And We All Said "Amen"

Kevin and I had the opportunity to attend Joel Osteen’s service on Friday night and all I can say is WOW! There is something to be said about thousands of people filling up an arena and worshipping God. It truly humbled me. It was great to be among different ethnicities and religious backgrounds for one common goal, to worship God. Joel’s message was powerful and at the end encouraged others to receive salvation. In fact, he was crystal clear about receiving salvation.

I have heard a lot of negative things about Joel’s “style” of preaching in the media because he preaches about hope and God’s love more than he preaches about condemnation and hell. In my humble opinion, I believe more people have received salvation this way because, unlike so many preachers today, Joel doesn't judge first and then hope you will listen to him. I have heard so many times that the reason people won't even take time to listen to the word is because they feel like the church is too busy judging or pointing fingers at them then embracing them for who they are and then teaching them the word. Our goal should be to bring more people to Christ, (which is what Joel has and is doing) not to sit around and criticize a man who has brought thousands to know Christ, just because he doesn't preach in a fashion we see fit.

I don’t know about you BUT I would prefer to hear a message that God is GOOD and that if we put our faith first, He will meet our needs. I want to hear that He is the great I AM and that I can receive the gift of salvation and that all things in my past are forgiven. These aren’t empty promises or false teachings as some would believe (they are in the scripture), but words and lessons that are more likely to influence a non-believer than a message of condemnation.

At the end of Joel’s message (after the invitation to accept Christ), he tells folks to get in a bible based church in their community. I definitely believe this is key. I think Joel’s broadcast mission is to provide the appetizer, so to speak, and get people hungry for the rest. We will never know how many lives have been changed by Joel, but one thing I do know is that God has a plan for each of us and if we stay in faith, He will reveal it to us. It is up to us to live up to His plan. :)