Church History

In 1941, missionary Leonard Coote gathered a small group of believers together in the east wing of the Municipal Auditorium, and began a local church, called Emmanuel Church.  From that humble beginning, the church has grown into a large congregation now known as Destiny Church.  Leonard Coote was a missionary in Japan for 50+ years.  It was during the 2nd World War that he came to America with his family and established the church in San Antonio. 

In 1943 Leonard Coote's daughter, Ruth, and John Bell met at bible college and were married in San Antonio in 1944. John Bell served as Assistant Pastor to Leonard Coote; when Leonard Coote returned to Japan in 1948, John Bell began serving the church as pastor.  In the fall of 1996, John Bell's son, Dave, began serving the church as lead pastor.  John Bell went home to be with Jesus in June of 1999.  Dave continues to serve today as lead pastor.  Please select here for more information on the pastoral team of Destiny Church.

The church built its first building in 1952, located on Texas avenue, overlooking Woodlawn Lake. It was during this time that the church took the public name Revival Temple.   In 1978 the congregation moved to its current church location at 8635 Callaghan Road. The initial construction at this site included an auditorium seating 450, a fellowship hall, and educational facilities. 

Having outgrown the auditorium, and after holding two Sunday morning services for several years, a large, multi-purpose facility was constructed, called the Family Life Center.  Finished in 1993, this building features an auditorium with seating for 1000+ worshipers.  At the beginning of the year 2000, God gave the church a new name.  Now called Destiny Church, the congregation continues to grow, offering many service and prayer & praise times each week, and a multitude of ministries, shining the radiance of Christ's glory in the nations and in our local community of San Antonio.