the HIStory of epiphany
During the summer and fall of 2000, the Lord began planting a seed in a 22 year old heart. It was during that time that pastor david evans was blessed with the opportunity to complete several diverse internships with various church planters in Tennessee. Along with this experience, pastor david evans’ educational endeavors at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary brought him into contact with more ministers who were in the field of church planting. Though these individuals were present during pastor david’s previous semesters at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, it seemed that this particular semester the Lord was using these individuals to reinforce the Lord’s calling for david as a church planter. At that time, he was an Associate Pastor at a traditional church. The Lord used this experience to impress on his heart that the normal mode of ministry was not effectively reaching the people with the postmodern mindset and as a result the gap of these individuals attending churches was ever widening.
After continued studies and intense prayer, pastor david felt led to plant the seed that the Lord had instilled in his heart, in essence an Epiphany was born. On December 17, 2000 pastor david and ten other people met for worship. Epiphany held its first worship service in the conference room at a local hotel, the Springfield Best Western . Though the church began without any small groups, zero financing, and no preparation the Lord continued to move in a mighty way. It goes to show, “I planted, Apollos watered, and God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 6:3).
The Lord continued to grow Epiphany in both numbers and faith. After several months of growth, in February of 2001, Epiphany moved its worship service into the local F.O. P. Lodge (Fraternal Order of Police). At that time the average attendance at Epiphany was 25 individuals. In November of 2001, the average attendance was 35 people, Epiphany moved into the basement of Crossroads Christian Bookstore in Springfield, TN. It was here that Epiphany began to realize the purpose for which God had intended this body of believers to fulfill. Under the mentorship of individuals such as Fred David and Wayne Terry from the Tennessee Baptist Convention, pastor david and the other leaders of Epiphany began understanding the concept of what the Lord’s church looked like in this postmodern era. It was at that time that Epiphany realized its vision and reason for existence. The Lord continued to bless and they grew to 85 in attendance.
In 2003, Epiphany had grown so large that more space was required in order for Epiphany to house everyone who attended Sunday morning worship. There was a decision to be made. Either they began two services or move locations. In 2003, Epiphany moved its large group Sunday worship service to the Robertson County YMCA. A smaller facility (lovingly referred to as the Epiphany House by its members) was obtained so as to conduct the 24/7 tasks of ministry and administration. The winter of that same year, Epiphany moved its office space to its current location around the courthouse square in Springfield, TN.
Though Epiphany still continues to meet at the YMCA the Lord’s blessings of growth have never ceased. In September 2008, Epiphany began two Sunday morning worship services in order to accommodate those in attendance as well as to allow room for the Lord’s continued growth. Since the birth of Epiphany, this church body has developed a multitude of ministries; organized and participated in a plethora of outreaches; and celebrated hundreds baptisms, weddings, births, et cetera. The Lord has used all of these experiences to help grow this body of believers and shape it into the church that God would have it be…a church that follows in the proverbial footsteps of Christ by being the servants He would have us to be. Epiphany understands the servant leadership that Christ modeled and is proud and honored to be spiritual servants in our home of Robertson County as well as the rest of the globe through foreign missions.
