The vision for our church plant began with our teaching pastor and church planter in January 2021. At the time, she was serving at another church while working toward completing a Master of Divinity at Southeastern University, which she has since finished. During this season, God called her to plant a new church and gave her a vision of a Greek cross intertwined with a vine. The vine, with its three branches, symbolized the Trinity.

A year later, the Holy Spirit prompted the start of a Hermeneutics class for a group of young adults, led by our teaching pastor. From that class, the church was born. Elders were established, and the first team members came together. Today, these team members collaborate to teach, preach, and lead gatherings, united by the vision God set in motion.

This means that in everything else, that is anything not essential for salvation, we respect each other's opinions and do not engage in argumentative or divisive attitudes. We are not into agendas, non-salvific theological debates, party politics, or religion.

We have a core value of Unity in Christ, Diversity in Everything else because we want to allow all of the family of God to join together even if they have different theological views, as long as they believe Christ is the only way to a relationship with the Triune God.

We are non-denominational. However, we believe in the importance of outside accountability and therefore have an accountability board of pastors from other churches. You can see a list of them in our About section above. We are also part of the Underground Network.

We are casual, so wear whatever you are comfortable wearing.

We do not currently offer childcare, but your children are welcome to join us. We provide coloring sheets & crayons at our Sunday night classes.

Microchurches at Trellis Church are called Gatherings. These are small, mission-driven communities that meet regularly to worship, grow in faith, and serve together. These gatherings are the heart of our church and offer a more personal way to connect with God and others.

Trellis Church connects people in Sarasota, Bradenton, and Parrish to authentic community through microchurch gatherings, discipleship opportunities, and regular events. Our goal is to help people grow spiritually while forming lasting connections.

Trellis Church emphasizes microchurches as the primary expression of church. We prioritize authentic community, disciple-making, and providing spaces where young adults and people of all ages can gather for worship, growth, and fun.

Absolutely! Trellis Church welcomes newcomers to join our microchurches. These gatherings are open to everyone, whether you're a young adult, a college student, or simply someone looking for authentic community in Sarasota, Bradenton, or Parrish.

You can get involved with Trellis Church by attending one of our gatherings in Sarasota, Bradenton, or Parrish, joining a microchurch, or participating in our events. Follow us online for updates about discipleship classes, worship nights, and fun opportunities to connect with our church community.

Trellis Church values microchurches, which we call Gatherings, because they create authentic community that allows for deeper discipleship. These smaller gatherings provide a space for people in Sarasota and Bradenton to connect personally and grow in their faith.

Someone who learns through apprenticeship to be like Christ. And then disciples others by coming alongside them and encouraging them to make Jesus their Lord & Savior while teaching them God's word. This results in a disciple-making disciple.

Come join us for our gatherings in Sarasota or Bradenton to meet new people and make friends. We are always excited to meet new people and welcome them into our community. We often go out for food after our Sunday Night events. We also like to hang out after all our gatherings and chat, so stay late and get to know some people! We recognize the importance of a healthy community in our isolated, lonely world and actively try to connect people. You do not need to do life by yourself. Instead, let us be there for you.

• Take the initiative
  While it's easy to sit back and think, “If you don't care enough to talk to me then I'm not talking to you,” that's a very unhelpful approach to community and won't win you many friends. Instead, try taking the initiative and saying hello with a smile. Chances are the other person was either preoccupied or just as nervous as you were. However, we do create a spirit of welcoming new people at Trellis Church. Not every church is good at this but luckily we have some very friendly team members and pastors.
• Show up early and stay late
  Our church gatherings and events try to start on time and I can't tell you often I hear the door click after we start. Many people show up just in time or within the first ten minutes, then when it is over they walk straight out to their cars. While that may make church more efficiently fit your weekend schedule, it does not help you make friends at church or grow relationships. Instead, try arriving at least 15 minutes before we start. It will give you an opportunity to mingle and become a more familiar face to everyone. Then try to stay after to chat and join us for dinner when we go out. You'll be surprised how many friendships organically develop.
• Get involved
  If you want church to be easy and only a place you visit each week to get fed spiritually, making friends will be slow. To speed up the process you can help us out during our gatherings and events! Most churches rely on a lot of people to keep things running. By finding a place to serve you'll be joining a team you can work beside and get to know. Those people can become your church friend base. Where should you get involved? A great way to start is just try different things. You could also take our How to Study the Bible class that ends with discovering your spiritually Gifts which helps you to see where God has gifted you and then serve in that area. We encourage you to search for ways to serve how God designed YOU. Some examples would be teaching, preaching, outreach, worship, welcome team, set up & tear down, etc. But most importantly, pray about where God would have you serve. We strongly believe that the Spirit should always be leading you to how to serve God instead of us just delegating what we think we need.

For more details:

• 10 Ways to Make Friends if You are Lonely at Church
• Help! I Want to Make Friends at Church.