Lakewood Church

Lakewood Church
Worship in 2013
Lakewood Church
Location Houston, Texas
Country United States
DenominationBoth Pentecostal
(since 1979) and
Word of Faith (since 1999)
Previous denominationBaptist
(from 1959 until 1961)
Non-denominational Christianity
(from 1961 until 1979)
Weekly attendance45,000
Websitewww.lakewoodchurch.com
History
FoundedMay 10, 1959 (1959-05-10)
Founder(s)John Osteen and Dolores Osteen
Specifications
Capacity16,800
Clergy
Senior pastorJohn Osteen
and Dolores Osteen
(from 1959 until 1961)
Marvin Crow
(from 1961 until 1969)
John Osteen
and Dolores Osteen
(second time;
from 1969 until 1999)
Joel Osteen and
Victoria Osteen (née Iloff)
(since 1999)
Pastor(s)Nick Nilson, Dr. Paul Osteen, Craig Johnson, Lisa Osteen Comes

Lakewood Church is an evangelical Pentecostal and Word of Faith megachurch located in Houston, Texas. It was formerly a Baptist church from 1959 until 1961, and a non-denominational Christian church from 1961 to 1979. It is among the largest congregations in the United States, averaging about 45,000 attendees per week. The 16,800-seat Lakewood Church building, home to four English-language services and two Spanish-language services per week, is located at the former Compaq Center. Joel Osteen is the senior pastor of Lakewood Church with his wife, Victoria, who serves as co-pastor.

It has 368 staff members.