PASTOR T. DEVAN FRANKLIN, III

Rev. T. Devan Franklin, III is passionate about fulfilling the calling on his life. In 2019, he began serving as the seventh pastor of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, located in the Walter Hill community of Murfreesboro, TN. Pastor Franklin previously served as the Staff Minister at Lake Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Nashville, TN under Pastor H. Bruce Maxwell.

Pastor Franklin has earned the Master of Divinity degree with a concentration in Black Church Studies from the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky as a Kevin and Barnetta Cosby Scholar. He also holds the Associates of Arts in Religion and the Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Liberty University (Lynchburg, VA) along with a Bachelor of Theology degree from the historic American Baptist College (Nashville). He is a 2023 fellow of the Black Theology and Leadership Institute of Princeton Theological Seminary.

Pastor Franklin is also a capable writer, having contributed to the Sunday School curriculum for the Sunday School Publishing Board of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., as well as the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. He is the co-author of We Have This Ministry: A New Guide for Licensing and Ordaining Ministers. 

Pastor Franklin has held leadership positions in various organizations including Dismas House and The Murfreesboro Achievement Foundation. Pastor Franklin currently serves as the President of the Congress of Christian Workers and Education for the Smithfork District Association. As a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., he has served as the Chaplain and the St. Jude’s Sunday of Hope Chairman for the Murfreesboro (TN) Alumni Chapter.

Pastor Franklin is an avid Ohio State Buckeyes fan and also enjoys playing basketball, exercising, and reading.  He currently resides in Murfreesboro, TN with his wife, Dr. Chatoria Kent Franklin. The family is blessed to be considered “blended” with three daughters and a son.