HOME Before You Attend
We know that it’s scary visiting anywhere new and it’s doubly scary
visiting a new church. Let’s face it… you never know what you’re going to
get. So we thought we’d alleviate some of the fear by arranging a tour of
sorts.
Beginnings
How we began!
Elder Allen Parent Jr. left his home church located at 458 Central, Pontiac MI with a burning desire and passion for the Downriver area. He purchased property to build a church at our current location at 15200 Brest Rd. Southgate, MI. During the planning and development of the new church, Elder Parent began God’s work in a rented storefront building in Lincoln Park, MI on the corner of College and Fort St. While the storefront was being remodeled to accommodate the needs for church services, the services were held in Detroit, MI at the Teamsters Union Hall on the corner of Perry and Trumbull. Jimmy Hoffa was gracious and allowed Elder Parent, not Pastor Parent to use the facility free of charge from June 1959 until September 1959 at which time the store front was ready for the first service. Construction for the new church began in the spring of 1960 and the first services were held in August of 1963. In 1984, now Bishop Allen Parent Jr. turned the leadership over to his son Wayne Parent. Pastor Wayne has been serving this church faithfully ever since.
Environment
Come as you are? Casual? What??
When you visit SSP, you’ll see that it’s a come as you are atmosphere. There’s no pretense. It’s about you being you. It’s about getting something more out of church than just the latest fashion tips. We want you here to experience God. We say come in what you like. Come casual and comfortable or dressed to the hilt but come with a heart that is open.
When you visit SSP, you’ll see that it’s a come as you are atmosphere. There’s no pretense. It’s about you being you. It’s about getting something more out of church than just the latest fashion tips. We want you here to experience God. We say come in what you like. Come casual and comfortable or dressed to the hilt but come with a heart that is open.
The environment is friendly, casual and upbeat. You’ll see people wearing jeans or khakis… even the good old-fashioned suit and tie! And we don’t care if you’re pierced, tattooed or G.Q.’d. God looks at your heart not your style and so do we. So come as you are.
Will the visitors please stand up, Not Here!
At SSP, you won’t have to stand up or raise your hand to be recognized. And we definitely will not make you wear a nametag. We would never do anything to ‘put you on the spot.’ This is truly a safe place where you can find answers at your own pace. You don’t have to stand or sing or do anything you don’t want to do but be forewarned… you’ll probably laugh or even cry and it’s our guess that you’ll be engaged by what you see, hear and feel.
And by the way, you won’t be asked for your money either. In fact, we encourage visitors to keep their money in their pockets so they can keep their hearts and minds on the experience.
Sounds
It’s been said that music speaks to the heart, mind and soul and that each generation’s heart and soul can be found in their music.
We believe what the Bible says when it says that if we lift Jesus up that He will draw people to Himself. Our time of worship through music combines heart felt passions for Jesus with sound, style and quality that will surprise you. Our full intent in using music that is modern in style and high in performance is so that we can experience God in a way that we can relate to our daily lives.
So when you come to SSP expect to hear stuff that you like. Expect it to be a bit louder than you’ve heard at church, but most of all expect to see people engaged in authentic worship of God.
The Feel
When people come to SSP we want them to walk away feeling like they experienced God… that their Spiritual Journey was renewed and that their hearts and minds were challenged to take the next step closer to God. We want this to be a place where the whole family wants to be because they find love, acceptance and encouragement here.
We embrace people where they are at and where they want to go. We understand that the Christian Experience is a process not just a starting line/finish line sort of thing. So we encourage your questions. We applaud you search. We are all seekers here but at the same time we invite you to Christ. Unashamedly we follow God in the way of Jesus, His Son. We invite you to follow with us.
We say all the time that we don’t just want to go to church…we want to experience God and we hear back all the time that this is what’s happening through this place. We hear all the time that people love to come to SSP and here’s a shocker…that they don’t have to drag their kids or husbands. Often times we hear from parents that their kids dragged them!
This place is ALIVE because God is ALIVE and at work here.