GMZ HISTORY (1895- )
Celebrating 128+ years of Christian Service
Greater Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church is based in the Houston Heights neighborhood since its inception. The church was organized in 1895 by the Reverend L. W. Williams in the home of Mr. and Mrs. John H. Grant. Within three years of its founding, the congregation held its first revival, which was conducted by the prominent Houston minister and civic leader, Reverend Jack Yates.
The first structure erected by members of the church was a brush arbor; with the passage of time, the congregation bought two lots and constructed a simple building; seven more lots were subsequently purchased, and in 1961 the present sanctuary was erected. Since that time, more property has been acquired and many improvements to the physical fabric of the church have continued to be made; and throughout its history, Greater Mt. Zion has been blessed with dynamic spiritual leadership; those who have guided the congregation include Reverends G. R. Alford, E. D. Carrington, C. J. Rigmaiden, A. L. Cain, Dr. Ralph D. West, Lugene Spurlock, Jr., Julius Glass, and Derrick L. Joseph.
It was during the pastorate of Reverend Carrington that the name of the congregation was changed from Mt. Zion Baptist to Greater Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church. Today, Greater Mt. Zion is ably led by Dr. Gaidi K. Burgess, who was installed as pastor on December 18, 2005; since Pastor Burgess assumed the pulpit of this historic church, its membership has continued to grow and new ministries have been added.
The church recently relocated to a larger facility to accomplish several goals.
- Classroom space
- Gymnasium
- Room For Expansion
- Ministry Growth
- Social Services
Future visions include a new state of the art family life center.