My name is David Jones. I am the pastor at Harpeth Presbyterian. On this page, what I hope to do, is give you a sense of Harpeth's understanding of our ministry. What we seek to experience at Harpeth is transformation. Below I have listed three transformations we seek from God as part of this community of faith.

            From Fear to Faith

            At the beginning of Luke’s gospel, Luke 2:10 the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people…”

            At the end of Matthew’s gospel, Matthew 28: 5-6 the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said.

            These are the bookends of the gospels. The story of Jesus is bound by angels who tell us, “Do not be afraid.” What is the primary motivator for much of human behavior? Often it is fear. In a world motivated by fear – this is our good news! (If you'd like to read a sermon on how faith helps us deal with fear, click here Sermon on fear.)

            From Isolation to Community

            Genesis 12: 1-2 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

            1 Corinthians 12:26-27 If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

            In America, faith is often thought of in very individualistic terms, but that is not our history or our purpose. We start historically with Abraham and Sarah who were called to start a nation. Our guiding image as a church is community like the one Paul describes in his letter to the church in Corinth. We share our joys and concerns together because we are called to live out our faith together. A guiding image for the Session (Harpeth's leadership board) is Kipling’s the law of the pack. The strength of the wolf is the pack. The strength of the pack is the wolf. We are strong together and strong when we are still ourselves in the community. (If you'd like to read a sermon on how the power of community enriches hope, click here Sermon on Community.)

            From reaction to action.

            Joshua 24:15 Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.

            Romans 12: 1-2 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

            1 Corinthians 13: 4-6 4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

            In the Joshua text listed above, the people of Israel were succumbing to the pressure of the surrounding cultures. They were losing their identity of people of faith in the one God. Joshua didn’t succumb to the pressure or the fear. Joshua chose.

            The scriptures from the beginning show the power of human choice. The scriptures show how human choice can make life on earth a paradise or a desert (see the Garden of Eden story in Genesis 2). Our choices shape our world. Jesus lived as an example of human choice. For Jesus love was the greatest choice. When Jesus said, “Love your enemies,” he encouraged us to claim our power to choose. To love your enemies is to choose love regardless of what other’s do. It is an amazing power. Within the church, we are often bound by fear, we react to the world, we imitate its culture, but in Christ, we are transformed to a new creation, empowered to vision, dream and to choose. (If you'd like to read a sermon on our power to choose, click here Sermon on Reacting)

            Those are the three transformations which, I believe, are at the core of our work at worship at Harpeth. They do not happen independently. They work synergistically. Synergy is when different pieces work together to make a greater whole than just the sum of the parts. Transformations from fear to faith, isolation to community, and reaction to action build upon each other for greater transformations. When we move to trusting God, we are not as afraid and can risk more in community. The more we grow in community, the more we are empowered to claim our own voices and our own power to choose and we react less.

            These transformations seldom happen immediately but often take place over time. In our discussions on transformation with the Session, we discussed our favorite moments at Harpeth. Our model for transformation is

the disciples who followed Jesus day after day and were continually being transformed in the ways I described above.

            Because we grow over time, one of the primary ways we open ourselves to transformation is simple. It involves showing up. What a great way to start. If you are looking for a church home which can be a place of transformation for you, then we invite you to come and visit Harpeth.

            If you have any questions about life at Harpeth, please give me a call (615) 373-8386.

                                                            JOY!

                                                            David