Free I DECLARE by Joel Osteen Page A

mountain of depression, it may look like it's over, but I'm here to serve you notice. This is not the end. You will not defeat me. You come against me with natural weapons. But I come against you in the name of the Lord God of Israel. And I know when I call on the name of Jesus all the forces of heaven come to attention. So I declare that you are removed. I will live and not die. I am blessed and I cannot be cursed. I'm a victor and not a victim."
    Incredible power is released when we speak to our mountains. But too many times, we talk to God about how big our mountains are when we should be talking to our mountains about how big our God is.
    The more you talk about the mountain, the weaker it makes you. "Well, Joel," you may say, "this sickness or these legal problems or these marriage troubles aren't getting any better." When you talk like that, all it's doing is making you weaker in faith and energy. Quit talking about the mountain and start talking to the mountain.
    Declare to that cancer, or addiction or money challenges, as David declared to Goliath: "I will defeat you."
    We see this principle from the very start of the Scripture. In the book of Genesis, it says that the earth was without form and void. There was darkness everywhere. Isn't it interesting that things didn't change just because God's Presence was there? The world didn't get better just because God thought, I wish I had a world. I wish it was all in order.
    Nothing happened until God spoke. He declared to the darkness, "Let there be light." Think about the word let. It indicates that something was opposing. If I say, "Let go of my hand," it means that you're holding it or you're opposing it. God declared in the middle of the darkness, in the middle of the opposition, let there be light.
    In your times of difficulty when it's dark and gloomy, you should speak light to the situation. After church one day a man told me that his graphic design business was failing. He'd lost his major clients, and bankruptcy seemed inevitable. He explained in great detail all the setbacks he suffered and how bad it was and how impossible it looked. He was real good at talking about the problem.
    I told him what I'm telling you. You should talk to the problem. You should declare light in the middle of darkness. I encouraged him all through the day to declare: "I'm blessed. The favor of God is turning this situation around. God's favor is bringing me new clients. Debt and lack cannot stay in my life. I command those mountains to be removed."
    I saw him about six months later, and he was beaming with joy. He said, "Joel, I did just what you suggested. I started declaring favor, by speaking to my mountains and calling light in the midst of the darkness."
    At his lowest moment when it looked for sure like the business was going under, he received a phone call out of the blue from a company he had never done business with before. They asked him to make a presentation and he made it. They hired him to do their graphics. Now, that one new client brings in more business than all of his other clients did combined. He is on pace to have a banner year.
    Here's what I'm saying: I believe he would still be struggling, maybe even have lost his business, if he had not kicked his faith into action and started speaking to his mountains.
    Let me ask you: Are there mountains holding you back today? Is there something keeping you from God's best in your career, your relationships, or your health? Your mind may tell you the mountain is permanent and that it will never change. My challenge to you is to speak to your mountains.
    You've prayed about it long enough. Now it's time to declare, "Mountain, you are removed. You will not defeat me. I speak favor over this situation."
    Remember, your mountain will respond to your voice. There's nothing more powerful than you declaring victory over your life. You probably have talked about the mountain long enough. You need to talk to the mountain. Rise up and