New Direction COGIC was formerly called New Gethsemane COGIC. The church was founded on September 4, 1966 by the late Elder Leamond Penn. Elder Leamond Penn and Dr. Irene Penn (Marshall) received their official appointment to New Gethsemane church of God in Christ on October 30, 1966 which was located at 177 West Monterey Ave., Pomona, CA.
 
On Sunday, March 16, 1980, Bishop Raymond E Watts was installed as pastor of New Gethsemane by the late Bishop J.A. Blake and the church has grown and flourished under his leadership. The church physical plant expanded to include a South Campus and West Campus which allowed the church to expand its Christian Education Program, develop temporary housing, a modern childcare center and much-needed parking. Many souls were added to the church, bodies healed, and lives changed as a result of the ministry of Bishop Raymond E Watts and Dr. Anita Watts and the entire New Gethsemane church family.
 
When God, through his divine will, established New Gethsemane Church of God in Christ, he saw fit to locate the congregation in the geographic center of the city of Pomona California. The arms of the church were then able to reach out and present the gospel of Jesus Christ basically throughout the city.
 
New Gethsemane church became a community-based church with many years of evangelizing the city of Pomona by feeding the hungry, clothing the destitute, ministering to the sick, housing the homeless, assisting in job placement etc. Through the years, the church has been blessed with a superior Christian Education Department, Sunday school, Bible College, television ministry, rehabilitation drug programs, childcare center, outstanding children’s department, youth department and young adult department.
 
New Gethsemane was renamed New Direction in 2008. That same year the church acquired a $3.5 million-dollar property that included a rundown abandoned 28,000 square foot building, situated on 3.5 acres located at 1100 E. Holt Boulevard, Pomona California. New Direction converted the 28,000 Square foot dilapidated building into a wonderful, beautiful church plant. From this vantage point, the church was able to reach many more people, establish a
community Saturday Sidewalk-Sunday School program, street evangelism, community Job placement fairs, a coffee shop, a solar plant, community transportation to-and-from church ministry, community free medical treatment days in conjunction with Western Medical University, illustrative sermons, weekly community swap meets, major first time home buyer programs servicing thousands of people, and much more. At 1100 E. Holt New Direction developed the concept of Round Table Sunday School and was able to touch many lives.
 
During to the Great Recession of 2006 to 2012, finances to maintain this great work dried up. In late 2012, New Direction Church lost the 1100 E. Holt Boulevard, Pomona California property. The church sought the Lord for guidance in relocating and was led to a wonderful facility located at 8678 Archibald Avenue, Rancho Cucamonga CA, where the ministry continued to thrive by reaching out to neighboring communities. New Direction Church yet maintained a
food ministry in the city of Pomona reaching hurting people each Thursday afternoon. On September 4, 2020, New Direction Church was blessed to purchase and close escrow of the Historical Downtown Gove Theater, Upland California. Through God’s miraculous love for New Direction and its ministry, the Gove Theater was renovated and made into a wonderful, beautiful Church Home with many technological upgrades to enhance internet and TV ministry.
 
New Direction COGIC has been instrumental in birthing many churches and major ministries and is involved in worldwide evangelism. Bishop Watts served as Jurisdictional Prelate for the California Southern Third Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of the Church of God in Christ from 2006 to 2016. During that time New Direction Church served as the mother church of the Jurisdiction, ministering throughout the region known as the Inland Empire of Southern California.
 
The church has a history of outstanding choirs, soloist, singing groups, great preachers, deacons, missionaries, tremendous musicians, and major church auxillaries. The church music department has produced popular CD recordings and several outstanding, well known, recording artists received their start at New Direction Church.
 
The loving relationship of the church membership has always been one of warmth, always ready to receive a new member or new family into the fellowship.
 
New Direction COGIC is known for its ongoing around-the-clock prayer ministry; prayer every three hours-on-the-hour, its many BnB Small Group Bible Studies, Thru-the-Bible Pastoral Bible studies, Baby Church, Children’s Church, Youth Church, Big Days, Anointed Praise and Worship Teams and much more.