05/06/2024
“The spirit of faith” is “in your words,” according to this emphatic sermon from pastor Osteen (Your Greatness Is Coming). Writing that “words are like seeds... every time you say them, they’re taking root and growing,” the author posits that speaking one’s goals into being, or “talking like it’s going to happen,” sharpens personal conviction and attracts God’s favor. Even when nothing appears to change and the goal seems out of reach, readers should keep “professing their faith,” Osteen writes, and take comfort in the knowledge that divine workings are sometimes invisible. His advice for rewriting self-limiting narratives is wise, and despite a tendency to oversimplify—at one point he encourages readers to tune out negative voices by “letting that all go”—his enthusiastic aphorisms will stick with readers (“Tell yourself a new story. You don’t have to figure out how it’s going to happen. All you have to do is believe”). Osteen’s fans will also appreciate the pastoral blessings woven throughout—“I declare that you are blessed with promotion, with good success, with ideas, with creativity.” It’s a rousing ode to the power of belief. (Apr.)
