Our Story
In May of 2013, two-dozen friends came together to dream about growing God’s kingdom in the Longview/Kelso region by starting a new church. These friends were led by James Dieter and his wife Laura, who both felt a call from the Lord to establish a new congregation that would reach people who were not already in church, while uniting with the existing body of Christ to love and serve in the community. With almost eight years of diverse ministry experience working for different churches, James became our pastor for this mission, and we became Renewal City Church.
In the early months before gathering on Sundays, James made significant effort to engage and share our dream with a number of local churches and pastors who gave their blessing, support, and even some of their people (if you can imagine that) to this new congregation. Thanks to overwhelming support, Renewal City Church started meeting in the Kelso High School auditorium in July 2013. We purposed to live as followers of Jesus and to invite all who respond with faith in Him into His family as children of God. We emphasized three guiding principles that remain foundational to our identity:
Jesus is for everyone.
Jesus uses everyone.
Jesus changes everything.
Our church family grew quickly and experienced stability and blessings we did not expect so soon. This led the leadership team to search, with excitement, for a permanent place to gather and express our unique mission. Within two years of our first Sunday gathering, we were able to purchase the historic Roxy Theater building in downtown Longview on Commerce Avenue. We spent the next 3 years executing an extensive renovation of the rundown building, with the hope that this project would serve as a metaphor for the transformation we believe God wants to accomplish as He breathes new life into Longview and the surrounding communities of Cowlitz County. We also hope that The Roxy Theater will be a blessing to many: a place for the people of Longview/Kelso to be entertained (concerts, art shows, plays), to celebrate life’s events (weddings, parties, banquets), and to come together for collaboration (meetings, community events, education etc.).
The Roxy Theater is comprised of three main spaces—the café, the theater, and the banquet area—which will serve as rental spaces, and during the day, the café is leased to a local small business: Keebler Coffee Roasters. While Renewal City Church will meet in the theater for church gatherings and utilize the building for other church activities, we believe God blessed us with this space so that we could share it with the community.
With the completion of the renovation of The Roxy, we are filled with a sense of purpose from the Lord to seek the welfare of our city. We believe the Holy Spirit is leading us to love others by becoming engaged citizens in our community, full of resilient faith.
Renewal Leadership Team
