Jentezen Franklin (born July 21, 1962) is an American Pentecostal pastor, author, and televangelist based in Gainesville, Georgia. He is the senior pastor of Free Chapel, a megachurch with multiple campuses across the United States, and one of the most recognized voices in contemporary evangelical Christianity. Known for his passionate preaching, bestselling books on fasting and faith, and a television broadcast that reaches over 249 countries, Franklin has built a ministry that stretches well beyond the walls of any single church building.
He is best known for his New York Times bestselling book Fasting, his long-running TV program Kingdom Connection, and his three-decade leadership of Free Chapel — a congregation that grew from 300 members in 1989 to a multi-campus megachurch serving tens of thousands.
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Jentezen Franklin |
| Born | July 21, 1962, Wilson, North Carolina, USA |
| Age | 63 (as of 2026) |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Cherise Franklin (m. September 1987) |
| Children | Courteney, Caressa, Caroline, Connar, Drake |
| Parents | Billy Franklin (father, d. 1991); Katie Franklin (mother) |
| Siblings | Doyle Franklin, Richie Franklin, Jennifer Franklin, Jill Franklin |
| Education | |
|---|---|
| College | Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College), Wilson, NC (did not graduate) |
| Ministry | |
|---|---|
| Title | Senior Pastor |
| Church | Free Chapel, Gainesville, Georgia |
| Denomination | Church of God (Pentecostal / Evangelical) |
| Senior Pastor since | 1989 |
| TV Broadcast | Kingdom Connection (TBN, 249+ countries) |
| Website | jentezenfranklin.org |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Books | 12+ (including multiple NYT Bestsellers) |
| Net Worth | ~$2 million (est.) |
Early Life and Background
Family and Childhood in Wilson, North Carolina
Jentezen Franklin was born on July 21, 1962, in Wilson, North Carolina, the third of five children. His parents were Billy Franklin, a pastor in the Church of God, and Katie Franklin. Growing up in a home shaped by faith and ministry, church was never just a Sunday obligation for the Franklin family — it was the air they breathed.
He has two older brothers, Doyle and Richie, and two younger sisters, Jennifer and Jill. His father Billy was a significant influence on his early understanding of God and calling, and his passing in 1991 would later mark one of the most formative seasons of Jentezen’s life.
Wilson, North Carolina, in the early 1970s was not exactly a hotbed of celebrity culture. But it did have music — and that’s where young Jentezen first found his voice, not behind a pulpit, but behind a saxophone.
Education and the Pull Toward Music
Franklin studied tenor saxophone under musician Frank Mayes at Atlantic Christian College (now known as Barton College) in Wilson. He and his older brother Richie played together in the college jazz band, and by all accounts, Jentezen had genuine talent. He was on a path toward a musical career — not a pulpit career.
He left college before graduating. His brother Richie completed his degree first, and Jentezen followed him out of the classroom and into traveling ministry. Under the guidance of their father, the two brothers began preaching as evangelists in the Church of God. The saxophone got set down. The Bible got picked up. And a calling that had been quietly forming in the background came into full view.
Ministry Career
From Saxophone to Evangelist
Before Jentezen Franklin became a pastor, he was an evangelist on the road — preaching at churches, conferences, and revivals across the United States as part of the Church of God movement. He was young, passionate, and still finding his footing. But those years on the road sharpened him. You learn how to read a room fast when you preach in a different church every week.
It was during this period that he first visited Free Chapel in Gainesville, Georgia — not as a candidate for the pastorship, but as a traveling speaker. He would return annually to preach there. Nobody could have guessed what was about to happen next.
Becoming Senior Pastor of Free Chapel (1989)
In 1989, the senior pastor of Free Chapel, Roy Wellborn, died unexpectedly. Franklin had been scheduled to preach at the church around that time. In the aftermath of Wellborn’s death, the congregation — then around 300 members — invited Franklin to take over as senior pastor. He was 26 years old.
That was not a large congregation. Free Chapel in 1989 was a small-town Pentecostal church with no particular reason to expect it would become anything more. But Franklin stepped into the role and began preaching with a conviction that started drawing people in. Within years, the growth was undeniable.
Growth of Free Chapel
The story of Free Chapel’s growth under Franklin is, in many ways, the story of the man himself. He didn’t build it through gimmicks or celebrity culture. He built it through consistent, scripture-soaked preaching, a culture of prayer and fasting, and a genuine care for people that shows up in everything from Sunday services to global outreach.
By 2004, the congregation had outgrown its original building. Free Chapel moved to a new facility with a 3,000-seat auditorium. That move wasn’t just symbolic — it was confirmation that what was happening in Gainesville was real.
Franklin continued expanding. In 2007, he opened Free Chapel’s second campus in Irvine, California (Orange County), with the first service drawing 163 people. It has since grown into a significant congregation in its own right. A Gwinnett County campus opened in Suwanee, Georgia in 2014. A South Carolina campus launched in Spartanburg in 2016.
As of 2026, Free Chapel operates campuses in Gainesville, Gwinnett, Braselton, Alpharetta, and Midtown Atlanta in Georgia, Spartanburg in South Carolina, and Orange County in California. It is a full megachurch operation — with its own app, online broadcast, and a YouTube channel reaching millions.
Kingdom Connection: The Global Broadcast
Franklin’s television program Kingdom Connection has become one of the most-watched Christian broadcasts in the world. It airs weekly on major networks including TBN (Trinity Broadcasting Network) and The Church Channel, reaching viewers in over 249 countries. For many people around the world who have never set foot in Gainesville, Georgia, Kingdom Connection is their introduction to Jentezen Franklin — and it remains one of the most effective vehicles for his message.
The broadcast covers the same range of topics Franklin preaches from the pulpit: fasting, prayer, faith for difficult seasons, the importance of Israel in biblical prophecy, marriage, family, and the day-to-day realities of following Jesus in a complicated world. He preaches without notes, with visible emotion, and almost always with a story that pulls the listener in before the theology arrives.
Books and Publications
Jentezen Franklin is a New York Times bestselling author who has written over a dozen books. His writing, like his preaching, is practical and personal — less theological treatise, more honest conversation between a pastor and the people he loves.
Fasting (2007)
This is the book that changed everything for Franklin’s public profile. Fasting: Opening the Door to a Deeper, More Intimate, More Powerful Relationship with God became a New York Times bestseller and established him as one of the most credible voices on the spiritual discipline of fasting in modern Christianity. His close friend, pastor Tommy Tenney, wrote the foreword. The book drew from Free Chapel’s long tradition of corporate fasting — Free Chapel holds a 21-day fast at the start of each new year — and gave thousands of readers a practical, faith-grounded framework for the practice.
Other Notable Books
- Fasting: Volume I — Private Discipline That Brings Public Reward (2004)
- Fasting: Volume II — Opening a Door to God’s Promises (2005)
- The Amazing Discernment of Women (2006)
- Right People, Right Place, Right Plan (NYT Bestseller)
- Fear Fighters
- The Spirit of Python
- The Fasting Edge (2011)
- Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt
- Acres of Diamonds
- The Power of Short Prayers (2026)
In 2025, Franklin also contributed the foreword to Armageddon Approaching by David Cooper, a book exploring end-times biblical prophecy — a topic that sits at the intersection of his theological convictions and his commitment to Israel.
Theology and Ministry Philosophy
What Jentezen Franklin Believes
Franklin is a Pentecostal pastor in the Church of God tradition — one of the oldest Pentecostal denominations in the United States. That background shapes everything: the style of his worship services, his theology of prayer, his emphasis on the Holy Spirit, and his belief in the supernatural dimensions of the Christian life.
Three themes run through almost everything he teaches:
Fasting. For Franklin, fasting is not a diet strategy or a religious performance — it’s a spiritual discipline that creates space for God to work. Free Chapel has practiced a corporate 21-day fast at the start of every year for decades, and it has become one of the most recognized spiritual rhythms associated with the church. Franklin’s teaching on this has influenced churches worldwide to incorporate similar practices.
Prayer. Franklin consistently teaches that prayer is the foundation of everything — not a last resort, but a first response. His 2026 book The Power of Short Prayers reflects his belief that prayer doesn’t require length or formality to be powerful. If you want to understand how to pray effectively, his body of work on the subject is worth your time.
Israel and biblical prophecy. Franklin is a committed Christian Zionist — a position rooted in his reading of Old Testament prophecy and his belief that the modern state of Israel occupies a significant place in God’s redemptive plan. This isn’t merely theoretical for him; he has channeled millions of dollars toward humanitarian work in Israel, including housing for Holocaust survivors and support for terror victims.
Religious Affiliation
Franklin is affiliated with the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) — a Pentecostal denomination founded in 1886. Free Chapel is also a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), which provides independent financial accountability and oversight for Christian nonprofits. For a church of this size, ECFA membership is a meaningful signal of institutional transparency.
Personal Life
Marriage and Family
Jentezen Franklin married Cherise Franklin in September 1987. By all accounts, their marriage is a genuine partnership — Cherise is active in ministry alongside her husband and has her own public voice through speaking and writing. The couple makes their home in Gainesville, Georgia.
Together they have five children: Courteney, Caressa, Caroline, Connar, and Drake. As of 2026, they are also grandparents. Family comes up often in Franklin’s sermons — not in a way that feels curated for the stage, but in a way that feels like a man who actually goes home to real people at the end of the day.
His son Drake Franklin married Jayme Franklin, and Jentezen has publicly expressed deep pride in his son’s life and work. In 2024, Jentezen shared a post praising Drake and his wife for their meaningful contributions to ministry and public life.
The Loss of His Father
Billy Franklin, Jentezen’s father and a significant spiritual influence in his life, died in 1991 — just two years after Jentezen had taken over at Free Chapel. Losing a parent that early in a pastoral career is a particular kind of grief: you’re still figuring out how to lead a church, and the man who helped form your faith is gone. Franklin has spoken candidly over the years about how that loss shaped him and deepened his understanding of the seasons of grief that members of his congregation go through.
The Car Accident Rumors
Over the years, viral rumors have circulated online claiming that Jentezen Franklin was killed or seriously injured in a car accident. These claims are false. Franklin was involved in a car accident but survived. He has remained healthy and continues to lead Free Chapel actively. When you see sensational headlines about a pastor’s death or injury and no credible news source is reporting it, that’s your signal to check before you share.
Influence, Recognition, and Awards
Awards and Honors
Franklin has received recognition from multiple communities — Christian, civic, and international:
- Martin Luther King Jr. Mantle of Destiny Award — for his work in racial reconciliation
- National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC) Micah Award — recognizing his cross-cultural ministry impact
- Jewish National Fund Tree of Life Shalom Peace Award — for his sustained commitment to Israel
- Israel Allies Foundation: Top 50 Christian Allies of Israel — recognized multiple years, including 2024 and 2025
- Jerusalem Post: Top 10 Christian Zionists (2025) — listed at No. 3 among pro-Israel Christian leaders globally
The NHCLC recognition is worth pausing on. The NHCLC represents tens of thousands of churches across the United States — and their Micah Award is not handed out casually. It speaks to the breadth of Franklin’s relationships across ethnic and denominational lines.
Israel Advocacy and Humanitarian Work
Through Free Chapel and his media ministry, Franklin has channeled significant resources toward Israel. This includes building a church in Jerusalem, constructing housing for Holocaust survivors, and providing critical food and medical assistance to those affected by conflict. Following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, his support for Israel became even more publicly visible.
In early 2025, Franklin met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alongside prominent Christian leaders including Mike Huckabee and Franklin Graham. Netanyahu reportedly proposed a specific initiative inviting American pastors to create Bible study content connected to the Old Testament, with Franklin’s full support.
Political Engagement
Franklin has not shied away from political spaces when he believes faith and public life intersect. In August 2024, he led prayer at a Donald Trump and JD Vance rally in Atlanta — and was publicly vocal about his belief that prayer had played a role in protecting Trump’s life following an assassination attempt weeks earlier. His political engagement has drawn both praise and criticism from within the broader Christian community.
Free Chapel Today
Free Chapel in 2026 is one of the most active multi-campus churches in the United States. Its locations span three states — Georgia, South Carolina, and California — and its online presence extends the reach of its ministry globally. The church’s YouTube channel alone serves millions of viewers.
The annual 21-day fast at Free Chapel has become one of the most recognized corporate spiritual events in American Christianity. Thousands of people outside the church participate each year, following along through the app, the broadcast, and Franklin’s writing.
Free Chapel is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, meaning its financial practices are subject to independent audit and public accountability. For a church operating at this scale, that level of transparency matters.[IMAGE: Free Chapel multi-campus church worship service]
Net Worth and Financial Information
Jentezen Franklin’s estimated net worth is approximately $2 million, according to multiple sources. His income comes primarily from book royalties, speaking engagements, and his role as senior pastor of Free Chapel. Unlike some high-profile televangelists whose financial dealings have attracted significant controversy, Franklin has maintained a comparatively modest public financial profile — and Free Chapel’s ECFA membership provides a layer of institutional accountability over the church’s finances.
No verified information about his salary from the church is publicly available. Estimates vary widely online, and most figures circulating are speculative. What is confirmed is that the ministry operates with ECFA oversight, which requires member organizations to follow established financial accountability standards.
Criticism and Controversies
Franklin’s political engagement — particularly his visible support of Donald Trump during the 2024 election cycle — drew criticism from Christians who believe pastors should maintain more distance from partisan politics. His prayer appearance at the Atlanta Trump-Vance rally generated significant social media debate about the appropriate boundaries between pastoral ministry and political advocacy.
His Christian Zionist position is also contested within broader Christian theology. Not all evangelicals share his reading of Israel’s role in biblical prophecy, and his strong advocacy for Israeli government policy — particularly during periods of military conflict — has been questioned by some Christian commentators who hold different views on the theology of land, nation, and prophetic fulfillment.
These are genuine theological and civic debates. They are worth knowing about if you want to understand the full picture of who Jentezen Franklin is.
Interesting Facts About Jentezen Franklin
- His mother bought him his first saxophone when he was 12 years old — and he trained seriously enough to study it at college level.
- He was just 26 years old when he became senior pastor of Free Chapel in 1989.
- The first Free Chapel Orange County service in 2007 drew only 163 people — the church now serves thousands at that campus.
- His book Fasting became a New York Times bestseller before social media amplification was a primary driver of book sales — a testament to word-of-mouth within the church community.
- His television broadcast Kingdom Connection reaches more countries than most national news networks.
- He has met personally with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and participated in high-level discussions about Christian-Jewish cooperation in biblical education.
- Franklin has been named to Israel’s Top 50 Christian Allies list multiple consecutive years.
- He played in a college jazz band with his brother Richie — gospel music fans who know him only as a preacher might be surprised to learn he nearly had a career as a jazz musician.
Timeline of Key Life Events
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1962 | Born July 21 in Wilson, North Carolina |
| Late 1970s | Studies tenor saxophone at Atlantic Christian College; plays in jazz band with brother Richie |
| Early 1980s | Leaves college; begins traveling evangelism ministry with Richie under father Billy’s guidance |
| 1987 | Marries Cherise Franklin in September |
| 1989 | Becomes senior pastor of Free Chapel following Roy Wellborn’s death; congregation is ~300 members |
| 1991 | Father Billy Franklin dies |
| 2004 | Free Chapel moves to a new 3,000-seat auditorium in Gainesville |
| 2007 | Opens Free Chapel Orange County (Irvine, California); Fasting becomes a New York Times bestseller |
| 2011 | Publishes The Fasting Edge |
| 2014 | Opens Free Chapel Gwinnett campus in Suwanee, Georgia |
| 2016 | Expands to Spartanburg, South Carolina |
| 2024 | Leads prayer at Trump-Vance rally in Atlanta; recognized by Israel Allies Foundation |
| 2025 | Named No. 3 on Jerusalem Post’s Top 10 Christian Zionists list; meets with PM Netanyahu |
| 2026 | Publishes The Power of Short Prayers; Free Chapel operates 7+ campuses |
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Jentezen Franklin today?
Jentezen Franklin continues to serve as the senior pastor of Free Chapel in Gainesville, Georgia. He remains active in preaching, writing, and broadcasting through Kingdom Connection. He makes his home in Gainesville with his wife Cherise, and they regularly spend time with their children and grandchildren.
What is Jentezen Franklin’s religious affiliation?
Franklin is affiliated with the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee), a Pentecostal denomination. Free Chapel is a Pentecostal evangelical church. Franklin’s theology is rooted in Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity, with a strong emphasis on prayer, fasting, the Holy Spirit, and biblical prophecy.
What happened to Jentezen Franklin’s son Drake?
Drake Franklin is alive and well. As of 2024, Drake is married to Jayme Franklin, and his father has publicly praised him for his work in ministry and public life. Claims circulating online that Drake died are misinformation with no credible factual basis. When in doubt, check official channels before accepting sensational headlines.
Was Jentezen Franklin in an accident?
Yes, Franklin was involved in a car accident, but he survived and was not seriously injured. Viral rumors claiming he was killed in a car wreck are false. He continues to preach and lead Free Chapel actively.
What is Jentezen Franklin’s net worth?
Jentezen Franklin’s estimated net worth is approximately $2 million. His primary sources of income are book royalties and his pastoral ministry. Free Chapel operates under ECFA financial accountability standards, meaning its finances are subject to independent oversight.
What is the salary of Jentezen Franklin?
No verified public information about Jentezen Franklin’s salary from Free Chapel is available. Estimates circulating online vary widely and are largely speculative. Free Chapel’s ECFA membership means financial accountability structures are in place, but specific pastoral compensation figures are not publicly disclosed.
What is Jentezen Franklin’s church called?
His church is called Free Chapel. It is a multi-campus megachurch headquartered in Gainesville, Georgia, with additional campuses in Gwinnett, Braselton, Alpharetta, and Midtown Atlanta (Georgia), Spartanburg (South Carolina), and Irvine (Orange County, California).
What are Jentezen Franklin’s most famous sermons?
Franklin’s sermons on fasting, prayer, and spiritual disciplines are among his most widely shared. His series on Israel and biblical prophecy has also drawn large audiences, particularly since October 7, 2023. His Kingdom Connection broadcast archives contain decades of messages across all of his core themes. You can access recent messages at freechapel.org.
What is Jentezen Franklin known for?
He is best known for three things: his New York Times bestselling book Fasting, his global television broadcast Kingdom Connection, and his leadership of Free Chapel — a church he grew from 300 members to a multi-campus megachurch over more than three decades. His work in support of Israel and his racial reconciliation efforts have also brought him wide recognition across denominational and cultural lines.
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