Total Grace Christian Center began with a dream, an idea, a vision – birthed in the heart of a young elementary school teacher and musician - Johnathan Elliot Alvarado.  Seeking the advice and covering of his spiritual father, Apostle LaFayette Scales, Total Grace Christian Center was commissioned by Apostle Scales and the Eldership of Rhema Christian Center with just three adults and nine teenagers. 

Starting with Friday night Bible studies that traveled from home to home, Total Grace has not always been thought of as the standard bearer it is today.  The first Total Grace worship service was held Sunday evening, June 6th, 1992 at St. Stephens Lutheran Church in Decatur, Georgia.  Very tied and allegiant to this Decatur community, the Total Grace headquarters have never moved far from its original location.  As time progressed, the membership of this upstart church grew steadily and it became necessary to find a place of our own to conduct worship services.   

Pastor Johnathan began to scout out the land and soon found a suitable building to have services.  In April of 1993 the Total Grace family moved into its first, full-time facility at 4019-A Glenwood Road in Decatur, Georgia.  While worshipping at the Glenwood location, affectionately known as the “storefront”, the Lord continued to prosper Total Grace both spiritually and numerically.  The two great years Total Grace spent in this storefront facility built character and produced many of the committed members, elders, leaders of our movement today.  As men and women continued to be drawn to the great Biblical teaching and anointed worship, Total Grace outgrew the storefront and was forced to find a larger facility.  Again, Pastor Johnathan followed the leading of God and found another building to facilitate worship services.  On Sunday, September 17, 1995, Total Grace Christian Center held its first service at 3333 Covington Drive in Decatur, Georgia.  This would be the third location in three years, but definitely not the last.  Starting to develop a reputation throughout the city and the country as a church on the cutting edge of preaching and worship, Total Grace began a period of exponential growth at this location.   

In June 1997, Pastor Johnathan felt the leading of the Lord, only this time it was not to physically move, rather to increase the number of morning worship services in order to accommodate the masses that continued to come to experience the unique worship and powerful preaching of Total Grace.  Therefore, 8:00am and 11:00am services on Sunday mornings were instituted.  In April of 1998 on Resurrection Sunday our visionary leader began to prepare for the overwhelming crowd.  He was certain that the main sanctuary, at that time, would not accommodate the anticipated numbers. Hearing the Lord say, “Give them a place and they will come” led us to hold Easter services in our gymnasium.  Pastor Johnathan knew this move was from God and began renovations on the gymnasium to convert it into the main sanctuary.   

It became more and more apparent that God definitely had His hand on Total Grace Christian Center.  Pastor Johnathan incorporated a third morning worship service because of the continued and steady growth.  In August of 2000, Toni Alvarado was set in place by Bishop Alfred and Co-Pastor Susie Owens as Co-Pastor of Total Grace Christian Center alongside Pastor Johnathan.  To accommodate the explosive growth, services were held at 6:00AM, 7:30AM, 9:30AM, 12:00PM, and 7:30PM.   

When the prophetic word was spoken over the house to “enlarge the place of our tents” our thinking not only changed about increasing the size of our facilities, but launched Total Grace into its mission of reaching the nations.  Therefore, the name of our facility was amended to Total Grace Christian Center World Headquarters and shortly afterwards a physical move was made to 4000 Covington Highway, Decatur, Georgia (the former TARGET store).  Our doors opened on Sunday, November 4, 2001.  At nearly 200,000 square feet, this ministry facility is one of the largest in Southeastern United States and has allowed our church to grow in both size and depth.  During our celebratory services Apostle LaFayette Scales anointed and commissioned Pastor Johnathan Alvarado for apostolic ministry. 

A short year passed when Total Grace stretched its borders south of the metropolitan Atlanta area.  On November 3, 2002 it opened its second location, Total Grace South, when we leased the historic church building at 16 Atlanta Street in downtown McDonough, Georgia. Planting a core group of leaders and members at this location, ministry began to thrive and created an opportunity for more people to experience what the Lord was doing through Total Grace.  This location was no different from what took place before with growth and consistent crowds, leading Total Grace South, now known as Total Grace Clayton to purchase a new facility at 6558 Fielder Road in Rex, Georgia in just three years.  This facility would be dedicated on the third anniversary celebration on December 4, 2005 and consequently paid off in May of 2006. 

As the demand for covering and guidance from Bishop Alvarado grew, a collection of pastors wanted to further express their covenant relationship with him by forming an official fellowship.  In 2005, Bishop Alvarado was elected by these pastors to the Office of Bishop for the newly founded Grace Fellowship of Churches and was consecrated for this office on June 10th, 2006.  While all of the Total Grace locations are a part of this fellowship, so are churches from throughout Atlanta, the United States, Puerto Rico, Belgium, and other nations from around the world. 

With nearly 5,000 members from various counties in metropolitan Atlanta, the Total Grace movement continues to grow and just recently expanded into Norcross, Georgia with the launch of its third location on April 15, 2007 – Total Grace Gwinnett. 

The vision that Total Grace has is to exist to be a spirit-filled, multi-cultural, worshipping community, developing people into Christian disciples.  Our mission is to change lives by reaching and equipping people through the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Still an adolescent church, Total Grace has really just scratched the surface of the many promises of the Lord and it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we do know that there is no place, like Total Grace!