our vision
Inviting others into a vibrant life formed around Jesus Christ.
a trajectory changed by Jesus
Our story
(-Andrew Schumann)
I have always loved listening to podcasts about stylish, bold entrepreneurs people with a clear vision who stopped at nothing to accomplish it. Our story, however, is not one of polished ambition or carefully calculated success. Our story is one of God showing up in an unlikely situation with an unexpected calling.
I, Andrew, was born in Wichita, Kansas, but grew up in Ashland, Kentucky. My story is not unusual for this region. Eastern Kentucky can be a tough place, but it is also a vibrant one. Music runs deep in the blood of Appalachians, and for me, one passion shaped my life: the Fender Stratocaster.
Electric guitar was my absolute passion (obsession?). Middle school and high school were spent in my living room with friends, shaking the bricks of our house. My parents, wisely, understood that it was probably better to let us jam at our house than to have us prowling the streets. Plus, we didn’t sound half bad once the hearing loss kicked in.
I went off to Kentucky Christian University (go Knights) with the intention of studying music production and doing… something… with it. But my path was about to change forever. In college, I accepted a gig to play guitar at a church. Little did I know, this was no ordinary church. It was a church plant. They didn’t have a band yet, so they hired us to lead worship on launch Sunday.
That first Sunday captured my heart.
I had never seen a church so focused on chasing after the spiritually hungry and physically needy. That very first week, I knew I needed to be part of this new church. I stayed for the next three years, leading worship while frying chicken at KFC to pay the bills.
After graduating, I did what many people from Appalachia do: I left.
I was determined to make something of myself, to become a millionaire, and to leave Kentucky behind in the rearview mirror forever. I was hired at Grace Church in Overland Park, right outside Kansas City, to help with their worship ministry. So away I went.
Grace Church is a phenomenal, healthy church, and we loved our time in Kansas City. The food was incredible, Patrick Mahomes was drafted the year we arrived, and our ministry was vibrant and exciting. We bought a house, and my wonderful wife, Brittany, became pregnant with our first son. We were living the dream.
God, however, was about to change our trajectory, and my heart.
In September of 2024, we headed back to Lexington for a baby shower for Isaiah, our soon-to-be firstborn son. I will never forget the morning of that shower. Brittany shook me awake and said, very directly, “Get your pants on. We’re going to the hospital.”
There is only one reasonable response to that command.
I got my pants on.
Brittany had been tossing and turning all night in pain while I, of course, had been sleeping. We rushed to Baptist Health, where she was quickly diagnosed with a life-threatening condition called HELLP syndrome. I will never forget the doctor explaining that Brittany had only hours before her liver could shut down. The only cure was to deliver the baby. The surgery had to happen immediately.
I will never forget realizing that I might leave our baby shower and return home alone.
Brittany was whisked away, and Isaiah was born weighing 2 pounds, 15 ounces. We soon realized we would be staying in Lexington for at least 12 more weeks while Isaiah grew stronger in the NICU.
Not exactly the baby shower we expected!
That season was spiritually difficult. Honestly, I was mad at God. But several weeks later, at the corner of Clays Mill and Brannon Road, I heard God whisper:
“I want you to start a church here in Lexington.”
My answer was simple: no. Absolutely not.
In fact, I angrily told God, “Lord, if You want me to do this, You’re going to have to start burning some bushes.”
And boy, did He.
After we returned home to Kansas City, bushes started erupting everywhere. We told no one about what we sensed God was calling us to do. I wanted Him to prove it. But left and right, people began coming up to us and asking incredibly annoying questions like, “Hey, have you ever thought that maybe God brought you to Lexington because you’re supposed to go back and plant a church someday?” Or, “Have you ever thought about church planting in Kentucky?”
It became clear that God was leading us. But if I’m honest, I might have kept running from it, except my heart began to change. The place I had been so eager to leave began to break my heart. I found myself driving to work in tears, asking, “Yes, Kansas City is great. But who is going to Kentucky? What if we are supposed to go back and reach my people in Appalachia?” God changed my heart and broke it for His people. Eventually, Brittany and I realized we could do nothing except obey. We would leave the life we loved in Kansas City and go back home to Kentucky.
Grace Church runs a church planting network, and we joined as church planting residents with the vision of planting a vibrant, life-giving church in Lexington, Kentucky.
This is not the story we would have written for ourselves.
But it is the story God is writing.
And we believe He is just getting started.
Scroll down to learn more about our vision
To carry jesus’ story
Our plan
In the book of Acts we see the story of the early church after Jesus rose from the dead and returned to heaven, there is a powerful moment in the very first chapter. Jesus’ followers ask Him a question that had likely been on all of their minds: is this the moment when God is finally going to restore Israel? Jesus answers them in a way they did not expect. He tells them, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
What Jesus makes clear is that God’s plan was bigger than one nation or one moment in history. His plan was not simply to change who held political power. His plan was to lay down His life on the cross, rise from the dead, defeat sin and death, and form a people from every place who would follow Him as Lord. Jesus’ plan was the church. He was sending His followers out with a mission that would begin where they were, move into the surrounding region, and keep going until it reached the ends of the earth.
We believe that same mission still belongs to the church today. Our desire is to carry the message of Jesus from the city of Lexington, to the mountains of Appalachia, and to the ends of the earth.
from the city
to the mountains
to the ends of the earth
From the City
We care deeply about our city. Lexington is, in many ways, the cultural heart of Kentucky. People come here from across the state, the country, and around the world to study, work, raise families, and build a life. That means Lexington is more than just where we live. It is a strategic place, full of people made in the image of God, full of stories, full of need, and full of opportunity for the love of Jesus to be seen and shared.
We do not believe the mission of God is limited to a church building. We believe He has already sent His people into the city on purpose. What if the answer to someone’s prayer is already in their workplace, on their child’s T-ball team, or living right next door? We want to be a church that loves Lexington not only by gathering well, but by living faithfully wherever God has placed us. Our prayer is that the people of The Table would become a visible expression of the grace of Jesus in homes, neighborhoods, schools, offices, coffee shops, and every corner of this city.
To the Mountains
We are unapologetically passionate about Appalachia. It is a region marked by beauty, grit, deep roots, and deep need. It is also a place that is often overlooked, misunderstood, or forgotten. But God has not forgotten the mountains, the small towns, or the people who call them home. We believe the hope of Jesus is just as powerful in the cities and back roads of Appalachia as it is anywhere else in the world.
Because of that, we want to be a church that remembers and responds. We desire to partner with organizations and leaders who are doing the faithful, tangible work of serving Appalachian communities in the name of Jesus. And we pray that God would raise up men and women with the courage to return home carrying the good news of Christ in their hearts. We long to see renewal spread from Lexington into the mountains, and for forgotten places to become places full of hope again.
To the ends of the earth
We believe the heart of God has always extended to the nations. From the beginning, His desire has been to gather people from every tribe, language, and nation into His family. Because of that, we believe the call of Jesus still reaches beyond our city and beyond our region. The church is not only called to love locally. The church is also called to go globally.
Our prayer is that God would raise up men and women from Lexington who are willing to go wherever He sends them, whether across the street or across the world. We want to be the kind of church that does more than admire that kind of obedience. We want to support it, send it, and celebrate it. We intend to stand behind those who rise up from our city to carry the gospel to places where it is not yet known, not yet flourishing, or desperately needed. We believe the mission of Jesus begins in the city, stretches into the mountains, and reaches all the way to the ends of the earth.
Our god sized dream:
to plant a church in every college town throughout Appalachia
College towns are places of influence. They gather young men and women during some of the most formative years of their lives, including many who have come from the small towns and mountain communities of Appalachia. These places often become crossroads, shaping not only individual lives, but the future of the region itself.
We do not believe we can fix Appalachia, and we certainly do not believe we have some secret formula for renewal. Appalachia is a beautiful, complicated place with a long and complex history. Any lasting restoration will be the slow, patient work of God over generations. Our hope is simply to be one small, joyful part of what He is already doing.
That is why we are planting The Table in Lexington with a prayer that God would make us faithful here, and that in time He would raise up and send church planters from this city into college towns across Appalachia. We long to see healthy, humble, life-giving churches take root throughout the region, each one joining in God’s restoring work in its own community.
We would love to invite you on that journey with us.
-Andrew Schumann
Our values
INVITING OTHERS INTO | A VIBRANT LIFE | FORMED around | Jesus Christ.
Hospitality
We believe people matter deeply to God, so they matter deeply to us. We reject isolation and intentionally move toward others, neighbors, coworkers, friends, and strangers alike. We want our lives to be marked by open tables, open homes, and open hearts. Through simple acts of welcome, we reflect the way Jesus has first welcomed us.
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. -Romans 12:7 ESV
Vibrancy
We believe Jesus offers a full and abundant life. Because of that, we want our lives together to be marked by joy, celebration, and genuine delight. Our tables are loud, our generosity is real, and our lives are shaped by the goodness of God. This kind of vibrancy is not manufactured, it flows from hearts transformed by Jesus.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. -John 10:10 ESV
Intentionality
We are all being formed into someone. To be formed into a person of Christ takes intentionality. We choose to order our lives around following Jesus, not just in big moments, but in everyday rhythms. Through shared spiritual practices we call “our rhythms” we trust God to form us into who He created us to be.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. -Romans 12:2 ESV
sending
We believe the life of Jesus does not stop with us. We are called not only to gather and grow, but to go. From the very beginning, Jesus has sent His people into the world to carry His love, His truth, and His hope to others.
We want to be a church that lives with open hands, ready to be sent wherever God leads. That means crossing the street, serving our city, returning to forgotten places, and, when God calls, going to the ends of the earth. We believe God will raise up people from our church to be sent out to plant churches, to serve communities, and to carry the gospel into places that need it most.
Our heart is not to hold tightly to what we build, but to give it away for the sake of others, trusting that God will continue His work far beyond us.
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” -John 20:21 ESV
Humility
We believe the way of Jesus is the way of humility. We lay down pride, power, and self-importance in order to serve others with grace. Humility shapes how we listen, how we lead, how we repent, and how we grow together as a church. We want to be people who are quick to serve and slow to elevate ourselves.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. -Philippians 2:3 ESV
scroll down to view our beliefs and find your next steps at The Table
Our beliefs
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We believe Jesus Christ is the eternal God in human form. He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, so that he would reveal God, fulfill prophecy, and redeem sinful mankind. We believe he accomplished our redemption through his substitutionary sacrifice on the cross, his burial, and his bodily resurrection. We believe in the literal, physical return of Jesus to judge the living and the dead.
We believe God offers eternal life as a free gift and that it must be received by faith alone through God’s grace alone. We believe the only way a person can have a true, forgiven relationship with God is through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, and the life that comes from this gift is a permanent possession of the one receiving it.
John 1:1; 14; 18; Luke 1:35; Romans 3:24-26; 4:25; John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Timothy 2:5
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We believe salvation is by God’s grace alone, received through belief in the death and resurrection of Christ, and by calling on Jesus as Lord. Salvation is a gift from God, not something we can earn with our own works. Salvation is being born spiritually into God’s family, which cannot be reversed or lost, because it is kept by the power of God.
Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 10:9, 13, John 3:1-7, 10:27-30; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Romans 8:35-39; 1 John 2:18-19
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Jesus instructed new believers to be baptized in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Baptism involves full immersion and serves as a powerful symbol: it represents dying to sin and self-reliance and rising to a new life of faith and dependence on Jesus. While baptism itself does not bring salvation, it is a significant act of obedience, a marker of one who is part of the people of God, and an outward expression of a heart committed to following our Lord Jesus Christ.
Acts 2:38; Matthew 28:19; Corinthians 12:13; John 3; Mark 16:16; 1 Peter 3:21
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There is one God, who has eternally existed in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three, equally and eternally God, are often referred to as the “trinity”.
(Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 13:14; see also 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 2:9; Acts 5:3-4; 1 John 5:7-8; Jeremiah 32:27, Acts 15:18, Psalm 139:1-10, John 1:1, 14, Matthew 3:16-17, 28:18-20, 1 John 5:20)
God the Father
God the father is our source, our ruler, the one who sent Jesus and the Holy Spirit into earth and raised Jesus from the dead after his death and burial. Jesus is described as sitting “at the right hand of the father” in heaven, indicating that the Father maintains a position of leadership over the Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit. (Acts 7:55-56; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:20)
Jesus Christ the Son
We believe Jesus Christ is the eternal God in human form, conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of a virgin named Mary. We believe Jesus lived a sinless life, died to pay for all sins, rose again the third day, and ascended to heaven. Lord Jesus Christ is now in heaven, exalted to the right hand of God, where, as high priest to his people, he serves as our advocate and intercedes for us. (John 1:1, 14, 1 John 5:20, Isaiah 7:14, 9:6-7, 1 Timothy 3:16, Hebrews 4:14-16)
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is God, the third member of the trinity, and God’s active presence in the world to do God's work. When a person opens his or her heart to Christ, he or she is born again by the Spirit. At Salvation the Holy Spirit comes to live in the new believer’s heart. The Holy Spirit makes it possible for us to be with Jesus, to live in God’s presence. The Holy Spirit helps us become like Jesus by transforming us from the inside out. Finally, the Holy Spirit empowers us to go into our world and do what Jesus did. This is what it means to live a Spirit-filled life (John 16:7-11; John 3:8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 13; John 14:16-17; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; Ephesians 1:13-14)
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Sin is doing anything “our way” instead of “God’s way”. God created mankind without sin. However, Adam and Eve freely decided to rebel against God’s rule, declared independence, and brought sin into God’s good creation. Mankind’s only hope is redemption, through the death and resurrection of Christ.
Genesis 3:6; Galatians 5:19-21; James 1:14-15; Romans 6:12-14; Colossians 3:5-6
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The call to follow Jesus is a two-fold invitation. First, we are called to accept Him as Lord and Savior, trusting in His finished work on the cross and publicly identifying with Him through baptism. Second, we are called to embrace a life devoted to God, a life marked by obedience, transformation, and love.
This call is not to a life of drudgery under a harsh master, but to the care of a loving Shepherd who knows His sheep by name and leads them tenderly. He shapes us through His Spirit, sustains us with His grace, and promises eternal life to all who follow Him.
Romans 10:9; Acts 2:38; Matthew 28:19; Luke 9:23; Galatians 2:20; John 10:11; Psalm 23:1-3; Romans 8:29; John 3:16; John 10:27-28
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We believe the church is the body of believers who are spiritually connected worldwide. We believe the local church is an assembly God calls together to accomplish Christ’s work in this world. The church is called to observe the ordinances of baptism and communion, and equip believers to follow the way of Jesus.
Matthew 16:18, 22:34-40, 28:18-20, Ephesians 1:22-23, 3:20-21, 4:11-16, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Acts 2:41-47, 11:19-30
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Eternity- We believe all people will spend eternity with Christ or separated from Him. We believe those without Christ wait in Hell for the day of final judgment. We believe those with Christ wait with Jesus for their resurrection and eternal inheritance.
Return of Jesus- We believe in the future, visible, and bodily return of Jesus Christ to the earth, commonly called the Second Coming, to rule the nations and establish his kingdom on earth and judge the living and the dead. God offers eternal life as a free gift but it must be received by faith alone through God’s grace alone. The life that comes from this gift is a permanent possession of the one receiving it.
John 5:28-29, 3:16-18; Philippians 3:20; Matthew 24:15-31; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 19:11-21, Revelation 20:1-6
next steps
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next steps 〰️
Next Steps
We’re so glad you’re here. Whether you’re exploring faith, new to Lexington, or ready to take a next step in following Jesus, there is a place for you at The Table. We believe life with Jesus is meant to be shared, and we would love to help you get connected, find your people, and join in what God is doing here.
Join the Launch Team
The Launch Team is the community of people helping prayerfully and practically build The Table from the ground up. If you want to be part of a new church from the very beginning, we would love to invite you in. This is an opportunity to serve, to build community, and to help create a church marked by hospitality, discipleship, and love for Lexington.
Grab a coffee with andrew
Sometimes the best next step is simply a conversation- and we would love to meet you. If you would like to hear more about The Table, ask questions, share your story, or just get to know Andrew, click the button below to schedule a time for coffee. You can also send us your information, and we’ll follow up with you soon.
give
The Table is built through prayer, generosity, and the faithfulness of people who believe in this mission. When you give, you help us lay the foundation for a church in Lexington that longs to love this city, bless Appalachia, and join in God’s work to the ends of the earth. If you would like to partner with us through giving, we would be honored to have you on the journey.