Exceptional You! by Victoria Osteen

This is a very encouraging book. Osteen shares seven practices she does to keep her moving in her exceptional self. When applied, she says, these practices will keep us encouraged, empowered, and inspired along the way. She includes Bible stories and personal stories to illustrate the practices.

I like her practices. They are firmly rooted in the Bible and are very positive. Osteen begins with our affirming we a chosen by God. He knows us, all of us, and loves us. That is a good practice for battling those thoughts of not being loved or not being good enough. Osteen also reminds us that God has plans for us. We have potential but we must say “yes” to what God has for us.

I like Osteen's emphasis on our thoughts. We need to pay attention to them and learn how to encourage ourselves. We cannot rely on someone else. We must also know where we are to focus our thoughts, reminding ourselves of God's blessings and the good memories we have.

I like Osteen's call to positive action. One of her practices is to be sure to bless a person every day. And a practice that surprised me was to appreciate what we have right now. Sometimes we are so focused on what we are expecting God to do in our lives we miss what He is doing right now.

This is an encouraging book for women in general. It might appeal more to upper middle class women since Osteen includes stories of successful and wealthy people. Women in lower economic situations might be a bit intimidated.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Victoria Osteen is the co-pastor of Lakewood Church, the New York Times bestselling author of Love Your Life, and the host of a national weekly radio program, Victoria Osteen Live, on Sirius XM's Joel Osteen Radio. She is an integral part of each service at Lakewood as well as the “Night of Hope” events across the United States and abroad. She lives with her family in Houston, Texas. Photo credit: Eric Forsythe.

FaithWords, 240 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.