TIME’s Latest ‘100 Next’ List of Influencers Includes 4 Outspoken Christians

Since 2019, TIME magazine has spotlighted “emerging leaders” and influencers in its “100 Next” list. The 2023 collection of artists, phenoms, innovators, leaders, and advocates includes at least four Christians who are vocal about their faith. The magazine’s Sept. 25 issue featured a tribute to each honoree.

4 Christians Make TIME Magazine’s ‘100 Next’ List for 2023

Here’s a closer look at four “100 Next” standouts who are shining stars in their fields as well as in their faith:

Pastor Sarah Jakes Roberts

As ChurchLeaders has reported, Sarah Jakes Roberts is following in the footsteps of her father, Pastor T.D. Jakes, both in ministry and in TIME magazine. In July, T.D. Jakes installed Sarah and her husband, Touré Roberts, as co-assistant pastors of The Potter’s House Church in Dallas. The couple also co-pastor branches of the church in Los Angeles and Denver, and Jakes Roberts leads the Woman Evolve conference ministry.

In addition to preaching, Sarah Jakes Roberts, 35, is an author, speaker, businesswoman, and media personality. Her latest book, “All Hope Is Found,” released last month.

After hearing she was named a 2023 TIME honoree, Jakes Roberts reflected on her journey, calling it a “full-circle moment.” She wrote on Instagram, “In 2001, my dad was on the cover of Time Magazine. A year later, I was the pregnant teenager of America’s Next Billy Graham. I wanted to hide. So, I did. I hid in shame, pain, depression, and fear. When I found a flicker of light to clench, it wasn’t because I sought to start a ministry or empower others. I just wanted to believe that healing was available to me.”

In his tribute, entertainment mogul Tyler Perry wrote that Jakes Roberts has found her own voice and uses it to speak “loudly to a generation desperately in need of compassion, teaching, and love.” Perry added, “Her lived experience using the grace of prayer to find a way through personal pain and tragedy resonates deeply with so many.”