The River Church Purpose Statement:
Because we have been moved by God’s love for us...
we seek to join with people in their lives and encourage them to take their next step of faith in Jesus.
The River Church Core Values:
We make Jesus our point of reference.
Our aim is to honor God in all we do. God wants to continue to shape us to be more like his son Jesus. Jesus' life on earth provides us the best possible example of how we can relate with our families, neighbors, and others in our lives. The spiritual formation process of becoming more like Jesus includes prayer, the study and application of Scripture, public worship, and actions of service.
We do life together.
We strive to be intentionally involved in each other's lives. We believe God has designed us to live in community. This includes accompanying each other during the difficult times as well as the positive times. Doing life together means having fun together, encouraging each other and sharing our resources.
We are missional.
God has created us in his image and has redeemed (bought us back) us from a life under the oppression of sin. Our indescribable value to God inspires us to live with confidence in his love and to see the value of each person he has made. But this blessing is not to be hoarded, but to be shared in order to bless others. Participating in God's mission-to set things right in a broken world and restore people (caring for people's physical, emotional and spiritual needs) to himself brings true blessing to others. We join with God locally and globally through actions of service and compassion to communicate God's good news of hope.
Each Christ-follower has a significant contribution to make to the Church.
Each Christ follower has been designed by God through gifts, abilities, and experiences. God's work in a person's life is evident when he or she takes a next step of faith on a personal level and in their participation in God's family-the Church. We seek to equip and mobilize Christ-followers to develop Godly character and maximize their skills through mentoring and service opportunities. Our hope is that each Christ follower will understand how God has shaped them and wants to use them to influence others to follow Jesus.
The River Church Vision:
We envision God inviting those He loves to Himself…
We see God attracting people to place their hope in Him, experience His love, and take steps to cultivate a faith-relationship with Him.
We envision God inviting those He loves to come together…
We see God challenging Christ-followers to dedicate themselves to relationships of authenticity, service, and fun. We see families growing in their faith and relationships. We see various churches working together as part of God’s family.
We envision God inviting those He loves to serve in His world…
We see God moving Christ-followers to use the abilities and resources He has blessed them with to participate with God to meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people in Bend and in the rest of the world. We hope to move beyond mere acts of service to stimulate this missional character.