Outward Ministry
Simply put, the OUTWARD Team exists to encourage and equip God’s people to look “OUTWARD” in life. Looking OUTWARD is loving people. You love people by continually devoting your time, abilities, and resources to discovering and meeting the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the people in your world, with no strings attached, always seeking opportunities to share the message of Christ’s gracious love as the most crucial and precious gift in life.
The OUTWARD Team at Rio Vista has two basic thrusts:
1) Church Planting
Our vision is to partner with both domestic and international church planters to bring spiritual renewal to various parts of our world. We endeavor to partner with church planters who are:
a) Related to Rio
b) Reproducing
c) Reformed
d) Relevant
We support our church planters and missionary partners financially, in prayer, and in person. As such, we promote short-term missions trips to visit and to serve our missionary partners.
2) Mercy Ministries
John Piper has said, “If we don’t let our light shine before the people at home ‘so they may see our good works and give glory to our Father who is in heaven’ (Mt. 5:16), what kind of obedience will we export to the nations? The Great Commission includes the words, ‘teaching them to observe all that I (Jesus) have commanded you’ (Mt. 28:20. And what did he command? He told the story of the desperately wounded man and the Good Samaritan who ‘showed him mercy,’ and then said to all of us, ‘you go, and do likewise’ (Luke 10:37). The people who stay in the homeland (i.e., us) are surrounded by need. We only need eyes to see and hearts that can’t walk by on the other side. This challenge is not separate from the challenge of missions. Showing practical mercy to the poor displays the beauty of Christ at home and makes the exportation of the Christian faith credible. We are hypocrites to pretend enthusiasm for overseas ministry while neglecting the miseries at home.”
We happen to believe that Piper is right. Therefore, our goal is for every person who calls Rio his or her spiritual “home” to serve, love and become a missionary to his/her own world (the people with whom they work, live or play). We also want to work together collectively to serve, love and to be Jesus to our local community.
With that in mind we have begun to partner with established local mercy ministries that show practical mercy to the poor of every kind and display the beauty of Christ here at home.
We are also seeking to establish a sub-committee of the Outward Team that will endeavor to discover and meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people not currently being met by those ministries. If you have a passion to love people, we need you!
Current Church Planter/Missionary Partners:
Rick & Dede Hunter - CityChurch, Ft. Lauderdale, FL www.citychurchftl.com 
Craig & Heather Gahagen - Peru
Kenton & Karen Wood - Mexico
Richard & Barbara Altork - Philippines
Jean-Yves Gregiore -
El Shalom Church, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Local Mercy Ministry Partners:
4KIDS of South Florida 4kidsofsfl.org
Hope Pregnancy Centers friendsofhope.com 
His Caring Place hiscaringplace.org 
Project Teamwork project-teamwork.org 
Worthy Creations worthycreations.org 
Sheridan House Family Ministries sheridanhouse.org 
Living Waters Counseling livingwatercoaching.com 
Ministry Opportunities:
Join the Team...
Go on a Mission’s Trip to Peru...
Go on a trip to Honduras with Project Teamwork...
Go on a Hurricane Relief trip to the Gulf Coast with Project Teamwork...
Help finish the construction work on home for a needy family in our community through Project Teamwork...
For more information about looking OUTWARD, please contact
via e-mail:
Don McCulloch
or
Tom Hendrikse