Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 29, 2026

Dear Cornerstone Family,

I have some news to share—but first, a bit of backstory.

Nine years ago, our nursery coordinator, Linda VanGorden, had to step away rather suddenly to care for her aging parents in Florida. With little time to prepare, we turned to our nursery team for help. Seeing the need, my dear wife, Christy, stepped forward as a temporary solution while we searched for something more permanent.

Well…nine years later, Christy is still serving as our Nursery Coordinator.

It might be tempting to think her husband is to blame, but, in truth, Christy has no one to blame but herself! With five years of experience as a beloved preschool teacher at Clearview Baptist Church, along with her service on our nursery team since Cornerstone’s founding, she was more than prepared. Plus, she has the heart for it.

As a child, Christy dreamed of being a wife, a mother, and someone who worked with children. It has been a joy to watch the Lord bring that desire to life. For nine faithful years, she has poured herself out in love and service to the children and families of Cornerstone. I am deeply grateful, and I trust many of you are as well. 

At the same time, our church has grown, and the needs of our nursery ministry have expanded. After much thought and prayer, Christy believes it is time to step aside and entrust this work to another. I am grateful to share that our dear sister, Sharon Strawbridge, has agreed to serve as Interim Nursery Coordinator. 

Many of you already know and love Sharon. But for those who may not, I asked Sharon to share a bit of her story:

My family has been connected to Cornerstone and to New College for about 10 years. Two of my daughters, Jenna Thompson and Juli Strawbridge, graduated from New College Franklin. I grew up in Mississippi and met my husband through RUF at Southern Miss. We spent 24 years in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where I taught first grade, raised our three daughters, and served alongside my husband in pastoral ministry.

In June 2025, I moved to this area to be closer to family following the sudden death of my husband in 2022. Many of you at Cornerstone prayed for me and my family during that difficult season, and I am deeply grateful. I thank the Lord for this opportunity to love and serve the children and families of Cornerstone.

In addition to the connections Sharon mentions, I have a few personal ones. Her late husband, Gregg, served as an associate pastor in the church where I grew up. He taught me Latin, gave me my first guitar lesson, and invested in me spiritually as a teenager. And during that same season, Sharon also had the unique (and surely memorable!) experience of babysitting me. (And no, she has taken a solemn vow not to share any stories.)

As I reflect on all this, I am struck by the kindness of God’s providence. The woman who once cared for me as a child is now helping care for the children of the church I now serve. Truly, the Lord orders our steps in ways we could never script.

In the weeks ahead, please take time to meet and welcome Sharon. As her title indicates, she is “trying on” this role in an interim fashion just to make sure it’s a good fit for her and the church. Pray the Lord will confirm this path in his time and in his way.

And please join me in thanking Christy for her years of faithful, quiet, and joyful service.

Your servant,

Bulletin for Sunday, March 29, 2026

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 22, 2026

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Happy spring! It feels good, doesn’t it, to see the winter chill disappear and the spring temps show up? Every day it’s starting to look a bit more like…Easter. That’s right, only two weeks away! Do not forget to invite friends and neighbors to join us for Holy Week services at Cornerstone. It’s going to be a tremendous week of worship. I can’t wait.

As you know, we finished our series in Leviticus last week, so I’ve been peppered this week with questions (and more than a few suggestions!) about our next sermons series at Cornerstone. Given that we’re right on top of Easter, I’m going to take three weeks in the gospel of Matthew exploring the final days of Christ’s earthly ministry leading up to his death and resurrection.

Please mark your calendars and read the texts in preparation for worship. Pray for our services and for the Lord to bring renewal and blessing during this special season.

·      March 22 — True Greatness (Matthew 20:17-28)

·      April 29 — True Triumph (Matthew 21:1-11)

·      April 5 — True Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-10)

After this three-week bridge in Matthew, we’ll have Rev. Brittain Brewer with us on April 12 to preach God’s Word and share about the new church plant taking shape in Columbia, TN. Then, on April 19, we’re going to pivot back to the Old Testament for a few weeks. We’ll spend five weeks in the prophet Jonah. I’ve entitled the series, A Study of Jonah: The Resurrection and the Mission of God.

Now, the mention of resurrection and mission with Jonah the prophet might seem strange at first blush. But what if I told you the story of Jonah is more than a fantastic story about a runaway prophet and a big fish? It’s a first-hand account of resurrection power and God’s relentless mission to save!  

Over the course of five weeks, we will extend the celebration of Easter, plumbing the surprising depths of God’s mercy—from rebellion and rescue to repentance and renewal. We will see why Jesus himself said Jonah points to his resurrection, and through it, God’s global mission to resurrect a people for himself from every kindred, tribe, tongue, and nation.  

That’s right, Jonah’s mission is our mission, and it’s still unfolding today…

A Study of Jonah: The Resurrection and the Mission of God

·      April 19 — The Sign of Jonah (Luke 24:38-41)

·      April 26 — On the Run (Jonah 1:1-6)

·      May 3 — Prophet Overboard! (Jonah 1:7-17)

·      May 10 — Back from the Watery Grave (Jonah 2:1-10)

·      May 17 — To Nineveh…Finally! (Jonah 3:1-10)

·      May 24 — The Merciful Heart of our Missionary God (Jonah 4:1-11)

Your servant,

Bulletin for Sunday, March 22, 2026

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 15, 2026

Dear Cornerstone Family,

We’re less than two weeks away from Holy Week. If you haven’t already marked the dates and times on your calendar, do so now! Please prepare to fully participate with us as we worship our crucified and risen Savior.  

• Maundy Thursday (April 2) at 6:30 p.m.  

• Good Friday (April 3) at 5:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. (registration required)  

• Easter Sunday (April 5) at 7:30 a.m., 9:00 a.m., and 10:45 a.m.  

During this season, our unbelieving friends and neighbors are often more inclined to consider spiritual matters and participate in church services. With that in mind, please invite unbelieving friends and neighbors to join you for one or more of our Holy Week services. Even now, take a moment to consider who the Lord has placed in your life who needs to hear the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are praying for the Lord to use this season to draw more people into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. 

Finally, last week I wrote to you about my recent meeting with Mission to North America, the Presbyterian Church in America’s agency for church planting. After four years of diminishing numbers of church planting coming out of COVID, it was encouraging to see a significant uptick in church planters entering the field and planting new churches.  

In that same pastoral note, I mentioned that, as we continue to pursue Ministry Expansion as a local congregation, we also have opportunities to partner with others in church planting efforts in our area. If you haven’t been around Cornerstone very long, you may be unaware of our sustained commitment in leading and supporting church planting in Middle Tennessee. Here are a few highlights:  

• We gave long and strong support to All Saints Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Brentwood led by Rev. Matthew Bradley. I’m pleased to report that All Saints will celebrate their ten-year anniversary as a congregation in April. The Lord continues to widen the ministry footprint of All Saints!  

• We gave long and strong support to Crossroads of the Nations (PCA) in Cool Springs led by Rev. Tim Tan. Many of you were blessed to hear from Tim during our recent Missions Conference in February. It is heartening to hear how the Lord is sustaining and growing this multiethnic church plant!  

• We also partnered deeply with Mercy Fellowship (PCA) and Rev. Ryan Doyle in 2015 hosting their congregation in our building on Sunday evenings for nearly 18 months. Then, in 2017, Cornerstone led the planting of Spring Hill Pres. Church in Spring Hill, TN with Rev. Mike Fennema. We sent roughly 40 members from our church to help establish the work. Sadly, both Mercy Fellowship and Spring Hill Pres. were negatively affected by the pandemic and wound up closing their doors in 2021.  

I reiterate this history to remind us of our long and sustained efforts at church planting. Further, I want to emphasize that whatever shape Ministry Expansion at Cornerstone takes in the days ahead, we will continue to remain committed to the vital work of church planting.  

Toward that end, I’m pleased to announce that Rev. Brittain Brewer will be with us on April 12 to open God’s Word and to share more about the new church plant starting in Columbia, TN. Rev. Brewer is no stranger to us! He served as an intern at Cornerstone in 2013, and your session took him under care as a candidate for gospel ministry sending him to seminary. It’s exciting to see how the Lord has used Cornerstone––nearly thirteen years ago––to lay foundations for the new work about to begin in Columbia.  

Stay tuned, there’s more to share!   

Your servant,

Bulletin for Sunday, March 15, 2026

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 8, 2026

Dear Cornerstone Family,

The last ten years have brought dramatic shifts in church health and growth across North America. From 2014 to 2019, the number of churches closing their doors in the United States grew from 3,700 to 4,500, while the number of new churches planted dropped from 4,000 to 3,000. As you might imagine, those numbers worsened during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Today, the church growth rate nationally is about half that of the population growth rate.

Despite this challenging news, we are beginning to see encouraging signs of life. As I mentioned a few months ago in a previous Pastoral Note, younger generations are showing renewed interest in the faith. Church attendance in the United States has begun to climb slightly, and this increase is already having a positive effect on church vitality and church planting.

At the PCA’s Mission to North America Permanent Committee meeting this week, we received an analysis of church planting in the PCA over the last five years. Taken as a whole, the updated statistics and trend indicators were quite encouraging. Here is a breakdown of church planting in the PCA over the past five years:
·      2021 – 16 churches planted
·      2022 – 26 churches planted
·      2023 – 10 churches planted
·      2024 – 40 churches planted
·      2025 – 56 churches planted
As you can see, there has been a significant uptick in church planting over the last two years. Our denomination has also had record attendance at our church planting assessment center over the past twelve months, which suggests we will likely see strong church planting numbers again in 2026.

As we continue to pursue the Lord’s leading for ministry expansion at Cornerstone, He is opening fresh opportunities for us to partner with others in church planting efforts in our area. In the days ahead, I look forward to sharing more with you, so stay tuned.

Before I run out of space, please take a moment to review the high-level financial update below. While we are slightly behind budget, we remain grateful for how God continues to provide for Cornerstone’s growing ministry through your faithful giving. As we approach the end of the third quarter of our fiscal year, please help us stay on track by generously supporting the Lord’s work at Cornerstone through the month of March.

2025–2026 Cornerstone Financial Update
Year to Date
Giving              Budget              Difference         Percent of Budget
$1, 395,053      $1, 413,000      $-17,947          98.73%

Thank you for your continued faithfulness and partnership in the gospel.

Your servant,

Bulletin for Sunday, March 8, 2026

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 1, 2026

Dear Cornerstone Family,

I was reminded this week again of a quiet danger that never announces itself with scandal or open rebellion. Instead, it creeps in unnoticed like carbon monoxide for the soul. It’s the danger of spiritual sleepiness.

Spiritual sleepiness is not outright unbelief. Rather, it’s drowsy faith. The spiritually sleepy attend worship, but they are no longer listening. They pray but only from rote. They recite the truth but no longer tremble at it.

As the Lord withdrew to the Garden of Gethsemane in preparation for the cross, he warned his disciples, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation” (Matthew 26:41). They loved Jesus. But still they slept. And when the trial came, they scattered.

Spiritual sleepiness is imperceptible at first. A subtle drift, a slowly descending slumber. Then, the evidence starts showing up. We neglect time with the Lord. We excuse small sins. We’re soulishly blah. Not awake enough to delight in Christ or to sense the spiritual danger we’re in.

For all you studying Judges, we’re Samson. Our strength is drained through a slow and steady drift of repeated compromise. When Delilah finally cuts his hair, Samson “did not know that the Lord had left him” (Judges 16:20).

In reading these words today, do you sense this could be you? If so, take heed. Do not be like the foolish virgins who fell asleep waiting for the bridegroom and were not prepared when he came (Matthew 25:1-13). Wake up and take these instructions to heart:

1.    Bask in the light of Scripture.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet” (Psalm 119:105). Do not merely read—linger. Query the Lord as you read. Seek him. Read until the text comes alive, until you awake and hear the loving, urgent plea of your Savior’s voice.

2.    Pray specifically for awakening.

The Psalmist cries, “Will you not revive us again?” (Psalm 85:6) Name your dullness. Confess your coldness. Ask the Lord to revive your heart. God will hear your heart’s cry.

3.    Practice immediate obedience.

James 1:22 says, “Be doers of the word.” Nothing dulls the soul like delayed obedience. When the Spirit convicts, act. Remove temptation. Forgive the offense. Practice repentance. Like cold water on a sleepy face, obedience awakens.

4.    Fast from distractions.

We’re in a season of fasting in preparation for the feast of Easter. Jesus assumes we will be a fasting people (Matthew 6:16). What distraction maybe lulling you into a spiritual stupor? Fast from that. Give close attention to the noise you’re letting in—social media, endless entertainment, constant busyness. Cut it out and satisfy your hunger for God.

5.    Examine yourself regularly.

2 Corinthians 13:5 urges, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith.” Ask yourself soul-searching questions: “Is Christ precious to me? Do I grieve over sin? Do I long for His return?” Humble self-examination can shake us into sobriety.

6.     Seek earnest fellowship.

Who really knows you? Hebrews 10:24 calls us, “…to stir up one another to love and good works.” Let’s draw close, praying with and for one another. Embracing one another in love. Speaking honestly about sin and suffering, pressing the hope of Christ into one another’s lives.

7.    Above all, look to Christ Himself.

When the prodigal “came to himself” (Luke 15:17), he rose and went to his father. Awakening compels us to go home to a father who runs toward returning children.

Shake off your sleepiness. Rise and wash your face. Go to the Christ who is wide awake. He is interceding for you right now.

Your servant,

Bulletin for Sunday, March 1, 2026