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September 13, 2005, will always be a memorable day for lead Pastor William h. Murphy and his wife, Pastor Danielle. It was on that day that they both heard the word of the Lord to begin a new work in the Atlanta, Georgia area. With the blessing of their spiritual mentors, the Murphy’s began meeting with a few close friends on the launch of the ministry.
The group met weekly and in November 2005, Murphy led the team on a 21 day Daniel fast. At the culmination of the fast, the team located their first meeting location which turned out to be the DeFoore Centre, one of Atlanta’s eclectic arts venues. The historic facility was a former church that had been converted to an arts venue that appeared to have been designed for the dReam Center. With a goal to attract the “unchurched”, the designated service time of 12 noon was set. A come as you are dress attire was set and the group moved forward putting in to place structural guidelines and ministry goals that were biblically based to ensure the success of the ministry.
The group received confirmation that they would receive their charter on December 6, 2005 by Bishop William H. Murphy, Jr., Senior Pastor of the New Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Pontiac, MI. Bishop Murphy served as the personal covering of the then Elder William Murphy and is his biological father. During this historic service, 32 people were identified as charter members. Upon receiving the charter, the first service date of January 15, 2006 was set.
The first official service of The dReam Center church of ATLANTA was held to a standing room only audience. This date was also quite significant, as it was Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday – one of the nations foremost dreamers! Word began to spread about this awesome new and relevant ministry. Membership rose and the community began to feel its impact. A health fair, home buying seminars and entrepreneurship programs were some of the successful initiatives the ministry provided. Special youth programs focusing on safety and Christian Education were provided. Though a non denominational church, the ministry quickly became a part of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship. The ministry focuses on this fellowship as its world wide ministry that they support and undergird.
In July 2007, the ministry relocated to the Dunwoody area of Atlanta. While at this location, the ministry expanded their community services events to health fairs that included included HIV Awareness and live testing programs, an alternative event to Halloween was provided for the youth and an extensive Christian Education program was launched that provided financial education, discipleship training, and Christian Education. The couples ministry, One Flesh was formerly birthed and hosted numerous events for the couples. The youth also enjoyed numerous activities and outings including a purity program and overnight trips. The ministry partnered with the Angel Tree program and provided Christmas presents to the children of incarcerated parents. During this festive occasion, a free dinner was provided to all of the attendees. Having a heart for “Senior Saints”, the ministry partnered with the Roswell Nursing Home and provided live worship experiences every 5th Sunday of the year. The Foundation for dReams was launched and received its 501C3 status. Plans include launching an after school program and educational arm in the once the permanent facility is secured. Pastor Murphy, also a recording artist, was featured on national television programs and local ticketed events and spotlighted the growing ministry.
Plans were made to purchase the rental facility but after months of planning and continued growth, it was agreed that the facility was not sufficient for long term goals. The search team sought a much larger building that would provide more than enough space to house the current services and to meet the future plans.
On May 16, 2008, a 30,000 square foot facility was purchased to house the ministry. This expansive building is split into two levels of 15,000 square feet and was located just 5 miles away in the suburb of Doraville, at the well known area of Spaghetti Junction. An aggressive redesign plan was put into place to provide housing of a 500 seat sanctuary, 100 seat children’s area/multi purpose room, nursery, Executive office, bookstore and hospitality area. While waiting on the completion of the build out, the current Dunwoody location was sold to a new owner and the ministry strategically moved temporarily to the Jimmy Carter area of Atlanta which is where they currently reside until the completion of the build out.
The ministry is proud to have launched a successful Outreach initiative that has afforded them the opportunity to serve Atlanta’s homeless community, and provide mentorship to wayward youth. Recent highlights include working with the Angel Tree project for Christmas, working with Hosea Williams Feed the Hungry program, paying for groceries for families, sponsoring youth multi day events, attending the Church Development Strategies Conference in Houston, TX and ministering at the Greenbriar Mall community days.