Sarah Jakes Roberts introduced fans to a new side of her ministry with her latest book, “Power Moves: Ignite Your Confidence and Become a Force.”
The pastor continues to captivate millions with her encouraging messages, empowering listeners to discover their purpose and deepen their faith. From her viral sermons to transparent posts, Roberts is a walking testament of a person living in their purpose. Luckily for the world, she’s sharing what life has taught her with the aim to help others reach their fullest potential.
Following the release of her novel, Roberts is continuing to guide her community on a transformational journey. Her dissecting the concept of power and offering a new meaning. She challenges the traditional interpretation of the term, describing power as an internal force that lays dormant. Roberts equips readers with tools to free themselves from systems rooted in survival. Instead, she implores them to cultivate daily practices that align with the person they desire to become.
In her book, the trailblazer shared how reflection played a pivotal role in finding the language to tackle this concept. As the leader of The Potter House Churches in Los Angeles and Dallas, alongside her husband, Roberts revealed she never anticipated having such a significant role in ministry. However, as she began sharing her testimony, people gravitated toward her messages. Resonating with crowds from all backgrounds grew her platform from a moment shared with her congregation to a global movement.
“From that place of authenticity, I felt less pressured to perform and more capacity to be myself wherever I am on my journey,” Roberts told 21Ninety.
She frequently sprinkles her personal experiences to remind readers, serving as an example. Her vulnerability allowed readers to see how she freed herself from social expectations and limitations that disrupted her power.
“The way that I process things is that I learn a lot about myself in hindsight,” she said. “As I was writing the wisdom, I would try to make it relatable. It wasn’t until I was writing the book that I realized the connection between the two. I could have never given those experiences – anxiety, pressure and perfectionism – language then. Writing the book helped me to reconcile some of those past experiences.”
As she connected with others along her spiritual journey, she said she discovered the fluidity of power and how people experienced it differently than expected. While one may feel powerful in one area of life, a disconnect may still remain somewhere else. Realizing this duality helped Roberts understand power as a constant flow that guides people to their purposes in life.
“So many of us have fallen for this illusion that power has a destination or it’s this arriving spot,” Roberts said. “Whereas, I learned that power is a journey.”
Living in her constant power flow led her to find a way to share her groundbreaking discovery. Roberts prefers brewing with an idea before committing to its next steps. She describes this as “marinating before activating.”
She sat with her book idea for a year before she told anyone else about it. Then, it was another 15 months before she started writing “Power Moves.” Although it was challenging to find the language, she gained clarity about her message as she pulled the pieces together.
Robert is known for helping women evolve through her ministry. This novel was a first-time experience for her and her supporters as she relayed a different message.
“It was awkward for me to introduce a message that I hadn’t first laid a foundation for,” she said. “But, it has been really rewarding because it has made me trust, support and push what God gave me without knowing what was on the other side.”
Readers soon discover, however, that evolution and power are linked. One feeds off the other, and the connection is slowly revealed throughout each chapter.
“To give yourself permission to evolve is power,” Roberts said. “It is a gift that many of us don’t give ourselves the luxury of experiencing. Once we have reached someone’s definition of power or have discovered strength in one area of our lives, we get restricted, thinking we have to stay in one place because that is what works.”
Dismantling those restrictions often prescribed by society, circumstance, environment and other external sources is what “Power Moves” addresses as the key to becoming a force from within.
“I don’t think that you can really have power unless you give yourself the freedom to live limitlessly and without boundaries,” Roberts said.