River Valley Church - City Campus

Reviews

• MD

  Mai Ying Drinkard

  5 days ago
  5.0
  We have been going here for 4.5 years. We love the staff, leaders and pastors of this campus. The congregation has a lot of young attendees, and we have observed this is most likely due to its location (close proximity to a lot of colleges, etc). There are also a lot of families. I encourage you to come and check out more than one service to see if this is a place you can see yourself plugging in to!
• GU

  Google User

  Aug 20, 2026
  1.0
  I had heard about River Valley Church as a church that genuinely welcomes everyone, so I decided to attend while I’ve been wrestling with some difficult questions about my Catholic faith. I was hoping it might be a breath of fresh air and a place where I could explore my faith without feeling judged. Unfortunately, my experience was very disappointing. During the second service I attended, Pastor Rob spent a significant amount of time talking about how children are not a burden and how people need to stop being so afraid of having children and getting married. He also spoke about a “man-hating” culture that needs to stop. I found this message incredibly tone-deaf and, frankly, irresponsible. There are very legitimate reasons people may be hesitant about marriage or parenthood, including financial insecurity, the physical and emotional realities of pregnancy and childbirth, childcare costs, and concerns about current reproductive healthcare. Telling people not to be afraid of having children without acknowledging any of these realities felt incredibly dismissive. Children can absolutely be a blessing, but people who do not want children should not be made to feel as though they are somehow living incorrectly or failing to trust God. Similarly, rather than framing criticism of men as a “man-hating” culture, I would have much rather heard a message encouraging men to become more emotionally mature, compassionate, responsible, and supportive partners and fathers. Women advocating for themselves or raising legitimate concerns about how women are treated is not inherently “man-hating.” What was particularly disappointing was that I came to River Valley specifically because I had heard it was welcoming to all. After this experience, I was left questioning what “welcoming” actually means if certain perspectives and life choices are treated as something people need to be corrected about. I understand that every church has its own theology and values, and I don’t expect a church to agree with me on everything. However, I do expect a church that presents itself as welcoming to approach complicated issues with nuance, compassion, and an understanding of the very real circumstances people are facing. I left feeling less welcomed than when I walked in, which was especially disappointing given how hopeful I was about finding a church community where I could continue exploring my faith.
• TL

  T Lobo

  Aug 15, 2026
  5.0
  Visited one Sunday, great worship team and sermon. I love the space it is well equipped and met friendly staff. Highly recommended
• CG

  Chris Garland

  Jun 8, 2026
  5.0
  I was gay married here!
• EA

  Elliot Aguilar

  Jan 26, 2026
  1.0
  I had an 1.5 long conversation with one your pastors, Kirk Graham after his appearance on Fox News. I was interested to hear what role he thought the Church should play in what's happening in Minneapolis right now. He continuously said he and his children feel safer today thanks to our laws around immigration - ignoring the families who have been affected by sweeping ICE raids and the families of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Deeply dissapointed that River Valley is more concerned with audience of Fox News than the lives of their immigrant community.

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