An Open Letter to Bishop T.D. Jakes

An Open Letter to Bishop T.D. Jakes:

I come to you, I address you, and I both direct and pose my concerns to you because you are THE BEST.  I haven’t seen any like you in my days and time, so that is all that I have to draw my conclusion on.  You are indeed like Paul, you have and can become all things to all people – the high-browed you can stand toe-to-toe with and you can get gutter and lower yourself down to the lowest level to reach those who have fallen off the grid of society.  My most pressing concern stems from a program that I watched yesterday of one of your sermons via the tube and your topic was “Run for your Destiny”.  While watching the prelude to the sermon and hearing the title I became excited because I am in the fight for my own life – all while being blessed; and I was searching for a word of encouragement to bolster my waning resolve.  You usually give me that Balm of Gilead salve right off the bat but I kept finding myself struggling to connect fully in the spirit with what you were saying.  Maybe it was me or maybe it wasn't intended for me just yet to receive or could it be that it didn't find a spot to resonate within because the sermon lacked the full power - Perhaps…   

My issue is that I was looking to be encouraged when all you were giving was motivation.  And motivation has its place but the root thereof should be founded in the strength and word of God but I felt more like your words of either encouragement or motivationally speaking were lacking testimonial truth – the grit and fortitude needed to inspire a person struggling to hold on despite what everything around us looks like.  Your words were “Run to your destiny” and what really stuck in my craw was we have to be “prepared”.  Can the blessings of God really be prepared for in that manner?  Some are running but running and running in circles is two different things.

I don’t want to say that you are a liar or call you out onto the carpet but I would be willing to argue that never in a lifetime did you ever think that you would be the man that you are today; well-known, well-traveled, well-versed in the word of God; and well-blessed beyond what you could have ever imagined or were able to think of.  You had to have your mind-blown away to one day see where God had brought you from.  With all your planning and preparing, if God hadn't opened the door you would still be on the outside looking in.  You have taught the masses how to be Mega… Now can we be taught the Meta - That which goes beyond the ordinary?

Faith is needed in good and bad times.  My life is blessed but I still find myself suffering from depression.  I have been running and I have been for my life, however, God hasn’t said what my next move is and I have to learn how to give praise even when I haven’t a clue as to what God is doing.  We do not always know what God is doing in our lives or what will be produced out of our lives.  God is often silent but it takes knowing his character through perseverance that we learn to trust him throughout all aspects of our lives and it could quite possibly be my interpretation only but that is what the sermon lacked – the providence of God and that our complete focus must be on him – that is what gives purpose to the running.  Sure there are people who came to this earth and passed by our way and did great exploits and they may have found themselves miserable, suicidal or even in a worse state by leaving this earth and not accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. 

Yes… We do the lifting up of his name and word and he does the drawing but the line needs to be linear as came be by the Preachers of God’s word and you left me with a spirit of my own interpretation left to be determined at a later date, in essence - Lost.  Lost because I needed a connection between the waiting period and the destiny and a simple slogan of “running” just isn't going to cut it.  How can a person run after something that they haven’t a true clue what it is or what it looks like?  God is the only one that can give the revelation.  Question: Run after the destiny or run after the God of the destiny to ensure that the destiny is found?

We need a spirit of revival and because you are one of, if not the greatest influential Pastor of our day and time, people tend to follow where you lead. 

The world is hurting, the church is despondent and money is not the cure-all, even though that is the perception nowadays.  People were able to hold-on longer when they knew to trust in God and all his ways acknowledge him but there has been a shift in the atmospheric over-all resolve of the church/saints. 

People need to know that “Sometimes life is about risking everything for a dream no one can see but them”.  The only way that they hear is by a preacher and even though we have more preachers on this planet than ever before, the quality of life has depreciated because no one believes that the word works any longer. 

Solution you ask? One comes to the top of the list that constantly runs across my mind and that is we need a Preachers revival.  I understand your need to want to grow up leaders and pastors but the type of revival I am talking about is a return to scripture in depth and allowing this to trickle down amongst the congregations of the world and you can start the process. 

Pastors are in this world and therefore some of the world has had to rub off of them and they find themselves in cliques.  The greater good and the common goal are to work in tandem for the soul-saving work of the Father.  Political lines need to be crossed in our government and the same goes for the government of the Father in Heaven.  Beefs between Pastors need to be squashed and folk need to cross over the pew-aisles and come together in one accord to reach a lost and dying world that we can help save by spreading the gospel. 

There is a need for a conference with as many influential and non-influential pastors that can be gathered and this might have to be done several times over in order to reach as many pastors as possible.  And the ones that cannot afford the travel need to be sponsored by others that can and they be assembled with one goal and that is to raise the enthusiasm of how good and faithful our God is.

The blessing isn't in the end result of the promise but all that transpired in between the announcement of the promise and it coming to fruition which is what is cultivated through walking with God. 

Many have lost the will to take God at his word and trust can only be bonded when a person learns the character of God and not only what God can give them.  The best blessing of all is the unfailing characteristic that God is faithful no matter what. 

The elephant in the room is the fact that the world has infiltrated the church and its believers so-much-so that the church herself has lost its way but it takes the great ones to leave a legacy that they did all they could to make a difference for their God sake.  Are you that man?  Can you initiate the change of the tides that is greatly needed – for God’s sake?

I pray that these words fall on good ground and that you can see that they are spoken out of love for you as a Minister of God’s word AND for his people.  The work of the Pastor, which is the work of the Lord, is the hardest and the most rewarding all at the same time.  I pray the strength of the Lord in you to be the Rock, The chief corner stone of the Lord’s rebuilding of his temple in the earth and in his people.  It is in Jesus name I both ask and pray.  Amen!