“Seventy-five years is far more than a milestone on a calendar,” said John H. Cress, Southern California Conference (SCC) president, in his greeting to the church. “It is a testimony to the faithfulness of God and to generations of believers who have answered His call to worship, serve, and share the everlasting gospel.”
In 1941, a group of believers were moved by the Holy Spirit to establish a gospel ministry focused on serving the African American community of Santa Monica. The small group gathered in homes and rented neighborhood churches in those early years and spent that first decade in earnest prayer to purchase land to build a church of their own. Originally named Ephesus church, the congregation changed the name to Delaware Avenue church after construction was completed on the building located on the corner of Delaware Avenue and 20th street.
At the anniversary celebration this summer, Lawrence S. Dorsey Sr. (pastor from 2012-2016) spoke on the theme of legacy and being anchored in hope. He highlighted several events in history from the last 75 years and rhetorically asked, “What has Delaware been doing for 75 years?”
“You must have been doing good work because you are still here,” Dorsey said. “You are still blessed, growing, thriving, witnessing, and still relevant to God’s plan for His church and His people in this area. You’ve had a good past. You have to have an active present to keep going in the future.”
The church’s legacy has been marked by community outreach, service, and sharing the gospel near and far. Since the early 2000s, Delaware Avenue church’s Sunday food distribution has provided essential food to neighbors in need. Since 2017, the church has recommitted itself to the Great Commission by hosting evangelistic campaigns every year. The church has even supported mission work overseas through Fedley Bonneau, a church member who has spent years serving primarily in Thailand. At the celebration, SCC administration presented the church with a check to support its ministry.
The day continued with a praise and recognition service that included a historical retrospective, recognition of three members’ dedicated service through the years, and concluded with everyone singing together “We’ve Come This Far by Faith.”
The day’s conclusion mirrored the conclusion of Dorsey’s sermon where he noted that in our faith journeys, the anchor we have in Jesus is sure, but sometimes we’re not sure.
“Is your faith strong enough, will your anchor hold to get you through another 75 years?” He asked. He reasoned that “it’s doable because Jesus will be with you always.”