Friday, September 08, 2023
Monday, August 28, 2017
Millionaire Televangelist Prays for Houston, Declines to Open Megachurch as a Shelter
Filed to: Evangelical christianity
APWhat do you do when you’re a multimillionaire televangelist with a church that seats more than 16,000 people during the worst natural disaster to batter your community in centuries? Tweet your sincerest thoughts and keep those pearly megachurch doors locked, of course!
Joel Osteen, a Houston-based celebrity pastor whose hackneyed smile is reminiscent of every used car salesman to be portrayed in film, proved today that words are meaningless when you don’t put your money where your mouth is.
After Osteen tweeted out his prayers for “everyone affected by Hurricane Harvey” to 6 million people, a majority of responses to his tweet could be summarized in one sentence: What about that megachurch?
Osteen’s Lakewood Church, an arena formerly occupied by the Houston Rockets, houses 16,000 people — making it an ideal shelter for the some 30,000 people Hurricane Harvey has displaced. According to Lakewood Church’s Facebook, the grounds are inaccessible and flooded.
Twitter users who either live in the Houston, TX, neighborhood where Lakewood Church is located or have ventured to its location begged to differ:
As you can clearly see, the area surrounding Lakewood seems to be accessible by car. There are a few suspect reports that the church’s parking garage is flooded, but unless Houston’s riverlike roads drain overnight, I doubt anyone needing shelter will require parking for the car that they can’t drive. Just as you would expect, Osteen has apparently blocked several users who have called his bluff that Lakewood is “inaccessible due to severe flooding.”
On the off chance that Lakewood Church is indeed so flooded that it can’t house any of Houston’s displaced, I have some other questions for Osteen: Why not turn your $10 million mansion into a temporary shelter? Not enough room? What about your second multimillion dollar home in Houston? Perhaps you could assist your fellow messenger of God, Pastor Brian Roberson, who spent his weekend checking submerged cars for people in need of rescue? Just prayers and a donation link? Okay.
Source
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Joel Osteen’s church robbed of $600G in cash, checks
Published March 11, 2014
FoxNews.com
FILE: Joel Osteen's church announced that $600,000 were stolen in donations. (Reuters)
Televangelist Joel Osteen's church in Houston announced Monday that $600,000 in Sunday donations were stolen from its safe last weekend, MyFoxHouston.com reported.
The heist at Lakewood Church wasn't discovered until 8:30 a.m. Monday morning when a church employee and off-duty Harris County Sheriff's Officer noticed the break in, the report said. Investigators believe the theft occurred sometime between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning.
The donations were from services on March 8 and March 9 and included cash, checks and credit cards. Lakewood has asked anyone who attended services this weekend to pay attention to their accounts and report any suspicious activity.
"The funds were fully insured, and we are working with our insurance company to restore the stolen funds to the church," the Lakewood statement said, according to The Houston Chronicle.
Lakewood stresses this was not a data breach, but says the theft was limited to donations made in the actual services.
More than 40,000 people attend weekly services led by Osteen, whose televised sermons reach nearly 100 countries.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source
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Thursday, April 09, 2009
Osteens Discuss Obama, Gay Marriage
Jessica Kourkounis, AP7 photos With the largest regularly attended church in the country, TV sermons broadcast to millions and books on the best-seller lists, Joel Osteen and his wife, Victoria, have become two of the most well-known inspirational figures in America. Here they lead a service at their Lakewood Church in Houston in 2005.
posted: 14 HOURS 38 MINUTES AGO
The Osteens, known for their optimistic outlook on life, visited 'Larry King Live' Tuesday night for a wide-ranging interview that covered President Obama, same-sex marriage, the recent outbreak of mass shootings, the state of religion in America and more.
Larry King: Since you were last on, we have sworn in our first African-American president. What are your impressions [of Barack Obama]?
Joel Osteen: Well, I think he's doing a great job. I'm impressed with his skill, his calmness, his just strength under pressure. These are tough times for him.
King: And you, Victoria?
Victoria Osteen: I've been really impressed. In fact, I've been impressed [with] the first lady. She stepped up, and she's done a remarkable job.
King: Recent polls show 12 percent of Americans still believe Obama is a Muslim, and 35 percent say they don't know his religion, but to most of them it don't matter. Should it matter?
Joel Osteen: Well, it matters to me. It matters to me that I know he loves the Lord, and I think it's important that he has convictions from his faith. So to me, it matters when I'm making my personal decisions.
King: Does it matter to you, Victoria?
King: The 'Hope for Today Bible.' This is a new Bible [from you]. How is this different from other Bibles?
Joel Osteen: It's a living translation of the Bible, which is an easy version to read. And then it's got our notes besides certain passages. And it's just to help people maybe to understand the Bible a little bit easier.
King: Do you think that eventually many more states are going to allow same-sex marriage?
Joel Osteen: You know, I don't know where it's all going ... I'd love to see it stay between a male and a female, not knocking anybody else.
King: Supposing there were more states that had it. What would be the harm?
Victoria Osteen: We really want to see marriage between a man and a woman. There [are] going to be people who get together and have relationships and have what they call their families. But I just think marriage should be sanctified by the church. It should be between a man and a woman.
King: Should a gay couple be allowed to adopt?
Joel Osteen: I think that, again, it's best for a male and a female. I'm not saying that gay people aren't good people. ...
King: Or good parents.
Joel Osteen: Yeah, exactly. But again, I like to shoot for God's best, and that is a father and a mother in the home. It doesn't always happen. I know a lot of people raised by single parents. And you know what? We bless them and pray for them as well. But I think God's best is a male and female.
King: In the new issue of Newsweek, the lead story by Jon Meacham is 'The Decline and Fall of Christian America.' Just off the premise of that headline, do you accept that? That Christian America is in trouble?
Joel Osteen: I'm trying to think where he's coming from. ... I see faith in America at an all-time high.
King: The Newsweek article quotes our Albert Mohler Jr. And he's president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. And he said, "The so-called Judeo-Christian consensus of the last millennium has given way to a post-modern, post-Christian, post-Western cultural crisis which threatens the heart of our very culture."
Joel Osteen: Well, he's a smart man and I respect him. You know, maybe what he's saying is true. ... America is more diverse than it was 50 years ago. And I don't know that that means we as Christians are any less. I would like to think our influence is still there. ... And I'm sure I'm an optimistic by nature.
King: What do you make of these mass shootings?
Joel Osteen: You know, it's really sad. People get deranged. People get confused. ... I believe there are dark forces in our world. There are evil forces that, unfortunately, we can give into. And some of it is just from depression, just that mental illness.
King: Do you pray for them, Victoria? The shooters?
Victoria Osteen: Oh, absolutely. You've got to pray for them. They're obviously tormented. They're deceived and not cherishing life. ... So yeah, we do pray for them.
King: We've had a mass depression in this country, recession. Do you think that might be at the core of some of these things?
Victoria Osteen: I think it is. When you've lost your job and you've just been beaten down and you don't see any future, it's easy to start letting those negative thoughts play. ... You don't have anything to live for. It's never going to get any better. And I think that if you don't watch it, you'll just spiral down and down and down.
And that is why we feel so strongly about just giving people hope. Even at your lowest moment, you never know what God can do. He can turn any situation around. You can be just one night from getting the break you need, getting the job you want.
King: How do you deal with death, having to console people [who are] dying?
Joel Osteen: Well, it's difficult. But Larry, we have the hope of heaven. We believe we'll see our loved ones again. And as hard as it is, we'll just try to encourage people that death is just a separation. ... I lost my dad 10 years ago, and he was my best friend. But it's amazing the peace that God gave me. So I believe that God can give you a strength and a new beginning.
King: Where do you believe he is?
Joel Osteen: I believe he's in heaven.
King: Which is a place. ...
Joel Osteen: I believe it's a real place. ... You've had people on a lot about near death experience, and I've talked to them too, how they've had an accident and all of a sudden, they're up watching themselves. And I believe that our spirit's on the inside.
My belief as a Christian is when we receive Christ as salvation that that gives us a guarantee for heaven.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL'S COVERBOY: JOEL OSTEEN
By Jackie Alnor
ã 2003 Christian Sentinel
| Move over Robert Schuller, the Church of Laodicea has a new star on the rise in the world of positive motivational Christianity. It’s Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, whose motto is "Discover the Champion in You." He is the son of Pentecostal preacher the late John Osteen. But where his dad lacked in charm and charisma the 39-year-old son makes up for it in the style of a Tony Robbins with the looks of a Richard Gere. Osteen made the list of the Top 20 Influencers of the Pentecostal/charismatic community in the Jan/Feb 2003 Issue of Ministries Today magazine. He was listed with other notables such as Kenneth Hagin Sr., Tommy Tenney, C. Peter Wagner, and Joyce Meyer. "There is no arguing that the following 20 leaders have inspired us, challenged us and in many ways caused us to rethink what it means to "do church" in today's culture," the article boasted. |
The younger Osteen lives the life of prosperity that he preaches. A 2001 Real Estate Guide (http://north-valley.com/realestate_board/messages/157.html ) valued his home at $1,265,500. His sermon titles give clues as to the focus of Osteen’s ministry:
His boyish charm and good looks no doubt have added to his success. He took over his father’s church in 1999 when John Osteen died of high blood pressure complications. The senior Osteen had made his mark by hosting a weekly television program and authored 45 books. He founded Lakewood Church and built a 7,500 seat auditorium. However the size of the congregation has more than doubled since Joel Osteen became senior pastor and he has now outgrown his father’s facility. Now with his super-star celebrity status Osteen is moving Lakewood Church into the Compaq Center, the 18,000-seat arena where Houston’s basketball team has played. They have entered into a lease and are busy remodeling the entire center which they will rename "the Lakewood International Center." A fund-raising campaign to raise the $70 million dollars for the improvements is asking supporters to sponsor a seat for $2500 each. Their promos boast that the Lakewood International Center "will become a focal point for the entire city of Houston. The ice rink and basketball facilities will remain open for families and city leagues. Concerts, sporting events, family conferences, conventions, business workshops, receptions and personal growth seminars will bring in people from all races, backgrounds, and walks of life." "The International Broadcast and Production Studio will tape programs, and seminars throughout the world via television, radio, books, tapes and the internet," the promo continues. "Our Health and Wellness Center will provide back- to-school programs while assisting the community with personal fitness and health related issues. A Dining and Retail Plaza will be a gathering place for surrounding businesses and provide a variety of resources to our congregation. Lakewood's Conference and Convention Center will attract organizations from around the world and present programs and seminars that will meet the diverse needs of an international city. " On Lakewood Church’s website, a video presentation is given to announce the building project. Osteen gives the new vision of his ministry: "We’re all about building people up. We’re all about helping people reach their full potential. We don’t push some kind of religion.…all we push is joy and peace and victory through Jesus Christ. …Our message every single week -is through faith in God you can live an overcoming life of victory … I believe that’s the message this generation needs to hear. We’ve heard a lot about the judgment of God and what we can’t do and what’s going to keep us out of heaven. But it’s time people start hearing about the goodness of God, about a God that loves them. A God that believes in them. A God that wants to help them. That’s our message here at Lakewood." Osteen preaches the new modernized gospel that is increasing the number of tares and goats in the visible church. "It's the goodness of God that leads people to repentance," Osteen asserts carefully avoiding the dreaded word 'sin.' "That's why over 18,000 people walked down our aisles last year to receive Jesus. That's why we receive hundreds of thousands of letters, e-mails, and phone calls from our television viewers." | Lakewood Church’s suitable theme song for their "Discover the Champion in You" slogan: "We Are the Champions" I've paid my dues Time after time I've done my sentence But committed no crime And bad mistakes I've made a few I've had my share of sand Kicked in my face But I ain’t gonna lose We are the champions-my friends And we'll keep on fighting Till the end We are the champions We are the champions No time for losers 'Cause we are the champions of the World’ (A lot of good it did for Freddie Mercury, who died of AIDS in 1991) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
INCREASING IN FAVOR "See the Bible says that we can grow in favor," said Osteen in his sermon "Increasing in Favor" (available in RealAudio at http://www.lakewood.cc/a_v_library.htm). "I believe one of the main ways that we grow in favor is by declaring it. It’s not enough to just read it it’s not enough to just believe it. You’ve got to speak it out. Your words have creative power. And one of the primary ways we release our faith is through our words. And there is a divine connection between you declaring God’s favor and you seeing God’s favor manifest in your life…You’ve got to give life to your faith by speaking it out." In keeping with the erroneous idea of using some positive thinking to get what you want in life, Osteen preaches the Kenneth Hagin/Charles Capps idea that we can get what we want from God by our faith-filled words. This entire sermon was on how as a child of God we should be receiving "preferential treatment" by everyone. He testified about how he had been pulled over a couple of times for speeding but when the officer saw his last name was Osteen, no ticket was issued. He said the same can happen for every Christian who wakes up declaring they have God’s favor. By following this method Osteen says he has been able to get the best parking spot in a crowded parking lot, a first class seat on a crowded airplane with no boarding pass, and priority seating at restaurants. This is a far cry from what the treatment the Bible says true believers will receive from the world. Jesus warned in John 15:18-19, "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." The Bible also seems to quote these new prosperity "Christians" word for word in Revelation 3:17 -- "I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing." But Jesus responds, "you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked." And yet that is the cry of the prosperity gospel -- one whose god is the goods of this world -- what the Bible calls "lovers of mammon." The apostle John in his first epistle reiterates his warning against chasing after this world’s favor: "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" 1 John 2:15. |
