Category: River Falls

Church Plant and Street Level Organization in River Falls, WI

July 20, 2022 River Falls Ministry

At the peak of summer, we’ve been outdoors as much as possible: Grill outs, Bible studies in the park, coffee outreach gigs and more. Keep reading for the latest news from Believers Church ministry in River Falls.

Going Mobile

We took out the mobile coffeehouse a couple times during “River Falls Days”. Firstly at “Taste of River Falls”, which was a gathering of about 50 pop-up vendors and food trucks. The event started off with heavy rain, but once the weather cleared up and the band started playing 90s cover songs, it turned out to be a good time. Later that week we set up near city hall. It was a beautiful day and hundreds of people were out. We met a lot of new people and were able to talk about our purpose and mission, as well as supply some cold brew. Some of us made the local newspaper, find a link here.

Parks and Rec

Our Bible studies have been meeting in Glen Park for most of the summer. It’s just a few minute walk from the coffeehouse, so it’s easy to get to. The Wednesday Community Studies meet there regularly. Some of the students from Campus Church, who stayed for the summer, have been joining us each week for discussion. For Street Level, we’ve done grill outs and have been reading through a book together. One night, some of us met up at the Coon Rapids Dam Park to hang out and do a picnic.

Pre-season

We are also fully preparing for things this fall semester. This includes collaborating with the other locations for advertising, websites, and social media. Additionally the students are communicating with the university to work out our rooms and get student addresses for a freshman mailer. There are a lot of things to keep in prayer, here are a few:

  • That God would provide discernment and guidance in our preparations.
  • That we would get the right rooms and outreach locations set on campus.
  • That the students would experience discipleship and growth.
June 19, 2022 River Falls Ministry

It is hard to not worship and see God in his creation during the summers in Wisconsin. We have been blessed to be able to spend a lot of time outside this summer doing outreaches, Bible studies, and fellowshipping. Keep reading to find out what we have been up to this past month.

Street Level

Outdoor Bible studies, camping, and fellowship are what our Street Level River Falls summer has been made up of so far. Recently, we had the opportunity to connect with the Superior and Menomonie Street Levels for camping overnight in Poplar, WI. It rained a little bit, but we still had a great time seeing each other, making s’mores, and hiking at Ammicon Falls. On Mondays, we are a smaller group, and we meet in various parks around town, grill out, and are going through the book “One at a Time” by Kyle Idleman. It is challenging us to be observant about the people that God has put in front of us.

Church

For Wednesday church this summer, we have been able to join Menomonie’s small group Rewinds. We host a small group in River Falls, and when weather permits, we are outside at Glen Park. A few of the students, we met during the school year, are still around for the summer and join us.

Coffeehouse

Last summer we brought the coffeehouse to Music in the Park, and it was such a fun time we decided to try something similar this year. On Thursdays, we set up the coffee kiosk in different places around town. Most recently we were in Heritage Park. It’s been a nice way to get out into the community and interact with people that otherwise may not know we are there.

We are hoping to be able to do a few more it reaches this summer including a Taste of River Falls event and something during River Falls days. Please be in prayer as we plan and consider these events.

Prayer Requests

  • For direction on outreaches this summer
  • That we would continue to meet people in the community
  • That we would use our time well this summer to prepare for the return of the students in the fall

For Further Information

May 19, 2022 River Falls Ministry

Keep reading for the latest news from Believers Church ministry in River Falls.

It was undoubtedly bittersweet to see the end of the school year. It’s been a year to be thankful for: the first year of the on-campus church, consistency in first-year students, and many new visitors. We are grateful to be a part of what God is working on in River Falls and trust he will continue show us the way forward.

Campus Church

We had our last church service on campus and have now shifted Wednesday nights to the Blind Munchies Coffeehouse. We were able to finish up our year-long verse by verse study of the book of John, which was a challenging feat but worth it. Being on campus has been an excellent opportunity to connect with people: some from Street Level and others who saw posters, social media, and yard signs. We will be live-streaming Believers City Church Rewind discussions during the summer and meeting in the coffeehouse and parks around town.

Street Level at UWRF

Over the last month, we have been working toward closing out the semester well and preparing for summer. We had our end-of-year Street Level party last week, which involved grilling out at the coffeehouse and playing various games. Some students will be around the River Falls area through the summer. We look forward to seeing them continue to get plugged on Mondays. We’ll be meeting outside as much as possible and hope to continue to build relationships with those who stick around as well as any new people God brings into our lives.

Blind Munchies Coffeehouse

We recently joined the community at another “Taste of River Falls” event at a local winery. It was a chilly day but a few Street Level students braved the cold to help serve in the coffeehouse trailer, which we were able to borrow from the Duluth fellowship. Thanks, Duluth! We are still meeting people in the community who haven’t been into the coffeehouse, so it’s been an excellent opportunity to spread the word. We are always looking to open the door to more interactions.

Prayer Requests

  • Outreach and fellowship plans for the summer and planning for fall.
  • Students home for the summer.
  • Continued growth and maturity in the group.

Further Information

April 20, 2022 River Falls Ministry

Keep reading for the latest news from Believers Church ministry in River Falls.

This semester went quickly. Here we are with just a few short weeks left, knowing that our now-familiar small group will be broken up soon for the summer. But in the mean time we have remained busy with events, frequently fellowshipping, and consistently studying God’s Word together.

Plant Sale at the Coffeehouse

We ended March by doing a plant sale at the coffeehouse. We had a great turnout –  around 100 people came. This has become one of the best ways to bring people into the coffeehouse. The plants were provided via donations from people in the Menomonie and River Falls as well as propagations from the coffeehouse “plant wall”. We have already begun new propagations for the next sale.

Missionaries on Campus

In early April, Street Level hosted Dutch missionary Annemieke Roering on the UW-River Falls campus. This was her last stop on a speaking tour hosted by Street Level. She shared on her missions work to individuals in prostitution in the Red Light district of Amsterdam. It was good experience for students in Street Level to work together postering, flyering, and hosting this event.

Additionally, we were joined by the Philippines missionaries for Wednesday night at Campus Church. Laura and Brittany shared about their personal entry into missions and the ministry they have been doing over the past few years.

Summer Ahead

We are now to setting our sights on summer and the outreach possibilities before us. We are seeking plans for worthwhile engagement with the city. While most of the students will be gone, there will be great opportunity to meet people throughout the community.

Prayer Requests

  • Outreach plans for the summer.
  • Continued growth and maturity in group.

For Further Information

March 19, 2022 River Falls Ministry

As the seasons change, Believers Church in River Falls continues to serve and reach out to the community in a variety of ways. Boy does time fly by quickly!

Word on the Street

At the end of February, Word on the Street (WOTS) held an introductory night for interested students. As a collaboration, the team from Menomonie came to visit and fellowship with us. We shared the vision for WOTS, did some writing exercises, and ate a meal together. This was a great chance for students to hear about opportunities to serve.

Meeting for Word on the Street at The Blind Munchies Coffeehouse in River Falls

Believers Campus Church

Believers Campus Church continues to meet, moving verse-by-verse through the book of John. Campus church has been a blessing to be a part of this past school year. We continue to meet new students, worship together, and get a chance to fellowship before and after service.

For the first time this year, we had a guest speaker at the Campus Church in River Falls. Pastor Ben, from Menomonie, was here for a Wednesday night service. He explained the gardening that needs to take place in our lives according to John 15. 

Some of our friends from Menomonie came over for Church.
Pastor Ben is teaching on a Wednesday night at the university.

Street Level Events and Activities

This last month we joined Menomonie, on the Stout campus, to attend a speaking event by Dr. Randy Marshall where he spoke on the brevity of life. It was great for all of us to hear from someone, who has so much experience, talk about the importance of pursuing what God wants us to do with our lives and carrying it out with passion, love, and discipline.

Because we enjoy spending time with each other, Street Level River Falls held a Friday night fellowship event. The bash featured a slew of activities including laughing at each other’s drawings, ganging up on the best Super Smash Brothers players, and eating pizza. It was great to be able to use the coffeehouse space as a place to all come together as friends and hang out.

Hang out night at the Blind Munchies Coffeehouse

The Blind Munchies Coffeehouse

As the winter progresses into spring there is an ever-changing group of people who walk into the coffeehouse. The conversations and outreach from this ministry continue onward with the River Falls students and the community. We are often looking for opportunities to bring in new people. One way we did this last month was by featuring a Thursday night drink special, the Caramel Frappe. Even though it is a shameless attempt at playing to people’s sugar addiction, people have been enjoying it.

The Bottom Line

All in all, we are blessed with the community that God has graciously allowed us to be a part of. We are continuing to plan through the remainder of the semester and well into the summer. We cannot overemphasize the importance of prayer, the need for continual diligence, and faithful reliance on the working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of ourselves as well as those who are showing up each week.

Prayer Requests

  • Contiue prayer for church on the River Falls campus and growth in maturity.
  • Pray for the transition from the winter into the spring that students wouldn’t get distracted and would desire to pursue their relationship with God.
  • Pray for continued outreach efforts through the coffeehouse, Word on the Street, and the radio.

For Further Information

February 19, 2022 River Falls Ministry

It’s been a fun month with the University of Wisconsin River Falls students back on campus. Keep reading to find out what we have been up to.

Street Level

The first week that the UW River Falls students were back, Street Level packed into a 15 passenger van and headed over to Menomonie. We met up with Street Level Menomonie and Street Level Twin Ports for fellowship and a good old-fashioned game of Broomball. That Friday evening we hung out at the Street Level house, met and learn about a missionary from India that grew up in Hayward, WI, and woke up the next day to join the Broomball tournament.

On Monday nights back in River Falls, we have continued through the Alpha video series that we started last semester. We spent a few weeks learning what it looks like to hear from God. This can be a challenging topic for people, so it was good to be able to spend a few weeks discussing it.

Radio

We started bringing a bigger Burning Dog Radio presence to the university this semester. So far this month, we brought the radio booth down to campus twice. The radio booth was set up outside the cafeteria on campus for a live broadcast. Some of the Street Level students had the opportunity to join us for part of it as well as a few people from Menomonie.

Coffeehouse

At the end of January, the coffeehouse set up a booth at the Taste of River Falls. It was a fun opportunity to engage with the community. There were about 50 other businesses that attended. We gave away coffeehouse coupons, sold cold brew and hot coffee.

The coffeehouse also started a limited-time drink special that is only on Thursday evenings. We are serving Iced Caramel Frappes. And yes, we know it is the middle of winter.

Campus Church

Believers campus church is now meeting again on campus with the University being back open for school. We are meeting in the Trimbelle River room and continuing through the book of John.

PRAYER REQUESTS

  • For people to desire take the next step into service
  • To continue to meet new students and community members

FURTHER INFORMATION