Ministering is a family calling for the Groves family. Catoosa County native JC Groves is no exception, having recently moved back to the area where his father, grandfather and great-grandfather preached to start a church of his own.
His father was the final pastor at the Old Stone Church that now serves as a historic landmark in Ringgold.
Currently, JC Groves meets with friends at Caffeine Addicts in downtown Ringgold Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 a.m. to pray as the team prepares to launch a Ringgold campus for Rock Bridge Community Church. The church already has campuses in Dalton, Chatsworth and Calhoun.
"We pray that God will bless us and use us to be a vital part of the community," said Groves, who moved back after serving for two and a half years in Salt Lake City, Utah, when he got a call from Rock Bridge asking him to be the new church's pastor. "We pray for Ringgold too."
The Ringgold church is still in the building stages and is located between Farm to Fork Restaurant and Portofino Pizza Express Restaurant in the Remco Shops plaza.
While waiting for the official launch date in mid-January, Groves invites people to the morning Bible studies at Caffeine Addicts.
"We like being involved in a community," he said. "We are here to reach people through active participation and a radical dependence on what Jesus has called us to do. Rock Bridge wants to connect the community to Christ."
Groves said Rock Bridge lead pastor Matt Evans tells people to break down political, denominational and racial walls to see people like Jesus did: just as people. The Rock Bridge mission is to "glorify God by connecting people from all walks of life to Christ."
"A lot of people don't go to church," said Groves. "Rock Bridge is a place to come as you are. We all have baggage. We believe life is not meant to be lived alone. We want to connect people with the community."
The church recently joined the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce to connect more with the community.
Once the sanctuary is complete, Groves said Evans will preach through a satellite feed. The local campus will have its own modern worship band and praise team that performs with musicians playing a variety of instruments.
Groves traveled around singing contemporary Christian songs through a record deal at age 15 and said he is excited to be involved with a church with a heart for music. He met his wife Kym because she traveled singing with her family.
The yet-to-be-completed worship area will eventually be able to seat 250 people. A coffee shop, lounge area and couches will be included. The church will open up to a home-schooler co-op during the week. On weeknights community organizations such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous will meet at the church.
"We want to have things going on all the time for the community," said Groves. "We want to be a part of the community."
Spiritual calling
To learn more about Rock Bridge visit www.rockbridge.cc or Facebook/rockbridgeringgold. Ringgold Rock Bridge campus pastor JC Groves can be followed on Twitter@JCGroves.