New Invention Church of God in Christ

A ripple of faith. That’s how it began for the Church of God in Christ. Here at the New Invention Church of God in Christ in Dallas, that same ripple resonates. Let’s journey back to the late 19th century with a man named Charles Harrison Mason. He wasn’t always a bishop. In fact, he started as a Baptist preacher. He felt a deep dissatisfaction, a yearning for a more profound connection with the divine. This led him on a path that would ultimately shape the Church of God in Christ. In 1897, a pivotal moment occurred. While preaching in Mississippi, Mason and his followers faced resistance from traditional churches. Closed doors met their fervent message of sanctification. Undeterred, Mason took to the streets, preaching from the courthouse steps. A simple act of defiance, yet it sparked a wildfire. The New Invention Church of God in Christ, though geographically distant, shares a spiritual lineage with these early gatherings. From courthouse steps to an abandoned warehouse, the early Church of God in Christ found its footing. It was in that warehouse, a makeshift sanctuary, that the church truly began to take form. Even gunshots fired into the midst of their prayer couldn’t extinguish their burning faith. The name “Church of God in Christ” came to Mason as a divine revelation in Little Rock, Arkansas. This name, resonating with 1 Thessalonians 2:14, solidified their identity. Later, a trip to Los Angeles in 1907 proved transformative. Mason experienced the baptism of the Holy Ghost, an experience so profound it altered the course of his ministry. He returned to Memphis, Tennessee, and began to share this Pentecostal experience. This led to a division within the church, with some rejecting the idea of speaking in tongues. Mason, however, stood firm, eventually leading to the formal organization of the Church of God in Christ with him as its General Overseer. From humble beginnings, the church expanded rapidly under Mason’s leadership. He established annual meetings, initially held in Memphis, for fellowship and church business. The first National Tabernacle, built in 1925, symbolized their growing strength. The New Invention Church of God in Christ, part of this larger narrative, carries the torch of this vibrant faith. It echoes the resilience and spiritual fervor of those early believers, gathered in warehouses and on courthouse steps. Their faith, a ripple that became a wave, continues to inspire and uplift here in Dallas.