Here’s everything you need to know about us and a little that you don’t.
Let's Get Acquainted
What We Believe
We believe that God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has existed forever in three distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God, sent to the earth to offer himself as a sacrifice, once for all, in order that we could be set free from the bondage of sin.
We believe that the abundant life that Jesus promises (John 10:10) was bought and paid for by His sacrifice and exists not only for eternity after we die, but also for the present, here on earth.
We believe in the complete truth and complete authority of the Bible.
Our History
In September 2004 The River began as a little church of 61 people on Lake Street in Kalamazoo, Michigan with a call to reach far-from-Christ and hurting people. With this mission, The River quickly outgrew their first small building and purchased a larger building downtown for only $1.99. God truly provided an incredible gift.
Today we are in a renovated warehouse in the Rivers Edge District of Kalamazoo, and have experienced much more growth and impact for God. We love to see River people grow closer to Jesus on a daily basis, and hope that this can also happen with you.
We often say at The River, “If you’ve got a pulse, you’ve got issues.” Brokenness is part of life, and we want to walk through that together. The River exists for people to have a community to belong to: people to celebrate with, people to cry with, and people to grow alongside. The other half of that phrase is “If you’ve got a pulse, you have a purpose.” Our hope is that we all would believe in Jesus, the transforming power of His love, and become everything He intends for us to be.
Meet the Team
Brad Landrum
Pastor
admin@theriver.info
Mallory Lyman
Children's Pastor
mlyman@theriver.info
Kevin Green
Tech Director
kgreen@theriver.info
Shelagh Koets
Worship Pastor
skoets@theriver.info
Todd Heerlyn
Worship Pastor
theerlyn@theriver.info
Elisha Penning
Small Group Pastor
epenning@theriver.info
Racheal Landrum
Nursery Assistant
rlandrum@theriver.info
Liz Heystek
Administrative Assistant
lheystek@theriver.info
admin@theriver.info
Our Leadership
Elders
The position of an elder is meant to be a position of servanthood and service, representing Christ through the Holy Spirit’s workings. Those chosen to elders must be men and women who possess spirits of charity and are deeply grounded in the wisdom of God’s Word. They must be spiritually discerning, they must have high moral character.
Deacons
The position of a deacon is meant to be a position of servanthood and service, representing Christ through the Holy Spirit’s workings. Those chosen to be deacons must show a high commitment to the Lord. They are to be men and women with compassionate spirits, sound judgment, and high character. We want to see our deacons acting as people who have been set apart for ministry, for service, and for outreach.