Dear Harvest,

This update is overdue. The service in which Harvest sent out nearly 100 people to River Presbyterian is still clearly etched in my mind—and yet this coming Sunday will mark six months since our first public worship gathering as a church plant.

It was a joy to celebrate our first Easter service this past Sunday. Although meeting in a different part of the city, we joined with you in singing many of the same joyous resurrection hymns—Christ the Lord Is Risen Today, Up from the Grave He Arose, and Thine Be the Glory. The same gospel was preached. The same Jesus was lifted up. The same Spirit was depended upon. These are sweet reminders of the unity that Harvest and River continue to share.

We were especially encouraged by several visitors who joined us the last couple weeks. Several of these people do not have an active church connection. These are people who have found us by the mailer we sent out, by our website, and by personal invitation. These stories remind us why we are committed together to planting River Presbyterian on Grand Rapids’ west side.

While some weeks are more ordinary than others, God has been blessing us as we take steady steps toward becoming established in our new location. We now have six growth groups meeting throughout the city. In January, we launched Sunday School, with approximately 30 children spread across three classes (ages 3–13), as well as a weekly adult class.

Our next major step will be launching evening worship services beginning April 19 at 5:00 p.m. While we will miss worshiping with you regularly, we believe this is an important and necessary step in establishing River as a worshiping community on the west side.

We want to express our heartfelt thanks for the love and support you continue to show us as your daughter church. Though I can’t speak from personal experience, I’ve observed that having a baby isn’t easy—and the same could be said for church planting. As our mother church, you have sacrificially filled ministry gaps left by our departure, supported us financially, encouraged us, shown genuine interest in the work, and prayed faithfully for us. We are deeply grateful.

As River Presbyterian continues to move forward, here are a few ways you can continue to support us:

• Pray. Please pray that we would be faithful in inviting others to River and that God would bring people without church connections our way. Pray for unity among the launch team, sustained energy for the work, and a growing love for Christ.
• Share our Facebook page. If you’re on Facebook, consider sharing our page (Facebook) with a personal note inviting others to learn more about this new church plant on the west side. Word-of-mouth is invaluable. You can also share our visitor page at https://www.riveropc.org/visit, which helps newcomers know what to expect.
• Invite a friend. One of the most encouraging things you can do is personally invite a friend and bring them along—especially those who live closer to River. We’ll leave personal invitation cards at the Harvest welcome desk, with space for a handwritten note. Please make use of them.

Thank you again for your love, prayers, encouragement, and continued partnership in the gospel. We remain grateful for you and for the privilege of planting River Presbyterian together.

On behalf of River Presbyterian,
Pastor Wayne