Bishop T.D. Jakes is a renowned American non-denominational Christian pastor, motivational speaker, and entrepreneur. Born in 1957, he grew up in a strong community and began his ministry in 1979. He founded The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, which has grown to over 30,000 members. Jakes has authored over twenty books and has been recognized for his community service, including being named one of the “Top 20 Worship Leaders” by The Church Report magazine. He has also hosted television shows and has been featured in various media outlets, including Time and Savoy magazines. Jakes is known for his leadership and community service, and has been involved in high-profile events, including accompanying President George W. Bush on a visit to areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

T.D. Jakes Quotes

1. “When people walk away from you, let them go. Your destiny is never tied to anyone who leaves you, and it doesn’t mean they are bad people. It just means that their part in your story is over.”
— T.D. Jakes

2. “Excellence requires discomfort.”
— T.D. Jakes

3. “If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose.”
— T.D. Jakes

4. “Your words will tell others what you think. Your actions will tell them what you believe.”
— T.D. Jakes

5. “Never make a permanent decision based on a temporary storm.. No matter how raging the billows are today, remind yourself: “This too shall pass!””
— T.D. Jakes

6. “You cannot embrace your destiny if you do not let go of your history.”
— T.D. Jakes

7. “If you think down, you will go down. If you think up, you will go up. You’ll always travel in the direction of your thinking.”
— T.D. Jakes

8. “Too many people want the appearance of winning rather than the practices and hard work that create a true champion.”
— T.D. Jakes

9. “Face the giants in your life, slay them, and move on. Do not be daunted by the mistakes and failures in your life.”
— T.D. Jakes

10. “Surround yourself with people whose definition of you is not based on your history, but your destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

11. “Come hell or high water you will never take me back to the place I was before. I have been through too much to let life whoop me again. My faith is stronger than it’s ever been, my mind is more tenacious than it’s ever been, my soul is more absolute.”
— T.D. Jakes

12. “Being angry is human. Staying angry is foolish.”
— T.D. Jakes

13. “There is no room for God in a mind that’s full of self.”
— T.D. Jakes

14. “The most dangerous thing in the world is to have no purpose.”
— T.D. Jakes

15. “I found out that the things that hurt us the most can become the fuel and the catalyst that propel us toward our destiny. It will either make you bitter or it will make you better.”
— T.D. Jakes

16. “When you begin to realize that your past does not necessarily dictate the outcome of your future, then you can release the hurt. It is impossible to inhale new air until you exhale the old.”
— T.D. Jakes

17. “Some of the best people with whom you can have a relationship are the people who challenge your thinking.”
— T.D. Jakes

18. “Don’t allow your past or present condition to control you. It’s just a process that you’re going through to get you to the next level.”
— T.D. Jakes

19. “Each day is God’s gift to you. What you do with it is your gift to Him.”
— T.D. Jakes

20. “God has invested entirely too much in you for you to be comfortable in anything less than you were created to be.”
— T.D. Jakes

21. “The enemy doesn’t care how many days you live as long as you don’t live in the days you have.”
— T.D. Jakes

22. “If you have achieved any level of success, then pour it into someone else. Success is not success without a successor.”
— T.D. Jakes

23. “We think that forgiveness is weakness, but it’s absolutely not; it takes a very strong person to forgive.”
— T.D. Jakes

24. “We have a tendency to want the other person to be a finished product while we give ourselves the grace to evolve.”
— T.D. Jakes

25. “Never make a permanent decision about a temporary situation.”
— T.D. Jakes

26. “Forgiveness is about empowering yourself, rather than empowering your past.”
— T.D. Jakes

27. “No woman wants to be in submission to a man who isn’t in submission to God!”
— T.D. Jakes

28. “Its not over, until the Lord says its over.”
— T.D. Jakes

29. “We are the people that we have been waiting for and no one else is coming.”
— T.D. Jakes

30. “Sometimes what makes us insecure and vulnerable becomes the fuel we need to be overachievers. The antidote for a snakebite is made from the poison, and the thing that made you go backward is the same force that will push you forward.”
— T.D. Jakes

31. “You’d be surprised at the things that look great on the outside but are dysfunctional on the inside. Be sure to function as good as you look”
— T.D. Jakes

32. “Destiny is not for comfort seekers. Destiny is for the daring and determined who are willing to endure some discomfort, delay gratification, and go where Destiny leads.”
— T.D. Jakes

33. “Blame unto others only as you would first blame yourself.”
— T.D. Jakes

34. “When you hold on to your history, you do so at the expense of your destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

35. “Be strong enough to stand up again, even after haters make you drop to your knees.”
— T.D. Jakes

36. “If you can dream it, you can achieve it. The secret to recapturing dreams is to enjoy the pursuit of the dream, rather than to focus on the outcome.”
— T.D. Jakes

37. “Never settle for less than God’s best for your life.”
— T.D. Jakes

38. “If you don’t invest in you, you’ll soon find that no one else will, either.”
— T.D. Jakes

39. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and your intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
— T.D. Jakes

40. “Nobody likes hard times, but it’s the unpleasant experiences that are often the catalysts to build the character required for our destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

41. “To fulfill your purpose, you must first know and celebrate your identity!”
— T.D. Jakes

42. “But you cannot go through the Door of Destiny without passing through the Hall of Haters.”
— T.D. Jakes

43. “God’s response is simple. Anything that is made well is made slowly.”
— T.D. Jakes

44. “I’d rather you waste my money than waste my time.”
— T.D. Jakes

45. “Accept the process. Your blessing is already ready. It’s already done. God is getting you ready for the blessing, preparing you for your destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

46. “We may not like to admit it, but what if our crushing is necessary in order for our potential to be fulfilled?”
— T.D. Jakes

47. “What are you going to do with what you have been given?”
— T.D. Jakes

48. “Greatness inspires greatness. Creativity inspires creativity. When you align yourself with people who inspire you and help draw out the best in you, you find your best self.”
— T.D. Jakes

49. “The fact that you yearn for more doesn’t mean you’re ungrateful for what you have or that you’re greedy. It means you have a higher calling. The yearning inside calls you.”
— T.D. Jakes

50. “Just because people love your gift doesn’t mean they love you. Most of them will never really know you. Most of them don’t care about you. They just want your gift. And it’s okay to share your gift. It’s a good thing to serve your gift to people or in places that may benefit from it.”

— T.D. Jakes
51. “Jealousy is the manifestation of insecurity and dissatisfaction with one’s calling and self-worth.”
— T.D. Jakes

52. “Silence isn’t golden and it surely doesn’t mean consent, so start practicing the art of communication.”
— T.D. Jakes

53. “When you stop relying on others or blaming others or waiting on others to go kill something and bring it back for you to eat, you realize you have to go hunt and kill for yourself. You don’t complain about what you lack or let setbacks get in the way of finding a way to make your dreams happen. You just go do it.”
— T.D. Jakes

54. “Will you bring life to your dream or will you allow it to die of neglect? It is absolutely true that you have a divine summons to fulfill, but it’s not automatic and it’s not guaranteed. You are the major player who must give yourself fully to the process of becoming.”
— T.D. Jakes

55. “There’s some stuff you just leave alone. You don’t fix every problem that comes across your radar. You don’t try to straighten out every dispute that comes before you. Don’t chase down every rumor. If people are gossiping about you, let them talk, because the people who are talking negatively about you don’t matter.”
— T.D. Jakes

56. “If you want to be victorious in all your endeavors, then don’t lean on your own understanding or to your own devices or innovations. Instead, in all your ways acknowledge the Lord, and He will direct your path.”
— T.D. Jakes

57. “If you stick your head in the sand and ignore things that you have the power to change, you can’t blame anyone when they don’t turn out right!”
— T.D. Jakes

58. “Things that are covered don’t heal well.”
— T.D. Jakes

59. “My greatest fear is not living before I die, to play everything so safe that even though I had no risk I also enjoyed no reward.”
— T.D. Jakes

60. “It’s the nights that I cried myself to sleep and my tears crawled across the bridge of my nose that God most often used to develop me into the person I am today.”
— T.D. Jakes

61. “My mother would take the Band-Aid off, clean the wound, and say, “Things that are covered don’t heal well.” Mother was right. Things that are covered do not heal well.”
— T.D. Jakes

62. “In a 2006 speech then-senator Barack Obama gave to a group of college students, he offered these sage words about success: “Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it’s only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential.”
— T.D. Jakes

63. “Think about it this way: if you are too predictable in any area of your life, you may be paving the way to your own extinction!”
— T.D. Jakes

64. “You never know what you might discover by thinking outside the box that culture, conformity, and critics have tried to impose.”
— T.D. Jakes

65. “We claim we are not emotional, yet we are so sensitive that a vicious word from a cruel woman can leave the most manly of us impotent! A cutting statement can undermine the strength, vigor, and vitality of even the strongest of men. Most women greatly underestimate the power of their words to magnify or crush their husbands’ strength.”
— T.D. Jakes

66. “There is no success like the success of a man who had to persevere in order to receive it. People appreciate the victory when they have to walk it out.”
— T.D. Jakes

67. “When ideas hang out with influence, income will always emerge.”
— T.D. Jakes

68. “Avoid getting into isolated groups because you will miss the move of God. Shun cliques because they are the bundles. Endeavor to stay in the mainstream of the move of God.”
— T.D. Jakes

69. “One cannot have an enriched marriage when it is funded by an emotionally and spiritually bankrupt man.”
— T.D. Jakes

70. “We are a microwave generation serving a Crock-Pot God.”
— T.D. Jakes

71. “The fact that God has exposed you to something is always a sign that it can be yours. God is exposing you so you can absorb Destiny in the deepest part of your soul. Breathe in, breathe in and believe and let God open the doors to Destiny through exposure.”
— T.D. Jakes

72. “Increase your capacity to receive what is destined to happen if you believe! If you can see the invisible, you can do the impossible. You may have to stretch yourself or enlarge your circle of associates. You may have to expose yourself beyond your comfort zone or speak when you are naturally introverted. Stretch yourself; it’s worth it!”
— T.D. Jakes

73. “You can be the most grateful person in the world, but if you have not arrived at the place God wants you to be, to do the thing God has destined you and only you to do, that longing will never go away.”
— T.D. Jakes

74. “Divorce is not merely separating; it is the tearing apart of what was once joined together.”
— T.D. Jakes

75. “There is a difference between discussion and argument. A discussion airs the issues, but an argument alleges charges and appoint blame.”
— T.D. Jakes

76. “Friends, loved ones, and even enemies influence us, but that doesn’t mean their comments are relevant to your destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

77. “You cannot partake of the power of Christ’s resurrection unless you are first willing to lay down your own will and desires, and die to all your pride and independence.”
— T.D. Jakes

78. “Hardship can humble you, but it cannot break you unless you let it. Your instinct for survival will see you through if you’re attuned to its frequency. Instinct will find a temporary stopgap without ever taking its sights off your larger goals. There’s no greater way to hone your instincts than to overcome adversity. Successful leaders know that instincts transform adversity into opportunity.”
— T.D. Jakes

79. “It’s not selfish to prioritize your life to fulfill Destiny. It’s actually the most selfless thing you can do. God has an appointment for you to serve humanity in the greatest way possible for you.”
— T.D. Jakes

80. “When God blesses you, not only will He bless you personally, but He will bless your family, your field, your crops, and your land. According to Deuteronomy 28, God will take you who used to be the tail and make you the head.”
— T.D. Jakes

81. “Many people live in the waiting room, not because of God’s unwillingness to promote, but because of their unwillingness to be faithful in their current life situation.”
— T.D. Jakes

82. “A father is an image of a young man’s destiny, a living testimony of what time may bring to pass.”
— T.D. Jakes

83. “First, don’t feed on drama. Stay calm. Horror movies are intended to be overly dramatic to entice your emotions. Notice, those who die in a horror flick are the ones who scream and freak out. They feed into the drama. When you are attacked on your Destiny journey, don’t give in to that drama in your.”
— T.D. Jakes

84. “Just because the vision tarries doesn’t mean God has changed His mind or given up on you. It could very well mean that the timing or the situation is not right for God to get the ultimate glory and benefit out of your trusting in Him. Hold on to faith even in the midst of the battle.”
— T.D. Jakes

85. “Fear teaches you to be cautious, careful, and conscientious. It also forces you to be creative, compassionate, and calculating.”
— T.D. Jakes

86. “The road that gives you fulfillment, purpose, and joy as it takes you to Destiny is always peppered with jealous, envious, and angry people whose venomous darts are aimed squarely in your direction as you travel.”
— T.D. Jakes

87. “Listen, God can’t bless what you won’t do. You haven’t been taught correctly. Prosperity doesn’t just come from giving an offering. It’s good to be a giver. But you must also be a thinker, a planner, and a worker.”
— T.D. Jakes

88. “Don’t leave your God-given gifts unopened. Don’t leave this planet having missed the great opportunities God has for you. Rip off the lid of your abilities, tear into that box that is your talents, and use every gift God has given you. Devote yourself to fulfilling the unique purpose that is your destiny.”
— T.D. Jakes

89. “Faith is your anchor and sustainer in the new season. Faith that the one who called us is faithful. Faith helps you see in the dark. And when you feel like you can’t see, Faith steadies your heart to trust what you know. What is true.”
— T.D. Jakes

90. “The Hell of Regret He who wins the race cannot run with the pack. And once you get out you can’t come back, because caged lions don’t mate with free ones! If ever you are going to win, you must forsake the social construct of the cage and all the cage dwellers.”
— T.D. Jakes

91. “If you are searching for the secret of true joy, and victorious Holy Spirit-filled Christ living, the answer is simply this: Die! Die and keep on dying daily until all of you is dead and only Christ lives. Death is the key to life and life more abundantly.”
— T.D. Jakes

92. “As we forge deeper into this issue of forgiveness, we must be prepared to open up and discuss things that bother us before they escalate to a crisis level. We must examine our struggles with forgiveness in which there are not overt offenses or blatant betrayals. I’m convinced that seeds of resentment take root in the silent frustrations that never get discussed. Other people cannot read our minds – or our palms! – and that is why we have tongues to speak.”
— T.D. Jakes

93. “It’s miserable living someone else’s life, and it is downright suffocating to live beneath your potential.”
— T.D. Jakes

94. “Street cred is hard won and Destiny requires you to pay it forward. God helps you through hard times so you can help someone else.”
— T.D. Jakes

95. “Instinct and purpose often operate like a marriage.”
— T.D. Jakes

96. “Paying attention to what nourishes and stimulates your heart, soul, and imagination leads to listening to your instincts. In turn, listening to your instincts jump-starts the process of creating the fabric of your destiny. Like a designer sewing a garment, you take the vision within you and bring it to life in a suit to be worn for your next season of life. You are instinctively best at inventing what is in your inventory!”
— T.D. Jakes

97. “You can live in this world and make all the money you could ever dream of and be as beautiful as you want and be as educated as you please and accomplish whatever you want to, but if you die without accomplishing your purpose, you are a failure, a reject, and a fool.”
— T.D. Jakes

98. “As you assess your current location and motivation for being an entrepreneur, do not be discouraged by the size or number of obstacles in your path. If you can catch a vision for it then God can do it!”
— T.D. Jakes

99. “The moment you start to embrace how you have been formed and fashioned is the moment you step into the very purpose for which you were created.”
— T.D. Jakes

100. “Serving the Lord is not always easy or popular. Folks may laugh at you on your job, mocking and making fun of your faith. But once you decide that there’s no turning back, something in your heart rises up and says “no” to the devil and “yes” to the Lord.”
— T.D. Jakes