The community of faith known as Harvest Church of God has a long legacy of Christian service in Northeast Alabama. The Church of God was founded in 1886 when a group of believers, named the Christian Union, led by a Baptist minister rediscovered the power of the Holy Spirit like the early New Testament church. They formed what is today the Church of God, the oldest Pentecostal denomination in America.

Over the next twenty years the Holy Spirit revival broke out all over the world.

In 1917, J.B. Ellis, a pioneer preacher in the Church of God, came to Anniston. In a tent, in what is now Zinn Park, a revival began and lasted several weeks. The meeting encountered numerous forces of opposition, but Rev. Ellis and the believers endured.

Following the tent revival, Rev. Ellis set the Anniston Church of God in order. The first location of the church was at a residence on Mulberry Avenue. As the church grew, the congregation moved to larger facilities on Glen Addie Avenue. In 1930, under the pastorate of Colon Dunn, the church built a new facility on Sixteenth Street. Over the next 20 years, the Anniston church continued to grow under the leadership of great pastors like Thurman G. Pearson, A.L. Burroughs, and A.V. Coker. These great men of God left a tremendous legacy of faith here in Anniston. Many other pastors followed in their footsteps.

In 1966, the congregation moved into a new facility on Seventeenth Street. Rev. F.M. Sides was the pastor at the time and served the church in Anniston from 1958 to 1970. In August of 1971, Rev. O.V. Sewell became pastor during which time the church realized dramatic growth through a dynamic bus ministry, which increased the Sunday School ministry to over 600. Rev. Sewell continues as pastor of Senior Adult ministry here at Harvest today.

In January of 1980, during Rev. Ed Smith’s pastorate, the church moved to new facilities at 2700 Brighton Avenue just off McClellan Boulevard. The new property had 9.5 acres with a sanctuary that would seat 1000 people. In February of 1985, the church voted to change its name from Anniston Church of God to Harvest Church of God. August of 1986 brought to Harvest our current senior pastor, Jerry Irwin. Pastor Irwin is a third generation minister of the Church of God with his grandfather and father serving the church for more than 50 years respectively.

The growth that followed has been amazing! Membership and tithes have grown to record numbers and now the church is one of the largest in the denomination. Our children and youth ministries presently minister to hundreds on a weekly basis. We have many other thriving ministries which include singles, music, senior adults, jail, outreach, prayer, missions, men’s and women’s ministries, which are a vital part of Harvest today. Our present membership is reflective of this with over 1,700 members.

In 1995, Pastor Irwin moved the congregation to the desirable area of Golden Springs, which will be on the new Eastern Parkway. The church now owns thirty acres on one campus where a new media center which seats 1000 serves as our temporary worship center. A multi-functional family life center has also been built on the property. At the time of this writing, a new 2,700 seat sanctuary is being built that will be the largest sanctuary in Northeast Alabama of any Christian church.

Pastor Irwin has always had a heart for evangelism. This has resulted is a vision to build a facility where men and women can be trained to be Champions for Christ. Pastor Irwin has declared 2006 as a year of achievement at Harvest. During this year, our 10 year planning and building program will result in the opening of our new 6 million dollar complex. It will house the new 2500 seat sanctuary where men and women will encounter the life changing power of the Holy Ghost. It will also house numerous Sunday school classrooms and the 200 seat children’s sanctuary which will be a means of “training children in the way they should go”.  Additional space has been designated where pastors and ministers can receive training that will help them be all God intended for them to be.

The future looks bright at Harvest, as we continue proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to those in need of answers to today’s questions.