Popular pastor Joel Osteen says that people might encounter long periods of discouragement but they should never stop praying and believing in God.

In his blog, Osteen shared the story of his nephew Matthew, who is the eldest son of his brother Paul.

"At the age of twelve, Matt started struggling with depression," he said. "He lost all interest in school. He wouldn't engage socially with the other students or hardly even his own family. It seemed like the more Paul and Jennifer prayed the worse things got."

Things got so bad for Matthew that he dropped out of school, which felt like a waste because he was so smart and talented.

Several years passed by and still nothing changed, and Matthew showed no signs of improving.

Undeterred, Paul never stopped praying for his son to get better. He said to God, "You said as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. You said the seed of the righteous will be mighty in the land. You said Your plans for Matt are for good and not evil."

Then suddenly one day, Matthew surprised everybody by getting his joy back. "He had a whole new outlook on life. He went back and finished high school. He went to college and got his bachelor's degree. He went on to law school and got his law degree. Today, Matt is an attorney working with us on staff in the ministry. He's married, happy and fulfilling his destiny," shared Osteen.

Osteen said that Christians might be going through the same thing Matthew and his family have gone through, but they should patiently wait for their "due season of harvest."

"If you have a business that's slow, God knows how to bring you customers or new clients and cause you to stand out. God can give you ideas, creativity and wisdom. He is called Jehovah Jireh, the Lord our Provider. One touch of His favor can put you years down the road!" he said.

The key to this is to never stop praying or believing, according to Osteen. He did say that there would be times of doubt and discouragement, but with constant prayer, God can turn things around.