God's Mission WorkSt. John's Outreach ministry is inspired by the principles of Micah 6:8 - "What does the Lord require, but to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God?" We believe St. John’s is called to embody the love of Christ and to serve those in need in our neighborhood, in the city of Atlanta, and in the world.
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To learn moreTo learn more about any of the ministries listed below or to volunteer, go to the 'Contact Us' Form and reach out. You will be directed to the right person or organization.
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Mission PartnersMercy Community Church
Mercy Community Church is a small organic community church that started in 2005. It is a church on a mission, a place where people living on the margins are nurtured as God’s children with special attention paid to their emotional and spiritual needs. Our goal is to make a difference in our communities, to show through our love, rolled up sleeves, and open table. St. John's partners with Mercy Church to provide a Freeze Shelter during cold winter nights and a Wednesday night Bible Study.
Intown Collaborative Ministries
Intown Collaborative Ministries is a ministry cooperative of churches in zip codes 30306 and 30307. ICM seeks to build relationships and find permanent solutions to homelessness and hunger in our neighborhoods.
St. John's actively participates in ICM's weekly Food Pantry through food donations (as the Peanut Butter + Jelly and Pasta + Sauce church); the Food Cooperative (a monthly co-op for low-income families); and Clothing Ministry, which provides professional clothing for people moving back into the work force, and in fulfilling on-going staffing needs. Members are always encouraged to volunteer for the Pantry; you can sign-up here. Refugee Services
Inspiritus and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services: St. John's supports Inspiritus and LIRS by sponsoring different projects to help refugee families settle in Atlanta.
Transparent USA
Join the new TransParent Group meeting every 2nd Thursday at 7 PM. TransParent strives to provide an environment that encourages parents and caregivers to speak openly about their own experiences in raising a transgender or non-binary loved one. Our goal is to help make connections with other local families that can relate to this experience. This group meets monthly, is confidential, and is peer led. No judgments or unsolicited advice - this is a space for you to speak freely about concerns, challenges, triumphs, pitfalls or new developments but sharing is not required.
ReconcilingWorks
St. John’s is a member of the Reconciling in Christ program of ReconcilingWorks, a roster of congregations in the Lutheran Church that invites gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons to participate fully in the life of the church. The Southeast synod chapter of RIC meets regularly at St. John’s.
Street Grace
Street Grace mobilizes community resources – financial, human, and material – to help individuals and organizations effectively fight against domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) through awareness, empowerment, and engagement.
Compassionate Atlanta
St. John's is a member congregation of Compassionate Atlanta which seeks to build healthier, more connected, abundant, and thriving communities.
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Other Outreach ActivitiesWarming Station and Freeze Shelter
For many years SJLC has hosted a Freeze Shelter on evenings below 32 degrees, but during the pandemic we’ve moved to outdoor warming stations on Friday morning. We look forward to resuming the shelter when the pandemic is behind us. In the meantime, we continue to support our houseless neighbors with a warming station donations and volunteering, contact Ann Lillya for more information.
Atlanta Hunger Walk
Each Spring, church members support and participate in the Atlanta Community Food Bank's annual Hunger Walk/Run. Proceeds from this event support six different metro hunger-relief organizations, including Lutheran Services of Georgia. Over the past several years, St. John's has been the top fund-raiser amongst Atlanta-area Lutheran churches. For the 2021 Walk/Run, we raised $4,310.
The 2022 Atlanta Hunger Walk/Run will be hybrid (in person and virtual) and will occur on Sunday, March 6. If you would like to join or sponsor our 2022 team, visit: https://bit.ly/3oa3P7y. Be sure to select St. John's Lutheran, Atlanta. AIDS Walk/Run
St. John's members form a team each Fall to participate in the Atlanta Aids Walk, the Southeast's largest fundraiser for HIV/AIDS-related support
organizations. We provide both walkers and runners, who together raise thousands of dollars for the cause. Atlanta Pride
St. John's is a participating congregation of Georgia Lutherans Welcome You!, a group of metro Atlanta ELCA congregations that intentionally welcome people of all sexual orientations and gender identities (urwelcome.info). We participate in the annual Atlanta Pride (atlantapride.org) events including the Vendor Fair and the ever popular Pride March down Peachtree Street.
Building MinistrySt. John's sees our building as a tool for outreach to support groups that are doing important work for compassion, justice, and service to our community. Groups using St. John's as their "home" include: Augustine Fellowship, Atlanta Bead Society, Druid Hills Civic Association, Fairness for Prisoner's Families, Kairos Outside, Reconciling in Christ (SE Synod chapter), and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
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