Oakleaf
I had the opportunity to hang out at Oak Leaf Church for both their services this morning. The church is located in Cartersville, Georgia about 45 minutes northwest of downtown Atlanta. The Oak Leaf launched only about 14 months ago, and they’re already averaging over 700 in attendance every week. They recently moved from a movie theater in town to one of the high schools in their community so that they have room for future growth. This is an impressive start considering the fact that the church is located in a community of only 20,000 people.

Here are some first impressions of Oak Leaf’s ministry:

  • Michael is a great leader and communicator. Today, as an example, he taught several biblical principles on forgiveness. His personality, including his sense of humor, really came through, though, so it was easy for me to relate to his teaching on a topic that can be difficult to understand.
  • The music was excellent. Their worship leader is obviously a gifted musician. More than that, though, I really appreciated his presence on the platform. He was there to lead us in worship. Not all gifted musicians are also gifted worship leaders. I loved his laid-back style. He was confident but genuine.
  • What really impressed me was the sophistication of the media used during the service. I would not have expected that from a church that’s so new. They made use of three large screens that spanned the width of the stage and two television monitors. The presentation slides and motion graphics helped support both the worship and the message. I also loved the two medias they used to preview the message and to promote the beginning of their next series. I laughed out loud both times.
  • Every other part of the experience from the parking lot to the greeters to the children’s ministry was well done. You can tell the Oak Leaf volunteers expect guests to show up every week. They’ve paid attention to the smallest of details. And, I can assure you, my kids are the sharpest critics when it comes to children’s ministry experiences. Oak Leaf is prepared to reach families…and they should be with 200 kids showing up each week.

Here’s my big takeaway from my experience at Oak Leaf–you don’t necessarily have to have a building and a big budget to reach people for Jesus. This church is proving that you can connect with today’s culture with limited resources. In fact, I’d argue it’s in instances like this that leaders really have an opportunity to innovate.

If you’re in the process of planting a church or thinking about it, I’d highly recommend you plan a trip to Cartersville, Georgia. And, if you make the trip, you’ll also want to check out Ambra restaurant in downtown Cartersville. Tell Kelly, the owner and chef, that her friend from Anderson, SC sent you.