When I first moved to Atlanta to attend seminary, I was overwhelmed by the number of CBF partner churches I would be able to visit. Almost every Sunday of my first year at McAfee, I found myself worshipping in a different sanctuary, trying to learn how different people “do church.”

The problem was that I fell in love with every church I visited. Each of our partner churches in Atlanta is unique in the people that attend and the way they worship, but they all have one thing in common: a passion for serving the city of Atlanta.

From Park Avenue Baptist Church in the heart of Grant Park, one of the city’s most diverse urban areas, to First Baptist Church of Tucker in a middle-class, suburban area of Atlanta, these churches work every day to make Atlanta a better place to live for everyone.

Last night marked the first time these churches intentionally gathered to form the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Georgia – Atlanta. Individuals from CBF partner churches came together for a worship service held at Druid Hills Baptist Churches called Listen: Hearing the voice of our church, our city and our God.

“You and I are a Fellowship,” Tony Lankford, pastor of Park Avenue Baptist Church and one of the event’s organizers began the evening. “We are not just an organization with an office, but a movement of people wanting to impact this city – to be the presence of Christ in all corners, even the dark ones.”

The night continued with voices from the community speaking up to address the prevalent justice needs in Atlanta. Ginger Holland, a member of First Baptist Church of Tucker and an Atlanta school teacher, and Kathy Colbenson of the CHRIS Kids Counseling Center and member of Peachtree Baptist Church, addressed the disparity of educational resources for many children growing up in Atlanta and the need for churches and individuals to help care for these children.

“Children don’t get to choose the situation they were born into, and the children we work with were born into unacceptable situations,” Colbenson said. “These children need us to help them heal in the broken places. They need our prayers and our love.”

Keith Lamar, Jr., assistant district attorney for Fulton County and newly appointed community prosecutor , also called the group to action through words on violence in the city. A young man himself, Lamar, Jr. expressed his shock in the high numbers of problems with Atlanta youth, and his commitment to help lower these numbers.

Encouraging those gathered to get involved, Lamar, Jr. quoted Matthew 6: 33 and said, “But seek first the kingdom, all these things will be given to you. If you want to do something for your city – do your best.”

CBF Executive Coordinator, Suzii Paynter offered words of encouragement to the group as they continue to represent the Fellowship in Atlanta, reminding the group once again that “we can be alone, or we can be a Fellowship.”

“[Jesus] has shown us how to move from violence to peace,” Paynter urged. “He is asking us to have our heart broken for someone else. Christlike advocacy is beckoning the church to be brokenhearted and to love and act all the way down the hillsides of our Jerusalem.

“Join me, because we can be alone, or we can be a Fellowship.”

The most striking voices of the night came from the choir, comprised of representatives from Briarcliff Baptist, Buckhead Baptist, Druid Hills Baptist, First Baptist Church of Decatur, First Baptist Church of Morrow, First Baptist Church of Tucker, Peachtree Baptist, Park Avenue Baptist, Second Ponce de Leon Baptist, Scott Boulevard Baptist, Smoke Rise Baptist and Wieuca Road Baptist.

Throughout the service, the joint choir sang words of peace, justice and a call to action, ending with the benediction from the late John Claypool, a beloved pastor, teacher and mentor:

Depart now
In The Fellowship of God The Father,
And as You Go, Remember:
In The Goodness of God
You were Born into This World;
By The Grace of God
You have Been Kept
All the Day Long,
Even Until This Hour;
By The Love of God,
Fully Revealed in the Face of Jesus,
You.. are Being…Redeemed
Amen

Keith Lamar, Jr. urged the group to “strive first for the kingdom.” The night’s gathering certainly was evidence of God’s kingdom at work in Atlanta, Ga. For the first time, groups who had long been doing good work in Atlanta individually came together to be a Fellowship that has an even greater impact on the city.

*Photos courtesy of Lesley-Ann Hix.