This page is not a sandbox and must not be used for test editing. To experiment, go to the Wikipedia Sandbox.

Look up TEST, Test, Tests, testing, or tests in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Test, TEST or Tester may refer to:

• Test (assessment), an assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities
  • Physical fitness test
  • Driving test
  • Performance test (assessment)
  • Performance test (bar exam)
• Test match (disambiguation), an international sporting contest
• River Test, a river in England
• The upper part of a four-poster bed
• Tester, a canopy over a tomb or pulpit, also known as a sounding board

Mathematics and statistics[link]

• Statistical test, a statistical procedure aiming to classify the elements of a population
• Statistical hypothesis testing, a method of making statistical decisions using experimental data, particular case of the former

Science and technology[link]

• Concept inventory, an assessment to reveal student thinking on a topic
• test (Unix), a Unix command for evaluating conditional expressions
• TEST (x86 instruction), an x86 assembly language instruction
• Software testing, the process of verifying that a software program works as expected
• Experiment, a part of the scientific method
• Test (biology), the shell of sea urchins and certain microorganisms
• Test method, a definitive procedure that produces a test result
• Chemical test, a procedure designed to prove the existence of, or to quantify, a particular substance
• Psychological testing, the use of behavioral samples to make inferences about an individual
• Physical test, a method for determining characteristics of a product
• Toxicology testing

People[link]

• Desmond Tester (1919–2002)
• John Test (1771–1849)
• Jon Tester (born 1956), junior Senator from Montana, a Democrat
• Ralph Tester, head of the Testery, a British codebreaking station at Bletchley Park
• Ruth Tester (1903–1993)
• Scan Tester (1887–1972), English folk and country musician
• William Tester (born 1960), American novelist
• Zachary Test (born 1989), American rugby union player
• Andrew Martin (1975–2009), professional wrestler who used the ring name "Test"

Media and entertainment[link]

• Tests (album), a 1998 album by The Microphones
• "Tester," a song by Anthrax on the album Stomp 442
• The Tester, a reality show produced by Sony about videogame testing
• Johnny Test, an American/Canadian animated television series

See also[link]

• Legal tests
• Lists of tests
• Quality infrastructure
• The Test (disambiguation)
• example.com

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Joel Osteen
Joel Osteen at Lakewood Church, December 8, 2007
Born	Joel Scott Osteen (1963-03-05) March 5, 1963 (age 49) Houston, Texas
Occupation	Pastor, author, televangelist
Employer	Lakewood Church
Term	1999 – present
Predecessor	John Osteen
Religion	Evangelical Charismatic
Spouse	Victoria Osteen (m. 1987) «start: (1987)»"Marriage: Victoria Osteen to Joel Osteen" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Joel_Osteen)
Children	Jonathan, Alexandra
Parents	John Osteen (father) Dolores ("Dodie") Pilgrim Osteen (mother)[1]
Website
joelosteen.com

Joel Scott Osteen (born March 5, 1963^[2]) is an American author, televangelist, and the senior pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. His ministry reaches over seven million broadcast media viewers weekly in over 100 nations around the world.^[3]

Biography[link]

Born in Houston, Texas, Osteen is one of five children of John Osteen and Dolores ("Dodie") Pilgrim. His father, a former Southern Baptist pastor, founded Lakewood Church where Osteen is the current senior pastor.^[4] Osteen married his wife, Victoria L. Iloff, on April 4, 1987.^[5] They have two children, Jonathan and Alexandra. His older siblings, Paul, Lisa, and Tamara, and his younger sister, April, are also involved in full-time ministry.^[6] His half-brother Justin does missionary work out of New York.^[7]

After 17 years producing the church's television program, Osteen succeeded his father on October 3, 1999, as pastor of Lakewood Church. He had only preached once in his life, the week before his father's death.^[7] Today, Lakewood Church services, led by Pastor Joel Osteen, are seen in over 100 nations around the world.^[8] Joel Osteen's first book, Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps to Living at Your Full Potential, was released in October 2004. In December 2006, he was named one of the year's "Ten Most Fascinating People" by Barbara Walters.^[9] Former presidential candidate John McCain has described Osteen as "inspirational".^[10]

The Lakewood Church in Houston.

Currently, Osteen and several Lakewood Church personnel travel across the nation, presenting programs in large arenas. The event, titled "A Night of Hope", includes worship music led by the church's music ministry, a sermon from Osteen and a testimony by his mother, Dodie. In 2007, the tour expanded to include stops in several other countries, including Canada, England, Northern Ireland and Israel.^[11] Osteen released his second book, titled Become a Better You: 7 Keys to Improving Your Life Every Day in October 2007, which also topped the New York Times Best Sellers List with a first printing of four million copies.^[12][13] Osteen told Larry King the new book will focus more on relationships and not getting stuck where we are in life. "Just my basic message of becoming all God's created you to be," he added.^[14]

Osteen at a Nashville book signing, 18 May 2007

Osteen's popularity led to him being featured as one of ABC News' "10 Most Fascinating People of 2006",^[15] and was named "Most Influential Christian in America" in 2006 by The Church Report.^[16] Osteen is one of five children of John Osteen and Dolores "Dodie" Pilgrim.

Education[link]

It has been widely reported that Osteen attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for a two year period without receiving a degree.^{[citation needed]} Likewise, it has been reported that he has no higher level training in religious matters or Bible studies.^{[citation needed]} In an appearance on Piers Morgan Tonight in January, 2011, Osteen mentioned that he had never attended seminary.^[17]

Preaching style[link]

On the December 23, 2007, edition of Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday brought up Osteen's lack of Scripture reference in his sermons, as well as his hesitancy to discuss sin as an integral part of life. Osteen responded: "And I am ultimately trying to do that, but I'm trying to teach people how to live their everyday lives, and so I do focus on it, probably not as much as some people would like."^[18] Osteen says that he chooses to focus on the goodness of God rather than sin.^[19] Osteen explains that he tries to teach Biblical principles in a simple way, emphasizing the power of love and a positive attitude.^[20]

Osteen's sermons and writings are sometimes reproached for their use of the concepts of prosperity theology, or the prosperity gospel, a belief that wealth and power are rewards for pious Christians.^[21]

Political and social views[link]

Osteen said that he is opposed to same-sex marriage in an interview wth Fox News.^[22] In an interview with CNN, he further said that he believes "that homosexuality is a sin".^[23][24]

In an interview on Fox News in 2008 during the U.S. Presidential primary race, when discussing whether he thought that a Mormons were Christians, Osteen indicated that he believed that they were. He further noted that he had not studied the religion.^[25]

Criticism[link]

On October 14, 2007, 60 Minutes ran a twelve minute segment on Osteen, titled "Joel Osteen Answers his Critics", during which Reformed theologian Michael Horton critiqued his message. Horton told CBS News correspondent Byron Pitts that Osteen's method of teaching is "heresy".^[26]

See also[link]

• Charismatic movement
• Christianity
• Prosperity theology
• Word Faith

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Joel Osteen Ministries