preacher; entrepreneur; writer
Personal Information
Born Thomas Dexter Jakes on June 9, 1957, in South Charleston, West Virginia; son of Ernest and Odith Jakes; married Serita Ann Jamison, 1981; five children
Education: Attended Center Business College, 1972; attended West Virginia State College, 1976; Friends University, BA, 1990, MA, 1990, Doctorate of Ministry, 1995.
Career
Held various positions in business and industry, 1976-82; Greater Emanuel Temple of Faith, pastor, 1982-93; "The Master's Plan," radio program, producer and on-air talent, 1982-85; "Bible Conference" ministry, creator and minister, 1983-; author, 1993-; T.D. Jakes Ministries, a non-profit conference and television ministry, founder and minister, 1994-; "When Shepherds Bleed" conference, founder and organizer, 1995-; Potter's House, founder and leader, 1996-.
Life's Work
When T.D. Jakes first stepped onto the pulpit, he trembled with nervousness and anxiety. Speaking in front of crowds was initially quite difficult for him due to a pronounced speech impediment. But judging from the reaction of his congregations, Jakes' preaching is very powerful, even "anointed," some would say. Jakes himself deflected attention to his spiritual gifts and well-honed abilities, saying in Christianity Today, "When a person flows into God's purpose and timing for his or her life, God can take a person with less ability and use his/her to extreme capacity, just because they are willing to be available."
Grew Up As "Bible Boy"
Born on June 9, 1957, and raised in Charleston, West Virginia, Jakes was "called" to preach at age 17. He could not have known then that his ministry would reach the entire nation and eventually effect millions of people through books, radio, television, and conferences. Jakes grew up in a community where it traditionally took a village to raise a child. Every adult in the community contributed to the children's upbringing. At an early age, he was described as opinionated, stubborn, and driven--traits that some still ascribed to the adult Jakes. He was also nicknamed "Bible Boy" due to his early habit of preaching to an imaginary congregation and always carrying his Bible to school. However, the nickname "T.D."--short for Thomas Dexter--is the one that stuck. He later gained the title "Bishop," which was conferred on him when the Higher Ground Assemblies elected him their regional prelate. (The Higher Ground Always Abounding Assembly is an association of almost 200 Pentecostal Churches.)
Jake's parents, Ernest and Odith, evidenced a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit that would later characterize their preacher son. Odith, an economics teacher, taught all three of her children to cook, sew, and clean for themselves. Ernest, a self-made businessman, was entrepreneurial long before entrepreneurs were common among blacks. Ernest developed a janitorial business from one mop and bucket to include 42 employees who cleaned everything in the Charleston area--from the West Virginia Capitol building to grocery stores. This entrepreneurial drive left a mark on young Jakes, who delivered newspapers, Avon, and even products from his mother's garden.
Although working full-time at a chemical plant job with Union Carbide, Jakes was also involved as the part-time music director at the Baptist Church where he grew up and as a part-time street evangelist. When the Charleston-area chemical plant closed in 1982, and his father died of kidney disease, Jakes devoted all his time to his ministry as an evangelist and church-planter in the Charleston area.
Began a Church from Scratch
His first storefront church, Greater Emanuel Temple of Faith, had ten members in 1980. In a few short years that church grew enormously. Just as importantly, it transcended racial lines bringing together an integrated congregation and overcoming the diverse elements that traditionally divided the community.
In 1990 Jakes moved from Smithers to South Charleston, West Virginia, where his congregation grew from 100 to more than 300 members. And in 1993 he moved his Temple of Faith ministry to a renovated bank in Cross Lanes, West Virginia. There his congregation grew to more than 1,100 people of all races, including an unprecedented 40 percent Caucasian membership. In 1994 he established "T.D. Jakes Ministries," a non-profit organization that produced his nation-wide television and conference ministry. From 1995 to 1996, he hosted the nationally-syndicated weekly radio and television show, Get Ready, attended by millions of listeners and viewers throughout the United States and South Africa.
In May of 1996 Jakes' ministry grew once again when he and his wife, Serita, took their five children and 50-member staff to Dallas, Texas. There Jakes founded the Potter's House, a multi-racial, non-denominational megachurch, which grew from 7,000 worshipers to 14,000 in two years. Potter's House featured a 5,000-seat auditorium, enough space for its worship services, but its 34-acre hilltop campus in southwest Dallas seemed to be running out of space to house its multi-faceted ministries.
The hallmark of Jakes' ministry has been a deep spiritual healing with life-changing effects. He has described himself as a "spiritual physician," one who "has discovered some medicine in the Word of God.... As the physician, I am careful to always acknowledge that I am not the cure, but that I have been able to facilitate the cure because Jesus Christ lives in me."
Local civic leadership honored Jakes for his ministry to the greater Dallas/Fort Worth Metro Area by giving him and his wife the prestigious "Key to the City" in February of 1997. Jakes' ministry has engaged the community with various outreaches to needy people: including, the Raven's Refuge, a homeless ministry; Operation Rahab, an outreach to prostitutes; a G.E.D. tutoring and literacy program; Vessels of Clay and Ladies Choice, mentoring and job-training programs; S.A.L.T., a youth ministry program; Transformation Ministry, a ministry to drug and alcohol abusers; and weight-loss programs based on faith and his cookbook, Lay Aside the Weight.
Became a Best-Selling Author
Since the 1990s, Jakes has become a prodigious and popular author, cranking out 27 nonfiction books, six of which appeared on the national religious best sellers list, and one venture into fiction with the novel Cover Girls. Altogether, his books have sold well over one million copies since 1993. That distinction placed him among the most accomplished African-American authors in history.
His most popular book, Woman, Thou Art Loosed, sold more than 800,000 copies by 1996, making it the third best-selling religious book. The success of the book catapulted Jakes into a national conference ministry with its healing message. More than 18,000 women, mostly blacks, attended a 3-day event in Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg, Florida. The book Woman, Thou Art Loosed was adapted into a musical recording by Integrity Music, which received the Gospel Music Association's coveted Dove Award and was nominated for a Grammy in 1997.
Besides his most popular "Thou Art Loosed" conference for women, Jakes has also sponsored a variety of seminars, including the "When Shepherds Bleed" summit for pastors and their spouses, the "Manpower" series just for men, as well as "The Bible Conference" (first held at Greater Temple of Faith for 880 attendees in 1983, when it was called "Back to the Bible").
Numerous other books by Jakes have risen to the number one spot on various book lists, including the prestigious New York Times Bestseller List. His most recent book to top this list, God's Leading Lady, is yet another in a long line of non-fiction books intended to assist women in gaining confidence in themselves through belief in religion. Jakes told Publishers Weekly, "I wanted to provide women with tools to fortify themselves spiritually as they embark on new territories, whether in their public or private lives. This book focuses on the tremendous opportunities that are available to women today, and helps them to maximize those opportunities and live life to its fullest."
Greatly Expanded Ministry With Media
Since 1999 Jakes has continued to expand the reach of Potter's House through media. He launched a state-by state campaign for business and individuals to Adopt a Prison, allowing religious programming to be beamed into prisons via satellite. He also created the Prison Satellite Network, which allowed convicts to witness live conferences and receive bible study and church service directly from people outside of the prison system.
Continuing on the success of the musical adaptation of "Woman, Thou Art Loosed," Jakes produced Sacred Love Songs, an album that found many fans in the Gospel genre and was named the top Gospel Album of the year by Billboard magazine in 1999. A third album, The Storm is Over followed in 2001 with a new company founded by Jakes in collaboration with EMI Gospel, Dexterity Sounds. The Storm is Over received not only Dove and Grammy award nominations, but also NAACP Image and Stellar Gospel awards for Best Gospel Album in the Contemporary genre. In 2002 Jakes continued to produce music with Potter's House and other companies including an album of music inspired by his book God's Leading Ladies, and an album of Christmas songs entitled Follow the Star.
In addition to music, Jakes has also turned to the stage and screen to spread his message. 1999 saw the first theatrical staging of Woman, Thou Art Loosed, which quickly garnered the top Gospel Play Honors. A year later, he co-wrote Behind Closed Doors, which was produced by Touchdown Concepts, and like Women, Thou Art Loosed, was praised with Gospel Play Honors. By 2001 a televised version of Woman, Thou Art Loosed was broadcast into a billion homes around the world, bringing even the most remote of locations into the media web which Jakes had spun.
Blessed to Be a Blessing
When asked how he would define the rapid growth of his ministry Jakes said, "My assignment is to open the door of the Church for hurting people and refocus what the Church was meant to be in our society. The Church has become stereotyped as a 'spiritual club' for elitists and yuppies who portray themselves as persons who 'have arrived.' I believe the Church was meant to be a hospital for hurting people."
Despite his obvious success, or maybe because of it, the ministry of T.D. Jakes has not been universally accepted or appreciated. The Gazette criticized him for profiting from his revival/seminar ministry, leading the reader to infer that he was only in it for the money. Calculating $20 per person for the Tampa engagement, the Gazette noted "that's $360,000 for three days' work--more than Jakes might have earned in a lifetime at his chemical plant job." Such riches have allowed Jakes to buy a million-dollar mansion. As Jakes told Christianity Today, "I don't live in a mobile home. There's nothing wrong with being blessed and successful."
While he seemed abundantly blessed with the grace to sit on many different platforms, there were some people in the evangelical community who would not sit with him for either racial or doctrinal issues. Yet Jakes remained undaunted in his hope for the church, "As we come into healing and restoration, I would like to see the church rise up undaunted and be uncompromising in terms of our loyalty and covenant with one another."
Message Spoke of Human Needs
Jakes has delivered his message from the pulpit with Pentecostal fervor and poetic lyrics (e.g., "stop merely looking to the White house, and start turning back to the Church House"). His fervent messages typically focus on the restoration, reconciliation, and healing of hurting people. Contemporary illustrations, Bible stories, soulful praise, and joyful dancing are also common to his worship services.
His message of healing and restoration remained in demand by clergy and laity alike, and transcended every cultural and denominational barrier. According to Ken Walker of Charisma magazine, Jakes' message "is about God's supernatural ability, bestowed by a Lord who is color-blind and cares about each person.... He [Jakes] delivers the Word in such a lightening-rod fashion that he makes you believe that all things really are possible with God."
T. D. Jakes has earned renown for his deep commitment to bringing wholeness to men and woman. Compassionate in his understanding of human nature, Jakes sensed and has spoken to the basic human need for fulfillment and destiny. With the energy and drive of 50 men, Jakes has catapulted into the mainstream of speaking conferences and book sales nationwide. He met speaking engagements almost every day--often twice a day--to packed auditoriums and convention centers. His ability to captivate large audiences and hold their attention has been considered to be his distinctive speaking gift.
Though a black charismatic figure with Pentecostal theology, Jakes has been admired by people of all colors and most denominations. Many have long regarded him as a pastor to pastors and as a true father to the fatherless. His insights, many borrowed from his own life of peaks and valleys, have stirred within most readers, listeners, and viewers of his ministry a strong desire to fulfill their destiny, believing that "all things are possible with God."
Awards
Selected: Gospel Heritage Award for Ministry, 1996; Stellar Foundation Excellence Award, 1996; "Key to the City of Dallas" for his homeless ministry, Raven's Refuge, 1997; Gospel Music Association's Dove Seal for "Woman, Thou Art Loosed: The Songs of Healing and Deliverance," 1997; Grammy Award and Dove Award nomination for Live at the Potter House, 1999; Living Legend Award, National Professional Network, 2000; Named "America's Best Preacher," CNN and Time, 2001; Chairman's Award, National Religious Broadcasters, 2002; Grammy and Dove Award nominations and Stellar and NAACP Image Awards for The Storm Is Over, 2002.
Works
Selected writings
- Woman, Thou Art Loosed, Treasure House, 1993.
- Can You Stand to Be Blessed? Destiny Image, 1995.
- Help Me, I've Fallen, Pneuma Life, 1995.
- Harvest, Pneuma Life, 1995.
- Naked and Not Ashamed, Treasure House, 1995.
- Loose That Man And Let Him Go, Albury Pub, 1995.
- Daddy Loves His Girls, Creation House, 1996.
- Help! I'm Raising My Children Alone, Creation House, 1996.
- When Shepherds Bleed, Pnuema Life, 1997.
- Lay Aside the Weight, Albury Pub, 1997.
- The Lady, Her Lover and Her Lord, Putnam, 1998.
- His Lady, Penguin/Putnam, 1999.
- Maximize The Moment, Penguin/Putnam, 2000
- The Great Investment, Penguin/Putnam, 2001.
- God's Leading Lady, Penguin/Putnam, 2002.
- Cover Girls, Warner Faith, 2003.
Further Reading
Books
- Melton, Lucas, and Stone Melton, Prime-Time Religion, Oryx Press, 1997.
Periodicals- Christianity Today, January 12, 1998, p. 56.
- Ebony, October 2002, pp. 24-5.
- Economist, May 31, 1997, p. 28.
- Essence, August 2003, p. 116.
- Publishers Weekly, May 6, 2002, p. 54-5.
On-line- "Bishop T.D. Jakes-Published Works," The Potter's House, www.thepotterhouse.org/BJ_published.html (October 13, 2003).
- "Bishop T.D. Jakes-Selected Honors," The Potter's House, www.thepotterhouse.org/BJ_honors.html (October 13, 2003).
- "Bishop T.D. Jakes-Timeline," The Potter's House, www.thepotterhouse.org/BJ_timeline.html (October 13, 2003).
- The News-Gazette Online, www.news-gazette.com (October 13, 2003).
- The Potter's Touch-T.D. Jakes Ministries, www.tdjakes.org (October 13, 2003).
— Dietrich Gruen and Ralph G. Zerbonia
