our history and mission

Our church gathering started during the Covid lockdown in the spring of 2020.  Our first service was in a backyard under a tent that was rented for an outdoor wedding. Families that participated enjoyed the fellowship so much that we continued meeting together in a pavilion at Edwin Warner Park. We joked at the time saying “We do not have pews, but we have picnic tables.” We also enjoyed several Sunday picnics after the services during the summer and overflowed a few restaurants during the winter.

Many families attended the fellowship as we enjoyed spirited worship and lots of involvement from all the members. It was kind of thrilling to hear one college young man say, “This is the first time I have ever led a communion service.” Another favorite time is when the kids lead the singing, which included a ten-year-old soloist who wrote and sang her own songs. 

Blackberry Family Church does not have a full-time minister, but instead, the teaching is provided by the five elders, members, and an occasional guest speaker.  We have had fathers preach their first sermons as well as other long-time Christians who are well-skilled at speaking.  One of our members told his sons that they did not need to sit in a pew and be spoon-fed but instead needed to be active teachers. No one learns more than the teacher he explained. Your children need to see you leading, not just attending church.

We feel that Blackberry Family Church meets the needs of several members. We often have people who share testimonies or short words of encouragement to open or close the services. Our wives and daughters also share their wisdom during the services. We offer prayer and anointing with oil for those who are sick or have needs after every service. The house church size and atmosphere is very conducive to individuals sharing real and personal needs. 

We have had many new faces show up at our services, people who would never come to a church building. People like the housemaid of a member, a secretary and her husband, a couple that someone met at a restaurant and invited to church. On one Sunday we had three former NFL players and their families join us for worship. Others come because their kids just like it. We have a lot of kids!

Blackberry Family Church is intentional about evangelism, discipleship, and following the Holy Spirit's leading. Since our start in 2020, thirty-three individuals have come to faith and been baptized. Several of the baptisms took place right in the Harpeth River at Edwin Warner Park.  We have also engaged those new to the faith to be involved with discipleship studies with our members. They are also encouraged to become active in the services as soon as they are comfortable. 

Perhaps we should have explained this first, but there are some things we are not. Our church is not a group of malcontent church members who are against traditional churches. We applaud the churches that we have attended in the past and the great teaching and support we have received. We instead feel that the house church format allows us to reach and support individuals who are seeking the Lord in an effective way. 

As we experience growth we are not following the traditional paradigm of gathering a group, growing, getting a building, and offering a variety of programs for its members. While this format is very helpful and needed by some, we feel the house church format has its unique advantages for reaching the lost.  Our goal instead is to establish and grow a base of mature members who will in turn start their own house churches as the spirit leads. 

If these ideas and format appeal to you, please join us. At the same time realize that we are not trying to recruit members from traditional churches to just increase our numbers. If you are single, married, or have a family we would love to help you grow in the Lord.  If you have a heart for the lost, a heart to make disciples, or a heart to serve others, there is a lot of opportunity at Blackberry Family Church.