Here is some of what is missing (more will come in a later blog). There is nothing wrong with any of these “seven steps.” It’s just that Osteen presents a totally inadequate vision of the Christian message. “If you will: enlarge your vision, develop a healthy self image, discover the power of your thoughts and words, let go of the past, stand strong against opposition and adversity, learn to give, and choose to be happy, God will take you places you’ve never dreamed of, and you will be living your best life now.” (p. In fact, you can summarize this book by quoting the last paragraph. The book is filled with “we should, we should we should.” If you will only do these seven things, then the good life will finally come. We should be people of excellence and integrity, and live with enthusiasm, and on and on.

We should show God’s kindness and mercy to others.

We should learn to be givers and not takers.

We should not let bitterness take root in our life. He writes about how our thoughts have a huge influence on how we live. He speaks about enlarging your vision for life-that’s something we all need more of. On top of that, there IS good advice in this book, which is probably why it has sold so many copies. I imagine he is a very encouraging person, which is why people like him. And, as you read the book, you’ve gotta admit, the guy has faith. The fact that he is always smiling bugs me a bit. You should know that I have nothing against Joel Osteen as a person. Well, all this intrigued me, so I took the plunge and read his most famous book. You can’t go to the supermarket in our town, without seeing his books lining the shelves. For that reason alone, I have to take it seriously. Besides that, his book was sent to pastors all across America. Joel Osteen is the pastor of the largest church in America (Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas). YOUR BEST LIFE NOW also falls into that category. Yet despite that, some of these books have had or are having an impact on culture and the church-THE SECRET, THE DA VINCI CODE, come to mind. It may be because they are light weight and trite, heretical or just a plain waste of time. There are books that, as a pastor, I need to read, but don’t really want to.

Joel osteen best life now