A Multigenerational Church on Johnson Ferry Road
Johnson Ferry Baptist Church sits along Johnson Ferry Road on the north side of Marietta, Georgia, drawing families from Marietta, Roswell, Sandy Springs, East Cobb, and the surrounding north Atlanta suburbs. The campus, anchored by a Sanctuary and an Activities Center, hosts three Modern worship services in the Activities Center at 8:30, 10, and 11:30 a.m., and a Traditional service in the Sanctuary at 10 a.m. The 10 a.m. hour from both spaces is livestreamed on YouTube so members and friends can worship from wherever they are. People walking onto the campus can grab a coffee or breakfast from Provision Cafe, browse the Bookstore, leave a child at Preschool, and find room for the whole family on Sunday morning.
The church's stated mission is short and direct: "We exist to help people find truth, belonging, and purpose in Jesus." That phrase appears at the top of the church's communications and shapes nearly every ministry it launches. Senior Pastor Dr. Clay Smith, who joined the church in 2019 after a ministry career that included serving as President of the Board of NC Baptists and as a trustee of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, leads a staff that includes four Executive Pastors, six lay Elders, and a long list of ministry directors across children, students, adults, missions, and worship arts.
Modern and Traditional Worship Side by Side
Johnson Ferry offers two expressions of worship on Sundays, running simultaneously during the 10 a.m. hour. In the Activities Center, the Modern service combines new songs, revamped hymns, and contemporary favorites led by the Johnson Ferry Band. In the Sanctuary, the Traditional service is an upbeat blend of hymns and contemporary songs led by the Johnson Ferry Choir and Orchestra. Both styles draw from original music written inside the church by a community of in-house songwriters, and both are designed to engage hearts, minds, and souls in praise.
Members and visitors can listen to sermons after the fact, follow along with discussion questions and listening guides, and watch full services on YouTube. A mobile app is available in the Apple and Google Play stores and acts as a personalized hub for events, group messaging, sermon audio, and giving. The church is also a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, holding itself to high standards of biblical accountability, board governance, and financial transparency.
The Forward Vision and a New Worship Center
The church has named its current season Forward, a two-year expression of vision intended to build a bridge to the next chapter of Johnson Ferry. Forward centers on three commitments: through our church, into our community, and around the world. Giving has been unified into one central fund so every dollar supports the church's ministry goals and its vision for missions.
A tangible expression of Forward is the construction of a new Worship Center on the Johnson Ferry campus. The congregation has gathered for a groundbreaking ceremony that included food, games, and a short program to mark the milestone. The Forward Together sermon series revisits the church's calling, celebrates how God has already been at work, and casts next steps for the months and years ahead.
Membership and the Next Steps Path
Visitors who want to dig deeper can follow a four-step path called Next Steps. Step one is the Membership Class, held on the first Sunday of each month and required for anyone considering membership. Step two, Share Your Story, involves articulating a personal faith story to a member of the connection team and completing a member application. Two optional classes round out the pathway: Intro to JF, a meet-and-greet with Pastor Clay and staff on the second Sunday of each month in Room 105 at 11:15 a.m. and 12:45 p.m., and Find Your People, an overview of groups held on the third Sunday at 10 a.m. in Room 105. A fourth class called Find Your Purpose focuses on serving and meets on the fourth Sunday at 10 a.m.
Director of Connections Christina Wekall and her team walk alongside newcomers through the whole process.
Beliefs That Anchor the Church
Johnson Ferry's Statement of Faith articulates the core doctrines the church teaches and practices. The church confesses one God revealed in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, born of a virgin, sinless, crucified, buried, resurrected, ascended, and seated at the right hand of the Father, and He will return to judge the living and the dead. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer from the moment of salvation, comforts and teaches, and equips each one with spiritual gifts for service.
The Bible is the divinely inspired Word of God, without error in its original manuscripts, and is the sole authority for Christian living. Salvation is the free gift of God received by repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and true salvation is eternally secure because Jesus Christ has made an everlasting covenant with His people. Every believer is a minister with direct access to God through Jesus Christ, our great High Priest.
The church also holds that the family, defined by blood, marriage, or adoption, is the foundational institution of human society; that marriage is a lifetime covenant between one biological man and one biological woman; and that children, from the moment of conception, are a gift from God to be protected and valued. Baptism by immersion is practiced as a testimony of faith after trusting Christ, and the Lord's Supper is observed as an act of obedience memorializing the death of Jesus. Leadership of the local church is reserved for those whose lives meet the biblical qualifications of pastor, elder, and deacon, and members are called to submit to their authority. The church teaches that church discipline, administered by the leadership in hope of restoration, is a biblical practice.
Baptism by Immersion
Baptism by immersion is a requirement for membership at Johnson Ferry and is offered several times a year for adults, students, and children. Adults complete a baptism application; students in grades 6 through 12 attend a class on the second Sunday of each month at 8:30 a.m. in the HS Room; and children in grades 1 through 5 attend Matchbox, a class offered on the second Sunday of each month at 11:30 a.m. that explores the meaning of baptism with parents. Baptismal services are scheduled across the year. Those being baptized are invited to bring a dark shirt and shorts and a change of clothes, with a towel and a changing room provided.
Preschool: Foundations from Eight Weeks to Kindergarten
The Preschool ministry serves children from eight weeks old through kindergarten and partners with parents to plant the first seeds of faith. Sunday Preschool Groups meet at 8:30, 10, and 11:30 a.m. with age-appropriate Bible learning through songs, rhythms, finger plays, Bible stories, and games led by trained teachers. Two midweek programs round out the early years. Teeny Tykes & Tunes is an interactive music program for birth to 3-year-olds with a caregiver on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:15 a.m. to 12 p.m. Kids Music for children ages 3 through kindergarten invites kids to learn about God through singing, instruments, and movement on Wednesdays from 6 to 7 p.m.
The ministry also walks alongside expectant parents through periodic Expectant Parents gatherings and publicly recognizes Christian parents through Parent Commissioning services. Rebecca Rakestraw, the Preschool Minister, leads the team.
Children in Kindergarten Through Fifth Grade
Children's ministry at Johnson Ferry is built around helping kids discover truth, belonging, and purpose in Christ. Kid's Groups meet at 8:30 and 11:30 a.m. on Sundays in small-group classes that explore God's Word through Bible teaching, games, and crafts. At 10 a.m. the format shifts to a mix of small- and large-group experiences with song, object lessons, games, and crafts designed so that every child can be known by name. JF Preteens at 10 a.m. is built specifically for fourth and fifth graders with small-group teaching and large-group discussion.
Wednesday nights add a missions flavor. Royal Ambassadors (RA's) for boys and Girls in Action (GA's) for girls meet at 7 p.m. for grades 1 through 5, and Kids Music gathers kids in kindergarten through 5th grade at 6 p.m. for vocal and instrumental worship arts. Children's Minister Christi Hodges oversees the team.
Students: Middle School, High School, and ONE WKND
Student Pastor Logan Grantham oversees a ministry where middle and high school students meet several times a week. Both groups have Sunday Life Groups at 10 a.m., small communities of 10 to 12 students paired with an adult leader who walks alongside them for the full season. At 11:30 a.m., the entire student ministry "packs the house" in the Activities Center for the Modern worship service, with the student section reserved on the front left side.
Midweek gatherings on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. during the school year bring high-energy worship, teaching, and small-group time. A Middle School Choir meets Wednesdays from 6 to 7 p.m., and a High School Choir rehearses Sundays from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Each choir tour is a chance to partner with church planters and mission partners and to put worship into practice in another city. Past Middle School Choir trips have included Orlando, Nashville, Birmingham, and Chattanooga; High School Choir has rotated between New York City and Tarnow, Poland.
ONE WKND, hosted by Johnson Ferry, is an in-town weekend retreat where students in grades 6 through 12 stay in the homes of church members, study the Bible with guest leaders, and gather for worship on campus. It is described as the biggest, craziest weekend of the year for the student ministry. College students are served through a weekly Bible study prepared for the college years, and Adults 60+ partners send College Care Packages to remind students they are not forgotten.
Young Adults in Their Twenties and Thirties
Young Adults ministry gathers 22- to 34-year-olds for YA Thursdays, a weekly large-group gathering in Room 108 at 7 p.m. featuring meaningful worship and biblical discussion. A monthly Young Marrieds Community Night brings engaged and young married couples together for shared meals and community. Brady Whitehead serves as the Young Adult Associate.
Men: Brotherhood, Discipleship, and Legacy
The Men's Ministry gathers under the banner of "Brotherhood, Discipleship, Legacy" and offers several on-ramps. Men's Groups meet on Mondays (East Cobb Men's Fellowship and the Monday Morning Small Group), on Wednesday nights (Iron Sharpens Iron and Men's Night Out), and on Fridays (Epic).
Radical Mentoring is an eleven-month, off-campus program for ages 25 through 50, pairing two mentors with four to six mentees for monthly group meetings, one-on-one peer time, and one-on-one mentor time, monthly Scripture memory, a monthly book, two retreats, and a personal ministry plan. 419 Groups are disciple-making groups of one facilitator and four to five participants who meet weekly to read and reflect on Scripture and multiply disciples. Men's Pastor Pete Buhls leads the team.
Women: Mentoring Pathways and Best Friday
Women's ministry at Johnson Ferry is built around four mentoring and disciple-making pathways. Titus2 pairs one or two mentors with four to seven mentees in a ten-month program that starts each August with monthly meetings, monthly Scripture memory, a fall retreat, and a personal ministry plan. Flourish is a twelve-month mentoring-plus-discipleship group that meets twice monthly for any age of woman. 1-on-1 mentoring pairs a single mentor and mentee for nine to twelve months, with two types available: General and Career Track. 419 is the same small-group disciple-making format used in the men's ministry, designed for multiplication.
Two signature women's events round out the calendar. Best Friday is a come-as-you-are gathering on Fridays where women work, create, or simply hang out, with free childcare provided. By Design is a mission-minded monthly sewing group that creates washable feminine hygiene pads for women internationally. Both sewing and non-sewing tasks are available. Women's Minister Kristen Carr oversees these efforts.
Adults 60+: Building a Lasting Legacy
The Adults 60+ ministry is built around helping older adults build community and equip a spiritual legacy. The weekly rhythm centers on a Thursday morning Bible study with a coffee social beforehand. The ministry also hosts Sunday worship services at assisted living communities as part of the Petal Pushers ministry, which arranges flower deliveries to residents.
Signature events include Night of Hope, a drop-in evening of prayer and worship; the Magnolia Ball, an outreach to nearby assisted-living residents featuring live music by the Johnson Ferry Jazz Band; and The Essentials, a Thursday morning study through the book of John. A fall newsletter keeps participants current on trips, socials, and Bible study. Mitch Verdell pastors the Adults 60+ community.
Special Needs Ministry
Special Needs ministry provides community, inclusion, and a place to belong for individuals with special needs and their families. Participants can join weekly groups, attend events, and serve on mission trips. The ministry also runs a Buddy program for youth and adult sports, pairing one volunteer with one athlete for sports including basketball, bowling, and other leagues. The Regroup support group on Wednesday evenings provides a roundtable discussion for parents of children with special needs.
Groups: Connect, Equip, Home, and 419
Small groups are the primary path to belonging at Johnson Ferry. Connect Groups are on-campus groups that facilitate authentic care and connection through Christ-centered, Bible-based conversation. Equip Groups are short-term groups lasting three to twelve weeks focused on a particular book or topic. Home Groups launch every February and September, matching eight to ten people in a neighborhood for a year-long rhythm of discussion, prayer, and care; the church provides a childcare voucher to help with family expenses.
419 Groups are intentionally small, often gender-specific, and built around the multiplication of disciples through reading and reflecting on Scripture. Disciple-Making Associate Pastor David Anderson helps people find the right fit.
Worship and Arts: Choir, Band, Orchestra, Original Music
Worship & Arts is a collaborative team of bands, orchestra, choirs, and vocalists who lead the congregation in the Activities Center and the Sanctuary. No auditions are required for choirs, and instrumentalists and vocalists serve alongside audio, lighting, video, and content creators on the Production Team.
Johnson Ferry Worship also runs an original music publishing arm: a community of in-house songwriters who write, record, and distribute songs for the wider Church. The Johnson Ferry Gallery hosts rotating shows for visual artists throughout the year as part of the Johnson Ferry Creative arts community. Bobby Smith is the Executive Pastor of Worship and Arts, with Luke Sisson as Worship & Arts Associate and Sarah Blackstone as Minister of Worship & Student Music.
Pastoral Care, Stephen Ministry, and Support Groups
The Pastoral Care department under Pastor Ron Hughes offers counseling referrals to state-certified Christian counselors, confidential help for crisis pregnancies, planning help for funerals and memorial services, and Stephen Ministry for one-on-one Christian care through seasons of grief, divorce, transition, or loneliness. Stephen Minister training is held on Tuesdays from 6:30 to 9 p.m. between January and April.
The Support Groups ministry runs year-round groups for many of life's hardest seasons: GriefShare (a 13-week program for those grieving the death of a loved one); Divorce Care (a 13-week program with childcare available); Widow Strong (a follow-up to GriefShare for widows in their second season of widowhood); Embrace Grace (a 13-week program for women experiencing an unexpected pregnancy, with childcare); Threads of Grace (a prayer and baby-quilt sewing group for Embrace Grace mothers); Hearts of Hope (for those with a loved one navigating same-sex attraction or gender confusion); Regroup (for parents of children with special needs); Depression/Bipolar; Hope After the Loss of a Prodigal; Walking Free (a support group for men with porn or sexual addiction); and Care Partners (for those caring for a loved one in cognitive decline). Women with a Military Connection meets off-site on the second Tuesday of each month.
Missions: Short-Term Trips, Global Sending, and NYC Church Planting
Missions is woven into the church's identity. Johnson Ferry sends people on short-term trips across the country and around the world every year, with a gospel-centered, partner-focused, and discipleship-oriented approach. The Global Sending ministry has set a five-year vision to send 35 long-term "Global Sent Ones" to make disciples among unreached peoples, while the Global Team maintains a ten-year partnership through the North America Mission Board to support New York City church planting and currently supports eight church plants.
MOVE Missions Week is the church's annual missions conference, with a Friday Night Dinner, MOVE Sunday, and a MOVE Conference that gathers pastors and lay leaders from around the region. Summer Sent Ones is a summer pathway for college students and young adults. Executive Pastor of Global Ministry Bryan Hanson oversees the work.
Community Ministries and Local Partners
Johnson Ferry serves its city through an Adoption & Foster Care ministry, an ongoing School Involvement effort, a Summer Lunch Program that delivers lunches to children at apartment complexes off Delk Road, a Refugee Ministry that partners with friends in Clarkston, and Operation Christmas Child through Samaritan's Purse.
Serve Our City is the church's largest serve week of the year, with projects running across a full week and culminating on a citywide Serve Saturday that gathers volunteers for prayer, t-shirts, chicken biscuits, and dozens of projects across Marietta and the surrounding communities. Past Serve Saturday projects have included landscaping, sorting clothes or food, painting, and serving alongside local ministry partners, which include the Salvation Army of Marietta, Table on Delk, Storehouse Ministries, MUST Ministries, YoungLife East Cobb, East Cobb FCA, First Care Women's Clinic, Sandy Springs Mission, and Hopeworks.
Wee School and Timothy Ministry
The Johnson Ferry Wee School is a part-time weekday preschool and mother's morning out program for infants through pre-K, with a Christ-centered environment, a low student-to-teacher ratio (1:4 for toddlers and 1:8 for 5-year-olds), age-appropriate curriculum that includes Orton-Gillingham and Emergent Literacy, Bible-based teaching, and weekly chapel for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds. Director Kim Mayo leads the program.
Timothy Ministry serves homeschooling families and students at Johnson Ferry Christian Academy, offering an a-la-carte menu of academic, enrichment, and extra-curricular classes for grades K through 9 on Mondays from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. across Fall and Spring sessions. The companion JFBC Homeschool Support Group hosts field trips, high school dances, retreats, an annual book sale, and fellowship for homeschooling families. Leslie K. Martinez serves as the Timothy Director.
Youth and Adult Sports, Plus Fitness Classes
The Activities Center houses a large indoor gym and walking track, open to the community during posted hours, plus year-round youth and adult leagues and a full slate of fitness classes. Youth leagues include Upward Basketball, Upward Baseball, Upward Softball, Upward Flag Football, Upward Soccer, Crossover Basketball (grades 6-9), Crossover Flag Football, Crossover Pickleball, Shine Bowling, Special Needs Basketball, Worship Through Dance, and a full Summer lineup of sports and dance camps. All coaches and referees are background-checked and trained.
Adult leagues include men's basketball, co-ed volleyball, co-ed kickball, co-ed cornhole, and year-round adult pickleball. JF Fitness offers weekly semester-based classes such as Boot Camp, Cardio Kickboxing, Pilates Fusion, 20/20/20, Body Sculpt with Barre, Senior Fitness Fun, and more, with free childcare available for many sessions. Associate Pastor Danny Downing oversees the sports ministry.
Provision Cafe, the Bookstore, and the Library
Provision Cafe, located on the Johnson Ferry campus, serves East Pole Coffee along with pastries and light food and is open to the public Monday through Friday, on Saturdays, and on Sundays. The Bookstore carries a curated selection of Christian literature on parenting, marriage, theology, and more, plus gift items from believers around the country. The Johnson Ferry Library offers thousands of titles for children and adults, with hours spread across the week.
Weddings and Premarital Counseling
Johnson Ferry hosts weddings in the Sanctuary with a Johnson Ferry pastor or another approved ordained minister officiating. Staff pastors are also available, pending schedule, to officiate at off-campus venues. Premarital counseling is offered on campus or in conjunction with an off-campus wedding. Couples begin the process with the Johnson Ferry Wedding Application or the Officiant-Only (Offsite) Application.
The Johnson Ferry App, Right Now Media, and Staying Connected
The Johnson Ferry app, available in the Apple and Google Play stores, gives members and attendees a personalized way to see what's coming up, message group members, give to specific ministries, and listen to past sermons. Members and regular attenders also have free access to the full Right Now Media library of Bible studies and Bible-based children's programming.
Each week, women can text HEADSUP to 678.788.7880 for encouragement, prayer, devotions, and scripture. The Pregnancy Care Hotline (Caring Well) is available at 678.784.5399, and the Prayer Line is available at 770.971.7729. The main number is 770.973.6561. Service streams, sermon archives, and sermon series are available on YouTube, where the church has built an extensive teaching library.
A Safe Place to Serve
Safe Harbor, the church's Abuse Protection Policy, has been in place since 2002 and sets the standard for how Johnson Ferry protects children, students, and vulnerable adults. The policy covers applications, signed policy agreements, three-year background checks, three character references, and MinistrySafe Abuse Awareness Training for every employee and volunteer serving minors or the elderly. Church employees and volunteers are trained to recognize and report any signs of abuse, and Johnson Ferry is a mandatory reporter to the Department of Family and Childhood Services. The Safe Harbor flyer is posted in kiosks around campus for transparency and accountability.
From the first cry in the nursery to the legacy conversations of the Adults 60+ Bible study, from the Modern band in the Activities Center to the Choir and Orchestra in the Sanctuary, from a Tuesday morning spent with Teeny Tykes & Tunes to a Saturday on the mission field, Johnson Ferry Baptist Church is built around a single, simple goal: helping people find truth, belonging, and purpose in Jesus.