Calvary Chapel Gwinnett (CCG) began in 1986 as a small home group of about 15-20 people who were attending Calvary Chapel Atlanta (now known as Calvary Chapel Roswell). Although located on Mt. Paran Rd., the people attending that home group lived mostly in the Lawrenceville area.

Within a short time, many in the group began praying about starting a Calvary Chapel closer to their homes in the Lawrenceville area. The home group leader spoke with the pastor of Calvary Chapel Atlanta, Laverne Campbell (who has since gone to be with the Lord), and he gave the group his blessing. The home group began meeting only on Sunday nights because no one in the group felt "called" to be the pastor. However, David Grubbs, pastor of Calvary Chapel North at the time, agreed to come and teach on Sunday evenings while the group continued praying for a full-time pastor.

Not long after this time, CCG began renting space on Sunday evenings in a dance studio on the square in downtown Lawrenceville, including space next door for a nursery. One Sunday evening, a member of the group brought a friend from college who was visiting the area; his name...Mark Byrd. Pastor Grubbs met with Mark and believed that the Lord might be answering the prayer of the group.

Many months before coming to the Lawrenceville area, Mark was also feeling a stirring in his heart to start a church and had come to this area with the sole intent of starting a church. However, Mark states "I didn't know who these people were; I had to know this was of God. So, I decided to come and teach a few months in November and December of 1986. I also started checking out Calvary Chapel and what they believed."

In his research, Mark found that all Calvary Chapel's, were non-denominational churches with an emphasis on verse-by-verse and chapter-by-chapter Bible teaching as their focus. Although believing in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, they are not known as a charismatic or Pentecostal church.

The original Calvary Chapel began in 1965 in Costa Mesa, California. Calvary Chapel's founding pastor, Chuck Smith, became a leading figure in what is commonly known as the "Jesus Movement." Only about 25 people attended that first meeting nearly 40+ years ago. However, not long after, Chuck's wife Kay felt a strong burden to reach out to the local youth that included hippies, guitar players and surfers and soon they began attending Calvary Chapel on a regular basis. Today, Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa is among the world's largest churches with more than 25,000 calling it their home church. It is one of the largest Protestant churches in the United States.

After many late night discussions and interviews (or "grillings" as Mark might call it), both he and CCG felt God might be moving him to be their new full time pastor. Mark began serving as senior pastor in January 1987.

After outgrowing the space in the dance studio, CCG met in an old District Attorney's office in the center of Lawrenceville. They remained there for about a year and then moved to a warehouse-type building off of New Hope Road in Lawrenceville for about 5 years. They then moved into a former restaurant building off Hurricane Shoals Road in Lawrenceville. Although this building had much more space, it was hidden away behind a small strip shopping center. Mark recalls: "If you wanted to find us, you had to hunt for us, but the Lord changed us a lot in those years. My feeling is that God placed us back there - hidden for all those years. God has His timing. He was preparing us."

Since October 2004 at its current location on Spout Springs Road in Buford, CCG is now blessed with 22 acres of land and a 400+ seat Sanctuary. With three services weekly, CCG is experiencing growth like no other time in its history.

Only God knows what the future holds for CCG. But one thing is certain...CCG will continue practicing the Calvary Chapel philosophy of ministry: focus on solid Bible teaching, verse-by-verse and chapter-by-chapter.