A Family-Friendly Church on West Main Street
Dothan First Assembly Church sits on West Main Street in Dothan, Alabama, across the street from Adventure Land. The church has built its identity around being a place where everyone belongs - a family-friendly Assemblies of God congregation that encourages people of every age and stage to grow in their faith, build meaningful relationships, and serve their neighbors. Its simple catchphrase captures the heart of the church: "God Loves Dothan."
Lead Pastors Mark and Michele Benson describe Dothan First as a space where people new to the area, returning to faith, or exploring church for the first time can find a home. The church operates from a campus that includes a Main Building, a Family Life Center, and the main auditorium, with plenty of parking and a Guest Reception staffed after every service.
Sundays at 10 AM
Sunday morning at Dothan First centers on a single 10:00 AM worship service in the main auditorium. The gathering includes a time of worship, prayer, and a message that the church describes as both inspiring and practical. Worship is led by Worship Pastor Hayden Taylor and the church's worship team, who serve as musicians, vocalists, and leaders who shepherd the congregation into what the church calls "a prelude to Heaven."
Pastors encourage first-time guests to arrive 10 to 15 minutes early to grab a coffee before the service. The New Here guide walks newcomers through five simple steps: arriving, mapping the campus, checking children in at the Kids First desk, joining the service, and visiting Guest Reception afterward, where volunteers and pastors answer questions and offer a small gift. A separate online form lets visitors schedule a visit in advance so someone can give them a tour and help them feel at home.
Sunday services are livestreamed online through the church's Watch page, where past messages are also archived for anyone who wants to catch up.
Kids First: Infants Through Fifth Grade
Children's ministry is one of Dothan First's signature offerings. Kids First runs during the 10:00 AM Sunday service and again on Wednesday nights at 6 PM, providing a safe, fun environment where children learn and grow at every age.
Kids First Jr serves infants through kindergarten in specially designed classrooms with engaging playtime, creative lessons, and small group activities. For ages three through kindergarten, the Clubhouse offers a higher-energy service with upbeat praise, fun lessons, puppets, and lovable characters. Kids First Elementary is for first through fifth graders and meets in the Family Life Center, with large group sessions that include upbeat praise and worship, exciting games, and age-appropriate messages, followed by small group time with caring leaders who help kids apply the lesson.
On Wednesday nights at 6 PM, Kids First Classes add a midweek boost through a Boys Ministry and Girls Ministry divided by age, giving children even more mentorship from dedicated leaders.
Youth First: Middle and High School
Youth First is the student ministry of Dothan First for middle and high school students. Youth Pastor Will Ceaser and his wife Lindsey lead the ministry, which gathers every Wednesday night at 6:00 PM in the Family Life Center at the back of the campus.
The ministry describes itself as being "of youth, with youth, by youth, and for the youth." Its mission is "We love God and love people," and its prayer is "God, whatever You're doing, do it in Youth First." Youth First's culture is built around four priorities: Love First, Family First, Servants First, and a vision to make it easy for people to know Jesus and hard for them to go to hell.
Wednesday nights include Bible study, activities, and time for connection, designed to help teens grow in their faith and build friendships that last.
Sisterhood: Women of Every Stage
Sisterhood is Dothan First's women's ministry, bringing together women from every walk of life - teens through senior citizens, single, engaged, married, businesswomen, stay-at-home moms, and empty nesters.
Sisterhood's vision is to encourage, equip, and empower women to walk out their God-given purpose and calling, making a difference in families, communities, the city, and the world. The ministry is active in local outreach to Dothan and supports overseas missions.
Women connect through several regular rhythms:
- Discipleship groups meet every Wednesday night on the Dothan First campus for Bible study year-round.
- Sisterhood Supper Clubs gather in homes and restaurants around the city for food, fellowship, and shared life.
- Sisterhood One Nights happen two to three times a year and often feature a coffee or food truck, a Sisterhood Boutique, and a closing of worship and the Word.
- An annual two-day conference fills with powerful messages, uplifting worship, and meaningful fellowship.
Brotherhood: Men Living with Courage and Character
Brotherhood is the men's ministry of Dothan First. It gathers men from 18 to 98 - single, married, new to faith, or lifelong believers - around a shared pursuit of courage, integrity, and character grounded in biblical principles.
Brotherhood's mission is to encourage, equip, and empower men to become better fathers, husbands, friends, and leaders, and to make a positive impact on their families, communities, and the world. Men meet every Wednesday night on the Dothan First campus in a Bible study atmosphere, delving into Scripture, engaging in meaningful discussion, and building strong relationships rooted in faith.
Young Adults and Senior Adults
Dothan 1st Young Adults is a community for college students and young adults between 18 and 30, focused on building community, growing as disciples of Jesus, and fulfilling the Great Commission. It is a place to belong, grow, and make a lasting impact.
The Senior Adults Ministry is designed for anyone 55 and older who wants to embrace the second half of life with purpose, faith, and community. Its four key areas are growing in faith together through Bible studies, prayer groups, and fellowship events; building lasting relationships with peers; serving with purpose in the church and community; and living fully through social gatherings, travel groups, fitness, and wellness events.
Life Groups and Freedom Groups
Life Groups are described as the heartbeat of the Dothan First family - small gatherings where people of every age, background, and stage of faith can belong, grow, and journey through life together. The church maintains an online Group Finder with filters for Life Group Type and Demographic. Examples include Perspective (a couples' small group using the Enneagram through a Christian lens), Abide Together (a women's fellowship), Men's Bible Study (led by Pastor Will Ceaser through 1 and 2 Timothy), Rooted (a Bible study for all adults), College & Career (young adults 18-28), Gather & Grow (moms in their 20s and 30s), Financial Freedom, The Thirty Somethings (ages 30-39), Book Lovers' Club, Faith on 2 Wheels (motorcycle riders), Sole Purpose (women's walking group), Delta Foxtrot (veterans, active military, and first responders), and several other groups.
Freedom Groups are designed to lead participants into a life of true freedom and victory in Christ. The journey covers living a spirit-led life, embracing surrender and forgiveness, speaking life and walking in authority, and worship as a daily way of life.
Feed Dothan
Feed Dothan is Dothan First's weekly outreach to families facing food insecurity across the greater Dothan area. Every Thursday, the church provides nourishing food boxes to those in need. Requests are submitted through an online form that must be completed before 12 PM (noon) on the Thursday the box is needed. Once submitted, the requester receives a confirmation and, between 1 PM and 1:30 PM, a text confirming the box with pickup details or letting them know if capacity has been reached for the day.
Grow Track and Next Steps
Grow Track is Dothan First's pathway toward membership and a deeper connection with the church community. Across several sessions, participants discover the church's story and beliefs, explore their God-given purpose, and find a place to serve. The track moves through four defining areas - Connect, Grow, Serve, and Go. After completing Grow Track, members can explore joining the worship team, serving on ministry teams, helping with events, or taking the next step of baptism.
What Dothan First Believes
Dothan First aligns with the Assemblies of God Statement of Fundamental Truths. The church teaches that the Holy Bible alone is the authoritative Word of God; that there is one God eternally existent in three coequal persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, born of a virgin, sinless in life, crucified for our redemption, resurrected on the third day, and returning again in power and glory; and that salvation is a gift of grace received through faith in Jesus Christ.
The church also affirms repentance, sanctification, the baptism in the Holy Spirit given at Pentecost, the continuing operation of the Holy Spirit's gifts for the building up of the church, the Great Commission entrusted to the Church as the body of Christ, divine healing, the ordinances of water baptism and the Lord's Supper, marriage as a sacred covenant between one man and one woman, the believer's resurrection, the reality of heaven and hell, and the physical, visible second coming of Jesus Christ.
Giving and Kingdom Builders
Dothan First offers several ways to give. The church partners with Overflow to provide a secure online giving portal for one-time gifts and recurring giving. Members can also text GIVE and an amount to (334) 686-0889, give on campus through envelopes placed in Giving Boxes in the main sanctuary and lobby, tap smart disks on the auditorium pews, give stock, give through a donor advised fund, or give cryptocurrency.
Kingdom Builders is the church's generosity initiative for members who commit to a financial gift above their tithes to accelerate the vision and impact eternity. The Kingdom Builders vision reaches the main campus (buildings, pastoral care, leadership development), the online campus (digital discipleship and global evangelism through social media), local needs (foster care and adoption, community outreach, feeding programs, addiction recovery, crisis pregnancy), national efforts (church planting, disaster relief, feeding programs, ending human trafficking, college campus ministry, veteran care), and global work (missionary support, mission trips, Bible translation, church planting and leadership development, and clean drinking water).
Leadership
Dothan First is led by a team of pastors and ministry directors. Mark Benson serves as Lead Pastor and Michele Benson as Family Life Pastor. Carl Greene is Administrative Pastor, and Hayden Taylor is Worship Pastor. The Kids team is led by Josh Pineyro and Natalie Pineyro, while Will Ceaser and Lindsey Ceaser serve as Youth Pastors. Juan Pinto is the Creative Coordinator.
For more information, visitors can call (334) 793-4194 or email info@dothan1st.org. Service is at 3615 West Main Street, Dothan, Alabama 36305.