Baptist and Reflector
FRANKLIN — A vision cast more than a decade ago became reality on June 3 as Tennessee Baptists cut the ribbon and dedicated their new Church Support Center (CSC).
The CSC will house the offices of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, the Tennessee Baptist Foundation, and Tennessee Baptist Adult Homes. For the past three years the TBMB rented office space in Brentwood after selling its facility on Maryland Way in Brentwood in 2013 for approximately $8.75 million.
The new 32,533-square-foot facility on its 2.3 acre site, is the first corporate office building located in the Berry Farms mixed use development adjacent to I-65 in Franklin.
Mike Sams, chair of the TBMB board of directors and pastor of First Baptist Church, Martin, said the CSC represents the “beginning of a new day and a new era for Tennessee Baptists.”
Sams observed that the first “C” in CSC stands for the church. “The local church is the primary focal point of all that God is doing in the world and across the state. Our churches are doing an incredible work for the glory of God,” he said.
The “S” in CSC stands for support, Sams continued. The people who work out of the Church Support Center offer tools, encouragement, and resources to every Tennessee Baptist pastor and church, he stressed. “Our mission is to penetrate the darkness and preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
The final “C” in Church Support Center reminds people that the facility is centrally located in Tennessee so that its resources and help is accessible to every Tennessee Baptist church regardless of size. “Every church matters and is making a difference for Jesus Christ,” he said.
Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the TBMB, reminded the more than 250 people in attendance for the dedication that the CSC “is a tool to serve our churches. It is not a monument.”
He noted that the project was completed on time and on budget as “we move into this new space debt-free. This is a testimony to God’s grace in what we were able to receive from the sale of our previous property and the foresight of those Baptist leaders who came before us and located the office in Brentwood to begin with.”
The physical address of the building is: 4017 Rural Plains Circle, Franklin, TN 37064. The mailing address is P.O. Box 682789, Franklin, TN 37068. Office hours are 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. CST, Monday-Friday. The toll free number will continue to be 800-558-2090 and direct-dial numbers will remain the same.
Davis noted that visitors are welcome. “We want people to know they are welcome any time, and we’d love for them to stop in whenever they are passing through.”