Td jakes ministry biography templates

Entrepreneur, Pentecostal preacher, author

Grew Up As “Bible Boy.”

Began a Church from Scratch

Became a Best-Selling Author

Greatly Expanded Ministry With Media

Blessed to Be a Blessing

Message Spoke of Human Needs

Selected writings

Sources

When T.D. Jakes first stepped into 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

Felisha Ford

Dean & Interim President

Email: fford@jakesdivinity.org

A distinguished educator, life strategist, mentor, author, and speaker, Dr. Felisha Ford is a native of Montgomery, AL. She currently resides in Grapevine, Texas with her husband, Bishop Demetrius Ford and their two sons.

She holds postsecondary degrees in counseling and psychology from Alabama A&M University (Bachelor of Arts), Troy University (Master of Arts), and Capella University (Doctor of Philosophy).

Dr. Ford’s professional career includes nearly 20 years of experience as a higher education administrator. She is currently serving as Dean/Interim President at Jakes Divinity School. She is well-versed in guiding students along the path of academic achievement and personal and career development. She has also effectively led teams in the development, execution, and assessment of strategic plans and student success initiatives to increase persistence, retention, and completion rates. Her work ethic embodies professionalism, excellence, quality, productivity, and accountability.

Even though Dr. Ford esteems educational and professional opportunities as blessings from God, she realizes that there is a much higher calling and opportunity that God presents to us in life and that is to serve Him and others and to be obedient to His divine calling. In the execution of her obedience to God and through the leading and empowerment of the Holy Spirit, Dr. Ford has been fulfilling her divine call in ministry in various capacities including becoming licensed as a minister (1999) and ordained as an elder (2001); co-founding and co-pastoring a church for 12 years alongside her husband; and empowering women and serving her community through her Women of Excellence ministry for over a decade which has included empowerment and mentoring sessions, annual conferences, outreach efforts, and scholarships.

Dr. Ford has enjoyed sharing the life-changing message of Jesus Christ a

This article first appeared in the Christian Research Journal, volume 22, number 2 (1999). For further information about the Christian Research Journal go to: http://www.equip.org

SYNOPSIS

The appeal of T.D. Jakes crosses racial, cultural, and economic lines. He boldly addresses deep-felt needs in the American population that are either neglected or avoided by many churches. His charismatic style has drawn as many as 85,000 people to his conferences dealing with women’s and men’s issues. Many people see Jakes as a compassionate man who understands their deepest problems. He is able to get to the core issues of pain people experience from abuse, whether emotional, physical, or sexual in nature. He not only addresses these issues but gives people ways to deal with their pain and move on with their lives. In addition, he has transferred this knowledge into several best-selling books. Another aspect of Jakes’s ministry is the Potter’s House in Dallas, a multiracial, nondenominational church with 17,000 members. The church has developed ministries that address many issues ranging from homelessness to mentoring young people.

Jesus commands us not to judge externally but to judge rightly (John 7:24). T.D. Jakes appeals to people externally by addressing their physical and emotional needs. At the same time, many people are asking for help in discerning the right and wrong in his teachings. Several aspects of Jakes’s teaching are problematic. For example, he emphasizes the issue of victimization without also emphasizing our sin problem and need for a Savior. He teachings and endorses Word of Faith concepts relating to guaranteed health and wealth. Although he claims to believe in the Trinity, the major problem with T. D. Jakes’s teaching centers on Trinitarian theology, which he defines in modalistic or Oneness Pentecostal terms (i.e., there is one God who exists in three mani

Thomas Dexter "T. D." Jakes Sr. (born June 9, 1957) is an American entrepreneur and chief pastor of the The Potter's House, a 30,000 member church in Dallas, Texas. It is a non-denominational megachurch.

His church services and evangelistic sermons are broadcast on The Potter's Touch, which airs on the Trinity Broadcasting Network, Black Entertainment Television and The Word Network. Other aspects of Jakes' ministry include an annual revival called "MegaFest" (which draws more than 100,000 people during that period of time), an annual women's conference called "Woman Thou Art Loosed", and gospel music recordings. He is also connected to Mt. Gilead Full Gospel International Ministries in Richmond, Virginia.

In the fall of 2009, Jakes plan on launching a secular daily talk show, syndicated through the CBS Television Distribution group; however, economic troubles in the industry may put his new program into jeopardy.

On January 20, 2009, Jakes led the early morning prayer service for President-elect Barack Obama at St. John's Church in Washington, DC, according to NBC News.

Early Life and History

Thomas Dexter June 9, 1957 in South Charleston, West Virginia to Ernest Jakes, Sr., a janitor and entrepreneur , and Odith, an educator. Even as a child he was known in his West Virginian neighborhood as "the Bad Bible boy." He was also told he would never be able to preach because of his "bad" lisp. Shortly after his father's death from kidney failure, Jakes decided to go into ministry. In 1979, with very little funds of his own and with only ten initial members, he founded Greater Emmanuel Temple of Faith as a storefront church in Montgomery, West Virginia. Jakes maintained his day job digging ditches in order to support his ministry until the church was able to support him. During its first 10 years, the church grew to over 1,000 members. In 1982, Jakes turned to full-time ministry.

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