Rev. David Spann, Director

I was born in Arkansas and lived and worked in New Orleans, Seattle, Memphis and retired to Athens, TN. Raised Catholic. Converted to the United Methodist Church. Eventual became a Free Methodist and then a Nazarene and recently returned to my Free Methodist Roots. I have a BA in political science, Masters ABT in public administration and a Juris Doctorate (i.e. I'm a lawyer). Worked in international trade for 30 years. I owned my own company which I sold. Practiced law for several years primarily in family practice. Was ordained in 2012. Served as a lead pastor and chaplain. I have intently studied Scripture for over 40 years.

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​I have experienced a couple of defining spiritual moments that dramatically changed my life's direction. I describe one of these in the following paragraphs. This particular story speaks to the motivation of this ministry.

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On November 5, 2022 at 3:38 am I was awakened from a sound sleep. It was the kind of waking up where you sit up on the side of your bed as though you are to go and do something. As I sat there I had a single thought in my head,  "I am calling you out of your church."

 

It seemed a strange thought and I called on my wife and friends to pray with me about this "message." I needed help to discern it's meaning - what was I being called to do? Ultimately I determined that God was calling me to work beyond the walls of the church. To work more directly with those in the community and other ministries. So I resigned my position as executive pastor and began expanding my work in my community. This included more work as a chaplain, grief counselor, budgeting and debt coaching and other work. 

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A few months later, during Holy Week 2023, I heard a sermon that looked at the  stories about Jesus cleansing the Temple. In the sermon we were challenged to go about cleansing our own temples. Sadly for the first time I came to realize that the stories in Scripture of what Jesus did were not just recounting of events but were included to be applied to our own lives. And the message of most of these stories is service to others. With that began my dedicated study of the stories of Jesus and with that study an ever more intense desire to be in service to others.

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I remained unsettled though still uncertain that I was doing all that I was called to do. In July  of 2024 I heard a most outstanding sermon on going out and reaching the lost through service. Truly inspiring. Subsequently I began to feel certain constraints within my current denomination for the kind of work I felt called to do. Entering into prayer with close friends and family I continued to seek God's will. Coming out of that time of prayer I felt led to explore moving to another denomination. In March, 2025 I again got to hear the pastor that had delivered the previous sermon. And again he delivered another stirring and inspiring sermon. And with that sermon I felt certain that indeed I was to change denominations. I considered a few and ultimately decided to go with the Free Methodist Church (FMC). [I had started my ordination process with them many years before but strictly practical circumstances caused me to finish my ordination process with another denomination.]

 

As I considered the FMC I was inspired by their very recent introspective searching they had conducted that led them to a recreated call to spread the Gospel. As part of the process to transfer my credentials I was required to take a class regarding this renewal within the FMC. The first paragraph of the first page of the first article I was to read was about a man that left his denomination so that he could engage in a greater life of service in the name of Jesus. Feeling affirmed in my decision to change denomination affiliation I launched Service and Sow Ministries.

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And that is how this ministry came to be.

This ministry is entirely self funded - it never seeks grants, donations nor does it charge fees for any of its services EVER.

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 The Ministry is seeking volunteers to join with us to provide and expand our services and increase the number of people that we reach through serving and sowing the Gospel.

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If you are interested please click here and send me a message.