Pastor Joel Osteen speaks during MegaFest at the American Airlines Center on August 30, 2013 in Dallas, Texas.
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Houston megachurch pastor Joel Osteen is no stranger to controversy, from closing his doors during Hurricane Harvey to being caught up in TikTok social experiments. The 63-year-old televangelist, author and pastor at Lakewood Church gave insight into how he deals with criticism this week.
In an interview on the “Impaulsive” podcast posted on Wednesday, Osteen addressed everything from aliens, his hobbies, his alleged wealth and rapper Kanye West with hosts Logan Paul and Mike Majlak. Majlak asked Osteen about the supposedly “lavish” lifestyle that Osteen lives. Osteen’s wealth, and the wealth of his church, has been the subject of much public scrutiny.
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“Where are the Bentleys, the yachts and the jets? Because this is a big place. I don’t know if there is a garage somewhere or a parking spot for the boats,” Majlak asked, gesturing around at Lakewood Church.
While social media users have speculated that Osteen’s net worth is anywhere from $40 million to $100 million, Osteen told Paul he doesn’t have any luxury cars, yachts or private jets.
“People like to make up stuff, but I don’t think I ever sat in a Ferrari, and they show me pictures of me driving Ferraris and fleets of cars,” Osteen responded. “I never respond to it.”
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“Wait, so you have no yachts?” Paul asked. “You don’t even have one jet?”
“I never owned a jet, I never owned a yacht or a fleet of cars,” Osteen said, laughing.
Osteen said that he personally drives a “12-year-old Audi sedan,” but admitted to spending money on his River Oaks home. Osteen also said he doesn’t take a salary from Lakewood Church, instead making his money from over 20 million in book sales, something the pastor said as far back as 2013.
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“I’ve been blessed with book sales and media and other things, so I don’t have to take a salary. I could work here for basically no salary, and I haven’t for most of the 26 years here,” Osteen told Paul. “People like to think it’s all about money and things like that.”
Osteen said he gives most of the money he earns back to Lakewood and asserted that he and his wife Victoria are “big givers.”
Even still, he pushed back on what he says is the idea that Christians should eschew wealth. Osteen claimed that Abraham, the Hebrew patriarch, “was one of the wealthiest men of his day.”
“My dad was taught that to be a Christian, you need to be poor. There is this mindset,” Osteen said. “But I have a different mindset. It costs $100 million to renovate this facility. I can’t do that with the mindset that you’re not supposed to have anything.”
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Rapper Kanye West performs onstage during the “Vultures 1” playback concert during Rolling Loud 2024 the at Hollywood Park Grounds on March 14, 2024 in Inglewood, California.
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Majlak later asked Osteen about his thoughts on the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. Osteen hosted Ye’s “Sunday Service” gospel tour at Lakewood in 2019. Osteen said Ye sought his advice while embarking on a “spiritual journey” and that the two met several times, including at Osteen’s home.
“He was as respectful and kind and sincere as can be,” Osteen recalled. “One of the nicest men, he came to my house and had dinner. He came to the church and did a beautiful Sunday service.”
To Osteen, that sincere person doesn’t line up with the Ye he sees today.
“What I see now and some of the things I’ve heard since then is not the Ye that I knew,” Osteen said. “I pray for him, I pray for him often, because I know his heart and I know he’s a good man and I believe that he loves God.”
“It’s just sometimes you can get a little off course,” Osteen continued as Paul and Majlak listened intently. “I don’t know where he’s at. I wish I could speak to him again.”
Osteen saying that Ye has gotten “a little off course” is just a bit of an understatement. Ye has espoused extremely antisemetic beliefs in recent years, and earlier this week, he was dropped from a UK music festival and barred from entering the country.
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Ye has blamed the numerous antisemetic statements and actions on his well-documented struggles with bipolar disorder, and has embarked on a comeback apology tour. West sold out two nights at So-Fi Stadium in Los Angeles last week in his first American concert since 2021.
Paul and Majlak threw out the idea that what Ye really needs is more spiritual guidance from Osteen.
“Maybe you guys need to reconnect,” Majlak suggested.
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“I’d love to do that. He seems like he’s in a different place,” Osteen said, gesturing to his head in an apparent reference to Ye’s mental state.
“I believe he has a heart for God and a heart to do the right thing,” Osteen said. “We all have issues but sometimes it’s stronger in people fighting some mental battles—in general, not just with him. Mental illnesses are real and they can throw you off, but I believe you can be healed and be restored.”