Economics 101: Joel Osteen: Works for the Top Boss (God) and Refuses a Salary!

Today as I try to suppress thinking about our current economic meltdown, I am thinking of a person you might like to know a little something extra about. Joel Osteen, the Pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston stopped accepting a salary from Lakewood - probably two years ago. I thought about this because so many people in top jobs are receiving absolutely outrageous salaries and receiving bonuses, severance packages, and golden parachutes. 

Well, Joel Osteen has written at least two best sellers now and one assumes he has income from these. So, he can stay in his home, feed his family and tithe to the Lord. (Most people know that Joel took over when his father "went to be the Lord" against his confidence level. He really pushed himself to do the job and has turned into one of the most motivating preachers of all time.

I just want to point out that Joel is now Pastor of the largest church in the United States. As employment goes, Joel works for the top - that would be GOD! His congregation (or stockholders, if you will)  probably are for the most part, well off.

This man said, "No, no, I don't need the money. I do not need a salary from Lakewood Church!" 

Think about this!

Be Prepared!

Well, the town is busy, some gas pumps are empty, and we’re a bit edgy. Even though people have been evacuated to our area, we ourselves must be prepared as Hurricane Gustav moves toward Texas. As noted yesterday, a big problem here is power outage, causing us to be pretty hot. Police had to be called to Wal-Mart in one town yesterday because chaos broke out at the bottled water display. Could that be why our supermarket has the water outside the front of the store? There must be some humor to this whole event!

One couple has gone up to Dallas to visit their son but I think they will likely be back by Monday. Another, whose home is in a mobile home park are on their way north to their daughter’s. So, they will be missing from church in the morning. Perhaps some out-of-towners will stop in to pray for themselves, their friends and what they left behind.

People from the Texas Gulf Coast are now headed here and the hotels and tourist homes are solidly booked. Some people will be here from Louisiana. So, it’s busy and a little rude out there.

We just came in from dinner at Catfish King and it seemed very loud there. On the loop, people were sort of rude and rushing. So, a good place to be is home.

We have everything we need and we will pray that as the branches fall during the high winds, that nothing falls on our house.

When people told me about gas stations running out of gas last night, I thought of Hubby and me on 9-11. Back then, I was not yet an American citizen and we were headed to Terre Haute, Indiana for Hubby’s college reunion. Hubby is that Engineer that my Daddy always said you needed for just about everything. (Daddy was right about that!)

As we were preparing to leave, we saw on TV what most people saw happening in New York City that day.

There was one specific thought that came to my mind and any of you from Toronto can relate to that thought.

When I was young, Dad always said if there was any threat, we would just get in the car and drive north.

Well, Daddy’s been gone 46 years and if we drive north from Texas, we’re still a long way from Canada’s northland.

So, what I went back for was my passport, because once you are in Indiana, well you could be headed north . . .

As we drove up the interstates, every time we would stop for gas, we would see signs that there was none or long lines of cars.

Long story short, we made it to Terre Haute and the reunion went on as usual.

When we arrived in Terre Haute (“High Land”), we went to the church Hubby attended when he was there and we prayed. And we read Psalm 91.

Although 9-11 is never forgotten, we made it through as did many others.

We will make it though this storm too – with good planning, a little luck and lots of praying.

Forgiveness: A Great Concept!

In Matthew, Chapter 6, verse 14, we are reminded that if we forgive people when they sin against us, Our Heavenly Father will also forgive us.

It is probably no coincidence that this passage follows The Lord’s Prayer. This is the one passage of the Bible that most people everywhere know. This is the prayer that is often called The Perfect Prayer. On 9-11, The Lord’s Prayer was probably the most prayed across the United States.

Now, the concept of forgiving is pretty easy, once you really grasp it.

If someone cuts you off on the highway, you can let that bother you all day. Or worse, you could retaliate and cause a horrible accident. Or, you could just forgive that driver and think about how badly their day must be going!

If an acquaintance says something mean to you, you can dwell on that, hold on to that and no longer have that person as a friend.

Friends are precious gifts and we need to hang on to as many as we possibly can. So, when someone says something that hurts us, we need to stop and think how bad that person might have been feeling. We should consider how bad their day was going that they just absolutely had to tell us that the dress we were wearing made us look fat!

How insecure is a person who telephones to tell you that they did not appreciate something you said at last week’s meeting?

More importantly, how secure are you that you can just let it go and move on with the rest of the day?

The really beautiful thing about forgiving people is that it starts to make them wonder what it is about you that lets you forget what they said or did? It gives them new found respect for you.

Because our lives are hectic, perhaps there are more things that are said carelessly and therefore, more opportunities to forgive.

Once you start conscientiously forgiving people’s thoughtless comments and actions, you cannot believe how much nicer your life will be!

Just ask “Buddy”, our Lhasa, “Ginger”, the Poodle or “Bowser”, the Bulldog how good life can be! Did you ever notice how a dog never holds a grudge? We can learn much about forgiveness just by observing our dogs!