About the Author

T D Jakes is a full-blown phenomenon. The author of several books including the best-seller The Lady, Her Lover, and Her Lord (currently available from Turnaround) and producer of Grammy award winning CDs, he was recently named one of America's most influential ministers by The New York Times. He is also the founder and pastor of The Potter's House in Dallas, one of the fastest growing churches in the world.

Reviews

"T D Jakes demonstrates an unusual ability to inspire, uplift, teach, and comfort. A masterful preacher." - Publishers Weekly A New York Times best-seller

"T D Jakes demonstrates an unusual ability to inspire, uplift, teach, and comfort. A masterful preacher." - Publishers Weekly A New York Times best-seller

This is motivational writing with a preacher's flair. Jakes, the bestselling author of The Lady, Her Lover, and Her Lord, describes himself as "the television minister of millions, the pastor of thousands, the father of five, the Chief Executive Officer of three companies, and the husband of one." Here, the bishop wants readers to consider the brevity of their lives and make something of themselves. The book's subtext often seems to be upward mobility: Jakes urges readers to disentangle themselves from those who don't help them maximize their potential, and he provides a checklist of attitudes for associating with the educated or powerful. Jakes can certainly turn a phrase in classic preacher fashion, though by the end of the book enough phrases have been turned to leave even the most enthusiastic congregation a little dizzy. Underneath the rhetorical flourish, however, there is little depth, and the frequent biblical quotations seem to serve mostly as conventional jumping-off points for what is essentially high-octane self-help literature. The motivational tone flags only once, when Jakes narrates the agonizing experience of caring for his mother during her illness and eventual death from a brain tumor. For 10 brilliant and heart-wrenching pages, Jakes's gift with words, his insights into patience and perseverance and, not least, the riches of his faith are all in evidence. If only the whole book rang so true. (Jan.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.