Televangelist Jim Bakker revealed to viewers of his show, “The Jim Bakker Show,” that he has been experiencing memory loss issues since his stroke in May that he initially described as “minor,” according to the Christian Post.
He also said that he is not sure if he’ll be back and implied that he has been struggling to keep his show on the air.
But with the bad news also came good news for fans of the show; the 80-year-old man with a controversial past – and present – said that he plans to produce a network called Voice of the Prophets which would allow his show to be seen “24 hours a day,” the Charlotte Observer reported.
Bakker Said He And His Show Have Been Struggling
On his show, Bakker described the stroke as a sudden event which he initially thought was mild, but now believes he is “not through the valley” yet. He said that he has been recuperating, exercising with cycling and swimming and doing speech therapy.
He also said keeping the show on the air has been difficult:
I’m at peace and I want people to know that. I’ve been going through such a fight to trying to keep the ministry on the air. People are stealing money, things from us. They are supposed to pay it back.
In a Facebook post, Bakker’s wife Lori wrote that his health had suffered due to multiple projects:
For many years now, Jim has been working non-stop, working hard to bring incredible prophets and guests to our show, discovering and developing new products to share, building at Morningside, and bringing forth the message for the days that we are living in. All of these projects, and the vigorous warfare that we have experienced in the last several weeks, have taken a huge toll on Jim’s health.
At the end of the broadcast, he told viewers, “I’m going to heaven. No doubt about it. I’m going to be with Jesus one day, America. He loves you. He really does.”
Bakker’s Controversial Past Has Continued into the Present
Back in 1987, Bakker was accused of using money from a Christian-themed park to pay a secretary who eventually accused him of rape, according to Rolling Stone.
Bakker was also sent to prison after he was charged with mail and wire fraud as well as conspiracy.
More recently, Bakker was sued by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt for advertising a Silver Solution product that he said could cure coronavirus on his show. A spokesman for the office said the suit was meant to prevent Bakker from selling his $80 solution as a cure.
In March, the Federal Food and Drug Administration wrote a letter warning people not to take the substance and expect it to protect them from coronavirus.
The FDA has determined that your website offers products labeled to contain silver, such as “Silver Sol Liquid,” for sale in the United States and that these products are intended to mitigate, prevent, treat, diagnose, or cure COVID-191 in people … Therefore, FDA is taking urgent measures to protect consumers from certain products that, without approval or authorization by FDA, claim to mitigate, prevent, treat, diagnose or cure COVID 19 in people. We request that you take prompt action to cease the sale of such unapproved and unauthorized products for mitigation, prevention, treatment, diagnosis, or cure of COVID-19.
According to the Christian Post, “Bakker is known for selling various religions and health products in response to disasters and potential End Times scenarios.”
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