How it all started...
Branches of Christ began in the fall of 2000 as two different churches felt the Lord leading them to combine efforts. Both churches had started three years prior with the desire to reach out to people that felt rejected, ignored, or like they had fallen through the cracks. Neither church had received any outside financial support and found there are many obstacles hindering the establishment of a church. It made us wonder if we were wasting our efforts. The Leadership hit their knees and sought the Lord: "Do You even need another church in this area? If You need one, what is it that we need to do to enhance Your other churches? What is the niche that we need to fill? And is it still possible to build a church upon the Word and Prayer? Please close the door to anything outside of Your will, and open the doors You wish for us to step through".
Doors opened and none closed. We stepped through them and put our faith into action by signing a three year lease on Highway 92, outside of Acworth. While we worked on renovating, we were praying for the Lord to guide us to a new name. We went through the New Testament searching for names attached to followers of Christ, We embraced being "Christians" only, but we never want to act as though we are "the only Christians". We desired a name that would be about Jesus, but not stereo-type us. When we came upon John 15:5, I AM the vine and you are the branches, we felt that confirmation "this is it!" We can only exist if we abide in Him. That was something we wanted to live up to and we liked the visual it presented;
branching together and branching out.
Over the next ten years, The Lord was so good to us. He always brought the people we needed at just the right time. We solidified our mission; we
wanted to accept others as Christ accepted us. We knew we wanted to be a balanced church and set up these checkpoints: Biblically based, but
not legalistic. Casual, but not sloppy. Laid back, but intense. Developing people throughout the process of salvation more than arguing the point
of salvation, Perfectly forgiven, but in no way self-righteous. Serving God by serving others. Plus we would pass Communion every week to remember,
and embrace Christ, and we would not pass an offering plate.
The Lord continued to graciously provide and guide by providing an opportunity in the midst of the nation's financial crunch. He opened a
door to purchase our existing location on Jacobs Road. It wasn't exactly what we were wanting or where we wanted to be, but it was an affordable
way to move from renters to owners (and as only He can do, for about 60% of what our rent had been). Those were great days and long nights
as the body pulled together to totally renovate a traditional building into our home and His living room.
Doors opened and none closed. We stepped through them and put our faith into action by signing a three year lease on Highway 92, outside of Acworth. While we worked on renovating, we were praying for the Lord to guide us to a new name. We went through the New Testament searching for names attached to followers of Christ, We embraced being "Christians" only, but we never want to act as though we are "the only Christians". We desired a name that would be about Jesus, but not stereo-type us. When we came upon John 15:5, I AM the vine and you are the branches, we felt that confirmation "this is it!" We can only exist if we abide in Him. That was something we wanted to live up to and we liked the visual it presented;
branching together and branching out.
Over the next ten years, The Lord was so good to us. He always brought the people we needed at just the right time. We solidified our mission; we
wanted to accept others as Christ accepted us. We knew we wanted to be a balanced church and set up these checkpoints: Biblically based, but
not legalistic. Casual, but not sloppy. Laid back, but intense. Developing people throughout the process of salvation more than arguing the point
of salvation, Perfectly forgiven, but in no way self-righteous. Serving God by serving others. Plus we would pass Communion every week to remember,
and embrace Christ, and we would not pass an offering plate.
The Lord continued to graciously provide and guide by providing an opportunity in the midst of the nation's financial crunch. He opened a
door to purchase our existing location on Jacobs Road. It wasn't exactly what we were wanting or where we wanted to be, but it was an affordable
way to move from renters to owners (and as only He can do, for about 60% of what our rent had been). Those were great days and long nights
as the body pulled together to totally renovate a traditional building into our home and His living room.
Expanding the vision...
From August 2010 to April 2011 we renovated this building into a place where people could come and seek God. Whether you’re new to church, have been a Christian for many years, or are looking for a fresh start, you’re welcome here. Our hope is to give you a place where you experience a fresh, enjoyable connection to God and a community of people. We keep our focus simple so we can have the biggest impact possible. Everything we do as a church is filtered through our focus on helping every person live the full life for which God created all of us.