Pastor Gregory and First Lady Diana White work together at the Lord’s House of Prayer for All People to bring their worship and food ministry to the congregation and community. Their church is located at 9318 S. Western Ave., in Los Angeles.
The two met at a grocery store in 2015 when Gregory’s niece said to him, “You’re a good man and you need a wife. I’m going to find you one.” Upon seeing Diana, Gregory’s niece said, “This is the one for Gregory.” The niece told Diana, “I will buy you anything in this store if you just come with me.”
Gregory was sitting in the car when his niece and Diana approached and the two said hello. After convincing Diana to give him her phone number, the two began talking via phone for months before connecting in person. In the interim, he often sent Diana spiritually uplifting text messages. Next, Diana asked him on a date and the pair eventually married.
Prior to the wedding, the Rev. Deshay Ward, Gregory’s pastor, asked Diana, “Are you ready to become a pastor’s wife?” Ward, the pastor of Bible Fellowship Baptist Church where Gregory was a member, stated that he knew Gregory would eventually become a pastor of his own church.
Ward’s prediction came true when a member of Lord’s House of Prayer reached out to him in search of a pastor. Ward recommended Gregory, who came and preached for the Lord’s House of Prayer before being voted in as pastor.
Gregory and Diana said they have a food ministry as well. “When we started the food ministry, we would wake up at 5 a.m., to pick up canned goods from the airport that was being donated to the church. The food is for all who are in need,” said Diana.
During the week, the couple obtains pizza from Pizza Hut and the pair frequently offers sandwiches, fruit cups and salads to those who need it. On one occasion, they passed out fresh pork chops with rice and sweet potatoes for people to take home and cook. Also, Diana often awakens early Sunday morning to make breakfast for the congregation.
“We have a special ministry,” said Gregory, who can relate to people battling the darkness of drug addiction. A recovering addict, he has been sober since 1998. After been found in possession of drugs several times and repeatedly given second chances, he finally realized he had to get his self together when one judge told him that if he saw him in his court house one more time, Gregory would get 35 years in prison.
“That was an eye opener,” said Gregory. “I moved from Los Angeles to Harbor City to avoid people, places and drugs. Every time the church doors were open, I was there.” Gregory said that the most important message Christians can give each other is to trust God during the dark times and stand on the principles of faith.
“I got my call to preach at the age of 12-years-old when I preached my first sermon at the Church of the Living God on Main St. in Los Angeles,” he said. “I preached for two years, then as a teenager trying to explore, I went in a different direction.”
In 1991, Gregory stated that he once again was called to preach. “I had a vision that God told me preach or perish.” He first got his license to preach in 1993 and from 1994 to 1999, he attended Providence Theological Seminary and served as the student body president before graduating with a degree in Christian Education.
“I learned the administration of the church, church protocol and I preached to fellow students and the administrators of the school,” said Gregory. During 2000-2001, he attended Los Angeles Bible Training for ministry classes and he currently attends Harmony Bible Institution in Los Angeles where he recently received a certificate after completing the study, “Apostles after Calvary.”
Although the church congregation is small, Gregory and Diana are not discouraged. “No matter how many members attend, you will find me in the church,” said Gregory.
The Lord’s House of Pray holds worship services on Sunday at 11 a.m., and a wellness ministry on Thursdays at 12 p.m.
