JOEL OSTEEN, what an inspiration!!
Joel Osteen is a native Texan and the Pastor of Lakewood Church, which according to Church Growth
Today is America’s largest and fastest growing church.
On July 16, 2005 after completing $95 million dollars in renovations, Joel moved Lakewood Church into its new 16,000-seat home – the former Compaq Center.
It is the largest regularly-used worship center in the
United States. Each week Joel delivers God’s message
of hope and encouragement to more than 38,000
attendees. According to Nielsen Media Research, Joel
is the most watched inspirational figure in America.
His weekly sermon is broadcast into every U.S.
television market where it is viewed by seven million
Americans each week and more than 20 million each
month. His weekly broadcast is also seen in almost
100 nations around the world.
In 2004, his first book, Your Best Life Now, was
released by Time Warner debuting at the top of the
New York Times Bestsellers List and quickly rising to
#1. It remained on the New York Times Bestseller for
more than 2 years and has sold more than 4 million
copies. Most recently, Joel was named as one of
Barbara Walters’ “10 Most Fascinating People of
2006″ and he was selected as the “Most Influential
Christian in 2006″ by the readers of Church Report
Magazine.
Prepared for God’s Calling
Joel, the son of John Osteen, a highly respected
minister of the Gospel and the founder of Lakewood
Church, attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa,
Oklahoma where he studied radio and television
communications. In 1982, Joel returned to Houston
and founded Lakewood’s television ministry where he
produced John Osteen’s televised sermons for 17
years until January 1999 when his father passed away
suddenly from a heart attack.
For many years, John Osteen encouraged Joel to
preach, but he always declined preferring to work
behind the scenes. But, in early 1999 Joel felt
compelled to accept his father’s invitation and he
preached his first sermon on January 17th of that
year. Little did anyone know that would be the last
Sunday of John Osteen’s life. Two weeks later, Joel
began preaching and later that year was installed as
the new Senior Pastor of Lakewood Church.
A New Vision For The New Millenium
Almost immediately, weekly attendance began to grow
at an extraordinary rate and in 2005, Joel moved
Lakewood Church into its present location, the former
Compaq Center, a 16,000-seat arena that was once
home to the Houston Rockets professional basketball
team. Now, with his wife Victoria, and the leadership
staff of Lakewood, this innovative church is poised for
the new millennium.
Joel’s extraordinary success can be found in his core
message: That our God is a good God who desires to
bless those who are obedient and faithful to Him
through Jesus Christ. It is Joel’s deepest desire that
his own life be an example of that principle and that
everyone who hears this message of hope and
encouragement would choose to accept God’s
goodness and mercy and to become all that God
wants them to be.