Pastoral Notes for Sunday, October 5, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

When I look back on my life up till now, I’d have to say the years between 18 and 22 years old were among the most formative. I was away from home for the first time, having to do my own laundry and wash my own dishes. I was making my own decisions about the use of my time, money, and energy. Through ups and downs, I was learning (slowly) what it meant to be an adult and take responsibility for myself and others.

Beyond adulting, I was also learning at a deeper level what it meant to be a devoted follower of Jesus Christ. One of the primary channels God used during my college years to grow me up spiritually was a campus ministry and a college pastor. I still have notes and journals from those years. I can still hear the voice of my campus minister instructing me from God’s Word. I can’t help but look back on those years with profound gratitude.

Though it’s far from everyone’s story, the college years are often a time for Christian growth and development. It’s part of the reason why Cornerstone has actively supported our denomination’s campus ministry, Reformed University Fellowship (RUF), from our earliest days.

Today in worship, we’re taking time to focus on the vital ministry of RUF. To help us all be encouraged in the work of the gospel through RUF, we have Rev. Chris Reed with us. Rev. Reed is one our newest campus ministers in the Nashville Presbytery, and he is serving at our newest RUF chapter at Tennessee State University (TSU). Chris hails from Chicago, IL, and is a graduate of Lewis University. After completing his undergraduate studies, Chris earned his M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He relocated to Washington, D.C., where he worked for two years with RUF at Howard University. In 2024, Chris answered the call to move to Nashville and become the very first RUF Campus Minister at TSU.

For well over a decade, we have prayed the Lord would bring an opportunity to plan an RUF on the campus of Tennessee State University. Rev. Reed is God’s answer to that prayer! Please pay close attention to the good word the Lord has laid on his heart for us today. In addition, take time to meet and encourage Chris in his ministry at TSU. If you get the chance, ask him to tell you how you can support his ministry with prayer and financial gifts.

We are blessed to have Rev. Reed serving up the gospel at TSU!

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, September 28, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

Greetings and blessings and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I remember when the news broke. Dylann Roof, a twenty-one-year-old white man motivated by racial animus, opened fire at a Bible study at Mother Emmanuel Church in Charleston, SC, in 2015. Roof attended the Bible study before the shooting, interacting and disagreeing with various comments being shared by the participants. Then, during the concluding prayer, he opened fire, killing nine black members—including the pastor.

In a surprising twist, the families of the nine victims responded not with hate but with grace and forgiveness. During Roof’s bond hearing, one of the families looked at Roof and remarked, “I forgive you, and my family forgives you, but you need to confess to God and repent.” You could hear a pin drop in the courtroom. It was a powerful expression of the gospel.

At the memorial service of public figure Charlie Kirk, a similar moment happened. Near the end of the service, which was filled with gospel presentations, Erika Kirk, Charlie’s widow, approached the microphone. In the throes of grief, she spoke of her husband’s commitment to Jesus Christ. After pausing to collect herself, she continued, “On the cross, our Savior said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ That man, that young man,” speaking of Charlie’s killer, “I forgive him.” At those words, Erika wept as the stadium erupted in applause. It was a moving display of gospel hope.

Erika wasn’t quite done though. She wanted us to know how and why she can forgive Charlie’s killer. She continued, “I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it was what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love. Love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”

No matter where one lands on the political spectrum, Christians have a unique opportunity in moments of tragedy and death to look neither left or right but up to God. To release the lesser concerns of men and nations and take up the eternal concerns of the Kingdom of God. In the case of the families of Mother Emmanuel and Erika Kirk, all we must do is rejoice—that for one precious moment a clear and powerful gospel witness was heard in the public square.

Now, in saying that, I know there are a half-dozen or more other questions that come to mind, which I obviously can’t address right now. I will, however, take time on the Life at the Corner podcast in the coming weeks to reflect biblically on how to respond in situations like these. I hope you’ll join me.  

Until then, let’s refuse to let our political convictions eclipse our gospel witness. Instead, let’s be kingdom-first people. Holding fast to the truth of the gospel and illustrating its beauty by loving all our neighbors—black and white, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, Christians and those who hate Christians. For this is the way we have been loved.

“For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” –Romans 5:7-8  

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, September 21, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

Greetings and blessings to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Two weeks ago, we announced a forthcoming officer nomination season. To help you prepare for this important season, we encouraged you to set aside time to read and reflect on the biblical qualifications for the offices of elder and deacon from 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9. In addition, we requested you carefully read the Cornerstone Officer Nomination Booklet, which includes key information about the officer nomination process, timeline, and training, as well as the elder and deacon job descriptions for the church. If you missed the booklet, it can be found this morning at both entrances to the chapel.

Starting today and continuing until Sunday, October 5, you can submit the names of qualified men for either the office of elder or deacon. There is a link to electronic nomination form on our church website. In addition, there are paper nomination forms available at each entrance to the chapel and labeled boxes for submitting your officer nominations. If you have any questions about the process or need help submitting a nomination, please contact our Church Life Coordinator, Dan Fiedler, at dan@cstonepres.org. I am looking forward to seeing how the Lord might use this process to identify and grow the officer corps of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church.

Now, I want to take a few minutes to update you on the Ministry Expansion efforts and ask for your help. If you’re a member of Cornerstone, you received an electronic message on August 28 informing you that we are actively pursuing a particular midterm expansion opportunity to address our present space concerns. Since that original message, the midterm expansion opportunity I referenced continues to be a live opportunity we are actively pursuing. Please continue to pray for the Lord to lead us as we pursue this opportunity either by continuing to show positive movement forward or by closing the door and directing us to look elsewhere.

While we pursue a midterm opportunity, we are keeping our eyes on the long-term goal: to secure a building or land for a new church campus within our current geographic area. In the last five months, our Ministry Expansion Team has diligently pursued every viable opportunity that has presented itself. At this point, however, there is no land or existing church/structure for sale that we’ve identified that is suitable to meet Cornerstone’s long-term goal.

So, today, on the behalf of the elders, I am making an appeal to you. If you own land or know of land (or a church or a structure) within roughly a five-to-seven-mile radius of downtown Franklin that could help us reach our long-term goal, we would love to hear from you. Based on our estimations, we’re looking for at least a ten-acre parcel of land. If you have any leads, you can reach out to Will Kesler, Chairman of our Ministry Expansion Team, at wfkesler1@gmail.com.

Over the last 14 years, I’ve witnessed you step up time and again to meet the needs of our growing body. Frankly, it’s been astonishing to watch you sacrificially give and serve in order see the ministry of this church grow and the vision be further realized. Knowing how great our God is and the beautiful story of generosity He’s been telling through you, it seems right to once again come to you, God’s people, to help us search for a permanent long-term location for Cornerstone Presbyterian Church.

Thank you for taking this appeal seriously and for helping us think, consider, and pray for God’s provision. I can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store, for this I am certain of—the best is yet to come.

Grace & Peace,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, September 14, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

As I write this Pastoral Note, I am at the Hartsfield-Jackson airport in Atlanta, GA, awaiting my flight home to Nashville. I’ve been in Atlanta representing our denomination on the Permanent Committee of Mission to North America this week.

As the Lord would have it, it is the twenty-fourth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I’m sitting by the window watching planes take off and land. It’s difficult to keep the horrific images of planes being weaponized for terror from flooding my mind.

Every year on this day, I see posts online: “Never forget.” For those who lived through it, how could we? The whole scene was so heart-rending. It’s etched in my memory forever.

At the same time, every week in our country acts of horrific violence take place. These acts are much smaller in scale than 9/11 and, in most cases, receive very little publicity. And yet, it’s a reminder that evil is real and alive in the world.

In recent days, we’ve witnessed the cold-blooded murder of a twenty-three-year-old refugee from Ukraine, Iryna Zarutska, in Charlotte, NC, as she simply rode on the train. Ironically, she and her family fled to the U.S. from Ukraine in the wake of the Russian invasion in 2022. Little did she know, she was fleeing toward danger in the U.S. while running away from the danger of the Russian invasion.

Then, on September 10, the assassination of public figure, Charlie Kirk, took place on the campus of Utah Valley University. Charlie Kirk was an outspoken Christian who contended for the truth of Scripture in the public square. Ironically, while answering a question about the prevalence of mass shootings, he was shot and killed on the scene.

This is to say nothing about the school shooting at Evergreen High School in Evergreen, CO, on the same day. As I’m writing, two are reported injured in that shooting, and the suspect is reported as dead.

I’ve spoken with several of you processing the grief you’re feeling. Thank you for reaching out. Let me say—it is right to feel grief. It is right to be overcome with sadness. It is right to lament, to pray for justice, to cry out to God, “O Lord, how long?” (Psalm 13:1). Grief is never to be disregarded. It must be felt, expressed, and ultimately given to the Lord, for he alone can bring healing and hope (I Thessalonians 4:13).

Ironically, our Savior, the Prince of Peace, was a victim of unjust horrific violence, yet that very act—the cross—the Father orchestrated to satisfy the righteous requirements of the law and save his people (Acts 2:23; Romans 8:3-4). Through the cross, the Lord is reconciling all things to himself (Colossians 1:20).

In the same way, evildoers may intend and perpetrate evil, but our God is in the business of turning all their intentions and actions on their head (Genesis 50:20). Remember, he works all things for the good of those who love him, for those who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).  

Knowing this, as we grieve, let’s grieve like Christians—with hope.

Grace & Peace,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, September 7, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

On the behalf of the elders, I am pleased to announce the beginning of a nomination, training, and election cycle for new officers at Cornerstone. In our denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America, it is the sober and joyous responsibility of communing members to nominate qualified men for the office of elder and deacon.

To help you prepare for nomination season, please pick up the Officer Nomination Booklet at both entrances to Cornerstone this morning. The Officer Nomination Booklet includes important information like elder and deacon job descriptions and Cornerstone’s vision for leadership. It also includes timely details about the officer nomination process, qualifications, training, examination, and election.

Below are a few important matters to keep in mind as you prepare to submit nominations:

·      Nomination season will open two weeks from today on Sunday, September 21 and close Sunday, October 5.
·      All nominations must be submitted in writing or electronically by using the Officer Nomination Form (to be published on Sunday, September 21).
·      Only Cornerstone members are eligible to nominate for office. The person making the nomination must identify himself or herself in the nomination.
·      Only male Cornerstone members who have been members for a minimum of one year are eligible for nomination.
·      Each nomination should be put forward for either the office of elder or deacon. Ultimately, discernment for a particular office will be evaluated and determined by the Session after a season of training.
·      After successfully completing training and examination, the Session will recommend qualified candidates to be elected as officers. An officer election will be held in a called congregational meeting.

The responsibility to nominate officers should be approached with biblical wisdom and prayerful deliberation. For the next two weeks, please take time to read the elder and deacon job descriptions in the Officer Nomination Booklet. Pay special attention to biblical qualifications for office outlined in 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9. With the job descriptions and qualifications in mind, begin identifying qualified men you know in the congregation and nominate them.  

Finally, and most importantly, pray for this process. Pray the Lord would use your preparation and active participation in this vital work to raise up more officers in our midst.

Your servant,