Joel and Victoria Osteen, co-pastors of Lakewood Church, told their congregation during services Sunday that their strong faith served as a refuge and an inspiration for dealing with the legal troubles of the past two years.
Victoria Osteen, sued by a Continental Airlines flight attendant for allegedly assaulting her during the boarding process of a flight to Colorado back in December 2005, said it was her spiritual strength that enabled her to get past what she described as shame and humiliation. Last week the Harris County jury in Texas found favor on her with some jurors commenting that the incident was so minor and should not have led to litigation. ``When I came here that first Sunday after that happened, I was embarrassed. I was ashamed,'' Victoria Osteen said. ``I'll probably never speak of this again, but if it can help anyone, then that's worth it. If I had to go through this, I just want it to increase your faith. If I just share my heart with you, and I hope you can hear my heart.'' Victoria Osteen explained that the first weeks after the incident was especially difficult. Media reports were widely circulated with public criticism coming from all corners whether it was justified or not, for her role in it. ``The truth is, I didn't want to come back (to preaching),'' she said. ``The truth is, I wanted to stay home. I wanted to forget it. I thought: `You know what, God, maybe you are trying to tell me this isn't what I'm supposed to do. Maybe you're trying to tell me I need to sit home.' You see, the enemy wants to devalue you, to humiliate you, to embarrass you. ``I'd go into a restaurant, and I felt like people would turn around and look at me and they would be thinking all this stuff. You know a lot of it was in my mind. The truth is a lot of it was (internal) battles that I had to face and I had to overcome.'' Victoria Osteen was hit with a $3,000 fine from the Federal Aviation Administration for interfering with a crew member. She and her husband thought the fine was unjustified but paid anyway, saying they hoped that would be the end of the matter. Then the flight attendant, Sharon Brown, sued her, claiming the alleged assault caused medical and emotional injuries. ``Believe you have a purpose and that God has a destiny for you,'' she said. ``Everything that's going on in your life that's trying to pull you down is a distraction, and that distraction is not sent from God. That distraction was intended to stop you. It was intended to make you not go on and do the things God has placed in your heart, not take hold of the opportunities
| Published in : The News, Ministry News |
| Keywords : News, Ministry News, Osteen Wins, Thanks Supporters, Victoria Osteen, trial, Joel OSteen, Sharon Brown, faith, legal, court |
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