Megachurch Bishop T.D. Jakes Reveals He Underwent Emergency Surgery After Health Incident: 'You're Looking at a Miracle'

Mar. 15, 2025

Bishop T.D. Jakes attends the 9th Annual HOPE Global Forums on Dec. 13, 2022 in Atlanta.

Christian pastor and motivational speakerT.D. Jakesis sharing a health update after experiencing what he described as a"life-threatening" incidentduring a Sunday sermon last week.

While speaking onstage at his churchThe Potter’s House of Dallason Nov. 24, Jakes, 67, was seen lowering his microphone and looking downward before seemingly convulsing.

Several people crowded around to assist him before the church’s livestream cut out.

On Sunday, Dec. 1, Jakes returned in a virtual appearance to address the congregation during the church’s latest livestreamed service.

“I’m so delighted to see you. I’m grateful for God’s faithfulness. I’m grateful for your faithfulness. I’m grateful for this season in my life,” he began his message, according to video of it later shared onYouTube. “I told you last Sunday that I’d see you this Sunday, and so here I am.”

T.D. Jakes in February 2024.Paras Griffin/Getty

Paras Griffin/Getty

He went on to address the Nov. 24 incident, saying, “I am grateful to God for his goodness and his mercy and his grace. Many of you don’t realize that you’re looking at a miracle. I faced a life-threatening calamity. I was rushed to the ICU unit. I had emergency surgery.”

Jakes said that his doctor wants him to “go slow” but declared himself “back.”

He also noted that he had just gotten a “complete physical” prior to his health scare and was told that he “was fine.”

“The truth of the matter is sometimes things happen and they’re beyond our control. And sometimes things happen in this spiritual warfare,” Jakes said. “I haven’t deduced the finality of all of that, but what I do know is greater is he that is in us and he does endure.”

He explained that he was listening to his medical team and “taking a few weeks to just heal and recover and relax and just reflect.”

Ultimately, Jakes said that he “feels good” and is in “no pain.”

The bishop went on to describe what was going through his mind at the time of the incident. He said he experienced “the feeling of being cradled. It was quiet and it was peaceful, and I was cradled.”

Bishop T.D. Jakes in 2023.Jarrod Williams/Getty

Jarrod Williams/Getty

Jakes called his recovery a “miracle” and said that “a person down the hallway was being taken to the morgue” at the same time he was released from the hospital.

Before turning the sermon back over to the Potter’s House team, Jakes thanked his loved ones, his supporters and his church for their support.

“I need you to help me to praise God that we’re not planning a funeral,” he said.

Jakes previously gave an update on his health on Nov. 27, writing in part onsocial media: “Together, we press forward, steadfast in the work the Lord has set before us. I’ve heard from friends from the global community who expressed God’s love in ways that were astonishing!”

In that post, he expressed that he was thankful that his health episode was not a stroke.

“It didn’t have to turn out this way,” he said. “I’m just grateful. I’m not afraid to die. I don’t want to hurt my kids and the people who love me. My church who needs me, the world who called, the God who sent me. Sometimes you just gotta be grateful.”

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Astatementon Jakes' official social media on Nov. 24 said that the bishop was “stable” and “under the care of medical professionals” after experiencing “a slight health incident” during the livestreamed sermon earlier that day.

“The entire Potter’s House family is grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers and support from the community. Thank you for your understanding and continued prayers,” the statement added.

Jakes founded the non-denominational, multicultural church back in 1996, per itswebsite. It has 30,000 members and operates as a nonprofit organization based in southern Dallas.

source: people.com