T.D. Jakes Announces He’s Stepping Aside as Lead Pastor at The Potter’s House
Bishop T.D. Jakes, the founder and longtime leader of The Potter’s House megachurch in Dallas, announced on Sunday that he is stepping aside as senior pastor. He named his daughter, Sarah Jakes Roberts, and her husband, Pastor Touré Roberts, as his successors.
The announcement comes nearly six months after Jakes suffered a health incident during a sermon, which he later described as a “massive heart attack.”
“I have seen too many men build something and stay so long that they kill what they built,” Jakes told the congregation during the Sunday service. “I cannot afford, especially after November, to risk something happening to me and you be sheep without a shepherd.”
Jakes, 67, founded The Potter’s House in 1996. Under his leadership, the church has grown to over 30,000 members, with campuses in Dallas, Fort Worth, North Dallas, and Denver.
He will remain on the church’s board of directors and continue to lead the T.D. Jakes Group, which includes his real estate ventures, foundation, and social impact initiatives.
Sarah Jakes Roberts, who has been involved in ministry for several years, expressed gratitude during the service. “I believe that, collectively, we can turn this city upside down and right side up,” she said.”
The leadership transition is expected to take effect in July.
