Want to help now?
We are a community of faith, hope, and love helping our neighbors, the next generation, and the nations take their next steps with Jesus. On this page, you’ll discover how we’re supporting our partners in mission right now. For more information about ways to serve, contact Director of Outreach Maggie Brannon.
Family Promise
Can you imagine having children and no safe place to take them tonight? Family Promise helps families who are experiencing housing insecurity to find temporary shelter and then to, hopefully, have permanent housing. Our church is hosting Family Promise for a total of 5 weeks, one week at a time, during 2025. Families stay in our Student Center, and church members serve in various roles to ensure that we show the families the love of Jesus Christ.
Next hosting dates: May 11-18
Our church is hosting Family Promise again soon! Family Promise provides a rotational shelter from church to church for families experiencing situational housing insecurity. We usually host three families, but we cannot host without your help. Please consider volunteering to help these families. You can make a huge difference in the lives of families living through a very difficult time. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Lisa Derrick at lisa.derrick@gmail.com
Please sign up below.
- On-call volunteers for last-minute needs or to fill in if someone is unable to make their time slot
- Afternoon hosts: 4-6 p.m.
- Evening hosts: 6-8 p.m.
- Overnight hosts: 8 p.m.-8 a.m.
- Breakfast and lunch: Drop off items
- Kroger gift cards
- Dinners: Prepare and bring to the church
- Laundry Angels: Pick up dirty laundry on move-out day, wash it and bring it back to the church for our next group of families
Helping Without Hurting: A New Approach to Benevolence at Alpharetta Methodist Church
At Alpharetta Methodist Church, we’ve always sought to respond with compassion when someone comes to us in need. Whether it’s a request for financial assistance, help with rent, or a warm meal, our instinct has been to give quickly and generously believing that’s what Jesus would do. But over time, we’ve come to recognize a deeper truth: not all help truly helps.
While our intentions have always been rooted in love, we began to see that our quick fixes weren’t always leading to lasting change. In some cases, they created cycles of dependency or overlooked the gifts and potential within the very people we were trying to serve. That’s why our church is embracing a new approach—one shaped by the principles of Helping Without Hurting, a model grounded in biblical wisdom and practical compassion.
Instead of offering immediate financial help without context, our Benevolence Ministry now takes a more relational and restorative approach. We seek to understand each person’s unique situation and walk alongside them toward sustainable solutions. That might include not just financial assistance, but also prayer, budgeting guidance, connections to local resources, and—most importantly—relationship. This isn’t about saying “no” to those in need. It’s about learning how to say “yes” in a way that truly restores dignity and offers hope.
As we begin this new approach, it may seem harsh to say no to community members who approach our church with big requests. We know it’s difficult, especially when their needs are urgent. However, in doing so, we’re not closing the door to compassion. Instead, we’re shifting from simply offering quick relief to helping create lasting change. Saying “no” in some situations allows us to respond in a way that is more empowering, more restorative, and ultimately more aligned with Christ’s example of love.
Having this new approach where we focus our benevolence ministry on a more relational approach rather than a transactional one will mean saying “no” to more requests. However, in saying “no,” we are actually saying yes to something even more important: our mission and vision. We are a community of faith, hope, and love, and we want to help our neighbors, the next generation, and the nations take their next steps with Jesus.
One area where we feel God calling us to pour more of our energy, time, and resources is our partnership with Manning Oaks Elementary (MOE). So, while we are saying no to more requests in some areas, we are opening ourselves to say yes to most requests that come from the social worker and staff at MOE. By doing this, we ensure that the requests are heartfelt, truly needed, and that students and their families will receive the follow-up and continued support they need. This way, the benevolence is relational instead of merely transactional. We will continue to take time to hear people’s stories, pray through decisions, discuss them as a group, and act in the way that God urges us to respond. We will also continue to connect those who reach out to the church with community resources that are already in place to help families with the situations they’re currently facing.
We know many in our congregation have big hearts and a strong desire to help when they see someone struggling. But we want to encourage you to pause before giving. If someone comes to you asking for financial assistance—whether it’s a friend, someone in the community, or a stranger—take a moment to step back. Get to know them. Listen to their story. Ask God how He would have you respond.
And know that you are not alone in that moment. Maggie Brannon and our Benevolence Team are here to support you. If you ever feel uncertain about how best to help someone in need, we invite you to reach out. Our team can help you discern a path forward that reflects both compassion and wisdom.
This new way of serving may take more time, more listening, and more patience—but we believe it reflects the heart of Christ more fully. Together, as the body of Christ, we’re not just offering help—we’re offering hope. Thank you for being a church that is always learning, always growing, and always seeking to love our neighbors in deeper, more life-giving ways. If you are passionate about serving other, consider joining our Benevolence Team and help make a lasting impact in our community. Email Maggie Brannon to find out how you can get involved.
Backpacks of Love
During the school year, Backpacks of Love helps to feed families at risk of hunger, by filling students’ backpacks with food. We’re collecting food to help stock the Backpacks of Love warehouse, so the mission is prepared to serve hungry families throughout the school year. Please bring any of the following items to place in the red bins in the first-floor lobby on Sunday mornings:
Collection Dates:
12/11, 1/1, 1/15, 1/29, 2/12, 2/26, 3/12, 3/26, 4/9, 4/23, 5/7.
Food items list:
• Protein: Tuna, chicken, Vienna sausage, small plastic jars of peanut butter (no jelly)
• Fruit: mandarin oranges, fruit cocktail, peaches (cans only please; the small plastic containers leak)
• Vegetables: Corn, carrots, mixed veggies
• Microwaveable items: individual mac and cheese cups (no boxes please), single-serve dinners, soup, chili
• Pasta: Canned pasta with sauce, ramen noodles
• Breakfast/Snacks: Protein or granola bars, single-serve cereal boxes, pop tarts, individual packs of crackers, oatmeal packets, small boxes of shelf-stable milk or juice
Family Mission trip to Nicaragua
November 22-29, 2025
Come celebrate Thanksgiving with us in Central America!
This is a great opportunity to introduce your children to the beauty of serving others and to introduce them to a new culture. We will be able to celebrate how thankful we are for the blessings God has given us while working to serve and show love to others. We will be traveling and working with Amigos for Christ. This trip is open to families within the church. (Children must be at least 5 years old.) The cost will be $350 plus airfare. Flights average around $1000 per person. Limited to 20 participants. This trip will include manual labor and housing will be in dorm-like setting and communal bathroom set up.
Please reach out to Maggie Brannon with any questions.
Disaster Response Team
Recovery Trips
As we prepare for a predicted bad hurricane season, our Disaster Response Team coordinates trips to help with recovery and debris removal. All skill levels are welcome on DRT trips. As trips are planned, we’ll post the details here. If you’re interested in volunteering on a DRT trip, please contact Mike Derrick.
Year-Round Support for the Drake House
The Drake House is a transitional housing organization that houses, assists, and educates single mothers and their children. We have sponsored an apartment with the Drake House for over 15 years.
Two Opportunities to Serve:
- When a new family moves into our apartment, we pair them with an advocate who acts as an encourager, mentor, and friend. This advocate is trained and supports the family so that they are better equipped to reach their goals. The advocate role time commitment is approximately 2 hours a week. If you are interested in learning more, please email Director of Discipleship and Connections Maggie Brannon.
- We are in need of a volunteer to act as a liaison between the Drake House and the church. This volunteer would be the primary contact for any needs the Drake House has and would be in charge of communicating these needs to the congregation, such as our annual support of the families at Christmas. The liaison would also be informed when the families move in/out of our apartment and would help facilitate this transition. The time commitment for this volunteer role is approximately 3 hours a month. If you are interested in learning more, please email Maggie Brannon.
Help with Meals on Wheels
Meals on Wheels delivers nutritious meals, Monday-Friday, to the homes of older adults who have trouble preparing, accessing or affording food for themselves. Meals on Wheels partners with local churches, like Alpharetta Methodist, to provide meals on the following holidays: Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Click here to learn more and sign up to help.
Donate blood
The American Red Cross blood drives at Alpharetta Methodist Church provide much needed blood for our community. Drives are scheduled on Thursdays from 3 to 7:30 p.m. Appointments are preferred. Walk-ins are welcome. Click below and enter the zip code 30009 in the search field to make your appointment.
Buddy Bag Ministry
A Buddy Bag is a canvas bag containing a handmade Teddy bear, a blanket sewn by our Blanket Ministry, a book, crayons, drawing paper in a pocket folder and an activity/coloring book. The Buddy Bag Ministry shares the love of Christ with children (infant-teens), by providing the bags to comfort them in the midst of a crisis, like family distress, a fire or hospitalization.
Blanket Ministry
Volunteers create handmade blankets for those in need of comfort. A label stitched on each blanket describes how it was crafted with love and that prayers are being lifted for whoever is wrapped in the blanket. Want to give a blanket to someone who is ill or going through difficult times? Look for baskets of blankets located throughout the church.