Osteen was born in Houston, Texas, to John and Dolores (née Cooke) Osteen. His father was the middle of seven children, and his mother was the youngest of six. He was raised in the nearby town of Pineland, about two hours from Houston, where he was known as Little Joel. In his early years, he would make frequent trips with his family to Lake Jackson, Texas, as his father owned property on Palafox Pier known as Scott’s Fishing Camp. The family also regularly vacationed in Aransas Pass and Seadrift on Mustang Island. American pastor Joel Scott Osteen: Wiki Biography and more
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Wiki Biography and more
If you’re like most Americans, one of your biggest challenges is time. And if you have a full-time job, are raising kids, taking care of your family, maintaining a home—and all of life’s other distractions—just getting through your day can be exhausting. So it’s no wonder that so many people struggle to do everything they feel they should each day. After all, what happens when we fall short? American pastor Joel Scott Osteen: Wiki Biography and more
Bio
Bio The United States of America is a country located in North America, with Canada to its north and Mexico to its south. The country has many large cities, including New York City (the largest city), Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Miami. Other major cities include Philadelphia, Atlanta, San Francisco and Boston.
Family
He married Victoria L. Iloff on April 4, 1987. They have two children, Jonathan (born in 1989) and Alexandra (born in 1992). His son Jonathan took over as lead pastor of Lakewood Church when his father became ill with pneumonia in January 2011. His wife, Victoria, served as co-pastor until October 2011 when she was asked to resign from her position within the church after an affair with a 17-year-old male youth leader at Lakewood Church was discovered.
Relationship
Relationship Debra A. Osteen (wife) Debra A. Osteen is an American author, speaker, and co-pastor with her husband, Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. She is also a New York Times best-selling author of several books that have sold over 2 million copies worldwide.
Physical info
Physical info Osteen was born in Houston, Texas. He is one of six children born to John (d. 1987) and Dolores (née Ducan) Osteen, a fundamentalist Southern Baptist couple who divorced when he was thirteen, after his mother had an extramarital affair with a family friend. A single mother, she worked as a sales clerk at J. C.
Career
In 1987, he founded Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. Weekly services grew from a single congregation of 55 people to over 7,000 within three years. In 2004, his church relocated to a new facility outside Houston in order to accommodate larger attendance numbers. The Lakewood Church congregation is composed predominantly of Hispanics, African-Americans and Asians/Pacific Islanders; roughly 45% of attendees are non-white.
Awards
In January 2010, he was awarded with an honorary doctorate in public service from Oral Roberts University. In June 2010, Osteen was awarded with an honorary doctorate of divinity degree from Southwestern Assemblies of God University. In 2011, he received a Doctor of Laws degree from Houston Baptist University, where he also serves on its board of trustees.
Net worth
Currently, there is no data available on his net worth. However, it is estimated to be over $50 million as of 2017.
Early life
He is a fourth-generation Southern Baptist. He holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in speech from Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma. His parents are Dodie (née Dodson) and John Osteen. His paternal grandfather was an Assemblies of God minister, while his maternal grandparents were Southern Baptists. When he was six years old, his father began preaching part-time at a small church in southeast Houston (called Idlewild Church), while continuing to work as an electrician.
Credentials and associations
He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in religious studies. His father, John Osteen, founded Lakewood Church, an evangelical Christian megachurch in Houston where Joel serves as pastor. He is married to Victoria L. Iloff (born 1964), and they have two children: Jonathan (born 1989) and Alexandra (born 1992).
Career
Osteen began his career as a minister with a non-denominational congregation in Houston, Texas. He later became a Charismatic Christian speaker. His book, Your Best Life Now (2004), became an instant New York Times bestseller. Since 2010, he has hosted a television program on Trinity Broadcasting Network called Enjoying Everyday Life with Joel Osteen. His sermons are broadcast to over 100 nations around the world.
Relationship with Donald Trump
He believes that Donald Trump is an answer to our problems. In a December 2015 interview with Fox News, he said of Trump, I believe that Mr. Trump is a answer to our problems.
Books
One Way to Happiness, Become a Better You, Your Best Life Now, Every Day a Friday (with Joyce Meyer), The Power of I Am. He has also written Hope for Today with Bob Goff. Three of his books have achieved sales of over one million copies each. Four others have sold over 500,000 copies. Sixteen of his non-fiction titles have made The New York Times Best Seller list.
Television
Joel Osteen is a televangelist with Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. His preaching has been seen on national broadcast channels such as TBN, CBN, BET, CMT and FOX. Joel believes that television is one of many methods that God uses to communicate His love to people all over our world. Television allows for messages of hope and inspiration to be shared in seconds with millions of people.
Controversies
In 2001, Lakewood Church purchased the Compaq Center, home of former NBA basketball team Houston Rockets. The church renovated it at a cost of $95 million. In 2005, during Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath, Lakewood Church was used as a Red Cross shelter and housed over 7000 evacuees for two weeks. In February 2007, Lakewood Church purchased its former facility for $13.5 million to be used by its ministry initiatives including counseling services and educational classes.
Q.& A.
On Faith In 2011, TIME’s Michael Schulson sat down with Pastor Joel Osteen to discuss his latest book Become a Better You. These are edited excerpts from that conversation. The full transcript is here.
Why is Joel Osteen famous?
Osteen is an American preacher, author, public speaker, televangelist, and religious leader. He has written several New York Times best-selling books on Christian living. As of 2015, his ministry’s revenue was over $80 million per year. Osteen resides in Houston with his wife and two children. In 2009 he bought a $10.5 million house in River Oaks District neighborhood of Houston.
How old is Joel Osteen’s wife?
He is married to Victoria Osteen (née Iloff), his third wife. They were married on April 4, 1987.
Does Joel Osteen have a daughter?
Yes. Osteen has a daughter named Alexandra born on January 17, 2007. She is featured with her family in an episode of The Houstons: On Our Own spin-off series of The Houstons: A Family Dynasty. She also appears regularly in her father’s sermons where she sings with him and plays piano to his left side.
What is Joel Osteen beliefs?
He was born in Houston, Texas. He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University. His father John Osteen was an associate pastor at Lakewood Church for many years, and his mother Dodie (née Denton) worked as a flight attendant. His parents divorced when he was five years old. He married his wife Victoria Lanteigne on April 4, 1987.
How do pastors get rich?
It is no secret pastors can be paid well. But just how much do they make? According to Business Insider, Pastor Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas makes $80 million a year. So why are they so highly paid? Part of it is good old fashioned Capitalism. For a business (in our case a church) to be successful they need to keep people coming back.
How much does it cost to attend Lakewood Church?
The services are free. Seating is first-come, first-served. So there’s no reason to arrive early or stand in line—just show up and take a seat! The best seats at Lakewood Church aren’t reserved for those who arrive first; they’re for those who most need God’s Word (Luke 14:14). In that spirit, we provide seating for everyone in our main auditorium.