Recently, we had the opportunity to interview Jentezen Franklin for the February edition of Daystar’s monthly newsletter. Only part of the interview was included in the newsletter, but you can read the rest of it right here!
Tell us about your early days of ministry as a young evangelist and traveling with your brother and how you decided to become a pastor.
I started in ministry with my brother Richie when he was a senior in college and I was a sophomore. I was in college on a full-ride music scholarship with the dream of becoming a professional saxophone player. That summer after my sophomore year, I started traveling with Richie, doing music while he preached. During that time, God called me to preach. At first I was terrified – I wasn’t used to speaking in front of people and I was very shy – the whole idea was intimidating and overwhelming. However, I clearly heard God speak to my heart that I was to be a preacher, and He even confirmed this through my mother, so I decided to lay everything down and follow God’s call in my life.
My brother let me preach for him at one of his revivals, and while my first sermon was only ten minutes long, God used it powerfully, and it set me down the path to where I am today. Despise not the day of small beginnings!
How did you and Cherise meet?
I’d been traveling on the road with Richie for 3 years preaching at revivals, but after a time he got married and we decided to go our separate ways, so at 25 years old I was preaching on my own. I was speaking at a camp that was attending as a camper, and I knew there was something special about her. After camp was over I introduced myself and mentioned that I would be in Atlanta soon and that she should meet me there. Well, she ended up meeting me, and that’s when we started dating.
Do you have any good stories from your dating years?
Yes! The night I told her I loved her, we’d been dating for a while and I knew that I wanted things to keep moving forward. So I told her that I loved her, and at first she didn’t say anything back! Complete silence. I thought I might have completely misjudged the relationship, so I started backpedaling a bit, but she finally interrupted me and said that she loved me too. It turns out that her mom and aunt had told her that I would tell her that I loved her that evening, but she hadn’t believed them. So when I said those words to her, she was in complete shock!
How long have the two of you been married?
We’ve been married for 27 years now.
Talk a little about how you balanced your marriage, raising a family and pastoring a church.
You just have to set priorities. I haven’t always been great with that, but I feel that I’ve always let my family know that they have the priority. You don’t have to pin the family against the church, as some would say. We’ve never experienced any negativity with this and my children have all grown up inside the church. I do think it’s important to guard what you say about the church though. Just as you would with any secular job, you have to learn how to not bring it up every night at the dinner table or in every conversation – learn how to turn it off sometimes. Planning non-negotiable things like vacations and birthday celebrations into my schedule has also helped in this area. Also, having Cherise and all the kids involved in the ministry throughout the years has been extremely helpful. Whether it’s helping out at the church or traveling on the road with me, they feel included in every aspect of what I do.
Did you have any idea that you would have a big family?
No, but my mother came from a family of 27 children, and I grew up in a family of 5 siblings, so I guess we were sort of destined to have a big family.
Could you have ever imagined that God would do all that He has done in your life and ministry?
No, but I always believed God could do something significant in and through my life. I always encourage people to dream big and follow God’s dreams for your life – you could be dreaming about one thing, but his plan is so much bigger and greater than anything you could ever imagine!
How important is television in reaching the world with the gospel?
Television is critical because it can go to areas that we can never go physically. Plus, it’s a fulfilment of prophecy because when the gospel is preached into all the world, the end will come. It helps us to reach people who speak different languages across the globe that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to reach.
To learn more about Jentezen Franklin, visit www.jentezenfranklin.org, and be sure to watch Kingdom Connection with Jentezen Franklin on Daystar, Sundays at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.