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Newcomers

What Can I Expect When I Visit the River?

We understand that visiting an unfamiliar church for the first time can be a little scary. After all, we were once newcomers ourselves. Our goal at The River is to welcome you and help you feel comfortable from your first visit. And since part of feeling comfortable is knowing what to expect, here are a few “heads-ups” on the essentials:

What Should I Wear? Wear the kinds of clothes you’re comfortable in. Bottom line? Jeans are fine. (So are flip-flops, a jacket and tie, and formal wear if that’s what floats your boat!)

What If I’m Not Sure About What I Believe About God? You’ll feel right at home at The River. We’re a group of seekers pointed God-ward, but that doesn’t mean we have Him all figured out. Come with your questions and we’ll work on the answers together.

What Kind of Music Do You Play? Sometimes what people really want to know is, “Do you sing hymns all the time?” While we don’t have anything against hymns (and even sing them occasionally) our music is played with acoustic guitars, keyboards—and sometimes even an accordion! It’s God-focused, but often we sing songs you hear on the radio or have loaded on your iPod.

What Should I Do Next? Good question. We have a Welcome Center set up at every Sunday service where there’s a friendly person who will be happy to answer any questions you have about The River and how to get involved in our other activities, like:
  • Growth Groups and Life Groups These are small groups with an emphasis on connecting with God and other people
  • Ministries Find more ways to connect, often with an emphasis on reaching out to others
  • Live2Serve This high impact group from the River that take on monthly outreach events - usually family friendly and always filled with energetic, passionate world changers
  • Attend a Newcomers Reception, planned especially for you about four times a year. You’ll find information about our next reception on the events page.

Here's What People Are Saying ...

"This is one of the greatest things you can do for newcomers. We thought it was fantastic. It was a really good positive atmosphere, there was very honest dialogue, it wasn't really preachy, and it was a relaxed setting. We felt so comfortable and thought it was a real neat group. All the participants were very genuine. We really liked that we got to know some people and were able to greet them on Sunday."
Karen & Steve, Howell, MI

"I Loved it and thought it was a great idea. It was a great way to get to know the pastor and meet other people."
Joan from Commerce

"I thought it was a great experience. It really was fun!"
Andrew from Commerce

 
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