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Did you know that Joel Osteen is kicking it old school now?  And by old school, I mean Old Testament.  Straight outta Hebron! The new-agey motivational speaker preacher at Lakewood Church took a bizarrely old-fashioned approach recently when he advised his congregation against eating both pork and seafood, saying that "...for our health's sake, we have to be willing to make some changes."He further explained his newfound nutritional path to salvation with deeply theological phrases like "back in the Bible days" and "this is kinda gross" before launching into a detailed diatribe about the inherent filth and evil associated with porcine digestive tracts.He appealed to...

I have a confession.  When I was in college, I read a book by a prominent megachurch pastor. The author told me to live like a child of God. He told me God wanted to bless me. He also mentioned that if I only believed, God would give me the nicest house in the neighborhood. That seemed to make sense. The author explained that he once wanted the nicest house in the neighborhood, and God gave it to him. Here was a man with evidence. Not only did he have the story about the house, and other anecdotes, he also had a very nice set of white...

Joel Osteen was back on CNN this week, appearing Thursday morning on “Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien.” Osteen’s new book, I Declare: 31 Promises to Speak Over Your Life, recently hit the nation’s bookstores. Osteen’s positive thinking theology was on full display in the interview, as in the book. O’Brien asked if he really believes that speaking declarations out loud can make them come true. Osteen assured her that he does, promising that speaking positive words can bring positive results and warning that speaking negativity will bring negative results. “I don’t think there’s anything magic about it, but those words...

America’s most popular supermarket tabloid claims famous televangelist Joel Osteen “is caught up in a financial scandal,” using his Houston megachurch to sell his books. The National Enquirer alleges that New York attorney Richard Garbarini—who previously helped two musicians in a lawsuit against Osteen and his Lakewood Church accusing the church of unauthorized use of a song—is charging that Osteen uses his Houston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit to hawk his bestsellers. …

Considering Joel Osteen's well-documented acceptance of just about anyone who believes almost anything, it should come as no surprise that the senior pastor of the mammoth Lakewood Church in Houston believes President Obama's assertion that he is a Christian—despite his numerous unbiblical beliefs, such as "there are many paths to the same place." Osteen's comments came in an interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN Friday on his news program, The Situation Room. Osteen says he has been to prayer breakfasts and other events with Barack Obama and heard him express his faith, redemption and salvation. "I just believe in my...

50 churches within 2 miles of “Texas Gosnell’s” late-term abortion clinic (Osteen’s – 3 miles) WARNING GRAPHIC ABORTION IMAGES ON LINK! Says, Pro-life blogger Jill Stanek: “The worst part of this poster, in my opinion, is the fine print at the bottom: “This child was murdered in Texas by abortionist Douglas Karpen within 2 miles of 50 visible churches.Lakewood Church, which boasts a weekly attendance of 43,500, and where Joel Osteen is pastor, is located only three miles from this Houston clinic. This is just one example. Were snapshots taken inside very abortion clinic in America we would see photos...

Not a shock: megachurch celebrity tv star preacher Joel Osteen doesn’t know the Bible, reports the clever and energetic Tristyn Bloom of The Daily Caller. (The story’s several weeks old but I just saw it so pass it on for those of you who hadn’t.)In a Monday post to his verified Facebook page, Joel Osteen ministries, read: “God said in Numbers 11:23, ‘Moses, is there any limit to My power?’ He was saying, ‘Moses, you saw Me part the Red Sea, stop the sun for Joshua, keep three Hebrew teenagers safe in a fiery furnace, don’t you realize that I...

Joel Osteen might be focused on positivity and prosperity, but folks coming to hear his sermon on Sunday had to drive to Lakewood Church seeing some pretty negative signs. Members of the Westboro Baptist church were seen along the roads to the church and the signs they were waving at the drivers were very inflammatory. According to KHOU on Sunday, the Westboro Baptist church members shouted their message through bullhorns surprising the congregation members who call Lakewood Church their home.

Apparently, "Teen Mom" star/stripper Farrah Abraham's recent trip to Houston's Lakewood Church had an impact. The reality star turned porn star was spotted in a Texas airport this week reading a copy of Lakewood pastor Joel Osteen's bestsellilng book "You Can, You Will."

he other day I ate some rather extraordinary Thai food for lunch and, on my way out, grabbed a fortune cookie. I cracked it open and read a silly little proverb meant to inspire, I suppose. I wish it had said “Brisk uphill walk after all-you-can-eat Thai is a bad idea.” Never mind. As I waddled my way home, regretting that last bowl of curry (so delicious…), I thought “This fortune sounds like something Joel Osteen would say.” And then it struck me—there is very little difference between Joel and those fortune cookies (except that the cookies are delicious, of...

Mega-church pastor Joel Osteen may lead the largest Protestant church in the United States, but a recent Facebook post shows he might need to go back to Sunday school.A Monday post to his verified Facebook page, Joel Osteen ministries, read: “God said in Numbers 11:23, ‘Moses, is there any limit to My power?’ He was saying, ‘Moses, you saw Me part the Red Sea, stop the sun for Joshua, keep three Hebrew teenagers safe in a fiery furnace, don’t you realize that I can bring water without rain?’ There’s no limit to God’s power.” Post by Joel Osteen Ministries. As...

When Donald Sterling had to sell the Los Angeles Clippers because he was caught on tape saying he didn’t want his mistress bringing black people to his basketball games, many people cheered. But if you had paid much attention to Sterling prior to the TMZ-leaked audio, you probably didn’t cheer—not because you weren’t troubled by Sterling’s comments, but because Sterling’s downfall over those particular comments felt a bit anticlimactic. Sterling was sued for racial discrimination in basketball. He was repeatedly sued for housing discrimination against blacks and Latinos. Sterling’s wife allegedly posed as a health inspector to survey the race...

After weathering a blistering week of scorn and ridicule for controversial comments she made during a worship service at the popular Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, including a declaration that worship is not for God, co-pastor Victoria Osteen now says that's not what she meant and dismissed the notion as "ridiculous." "While I admit that I could have been more articulate in my remarks, I stand by my point that when we worship God and are obedient to Him we will be better for it," she told The Blaze in a statement Friday. "I did not mean to imply that...

According to Joel Osteen – Pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, these first century apostles are wrong and outdated and he has come out boldly to infer indirectly that Apostles Paul, Peter, and John whom wrote much of the New Testament were wrong and need to be corrected and rebuked. When asked directly if people whom are openly practicing homosexuals are accepted into the Kingdom, Joel Osteen responded with “Absolutely, anybody is.” We all need to listen carefully to the words that this “man of God” speaks as he goes on interviews so we too can find the errors...

The wife of famed televangelist Joel Osteen said something stupid the other day — so stupid there's now a YouTube meme about it, featuring Bill Cosby saying, "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life." In the original clip, Victoria Osteen says: "I just want to encourage every one of us to realize when we obey God, we're not doing it for God — I mean, that's one way to look at it. We're doing it for ourselves, because God takes pleasure when we're happy." Osteen continues: "So I want you to know this morning: Just do good...

Seattle megachurch pastor Mark Driscoll recently came to the defense of fellow Christian minister Joel Osteen, while admitting that his "Reformed brothers like to treat Pastor Joel like a pinata." In a recent interview with The Gospel Coalition, the Mars Hill Church pastor was asked to comment on a segment of his new book, Who Do You Think You Are?, that mentions "appreciated people" who "exchange grumbling for praying, competing for celebrating, bitterness for thankfulness, performing for serving, and boasting for encouraging." The interviewer, TGC's associate editor Matt Smethurst, asked Driscoll, "What's an 'appreciated person'? Isn't that what Joel Osteen...

Victoria Osteen, wife of megachurch preacher and New York Times bestselling author Joel Osteen, is now facing withering criticism online for a viral video clip in which she is shown telling congregants at Lakewood Church that obedience, worship and church attendance is not for God but themselves. "I just want to encourage every one of us to realize when we obey God, we're not doing it for God—I mean, that's one way to look at it—we're doing it for ourselves, because God takes pleasure when we're happy," she said in the 36-second clip posted on YouTube, with her husband smiling...

....Joel Osteen, the pastor of Houston's Lakewood Church, was meeting Thursday with Pope Francis at the Vatican. Osteen said Friday it was a great honor to represent the pastors of America in the meeting with the pontiff, whom he described as warm, personable and full of joy. "I like the fact that this pope is trying to make the church larger, not smaller," Osteen said. "He's not pushing people out but making the church more inclusive. That resonated with me." "We had very little time with him," Osteen said. "We were going to have more time, but a cardinal died...

HOUSTON - Lakewood Church and Crime Stoppers have increased the reward to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest of the people responsible for the recent break-ins and theft. The crime was reported on March 10 around 8:30 a.m. by a church staff member. Investigators believe the theft at the church in the 3700 block of the Southwest Freeway happened between 2:30 p.m. on March 9 and 8:30 a.m. on March 10. The thief or thieves took cash, checks and credit card vouchers. If anyone has information about the theft, please call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS. Lakewood Church says it...

Virtually every morning I try to catch up on news and sports while running on my treadmill. Often the running (mostly walking) is accompanied by the vigorous exercise of my remote. Recently, I flipped into an interview involving Singaporean mega-pastor Joseph Prince. The more I tuned in, the faster my heart rate. Disregard for the meaning and context of Scripture was simply breathtaking. It all led up to taking a shower and beginning work on a book now titled The Osteenification of American Christianity. Why Osteenification? Because Joel Osteen is the prime provocateur of a seductive brand of American Christianity...