Small Church Wants Big Impact

Shepherding.

That's the word Robie Hembree uses to describe his style of ministry at . As a pastor and a licensed counselor, personal involvement is very important.

"I try to spend one-on-one time with the people, with the families and then with the congregation," he said. "What I get passionate about is helping people walk in the Word. Helping families. Helping marriages."

In his hometown of Villa Rica, Hembree was raised going to church until his family stopped attending when he was a teenager. A couple years out of high school, he had a renewal of his faith and sensed a call to ministry. No major moment of enlightenment; just a growing desire.

The pastor enrolled in Northland International University in Dunbar, WI, and earned a bachelor of arts in pastoral studies in 1993. After graduating, he went through a tough personal trial and was a single parent for a couple years until he met wife Talena.

Hembree served in his home church in Villa Rica before accepting the call in 1999 to lead Grace Church. He is working on a master of arts in religion through Reformed Theological Seminary in Atlanta, and should complete that degree next year.

He describes the time he spends counseling (he is certified through the National Association of Nouthetic Counseling) as "intensive personal discipleship." The church offers counseling at no charge, and covers anything from substance abuse and anger management to marriage counseling.

"The Bible addresses the neediness of the human soul and offers a cure for that need," said Hembree, 48. "We work to redefine terminology and categories [of secular counseling] from the biblical perspective and help people understand how the gospel sets them free from whatever ails them and how the grace of God radically changes them."

In the shepherding spirit, Hembree is guiding church members as they create small groups throughout the community. The pastor describes these gatherings as "a safe place for people who don't know Christ, a place for them to be introduced to the gospel and to Christians who love Jesus and are living for him in a low-pressure kind of setting."

Plans are underway to create a more permanent presence in an area where there is no gospel presence. Grace Church has developed a three-year plan to plant a new church somewhere in Northwest Georgia. Associate pastor Jody Stancil will lead that congregation.

"We are excited for him and the future," Hembree said. "To be a small church, yet to be involved in planting a church, is pretty exciting for us."

ABOUT THE PASTOR

Hobbies: Hembree plays tennis on several teams out of the Cherokee Tennis Center, an interest he shares with his 14-year-old son.

Family: Talena, Hembree's wife of 16 years, is a graduate and native of Ball Ground. They have six children who range from 27 years to 9 months old.

ABOUT THE CHURCH

Grace Church is at 1160 Butterworth Rd. Sunday school starts at 9:30 a.m. and worship follows at 11 a.m. The church also has a Wednesday night service at 7. For more information, call 678-493-9869 or go to www.gracecanton.org.