About

Agape Fellowship & Training Center was formed, under the leading of God, by His Holy Spirit, in April of 2005. James and Towanda Martin, along with their supporters, began meetings as a house church. Growing quickly in number, James and Towanda saw the need to move into a larger building more suited to the needs of the growing congregation. In September of that same year, they moved into their first church building. Finding favor with God, the small ministry continued to grow, resulting in the need of a larger, more permanent facility. God providing, the present location, 2291 Main St, Ingleside TX, became their home, just in time to celebrate their first anniversary, in April of 2006.

James and Towanda, being raised with traditional religious standards and values, assumed they would be doing “church as usual”. But God had other plans. In January 2012, it appeared that the church was dying. They determined that they needed to make a business decision, inability to pay the bills does not honor God. So, they began the heart-breaking task of closing the church. Their mortgage holder was a great man of God and repeatedly told them that he did not want them to leave. He said he believed in what they were doing. Towanda was not convinced, until God, in His wisdom, led her to understand that she had been trying to do church like everyone else and trying to look like other pastors. This apparently, was not His plan.

The small group at Agape, wanting to see God’s purposes for them fulfilled, began the process of changing their way of doing church - they call it “coffee-house church”. The building lacked all the essentials amenities needed for operating as a coffee shop. But once the decision was made to follow the God given vision, before even making an announcement to it members and the public, donations began to pour in - sofas, dinette sets, dishes, coffee makers, etc. The ministry began receiving everything it needed to operate at a “coffee-house church.”

During the transition, people still gathered, back at the pastors’ house, for a time. They eventually returned to the revamped church building, God proving all along that when He calls, He provides.

It has been a great adventure, full of God’s marvelous works, never ceasing to amaze. Agape Fellowship, the “coffee-house church,” is now operating as God intends. Families come together, gather around tables, and conduct Bible studies. There are no specific programs for kids or teens. Instead, everyone joins together, as a single-family unit, learning and growing together. Reminiscent of the time when Towanda was a little girl, women sitting around her mom’s kitchen table, being taught and encouraged. The coffee was always on with one of her mom’s pound cakes sliced and served.

We are definitely not your grandma’s church — more like mom’s kitchen table.

Everyone is welcome, we just ask that you hang your denominational tags outside and come on in.