In the spring of 2007, Dave and Sydney Clayton began feeling the call of God to start a church in the heart of downtown Nashville. If you would have asked them then, they would be the first to tell you that they had never planned on planting a church nor did they know how to plant a church, but as the summer months rolled around, it became clear that God was calling them to church planting.

Through the fall and early winter of 2007, Dave and Sydney Clayton spent time praying, receiving Godly counsel, and visiting various church planters and missional leaders throughout the United States to discern the next step.

In the Spring of 2008, 12 people gathered in Dave and Sydney’s home to begin praying and dreaming about a church in downtown Nashville that would be a spiritual oasis for those thirsting for more. Through the summer months, this first house church grew as they began inviting friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, and complete strangers to dream along with them about a church that could make a difference in downtown Nashville. They met in coffee shops, parks, apartment complexes, and just about anywhere else that did not charge rent as they looked towards the future of a new church.

Then on October 19, 2008, Ethos Church officially began. The first Sunday Worship Gathering was held in the Cannery Ballroom, a bar and music venue in downtown Nashville. That night, a little over a hundred people showed up to celebrate the start of a new church.

Now, hundreds call Ethos their church home. We gather 4 times each Sunday (in downtown Nashville) and 2 times (in India) to celebrate what God has done, is doing, and will continue to do in our city and beyond. On Wednesday nights, we meet in house churches all across the city to build deep relationships and study the word. Throughout the week we spend time serving our community and loving our neighbors. Although we are excited about what God has done among us, we wait in eager anticipation of what He will do next.

Our prayer is that you will become a part of the story that God is writing.