{"id":15358,"date":"2025-12-06T15:51:25","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T22:51:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/young-adults-wait-in-line-to-worship-at-fast-growing-atlanta-church\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T19:33:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T19:33:55","slug":"young-adults-wait-in-line-to-worship-at-fast-growing-atlanta-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/young-adults-wait-in-line-to-worship-at-fast-growing-atlanta-church\/","title":{"rendered":"Young adults wait in line to worship at fast-growing Atlanta church"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Pastor
Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell preaches at 2819 Church on Nov. 16, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo\/Jessie Wardarski)<\/span>Jessie Wardarski<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

ATLANTA \u2013 After Atlanta pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell stopped focusing on growing his congregation three years ago, attendance surged. Now, lines of young adults snake outside 2819 Church, some arriving as early as 5:30 a.m. for Sunday worship.<\/p>\n

Christian rap and contemporary music blast like a block party as volunteers cheer through megaphones for about 6,000 weekly worshippers \u2013 up from fewer than 200 in 2023, according to the church. Inside, the mood turns serious. Many drawn to 2819\u2019s worship crave Mitchell\u2019s animated intensity and signature preaching: no sugarcoating the Bible.<\/p>\n

After spirited prayers and songs leave many crying, Mitchell ambles onstage in his all-black uniform, sometimes in quiet contemplation or tears, before launching into a fiery sermon. His unpolished messages, laden with challenges to revere God and live better, often spread quickly online. A recent prayer event drew far more people than State Farm Arena could hold, with many flying in.<\/p>\n

Crying, shouting, storming across the platform and punching the air, Mitchell preaches with his whole body \u2013 and an urgency to bring people to faith before they die or what he calls Jesus\u2019 impending return.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is life or death for me,\u201d Mitchell told The Associated Press, comparing preaching to the front lines of war. \u201cThere are souls that are hanging in the balance. \u2026 I think about the fact that in that room somebody might hear the Gospel, and that might be their last opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The church \u2013 named for Matthew 28:19, a Bible verse commanding believers to \u201cmake disciples of all the nations\u201d \u2013 is nondenominational and theologically conservative, opposing abortion and supporting marriage only between a man and a woman.<\/p>\n

The congregation\u2019s growth has attracted people of many races and ages, but it\u2019s predominantly young Black adults. Their youth is notable since Americans ages 18 to 24 are less likely than older adults to identify as Christian or attend services regularly, according to Pew Research Center.<\/p>\n

\"Nyriyah
Nyriyah Hullman, center, and Brooklyn Marshall, right, hold hands to pray with fellow members of 2819 Church on Nov. 16, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo\/Jessie Wardarski)<\/span>Jessie Wardarski<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>
Sharp sermons and moving worship<\/div>\n

Warren Bird, an expert on fast-growing churches, said the right leader \u2013 and God\u2019s help \u2013 are key to growth. He described Mitchell as \u201cspeaking a language\u201d that connects with young people other pastors haven\u2019t reached.<\/p>\n

Churchgoers say Mitchell\u2019s message resonates because he walks them through scripture and talks candidly about his spiritual transformation, including his past dealing drugs, paying for abortions and attempting suicide.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still a little rough around the edges, right? I still got a little hood in me,\u201d said Mitchell, who still speaks with a regional New York accent.<\/p>\n

Many at 2819 want more than motivational speeches and say Mitchell\u2019s sermons counter the feel-good American preaching he criticizes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m preaching without watering that down, without filtering out things that we think might be too controversial,\u201d said Mitchell, who wants people to mature spiritually and insists they can\u2019t deal with sin and its consequences without Jesus.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that there is a generation that is gravitating towards that authenticity and truth,\u201d he said. \u201cAs a result of that, we are seeing lives being radically transformed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Christian podcaster Megan Ashley said she brought a friend to 2819 who had stepped away from her faith, and Mitchell had an impact. The friend told Ashley, \u201cWhen he speaks, I believe him.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tougher messages might hurt some people\u2019s feelings, said Donovan Logan, 23.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut that\u2019s what it\u2019s supposed to do. If you don\u2019t come to church and want to change, then that\u2019s not the church you\u2019re supposed to be going to,\u201d Logan said.<\/p>\n

Elijah McCord, 22, said Mitchell\u2019s sermons about sin touch on what\u2019s happening around him in Atlanta, and Mitchell\u2019s story shows that \u201cthere\u2019s life in what God has commanded.\u201d He also values Mitchell\u2019s pleadings to wait until marriage to have sex.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe biblically talks about sin and repentance and how there\u2019s actually hope in the Gospel,\u201d McCord said.<\/p>\n

Beyond the sermon<\/div>\n

Churchgoers say 2819\u2019s draw goes beyond Mitchell \u2013 it\u2019s the entire worship experience.<\/p>\n

Passing dancing greeters, the Sunday crowd enters a dark auditorium permeated with prayer and bold instrumental music before the service, which 2819 calls a gathering, officially begins. Hands lift amid shouts of praise. Tissue boxes sit at aisle ends for those moved to tears.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe worship is crazy. The Holy Spirit is just there. Like, tangible presence. You feel it!\u201d said Desirae Dominguez, 24.<\/p>\n

\"A
A churchgoer lifts her arm in worship at 2819 Church on Nov. 16, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo\/Jessie Wardarski)<\/span>Jessie Wardarski<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>
Mitchell feels \u2018ill-equipped\u2019<\/div>\n

Mitchell spent 10 years preaching, racking up notes from church growth conferences that yielded little, and eventually struggled with depression. During that time, he took a transformative trip to Israel where he said encounters with God and other Christians changed him. Then, in 2023, he changed the church\u2019s name to 2819.<\/p>\n

Mitchell, who has spent three years preaching just from the Book of Matthew, said God told him to preach without bringing prepared notes onstage. Although he attended Bible college, he sometimes doubts himself because of his past.<\/p>\n

\u201cI shed a lot of tears because I feel often ill-equipped, undeserving,\u201d said Mitchell. \u201cI would not have called me if I was God to steward something like this, and sometimes I don\u2019t know why my preaching is reaching (people). \u2026 I\u2019m still shocked myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

When preparing to preach, \u201cI\u2019m thinking about the brokenness of the people in the room, the troubled marriages, the one who is suicidal. I\u2019m thinking about the young lady who\u2019s battling crippling insecurities and don\u2019t know that she has a father up there that loves her more than any man she\u2019s going to find down here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Managing explosive growth<\/div>\n

The church recently moved into its own building, having outgrown the charter school where services were held, and added a third one. On the first two Sundays at the new location, they added an impromptu fourth gathering because so many people came.<\/p>\n

The staff faced similar challenges at Access, the church\u2019s October prayer event that drew an estimated 40,000 people. State Farm Arena was filled to capacity, as was an overflow space in a nearby convention center, leaving thousands outside, the church reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re constantly tinkering. We\u2019re constantly fixing things,\u201d said Tatjuana Phillips, 2819\u2019s ministries director.<\/p>\n

Despite its size, the church encourages community through small groups called \u201csquads,\u201d which give about 1,700 people a place to discuss sermons and support each other\u2019s growth. Staff also engage with about 75,000 people weekly who watch gatherings online.<\/p>\n

The long lines also yield friendships. Ashley Grimes, 35, said that\u2019s where she\u2019s \u201cmet so many brothers and sisters in Christ that I now get to do life with.\u201d<\/p>\n

On a recent Sunday, Mitchell told the crowd they can turn to Jesus regardless of what they\u2019ve done. It worked for him. God, he said, \u201cused failure to transform my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press\/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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