Brentwood Baptist Church History

Our History

Since the beginning, the mission of members at this rapidly growing congregation has been to introduce others to Jesus Christ. Since 1969, we’ve grown and so has our calling to reach people in our communities, in our country, and around the world.

Outside of our Brentwood campus, we are now a multisite, multicultural congregation that includes the Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church, the Brentwood Baptist Chinese Church, the Brentwood Baptist Hispanic Ministry, The Church at Avenue South, The Church at Harpeth Heights, The Church at Lockeland Springs, The Church at Nolensville, The Church At Station Hill, The Church at West End, The Church at West Franklin, The Church at Woodbine.

Our priorities haven’t changed. Today, we continue to focus on engaging the whole person with the whole gospel of Jesus Christ anywhere, anytime, with anybody.

1968

• August 22 | Under the sponsorship of Woodmont Baptist Church, a mission is started in the chapel of the Tennessee Baptist Children’s Home on Franklin Road.
• September 8 | Sixty-five people gather for the first worship service at 2:30 p.m.
• October 6 | A full schedule is established, including Sunday School (with 77 in attendance) and Training Union.
• November 3 | The first converts of the new mission are baptized at Woodmont Baptist Church.
• November 27 | Dr. Charles Treadway, a long-term employee of LifeWay Christian Resources (formerly The Sunday School Board), is called as Interim Pastor. Young Harper joins as part-time Minister of Music.
• December | A budget of $38,030 is adopted with 10 percent allocated to the Cooperative Program.

1969

• February 9 | The mission votes to become a church and agrees to assume an indebtedness of $4,000, which the Nashville Baptist Association advanced for the lot on Franklin Road.
• March 19 | The name “Brentwood Baptist Church” is adopted.
• April 3 | The Trustees file papers of incorporation with the Secretary of State.
• April 13 | The church is duly constituted on Easter Sunday.

1970

• March 1 | William “Bill” Wilson, from Greensboro, North Carolina, accepts the call as the full-time pastor and begins his ministry.

1971

• February | The membership votes to begin construction of new facilities on Franklin Road.
• February 28 | A groundbreaking service takes place and construction begins on a multi-purpose building at a cost of $452,700.

1972

• March 5 | The first service in the new sanctuary-gymnasium takes place.
• September 5 | Brentwood Young Children’s School starts with 50 children.

1978

• December 26 | Indebtedness on the first phase of the building is retired.
• The second phase of the building program begins, which includes a sanctuary and additional educational facilities.
• The church plant known as Bell Road Baptist Chapel is established by Brentwood Baptist.

1980

• January 6 | More than 1,100 people gather for the first worship service in the new sanctuary.

1981

• December 31 | Gayle Haywood is called as Minister to Children and Preschoolers.

1983

• April 1983 | Bill Wilson and Jean Hester establish a Prayer Room Ministry, named “Kneeling We Conquer.”

1984

• Betty Stirsman begins deaf ministry by interpreting worship services before there were any deaf people attending.

1985

• September 15 | Brentwood Baptist begins the mission church, Clearview Baptist Church.

1987

• February | Dual Sunday School and worship services begin.

1988

• Brentwood Baptist celebrates its 20th Anniversary.
• July 31 | The church counts a total membership of 1,771 and Sunday School enrollment of 1,539. The budget grows to $1,123,091 with average monthly budget offerings of $86,170.
• November 20 | Jubilee Celebration retires the $1.25 million debt for Phase II of building. Bill Wilson prays, “Make us alive and free. Give us compassion and ideas we never had before.”

1991

• August 21 | Brentwood Baptist calls a new senior pastor, Dr. Michael L. Glenn.
• Weekly attendance increases from an average of 736 in August of 1991 to 939 at the start of 1992.

1992

• July 1 | A separate Deaf worship service begins with 26 people in attendance.
• July 26 | Mike Glenn calls for a time of prayer. Church leaders organize “Six Summer Nights: A Call to Prayer.” Services met on Sunday evenings with no sermon or special music–just prayer.

1993

• January | The year is designated “the year of prayer” to prepare the church spiritually and emotionally for the move from 409 Franklin Road.
• March 7 | Dennis Worley is named interim Worship Minister (becomes full-time on January 16, 1994).

1994

• April 17 | Bill Wilson is named Pastor Emeritus and the church celebrates its 25th Anniversary.
• Brentwood Baptist starts a fully self-sufficient Deaf Church.

1996

• September 16 | Patsy Ferguson, a realtor and Trustee, identifies 30 acres of land on Concord Road near I-65.
• October 13 | Brentwood Baptist votes to purchase 30 acres at 7777 Concord Road.

1997

• February 12 | 175 members participate in “Forty Hours of Prayer.”
• February 15 | 2,800 members participate in a Celebration of Faith with pledges to pray, study Scripture, and share Christ daily for 30 days. 153 members pledge over $300,000 toward the land purchase.
• October 1 | Bill Wilson retires from Tennessee Baptist Convention. He and his wife, Creely, join the church staff at as part-time Ministers of Missions.
• Average attendance reaches 1,086 and the church begins three Sunday Schools hours.

1998

• $1.7 million in debt on the land purchase is paid off.

2000

• August | A Friday night worship service is offered.
• Church member and retired Ford Motor Company assembly plant project manager, Joe Hudson, volunteers to help build the new campus.
• September 24 |
  Groundbreaking ceremony for the Concord Road site is held at 409 Franklin Road due to rain.
• December | The church averages 2,020 in worship attendance.

2002

• March 14-15 | The steeple is raised and cross was placed on the top by Mike Glenn. This place, this steeple, this cross marked a new chapter in our history.
• May 2002 | The time capsule at 409 Franklin Road is opened and moved to 7777 Concord Road.
• June 16 | A dedication service at the new Concord Road campus is held.

 

2003

• March 20 | A groundbreaking ceremony is held for the Deaf Church’s Inman Chapel, funded by gifts from veteran banker and businessman, Gordon Inman.

2004

• Jim Baker becomes the first, permanent Executive Pastor, following volunteer service by church member, HCA executive, Leon Drennan.
• January 11 | Kairos, a new ministry to young adults, first meets in Wilson Hall.

2005

• The annual missions offering is named “Hope for the World” to emphasize the global nature of our missions partnerships.
• January | A new church governance structure is established, expanding the function of Trustees and clarifying the roles of Senior Pastor and Executive Pastor.

2006

• October 4 | Bill Wilson goes home to be with the Lord. Three days later, Mike Glenn eulogizes his mentor, teacher, and friend.

2009

• April 19 | Brentwood Baptist celebrates 40 years of ministry in a churchwide and community gathering. In addition, a new wing of Brentwood Baptist is dedicated, which includes the Connection Center, Connection Cafe, and Connection Bookstore.
• December 20 | Baskin Chapel is dedicated in a special service.

2010

• March 28 | The Church at Station Hill launches as the church’s first regional campus and holds its first worship service at Heritage Middle School in Spring Hill.

2012

• Following Pastor Mike Glenn’s earlier prayer and challenge to become debt-free sooner than the planned timeline, and due to some significant designated gifts in 2011, all remaining debt is paid off. The church is debt-free 3 years earlier than expected.
• A group of core leaders from Brentwood Baptist begins praying about focusing our efforts on making an impact in Nashville with the good news of Jesus.

2013

• The vision for establishing a second regional campus is born.
• September | Aric Randolph arrives as the new Pastor of the Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church.

2014

• January | The Middle Tennessee Initiative vision is cast by Mike Glenn, giving clarity to church multiplication strategy and addressing the needs of poverty, healthcare, and education.
• March | The “NEXT” campaign is launched to fund the Middle Tennessee Initiative. By the end of the year, $14.4 million is pledged toward the two-year, $17 million goal.
• April 27 | The Church at Station Hill breaks ground on the new church building.
• June | The Church at West Franklin is established as a regional campus of Brentwood Baptist through a merger with West Franklin Baptist Church. Matt Pearson called as pastor later the same year.
• June | The Church at Woodbine is established as a regional campus of Brentwood Baptist through a merger with Woodbine Baptist Church.
• August | The Deaf Theological Center opens, providing theological training to Deaf students from around the world (six students become the first graduates).
• September | The Church at Avenue South opens its doors in leased space on 8th Avenue in South Nashville. Aaron Bryant is named pastor during the launch team formation a year earlier.
• September 7 | The Discipleship Ministry launches the new Foundations curriculum with the first in a series of publications, Spiritual Practices.
• The new mobile Medical Dental Unit (MDU) celebrates the first full year of ministry.

2015

• June | The Church at Woodbine welcomes their new pastor, Doug Jones.
• August | Over 1,500 people attend the grand opening of the new, permanent campus of The Church at Station Hill. The 50,000-square-foot campus is located just off Saturn Parkway in one of the fastest-growing regions of Middle Tennessee.
• December 24 | The first airing of the Christmas broadcast television special, featuring the Christmas concert by the worship choir and orchestra on the Brentwood campus, is on NewsChannel5 with over 100,000 viewers. This was made possible in large part by the installation and integration of a new $1.8 million high-definition television system.
• The Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church launches “DeafGo,” a new umbrella brand for its growing number of ministry initiatives, including theological training, missionary sending, and resource development.
• December | After more than ten years since its inception, Pastor Mike Glenn turns over the teaching of Kairos to new Kairos Pastor, Chris Brooks.

2016

• The church reaches 10,000 in membership.
• The Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church launches the first iteration of the “DeafGo Bible app,” providing a first-of-its-kind presentation of the Bible to the Deaf community around the world.
• May 1 | The congregations of Brentwood Baptist and Lockeland Baptist Church in East Nashville vote to merge, making “The Church at Lockeland Springs” the sixth campus of Brentwood Baptist Church.
• August 21 | The church celebrates Mike Glenn’s 25th anniversary as Senior Pastor.
• October | The church is led to begin a Special Needs Ministry.

2017

• April | David Hannah arrives from Italy as the new pastor of The Church at Lockeland Springs in East Nashville.
• June | The church votes to establish a new regional campus in the town of Nolensville (launch date in 2018). It becomes the church’s seventh campus.
• December | The church adopts a new mission statement, “Engaging the whole person with the whole gospel of Jesus Christ anytime, anywhere, with anybody,” to better reflect the church’s vision as defined largely by the Middle Tennessee Initiative.

2018

• June | The Church at Nolensville launches with Wade Owens as the new campus pastor. Construction begins later in the year on Nolensville Road land that had been purchased two years earlier.
• June | The Church at Harpeth Heights in Bellevue is established as the eighth campus of Brentwood Baptist Church through a merger with Harpeth Heights Baptist Church. Pastor Brandon Owen begins serving in March of 2019.

2019

• January | Trustees implement a new staff organizational plan to respond to and sustain the multi-site growth of the church.
• May | Brentwood Baptist celebrates its 50^th Anniversary Celebration.

2020

• January | The Church at Nolensville meets in their completed building.
• March | All eight campuses meet online during the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing online engagement by 12 percent.
• March | The Church at Station Hill celebrates its 10th anniversary.
• November | The Rowen Glenn Center, an addition to serve the Special Needs Ministry, breaks ground.
• November | The Church at Lockeland Springs plants the Community Grove to replace trees lost during the Nashville tornado.

2021

• February | The Church at Lockeland Springs installed its new steeple following the Nashville tornado of 2020.
• August | Pastor Mike Glenn celebrates 30 years at Brentwood Baptist.

2022

• January | The Rowen Glenn Center, an addition to the Brentwood campus to serve the Special Needs Ministry, is completed.
• December | After eight months of construction, the Worship Center renovations at the Brentwood Campus are completed.

2023

• January | Mike Glenn announces his transition from the role of senior pastor of Brentwood Baptist to begin a new role with the Engage Church Network in the fall of 2023.
• April | Brentwood Baptist calls a new senior pastor, Dr. Jay Strother.
• September | Mike Glenn concludes his tenure as senior pastor and welcomes Jay Strother.