SERVING RICHMOND
Join us on Sundays at 10:30 a.m.
3806 Monument Avenue
Our Mission
We exist to magnify Jesus Christ by making disciples in Richmond and beyond.
Our Vision
We seek to cherish gospel grace, to embody compelling community, and to advance God’s kingdom from the heart of Virginia to the ends of the earth.
Strategic Location
“Richmond’s population is booming, increasing at twice the growth rate of the state and nation,” reported one journalist in 2019, based on population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Much of the city’s economy is driven by finance, law, healthcare, and government. Richmond is home to one of the nation’s thirteen Courts of Appeals and one of its twelve Federal Reserve Banks—as well as steady government jobs, multiple Fortune 500 companies, and a vibrant startup scene. According to Forbes, it is one of America’s top ten cities for “up and coming” entrepreneurs.
Richmond benefits from a unique crossroads location—one hour east of the Blue Ridge Mountains, two hours west of Virginia Beach, two hours north of the Raleigh-Durham Research Triangle, and two hours south of Washington, D.C. In fact, Richmond is just 500 miles from nearly 50 percent of the nation’s population.
Spiritual Need
Our research and discussions with Christian leaders in Richmond indicate an enormous need for more churches that treasure the gospel. One local pastor put it to us plainly: “The rate of new healthy churches is just not keeping up with the population growth.” The population of the Richmond metro area is 1.3 million—nearly 4,000 persons per square mile (84 percent of whom are under age 65; the median age is 39). The city’s population increased nearly 14 percent in the last decade; that’s more than twice the growth rate of both the state and the nation. More people now live in Richmond than in Arlington, and nearly five times more than in Charlottesville.
Another prime opportunity is the city’s college-student population, concentrated at the University of Richmond, Virginia Union University, and especially Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). With over 31,000 students, VCU is the largest residential public university in the state. As the saying goes: “Win the campus today; change the world tomorrow.”
A final strategic draw is proximity to the headquarters of the International Mission Board (IMB). Because the IMB is the largest missions-sending agency in the world, Richmond is an unparalleled hub from which to serve missionaries, model healthy ecclesiology, and help reach the nations.
