I wouldn’t be surprised if every church plant in America has some paragraph somewhere to describe their mission community…especially if they are seeking any kind of external support during their first couple of years. If they don’t, they should. Just ask Ben Arment. The sociological connection (or lake there of) to the community you are investing in can make or break a young church. We chose not to just tell people why were planting and why they should support us but also how we can give back and make it a legitimate two-way partnership.

Here is our spiel:

WHY PLANT CHURCHES?
In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus wasn’t just calling us to raise up Christian leaders but also commended us to “baptize them” which would have been done inside of a local community of believers. In essence, the Great Commission is as much about making disciples as is it about planting churches. The general cross-denominational consensus, with supporting data from the last 20 years, concludes the most effective way to reach new residents, younger generations, and un-churched or de-churched people groups is to plant new churches.

WHY CANTON?
There is one church for every 1500 people and yet 77% of Cherokee county doesn’t go to church anywhere. Even if the existing churches were to reach that 77% of the population, there aren’t enough seats in all the churches, synagogues, or mosques combined in the county to house them all. The 2010 census data reveals a 300% increase in population over the past 10 years in the city of Canton. In addition, the Atlanta Regional Commission projected the northern parts of Cherokee County will be the fastest growing community in the state of Georgia over the next 30 years. Canton and it’s surrounding communities have the most potential for growth and development and will need dozens of new churches to reach the new residents and the next generation with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

WHY PARTNER WITH US?
We believe a partnership goes both ways and we want to help support your vision as much as you help support ours. Our committed team of prayer warriors will pray specifically for your church and your needs. We are in this together and we will act like it. Once a month we will send out a newsletter and a video outlining exactly what God is doing. Share it with your people to remind them of their involvement in helping advance the Kingdom. We also have very unique talents among our team that would love to share their gifts with our supporters. Whether it be music, song-writing, communicating, service programming, creative idea engineering, graphic design, video production, photography, or curriculum writing, our resources are your resources.

It’s not just about Oak Leaf Church Canton. We are a church-planting church. From the very first gift we receive, we are supporting other church plants and church planting organizations. Our goal is to plant five churches or campuses in 5 years. Partnering with us means partnering with the city, local faith-based non-profits, and other like-minded churches and organizations we support and partner with in a collaborated effort to see the most amount of people become more like Christ as quickly as possible. Any support we receive – people, pledges, or prayer – allows us to remain a generous, thriving, and prominent institution of the community.