Churches throughout the conference continue to demonstrate how great God’s faithfulness is through mission, ministry, and evangelism.
Evangelistically Fruitful Congregations
The mission of the church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. A significant dimension of the disciple-making process is that of leading people to make a commitment to God through baptism and profession of faith in Jesus Christ.
Reaching new persons with the gospel is at the very heart of every church’s purpose. Below are congregations in each district that charted the largest net gain in membership, the largest number of professions of faith, the best ratio of professions of faith with regard to membership in 2021, and every local church showing a net gain in membership for 2021.
Wesley Monumental was the overall conference leader with the largest net gain in membership, Albany First led the conference in the largest number of professions of faith, and Oak Grove (Nan Williams) had the best ratio of professions of faith.
The churches with the largest net gain in membership in each district in 2021 were:
Coastal: Wesley Monumental
North Central: Andrew
Northeast: Swainsboro First
Northwest: The Ridge
South Central: The Porch Community Church
Southwest: Ashburn
The churches with the largest number of professions of faith in each district in 2021 were:
Coastal: Richmond Hill
North Central: Sandersville
Northeast: Statesboro First
Northwest: St. Paul
South Central: Park Avenue
Southwest: Albany First
The churches with the best ratio of professions of faith in each district in 2021 were:
Coastal: Emanuel
North Central: Wesley Chapel (Wrightsville Circuit)
Northeast: Oak Grove (Nan Williams)
Northwest: Andrew Chapel
South Central: Friendship (Alma)
Southwest: Bethel (Grady County)
Every local church showing a net gain in membership for 2021 has been designated an Evangelistically Fruitful Congregation.
Coastal District
Akin Memorial
Bethesda (Rincon)
Brunswick First
Clyo
Ellabell
Emanuel
Emory Chapel
Goshen
Guyton
Isle of Hope
Jekyll Island
Kingsland First
Odum
Richmond Hill
Springfield
St Simons Island
St. Luke (Savannah)
Taylors
The Waterfront Church
Trinity (Savannah)
Tybee Island Trinity Chapel
Wesley Frederica
Wesley Monumental
North Central District
Andrew
Arline-Bethel
Bethel (Baldwin Ct.)
Centenary
Centerville
Christ (Warner Robins)
Danville
Hawkinsville First
Heritage
Martha Bowman
Northview
Pleasant Grove UMC Milledgeville
Sandersville
Wesley Chapel (Wrightsville Ct)
Wrightsville
Northeast District
Bethany (Burke Co.)
Brooklet
Landsburg
Mt. Vernon
New Hope (Statesboro)
Poplar Springs
Shiloh (Wheeler Co.)
St. Andrews
Statesboro First
Swainsboro First
Union (Bulloch Co.)
Union Grove
Zoar (Glascock Co.)
Northwest District
Andrew Chapel
Bethel (Marion Ct.)
Concord (Hopewell)
Cuthbert
Ellerslie
Evans Chapel
Howard
Lee Street
Powersville
Reynolds
Roberta
St. Paul
The Ridge
Wesley Chapel (Powersville)
South Central District
Bickley
Douglas First
Friendship (Alma)
Homerville
Lake Park
Manor
The Porch Community Church
Waycross First
Southwest District
Albany First
Arlington
Ashburn
Bethel (Grady Co.)
Camilla
Christ (Albany)
Doerun
Edison
El Faro
Evelyn
Kimball
Leesburg
Thomasville First
Trinity (Donalsonville)
Fully Connectional Churches
Also recognized were those churches that were fully connectional in 2021 by giving 100% or more of their apportionments. Click here to view a full list.
Mission Giving
The generosity of South Georgia United Methodists in their mission giving makes an impact in the Kingdom of God every single day. Mission giving keeps with our mission to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”
Second Mile Giving
Second Mile Giving is an exciting and significant element of the stewardship program within our connectional system at both the General Church and Conference levels. One official Second Mile Giving program within The United Methodist Church is The Advance for Christ and His Church. In 1948, the General Conference launched the Advance as a call to Christians to help rebuild a world shattered by World War II.
The first mile, or priority, continues to be for local churches to fulfill their commitment to the World Service Fund, Conference Benevolences, and other apportioned funds. Second mile stewardship through The Advance fosters partnerships between those who give and those who receive. Through Advance gifts, persons determine and support their own individual and local congregation’s giving priorities.
Conference Advance Specials are projects geographically located within the boundary of the South Georgia Conference. They have been screened by the Conference Outreach Team and authorized by the South Georgia Conference to solicit support from local churches.
Three Star Churches
Local churches are challenged by the Conference Outreach Team to achieve stars of excellence in Second Mile Giving by: