The
Autobiography and History Of
Rehoboth Temple Church of God in Christ
Rehoboth
Temple C.O.G.I.C. |
By permission, on November
26, 1957, Bishop Williams founded the Rehoboth Church
of God in Christ in the home of his brother Reverend
Aaron Williams. The first service was held on a Sunday morning
in the living room, where a small group of people met and Bishop
Williams stood at one end of the room with his back to the dining
room, while he delivered his first pastoral message.
After preaching a stirring message, he then gave the invitation
for reception of members; and nine people joined. Less than
one week later, Bishop Williams and his wife, Myrtice, used
their meager family savings and invested it in the ministry.
He rented the first floor of a three-story apartment house located
at 3107 N. 15th Street. With his wife and brother working by
his side, he led this small group into that little place commonly
known as a storefront church. The members witnessed two glorious
years of growth and spirit filled services there. It was during
this time that Bishop Williams began to teach his people the
concept of thinking big in relation to serving an Almighty God,
who is able to give you the desires of your heart; where the
Bible says, "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it."
Many people were blessed both spiritually and naturally.
By the end of the second
year, the Lord blessed Bishop Williams and the congregation
to purchase a beautiful edifice located at Franklin and Dauphin
Streets in Philadelphia. They marched in on January 1, 1960.
Bishop Williams continued to preach the Gospel by precept and
example and the church grew by leaps and bounds. Many souls
have been saved; both youth and adults, and a great number have
testified of miraculous healing of the body through his prayers.
The church soon outgrew the facilities at that location. However,
Bishop Williams, the Deacons and Trustees worked hard to improve
and provide for the congregation there, until they concluded
that the best thing for them to do was to consider relocating.
Through the providence of
God, the leadership of Bishop Williams, the dedicated Board
of Deacons and Trustees, and loyal membership, in 1971 they
were able to relocate to 1210 West Wyoming Avenue where they
are presently located. In 1987 an additional 50 x 70 feet was
added to the existing building. On Sunday, July 10, 1988, our
former presiding Bishop Chandler D. Owens dedicated the new
facilities to the Lord. In July 2003, an additional 7 X 35 feet
was added at the church to provide a three-story elevator with
indoor-outdoor ramp access to assist the senior saints and handicap
to have greater access to the entire church facilities, along
with a new stairwell.
