Home to the world’s busiest airport, a budding film and television industry, a sporting mecca and an outpost for most Fortune 500 companies, the city of Atlanta has become a major player on both local and global levels. Thousands of students attend universities within the city, and a growing international community contributes to the more than 100 languages spoken in the area. From the outside, the Atlanta metro area seems a bustling urban powerhouse, but a closer look reveals more of a contradiction.

The Atlanta metro area is collected into pockets of unique communities, each one with its own distinct characteristics and needs. Life here is a juxtaposition of megachurches, shopping centers, high rises and wealth set alongside gang violence, drugs, human trafficking and poverty. The challenge to reach such a diversified population for Christ is great.

For change to take place, it must begin on the neighborhood level. This will require church planters, pastors and partners to prayerfully find locations in dire need and creatively and diligently work toward connecting in the community. In addition to racism, poverty and crime, the negativity associated with Christianity is an obstacle that needs to be overcome, especially when the shadows of existing church buildings fall on bridges, beneath which the homeless take shelter. But there’s a unique opportunity for churches and believers to work together for a greater impact and a movement toward change.

From planting a church to partnering with those already on mission in Atlanta, you and your church can make a difference; connect with us to learn how.