In the year of 1886 our fore parents with a burning desire to worship and praise God established this church as we know it today. The church had its origin in a brush harbor. The brush harbor was located just across the road from the present structure. There was a great sense of devotion among the congregation. Their faith and determination laid the foundation for us today. With their faith rooted in God’s promise to be with them, they purchased from a white congregation the Josey Creek Church. This church got its name from the early settlers of this community, the Josey’s. The Creek east of here was called Josey Creek. This is how our church got its name. The church was very small with outside shutters for windows.
Reverend Jim Moye was the first pastor. Following his pastorate the following ministers served as pastor: Rev. Howard; Rev. John Spencer of Starkville, MS; Rev. J.P. Pipkins of Longview, MS; Rev. Fintress of Louisville, MS; Rev. A.B. Martin of West Point, MS; Rev. M.H. Hill of Houston, MS; Rev. L.W. Watson of North Carolina. The congregation grew spiritually, morally, and financially.
In 1908, the congregation saw a need for a larger church. The old church was torn down and a new one built. Ten years later it was burned to the ground. With heavy and desponded hearts they had to start all over again. This was a great responsibility, because few if any members were land owners, but their faith and trust in God the spirit of cooperation existed among the members of the church. Mr. Spencer Austin (contractor) was the only one paid. The labor was donated by the men of the church and the community, the ladies furnished the food. The structure we occupy today was built. The church continued to grow under the administration of the following ministers:
- 1920 – 1921: Rev. B. F. Ware of Starkville, Mississippi
- 1921 – 1935: Rev. M. R. Green of Cedar Bluff, Mississippi. Under his administration the Missionary Society was organized.
- 1935- 1936: Rev. William Brown of Louisville, Mississippi
- 1936- 1937: Rev. O. C. Thompson of West Point, Mississippi
- Rev. J. M. McDonald from the Mississippi Delta served a short tenure as pastor. Two classrooms and other major repairs were added during his pastorate. The church looked forward to his summer revivals.
- In December 1962, our hearts felt a great sense of loss at the home-going of Rev. Green. We felt like sheep without a shepherd.
- 1963- 1964: Rev. F. C. Campbell served well as our pastor.
Rev. Chester Cobb of New Albany, Mississippi served from 1964 until 1973. The church grew and prospered under his administration. He had the vision to add the fellowship hall, baptismal, pastor study and bathrooms. In January of 1973 Rev. Cobb resigned. Again our hearts felt a great sense of loss. We were without a pastor until November 25, 1973.
At this time God send us our beloved pastor Rev. Leroy Harrison. He was an inspiration to the church. He re-organized the Sunday school, organized three choirs; the Sunday school, Junior and Young Adult Choirs, and revitalized existing organizations. Our church grew spiritually and financially under his leadership. Rev. Harrison vision and our dream were to remodel and make other additions, namely two more classrooms, a pastor study, enlargement of the kitchen, air conditioning and central heating of the building, and the bricking of the church. The church was completed during the spring of 1979 under the supervision of contractor, Mr. Rufus Nicks, Jr.
We would like to thank the following deacons and trustees for helping to make our dream become a reality; the late Mr. Odie Rush, Mr. Johnny Rush, and our own Mr. Henry Gibson and William B. Robinson.
In December of 1988, our hearts suffered a great loss by the resignation of Rev. Leroy Harrison. We were without a pastor until August of 1989. At this time God sent us Rev. Timothy Daniels. He was a great inspiration to the Josey Creek Church family. These are some of the things that have been accomplished under the administration of Rev. Daniels: he organized more Sunday school classes, enlarged the pastor’s study, paved the parking lot, purchased a church trail-ways type bus, and added a children’s ministry.
For several years Rev. Daniels and the members felt a strong need to build a new house of God. Our goal was to begin the construction of a new edifice. In April of 1995 we rallied together around a conviction that title the “Nehemiah Project.” There was a ground breaking service held June of 1998 which was immediately followed by the foundation pouring. Rev. Sammie Hill, of Columbus, MS was the contractor for this project. After much planning, meetings and prayers, on June 27, 1999, we marched into our new house of God with a Victory March. Today we thank God for his blessings and each time we look around at this edifice, we know that it was truly the hands of God that made it possible.
After 12 years of service, in August, 2001, Rev. Timothy Daniels left the Josey Creek Family to pursue other interest. Being without a leader, Rev. Thomas Rogers Junior was elected as interim pastor from March, 2002 unto December 7, 2002. In January, 2003, Rev. Thomas Rogers Jr. was elected as pastor of this great church. Right away Rev. Rogers begin to put his vision into place. New souls were saved and new members were added to the church. The old church was torn down and the area was leveled for future use. The trail-ways bus was sold and a new Church Van was purchased. A community out reach program (Walk-For-Jesus) was started, and new Junior Deacon Ministry was put into place. A three-week new membership orientation class was established for new members and a weekly van-pick up service was established for Sunday Morning pickups. The parking lot was paved, with individual parking areas. In 2004, an outside utility storage building was purchased. 20 feet outside signpost was purchased and utilize monthly for church announcements, encouraging words, etc. Several new church ministries were incorporated into the fellowship including Deaconess Ministry, Health Guild Ministry, and the Rolling Hills Nursing Home Outreach Ministry.
In 2006, a church web site was established (www.joseycreek.org). We are a church that believes that the Bible is the Word of God, and in it is Kingdom Principles for Christian living, therefore we want to spread this message to the community and the world.
In January 2007, Rev. Rogers started a new One-hour Senior Citizen Day Bible class. Starting at 10:30 a.m. and ending at 11:30 a.m., the members are served lunch immediately after class. A part-time payable secretary is hired to man the church office during the week from Tuesday-Friday during the morning hours. A vision is in place to erect The Josey Creek Life Center. This center will house a computer literacy program, GED classes, family enrichment classes, Christian book store, church league recreation department, an after school program, a child care program, and focus on strengthening black men in the 21st Century. In 2007, Pastor Rogers put in place a Morning Prayer Service and the Josey Creek M. B. Church went into prayer for the land that will accommodate the Josey Creek Life Center. Praying Exodus 23:20 which says, “Behold, I sent an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.”
In April 2009, the Lord blessed the Josey Creek Church with the acreage needed for the Josey Creek Life Center. In 2009, The church provided transportation for senior citizen to Doctor’s appointments and grocery shopping.
To further fulfill the holistic thrust of the Josey Creek Church, in 2010, two programs were added (1) after school tutorial & (2) The Mission Ministry Outreach. The after school tutorial program was establish to help students in grades K-12 reach academic excellence. To bridge the gap between church and community, the Mission Ministry Outreach was implemented to assist in such programs as prison ministry, job placement, storm release efforts, family food & clothing adoption, etc. The church provided guest speaker for the senior citizen ministry following Tuesday morning Bible Study.
In 2012, a twenty-four hour prayer ministry was put in place. This prayer ministry covers the church members, communities, and the universal church. It was birth to comply with the New Testament’s mandate to pray. The mandate is nestle in Luke 18:1, Ephesians 6:18, 1 Thessalonians 5:17, etc. Since the birthing of this prayer ministry, the church has witnessed the hand of God moving in mighty ways!
In 2013, in-house prayer group was formed which meets each Thursday at 6:00 p.m. and Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m. Also, in 2013 a new purpose and means of praising God emerged through the creation of the Praise Dance Ministry as, according to Psalm 149:3, we “praise the Lord with dancing. In 2014, The Balance Marriage Ministry was organized for married couples to strengthen and enhance marriages God’s way.
In 2015, several enrichment ministries were added; The Women’s Choir was organized and The Laymen’s Ministry was revitalized. Cancer awareness was observed each year recognizing cancer survivors and past deceased members. In 2016, The Intermediate Sunday School class was added. In 2017 God continued to pour out his blessings through various in-house organizations : the Josey Creek Wednesday Night Bible Study and Sunday Morning Worship Service, which began streaming live via Face Book; the Home Mission Ministry assistance to the First Presbyterian Church with The Casserole Kitchen , whereas food was brought to the church and workers from Josey Creek Church helped serve the meals to the needy each 4th Tuesday of the month; the establishment of an Enrichment Ministry for the young ladies offering life skills lessons such as learning to cook. Paying off a mortgage is a major accomplishment. On December 27, 2017, the Lord blessed the church to pay off its mortgage!
On December 14, 2019, Rev. Thomas Rogers resigned as pastor of The Josey Creek Church. He accepted the position as Senior Pastor of New Bethlehem Baptist Church in Bessemer, Alabama.
Again, the church trusted God to guide our future. In 2020, the Church installed security cameras. The Covid 19 Corona virus hit the country and our community as well. It’s impact on the health and wellness of all, caused the church to close its doors on March 22, 2021, ending “in-person worship” and all other “in-person contact” church services or activities. For 5 months the church remained closed. On August 2, the church initiated Facebook Live, streaming the Sunday morning church service with just a few people in attendance. The Church began On-Line Call-In Zoom for Sunday School. The church also created on line Bible study via Zoom call in and video. The church purchased its own Corona Virus cleaning & disinfectant machine & supplies to help combat the virus spread. The church was also very blessed to receive food from the USDA and sponsored many food drives to distribute food to the community & surrounding areas.
On May 2, 2021 the church doors were open to in-person worship as well as Face Book Live at 11:00 a.m. It was during this time that the church recognized a need to update its previous by-laws. Later in the year, in person Adult Sunday School combined classes and combined youth classes began meeting at 10:00 a.m. Bible study continued on line. In 2022, as the covid pandemic continued yet began to show a decrease, God continued to bless the church. The mask requirements were lifted by CDC and the church was more financially secure. A pulpit committee was established to serve in the new pastor’s search process.
In 2023, the church witnessed more blessings. The old 750-pound church bell was sanded, primed, painted was resurrected! It was placed out in front of the church (May,2023). The corner stone was placed on the front south-east corner of the church as well.
This body of Christ is dedicated to the teaching, developing and living the Word of God. We pray God’s blessing upon the Josey Creek M. B. Church Family and may His presence continue to dwell with us. With God as our head, we are secure that He holds our hand as “We Walk By Faith, Not By Sight.” – 2 Corinthians 5:7
