joel osteen.

there has been so much hype around joel osteen lately. it's made me think a lot about him and his message that reaches (and influences) so many people.

check out:
- slate's article on osteen
- a cbs 60 minutes special
- osteen's book that has topped bestseller lists

on abc family tonight, there was a broadcast of one of lakewood's church services, and i ended up watching about 15 minutes of it. i've heard a lot about osteen and the church and had even heard some short clips of some of his messages, but i was astounded about how much attention the audience paid to osteen (even while most of them cannot even see them because the church building used to be a sports arena!). everyone's faces looked as if they were immensely enjoying the message and many were nodding their heads, agreeing with osteen at every word. it kind of scares me.

from what i saw, this truly is a "prosperity gospel." the whole sermon was geared towards making your own life better, "recapturing the joy that has been stolen from you." one of osteen's favorite phrases was, "God has the control; you just need to work hard at making your life better; push against the things robbing life from you and he will give you all things."

i just feel like this "gospel" is so dangerous; it isn't the true gospel, yet it is being wrapped around peoples' minds as truth. do you think osteen really believes what he says for himself, or is he just preaching this for the publicity and wealth that he accumulates because his message "works," and gain national acclaim?

and what do you do about this kind of teaching? how do you counter it?