A church for skeptics, the hurt, and the seeking
Madison Church of Christ sits at the corner of Gallatin Pike and Old Hickory Boulevard in Madison, a community within Davidson County, Tennessee. Across its three-floor building, a backyard garden, an in-house coffee shop, and a benevolence center, the congregation lives out a mission it states in plain words: "Share the Good News and transform lives." Anyone walking through the front doors is met with an unusual invitation - "Are you a skeptic? Come join us. Have you been hurt before at another church? Come join us. Are you seeking God in a noisy world? Come join us." That invitation captures what the church most wants to be known for in the 37115 zip code.
Sunday mornings and the chapel full of Spanish
Sunday at Madison follows a familiar Church of Christ rhythm. Worship gathers at 9:00 a.m., and Bible classes for all ages follow at 10:15 a.m. The service runs without instrumental music - only a cappella singing, a practice the congregation holds to as a matter of conviction rooted in verses like Colossians 3:16-17 and 1 Corinthians 14:15. Communion is observed each week, with prepackaged bread and fruit of the vine available for anyone who wishes to participate. A cry room at the rear of the main auditorium gives parents a quieter place to calm a baby while still seeing and hearing the service.
In Bixler Chapel, just down the hall, the Hispanic ministry gathers at 9:00 a.m. for Adoración en Español. The Spanish-language work grew out of a 1990s effort that started with English classes for immigrants and Spanish classes for church members. Today it is led by Danis Villalobos, the full-time Hispanic Minister, and includes an active prayer ministry along with women's and men's groups. The two congregations sometimes join together for all or part of a Sunday morning, and the Spanish worship service is livestreamed on the Iglesia de Cristo Madison Facebook page.
After the worship hour, Bible classes fill the building. Adults can choose among The Fellowship (young professionals, ages 20-35), LIFT (co-ed, mostly under 50, taught by various teachers), The Studio (co-ed, mostly 50s and up, with rotating teachers), the Bixler Class (taught by Marty Rothschild and others, meeting in Bixler Chapel), a New Testament Study in Room C204, and a Ladies class. HisKidz serves children from birth through sixth grade, and a nursery is open during both the worship service and the Bible classes.
Wednesday nights of Bible classes and recovery
At 6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, the building fills again. Executive Preaching Minister Michael Ross teaches Wednesday Night LIVE in Bixler Chapel, with the class both in-person and livestreamed on the Madison Facebook page and YouTube channel. Steve Smith teaches "Inspired by God" in the Media Center Studio. On the first Wednesday of each month, Larry Souder hosts Stories of Amazing Grace in Bixler Chapel, an interview series recorded before a live audience whose stories of faith have grown into a separate ministry with their own website.
For students in grades 7 through 12, the 412 Student Ministry meets at 6:30 p.m. HisKidz continues for children in grades 1 through 6, and the nursery remains open. Celebrate Recovery, a Christ-centered recovery program the church launched locally in fall 2021, also meets on Wednesday nights. Dinner is served at 5:45 p.m., the large group gathering begins at 6:30 p.m., and small groups follow at 7:30 p.m. About 30 percent of those attending are walking through chemical or alcohol addiction; the remaining 70 percent are working through hurts, habits, and hangups of every kind.
His Kidz from nursery through sixth grade
HisKidz is the children's ministry for any child from birth through sixth grade. The program is built around an explicit partnership with parents to lead children into their own relationship with Jesus. On Sunday mornings at 9:00 a.m., children stay with their parents in the auditorium for the first part of worship and then move into age-appropriate classrooms shortly before the sermon. The nursery in room 208B takes children birth through 24 months, Carpenter's Corner welcomes 2-year-olds, Canaan's Land serves 3-year-olds through kindergartners, Discovery on the third floor serves grades 1 through 4, and The Garage on the third floor serves grades 5 and 6.
After the service, at 10:15 a.m., the same children move into a full hour of Bible classes. Promiseland takes birth through kindergarten on the main floor with hands-on singing, dancing, crafts, and Bible storytelling. Discovery for grades 1 through 4 begins with a large-group lesson and breaks into smaller groups for application, memory work, and prayer. The Garage for grades 5 and 6 walks preteens through the entire Bible in a format built for the physical, emotional, and spiritual changes ahead. HisKidz also meets Wednesday nights from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., with Discovery and Garage combined in the Garage space and Promiseland on the main floor. Every adult worker and volunteer has a background check, all children birth through fourth grade are signed in at a security kiosk, and the children's area is monitored by a trained Safety Response Team.
HisKidz walks families through four markers the church calls Faith Milestones. A Baby Dedication Celebration includes a parent orientation class and a church-wide ceremony for families with children under one year old. First graders receive a new Bible from the shepherds in a First Bible Presentation. Parents of children ages 7 to 13 are coached through Faith Commitment conversations about baptism and following Jesus. Parents of preteens ages 9 to 12 are walked through Preteen Passage, a series of classes addressing the physical, emotional, and spiritual changes of adolescence alongside identity in Christ.
412 Students on the path to Christian adulthood
The 412 Student Ministry for grades 7 through 12 frames its work around four verbs posted on its own Instagram and Facebook feeds: engage students' hearts with God's love, equip them with authentic teaching, empower them to use their gifts, and entrust them with the mission of making disciples. The ministry is described as less about programs and events and more about walking teens through a process that prepares them for Christian adulthood. 412 students also participate in Madison's 13:2 Missions, serving the Madison community alongside visiting youth and college groups.
LIFT, Connection Groups, and the Madison Ladies Bible Class
For adults looking for ongoing fellowship and study outside the Sunday worship hour, the LIFT Class - Living in Faith Together - meets in the Fellowship Hall on the lower level, primarily Sunday mornings, with a teacher pool made up of multiple men. The class skews middle-aged but does not define itself by age and has hosted sessions on apologetics, end-of-life planning, heaven, hell, the decline of Christianity, and the origins of the Bible.
Connection Groups are the church's network of small groups that meet in homes and other locations throughout the week. Each group decides its own meeting rhythm, and the groups are described as ongoing small groups of people who do life together, with members spanning ages and walks of life. Support groups, discipleship groups, and life groups also meet in various locations in the community throughout the week.
On Monday mornings from 9:30 to 10:45 a.m., September through May, the Madison Ladies Bible Class gathers about 50 women in Bixler Chapel. The class was organized in 1998 by Nila Sherrill and has been led for many years by Charlene Ford, with ten women rotating through a Biblical curriculum. A daily email links the class with prayer requests, announcements, and most days a short devotional. The group celebrates special occasions, sends flowers when members need them, gathers weekly for lunches during the class season, and maintains benevolence funds for members and the wider community.
MOPS, men's ministry, and college students
Madison hosts a chapter of the international Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) for moms with children from birth through completed kindergarten. The group meets the second and fourth Fridays of the month from 9:30 a.m. to noon, in sync with the school year, with childcare provided on-site by vetted paid employees. Each meeting includes breakfast, devotionals, and conversation about being mothers, wives, friends, and daughters of Christ.
The men's ministry is described in two words: fellowship and discipleship. Madison Elder Larry Johnson helps coordinate events, and announcements are posted on the church calendar and on social media. College students and young singles have their own landing on the church's Connect page, with a dedicated group designed to help them grow in wisdom and stature as they walk together in Christ.
Roots Cafe, the Church Garden, and the Benevolence Center
Madison's mission field is its own zip code. Roots Cafe is an in-house coffee shop that has been open since 2012 and serves several blends of hot coffee, iced drinks, and pastries. Every dollar of profit from the cafe is split among the church's local and global mission points; the cafe keeps a running total by partnership, including Baja Mexico, Ukraine Benevolence, Ukraine Relief Efforts, Cuba Missions, Africa, Begin Anew, Prison Ministry, Honduras, and Hope Springs.
The Benevolence Center is open weekdays from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and is staffed by Terry Ashley, the Benevolence Minister. Volunteers prepare and deliver about 35 Meals on Wheels lunches per day, six days a week, to nearby residents who are typically referred by family or health care providers. Madison partners with Second Harvest Food Bank to operate a food pantry serving residents of the 37115 zip code, with annual food drives run by Goodpasture Christian School and local Boy Scouts. A clothing room accepts donated clothes and helps neighbors in need select what they need.
The Church Garden grows fruits, vegetables, and eggs without chemical pesticides or fertilizers, using raised beds and aquaponic systems along with chickens and fish. The produce is sold on a "pay what you can" basis at a stand near Roots Cafe, and any unsold harvest goes to the Benevolence Center and to the Wednesday-evening 412 Student meal.
The Counseling Center, Celebrate Recovery, Begin Anew, and Biblical Justice
The Madison Counseling Center has been providing confidential Christian counseling services since 1985 and is managed by Agape. The center offers marital, personal, and addiction counseling, and appointments are scheduled by phone. Madison also partners with Begin Anew, a non-profit that serves men and women who are unemployed or under-employed due to a lack of education or job skills. Classes, including GED preparation, meet at the Madison campus on Monday and Thursday nights, and women's classes meet in the building itself with free childcare provided on-site for their children.
The Biblical Justice ministry, led by a team of shepherds and members, focuses on advocating for the vulnerable in the community - including immigrants and racial minorities - in the spirit of Micah 6:8 and the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Madison partners with Nashville Inner City Ministry, Project Connect Nashville, Tennessee Prison Ministry, and others, and the congregation participates in Walk4Water and similar partnered events.
A bilingual, a cappella congregation
Worship at Madison is bilingual. The English worship service is led by Worship Minister Anthony Lancaster and features the a cappella singing the church describes as a treasured practice that allows the full congregation to participate. The Hispanic ministry, in addition to its 9:00 a.m. Spanish service in Bixler Chapel, has its own prayer, women's, and men's ministries, and its members often serve in the broader Madison Benevolence Center and 412 Student Ministry.
What this congregation believes
A What We Believe page lays out the church's teaching in detail. Madison affirms an Eternal Godhead of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; the inspiration and authority of Scripture; the deity and incarnation of Jesus Christ; his death, burial, and resurrection; salvation by grace through faith and repentance; water baptism by immersion in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; the church as a local body of believers; leadership roles reserved for qualified men in preaching, shepherding, and worship leading; weekly Communion; tithing and willing offerings; Spirit-filled living; and marriage as a lifelong covenant between one man and one woman. The church's stated practice of a cappella singing flows out of this same statement of belief.
Global missions in Baja, Ukraine, Cuba, and Latin America
Missions form a substantial part of Madison's identity and budget. The Baja work began in 2017 with a sister congregation in El Rosario, led by Fredy and Alicia and housed in a brand-new church building that the Madison family helped construct. Every summer a team travels to El Rosario for benevolence work, a medical and optical clinic, and other service projects. Madison's Ukraine partnership runs through the Ukrainian Bible Institute in Kyiv, supporting native missionaries including Natasha Maliuga, Sergey Chubemko, and Bogdan Yasinsky; the church has been invested in Ukraine for more than twenty years. The Cuba work, which officially began in 2012, partners with Roberto and Milan Pino, dean of the Bible Institute in Havana, with outreach in Havana and Trinidad. Rex and Brenda Morgan have led Madison's Latin American media ministry for nearly forty years, producing radio, television, and podcast resources like La Voz Alegre ("The Happy Voice"), used as an evangelism tool across Latin America.
13:2 Missions and the Madison community
The 13:2 Missions program, named for Hebrews 13:2 ("Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers"), invites outside groups to stay at the Madison campus, eat at the commercial kitchen, sleep in on-site rooms that house 24 people, and serve in the surrounding community. Volunteers have cleaned neighborhoods with Coptic Christian neighbors, worked in the Benevolence Center and the Church Garden, and partnered with Nashville Inner City Ministry, Second Harvest Food Bank, Churches of Christ Disaster Relief, and Project Connect Nashville. Madison Community Cleanup Days, first held in April 2022, have become an annual rhythm that neighbors and church members share.
Shepherds, ministers, and the security team
Madison Church of Christ is led by seven men who serve as shepherds (elders): Tommy Cothron, Larry Johnson, Brandon Adams, Marty Rothschild, Bill Hunter, Ron Johnson, and Buck Dozier. Dozier also heads the Safety and Security team with a philosophy the church describes as "velvet and steel"; his background includes service on the Metro Nashville Council and as Chief of the Nashville Fire Department. The security team, easy to spot in safety vests, watches over services and special events.
The ministry staff includes Michael Ross as Executive Preaching Minister; Danis Villalobos as Hispanic Minister; Anthony Lancaster as Worship Minister; Barbie Lanier as Children's Minister; Todd Hibbs as Media Center and IT Director; Terry Ashley as Benevolence Minister; Sheldon Bell as Communications Coordinator; and Aubrey Miller as Meals on Wheels Coordinator.
What to expect on a first visit
Madison wants visitors to feel at home. The dress culture is casual but modest, and there is special guest parking near the entrances, abundant ADA parking for anyone with a disability tag, and a covered entrance for drop-offs in bad weather. Worship begins at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday mornings, with Bible classes at 10:15 a.m. HisKidz and a nursery are open during both the worship hour and the Bible classes. Visitors can fill out an attendance or connection card via the Important Links page; an information kiosk sits across from Roots Cafe for anyone with questions. The building is expansive and three stories tall, with elevators and - per the church - plenty of friendly volunteers ready to point the way.
Communion is observed weekly. Baptisms take place in a heated baptistry with private changing rooms whenever someone is ready to make that commitment. Online giving is available through the church's giving portal, by texting "madison" to 73256, by mailing to PO Box 419, Madison, TN 37116, or in a designated container during the service. Services are livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook on both Sundays and Wednesdays, with streaming available in English and Spanish.
Madison Church of Christ keeps a steady eye outward - to Madison, to Nashville, and to the world beyond - while inviting anyone who walks in to come and see.