CONTENTS Dedication Acknowledgments PART I: DON’T GIVE AWAY YOUR POWER Chapter 1: Make Every Day a Friday Chapter 2: Don’t Give Away Your Power Chapter 3: Express Your Joy Chapter 4: Bloom Where You Are Planted Chapter 5: Enjoy The Journey PART 2: KNOW WHAT TO IGNORE Chapter 6: The Right Perspective Chapter 7: Know What To Ignore Chapter 8: Silencing The Voice Of The Accuser Chapter 9: A No-Excuses Life Chapter 10: You Can Have The Last Laugh PART 3: LIVE WITHOUT CRUTCHES Chapter 11: Living Without Crutches Chapter 12: Don’t Live For The Approval Of Others Chapter 13: Freedom From Competition Chapter 14: Connecting With The Right People PART 4: TRAVEL LIGHT Chapter 15: Forgive So You Can Be Free Chapter 16: Overcoming Discouragement Chapter 17: Dealing With Unexpected Difficulties Chapter 18: Don’t Have A Critical Spirit Chapter 19: Seeing Through Eyes Of Love PART 5: LAUGH OFTEN Chapter 20: The Healing Power Of Laughter Chapter 21: Smile, And The World Smiles With You PART 6: BE A DREAM RELEASER Chapter 22: Help Others To Win Chapter 23: Be A People Builder Chapter 24: Living As A Healer PART 7: CELEBRATE YOURSELF Chapter 25: Encourage Yourself Chapter 26: The Voice Of Victory Chapter 27: Wear Your Blessings Well DEDICATION This book is dedicated to Victoria, Jonathan, and Alexandra. I cherish each of you. Your love, joy, and happiness brighten my life, and I wake each morning looking forward to another day spent with you. You truly do make every day a Friday. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is fitting that this book is called Every Day a Friday because I’ve learned that every day brings a deadline when you are writing a book. Thanks to many talented and hardworking people, we met all of our deadlines and produced an inspiring and uplifting book that I am very proud to offer. As always, God guided me through the process with help from my editor Rolf Zettersten at FaithWords/Hachette and Hachette Chairman and CEO David Young, along with leadership team members Chris Murphy, Martha Otis, and Harry Helm. I am grateful also to my literary agents, Shannon Marven and Jan Miller Rich at Dupree Miller & Associates, who once again proved invaluable throughout the entire process. Special thanks go to Wes Smith, a true wordsmith, whose speed at the keyboard is matched only by his strong work ethic and good humor. In this book I offer many stories shared with me by friends, members of our congregation, and people I’ve met around the world. I appreciate and acknowledge their contributions and support. Some of those mentioned in the book are people I have not met personally and, in a few cases, we’ve changed the names to protect the privacy of individuals. I give honor to all of those to whom honor is due. As the son of a church leader and a pastor myself, I’ve listened to countless sermons and presentations, so in some cases I can’t remember the exact source of a story. Thanks to all who have touched my life with their own. My intention in writing this book is to pass on the blessings, and to God be the glory. I offer special thanks also to all the pastors across the country who are members of our Champions Network, especially that group’s chairman, Pastor Phil Munsey, and his wife, Jeannie, of Life Church in Irvine, California. I am indebted to the amazing staff of Lakewood Church, whose service to God’s house makes every day a joyous one for me. I am grateful to the loyal members of Lakewood whose stories inspire me, whose lives bless me, and whose loyalty humbles me. I express my sincere appreciation to the thousands of selfless individuals across America and around the globe who generously support our ministry and make it possible to bring hope to a world in need. And I am thankful for the millions of fine people worldwide who watch our services on television, via the Internet, and through the podcasts. I consider each of you to be a valued part of our Lakewood family. I am blessed to have a supportive family of wise and talented people who help keep our ministry humming along, including my brother Paul and his wife Jennifer, my sister Lisa and her husband Kevin, and my brother-in-law Don and his wife Jackelyn. Inspiring and out-working us all is my mother, Dodie Osteen, who serves as a wonderful example of someone who finds happiness and joy in each and every day. PART 1 DON’T GIVE AWAY YOUR POWER CHAPTER ONE Make Every Day A Friday John was ninety-two years old and blind, but he was just as sharp as could be when his wife, Eleanor, went to the Lord. He didn’t feel he should live alone, so John decided to move into a nice seniors’ home. On the morning of the move, he was up and fully dressed by 8:00 a.m. As always, the elderly gentleman looked impeccable, with his hair perfectly combed and his face neatly shaven. A cab picked him up and took him to the seniors’ home. John arrived early, as was his habit, and waited more than an hour before a young aide, Miranda, came to show him to his new room. As John maneuvered his walker through the hallways, Miranda described his room in great detail. She said sunlight came in through a big window, and there was a comfortable couch, and a nice desk area. Right in the middle of her description, John interrupted her and said, “I love it. I love it. I love it.” Miranda laughed and said, “Sir, we’re not there yet. You haven’t seen it. Hold on just a minute, and I’ll show it to you.” Happiness is a choice. John said, “No, you don’t have to show it to me. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It depends on how my mind is arranged. Happiness is something you decide ahead of time.” As wise old John understood, happiness is a choice. When you wake up in the morning you can choose what kind of day you want to have. You can choose to be in a good mood, or you can choose to be in a bad mood. CHOOSE HAPPINESS My purpose in writing this book is to help you arrange your mind so that you choose happiness each and every day. Whatever challenges you may face, whatever circumstances are weighing you down, you can choose your response. How you live your life is totally up to you. It’s not dependent on your circumstances. It’s dependent on your choices. Abraham Lincoln said, “Most people are as happy as they’ve decided to be.” Honest Abe would have enjoyed a recent study that found happiness increases 10 percent on Fridays. Why is that? People are excited about the coming weekend, so they decide to be happier. They make up their minds on Fridays to enjoy their lives more. I challenge you to let every day be a Friday. Give yourself permission to be happy every day. Not just on the weekends. Not just when you have a special event. Not just when you’re on vacation. If you have the right mind-set, you can be just as happy on Monday as you are on Friday. The Scripture doesn’t say, “Friday is the day the Lord has made.” It says, “This is the day the LORD has made” (Psalm 118:24 NKJV; emphasis added). This means Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and every other day of the week. You can be happy even when it’s raining, when you have to work late, or when you have to do the dishes. Why don’t you make up your mind to be happy every day? You’ve heard the saying “TGIF. Thank God it’s Friday.” For you and me it also should be, “TGIM. Thank God it’s Monday.” “TGIW. Thank God it’s Wednesday.” “TGIS. Thank God it’s Sunday.” Another study said there are more heart attacks on Monday than on any other day. So many people just decide that Monday is a stressed-out day. They suffer the Monday morning blues. When you wake up on Monday morning, don’t accept those negative thoughts that come knocking on your door, saying, It will be a hard day and a long week. Traffic will be bad. I have so much work to do. I just need to make it through the Monday morning blues. Don’t buy into those thoughts. Instead, say, “Thanks, but no thanks. I’ve already answered the door and almighty God, the Creator of the universe, has sent me a hand delivery of joy. I know this will be a great day!” Decide that for you, there are no Monday morning blues. Instead, choose the Monday morning dos by saying, “I do have a smile. I do have joy. I do have God’s favor. I do have victory.” Yes, I know some days are more difficult than others. But if you program your mind in a positive way, you won’t have to drag through certain days just hoping to get to Friday so you can finally enjoy life. Faith is always in the present. Your attitude should be: I’m excited to be alive at this moment. I’m excited to be breathing today.