Pastor Tommy Smith Jr

Our mission is to disciple and empower pentecostal leaders one soul at a time to go out and empower other people in the name of Jesus so that the whole man may be perfect unto all good works!

I began working with a ministry team in East St Louis and we were given a church building in Washington Park, IL and nobody wanted to pastor the church in WP. The building was in bad need of repair. Church teams got together along with myself and worked on that building for over a year and I felt like God was going to give me a church but not in Washington Park. I grew up in East St Louis but I moved my family out of the city to go to Granite City and live. We have six children all 13 years and under. While working with the church teams in renovating the church, God spoke to me one day at home and told me to go down to the church. Well I didn't know why but I went. I already had a key to the church because the building was given to us by the Illinois District. When I went there and opened the church door, God spoke to me and said, what is it that you want? I said what do you mean, he said, I want you to Pastor this church and I said what!!!!!!!! He said my people are starving, hurting, impoverished, broken, walking the streets, etc. and I need you to open these doors and let my people in because some of these people out on the streets are going to be part of the ministry and the church. If you do three things for me, I will bless this ministry and this church will never have a need. He said, Preach my word, live my word and love on my people and if you do that, then I will supply the need. There is no mortgage on the church!!!!!!!!!!!! He said, what do you want? I said food pantry, bible college, teen help centers, youth programs, conference centers, a place where people can come to and get feed naturally and spiritually. A rescue center for the hopeless and helpless. A deliverance center for the whole man.

Living Word Church, formerly (Washington Park church) ran around 500 to 600 people on a Sunday back in the day. The city was comprised of businessmen and women and people from everywhere. One of the biggest missions giving churches in the city. It demographics comprised of 98 to 100 per cent white american. The race riots broke out in the surrounding areas and businessness started leaving WP one at a time until all of our white american brothers and sisters started leaving. The city use to have about I believe 60 to 80 thousand people in it and today it is about 5400 people with 90 something per cent african american comprising the city. The city has 48% people who are below level poverty. People between the ages of 18 and 35 years old are out of work and have nothing to do but rome the streets. Most people that we meet and feed are either on alcohol or drugs or mentally disturbed. 3 % of people have their degrees. High percentage are drop outs. We have strip clubs in the city that is polluting our people with spiritual pornography that must end. People are starving naturally and spiritually. The alcoholics are comprised of men for the most part. There are ex deacons of the church that are out on the streets. In the surrounding area of the public housing, 98 percent of head of household are women. There are six churches in the city and the job is just not getting done. People are in need!!People are being judged by what they look like and are not allowed in some churches. I met a man about 50 years old who said he had been locked up for over 28 years and the day we did the outreach, he talked to me as he was intoxicated. Well we loved on him that day and fed them and ministered to them and that same night he came back with his fiancee and told us that no one had ever done this for him before and he and his fiancee was led to Lord in the sinners prayer. He loves to door keep at the church.

We opened Oct 12, 2008 and since then God gave me an assistant pastor, evangelist, youth pastor, and prophettes and an hispanic pastor. i use my truck as transportation of the church because we are just beginning. We are heading in the direction of multi cultural church. 96 percent of Washington Park is african american, 3 % hispanic and 1% other ethnic groups. We are surrounded by fairmont city and we want to help our brothers and sisters. We already have established a food pantry and within two weeks, we have fed over 200 families. We survive off of the food service donations which is scarce when it comes to the food. I don't get a salary because we just started and the people need help so we haven't started to collect tithes because we don't want to pressure the people right now, especially with the economy the way it is. We are looking for places who will supply clothes, foods, furniture, drinks for our people. We are 501 c3 under the Illinois district. We had about 48 or more people yesterday in attendance and on our consecration service in October, we had over 100 people in attendance. People are hungry for God and they have needs and we want to meet those needs but right now we're just getting started. We want to connect with all companies and agencies to assist us in trying to fulfill our mission.