Pastor Eric Suddith was recruited by the Stone Mountain Baptist Association to “re-plant” the Emmanuel Baptist Mission Church. During the re-plant process our Mission Church continued to be housed and sponsored by Highland Park Baptist Church. Our church plant took a year to develop an effective core team and learn about the church planting process. Our team then developed a church planting and facility build strategy. In January 2005, the ministry was re-planted with 13 adult members and moved into the Lorraine Elementary School with a NEW name “Emmanuel Community Church”

 While at Lorraine Elementary, we vigorously pursued God’s will and purpose, spreading the Gospel of Christ and erecting our first unit facility for ministry in our community.

 By God’s grace we launched our building and construction process. God sent several strategic partners to assist in the development, planning and execution of our Ministry Strategy.  These partners include the NAMB Mobilization process, the Stone Mountain Baptist Association and the owner of Georgia Construction, Clarence Hall. Soon, God sent over 500 mission construction volunteers from 60 churches from 15 states to come to Georgia to assist in constructing our first worship center facility.  In 2006, we moved into our new facility and became known as the very first predominantly African-American church in the Georgia Baptist Convention to be built by volunteer labor in the state of Georgia.

 God continued to be gracious and continued to “add to the church such that should be saved” and our growing ministry broke ground again in March 2010, in preparation of our “Build Forward 2010” project.

The Emmanuel Family was faithful and made pledges of support to build a 1,500 seat sanctuary, a Family Life Center containing Christian Education Space, a Basketball Court, Workout & Exercise Room, a Commercial Kitchen, Chapel,  Connection Café, a Student Worship & Lounge Center, a Loading Dock for our Food Pantry Ministry and a Child Development Center.

Once again, God provided several strategic partners including NAMB Mission mobilization volunteers to assist with the new construction project. Over 1,500 kingdom builders from over 30 states answered the call that God put upon their hearts and they again came to Conyers to assist our growing church plant.  

Our focus is not just on building facilities, we are building people who love the Lord, study His Word, and serve one another and our community.  Our outreach ministries are impacting our community; some of these include the “Tender Care” Nursing Home Ministry, our Upward Sports Ministry and most recently, our Food Bank Ministry, which feeds over 250 people weekly. In 2012, we also launched our state licensed Early Child Development Learning Center.

God has blessed our Church Plant over these short years. Many have come to know Christ as Savior. Of the 46,000 Southern Baptist Churches in 2013, the Emmanuel Community Church ranks 358 nationally, and ranked 42^nd out of the 3,600 Southern Baptist Churches in Georgia in attendance. Today more than 1,300 people worship Christ our Lord in our 70,000sf facility on our 22-ac campus.

Our Ministry Strategy is to CONNECT people with God, allow them to GROW in His Word, allow them to SERVE each other then Go and tell others about the Love of Christ our Savior!