation in Colorado, I woke up early for a hike. Thethree-mile trail ran to the peak of Beaver Creek Mountain. At thebase a sign said it should take about three hours to reach the top.Looking up to my destination, I was intimidated. The trail wasextremely steep. The altitude at the base was 8,000 feet above sealevel. The peak stood at more than 11,000 feet.

Just walking up the first set of stairs, I began breathing heavierthan normal. I had to remind myself to take it easy. At home inHouston, I run several miles a few times a week and play a lotof basketball. But the elevation there is only fifty feet above sealevel. The thinner air in the Colorado mountains had me doubtingwhether I could make it to the top.

I started out with just my cell phone and a bottle of water. Determined,I set a pretty good pace. The first fifteen minutes seemedfairly easy. The next fifteen minutes were increasingly difficult. I feltas though I were carrying an extra load. I had to stop every so oftento catch my breath.

About forty-five minutes into my hike, the trail got extremelysteep—almost like I was climbing straight up. My pathway snakedskyward through thick stands of aspen and ponderosa pine. Theview was both beautiful and daunting. Despite the fact I am inshape from running and playing basketball, my legs were burningand my chest was pounding.

As I climbed over a big ridge, I had to stop for air. Sweat waspouring off my body. I thought: If there's another two hours likethis, I don't know if I can make it.

Up to that point, I had not seen anyone else on the path. Suddenlyan older gentleman heading down the mountain came arounda curve. He wore a T-shirt, shorts, and hiking shoes and carried awalking stick. He seemed cool and calm. And he read me pretty well.As we passed, he said something that changed my whole perspective.He smiled kindly and said in a calm voice: "You are closerthan you think."

Hearing those words, I felt rejuvenated, as if he'd breathed newlife into my lungs. Energy surged through my body. My legs grewstronger. I caught a second wind. From that point forward, withevery stride, I repeated those words of encouragement: "I will makeit. I'm closer than I think."

Though the climb was difficult, though my muscles and lungswere burning, I kept saying, "I'm almost to the top. I know I canmake it." And sure enough, just ten minutes later, I clambered overthese big boulders and beheld a beautiful sight: the summit.

According to the sign at the base, it was supposed to be a threehourhike. But I'd made it in just under an hour! I was much closerthan I'd thought when I passed that gentleman on the trail. Yet,without his encouraging words, I might have turned around. Imight have talked myself out of continuing because I thought I hadtwo more hours to go.

Until I met the older hiker, my perspective was limited and so wasmy thinking. I knew only what I'd read on the sign. He knew I wasjust ten minutes from my goal, and when he told me I was closer, hegave me a fresh perspective. He knew more about the trail ahead ofme, just as God knows more about what lies ahead for you.I don't know where you are headed, what your dreams are, orhow many obstacles you have to overcome. But I encourage you tolet these words reach deep down into your spirit. Receive them byfaith.

You are closer than you think.

A global recession has forced many to postpone their dreamsand cancel their plans. You may have lost your job. You may havelost your savings, maybe even your home. It could be that you havehealth concerns or relationship problems. Maybe you are frustratedbecause it's taking so long to get where you want to be in yourlife. Yet now is not the time to talk yourself out of your goals anddreams. Now is not the time to get discouraged. You may think, as Idid climbing that trail, that you're not even halfway there. You mayfeel you have so far to go. But the truth is, you don't know. Yourdream may just be up around the corner. You may think it will takeanother two years. But if you stay in faith, who knows? It may justbe two more months. You are closer than you think. I believe it'syour time.

Amber Corson was a stay-at-home mom with three young children.When her husband was laid off from his Florida constructionjob as the economy soured, Amber had to take a night-shift job tohelp support the family.

She'd been working that late shift for four weeks. One nightshe was driving home, tired, scared, missing her kids, and worriedabout their future. Amber felt like God had bigger plans forher family than to struggle. She prayed on that drive home. "God,please tell me what I can do to get my family through this."She said His response came to her "like a breath."

"I gave you a gift. Go plant gardens. Do your heart's work."

Amber had a degree in horticulture that she'd never used. Shewas so talented she'd been certified as a master gardener. She hada natural talent for making things grow. That night, she told herhusband what God had put in her heart. She prayed on it. In thenext few weeks, she said, things "just fell into place like it had beenplanned for me all along."

She called her landscaping business Eden Paradise Gardens. Itgrew quickly and flourished beyond anything she had dreamed. Itwas her time!

God wants to breathe new life into your dreams. He wants tobreathe new hope into your heart. You may be about to give up ona marriage, on a troubled child, on a lifelong goal. But God wantsyou to hold on. He says that if you'll get your second wind, if you'llput on a new attitude and press forward like you're headed downthe final stretch, you'll see Him begin to do amazing things.

Tune out the negative messages. Quit telling yourself: I'm neverlanding back on my feet financially. I'm never breaking this addiction.I'm never landing a better job.

Instead, your declarations should be: I am closer than I think. Ican raise this child. I can overcome this sickness. I can make thisbusiness work. I know I can find a new job.

Psalm 30:5 says that weeping may endure for a night, but I knowjoy is coming in the morning. You must get up each day knowingthis could be the day you get the break you need. This could be theday you see your health turn around. This could be the day yourchild comes back home. This could be the day you meet the man orwoman of your dreams.

Zechariah 9:12 says that we should be prisoners of hope. It'seasy to give up. It's easy to get discouraged. But God wants us to beso full of hope, so full of expectancy, that we just can't help believingfor the best.

When you're a prisoner of something, it's like you're chainedto it. You can't get away from it. I know people who are prisonersof fear, prisoners of worry, prisoners of doubt. You've heard them."Nothing good ever happens to me." "It's never changing, Joel. It'sjust been too long."

They are chained to despair and discouragement. Break thosechains. Become a prisoner of hope. No matter how long it takes,no matter how impossible it looks, your attitude should be: "I justcan't help it. I know it will work out. I know I will overcome. It maybe taking a long time, but I know this too shall pass. It may be difficult,but I know that means I'm close to my victory."

Today is the day!

Down in the Florida Keys, there was a treasure hunter whosemotto was "Today's the day." Every day for sixteen years, MelFisher sent his divers out with those encouraging words to find aSpanish ship that sank off the Keys in 1622. He often had to payhis men in promises while dodging bill collectors. He and his familylived on a leaky houseboat for years. One of his sons and a daughter-in-law were lost at sea as they searched for the treasure.Still, Fisher never gave up. He refused to abandon his dreamor to give in to critics and doubters. He held on by declaring thateach day would be the day. Then, in 1985, Mel's divers found the"mother lode" of gold and silver and jewelry from the wreckage ofthe Spanish galleon. Nearly thirty years later, divers were still bringingup treasure from that site.

Is today the day for you to accomplish your goal, to land yourdream job, to find love, to restore your health? You are closer thanyou think to a better life, a richer relationship, a healthier body.Rewards await you if you stay steadfast in your faith.

Don't let doubters ruin your optimistic spirit. If somebody saysto you, "What is it with you? What makes you think everything willwork out? Do you really believe you will always succeed?"

Just tell the doubters: "I don't think it will happen. I know it willhappen! I'm a prisoner of hope. I can't get away from it. I just can'tmake myself get negative. I just can't make myself complain. Hopefeeds my faith and lifts my spirits."

The doubters may say, "Well, I don't know why. I saw the medicalreport. It doesn't look good for you."

"Yes, but I have another report," you can tell them. "It says Godis restoring health back unto me."

"Well, I saw your child. I don't think he'll ever do what's right.""Really? I have another report. It says as for me and my house,we will serve the Lord."

You may not see any of this in the natural. It may not look likeit will come to pass. But that's okay. The Scripture says, "We walkby faith and not by sight." That means we don't have to see it tobelieve it. It's just the opposite. If we believe it, then we see it.Take your dreams and the promises God has put in your heartand every day declare that they will come to pass. Just say somethinglike, "Father, I want to thank You that my payday is coming.

You said no good thing will You withhold, because I walk uprightly.And I believe even right now You are arranging things in my favor."Are you a prisoner of fear? Worry? Self-pity? Negativity?

Break those chains and become a prisoner of hope. Expect God'sfavor. Believe that He is working in your life, even right now.

God has put dreams and desires in your heart.

We all have goals we want to accomplish and situations webelieve we will turn around. But often when it's taking a long timeand things are not working out, it's easy to lose our enthusiasm.That's when the negative thoughts come, saying:

It never will change.

You never will get well.

You never will climb out of debt.

That child never will straighten up.

If you listen to those negative thoughts, you will likely becomediscouraged and give up on your dreams. Many times we miss outon God's best because we give up too soon. We don't realize howclose we are to victory.

Hold on to your faith. Another few days of believing, anotherfew weeks of doing the right thing, or another few months of stayingin faith and you will see that promise come to pass.

Right now, you are so close to seeing that situation turn around.That answer you've been praying about is just right around the corner.You can't afford to get discouraged. You can't afford to giveup now.

That's what the scripture says in Hebrews 10:35. It tells us not tocast away our confidence, for it will be richly rewarded. That's sayingif we will stay in faith, if we will keep believing, keep hoping,keep doing the right thing, God promises there will be a reward.One translation says, in effect, "Don't get discouraged. Paydayis coming."

When you're tempted to get down and things are not going yourway, you need to keep telling yourself, "This may be hard. It maybe taking a long time. But I know God is a faithful God. And I willbelieve, knowing that my payday is on its way."

Whenever life grows difficult and the pressure is turned up, that'sa sign that your time is near. When lies bombard your mind, whenyou are most tempted to get discouraged, and when you feel likethrowing in the towel—that's not the time to give up. That's not thetime to back down. That's the time to dig in your heels. Put on anew attitude. You are closer than you think.

You may have had a lot of things come against you. I knowsometimes it seems like the more you pray, the worse it gets. Youdo the right thing but get the wrong results. Maybe you're treatingsomebody kindly and respectfully, but they're being unkind anddiscourteous to you. The easy thing would be to say, "Forget it. Idon't have to put up with this." "This marriage never will work.""I'll never be able to raise this child." "I don't like this job."

Instead of getting discouraged, instead of going around all sour,you need to have the attitude to say, "I've come too far to stopnow. I've been through too much to back down. I realize the pressurehas been turned up because I'm about to give birth to mydreams!"

A couple I know told me their son was on the wrong path, runningwith the wrong crowd. He had addictions he needed to overcome.They were doing everything they could to help him. Theyfound him a new place to live away from his drug-using friends.They found a support group for him. They were praying more thanever. But they said, "Joel, it seems like the more we pray, the morewe try, the more we believe, the worse he gets."

They were so concerned. But I told them what I'm telling you.The reason the pressure has been turned up is because you're closeto your victory. The enemy would not be fighting so hard if hedidn't know he was about to lose his grip on this child.If you will keep believing, keep hoping, keep doing the rightthing, and if you stay strong for that final push, you will see the situationturn around. You'll see that promise come to pass.

It's just like a woman having a baby. The first month or two is notthat difficult. No big deal. The mother-to-be looks and feels muchthe same. But then in a few months she gains the baby's weight. Shecarries around the extra pounds. Her feet may swell up. Her backmay hurt. She may have some nausea, some morning sickness.By the eighth or the ninth month, husbands, you know you'dbetter give that woman some space. Don't mess with Momma.Don't backtalk her. Just do what she says and nobody will get hurt.She gets more and more uncomfortable. But then when her waterbreaks and she goes into labor, all those other challenges seem insignificantcompared to the difficulty of giving birth.

When Victoria was in labor with our first child, our son Jonathan,she was holding on to my arm so tight. When she had a contraction,she squeezed my arm. Victoria would scream, and then Iwould scream.

I wanted to mention to her that she was hurting me, but I fearedfor my life!

Truth be told, if a woman in labor had a choice, she'd probablysay, "I don't want to do this anymore. It's too difficult. I can'tstand it."

But she doesn't have a choice. The doctor, the nurse, the husbandkeep saying, "Push! Push! Push!" Before long, she pushes that babyout. And in a few minutes she forgets all about the pain becauseshe's holding the promise. She's holding that little child.

It's the same principle in dealing with daily life. The greatest difficultyalways comes right before the birth of a dream. Before you seea new level of God's favor, don't be surprised if things come againstyou to try to discourage you. People may try to talk you out of yourdreams, to convince you to just settle where you are.

You may not realize that you are "in labor" right now. You areabout to give birth to what God has put in your heart. That's whyit's such a struggle. You're in that final push. Maybe at work you'redoing the right thing, going the extra mile, but you were passedover for a promotion. It wasn't fair. What was that disappointment?A labor pain. So just push through it.

Maybe you wanted to create that new business, but your partnerbacked out. The financing didn't come through. What was thatdisappointment? Another labor pain. If you'll keep pushing, keepbelieving, keep hoping, before long—like that woman in labor—you will push that promise out.

You may feel as though you've never had such a struggle in yourfinances, your health, or your relationships. You could say, "Joel,this is the greatest attack that I've ever faced."

Instead of getting down and thinking, Poor old me, learn to turnit around and say, "Yes, this is the greatest attack that I've ever beenthrough, but I know it means that I'm headed for the greatest victorythat I've ever seen." Remember, it's always darkest right beforethe dawn.

You're about to give birth to that promise.

I read about an experiment that attempted to measure the powerof attitude in rats. The researchers wanted to see how the rats' attitudesaffected their will to live. They put one rat in a large tub ofwater with high sides so it could not get out. Then they put the tubin a dark room. They timed how long the rat would keep swimmingbefore it gave up. The rat lasted a little over three minutes.Then the researchers put another rat in the same tub, but thistime they allowed a bright ray of light to shine into the room. Thatrat swam more than thirty-six hours, seven hundred times longerthan the rat with no light.

Why was that? The rat with no light had no hope. When helooked ahead he saw only darkness. There wasn't any reason tokeep swimming. That's what happens when we don't expect God'sfavor. We lose faith that we can overcome our obstacles. We don'tbelieve that God is in control, so we lose our passion, we lose ourenthusiasm.

That's why it's so important—especially in times of difficulty—tokeep reminding yourself: "The Creator of the universe is directingmy steps. He has me in the palm of His hands. And even though thisis difficult, I know it's just a matter of time before it turns around.I know my payday is coming."

You may be about to give up on a dream. You think it's been toolong. It never will change. It will never work out. But you must getyour fire back. Fan that flame. Keep that dream alive. Even thoughit's taking a long time, the good news is, God still has a way to bringit to pass.

Victoria once lost a ring her mother had given her. It was a diamondband that had been in the family for several generations.

Although it was valuable, it held even more sentimental value to us.Sometimes when we'd go on trips Victoria hid the ring in our house.We thought maybe she'd hidden it and forgotten the hiding place.So we looked and looked and looked in every drawer, in every cabinet.I looked behind couches and between cushions. I found thingsthat I hadn't seen in ten years. But never Victoria's ring.

After a couple of months of looking on and off, I finally gave up.That ring was nowhere to be found. But every few days I heard Victoriapray: "Father, thank you that I will find my ring. Thank you,for You are leading me and guiding me."

I didn't say anything out loud, but inside, being the great manof faith that I am, I thought, Victoria, you are wasting your time.We have turned this house upside down. That ring is just not here.It's funny, but when my mother-in-law noticed that Victoria wasnot wearing the ring and asked her about it, Victoria said, "Oh,Mom. I've put it away in a really safe place."

I thought, Yeah, so safe that we can't even find it.

As the months went by, I probably heard Victoria say she wouldfind that ring five hundred times. I never once heard her give up andsay, "It's gone. I've lost it. What will I do?"

She had an optimistic attitude, "I'm closer than I think. I knowany day that ring will show up."

Three years later we were driving home from Victoria, Texas, twohours south of Houston. We had just ministered for my brother-inlawJim and my sister Tamara. Driving on the freeway, 11:00 atnight, Victoria said, "Joel, you'd better slow down. You will get aticket."

"I won't get a ticket," I said. "We're only going 70. The speedlimit is 65."

"No, the speed limit is 60 at night," Victoria said."No, it's 65."

"Joel, I'm telling you, you need to slow down."I laughed. "Victoria, I have the favor of God."God has such a sense of humor. Just about that time, I looked inmy rearview mirror and saw the flashing lights. Then I looked atVictoria and said, "You made me get this ticket."

The officer was a real nice, polite young man. He said, "I need tosee your driver's license." I gave it to him.

"Are you the minister?" he asked.

"I am."

"Did you speak at Faith Family Church tonight?"

"I did. In fact, that's my sister's church."

"I know," the officer said. "My father was there. He's the headusher."

"Oh, man. That's great. He was so nice to me."

The officer laughed, but he still asked for my insurance card.

And so Victoria dug deeper and deeper in the glove compartment.It was dark and we were a little uptight about being pulledover. She found every card except the right one.

Finally, with the officer waiting, Victoria took all the contentsout of the glove compartment in search of the insurance card. Shereached way back inside as far as she could. There, deep down inthe darkness, she felt something with a hard, sharp edge. She dug alittle deeper, grabbed it, and pulled it out.

Lo and behold, it was her missing ring. She was so excited. Sheforgot all about looking for the insurance card!

I thought: Girl, you're rejoicing, and I'm about to go to jail."Victoria, that's great. But we still have to find the insurancecard," I reminded her.

She finally dug out that, too, and gave it to the officer.

"Joel, I'll let you go," he said. "But first, I have one request. WhenI come visit your church, will you save me a seat?"

"Officer," I told him, "I'll save you a whole section."

I drove off that night thinking: God, You are so good. I didn't geta ticket and Victoria found her ring.God works in mysterious ways. I thought later that He causedVictoria to find her ring at my expense. But the truth is, Victoriastayed in faith. She had that attitude, "I'm closer than I think."

A young couple from our church told me about the challengesthey had while trying to sell their house. They had only a few prospectsin the first few weeks. They weren't having much luck.

The market was tough. Realtors told them it may take sixmonths, a year, maybe even two years to sell. But this couple hadan attitude of faith. They were prisoners of hope. And even thoughit didn't look good, they kept reminding themselves, "We are closerthan we think. It could happen any day."

This one couple came back to look at the house a second time.They wanted to spend a couple of hours really studying it to see if itwas right for their family. The owners were okay with that. But theydebated whether they should take down their personal pictures ofthemselves and their children, just so they could remain more private.After they thought about it, they felt good about leaving thosepictures where they were.

The potential buyers came to look at the house, and the ownersleft so they could take their time. A few hours later, they received acall from the real estate agent saying the couple definitely wantedto purchase the house. The buyers told my friends that they'd beentorn between their house and another one. But during that lastvisit, they'd seen something that convinced them to buy my friends'house.

"We saw a picture of you and your pastor, and we thought:'These people love God. They go to Lakewood. This must be thehouse for us!'"

My friend told me: "Joel, you helped me sell my house."

I told him that was great: "Now let's talk about my commission."

Know that God has all kinds of ways to bring your dreams topass.

He can cause a simple photograph to be in the right place at theright time to help you. He can cause a police officer to pull you overin the middle of the night and help you find something you've beenlooking for.

God is in complete control. So be a prisoner of hope. Get up eachday expecting His favor.

When negative thoughts come and your burden seems so heavyyou feel discouraged, just keep telling yourself: "I'm closer than Ithink. Right now the Creator of the universe is lining up things inmy favor: the right people, the right breaks, the right opportunities."Maybe you have been through tough times. Resolve to moveforward. Don't stay there. Put on a new attitude. Disappointmentscome and go, but God's favor is for a lifetime.

A friend told me a story about an executive who had an interestingprint hanging in his office. It depicted a large rowboat strandedon a beach. Two oars rested gently in the sand, with the ocean atlow tide twenty or thirty feet behind it. The boat looked too heavyto drag, too big to move. It was just stuck there in the sand.

The picture wasn't a thing of beauty. It wasn't inspiring. In fact, itwas depressing. Here was this boat created for the water, a very niceboat made to dance on top of the ocean waves, stuck in the sand.But at the very bottom of the picture was a small caption thatgave meaning to the otherwise unremarkable picture. It read: "Thetide always comes back."

With that simple caption, the print took on new meaning: Whenthe tide returned, that stranded boat once again would find its purpose.It would return to the place it was meant to be.

My friend told me that the executive once had gone througha great disappointment. He didn't think he would ever be happyagain. Then he saw the painting at a small antique store and boughtit for just a few dollars. Every time he looked at it, he said to himself:"The tide is coming back."

That print spoke faith into his heart. The caption gave him hopethat things would change in his favor.

You may find yourself in a similar situation. Stuck. Stranded.Robbed of your purpose. Things may not be going your way. You'velost your energy and enthusiasm.

Heed those words: "The tide is coming back."Hear my message: God is breathing new life into your dreams.

You will feel the wind of His spirit lift your sails once again. Youare not meant to simply endure life. Barely getting by is not acceptable.You were meant to dance on top of the waves.

Tell yourself each and every day: "The tide is coming back. Todayis the day! I am closer than I think!"

Remember that it is always darkest before the dawn. More challengesmean you're closer to your victory. Don't give up on yourdream. Don't give up your relationship because the waters getrough. Don't give up on living a healthy life because illness bringsyou down. Times may grow tough, but remember there are rewardsfor staying in faith.

God promises your payday is on its way. If you'll learn to bea prisoner of hope and get up every day expecting God's favor,you'll see God do amazing things. You'll overcome every obstacle.You'll defeat every enemy. And I believe and declare you'll see everydream, every promise God has put in your heart, come to pass.