Encouragement for an Exceptional Life by Victoria Osteen Book Review

In Encouragement for an Exceptional Life, Victoria Osteen explored the topic of how to reach your highest potential and how to see yourself like Christ see you. She shared with readers who we were called to be exceptional and extraordinary. In scripture, God has called each of us His masterpiece and we were all created in His image. She begins the book by sharing a story about Jim and how when he met his baby sister for the first time. He was 8 years old and he was deeply moved by meeting his sister. His father decided to tell him the truth and explained that he was adopted. They were told by a nurse that they could pick any baby in the room and how they chose him. His parents made it a point to make sure Jim knew that he was handpicked to be a part of their family. Victoria uses this story to remind readers that we are chosen and God adopted us into His family. She encouraged readers to remember that they are valuable. Even when we make mistakes, our worth isn’t based on our performance. She reminded us to take off the negative labels, the guilty, and the pain. 

 

 

She also looked at King David and how God chose David when he the least likely person to be chosen to become King. David had chances to be offended that his father didn’t even consider him to be a prime candidate and how it appeared that his own father didn’t believe in him. Victoria explored how God knew what was inside him and the special calling that was one his life. She explained that we all have an anointed on our lives and how we are royal priesthood. She looked at 7 different key areas to live our lives to our highest potential. Some of these included: know that you are chosen, travel light, encourage yourself, power up, set your eyes on the promises”, and much more. 

    

 

I would recommend this life changing book to anyone who is ready to live an exceptional life. I immensely loved how small and compact this book is and it makes it easy to travel with especially to the beach or while you are waiting at an appointment. I loved how inspirational this book was and how she reminded readers how they were chosen by God and who we are in Christ. One of my favorite stories, she shared was about how she received an email from a lady who was dumped by her boyfriend and she didn’t understand why. She thought they were heading towards marriage. She revealed how she dwelled on pondering what she did wrong and focusing on her own negative thoughts. She admitted to not wanting to leave our house for work or anything. She was depressed when she turned on the TV and Joel was on. She started listening to him and watching his program. Eventually, she learned the principles on looking in the mirror and speaking life over her life. I immensely loved with what Victoria shared about our thoughts and how we can think about good thoughts and focus on the good and not the bad. This book is a book that is meant to be reread and we need to let the words get into our spirit and change our thoughts, pattens, lifestyles, and make us stronger.  

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.” 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy Encouragement for an Exceptional Life, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1546017879?pf_rd_r=SDJDDH86ZSY9CSM7KVPA

Fearless and Free: Inspirational Thoughts to Set Your Attitude and Actions for a Great Day! By Victoria Osteen Book Review

In Fearless and Free, Victoria Osteen explored the topic of living our lives fearlessly and how the first step is believing in His goodness. She has written a brand-new devotional to encourage readers to realize that they are already equipped to overcome their fears. Victoria shared how she had to overcome her own fears with public speaking when she took over the role of a pastor at Lakewood Church. She struggled with living in fear and she came to realize the seeds that God has already planted in her. In reading the Bible, she learned how to see herself as God sees her and how He has instilled confidence to live fearless and free. She also looks at many different Biblical characters such as: Joshua and Caleb, Esther, Moses and Pharaoh, David and Goliath, and much more and how they handle their fears and how God guided them through their fears. 

One of the first devotionals, she discussed was about God’s unconditional love and she opens up by sharing a Bible verse, 1 John 3:1. This verse talked about our Father’s love that He has for us and how we are all called to be children to God. She shared how as children we tend to believe that the only way, we will receive love from others is by performing perfectly and being on our best behavior. She revealed many of us might believe that God is up in Heaven keeping a scorecard about how perfectly we perform and live our lives. Victoria reminded readers that God loved us unconditionally and we can live free from guilt and from condemnation. She encourages readers to believe that they are a child of God and to hold on to the truth that God loves us and chose us as His own. 

I would recommend this awesome book to anyone who is ready to live freely and they are tired of living burden down by fear. I immensely loved how Victoria covered a wide range of topics from: enjoying the simple things, prioritizing your day, guarding your heart, going to God for your mistakes, releasing things back to God, having a fresh perspective, freedom from offense, don’t fall into the comparison trap, and much more. One of my favorite topics, she covered in the book was the one about having an attitude of gratitude and this is based on First Thessalonians 5:18. In this section, she taught readers to give thanks to God in all things and to find an encouraging scripture to mediate on to remind us of His faithfulness. I liked how she shared one way that can help us is to write down every day three things we are thankful for, and this in turn can help us to change our perspective. I also liked how she began each chapter by sharing a Bible verse, then a devotion filled with personal stories from her life and others, and she closed with a prayer. I truly believe this book couldn’t have been released at a better time since we are all facing the new challenges of living in fear of a pandemic of COVID-19. We are all afraid of getting it, losing our jobs, losing money, being disconnected from family and friends and the church, losing loved ones from the virus, and we’re afraid of life after all this is over. It’s easy to focus on all the negative surrounding the virus but during this trying season, we all have a choice to either live in fear of all of the uncertain or to reply on God and His promises. Victoria Osteen’s new devotional can assist readers in learning how to live fearlessly and free during this pandemic and even after it. Fear will never go completely away but there are principles we can apply in our lives to combat fear. 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Faithwords for my honest review and I was a member of the book launch team.” 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Freeless and Free, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Fearless-Free-Inspirational-Thoughts-Attitude/dp/154601070X/

In Exceptional You: 7 Ways to Live Encouraged, Empowered, and Intentional By Victoria Osteen Book Review

In Exceptional You, Victoria Osteen explored the seven truths of becoming the person God made you to be. She wanted every reader to understand how much God loves them and their unique gifts. The book begins with “Put on your Crown” and this chapter looked at the life of David and how he was the youngest son and he was watching the sheep when God decided to call forth David’s true value. Jesse, David’s father was told to summon up all the seven brothers by Samuel. God chose David to the next king of Israel. Victoria reminds readers the God has chosen each of us to call us His own we all have a purpose and a plan for our lives. It took thirteen years for David to become King and he was tending sheep when God declared him to be the next appointed King. The story didn’t stop there King Saul wanted to murder him and there was countless times David could have decided to end Saul life. But David chose to forgive him. Victoria also shared how she was led to be a speaker at Lakewood Church and how she also does their Nights of Hope events alongside her husband, Joel Osteen. She opened up about how God introduced them and how God gave her the right gifts for each of the assignment she had to go through. Throughout the book, she shared about how she was afraid to pray out loud and how Joel’s father, John Osteen would ask her to pray and she turned him down. Eventually, she gained courage and strength and is now able to get up every Sunday and pray and speak and encourage people. Victoria was able to dive into God’s word and let Him transform her life to be used to make a difference in people’s lives. 

One of my favorite stories was one she shared about a guy who was depressed and he turned to his pastor for help. He proceeded to explain how nothing good was going on in his life. He grab a pen and wrote down and listed everything that was going good in his life and in another column wrote down what was bad. He started writing down his wife passed away, house burnt down, and other things until finally the man realized what the pastor was doing. The guy was able to gain a new outlook on life and he realized that not everything was a disappointment. Victoria shared with readers the importance of thinking right and how we can set our eyes on the promises of God. 

I would recommend this life changing to anyone is struggling with discovering the person who God made them to be and maybe they are feeling discouraged and life is just beating them down. I immensely loved the stories that she shared about her own life and stories from other people. She also included scriptures and stories to address her 7 ways to live and exceptional life. We weren’t created to live stressed out, discouraged, or worried about what the day is going to bring. I also liked how Victoria Osteen recapped the key points to having exceptional thoughts in your daily life. If you’re looking for a positive book, then read this one! 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Faithwords for my honest review.” 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Exceptional You, check it out on amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Exceptional-You-Encouraged-Empowered-Intentional/dp/1546010629

The Christmas Spirit by Joel Osteen Book Review

The Christmas Spirit is a collection of Christmas time stories. Joel Osteen shared stories and memories about his family and how they celebrated Christmases when he was a young boy. His mother and father always made the major decision to tell the Osteen kids about Jesus being born for the whole wide world. Joel Osteen and his brothers and sisters did get some Christmas presents growing up. But the Osteen children were taught values that continued and made them who they are today. Joel’s father, John Osteen gave Joel, his brother, and his sisters a special Christmas present to share with one another and to teach them a virtue. Joel Osteen also gave a similar gift to his son and daughter, because it meant so much to Joel when he received it from his father. Joel Osteen informed his readers about Victoria’s Christmas traditions. Victoria would always travel to see her family at Christmas time. Joel Osteen will make you think about Christmas as a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus. He also believes in spending quality time with your family and never taking them for granted. Joel Osteen conveys the message of Christmas throughout The Christmas Spirit.

I liked this book because it told stories and memories about Christmas from Joel and Victoria Osteen. I found out that we both celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. I think the whole world needs to hear the message of Christ. This book is a great one to read during the Christmas Holiday. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the Christmas season! In addition, I would recommend it as a gift to give someone else for Christmas. Joel Osteen shares his memories of Christmas in a way that will make you want to spend quality time with your family. His book will inspire you to make every day count and every Christmas needs to be enjoyed because it might be someone’s last.

Here is the trailer for the book, The Christmas Spirit:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/m2RR9QIDGJ67N2/ref=ent_fb_link

If you would like to purchase a copy of The Christmas Spirit by Joel Osteen it is available at Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Spirit-Memories-Family-Friends/dp/1439198330/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_4