Pastor Joel Osteen Daily Devotional October 2 2023.

We spend a lot of time and energy taking care of our physical body. We want to feel good. But we don’t spend enough time taking care of our soul. We don’t realize how much our emotions, our attitudes, and our thoughts are affecting us physically.

I want to encourage you today to pay attention to your inner life. It’s easy to adapt to things that are poisoning us, and we don’t realize it. We end up going through life just treating the symptoms. If we get to the root cause and get our soul healthy, we can have good health and good success. We need to ask ourselves: Am I making myself sick? Am I sabotaging my relationships? Am I limiting my potential, holding myself down because my soul is unhealthy?

The writer of the book of Hebrews says, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (12:15, NIV). It describes bitterness as a root. You can’t see a root because it’s underground. But if you let it grow, it’s going to spring forth. Bitter roots produce bitter fruit. What’s inside will show up on the outside. Often, we only try to fix the fruit, but the fruit is not the problem. We need to deal with more than just symptoms. We need to go to the source and get rid of the root.

Proverbs 4:23 says, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” (NLT). One of our main responsibilities is to keep the toxins out. Keep those roots from springing up. Offenses are going to come. Cranky coworkers will come. You can’t stop disappointments, hurts, jealousy, and anger from coming. The question is, are you going to let them take root, get down in your spirit, contaminate your joy, steal your peace, take your energy, and open you up to sickness, trouble, and defeat? No, keep your soul healthy. You have to be an active gardener. Pull up those roots. Pull up the unforgiveness. Pull up the insecurity. Pull up the guilt and condemnation. Don’t let your soul become poisoned. If your soul is bitter, your life will be bitter. If your emotional well-being is contaminated, it’s going to affect your physical well-being.

Prayer for Today

Dear Heavenly Father, I come before You today with a humble heart, ready to open my soul to Your healing touch. I acknowledge the need to be truthful with myself and pay attention to my inner life. In this moment, I surrender every burden and obstacle I’m facing. I’m turning them over to You in faith. I declare that I am uprooting bitterness and releasing all the worry, the anger, the hurt, the disappointments that are weighing me down. I choose to put my trust in You, Lord, knowing that You have the power to transform me from the inside out. Please cleanse my heart, help me to forgive, and fill me with Your peace, joy, favor, and protection. As my soul prospers under Your guidance, I believe that strength, good health, and fresh opportunities are on the way. Thank You for loving me and for hearing my prayer. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.