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Everybody is Welcomed at Sweet Magnolia.
For over 100 years, Magnolia has served as a Progressive Witness of Jesus Christ in Statesboro and Bulloch County. At Magnolia, you find yourself in a warm and welcoming environment that will allow you to experience real folks abiding in Community, loving each other, and God. We are a small congregation in a rural setting with convenient parking located near the front entrance for our first-time guests. Our Magnolia Ushers will be glad to help you find a seat for the worship service.
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Beyond hospitality, Magnolia is committed to being Christian stewards of love. As such, we practice love, build the beloved community and pursue social justice. We believe the overwhelming message of the Bible, in story after story, is that of God's radical love and welcome. Every time we think we know who's in and who's out, God does something to challenge those assumptions, unbind our hearts and minds from old ways of understanding, and draw the circle ever wider.
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Our doors are wide open to people from all backgrounds, regardless of where they are on their spiritual journey. Together, we are striving to become a place where there's relevant teaching, heart-felt worship, honest friendships, constant prayer, and compassionate care. So whether you are a spiritual seeker who is just starting to ask questions about God or a committed Christian who wants to sink the roots of your faith even deeper, you can find a home here at Sweet Magnolia!
Enjoy Connection
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THROUGH WORSHIP | Sunday services begin at 9:45 am. Prior to Worship, there is an engaging Sunday School that starts promptly at 9:00 am on the First, Second, and Third Sundays. Learn More.
THROUGH STUDY | Sunday School for all ages is Sunday mornings at 9:00 am. Additionally, there is a Morning Devotion every Wednesday at 6:30 am. Just dial 717.908.1726 and use Passcode 1065315# to participate. Learn More.
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THROUGH SERVICE | One of the most important values of Magnolia is our mission to the Statesboro community. Magnolia's members are involved in a variety of church-based ministries and community partnerships. Feel free to contact our church office at (912) 225-3151 or via email with further questions. Learn more.
Impact Through Ministry
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FOCUS ON THE FAMILY | This month, our ministry turns to the heart of our survival and flourishing — the family. In a world that has tried everything to destroy the Black family, we boldly refuse to participate in its destruction. Instead, we realign our faith and actions to protect, strengthen, and uplift this sacred institution. Family is not only God’s design, but also our community’s anchor and our children’s inheritance.
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On the First Sunday, we lift up the Afrocentric value of honoring our Elders. Senior Day reminds us that wisdom, grace, and history live in those who have walked before us. Scripture commands us to “honor your father and your mother” (Exodus 20:12), and we recognize that our survival as a people has always been tied to respecting and learning from our elders across generations.​
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The Second Sunday turns our attention to the young and their flourishing. “Children are a heritage from the Lord” (Psalm 127:3), and we affirm that our youth are more than the church of tomorrow — they are God’s testimony today. In a society that too often disregards their gifts and burdens them with inequity, we declare that the church will be their sanctuary, their springboard, and their place of hope and growth.​
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On the Third Sunday, we gather around our shared rituals, especially the Lord’s Table. Communion is more than bread and cup; it is an intergenerational courageous conversation, a moment when children, youth, adults, and elders are bound together in Christ’s love. In remembering Him, we remember each other, walking hand in hand across generations. These shared practices strengthen us to endure, to celebrate, and to pass down faith and resilience as a living legacy.
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For 111 years, Magnolia has stood as a sanctuary of hope, a lighthouse of liberation, and a wellspring of Black faith. Born of those who labored in fields by day and prayed by firelight at night, we are the fruit of their courage, their song, their sacrifice. This is more than an anniversary—it is a testimony.
Still preaching.
Still praising.
Still pressing toward justice.
We are not here by accident. We are here on assignment. And we are not tired yet.
Magnolia at 111
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Investing in Our Youth. Honoring Our Legacy. Building Our Future. At Magnolia, we believe that investing in our young people is not just charity—it is a sacred calling. It is an act of faith in what God can do through them, an act of justice in a world that too often denies them access, and an act of love for a future we may never see but are still called to shape.
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​The Scholars Fund is one of the ways we answer that call. It provides vital financial assistance to graduating seniors from Bulloch County who are pursuing higher education. With your support, we help turn caps and gowns into careers, and dreams into destiny.
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But this isn’t just about scholarships—it’s about legacy.
Scholars Fund
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About Community
The Magnolia Missionary Baptist Church of Statesboro, Georgia was organized on March 18, 1914. The pioneers of this Church journeyed from the Magnolia Missionary Baptist Church of Louisville, Georgia in search of a better life for their families. Magnolia of Louisville was organized on May 17, 1868, after the Civil War but before the ratification of the 14th Amendment extended liberties and rights granted by the Bill of Rights to formerly enslaved people. For more than 100 years, this Church has stood as a physical representation of the hope and determination of the African American spirit. Sweet Magnolia" has always served people through its Watch, Witness, and Worship.
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At Sweet Magnolia all our resources are utilized to provide a Christ-centered setting where people in this community can be redeemed to a personal relationship with Christ, reconciled to God and his people, restored to wholeness, to well-being, and revived for a full life involved in service to others.
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At Sweet Magnolia, everyone is welcomed and affirmed.
A CHARGE TO KEEP I HAVE
Magnolia Missionary Baptist Church is well served by the Reverend Dr. Francys Johnson. The pulpit of Sweet Magnolia has long provided community-wide leadership.
Over the last 25 years, Dr. Johnson has also exemplified the values of Christian service with humility before the Mount Moriah Baptist Church congregation of Pembroke. First Lady Meca Williams-Johnson’s particular success in youth programming and academic mentoring are assets to the ministries of Magnolia. Further, they are ambassadors of our faith community to the region and nation.
