Passion City Church

Insider's Guide

What is Passion City Church?

Passion City Church (PCC) is an amazing, vibrant Christian church in Atlanta. Currently, with two locations drawing over 7,000 people in attendance on a given Sunday, PCC is an exciting place to connect. The Passion movement, best known for hosting yearly gatherings for 40,000+ college students and launching some of the most recognizable and memorable worship music of this generation into the world, has led to a local expression of God’s people being established in our city. Passion City Church’s own mission statement says it best: “We are a Jesus Church. A small tribe of His followers connected by our common faith and a deep desire to see our city (and the world) come to know His power and beauty. We are not perfect. But Jesus is. Thankfully, we are a Jesus Church.”

Church Size

Passion City Church is a big church, for sure. On average, the 515 location sees over 6,000 in attendance on a given Sunday, and the Cumberland location hosts around 700 per gathering. The newest is located in The Town at Trilith that’s located 20 minutes south of the airport and is part of a live, work, and play community designed to serve creatives. The size of Passion’s services is one of the reasons that some are reluctant to visit for the first time. However, even on the very first visit, you won’t feel anonymous or unseen at Passion City Church, and you will likely experience the great effort that the team puts forth to make a big church feel small. From day one at Passion, you’ll feel both needed and known.

Leadership

Louie Giglio is the pastor of Passion City Church. Prior to starting the church, Pastor Louie spent years leading the Passion movement which has called generations to leverage their lives for the glory and fame of Jesus. Louie is an excellent and engaging communicator.

Goals & Objectives

The Passion City website states, “We are a Jesus Church. A small tribe of his followers connected by our common faith and a deep desire to see our city [and the world] come to know His power and beauty. We are not perfect. But Jesus is. Thankfully, we are a Jesus church.”

Dress Code

The dress code at Passion City is pretty simple – wear what makes you comfortable. You will see a little bit of everything at most any gathering you attend, but in general, people dress fashionably but casually.

Worship & Music Style

Worship at Passion City Church is loud – in the very best way. The three anchors of the church as a whole are Radical Grace, the Glory of God, and Extravagant Worship, and the idea of worship as a lifestyle is very important. Corporate worship through music is an essential piece of any gathering at PCC and one of the aspects that the church is most known for. The worship style is definitely modern with charismatic leanings – at a typical Sunday gathering, the church is led by multiple vocalists and a full band. Music is accompanied by a full production including video and lights and feels much more like a great concert in one of Atlanta’s best venues than an experience singing hymns accompanied by an organ at your grandparents’ church.

What to Expect

Arriving at PCC on a Sunday can be overwhelming, though the experience varies a bit between the locations.

515 Garson Drive

Gatherings at the 515 Garson Drive location in the Lindbergh area start at 9:30 am, 11:45 am, and 5:00pm. Plan on traffic being fairly crazy, and the main parking lot in front of the church building quickly filling up! That said, do not fear! Passion City Church has several off-site parking options with excellent shuttle service, and plenty of volunteers (called “Door Holders” at PCC) to help you find your way. You will be warmly greeted and made to feel at home even as early as in the parking deck.

Cumberland (North Atlanta High School)

Gatherings at Cumberland begin at 9:30 am, 11:45 am and 5:00pm. Parking at the Cumberland location is actually quite easy! Follow the signs until you see the parking Door Holders who will direct you to the parking deck, and point you in the right direction.

Once you’ve parked and arrived at the church building there will be a small army of folks with name tags to point you in the right direction and help you find a great seat in the auditorium. You will probably also want to take some time to check out the “Resources” area for a great selection of books, music, and other resources. The actual worship gatherings typically begin punctually and last roughly 90 minutes. You can expect a lively worship set of 3-4 songs at the beginning of the gathering, a time of “hosting” (saying hello to those around you, hearing about opportunities coming up soon in the life of the church, etc.) an opportunity to give financially, and a talk (sermon) that lasts around 45 minutes. The tone of messages at PCC is conversational and engaging, and typically there is a time to respond to what’s been spoken about and a closing song at the end of the gathering.

Doctrine

Passion City Church’s LinkedIn sums up the question of “what is this place all about” well:

“Our hope is to be winsome, and to befriend and serve all people. Our worship is loud because His grace is beyond anything we could dream or imagine. Our rhythm is to gather together to worship and scatter to serve. And in a world where the weight is often heavy, we want to lift people, speak life, stand for justice, add value and celebrate the goodness of our God in the best of times and when the road is steep. We are not perfect. But Jesus is. Come as you are.”

If you spend any amount of time at PCC you’ll hear the statement “We are a Jesus Church.” This could potentially strike a newcomer to the church as a bit odd, but you will quickly come to understand and appreciate the heart behind that statement. While the church is certainly an evangelical church with leanings towards a reformed view of theology, Jesus truly is the lead story of everything that happens at the church, and the good news of Jesus being crucified for the sins of the world is central.

Messages

The music is always great at PCC, and really the only thing that can compete is the quality of the talk (PCC prefers not to refer to the message as a “sermon.”) Louie Giglio is the primary communicator at Passion and is an incredibly gifted, engaging communicator. Louie’s messages typically last around 45 minutes, but the time flies by as he engages a great mix of humor and humility to communicate the truth of Scripture. Typically messages are “topical” in that there is always a message series that deals with a particular theme or topic. That said, the individual messages are very much driven by a particular passage of Scripture, and Louie does employ a more expositional style of working through a text. The other pastors who occasionally speak are also very good.

Demographics

The church is really a huge mix of people. On any given Sunday, you’ll see plenty of young professionals, high school and college students, young families, and retirees! One of the things many love about the church is that, even though it emerged from the Passion movement among college students, there really is a place for everyone. In general, PCC attracts a good number of young (20- and 30-something) professionals who appreciate cultural and social engagement, have an appreciation for design and the arts, and crave authentic community in a big city.

Atmosphere

Walking into any building where Passion City Church is gathering feels a bit like walking into a hybrid of an Apple Store, a great art gallery, and a party at your best friend’s house. You’ll be warmly greeted by a team of people who are very happy to be at church, and you’ll immediately notice the emphasis the Passion City team places on good design. There will likely be some music playing in the background, and you’ll feel right at home.

Find Your Community

It’s very likely you’ll hear something about “making big church small” at some point during your visit to Passion City Church. The team at PCC really desires that everyone who walks through the doors finds a deep and authentic community, and one of the best ways to do so is to get involved with a Community Group. Groups meet all over the city once per month and are much smaller gatherings that involve a time of building community and developing relationships with others who attend Passion City Church.

Passion City Church offers groups and gatherings for a variety of ages and stages of life. The Grove is a monthly gathering for women in Atlanta hosted by Shelly Giglio and regularly draws a huge crowd. The Rising happens monthly for middle and high school-aged students, and there are plenty of opportunities for everyone from the smallest of children to college students to those who have a few more years under their belts!

In addition, one of the best ways to really get involved in the life of PCC is by becoming a Door Holder. According to the website, Passion City Church says Door Holders instead of volunteers because “volunteers can sound like people who randomly sign up and hopefully show up, while Door Holders take ownership and take great pleasure in opening a way for others to see and experience Jesus.” There are multiple Door Holder teams to connect with – everything from greeting and making visitors feel welcomed and at home to serving on the production team for gatherings. It’s highly recommended to get connected as a Door Holder, and it’s very easy to get involved!

You can find profiles on many more of Passion City Church’s ministries and activities here.

Local Outreach

Passion City Church is very much committed to being involved in the community, and there are regular opportunities to serve our city. Probably the most obvious time to delve into greater community involvement is during “Love Atlanta” which happens once per year. This week-long emphasis on serving the city exists to inspire and mobilize people towards a lifestyle of service. Love Atlanta leads to thousands of people serving in thousands of volunteer slots to make possible hundreds of projects all over the city of Atlanta. Many people who serve during this week develop great relationships with Passion’s partner organizations in the city and continue a serving relationship throughout the year.

PCC also regularly serves underprivileged areas of Atlanta through “Project Supply,” collecting items for refugee communities, public schools, and other organizations in need.

Contact

Website: passioncitychurch.com
Address: 515 Garson Drive NE, Atlanta, GA, 30324
Phone: 404-231-7080
Email: connect@passioncitychurch.com

Social & Other

Facebook: Click Here
Instagram: @passioncity
Twitter: @passioncity
Yelp: Click Here

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