Name it, Claim it?

"The third step you must take if you want to live at your full potential is to discover the power of your thoughts and words." Joel Osteen Your Best Life Now pg 101

Robert Schuller called it "Possibility Thinking," Norman Vincent Peale--Positive Thinking and a myriad of iterations by others of the name it claim it ilk followed.

Being raised in the cultic religion of Christian Science, I know well the power of "right thinking," according to Mary Baker Eddy the founder of C.S. Through it, I could heal myself, rid myself of pain, conquer discouragement, or bring misfortune on someone else.

From Franz Mesmer, to Shirley McClain, the power of the mind has been profitably marketed by hundreds of charlatans. Only present day "prosperity preachers" have moved into the realm of respectable "Christian" theology. It is anything but, as I clearly explicate in The Proper Pursuit of Prosperity!

God As Vending Machine

In my forth coming book--The Proper Pursuit of Prosperity--it take a thoughtful, and biblical analysis of the prosperity gospel of guys like Don Stewart, Andrew Jenkins, and of course Joel Osteen. The God these men pitch are a god of their making. No wonder their god is popular. He appeals to the self-absorbed, All American-ME-ME-ME that pervades every fiber of our culture and church. On page 41 of Osteen's best selling, Your Best Life Now, he writes, "Perhaps you're searching for a parking spot in a crowded lot. Say. 'Father, I think you for leading me and guiding me. Your favor will cause me to get a good spot.'"

True confessions--I pray for a parking spot when I am in such situations regularly. "Have no anxieties about ANYTHING..." Paul instructs us in Philippians 4:6 re: prayer. BUT--such a prayer should be offered in the spirit of, "Not MY will, but thine be done..." Lord YOU know what I need; you also know what someone else needs who may have physical reason to have a "good" spot. So Lord YOU decide what is best!

Osteen's pursuit of prosperity is presumptuous at best--arrogant and sinful at worst. That's why I have written about the PROPER pursuit of prosperity...

The Word of Osteen or the Word of the Lord?

The word of Joel Osteen:
"God usually meets us at our level of expectancy. If you don't develop the habit of expecting good things to come your way, then you're not likely to receive anything good." pg 14 Your Best Life Now

The Word of the Lord:
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
Ephesians 2:8-10

I never expected your love God; I know what I deserve and it isn't heaven. But thanks be to God You chose to give me good things in spite of what I deserve; in spite of my expectations. Thank you for doing things your way, not Pastor Osteen's way...

The Apostle Paul vs. Joel Osteen

The [prosperity] Gospel according to Joel Osteen:
"The fourth aspect--and one of the most important--to developing a fresh vision for your life is discovering how to experience more of God's favor. The Bible clearly states, "God has crowned us with glory and honor. The word 'honor' could also be translated as 'favor,' and favor means to assist to provide with special advantages and to receive preferential treatment. In other words, God wants to make your life easier. He wants to assist you, to promote you, to give you advantages. He wants you to have preferential treatment." pg 38 Your Best Life Now

Beyond the utter contradiction such rubbish is to the weight of biblical witness, is the affront it is to the marvel of Paul's wisdom in Philippians 2:5-7

"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men."

In other words, we cannot possibly have any more "favor" with God than the favor He has shown us in His becoming a human being in order to save us from ourselves; our sin.

And what is the context of the wonder of God's favor as evidenced by Christ's incarnation?
More of Paul's wisdom: "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others." Philippians 2:3-4

More of Joel O's wisdom? "I've come to expect to be treated differently. Ive learned to expect people to want to help me. My attitude is I'm a child of the Most High God... I can expect people to go out of their way to want to help me." pg 39 Your Best Life Now

As soon as a publisher gets a clue, The Proper Pursuit of Prosperity will be published.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn vs. Joel Osteen

A. Solzhenitsyn--"Life is not as we have grown used to thinking, for prosperity but for development of the soul."

Pastor Osteen--"God has so much in store for you, too. Start making room for it in your thinking. Conceive it on the inside. Start seeing yourself rising to a new level, doing something of significance, living in that home of your dreams." pg. 8 "Your Best Life Now"

Just wait for for my new book, "The Proper Pursuit of Prosperity!"