T.D. Jakes’ Leadership Conference Draws Nearly 6,000 Attendees & Generates $6.5 Million for Orlando

During the well-attended 2011 Pastors and Leadership Conference in Orlando, Bishop T.D. Jakes addressed the church's most pressing needs with approximately 5,800 pastors and church leaders—who traveled from 25 different countries including South Africa and South Korea. Jakes and industry leaders discuss important topics such as surviving the recession and what to do a in a crisis. But pastors weren’t the only ones who benefitted from the conference.

According to Brian Martin, corporate communications director at Visit Orlando of Orlando Convention and Visitors Bureau, Bishop Jakes' Pastors & Leadership conference brought $6.5 million to the Orlando area through direct spending over the three-day period.

Bishop Jakes took to the stage on Thursday morning, March 31, to welcome attendees and spoke about the importance for pastors and church leaders to be educated on crucial issues to protect themselves and their churches. The conference wrapped up on Saturday, April 2 with an uplifting message by Apostle Raul Avila.

"Our goal is to empower leaders with the tools that they need to address the most acute issues facing churches today. Leadership is not just the domain of the senior pastor, but the responsibility of those who undergird the church operations," said Bishop T.D. Jakes. "Our conference is designed to provide the entire infrastructure with the information that they need because what you don’t know can hurt you."

This year's Pastors and Leadership Conference took a new approach by providing breakout sessions, led by industry experts, to address the top issues relevant to the church today.

Featured ministry leaders included:

• Charles Blake, Presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC)
• Sheryl Brady, The Potter’s House of North Dallas
• John Hagee, Cornerstone Church
• I.V. Hilliard, New Light Christian Center Church
• Bill Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church
• Serita Jakes, The Potter's House
• T.D. Jakes, The Potter's House
• Dr. Cynthia James, Christian psychologist
• Lester Love, The City of Love
• Raul Avila, The Christ for All Nations Center
• Paula White, Without Walls International Church

Session topics included: surviving the recession, government funding, music and worship, real estate and foreclosure prevention, executive management, data management, marketing, social media, television, book publishing, administrative support, accounting, technology in the church, public relations, women in ministry, and security.

Dr. Marvin Sapp, Gospel music artist and pastor at Lighthouse Full Life Center Church, and First Lady Joy Hill of The Potter's House of Denver, also performed at the conference.

Bishop Jakes plans to hold another Pastors and Leadership Conference in the near future.

About The Potter's House
Located in Dallas, The Potter’s House is a 30,000-member nondenominational, multicultural church and humanitarian organization led by Bishop T. D. Jakes, twice featured on the cover of Time magazine as "America's Best Preacher" and as one of the nation's "25 most influential evangelicals." He is currently awaiting the release of his next film project, Jumping the Broom, slated for release on May 6, 2011. The Potter's House has four locations: The Potter's House of Dallas, The Potter's House of Fort Worth, The Potter’s House of North Dallas and The Potter's House of Denver, and a Spanish language church, Casa de Fe. ThePottersHouse.org

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