Book Review: "Peaceful on Purpose" By Joel Osteen

First and foremost I must give a huge, "Thank You" to Faith Words, Joel Osteen, Victoria Osteen, and all those who made this book possible for my viewing pleasure via Netgalley.

As you can imagine I'm a tremendous believer in the power of prayer and as a former Minister of Hospitality (until the collection basket was ripped away from me via older white male ushers) I continued to serve the Lord without ever one complaint.

I do believe in what Joel Osteen practices and preaches so much so that I stood in pouring rain and drove nearly two hours to see him in HersheyPark Giant Center a few years back and had the time of my life (alone and soaking wet) but with a new vigor and theme to my work.

As a full time volunteer for the past twenty years having received the Points of Light award (2016 from President George H.W. Bush) I know one thing- this too shall pass.
No matter the storm, no matter the weather, no matter your situation you shall rise above and proclaim it as triumph.

Why?

Because, you are made in the image and likeness of God. He knew what he was doing. He gave you the insight, the talent, the love, the tools, the connections, the pathways to succeed. He didn't bring you into the world to leave you hanging, miserable, divorced, feeling unloved, jobless, poor...

Joel knows this and reminds us to always take the high road, to soar ahead like the eagle, to find our footing and use the enemies as stepping stones -not to get bitter- but BETTER!
Life is ours for the taking. Our time is short. Yet, our lives are our living legacy. We must be the change we wish to see not only for ourselves but for those of us who have children and loved ones that will live long after we perish.

One of the greatest joys was seeing Joel's family and how loving, compassionate, nurturing, and supportive they are in real life. What a blessing it must be to work with them singing hymns, preaching the bible, walking arm in arm onto the stage daily as his house of worship.
Life is not easy my friends. We all have trials and tribulations but those are meant to test us. Will we stay in faith? Will we help one another? Will we learn to let go and forgive?

You see I write this knowing that just the other day I experienced road rage from a complete male stranger in my little town. Our streets were exceptionally narrow due to recent winter storms. Rather than go slow this gentleman went speeding down the road and refused to give the right of way to myself who was already in the lane of travel with the right of way.

When I seen this man was angry, I backed up my vehicle, and drove away from him parking to the far right in order to give him the right of way to avoid conflict. When I did he drove up on my driver's door, yelled obscenities, and prior to that had actually positioned his vehicle directly in front of mine when we were originally side by side attempting to pass each other.
When this happened I had two choices : Be right- and risk life and limb. Or , choose the high road- and let this man feel loved. I chose the latter and waited for him to move on without making eye contact with my cell phone in hand (pretending to be talking).

This my friends is how you can avoid the current state of escalation and remove the threats while letting God fight your battles.

We live in a world in which everyone fights their own battles. Sometimes, those who are fighting are unannounced and go unnoticed. It's better to lead the way then to argue and elevate your blood pressure.

This new work -Peaceful on Purpose- is written with such clarity, insight, and precision. It's a model of how to live in faith, love, and prosperity.

For example, " When you live in faith, expecting God's goodness, there will be moments of favor that you suddenly come into. You didn't see it coming. There was no sign of it, but suddenly the paperwork goes through. Suddenly the Compaq Center shows up. Suddenly you meet the right person. That was one of those blessings God had already set up."
"God never promised that we wouldn't have difficulties, but He did promise He will give us strength for every battle. He says He will take what was meant for harm and use it to our advantage. "

"God knows what's best for you. He's got this."

Or, in other words, "If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31
I'm not special, but I have lived a life of hard knocks. I've been knocked down but I never stay down.

You must dust off and go again.

Whether or not you follow Joel's inspirational novels, or utilize his devotional prayers , or follow him in person or via online methods the point is rather clear. You cannot let hate override love.

Be bold as a lion was just one section of Scripture quoted clear but righteous in this case means, "To be holy, blameless, honorable." It doesn't mean one day when you get your act together.

So then, are you fighting when you should be resting? Are you being vindictive when you should be thoughtful?

Stay in peace, stay in faith, and stay in your lane as everything will arrive when you lease expect but when you needed it most.

Trust God and you'll never be deceived.

Much love!

Thank you to Joel Osteen, Faith Words, NetGalley, Amazon Kindle, and everyone who provided this ARC in exchange for this honest review.