It was Memorial Day 1999 when the Williams’ family headed for the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex with their two young children (Jefferson was 4 and Sheridan was 2). The previous months had been consumed with prayer and preparation, driving around North Texas wondering where God was calling them to plant a church. With Shawn & Brandee Webb agreeing to join with them in this endeavor, they settled on Corinth, a bedroom community nestled between Lewisville and Denton, just north of the Lewisville Lake and in the Lake Cities area. The summer of ’99 was spent itinerating, brainstorming, building relationships, doing demographic studies, fraternizing within the Lake Cities area and making preparations for an October 3, 1999 launch date. As the “big day” approached, a couple of pre-launch worship services were held in homes and in Genti’s restaurant (the only non-fast-food restaurant in Corinth at the time). During those weeks additional volunteer staff were added to the team—two young men who came from relationships the Williams’ had built with them in Oklahoma and Allison Medley who agreed to drive up each week from Southwestern Assemblies of God University to be our Children’s Pastor. In addition, a Chi-Alpha Campus Ministry was begun on the UNT Campus by the TCOC staff and a couple of young ladies from that organization became our Nursery Workers.

Finally October 3rd was here and more than 80 people were in attendance on our “grand opening” Sunday. Although that number seemed great, approximately 50 of those were family and friends from Oklahoma who had come in support of the Williams. Over the next several weeks and months, our regular attendance grew from 30 – 40 to 50 – 75, then 75 – 100 and later 100 – 150.

With each growth spurt came new challenges, changes in our nursery and children’s areas, adjustments in seating arrangements, video projection, sound, worship equipment, etc. The worship team grew from the four of us (Jeff, Sherri, Shawn & Brandee) to adding a drummer, bass player and acoustic guitar player. For the first year, Sherri prepared breakfast casseroles, muffins, donuts, coffee and juice for everyone in attendance. Every Sunday afternoon, she and Brandee would prepare homemade banana nut bread, wrap it and place it in decorative baskets to be delivered to any newcomers that had visited on that day.

Our entire purpose was enveloped and manifested in our vision statement: Serving Christ by Serving the Call, the Church and the Community. Serving Christ by Serving Others. Serving Christ by Serving YOU. It was many months down the road before lay people began serving in areas of ministry. Our sole desire was for them to learn to serve others by following our example. So we served, and served, and served. Pastor Jeff headed up the set-up and tear-down team (us) personally unloading and loading the trailer before and after each service. As people began to catch on to the vision and become faithful supporters of the ministry, they took on the same servanthood spirit and the core team grew and grew.

There were many challenges and victories that marked the road from there to here. Some of the most significant being the purchase of property (December 2000) and a self-constructed capital campaign for what has become our first building—a 10,000 square foot building at 3201 Tower Ridge Drive on 15 acres, acres that Pastor Jeff had walked and prayed over each morning at 5:30 for many months prior to ground-breaking day.

After five years of meeting in the school and gaining great favor with the school district, TCOC had their first service in their very own facility on the first Sunday of September 2004. It was an amazing day of celebration and sentimental reminiscing. God had done so much, brought us so far. We were and are so blessed. Upon moving into the new facility, TCOC had grown to about 250 in regular Sunday morning attendance. One month after moving into the new facility attendance had doubled and multiple services and modular space for education quickly became necessary.

From September 2004 to the present, attendance has steadily climbed from 500 to nearly 800 with 1200 – 1500 TCOC adherents who call TheChurchOfCorinth their church home. Within those same years, two church bodies were birthed in the city of Denton from TCOC: Lifeline and Rapha. Also, during that time, a 2-day a week mother’s day out program was formed and grew till an additional 2-day program was needed. An after-school program was created for students who need a place for recreation and tutoring after school. And a Christian Education facility, The Corinth Academy came into existence in 2006.

TheChurchOfCorinth staff has grown from paying Pastor only to eight full-time pastoral staff, a full-time facilities manager and many full and part-time employees for the school, mother’s day out and after school programs.

TCOC is a thriving, healthy and diverse congregation with a bright future and a desire to make a significant and positive difference in our community, surrounding neighborhoods, the metroplex, the state of Texas and around the world through in-house ministries and world missions. If there’s anything we’ve learned over ten years it is that “Nothing is impossible with God.”