Review and Notes: The Power of Favor, by Joel Osteen

The Power of Favor Review

If you’ve read one Joel Osteen book, I’m pretty sure you’ve read every Joel Osteen book. 

That’s my impression, anyway, after reading “The Power of Favor.”

Osteen, the minister of Lakewood Church in Houston, oversees a vast evangelical empire, including a large television network and numerous best-selling books.

Osteen has been criticized for preaching the “prosperity gospel”— — the message that following God will, in simple terms, make you wealthy and fabulous if you just follow him. 

The Power of Favor has its faults. It’s overly simplistic. It’s repetitive. It focuses too heavily on using God as a fulcrum for ease and material wealth.

Certain passages are cringeworthy:

Going to the mall, say, “Lord, thank You that Your favor will help me find what I need.” The favor of God will help you get the best deals.

And yet, the book isn’t completely without merit.

Osteen hammers home a helpful mindset: that God is for us, and we can only be our best selves and accomplish our greatest goals through and for Him. 

He reminds us that God is our source—not our paycheck or business—and that we should seek him and give thanks in all things.

If you’re looking for a dose of hope and a reminder that God is for you, and life can suddenly change for the better, then there are worse things to read The Power of Favor. 

However, if you are looking for better better balance and peace in a God-centered life, I recommend John Mark Comer’s “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry.”