The germ for the church we now know as New Bethany began in 1936 while Sister Margaret “Granny” Perkins was praying at a “special prayer place” in the fields when she was taken out “in the spirit” and had a vision of a church at Hinson’s Cross Roads, a small community in Washington County, Florida, which is west of Vernon, Florida. In the vision, God showed her the man who would help organize and set up the church organization.

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As a woman of that day and time, she had a feeling that no one would listen to her. So she started the vision with her husband, John R. Perkins, Sr., of the building of the church and the man she had seen whom God had said would help them. Brother Perkins wondered how she would know the man when she saw him. She didn’t know or understand all of the vision herself, but she knew that when she saw this man, she would recognize him. 

 

As time passed, Granny and John Perkins attended a revival at Fairview Assembly of God Church (now known as Vernon Assembly of God Church), where Granny saw and recognized Rev. H. T. Mathis as the man in the vision. Can you imagine the joy she felt at that moment as she told her husband, “That’s the man I saw in the vision”?

 

Brother Perkins went to Rev. Mathis and told him of the vision Granny had and he agreed to help them. Brother Sanford Haney knew Brother Hans L. Ellis of Southport, whom he asked to come up to the Cross Roads. Land had to be purchased and the church set in order. Between Brother Mathis‘ help getting the church papers set up with the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri and Brother Ellis’ help organizing the people to purchase land and build the first church, a brush harbor was the first beginning of our church. The church was set in order July 20, 1937 and was officially recognized as MOUNT HERMAN ASSEMBLY OF GOD.

 

Due to reactions of Sister Tennie Collins, another meeting was called to order and by unanimous vote the name was changed to NEW BETHANY ASSEMBLY OF GOD. 

 

The first pastor was Rev. H. L. Ellis, secretary/treasurer was Sister Tinnie Collins, Deacons were Brothers Maxwell Raley, John Bodie and Woodrow Johnson, first delegate to the council (then in Panama City) was John R. Perkins.

 

An acre of land was purchased from Bullard-McKenzie Turpentine Company for $15.00 on September 7, 1937.

The brush arbor was located very close to the location of the present location of the church.  For lighting during evening services, which sometimes lasted until 3 or 4 A.M., there were “bottles hanging all over the coal oil with a rag in it. Wire was tied all around the bottles to hang them up. The bottles were metal or glass like they used to use on the roads back then,” said Wilbur Evans.  As to mosquitoes, they just weren’t as bad as they are now.