Get to Know Us.

We are a dynamic community of people seeking to practice the historic Christian faith in our rapidly changing world.

Church members getting food from both sides of a long table
The Atlanta skyline

What Matters to Us

Three foundational commitments shape everything we do: The authority of the Bible, the centrality of the Gospel, and the indispensability of the church. 

We believe God inspired the original authors of the Bible, and that he still speaks to us through the Bible today. We are always listening, learning and refining our understanding of God's Word.

We believe the central message of the Bible is the Gospel, the Good News of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. We never outgrow the Gospel, and the Gospel is how we continue to grow.  

We believe this Biblical Gospel is not only a message to share with individuals; it’s a new reality to live out together in community.

Values

What matters to us

In short, the first thing to know about who Westside is:
We are people who love and follow Jesus.

Everything that Westside is and hopes to be is tethered to these two principles. We start here, but this is also something we aim to do more and more.

Under Scripture

We are under the authority of Scripture, led by God’s wisdom and heart, not our own.

Centered on the Gospel

Everything we do is centered on the gospel—we draw life from it, and we point all things to it.

Our Purpose

To Embody and Preview the Kingdom of God from Bankhead to Buckhead

The Westside sits between Buckhead (one of Atlanta’s wealthiest areas), and Bankhead (one of its poorest). As our area has grown and changed, so has our church’s footprint, but our first commitment is still to the neighborhoods of the Westside.

We strive to be good neighbors and involved citizens who actively contribute to the social, cultural, economic and civic thriving of our community. We seek to be “salt and light” in our neighborhoods, schools and workplaces around metro Atlanta.

As the Westside grows more just, peaceful, creative and hospitable to all kinds of people, we “preview” the Kingdom of God, embodying God’s promised future in our own limited, imperfect way.

How do we define “embody” and “preview?”

Embody

We want to live out the kingdom of God’s rule. It’s not enough to know about it and claim it for ourselves. It needs to be IN our bodies and lives.

Preview

We want to help people see what God intends the kingdom of God to look like through our church community. We are never the objective, the final destination. It’s not enough to get people to Westside. They need the full, completed Kingdom and we want to help people long for it.

Five core values shape our life together, creating the acronym PEACE:

Prize the Heart

Jesus taught that our words, attitudes and actions flow from our hearts. Information and aspirations alone cannot change us. Lasting change, therefore, must flow from hearts that are redeemed by his grace and ruled by his Holy Spirit. Every practice and relationship we pursue together seeks to expose, diagnose, heal and empower our hearts for progressive transformation into the image of Christ.

Embody Grace

The heart of scripture is the Gospel of free grace that unites us to God through the person and work of Jesus Christ. We experience this Gospel not in corporate worship alone, but throughout the culture of the church; the shared practices and dispositions that make us instruments of God’s grace to each other. Leaders serve to equip and empower each and every “body part” to fulfill his or her indispensible role in our common calling. As sinners living in a broken world, we expect redemptive friction, and we commit to apply the Gospel through the ongoing work of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Aim for Restoration

The Gospel that reconciles us to God also makes us agents of reconciliation with each other. Facing the heart of our city, we work to break down every barrier that has divided us, especially along the lines of race, class and culture. Powerful forces tempt us to grow inward only, becoming insular and incomprehensible to outsiders. Therefore we fight to practice habits of intentional hospitality that remove stumbling blocks and build bridges in the everyday relationships of life.

Cultivate Place

We believe local places are not just the setting for God’s kingdom, but one of the key dimensions in which the kingdom is made manifest. Living in a culture of widespread alienation and impersonal communication, we fight to live, work and play together, face-to-face, as much as possible. We expect God to produce lasting redemptive change in the social, cultural, political and educational institutions of our area, as well as the built environment.

Embrace Limitations

Every local church is only one partial manifestation of Christ’s universal, global Kingdom. We do not expect our church to meet every possible need, so we celebrate God’s work through other churches and ministries throughout our city. This posture liberates us to focus on our geographical area and to develop the particular gifts and resources God has entrusted to us. It also empowers us to build mutually supporting partnerships with other ministries, rather than duplicating their efforts.

Timeline

Our church history

Serving Atlanta’s Westside since 2007.

2005

Walter and Anne Henegar felt called to plant a church on Atlanta’s Westside

2007

Atlanta Westside launched with a 19-member team of leaders from two nearby churches

2017

The church moved to Boyd Elementary to accommodate more adults and children

2018

Westside purchased our current building, 1255 Collier, renovated, and moved in all in the same year

2023

The church completed construction on the front half of 1255 Collier, doubling our footprint

Five core values shape our life together, creating the acronym PEACE:

Prize the Heart

Jesus taught that our words, attitudes and actions flow from our hearts. Information and aspirations alone cannot change us. Lasting change, therefore, must flow from hearts that are redeemed by his grace and ruled by his Holy Spirit. Every practice and relationship we pursue together seeks to expose, diagnose, heal and empower our hearts for progressive transformation into the image of Christ.

Embody Grace

The heart of scripture is the Gospel of free grace that unites us to God through the person and work of Jesus Christ. We experience this Gospel not in corporate worship alone, but throughout the culture of the church; the shared practices and dispositions that make us instruments of God’s grace to each other. Leaders serve to equip and empower each and every “body part” to fulfill his or her indispensible role in our common calling. As sinners living in a broken world, we expect redemptive friction, and we commit to apply the Gospel through the ongoing work of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Aim for Restoration

The Gospel that reconciles us to God also makes us agents of reconciliation with each other. Facing the heart of our city, we work to break down every barrier that has divided us, especially along the lines of race, class and culture. Powerful forces tempt us to grow inward only, becoming insular and incomprehensible to outsiders. Therefore we fight to practice habits of intentional hospitality that remove stumbling blocks and build bridges in the everyday relationships of life.

Cultivate Place

We believe local places are not just the setting for God’s kingdom, but one of the key dimensions in which the kingdom is made manifest. Living in a culture of widespread alienation and impersonal communication, we fight to live, work and play together, face-to-face, as much as possible. We expect God to produce lasting redemptive change in the social, cultural, political and educational institutions of our area, as well as the built environment.

Embrace Limitations

Every local church is only one partial manifestation of Christ’s universal, global Kingdom. We do not expect our church to meet every possible need, so we celebrate God’s work through other churches and ministries throughout our city. This posture liberates us to focus on our geographical area and to develop the particular gifts and resources God has entrusted to us. It also empowers us to build mutually supporting partnerships with other ministries, rather than duplicating their efforts.

Explore Westside media

Check out our latest sermons, blogs, and music.

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Church Leadership

Our leaders

Meet the dedicated leaders of our church community.

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Adam Meisenheimer
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Weston Straka
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Quonita Booker
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Michael Bragg
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Angela Oliver
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Cal Fisher
Diaconal Ministry Team
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Norman Powell
Elders
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Stephen Owens
Elders
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Our staff

Meet our team

Get to know the dedicated individuals behind our church.

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Walter Henegar
Walter Henegar
Senior Pastor
Pastors
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Bruce Terrell
Bruce Terrell
Executive Director
Admin
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Joseph Parker
Joseph Parker
Family Ministry Pastor
Kids
Students
Pastors
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Josh Kim
Josh Kim
Pastor of Care
Care
Connect
Grow
Pastors
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Jenna Teachey
Jenna Teachey
Director of Discipleship
Grow
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Corey Fleeman
Corey Fleeman
Director of Worship and Communications
Admin
Worship
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Lyn Cook
Lyn Cook
Director of Outreach and Mission
Serve
Connect
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Anne Henegar
Anne Henegar
Director of Spiritual Formation
Care
Grow
All

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Church members getting food from both sides of a long table