About Us
Welcome to Word of Life Church, Johnson City, Tennessee. We are a Non-Denominational church but our roots run from the early Pentecostal era making our services more of a Pentecostal type of atmosphere. Our congregation numbers around 600 brothers and sisters of whom many have relocated to our area from Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Washington D.C., Georgia, North Carolina.
The diverse makeup of our congregation offers many different styles of special singing. You may hear contemporary,classical, bluegrass, and some ‘good ole’ Southern gospel singing.
The main focus and purpose of Word of Life Church is God’s Word. To have the words of the Bible made manifest in a people that will make a better neighbor, husband, wife, son or daughter and to reach out to the unsaved.
Brother Donny Reagan is the pastor of Word of Life Church and has the great task of providing spiritual food and guidance to a multitude of sheep with various needs on a daily and weekly basis. Brother Reagan is a very dynamic preacher who preaches what you need to hear and not what you want to hear. If you are searching for a pastor who has a shepherd’s heart as we believe Brother Donny has, then we offer you the opportunity to join us for service or live stream from our website.
It is our desire that we could help you start your Christian journey or in some way encourage you until we reach that glorious morning when we shall see our Lord in the air. May God Richly Bless You!
Our Services are on Wednesday at 7:00 PM, and Sunday at 11:00 AM. Our Sunday School starts at 10:30 AM. and offers 5 classes ranging from ages 3 to 13.
Deacons
Jim Whitson, Deacon
I have been attending Word of Life Church when it was still at Roan Hill. I have been serving the Lord since the age of twelve years old and have been a deacon at Happy Valley Church Of Jesus Christ since 1975. As a deacon, it is a great honor to serve his people as I serve Him. My wife, Barbara and I have two married daughters with three grandchildren, all (thank the Lord) are in church at Word of Life. Bro. Jim Whitson
Dallas Ornduff, Deacon
I was born and raised in Elizabethton, Tennessee. Even though I attended a denominational Christian church, I always felt there could be more to God than what I was being taught. Not knowing why at the time, as a young boy God would deal with me differently on subject matters and I felt condemned about things that didn’t seem to bother others. I would often pass by a church on the hill. While passing by this church one day in the early 1970’s, I looked up as I had many times before, but this time something struck me that one day I would attend this church and maybe even meet a girl there. A few years later I was introduced to a girl named Donna who just happened to attend this particular church. There is where we were married and gave our hearts to the Lord. Now some (30) years later, I can look back thru my life and see how every road I took and many times the wrong ones (no matter how twisted and turned they were), they all led me right here to this light house called Word of Life Church of Johnson City where I have been serving as a deacon since 1991. Bro. Dallas Ornduff
Scott Arrowood, Deacon
My family moved to Tennessee in 1994 to attend Happy Valley Church Of Jesus Christ. My wife Carrie and I have three married children and a grandson. I became a deacon in 1996 and consider it a Joy to serve our Lord through the people at Word of Life. Bro. Scott Arrowood
George Hamblen, Deacon
I was born two months premature, the youngest of triplets and was raised in a Lutheran home. By the time I was twelve, we had gone from the Lutheran church to the Assembly of God. From there to United Pentecostal Church. My oldest sister and her husband introduced us to the message in 1972. I married my wife Rachel on February 1984 and after waiting for sixteen years to have a child, God answered our prayers and gave us a girl in 2000. I was elected to be a deacon in early 2002. Bro. George Hamblen
History
Word of Life Church started from a small white frame building in 1949 called Roan Hill Church of Jesus Christ and was at that time an independent Pentecostal church.
The first pastor was Ira McKinney, followed by Bro. Barnett, then Bro. Ed Phillips, and last his son Bro. Roy Phillips.
Brother Ed Younce was a major factor in the financial stability of the church in its early years. Pastor Ed Phillips contributed greatly to the spiritual stability, fulfilling his pastoral duties for several years without salary, showing up early before services to open the church and start the old coal furnace.
Through the years the congregation grew to around 75 members. The local housing authority took control of the property in early 1965 forcing the Roan Hill Church to purchase the property in Elizabethton.
A new church was built and with it a new name was established to coincide with the surrounding area called Happy Valley. The first service was held on Thanksgiving weekend of November 1965.
Brother Roy Phillips continued his pastoral leadership to the new church and introducing the End-Time Message of William Marion Branham to the congregation in 1969. With the announcement of a prophet and a great message, approximately 1/3 of the members left the church. With God’s blessings on the church, membership grew through the years to around 300 and with the addition of the “Spoken Word Library” in 1975; it became very active in overseas missionary endeavors supplying books and tapes to message believing churches around the world.
With the departure of Bro. Roy Phillips, Brother Donny Reagan took over pastoral duties in September of 1987. His ministry grew and so did the church. After considering several options, a vote to increase the size of the church was passed and plans were drawn up to add a new sanctuary, extend the parking area, and change the existing sanctuary into a fellowship hall. These changes were completed in November, 1992.
In the spring of 2020 construction began on our current facility. The old church building was sold in 2022 and services were held for four months at the Holiday Inn, Johnson City. The first service at the current facility was held February 5, 2023. The larger sanctuary and fellowship hall have been a great blessing, allowing us to schedule special services and events that were limited at the previous facility. The current congregation stands at around 600.
Pastor
Bro. Donny Reagan
Pastor Donny Reagan, his wife Carol and family relocated to Johnson City in 1988. He became the Pastor in September of 1987. At present the Word of Life congregation has about 600 members. Under the leadership of Pastor Reagan’s ministry, God has enabled us to be involved in numerous overseas missionary endeavors that include several countries. Pastor Reagan also has the assistance of several ministers and evangelists who help in the care of our congregation. Our outreach, ministries are made possible by live streaming and reach many states within our country and also several foreign countries worldwide.
The objectives and goals of the Word of Life Church and Pastor Donny Reagan are that the message of God through his prophet messenger William Branham will restore this end-time church back to the original faith of the Apostolic Fathers in the book of Acts. We believe that the true church of God must have a born-again experience and will be perfected in the Five-Fold Ministry given to the church. We trust that the Happy Valley Church of Jesus Christ website will be an encouragement and help in your Christian walk.