by Barry Burch Jr.
People seem to be torn on the subject of mega churches. Some believe they are a blessing from God and make sense because anyone should be able to go into the church that they feel is right for them. At the same time, there are those people who see mega churches as an undercover money taker, operated by undercover money takers.
Televangelist Joel Osteen has been in charge of his church in Houston for quite some time. He has the largest protestant congregation in the entire world. Though many would say that Osteen is a man of God that would never steal, this can no longer be said for everyone out sitting in the pughes. The Senior Pastor of Lakewood announced on Monday that more than $600,000 had been taken over the weekend from the donations that were made on Sunday, as reported by MyFoxHouston.com.
It took a while for anyone to notice the money had been taken. Around 8:30 a.m. on Monday, a church employee and off-duty Harris County Sheriff’s Officer caught a glimpse of what looked like a break-in. He was right, and according to investigators, it took place sometime between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning.
There were a variety of donations given to the church between the services that took place on March 8 and March 9 including, cash, checks and credit cards. Requests have been released by Lakewood, asking members to keep a close eye on their accounts for suspicious activity, as reported by foxnews.com.
“The funds were fully insured, and we are working with our insurance company to restore the stolen funds to the church,” read a statement from Lakewood, according to The Houston Chronicle. The church has also promised that this was not a result of problematic data, but rather a theft that was limited to donations in actual services.
Osteen, whose sermons reach almost 100 countries, attracts over 40,000 people in person to Lakewood each week.
Barry is an award-winning writer and political scientist. His business, “Barry Writes,” provides biographies, speeches, press releases and so forth to individuals and businesses in need of potent and compelling literature. Reach him @ Facebook.com/barrywrites and Twitter.com/barryburchjr