Guest Information
About Jim Bakker
Pastor Jim Bakker is a pioneer of Christian Television. From humble beginnings, he rose to build one of the largest ministries in the world.
As a young man, Pastor Jim was called to “make Jesus real” to the world. During the golden era of television, he was divinely inspired on what medium he could use to do just that. He dreamed of a night-time Christian talk show-one that could display the format and quality of The Tonight Show hosted by Johnny Carson.
In 1966, his dream came true. While hosting “Come on Over”, a children’s show, on Pat Robertson’s fledgling Christian station in Virginia, Pastor Jim became the founder and host for the first Christian talk show – “The 700 Club”.
For eight incredible years, Pastor Jim hosted the ground-breaking variety show with the top ministers and singers of the day. Pastor Jim and his family later joined Paul and Jan Crouch in California to pioneer a new television ministry. Pastor Jim was the first President and a founder of Trinity Broadcasting Network, which today, still beams around the world with 24-hour a day Christian programming.
In 1974, Pastor Jim relocated to Charlotte, North Carolina to birth one of the most dynamic ministries the world has ever known-The PTL Club, The Inspirational Network, and a state of the art Christian retreat center called Heritage USA.
At the height of the ministry, there were 86 religious services held a week at Heritage USA. By 1986, Heritage USA was the third most visited destination spot, following Disney World and Disney Land.