In the early 1990’s, God’s desire and passion to reach people with the Gospel permeated the hearts of a group of people, moving them to action. The result was the birth of Ridge Point Community Church in March of 1993 and the beginning of a journey that continues today in communities all across Southwestern Michigan and the world.

This group of about 200 people left the church they were attending to begin a new faith community with the goal of beginning the very next weekend. On Monday, they had nothing to “do” church with and by Sunday, through God’s grace, they had all the equipment and supplies they needed to start the journey that has resulted in the faith community called Ridge Point Community Church.

During the next four years, weekend services, children’s ministry and staff offices were in several locations including the Knickerbocker Theater on 8th Street in Holland, Holland’s West Middle School, office space on Lakewood in Holland, Holland East Middle School, Crown Motors near the Holland Municipal Airport, Ottawa and Allegan County Rehabilitation building on East 8th in Holland, a tent on 104th Avenue on our current campus and finally, our current building in June of 1997. In 2005, God provided our most recent expansion of an additional 70,000 square feet of ministry space—an expansion that was completed as we moved into the new Auditorium in March of 2009.

Even as we entered this additional ministry space, God drew us away from our centralized location—with the call to establish two satellite locations. The Moran Park satellite community, on Pine and 22nd Street in downtown Holland, is opening up new relationships with Holland’s core community. RP48, Ridge Point’s college-based ministry near Grand Valley State University's Allendale campus, is empowering students to reach out to other students and engage in missions across the world—engaging in relationships that will lead others to full life in Christ.

Although the last fifteen years may seem like a physical journey, it really has been a spiritual journey. The story of Ridge Point is a story about God bringing us together to form a community where His passion for reaching those who don’t know Him burns in our hearts. It’s about God providing a place where people can begin (or continue) to grow in their faith through community, take risks as they work in ministry, find freedom from addiction and healing from abuse and other hurts. A place that motivates us to be authentic, to grow in the likeness of Jesus as we reach out to those around us.

As we look back on God’s faithfulness and look forward to His continued faithfulness – we cling to the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 4: 5-7:

“Remember, our Message is not about ourselves: we’re proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master… we carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That’s to prevent anyone from confusing God’s incomparable power with us.”

It’s God’s story. It’s not our own.