Pastor of the Dallas-area church, Prestonwood Baptist Church, for three decades, Dr. Jack Graham is a seasoned pastoral leader. Discussing the basics of ministry and an effective work-life balance with Dr. Jeremiah Johnston, Graham says, “The greatest thing you can do is to tell a person about Jesus and the way of salvation and the way to know Christ and live forever. The ministry of the Church is to find a need and fill it – find a hurt and help it.”Leading in ministry is a challenge, and believers do well to remain teachable and dependent upon God, Graham says. “The Christian life is not hard. It’s impossible in our own strength. Ministry is the same,” he said. “I made the wonderful discovery of the Spirit-filled life.”
While Christians can mature with time, they are also at risk for becoming cynics with difficult life experiences, Graham notes. “As you get older, you would think it would get easier to believe, but there are things that can happen and challenge people’s faith and make it harder to believe,” he says. “I’ve endeavored to maintain my role as a student. Keep your knees on the floor and your nose in the book.”
The way the Church will continue to survive and thrive is through evangelism and avoiding turning inward too much, Graham says. “Every day is an opportunity to get up and do something that makes an eternal difference in someone’s life,” he says. “When Jesus is at the core of our ministry, His love flows through us.”
Dr. Jack Graham is pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church, and is known for his role as a faithful teacher through PowerPoint Ministries. The mission of the ministries is “to glorify God by introducing Jesus Christ as Lord to as many people as possible, and to develop them in Christian living using the most effective means to impact the world, making an eternal difference in this generation.”
