About

Amanda Brogdon, Co Pastor of Connect Church in Opelika, AL

In 1995, my husband, John, and I met on a blind date (I was 15). He was a pastor’s kid and my mom, not being a church woman herself, thought I couldn’t get into too much trouble with him. Ha ha! He did keep me out of trouble, although, he liked the short skirts I would wear to church (his mom didn’t)!

We married shortly after I turned 20, in the year 2000. We bought our first house within nine months. It was a repo…so it was cheap! My mom was not too keen, especially when she saw a room that was apparently used as the dart room!!

We have our first son, Ari, in 2004. Very intelligent at an early age. He could do the Kick and Play at 4 weeks. He loved trains and all of his toys had to be lined up.

In 2007, God moved us to Opelika, AL. I started a day care to help finance the building our church had just bought and got pregnant with our second (and last) son right away. Let’s just say I was not feeling too good those first nine months. My poor husband would have to take his food to go every time we went out to eat because I could not stand the smell!

When I was eight months pregnant we moved into our current home, and have been here for the past 16 years. Ari was the one who walked in and said this was home. He asked the then home owners if we could buy their house.

By 2013, John and I stepped into the role as lead pastors. The church formerly known as New Covenant Fellowship (under his parents), is now Connect Church. We have grown so much in the past seven years. Not numerically, but spiritually. We have made mistakes, big and small, along the way. Have had great successes in the people God had brought through that needed healing. Some were even ready to just give up on church in general.

It has been such an exciting journey we have been on. My boys are now 16 and 19 (as of 2023). They keep me busy with sports. Ari aspires to be professional wrestler (yes, like the one you see on WWE). Eli plays high school football and baseball. He wants to go to college to be an engineer.

What I love about my family is that we support each other’s dreams. We know that to succeed, we are to cheer others on in their success. They allow me to have my time with God. We apologize to each other when we make mistakes. We sure aren’t perfect, but we know the one who is!