It was before the official beginning. It was even before the soft launch. Nine years ago today, The Church at Avenue South held their very first service on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2014. It was right after we agreed to lease the space at 2510 Franklin Pike formerly known as the Acuff-Rose building.

As you can tell from the picture, the building was a mere skeleton. We set up 70 folding chairs in what would later become the children’s educational area known as The Grove. We had dreams of what God could do in the Berry Hill area of Nashville, but little did we know that God would do exceedingly abundantly beyond anything we could ask or think or dream.

Fast forward nine years, and we are on the cusp of moving into our very own building. It will be a new chapter in the exciting story that God is writing through the faithful obedience of His people to reach the city of Nashville. If it’s anything like the last chapter, it will be filled with the unexpected twists and turns but also full of hope. We will see God moving in ways we never could have imagined. I suspect it will be hard at times, but it will be worth it to have a front row seat to watch God change the lives of people and households and neighborhoods. And it all started with 70 chairs.