FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Learn more about Southside Church.

GENERAL QUESTIONS

When are your services?

Service times vary by location. Visit southside.org/locations and select a location for more information.

Who is the pastor of Southside Church?

Southside Church is a partner church to North Point Ministries, where Andy Stanley is the Teaching Pastor. Chris Patton is the Senior Pastor of Southside Church. With the local Campus Lead Pastors, Chris leads day-to-day operations and discerns the ministry needs of those who attend Southside Church and those who live in the community.

Why doesn't Southside Church have Sunday school?

Instead of providing adult Sunday school classes on Sunday mornings in the church building, we provide small group environments, called Groups, that meet at a variety of times during the week. We believe the small group is the best place for sustained life change to occur. In a small group, people study God’s Word together and are in a small enough environment to discuss the issues and challenges of life. It’s also where they pray and care for one another and where they are missed if they don’t show up.

Groups are made up of five to six couples or five to eight individuals of the same gender. Groups are where people are personally encouraged and challenged in their relationship with God and each other. For more information about our different groups visit southside.org/groups.

MEMBERSHIP QUESTIONS

Does Southside Church have membership?

Here at Southside Church, we want you to know that the moment you walk through the doors, you belong here and can consider this place your church home, no title needed. Since we don’t have traditional membership, you won’t be able to “join” the church as a “member” – but we hope you become fully engaged in the life of the church. You can engage with us through serving strategically, connecting in a group, inviting others, and giving systematically. Those who are fully engaged with us are considered our members.

If you’re applying for a leadership position (including a leader, coach, mentor, or captain role), please contact us or take a look at the additional questions below.

How do I become fully engaged here?

We want to be a church where unchurched people love to engage. In order to be that kind of church, we need the help of those who share our passion for inspiring people to follow Jesus.

If you share that passion, or even if you simply love this place, you can fully engage in the life of the church by doing four things:

Why don't you have traditional membership?

Traditionally, membership has been known to represent joining a church, calling it your church home, and/or taking the first step toward involvement and volunteering. Yet the word “membership” has also carried a lot of baggage and has become an unnecessary barrier to involvement for some of our attendees.

We began viewing membership differently – as more of a partnership and leadership position and shifted from accepting membership in 2016. If you are fully engaged with us, please consider yourself a member. We’re glad you’re here! Please let us know how we can help you take some next steps. 

What about leadership?

At a leadership level, it’s important that we’re all aligned regarding beliefs and accountability. Because we don’t have traditional membership, we ask that anyone interested in entering into leadership meet specific prerequisites that help us know we’re on the same page. Each leadership application will include questions around the person’s spiritual background, leadership background, and, for many ministries, a certified background check.

What if I need a membership confirmation letter for a reference?

We are able to provide a confirmation letter based on your involvement. Please contact us for more details.

What about the people who were members?

Anyone who became a member before January 2017, will remain in our database as such. Moving forward, if you are fully engaged with us, please consider yourself a member.