Church Information

Our History

Lancashire Roots

All Nations Christian Centre was established in 1941 by two young sisters from Lancashire - Elsie & Jennie Wood.

In 1939 the sisters had gone to the Assemblies of God Bible College in London under the ministry and leadership of some of the great early pioneers in the Assemblies of God denomination, including Howard Carter. After their training, Howard Carter told them to go to Wolverhampton. They were sent with 15 shillings a week for 2 months to get them started. They cycled back home from London to Lancashire, a three day journey, and spent a few weeks at home packing all their belongings before they cycled to Wolverhampton.

Horseley Fields

Their main aim was to reach the slums, particularly poor children. They looked for the poorest area in Wolverhampton and found a place called Horseley Fields. The fathers were still at war and they found children running around in the streets with no shoes or socks on. The sisters opened a Sunday School to reach the children.

To finance this work the Wood sisters did all that they could to earn money, from gardening to potato picking. They should have been called up to work in the factories but they told the labour exchange that they came to serve God and didn’t want to make instruments for war. They were put on deferred interview and continued in their work.

Temple street

In the mid 50s, after 12 years faithfully working in Horseley Fields, they felt that God was telling them to expand and started to look for new premises. They found a church on Temple Street which had been used during the war as a factory, but was now up for sale.

Elsie went to see the person selling the property. As he looked her up and down he immediately told her she couldn’t buy it. Elsie’s immediate response was “all things are possible with God” and the man listened to what she had to say. He allowed them to buy the building in instalments!

The Sisters immediately started work on the building. They bought some concrete and built some steps which allowed them access to the basement which they rented out to a mirror factory.

Expansion

The Pentecostal Church continued to expand and by the 80s the Church had out-grown the building. An extension seating up to 300 people was built and the original building was converted into use as a meeting room, soup kitchen and day centre.

Elsie Wood is now with the Lord but in October 2001 Jennie Wood visited the Church and said that her desires and dreams had been fulfilled by what she sees the Church to be today.