Well-known Texas pastor T.D. Jakes gave the congregation at his Dallas megachurch The Potter’s House, a scare after enduring a health incident in the middle of a Nov. 24, 2024 sermon. At the time, not much was known about what caused Jakes to stop in the middle of his sermon to sit down, take off his glasses and wipe his forehead with a handkerchief, but friends and fans were grateful to hear from his family that he was recovering.
Now, in an exclusive interview with The TODAY Show, Jakes is sharing what actually happened during that terrifying moment on stage.
“I didn’t really realize what was happening to me onstage until I got to the hospital in an ambulance and fussing that it happened onstage, by the way, because I didn’t want it to happen, and the doctor leaned over my ear and said, ‘You had a massive heart attack,’” Jakes said.
The pastor went on to say he had no idea that he was having a heart attack at the time, because he didn’t experience any of the typical symptoms, which can include sharp pain and numbness. But he added that his doctor told him if he’d arrived at the hospital any later, they might not have been able to save him.
“(The doctor) said five minutes later, I’d have been dead on arrival,” he said. “The right side of my heart had completely stopped getting blood at all.”
Jakes told TODAY that it is hard for him to watch the video of his health scare, but that it was a “privilege to stand on the other side, to get a little glimpse of what it might be like.”
On December 31, 2024, Jakes returned to the very spot where he almost lost his life to deliver his first sermon since that terrifying November incident. During that New Year’s Eve service, he thanked his congregation for the prayers he says kept him alive.
“They almost lost me twice, but every time my numbers dropped, your prayers prevailed, and I’m standing here today in the glory of God,” he said.