Sarah Jakes Roberts describes her viral wig-snatching moment in the pulpit as a blessing in disguise. Last May, the religious pastor and businesswoman stunned her flock with the way she handled a hair mishap during a sermon.
While in the midst of delivering an impassioned message about God’s purpose, Sarah’s wig began to slide to the back of her head, revealing the nude cap she wore to protect her own tresses. Instead of stopping to fix the issue, she removed it, right there in front of the packed Dallas, Texas, sanctuary of The Potter’s House Church.
At the time, she acknowledged it by writing, “My message was more important than maintaining my appearance so I took it off, locked in, and kept preaching,” in an Instagram post.
This year, during an April 30 appearance on “The Breakfast Club,” she spoke about the unplanned incident as confirmation that she was on the path God intended for her. “I didn’t have a choice. … I was in the spirit in that I had a mission to accomplish, and I didn’t want anything to distract me,” she told the hosts when asked why she did not consider an alternative to exposing her wig cap.
She continued, “My husband wasn’t there, my parents weren’t there, so it wasn’t like I was gon’ be able to toss the microphone. I was the senior leadership, the person that was present in that room, and so I had to take it off.”
Pastor Sarah Jakes Roberts removes WIG during sermon!🙌#SarahJakesRoberts #TDJakes pic.twitter.com/1bEqiGwoOO
— Inspirational Gospel Music Channel (IGMC) (@InspireUGospel) May 29, 2023
“I didn’t love it. I didn’t enjoy it but I stood up to it,” said the author of “Power Moves: Ignite Your Confidence and Become a Force.”
Admittedly, Sarah disclosed that during that season of her life she was experiencing doubt about stepping into a more prominent role at The Potter’s House Church and questioning if her past as a teenage mother and non-traditional approach to spreading the gospel would be well-received.
Two months after the viral moment, her father, Bishop T.D. Jakes, appointed her and her husband, Touré Roberts, as assistant pastors.
Sarah explained, “I really did feel like God was trying to tell me, ‘Just be authentic, just trust yourself’ in that season of my life. And so that Sunday, when I’m sitting there with a wig cap on and then other women start taking their wigs off on the altar, I was like, you know what, I think this may be God trying to tell me you gon’ have to show up as your full self.'”
The mother of six said she received an outpouring of praise for being “courageous.” “Y’all know this isn’t my hair, and like, no, it’s not ideal, but it’s not more important than what I’m here for. … When I got back behind the platform, I was like, ‘Oh Lord, I have desecrated The Potter’s House. There are bundles on the altar. I have desecrated this place.’”
People who tuned in to the discussion offered an array of responses. On YouTube, one person wrote, “The day she took her wig off was one of her best services ever. Nothing else mattered.”
But not everyone was a fan. On Instagram, an individual said her wig removal was “so performative.” A third comment suggested that the takeaway from Sarah’s testimony was lost when they wrote, “Removing ur wig on stage has nothing to do with spirituality.”
Sarah, however, counts the experience as yet another reason to why her life is a living testament.
