Name: Macedonia Baptist Church -- Kirkwood
Address: 1723 Hosea Williams Drive, Atlanta, GA 30317
Phone: 404-377-6775
Services: 8:30 a.m. Sunday school, 10 a.m. worship on Sunday. 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesday prayer meeting and Bible study.
Worship Style: Traditional
Average Sunday Attendance: 40-50
Minister: Rev. Johnny Johnson
Denomination Affiliation: Baptist
Mission statement:
“We are a church that cares and shares, where everybody is somebody, to be supportive in the mission work of the church at home and abroad and spreading the gospel in all nations, to be active in evangelizing the lost, a church that is a servant of the people, for the people and to the people. To make God’s word our standard for living a fruitful productive and holy life, we will read his Word frequently and regularly.”
History:
The church was organized 38 years ago under the leadership of Rev. M. Rufus Dinkins, with the first services held in the home of one of the organizers. The church later held services at W.A. Fountain Elementary School, and moved into the current location in 1975.
Pastor’s path:
The south Georgia native moved to Atlanta in 1986, after the closing of the Albany Firestone Tire and Rubber plant where he had worked for 17 years. While serving as a church deacon, Johnson said he was called into ministry and began taking classes at Carver Bible College and Institute. He became an associate minister at Greater Zion Hill Baptist in Smyrna, and was called to serve Macedonia in 1999. He is currently enrolled in Bryant Theological Seminary.
Johnson serves as a chaplain for the Fulton County Sheriff’s Department, and treasurer for the Metropolitan Atlanta Baptist Ministers Union.
The pastor said he lives by a personal mission statement that, among other directives, includes this guideline for his congregation: “To make sure, above all else, that they are growing in the grace and wisdom and knowledge of God. To make sure that I train and equip them for the work of the ministry so they can train others, and to make sure they know I’m genuinely concerned for their welfare and betterment, and that I truly love them. I’m not after what they’ve got or what I can get from them. It’s not about me. It’s about me being a servant and a service to them.”
Ministries:
Macedonia has a youth ministry called “Talk It Out,” a gathering on the last Friday of each month. Johnson said the ladies of the church meet with the young girls, and the men with the boys, and they discuss with them issues of life and what’s concerning them. Johnson said church members are dedicated to making sure the youth make good life decisions and counsel them “based on the word of God.”
Church members provide clothing for local women’s and men’s shelters, and are quick to come to the aid of victims of storms, fires or other tragedies – both in and outside of the Kirkwood community. Johnson said his members truly live out the part of the mission statement that states “we are a church that cares and shares.”
Members regularly visit residents of personal care homes, offering to pray with them and share scripture. Wednesday night Bible studies and new member orientation classes are ways Johnson works to equip the congregation.
Thoughts from the pastor:
“Macedonia has a loving atmosphere. The people here are a loving people and they care about others – not just that they’ve showed up on Sunday. If you are hurting, we are concerned about you. As children of God, we ought to be concerned about people. If people are hurting, we are hurting.”
