New Direction Church may have only begun to hold services in March of 2016, but the vision was planted by God long before that. At the age of 13, Matthew had the call to see a church in our community where every person from any background, black or white, rich or poor, young or old, could come and worship the Lord together. Matthew will be the first person to admit that he spent many of the next years of his life running from that vision. However, it is during those “lost years” that God continued to mold in Matthew’s heart the principles and foundations that would eventually become the heart of New Direction.
“It is never God’s will that we make mistakes but in making my own bad choices God taught me two things that I will always carry with me,” says Matthew. “I learned that everyone’s story is different. I learned that everyone has their own reasons for the paths they take and that sometimes those reasons come from some pretty dark, hurtful places. While it’s not an excuse for poor choices, my own walk has ingrained in me a heart to give grace to people and to never judge another person’s story when I haven’t walked a mile in their shoes. Lastly, having lived and seen the consequences of trying to do life my own way, I have learned to value…to treasure…the Truth that God teaches us. His way truly is the best way and the only way. I believe it with all my heart because I’ve lived it.”
Matthew Galloway, Lead PastorIt is from those lessons that New Direction gets its name. To truly live the life people are destined for, they must drop their own pursuits and follow a “new direction” — that direction is Jesus.In the fall of 2014, Matthew met John Holloman and together their two families began praying for the future of Greene County. In 2015, a core group was formed and soon began meeting in the home of Matthew and Michelle. On March 13, 2016 they began holding Sunday services in the music building of Greene Central High School. Since that time, God has blessed New Direction beyond the capacity of the music building and in the spring of 2019 they began having services in the gymnasium.
Our vision is to lead people into real relationship with God and one another.
