In the spring of 1978, desiring to obey the great commission, a handful of young but committed Christians moved from the Kansas City area to Columbia in order to establish a ministry on the MU campus. Their goal was to communicate the Good news of salvation in Jesus Christ with university students. Introducing others to faith in Christ was only part of their plan. They also worked to prepare new believers for effective ministry so that even more lives might be changed through the message of new life in Christ.
A young church was soon established, and as it grew, the focus of ministry broadened beyond the college campus to include the greater community at large. In the years that followed, many other changes have taken place as God has blessed and widened the influence of our church’s ministry.
In June of 1988, the Lord miraculously provided our current building facility to meet the needs of our growing church. The church was renamed Valley View Community Church to reflect our current location in the Valley View subdivision.
In 2018, church leadership prayerfully sensed God’s calling to rename the church in order to reflect our current congregation and ministry more accurately. On January 1, 2019, the church was officially renamed Higher Ground Church from a passage in Psalm 61, and our tagline was changed to “Finding Refuge in Christ”.
Just like our early founders more than 40 years ago, we continue the commitment to see the Great Commission fulfilled by helping others to find refuge in Christ, experience that refuge in everyday life, and teach them to share the refuge that can be found in Christ with others, so that disciples are raised up to serve in the Kingdom of God.