Pastor Justin Adams of NEW LIFE Praise Center | Faith & Community—Episode 99
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A church can add square footage without building community. It can fill seats without helping people feel seen. And it can say “everyone’s welcome” without ever proving it at the door.
Pastor Justin Adams believes the proof comes in what happens after people arrive.
In Episode 99 of the Town Square Podcast, Trey Bailey and Gabriel Stovall welcome Adams back for a candid conversation about the growth of NEW LIFE Praise Center, his own recovery story, the church’s non-denominational identity and a ministry philosophy rooted in a simple promise: “Everyone’s welcome—and we mean it.”
A Foyer Built for More Than Foot Traffic
When Adams sums up the past few years at NEW LIFE, he uses one word: growth. The church began the year with “expansion” as a theme, then watched it become something tangible. A new 3,200-square-foot, glass-walled foyer—built with help from local contractors who donated time and materials—gave the congregation a place to gather before and after services.
The addition matters to Adams because the life of a church is not confined to the service itself. He describes families lingering, conversations continuing and a room full of noise and laughter. In church language, it is fellowship. In everyday language, it is people who genuinely want to be together.
The Testimony Behind the Welcome
Adams has lived in Covington for nearly 30 years, but his path to ministry was not tidy. He speaks openly about addiction in his late teens and twenties, a marriage in danger of falling apart and attempts at jail, rehabilitation, therapy and counseling that did not produce lasting change. Then, nearly 20 years ago, he accepted an invitation to church.
He says one encounter with Jesus changed the direction of his life. He has remained sober since, and that experience shapes the way he talks to people who wonder whether their own story is too broken to be redeemed: “If he’d done it for me, he can do it for you.”
That transparency is not a side note to Adams’s ministry. It is central to it. His testimony gives him a common language with people facing addiction, anger, depression, family strain or shame. The point is not to compare wounds. It is to show that grace is not an abstract doctrine—it can meet a person in real life.
Rooted in Scripture, Open About the Questions
NEW LIFE Praise Center is non-denominational, which Adams explains plainly: the church is not affiliated with a larger denominational organization. Its teaching centers on Scripture, Jesus Christ, salvation by grace through faith and a strong belief in the work of the Holy Spirit.
That commitment shows up in the pace of the church’s teaching. The congregation spent two years studying the Gospel of John verse by verse. At the time of the conversation, Adams was nine weeks into the first chapter of Revelation—an intentionally careful approach to a book often reduced to confident timelines and conspiracy theories.
Adams is willing to tell people where he lands, but he also presents interpretations held by different scholars and theologians. His non-negotiable is the center of the book itself: the revelation of Jesus Christ, written to encourage believers facing persecution.
What “Everyone’s Welcome” Looks Like
At NEW LIFE, the welcome is meant to be literal. Adams says people may walk through the doors whether they are atheists, longtime Christians or somewhere in between—regardless of culture, class, race, creed or sexuality. They can sit, listen, sing and expect someone to greet them with kindness.
That does not mean the church avoids convictions or difficult conversations. It means belonging in the room is not reserved for people who already have everything together. Adams connects that culture directly to his own story: he was once the person who arrived at church carrying the visible aftermath of addiction, and someone welcomed him anyway.
The church also does not use formal membership. Instead, it offers Next Steps classes for people who want to understand its history, beliefs and practices, along with Faith Grounded classes for newer believers. Small groups, age-based Life Teams and serving teams create paths for relationships and discipleship across generations.
Preparing People to Go Back Out
For Adams, church is not the finish line. It is where people are prepared to serve beyond the building.
He says NEW LIFE partners with several public schools in a typical year. The church has helped stock clothing, hygiene supplies and food at Porterdale Elementary School; supported teacher-attendance incentives; and, by invitation, Adams has led voluntary Bible studies for teachers at Cousins Middle School before the school day begins. The congregation also supports recovery ministries, collects food for local pantries and sends groups to help with community outreach.
Its reach has expanded beyond Newton County as well. Adams describes a developing missions partnership in Honduras, with church-supported volunteers serving wherever the need may be—food distribution, dentistry, health care, teaching or construction.
Healthy Growth Over Growth for Its Own Sake
Asked what comes next—another service, a larger building or multiple campuses—Adams gives an answer leaders do not always like to give: he does not know.
What he does know is that bigger is not the ultimate goal. Healthy is. He wants believers to mature from spiritual newborns into people who help form other disciples: “Parents reproduce.” In his telling, the next frontier is strengthening families, raising leaders, reaching the next generation and building beyond the current congregation.
The buildings and schedules may change. The mission does not: help people find hope, healing, community and Jesus.
That is also why this conversation matters beyond one congregation. In a community where faith traditions often overlap—and sometimes collide—it helps to hear a pastor explain not only what his church believes, but how those beliefs shape its welcome, teaching, service and vision for the future.
As the hosts put it near the end of the episode, you do not really know until you go. And Pastor Justin will probably wave when you walk in.
Links Mentioned
NEW LIFE Praise Center — https://newlifepraisecenter.net/
NEW LIFE Praise Center address: 8111 Brown Bridge Road, Covington, GA 30014
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