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 Pastor Darryl
Keith Thompson (cont.)
He often quotes, 1 Timothy 1:15, This is a faithful saying,
and worthy of all acceptation, that
Christ Jesus came into the world to
save sinners; of whom I am chief. With
understanding and compassion, he
relates well to individuals that
suffered abuse and rejection as a
child. He believes it is his mission
to share with men, women, and
children alike that with the help of
God it is possible to forgive and
overcome the past and to discover
and walk in their divine destiny.
Pastor Thompson is unapologetic as
he proclaims Romans 1:16...for I
am not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ; for it is the power of God
unto salvation to everyone that
believeth. He shares his
testimony with truth and
transparency ---always ending with,
“It was God’s amazing grace that
saved a wretch like me and if God
can save me, He can save anybody.”
Jesus said, For the Son of man
came to seek and save the lost [Luke
19: 10] and He that comes to me I
will in no wise cast out.
[John 6:37(b)
In 1986, when Pastor Thompson was
born again of water and the Spirit,
he vowed that he would live a holy
and celibate life until marriage.
Ten years later, he married the love
of his life, Kimberly
Callaway-Thompson and praises
God that she is the only woman he
has been intimate with for the past
twenty-five years. With a burden to
strengthen marriages and families,
he and his wife started a unique
ministry called Marriage 101. Pastor
Thompson is a devoted father of two,
Darryl Christopher (his Budman) and
Dylaan Christyn (his Baby G),
father-in-law to-be of Ari,
and proud grandpa to Azriel-Azzan
(his Aze). He is referred to by his
wife and children as an honorable
husband and a faithful father and
grandfather.
Pastor Thompson is a native of
Chicago, Illinois but determined
long ago that his life was no longer
his own and that he would go
wherever the Lord directed him. He
has served faithfully for fourteen
years as founder and under shepherd
of House of Fire Ministries of the
Lord Jesus Christ in Rock Island,
Illinois and is known by his
congregation and community as a
purpose-driven pastor. His passion
is to see spiritual, social, and
economic revival. He often provides
input on city projects related to
housing and business development and
serves on the board of directors for
Rock Island Economic Growth
Corporation. For most of his
ministry years, Pastor Thompson
has served as a bi-vocational pastor
and is currently employed at John
Deere Harvester Works in East
Moline, Illinois.
He will be the first to tell you
that House of Fire is not about him,
but about God’s promise to His
people found in Matthew 16:18...upon
this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of hell shall not
prevail against it. Committed to
preaching Jesus and the apostles’
doctrine, the church continues to
see that God is faithful to His
Word. In 2009, Pastor Thompson began
to cast vision for a faith-based
economic development project on 11th
Street, one of the city’s busiest
commercial and residential
corridors. After nine months of
negotiating, the sale of the
property took place and the church
took possession of what many in the
city saw as an eyesore. Pastor
didn’t see eyesore...he saw the hand
of God. By faith, he spoke that God
would work a miracle and the church
would become the new owners of the
property and complete major
renovations. The property, which was
renamed Embassy Square Mall, is home
to a Chinese restaurant, a cell
phone store, a beauty salon and
supply and became the new church
home of House of Fire Ministries.
Pastor’s only response when people
ask how the church purchased a strip
mall is, “GOD DID IT!” |
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