When Kent Christmas first arrived in Nashville almost four decades ago, he found himself homeless and searching for direction. But a new family and a newfound passion for ministry led Christmas down a path that today has him serving as the pastor of the thriving Regeneration Nashville church and authoring a new book based on his faith journey.
His own story is a powerful one of commitment and perseverance that has given Christmas a powerful message to convey. “I want to let people know that it doesn’t matter how small your beginnings are or how much adversity you go through,” he said. “If you’re faithful to God, whatever you sow will come back. I give people hope, because we have seen so many successful stories in our ministry.”
A Divine Journey to Nashville
Christmas was born in California and raised in Washington, where he answered the call to preach when he was just 17. He pastored in California, but never had much material or “earthly” success at churches there.
“I answered the call and knew that was what I wanted to do, but I never had great success,” Christmas recalled. “I evangelized and worked in small churches, but it was hard work.”
He came to Nashville because of a family situation, stopped preaching for a time period and found himself homeless. It was at a homeless ministry that Christmas met his wife Candy (Hemphill) and they began working together.
“We married and I’ve been in Nashville now for 40 years,” Christmas said.
After marrying in 1987, the Christmases traveled the world evangelizing while Candy also sang Gospel music. In 2004, Candy began The Bridge Ministry to feed Nashville’s homeless population and in 2006 they felt the call to start a church in Nashville and founded Resting Place Church. Its first home was a corner of The Bridge’s warehouse.
“Our first service had two people other than me, my wife and my son,” he said. “We grew to around 150 members after persevering through a lot of work. Our goal was not to have the biggest church, but to be a place where people felt the presence of God.”
In time, however, the church would grow in ways Christmas could have never imagined.
First came a slow-but-steady increase in membership and then the opportunity to move into a warehouse adjacent to the Bridge’s warehouse. Resting Place continued to grow until the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Due to stay-at-home orders, the church closed its doors and moved to an online format.
While offering online services, the Christmases felt a shift and decided to rename their church Regeneration Nashville.
In 2020, Christmas spoke at a service in Washington D.C. that he said was truly a divine moment. “People posted it, then it went all around the world. It had several million hits. It didn’t do much directly for our church, until December as we got ready for Sunday services,” he said.
The day was snowy and icy and, because of the weather, Christmas doubted they’d have no more than 40 in worship. But as the service time approached, his wife told him that the church was packed and they were running out of room.
“The sanctuary was jam packed an hour before church started,” he said. “We put chairs out, but more people kept coming. There were 600 people, up against the walls and in every available spot.”
From that moment on, the church began to grow. They rented a larger facility, where they’d been for the past three years; and on early 2025 they will begin having services in their new, Regeneration Nashville Church.
“The spirit of God settled on our church and we began to grow supernaturally,” Christmas said.
While the physical, in-person Regeneration Church continues to grow, Christmas said that its online presence has seen the greatest impact. The church has cultivated a diverse and engaged online audience, with people from around the globe tuning in to experience its uplifting services. This vibrant digital presence reflects Regeneration Nashville’s commitment to connecting with individuals across cultures and borders, creating a dynamic, worldwide community.
“We aren’t doing anything differently. We’re just having church and all of a sudden God said ‘okay.’ Our faithfulness to God for all these years has come to fruition,” Christmas said. “Here I am at 70 years old, seeing God do things I’ve prayed about for decades.”
According to Christmas, the experience has taught him and his team that none of them can take personal responsibility for the growth and impact of their church.
“It’s taught us that no one can take credit for it,” he said. “It’s a God thing.”
Turning Sorrow into Joy
Christmas published his first book in 2024, using it as an opportunity to tell his story and testimony.
Turning Sorrow into Joy: A Journey of Faith and Perseverance focuses on how Christmas’ story upends what is generally associated with pastors and other Christian leaders. It shares how God used Christmas’ experience as a rejected, unsuccessful, jobless, penniless pastor to do important work through his ministry.
“You will learn how God took Kent from floundering small-town preacher to world-renowned pastor, from brokenness to healing, from adversity to blessing, and from despair to victory,” according to the book’s description on Amazon.
Christmas said that the book has received positive feedback, and he looks forward to even more people reading it.
“I want to give people hope,” he said. “I want to encourage people that God can use them no matter what.”
The Importance of Christian Families
His own journey as a husband and father has inspired Christmas to encourage other Christian parents to be diligent in their commitment to their children. His oldest son from his first marriage passed away two years ago and he has two grandchildren through him; he and Candy have two adult children (Jasmine Brady, 37, who serves as Regeneration’s worship leader and Nicholas Christmas, 31, who serves as its missions and youth pastor).
At Regeneration Nashville, they focus on tools for families to grow closer to Christ. Children, youth, and parents are all integral to the church’s ministry.
According to Christmas, however, the greatest influence on a child is not a pastor, a teacher, or a church–it’s a parent.
“Parents have to create a godly environment for kids,” he said. “We need to get our kids to church and we also need to stop letting social media raise our kids. Be aware of what your kids are seeing, and don’t let a screen be a babysitter.”
Parents must work hard to create intentional relationships with their spouse and children–and to do the same thing with God.
“The number one key is to have a prayer life,” he said. “As a young man, I made a commitment to pray an hour a day. I want to be in conversation with Him.”
“People know who Jesus is, but they don’t know Him,” Christmas added. “At our church, I want to introduce that idea to our members. I want to introduce them to Christ in a real way.”
Looking to the Future
Regeneration Nashville has grown into a thriving community with a significant global footprint. Each week, its Sunday livestream and weekly podcasts are enjoyed by audiences spanning 50 states and nearly 100 nations, a testament to its far-reaching impact. The church began humbly but embraced a transformative vision when the Christmases rebranded it as Regeneration Nashville, marking the start of a new era.
Located in the revitalized Rivergate area, Regeneration Nashville’s new state-of-the-art facility stands as a beacon of growth and excellence. This beautiful and modern space is designed to support the church’s mission while serving as an inspiring home for worship, community, and outreach. It’s a new location, a new time, and a new season, Sundays at 10:30 am and Wednesdays at 7:00 pm.
Christmas is excited about the future of his family’s ministry at Regeneration.
“We really think we’re going to impact the area,” he said.
The Bridge ministry also remains active, with nine employees and a 20,000-foot warehouse to accomplish its important work to Nashville’s homeless community.
At 70-years-old, Christmas said that he has no thoughts of retirement. He, in fact, feels more rejuvenated than ever before.
“I feel like I’m just stepping into what I was born for,” he said. “I’m grateful to God for everything, and I know that the best days for the church are ahead.”
Regeneration Nashville – https://regenerationnashville.org/
Cheryl Wray is a freelance writer, former sports reporter, book author, and coordinator of the Southern Christian Writers Conference. She also writes about Southern sports, travel, and culture at www.cherylwray.substack.com.
