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| Affiliation | Republican |
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| Name | James Robison |
| Address |
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas , United States |
| Email | None |
| Website | None |
| Born |
00, 1943
(81 years)
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| Contributor | Thomas Walker |
| Last Modifed | Thomas Walker
Oct 23, 2007 11:57am |
| Tags |
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| Info | Since 1962, James Robison has delivered the gospel to the masses—first, through crusade evangelism; today, via television.
At the young age of 18, God called James into the ministry. He began speaking in churches, and doors quickly opened for him to hold crusades in stadiums and indoor arenas nationwide. More than 20 million people attended his meetings, with more than 2 million decisions for Christ. The ministry that James founded—LIFE Outreach International—now focuses on television and mission outreach, and more people are coming to Christ in a single year than in his first 20 years of ministry.
A Dysfunctional Childhood
James Robison's background is hardly typical of a nationally known inspirational leader. On October 9, 1943, James was born in the charity ward of St. Joseph's Hospital in Houston, Texas—the result of a forced sexual experience. His mother, Myra Wattinger, placed an ad in the Houston newspaper for a Christian couple to take care of him.
Rev. and Mrs. H.D. Hale of Pasadena, Texas, responded to the ad. For the next several years, James lived with the Hales and saw his mother on occasion. Myra came to get him when he was 5 years old, and for the next 10 years, they lived in extreme poverty. James' biological father entered their lives when he was a teenager. An alcoholic, he nearly killed James' mother and, out of self-defense, James threatened to shoot him.
James was permitted to visit the Hales when he was 14. During that visit, he accepted Christ as his Savior. Miraculously, he was able to live with the Hales the last two years of high school. He attended Pasadena High School, where he met Betty Freeman. After graduating, they married in 1963. They have three children and 11 grandchildren.
New Medium, Same Message
In 1968, at the suggestion of Dr. Billy Graham, the James Robison Evangelistic Association launched a TV ministry. James took his crusade-preaching format to the airwaves and, as Graham predicted, people made decisions for Christ by the thousands.
By the late 1970s—and largely as the result of an intense schedule—James was spiritually burned out. Through the prayers of a faith-filled carpet cleaner, he experienced newfound freedom and spiritual fullness, along with a renewed vision for reaching the lost. He believes God moved him into a servant role of trying to help others. In 1992, the James Robison Evangelistic Association changed its name to LIFE Outreach International because James wanted the ministry to be purpose-centered rather than personality-driven. The ministry changed the format of its television program LIFE Today to make it more interactive.
The 30-minute talk show has featured exciting guests, including George W. Bush, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Chuck Norris, Robert Duvall, Zig Ziglar, Beth Moore, Kay Arthur, Sheila Walsh and Michael W. Smith. James and Betty co-host the program, which can be seen by more than 150 million households in the United States, Canada, and throughout Europe and Australia. LIFE Today airs daily on all major Christian networks nationwide, hundreds of independent and network stations, as well as ABC Family, the Discovery Channel, and all satellite networks. Each month, approximately 60,000 television viewers call the ministry's 24-hour prayer center seeking spiritual guidance.
LIFE-Giver
While James believes media outreach is the most effective way to evangelize, he also feels strongly about helping those in need. In the United States, LIFE Outreach partners with a number of ministries that reach out to the homeless and the outcast.
Much of the ministry's focus is in other parts of the world, where the physical needs are staggering. LIFE Outreach has helped feed up to 300,000 children in crisis areas throughout Africa and recently developed a massive African school feeding program to encourage school attendance and education. According to reports from African governments, the mission feeding programs have saved more than 5 million lives.
Medical clinics, orphanages, fruit and vegetable farms, and a food processing plant are also part of the ministry's outreach in Africa. More than 6 million Africans have accepted Christ since 1990 as a result of LIFE-sponsored crusades and ministry that occurs at the feeding centers.
“We do not want to duplicate ministry,” James says, emphasizing that LIFE Outreach works with other ministries already established in developing countries. “When we find an effective outreach, we try to undergird and strengthen it.”
To date, LIFE Outreach works in nearly 40 countries, including Bolivia, Romania, China and India. In the future, James believes the ministry will help establish effective “Mission Life” outreaches in every population center in the world, beginning with Third World countries.
James and Betty make their home in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. James is the author of more than a dozen books, including The Absolutes, True Prosperity, My Father's Face, Thank God I'm Free, and Knowing God as Father.
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