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Opening of new Oasis Church draws hundreds
Published April 6, 2007
LOGANVILLE — The grand opening of the new Oasis Church in Loganville Saturday was supported by hundreds of people from the community who turned out for the ribbon cutting ceremony, a tour of the building and the food and fun on tap for the celebration.
Pastor Troy Shaw said the new church building, located on Highway 81 next to the Tara Mansion, was the end of a vision that had started less than three years before in his living room.
“It started with just eight of us,” Shaw said. “And at our last service at the old location we had a joint congregation of 1,019 people.”
Shaw said the idea of starting a new church is not original but he believes the story of the Oasis Church in Loganville is pretty unique.
“We started in May of 2004 with no business plan, money or people,” Shaw said.
“Just eight people in my living room,” Shaw said. “The goal was to attract people who were ‘sick of church.’”
Shaw said he believes the church has lost touch with the hurts and needs of the community.
“Our contemporary worship and relevant messages began and we were met with an amazing discovery,” Shaw said. “It worked.”
Since then the church has held worship in four different locations before Saturday’s opening of the new state-of-the art facility where it expects an average weekend attendance of more than 1,000 people.
“Banks told us we would not qualify for a loan until we were at least 5 years old,” Shaw said. “And just two years into it we had four different banks wanting our business. Now we own eight acres of land and have built a 20,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility on it.”
Shaw said there is also a plan for phase two and a family life center in the future.
The main building has high-tech video and sound equipment and there is a separate youth room that is also equipped with stage and sound equipment. With the exception of the newly acquired building loan, the church is debt free, according to church officials.
“We have H2O, our very popular youth program, and a separate pastor for middle schoolers,” Shaw said. “Our approach to ministry is very unorthodox. However, we have seen more than 1,000 people come to Christ as their Lord and Savior and we are adding to our numbers daily.”
In dedicating the new church building, Shaw said the church is not specifically looking to cater to regular church goers.
“We are looking for those who are seeking,” Shaw said.
The church hopes also to continue to be an integral part of the Loganville community. Mayor Tim Barron and several other City Council members and city officials were on hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony and to tour the facility.
“On July 4th, we will provide the only professional fireworks show for the City of Loganville,” Shaw said. “It will be a huge event and people will be able to see it for miles around.”
The Oasis Church will also be holding a Sunrise Service at 7 a.m. on Easter, poolside at the Tara Mansion on Highway 81. Attendees can park in the church parking lot. Regular services are held at 9:30 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. on Sundays.
Anyone wanting to find out more about the church can do so by going to the Web page at www.theoasischurch.org.
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