Young adults are waiting in line to worship at this fast-growing Atlanta church

ATLANTA — After Atlanta pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell stopped dwelling on growing his congregation about three years ago, its attendance surged. Now, lines packed with young adults snake outside 2819 Church, some arriving as early as 5:30 a.m. to secure a spot for Sunday worship.

Christian rap and contemporary music blast like a block party as volunteers cheer into megaphones for around 6,000 weekly churchgoers — up from less than 200 in 2023, the church reports. Inside the sanctuary, the atmosphere turns serious. Many drawn to 2819's riveting worship are hungry for Mitchell's animated intensity and signature preaching: No sugarcoating the Bible.

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 messages, unpolished and 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 handle, with many flying in.

Crying, shouting, storming across the platform and punching the air, Mitchell preaches with his whole body — and an urgency to bring people to faith before they die or what he calls Jesus' impending return to Earth.

''It is life or death for me,'' Mitchell told The Associated Press, comparing preaching to the front lines of war. ''There are souls that are hanging in the balance. … I think about the fact that in that room somebody might hear the Gospel, and that might be their last opportunity.''

The church — whose name references Matthew 28:19, a Bible verse commanding believers to go ''make disciples of all the nations" — is nondenominational and theologically conservative, with beliefs opposing abortion and in support of marriage only between a man and a woman.

The congregation's growth has attracted people of many races and ages, but it's 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 religious services regularly, according to Pew Research Center.

Warren Bird, an expert on fast-growing churches, believes the right leader is key to a church's growth — along with God's help — and described Mitchell as ''speaking a language'' that connects with young people who other pastors haven't reached.

Churchgoers say Mitchell's message resonates because he carefully walks them through scripture and talks candidly about his spiritual transformation, including his past dealing drugs, paying for abortions and attempting suicide.

''I'm still a little rough around the edges, right? I still got a little hood in me,'' said Mitchell, who still speaks with a regional New York accent.

Many at 2819 want more than motivational speeches and say Mitchell's sermons are counterweights to the feel-good American preaching he criticizes.

''I'm preaching without watering that down, without filtering out things that we think might be too controversial,'' said Mitchell, who wants people to mature spiritually and insists they can't deal with sin and its consequences without Jesus.

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, ''When he speaks, I believe him.''

The tougher messages might hurt some people's feelings, said Donovan Logan, 23.

''But that's what it's supposed to do. If you don't come to church and want to change, then that's not the church you're supposed to be going to,'' Logan said.

Elijah McCord, 22, said Mitchell's sermons about sin touch on what's happening around him in Atlanta, and Mitchell's story shows that ''there's life in what God has commanded.'' He also values Mitchell's pleadings to wait until marriage to have sex.

''He biblically talks about sin and repentance and how there's actually hope in the Gospel,'' McCord said.

Passing the dancing greeters, the Sunday crowd enters the dark auditorium. It's permeated with prayer and bold instrumental music before the service, which 2819 calls a gathering, officially begins, with hands already lifted amid shouts of praise. Tissue boxes sit at the end of aisles, ready to aid those moved to tears.

''The worship is crazy. The Holy Spirit is just there. Like, tangible presence. You feel it!'' said Desirae Dominguez, 24.

Mitchell feels ‘ill-equipped' to lead 2819

Mitchell spent 10 years preaching, racking up unfruitful notes from church growth conferences, and eventually started struggling 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's name to 2819.

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

When preparing to preach, ''I'm thinking about the brokenness of the people in the room, the troubled marriages, the one who is suicidal. I'm thinking about the young lady who's battling crippling insecurities and don't know that she has a father up there that loves her more than any man she's going to find down here.''

When not preaching, Mitchell's demeanor is quieter. He and his staff are ''here to serve,'' he often says.

His large online platform exposes him and sometimes his family to public critique, pushback, and even threats. Some accuse him of self-righteousness or say he's too harsh. He also issued a public apology earlier this year for comments in a sermon about obeying authority that were seen as dismissive of police brutality.

At times, he says he is deeply affected by criticism and said he repents for some of what critics decried. But Mitchell also finds solace in better understanding Jesus by enduring it.

Staff constantly adjusts for growth

The staff faced similar conundrums at Access, the church's 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.

''We're constantly tinkering. We're constantly fixing things,'' said Tatjuana Phillips, 2819's ministries director.

Logistical challenges, such as packed parking lots and swamped staff, are common at fast-growing churches, said Bird, the church growth expert.

Despite its size, the church encourages community through its small groups, called ''squads,'' that give about 1,700 people a place to discuss sermons and support each other's personal growth. Staff also engage with about 75,000 people weekly who watch gatherings online.

The long lines also yield friendships. Ashley Grimes, 35, said that's where she's ''met so many brothers and sisters in Christ that I now get to do life with.''

On a recent Sunday, Mitchell told the crowd that they can turn to Jesus regardless of what they've done. It worked for him. God, he said, ''used failure to transform my life.''

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This story corrects that the school where gatherings were held was a charter school.

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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.