How it all started...
To understand a church (or a person or business), it can be helpful to understand the formation and early years of that church. To understand Sojourn, it is helpful to understand what God did in the years when Sojourn was simply a dream.
In 2007, New City Church was planted in downtown Macon. It was an Acts 29 church with a dream of planting churches that plant churches. They had a vision to create an environment and culture where skeptics are welcome and people can belong before they believe.
In 2007, New City Church was planted in downtown Macon. It was an Acts 29 church with a dream of planting churches that plant churches. They had a vision to create an environment and culture where skeptics are welcome and people can belong before they believe.
A few families from Warner Robins began to visit and became members of New City in Macon in 2008. Early in their time at New City, these families began to dream and talk with New City’s leadership about planting a church in their own community. The first New City community group (called a missional community at that time) was started in Warner Robins in October of 2008. Within a year, the group outgrew the living room of the apartment it was meeting in, so a second Warner Robins community group was started in October of 2009. More and more families from south of Macon began to drive to Macon for New City’s worship service and meet during the week in one of the two community groups in Warner Robins.
In August of 2011, New City had a commissioning service and sent out approximately 30-40 people to plant New City Warner Robins, which is now Sojourn Church. The dream was the same as New City Macon’s. These families longed to be a church that created environments were people can belong before they believe, where it is OK not to be OK, and where the gospel is the center of all that is said and done. Our first service was held at The River in Kathleen on the evening of Sunday, August 14, 2011. Sojourn (then called New City Warner Robins), which had been a hope and dream for year, finally had a public gathering south of Macon.
We held our worship services on Sunday evenings at The River for approximately one year. We believed we would be able to reach more people and have greater impact in Middle GA if we were able to meet on Sunday mornings, so in August of 2012 we began renting out the Galleria Movie Theater for our Sunday morning service. For seven years we set up the theater every Sunday morning, had a worship service, and then broke it down and packed up the trailer. We had an army of servants show up every Sunday to construct our children’s ministry area, our lobby environment, the stage area, and the sound booth. God used this season in mighty ways! While gathering every Sunday at the theater, we continued to stress the importance of community, so our people met in smaller groups in homes, parks, and restaurants through the week. Groups continued to multiply as God brought more and more people into our family.
In August of 2011, New City had a commissioning service and sent out approximately 30-40 people to plant New City Warner Robins, which is now Sojourn Church. The dream was the same as New City Macon’s. These families longed to be a church that created environments were people can belong before they believe, where it is OK not to be OK, and where the gospel is the center of all that is said and done. Our first service was held at The River in Kathleen on the evening of Sunday, August 14, 2011. Sojourn (then called New City Warner Robins), which had been a hope and dream for year, finally had a public gathering south of Macon.
We held our worship services on Sunday evenings at The River for approximately one year. We believed we would be able to reach more people and have greater impact in Middle GA if we were able to meet on Sunday mornings, so in August of 2012 we began renting out the Galleria Movie Theater for our Sunday morning service. For seven years we set up the theater every Sunday morning, had a worship service, and then broke it down and packed up the trailer. We had an army of servants show up every Sunday to construct our children’s ministry area, our lobby environment, the stage area, and the sound booth. God used this season in mighty ways! While gathering every Sunday at the theater, we continued to stress the importance of community, so our people met in smaller groups in homes, parks, and restaurants through the week. Groups continued to multiply as God brought more and more people into our family.
Where we are now...
In 2019, God opened the door for Sojourn to have our first ever permanent space. Through several meetings, much praying, and sensing God’s leading, Sojourn was able to move into the building of the former Rehoboth Baptist Church. We name the church here simply to honor those that were members or associated with the church. They were passionate about their building being a blessing to another Bible believing church, and God has used their prayers and dreams in the life of Sojourn Church. We had our first Sunday service in our current location on July 14, 2019. We passionately believe that the church is not a building. The church is people. That being said, we are grateful to be where we are with the facility we have. We hope and pray that it will be stewarded well for kingdom purposes. We hope and pray it is a place of gospel healing for many in Middle GA.
Where we are headed...
The story is not done. Who knows how God will use Sojourn in the future? Who knows what mercy ministries and justice ministries God will lead our members to birth? Who knows how many more people will hear the gospel in our worship service and surrender their lives to Jesus and trust in Him alone for the forgiveness of sins? Who knows how many marriages will be healed through pastoral counseling, or perhaps a counseling center we launch in the future? Who knows how many missionaries will be sent out from Sojourn to proclaim the gospel to the nations? May God continue to work in and through Sojourn.
