Lakewood Church co-pastor Victoria Osteen received backlash from the Christian community after video footage of an August sermon surfaced showing Osteen encouraging congregants to "do good for your own self."
The pastor, who is married to televangelist Joel Osteen, told the congregation that the key to making God happy is first making oneself happy. Osteen said:
"When we obey God, we're not doing it for God...we're doing it for ourself. Because God takes pleasure when we're happy. Do good 'cause God wants you to be happy. When you come to church, when you worship Him, you're not doing it for God, really. You're doing it for yourself because that's what makes God happy."
Once the video began making rounds on social media, many in the Christian community took to Twitter and personal blogs to express their dismay at Osteen's comments.
Kind of goes along with the quote from the Bible, "Faith without work is dead".
If you are going to pray for a garden, pray with a hoe in your hand. God doesn't magically grow the garden, the person has to take some action to make the garden grow. To me, it's much more gratifying if I do the work and reap the benefits of some good fresh veggies, than not be happy and have a blank patch of black earth. Making yourself happy is taking that action that leads to happiness, at that point you are able to help others achieve happiness, which makes God happy.
This leads to the old adage that you can't help others without taking care of yourself first. Many a philanthropist have taken care of themselves first and later worked with helping people that did not have the advantages they had.
Gil Dobie wrote:Kind of goes along with the quote from the Bible, "Faith without work is dead".
If you are going to pray for a garden, pray with a hoe in your hand. God doesn't magically grow the garden, the person has to take some action to make the garden grow. To me, it's much more gratifying if I do the work and reap the benefits of some good fresh veggies, than not be happy and have a blank patch of black earth. Making yourself happy is taking that action that leads to happiness, at that point you are able to help others achieve happiness, which makes God happy.
This leads to the old adage that you can't help others without taking care of yourself first. Many a philanthropist have taken care of themselves first and later worked with helping people that did not have the advantages they had.
Excellent! Then atheists are well ahead of most Christians in following God's word.
Gil Dobie wrote:This leads to the old adage that you can't help others without taking care of yourself first. Many a philanthropist have taken care of themselves first and later worked with helping people that did not have the advantages they had.
Excellent! Then atheists are well ahead of most Christians in following God's word.
But the second half of the proposition is the tougher one.
Gil Dobie wrote:Kind of goes along with the quote from the Bible, "Faith without work is dead".
If you are going to pray for a garden, pray with a hoe in your hand. God doesn't magically grow the garden, the person has to take some action to make the garden grow. To me, it's much more gratifying if I do the work and reap the benefits of some good fresh veggies, than not be happy and have a blank patch of black earth. Making yourself happy is taking that action that leads to happiness, at that point you are able to help others achieve happiness, which makes God happy.
This leads to the old adage that you can't help others without taking care of yourself first. Many a philanthropist have taken care of themselves first and later worked with helping people that did not have the advantages they had.
I love how we try to apply human qualities, like emotions, to God to try to understand whatever God is. I don't know much, but I do know God ain't some robed dude with a white beard sitting up in the clouds throwing down rainbows when he's happy and lightning bolts when he's pissed off.
Gil Dobie wrote:Kind of goes along with the quote from the Bible, "Faith without work is dead".
If you are going to pray for a garden, pray with a hoe in your hand. God doesn't magically grow the garden, the person has to take some action to make the garden grow. To me, it's much more gratifying if I do the work and reap the benefits of some good fresh veggies, than not be happy and have a blank patch of black earth. Making yourself happy is taking that action that leads to happiness, at that point you are able to help others achieve happiness, which makes God happy.
This leads to the old adage that you can't help others without taking care of yourself first. Many a philanthropist have taken care of themselves first and later worked with helping people that did not have the advantages they had.
What a fucking douchebag.
You know absolutely nothing about god.
You are blind. GD nailed it.
D, your time would be better used studying the history of yard gnomes.
Really.
Until you lose the hate, your words are empty.
"That is how government works - we tell you what you can do today."
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