Has anyone read this book? I have it and have never touched it for it may be deadly. Does Osteen preach that you are only fulfilled if you have a career that you are passionate about? I am in a discussion with some Joel Osteen people whom are taking many scriptures and trying to prove that God only cares about my prosperity, wealth, and health. We have gotten into a discussion on careers and this is what they are also preaching. I have read book by Erwin Lutzer, Kent Hughes, and John Piper whom communicate that having a career we are passionate about, or having a job we hate is not always up to us. God sometimes wants us in places so we can be a witness, can glorify him, etc.. if we always had a career we loved, then why would we need God? This seems to be the premise of the trusted authors I mentioned.
I am trying to witness to these people and so far we are having a good discussion and they have not turned me off as I am trying to reason with gentleness and with respect (1 Pet 3:15, NIV). Its sad how they cherry pick the Bible to find every verse that makes them think that they can get rich.
I would say If you are confident that you are spiritually grounded enough not to be sucked in by His teaching, you may find it helpful to read it and see what his points are, and see where he is taking scripture out of context or ignoring important parts of scripture.
I would agree that For many people, God has called them to what might be a hard situation for some greater purpose.
Also, I would only read his book if you have the extra time. I really don't think you are going to find anything profound in there, though I haven't ready anything by him, only listened to a few interviews he has done.
The only exposure I've had to Osteen is a few of his television broadcasts. In them, I've heard him 'preach' for almost 30 min. and not once mention the Lord Jesus Christ. This is enough for me to offer a warning about his ministry.