What started as a dream from a young Virginian preacher grew into the nondenominational, multicultural worldwide ministry known as The Potter’s House! On July 4, 2021, The Potter’s House celebrated 25 years of godly service to our community and the world! After a beautiful ceremony coupled with enriching moments from our storied history, we thought back to five of the most important lessons we’ve learned over the last quarter century. We present those here to provide you a road map to God’s everlasting grace and truth!
Lesson 1: We must walk in our anointing!
Since the start, Bishop T.D. Jakes has preached about how you are chosen for the Kingdom of God BY God – your life was not an accident. Instead, everything from God was carefully orchestrated by Him to bring Him glory! You have as much right to be here as the next person; don’t let anyone tell you different!
But while we serve a God who chose us, we face an enemy that wants to destroy us. When you feel like the enemy is tearing you down and that you are not worth the Lord’s time, reacquaint yourself with your anointing. It’s the only way you’re going to be able to fight back and be the best asset you can be for God’s Kingdom!
Lesson 2: We must lead with confidence and grace!
Once you reclaim your anointing, you can be a leader and build leaders! One of the biggest successes as a church we’ve had has been establishing large-scale conferences like the International Leadership Summit and Woman, Thou Art Loosed! — events that empower future leaders to be their best! And it doesn’t stop there: The Potter’s House School of Ministry (PHSOM), Jakes Divinity School, Boys 2 M.E.N.D., and plenty more build spiritual fortitude through real-life experiences to bring out the leader in you.
Leadership is one of Christianity’s most crucial elements. As Abraham led his family, David led his people, and Jesus leads us daily! As we continue to nurture leaders today and tomorrow, remember that your own life is worth leading as well. How are you going to embrace it?
Lesson 3: We must embrace our community and our world!
As you build your anointing and embrace your leadership potential, convert that energy into communal and global outreach. The Great Commission (Matthew 28) calls us to spread the Gospel everywhere. That’s why we built organizations like United MegaCare for worldwide humanitarian outreach, partnered with Compassion International to relieve poverty for children, touched the lives of our loved ones with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD) through Capable Minds, Hearts & Hands, and connected hurt people with helpful resources at The TPH Counseling Center. No matter where we are or where you are, we want to meet everyone’s needs so they can hear the Gospel message loud and clear! The door is open for anyone and everyone to enter His gates with thanksgiving and praise. We’ve just got to show people the way to go!
Lesson 4: We must share the Gospel in new and invigorating ways!
As new people enter the Kingdom of God, we’ve had to adapt our teaching to meet their needs. So, we innovate in all the right areas (technology, outreach, worship, preaching) and use that as a stepping stone to the eternal rock of God’s house. During the pandemic, we provided new ways for people to come to Christ by streaming our services and establishing our eChurch and Virtual Congregation. We also developed streaming options for our conferences and events to much success!
Through each new method, we continued to spread the Gospel and used our anointing and leadership for God’s glory. How are you innovating in your walk with God? Are you singing the same song or finding a new tune? The message remains, but the methods change — so don’t drop the mic in telling people about Jesus and how He can change their lives!
Lesson 5: We must ready ourselves for the Lord’s return!
Get ready, get ready, get ready! While this might be a familiar phrase, it illustrates an all-too-foreign purpose: How do we get ready for the Kingdom of God? It’s simple: We keep His Word. As a church, our calling is to be ready for the times, spread the Gospel unto the Earth, and be mindful of our community while leading ourselves and others through spiritual valleys and mountains. It doesn’t get more powerful than that. When He returns, will you be able to say you were the best manager of your life that you could be? If you’ve followed His commands, and clung to Him, you’ll earn the declaration of “well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23)!
Why Five?
So, why five lessons and not 25 to match our anniversary? Five is a recurring number throughout the Bible. Some examples include Jesus using five loaves of bread to feed the five thousand. Another is that five books make up the Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy) — the opening act to the symphony of the Bible. A third example is the five types of offerings presented to God across the scriptures. But the biggest reason is that five in the Bible signifies “grace,” specifically “divine grace.” In multiplication, five times five is the number 25, which means “grace upon grace.”
In other words, this year, our 25th anniversary, embodies God’s grace upon His grace.
Remember the Lord’s grace as you walk in your anointing, as you lead with grace, as you reach out to your community, as you share the Gospel, and as you get ready, get ready, and get ready for the glory of the Lord to manifest itself in your life! The Lord’s “grace is sufficient for you,” friends, and will see you through (2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV)!
Now, go forth and be charged, changed, and challenged to be the full child of God that He desires you to be! And be sure to follow The Potter’s House on Facebook (The Potter’s House of Dallas), Instagram (@TPHDallas), and Twitter (@TPHDallas) for our monthlong 25th-anniversary coverage!