Providence Presbyterian Church 2252 Harshaw Road, Murphy, NC 28906

"I enjoyed visiting Providence Presbyterian Church. When I drove up there were plenty of kids playing out front before the 11 a.m. service and, indeed, this church had more children and young families than many churches I have visited recently. That is a positive sign for a church. A greeter welcomed me right away. He introduced himself and made sure that he learned my name. He handed me a bulletin which was easy to read and included a detailed rundown of the service, including call-and-response readings and hymn lyrics. The church itself is attractive. It’s not too large, nor too small. It’s not too ostentatious, but not too simple either. There were around 50 people in attendance on the Sunday I visited. It was also very nice to see youth take a leading role in the church’s music. In addition to a man playing guitar, three young ladies played violin, piano, and mandolin for each of the four hymns spread throughout the service. For those who prefer social-distancing, there's a row of seats along the back wall of the sanctuary which is nicely separated from the main body of pews. The pastor was well-spoken, enunciated, and could be heard clearly. He told stories about people he knew and used Matthew 15 to illustrate how God knows what we need. The church has a nursery, a library, a fellowship hall with kitchen, an outdoor pavilion with stone fireplace, a sizable playground, and an upstairs nook classroom. The people were friendly and invited me to return. As I departed the same greeter who met me on the way in called out my name to say goodbye. I hope some day you get to visit Providence Presbyterian Church, too."

"Nice folks; ESVs in the chairs; solid expository preaching; mostly conservative music (one Getty chorus) and Trinity hymnal. Two acustic guitars, but not rocky, and I like that they were off to the side by the piano."

"The church is very friendly. It's main service starts at 11 and last about an hour and a half. The pastor is friendly. The church tends to be a bit conservative and has a piano and two acoustic guitars. The do not sing much. One song at the beginning, on in the middle, and one right at the end. The people dress fairly nice but I wouldn't feel weird showing up in nice pants and a nice shirt regardless of gender. The church seems to have a few events for the youth of the church and they have a playground outside. During the service most of the children stayed and were miraculously quite."

"We visited for the Christmas Eve service. The church and its people were very welcoming and kind."

"Still looking for our new Church. We went to Providence Presbyterian with friends and did find a House of God. We may keep looking next time we are up. Good congregation and sermon but I would like to feel God's hands on me a little more. Hard to put into words."