The Embassy: St James Bible Deliverance
When God sends you your inheritance, most people run toward it and accept it with loving arms, but not Pastor Robbin. She’s a third generation female preacher whose grandmother, Dr. Alberta Johnson, founded and pastored a church in a time when female pastors were under appreciated. She had grown up in this church; practically being born on the altar. She was very active in church; driving the church van, singing in the choir and attending long services that literally lasted all day. The pain of seeing her grandmother, whom she loved dearly, go through hurt and rejection from the very people she pastored caused her to make up in her mind that she never wanted to be a pastor, let alone be in another church. But God had given her a pastor’s heart.
It started with AHEART, a ministry that began as God placed her in a position where she saw a need for nurturing infants of broken families that came from broken families. She founded the non-profit organization so that she could hand out essential infant supplies but also minister to people who felt like no one cared about them. As she handed them a pack of diapers, she also spoke a word of encouragement to them, lifted them up with her kind words, and reassured them they could make it out of the vicious cycle that was ensnaring them.
She was later launched into a ministry dealing with hurting women. She ministered transparently about the issues she was experiencing and revealed the relevancy of the Word of God to her situations. This enabled the women to see their issues in the Word of God. Pastor Robbin then encouraged them with the revelations God gave her on how to walk by faith and how to pray to change their circumstances. Her God given ministry of healing and deliverance enabled her, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to break chains, cast out demons, and speak empowering but true life changing words to women on their spiritual death beds.
After these years of preparation came the call to revive the church her grandmother started in 1977. Though she ran from the call, it was WOD’s 2nd class graduation’s guest speaker, Apostle Kim A. Davis (Downingtown, Pa) who also became her spiritual mother, who encouraged and supported her to accept the call. Apostle Davis nurtured, taught, and helped install Pastor Robbin as the Senior Pastor in October 2013, with her partner and friend in ministry, Chief Apostle Eugene Smith (Detroit, Mi); who is also Pastor Robbin’s spiritual father. Her grandmother’s church, St James Bible Deliverance Evangelical Association became known as The Embassy. It is a safe place for individuals with the call of leadership on their lives to identify the call, train for ministry and be sent out as Jesus commissioned all disciples. It is a place where hurting leaders can be restored, refreshed, and revived for ministry.
Under the leadership of her spiritual parents, she became the Public Relations Director for the Alliance of Eagles Fellowship spearheaded by Apostle Davis and also the Executive Administrator for the Bethesada Fellowship of Churches and Leaders lead by Chief Apostle Eugene Smith. Through her covering, she travels many places preaching a word that brings deliverance, healing, peace, joy and encouragement. She now pastors The Embassy alongside her mother Pastor Peaches Bedford.
The Embassy: House of Zion
The Embassy House of Zion is a worship center of refuge and an imminent monumental pillar to the Southern New Jersey community. Officially established on April 4th, 2018 under the spiritual leadership of Apostle Robbin Hargrove, the House of Zion was named by Dr. Valerie and Ernest Robinson after they heard the Lord beckoned them to save and preserve God’s house.
In December of 2017, the Robinsons walked potential buyers through the building of what was their previous beloved church. The buyer began to voice his vision for the building, telling them how he planned to demolish the sanctuary and convert it into an office building. As he continued his tour to the second floor, Dr. Valerie stayed downstairs in the foyer. There she began to read the amount of seeds that each church partner had sown into the previous ministry. She was saddened by what appeared to be the end and cried out to God. In her questioning of how He could allow what He gave to His people to be taken away and given back to the world, she heard Him say, “Golden Gate, buy the building”. These words pierced her heart. With much faith and much prayer, her business, Golden Gate set out to purchase the building.
The next step was to plan for ministry to spring forth. In 1998, Dr. Valerie had met an awesome and successful business woman named Robbin (Bell) Hargrove when she was unapproved for a business loan for her first daycare. The loan officer suggested she shadow Robbin and her business. That meeting gave Dr. Valerie all she needed to start Golden Gate, but the two never lost contact with each other. This friendship would prove to be more than just a business association since Robbin was now an Apostle of her own church, The Embassy St James Bible Deliverance. Prophetically, Apostle Robbin knew that it was time for expansion and as they both talked, their partnership for the House of Zion was endlessly confirmed.
After much prayer, and many spiritual and natural battles, a mortgage commitment letter was received. The timing was God ordained and yet another confirmation of God’s approval. The doors opened for the first service of the newly resurrected ministry on Resurrection Sunday, April 2, 2018. Since then, the Embassy House of Zion has been established as a diverse kingdom worship center eager to be a haven for those who have experienced church hurt and/or desire a deeper level of relationship with God. As a community training facility, the Embassy House of Zion aims to show South Jersey what true Hebraic culture looks like as they wholeheartedly celebrate God’s mandated feasts and festivals. It was prophesied that the House of Zion would overtake South Jersey like rushing water rising from under the door.