On a quiet evening in September of 2012, Elder Dontavier Murphy received word from the Lord through the voice of his leader, Apostle Tim Cox, that it was the time ordained for him to move forward in Pastoral ministry. Over the course of the subsequent 3 months, through prayer and much counsel, the vision of Zion Temple Evangelistic Church was conceived. The assignment of Zion TEC, to prepare God's people and consecrate Christ a church was revealed. In January of 2013, Elder Murphy confidently began evangelism and outreach through 2nd and 4th Sunday worship encounters under the evangelistic entity of Zion Crusade Ministries creatively tagged Sizzling Sundays.

​

As the will of God would have it, many lives were impacted and souls were saved during the Sizzling Sunday's worship encounters at the Mt. Zion United Pentecostal Church of God Inc. (UPC) located at 222 Fat Shoals Avenue in southwest Atlanta, Georgia. Mt. Zion served not only as Zion's first home but, was home to the founder of the United Pentecostal Church of God Inc., Bishop Henry Phillips and the organizations headquarters church. Consistently week after week, Elder Murphy started service preaching, praying, and prophesying to empty seats but, during that same service would see the drug addicted, hurting, lost, impoverished, hopeless, and abandoned walk through the open doors directly off of the street only to leave saved and filled with the Holy Ghost. These souls served as signs weekly of God's intention of success for the growing ministry. Through difficult moments and lonely hours Zion Crusade Ministries stood consistently until the Lord deemed it necessary to take the voice and vigor of Zion Crusade Ministries and use it to birth the vision of the Zion Temple Evangelistic Church. In June of 2015 Elder Murphy was authorized to serve as a Pastor in the Bethesda Fellowship of Churches and Leaders under the leadership of Chief Apostle Eugene Smith of Detroit, Michigan.

​

Significantly, on Sunday September 27, 2015 at 4:00, exactly three years after the conception of Zion TEC, Elder Murphy was officially installed as Pastor by Bishop Joseph E. Hogan Sr, Prelate of the North Central GA Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of the Church of God in Christ. Zion TEC was added to the Light of the World District under the guidance of its Superintendent, Bishop Arthur F. Mosley. Zion TEC continues to serve as a citadel of safety in the Belvedere community and works to end its ails and impact the souls within.  

​