Our  Story

It was December 20, 1975 when Jimmie and Margie McCartney, founders of Gospel Center Ministries, held their first service in a leased theatre building in Kansas City, Missouri. With 710 seats from the old Kansas City Royals  baseball stadium at 22nd and Brooklyn, a little paint, some hard work and a lot of prayer, it was time to see what dreams were made of. On opening night the talented Art Pemberton joined Jimmie on center stage. That debut introduced to Kansas City a singing ministry that was the first of its kind. It was more than just good musicians and singers. It was people who had talent on loan from God and weren’t afraid to make Him known.  (continued below)

(Continued)  Being an accomplished musician as well as a singer-songwriter, it seemed only right to do what came naturally. And what came naturally to Pastor McCartney was to take a guitar in his hands and sing. He had an easy way with people. Whether playing in front of thousands or simply  having a cup of coffee with one, he was the same man. And the audience sensed that. They trusted him. He made everyone feel connected. You see, Jimmie had a gift from God. He sang to people, not at them. When he spoke, it was the same way.


Perhaps this is the reason God has used him for so many years. Perhaps this is why so many people were genuinely saved during those early days of music ministry. In fact, on opening night, God validated His promise to Margie when her mother, Willie Noel, was gloriously saved. She was the first soul won for Christ in Gospel Center Ministries and everyone knew it was the start of something very special. Soon, well known groups such as the Blackwood Brothers Quartet, The Hemphills, and The Dixie Melody Boys would come and minister in song. With the additional support of four McCartney siblings as well as other talented singers and musicians, Gospel Center Ministries was well on its way.


Jimmie was singing for Jesus now, but that wasn’t always the case. Born James Walter McCartney on June 6, 1928, Jimmie grew up hard. It was the middle of the great depression and life was tough. At seventeen he lied about his age, joined the Marines and did a tour of duty during World War Two. After his discharge, and several odd jobs later, he bought a guitar for $25 from Sam’s Pawn on Minnesota Avenue. Although he had occasionally picked around on a guitar he never really played. The year was 1948. The times were changing and Jimmie was about to discover a whole new life.


He had a real knack with the guitar and could sing as well. So he entered some local talent shows. His was personable and well liked. Every contest he entered, he won. In one of those shows he was discovered by a man named Dan Harless. Dan had a band called the Trailblazers which was well known in the local area. Within a short time Jimmie was a regular. The ride with the Trailblazers lasted five glorious years, but that was only the beginning.



Jimmie soon outgrew the Trailblazers and in 1955 formed his own country and western band called the Midwesterners. At one time he had the top rated band in Kansas City. It was so good in fact that big stars would come into town and play with them in their local shows. Stars like George Jones, Little Jimmie Dickens, Marty Robbins, Mel Tillis, Buck Owens, Lester Flatt and Earl Scrubs as well as the great Patsy Cline to name a few. This stardom led Jimmie to play with the talented Cowboy Coupas at the coveted Grand Ole Opry show and live radio at the famous Earnest Tubbs record shop in Nashville, Tennessee.


While all this is fascinating to most people, Jimmie wasn’t satisfied. Later he testified, “I was a drunk, smoked four packs of cigarettes a day and I used and sold drugs”. His career was going higher and higher but his life was in a downward spiral. On the outside he looked professional and in control, but on the inside he was empty. It was during these times that Jimmie had one major advantage of which he was chiefly unaware. He had a praying mom. A lone sole that wouldn’t let her child self destruct. The result of those prayers was realized during a 1961 tent revival held by the late C.B Roberts. Jimmie found himself at the front of the tent on his knees at what he called “an old fashioned altar”. That night he was wondrously saved and instantly delivered from nicotine, alcohol and drugs. He would later confess “I had no intention of getting saved that night” but the fact remains, intention or not, he did. And 45 years later, he is still serving God.


On October 20, 1968 Jimmie was ordained in St. Joseph, Missouri by the same evangelist who was preaching the night he was saved, the late C.B. Roberts. Seven years after his ordination he and Margie started Gospel Center Ministries.  It has been over thirty years since the ministry opened their “Gospel” doors and they have since added a private Christian school and three pre-school learning centers. Without doubt, countless thousands have been forever changed from a simple ministry with humble beginnings.



I had the honor of preaching in Gospel Center services for several years before Pastor McCartney resigned. And I will be forever grateful for it was he who gave me that  opportunity. It was February, 1998 when he first allowed me to step behind his pulpit. Soon after, and in a public service, he ordained me to preach the Gospel. He is a humble man that loves God with a whole heart. He has been my pastor, my teacher and I am proud to call him my friend. It is with great honor that I take a portion of what he started and, with his blessing, continue to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Among a forest of Gospel Center acorns, another tree has taken root.

Pastor Jackie Taylor