ABOUT US
OUR STORY
Grace United Methodist of Clarkesville emerged from the membership of a former United Methodist Church, that elected to go a direction other than United Methodist. More than 78 friends and family joined together in July of 2023 to envision a future for a United Methodist presence remaining in Clarkesville Ga. Planning teams were formed, people came together, gave of themselves and formed a group large enough to constitute status as a congregation.
In January 2024 we began worship services at historic Deas Chapel, and have been worshiping and serving there since then. On March 24, 2024 we were officially chartered as a United Methodist Congregation here in Clarkesville (Habersham County) where we are striving to clarify, define and live out our mission as sisters and brothers in Christ, in the richness of the United Methodist tradition. We remain faithful to the United Methodist Church with our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service and our witness.
We have only been a chartered church since March of 2024, so our official mission and vision statements are still being formulated. But if one were asked to encapsulate why we are here, what we believe God is calling us to do, and how we are to live out this calling it could be said that we are ‘Growing in Grace, Serving in Love and Living in Peace.’ Growing in Grace and extending that grace of God to all whom God places in our lives and in our paths each week.
Serving in love because God first loved us, and Jesus’ main command is that we love one another as He has loved us. Finally, living in peace is not often a named or spoken goal of a congregation. But knowing the hearts and souls of the people who have chosen to undertake this new journey, perhaps more than anything is our desire is to live in peace and in such a way as that peace in us becomes contagious to others.
OUR MISSION
OUR FUTURE
Our future is wide open at this point. We are just beginning the journey and exciting things are underway for the days and months ahead. We will soon publish our 1 year, 3 year and 5 year goals, and where we believe God would want us to be as a congregation within those time frames. It is exciting to be part of a ‘new thing’ that God is doing. We invite all who are eager to be part of a new thing to join us in the journey.
OUR STAFF
REV. DR. RANDY KANIPE
FOUNDING PASTOR
MRS. JENNIFER BOYDSTUN
OFFICE ADMIN, UM DEACONESS
