In Eden Prairie, Minnesota, City Hill Church gathers at 12901 Roberts Drive, up the hill behind Home Depot. It is known for charismatic, Bible-centered worship, close community, Spirit-empowered discipleship, and a strong sending culture that brings local care and global mission into the life of one church. Sunday worship starts at 10:00 a.m., while weekday prayer, children and youth ministries, life groups, mentoring, service teams, and ministry partnerships shape the rest of the week.
From New Testament Church to City Hill Church
City Hill dates its beginning to the spring of 1970, when a small, close-knit group of Christians from a wide variety of backgrounds began meeting under the name New Testament Church. The church grew out of the Jesus People movement of the 1970s. Its early years were highly practical: gatherings took place in homes, rented school buildings, and outdoors during summer, with the congregation meeting wherever it could worship freely and keep growing.
By 1972, the church had moved several times. Forest Hills Elementary hosted the congregation for five years, but leaders knew it was time for a permanent home. They found an eight-acre hobby farm between Baker Road and Highway 494, complete with a house, garage, and barn. The down payment was unexpectedly provided, construction began, and by 1977 the church was holding services at the property it still uses.
The congregation adopted the name City Hill Fellowship in 1997 and became City Hill Church in 2014. Across those decades, its story has been marked by sending: City Hill trained and sent missionaries for both long and short terms to foreign fields, helped start churches and ministries in the United States, and saw many elders move on to support or lead other congregations. That commitment remains visible in the church's description of itself as a sending church rather than merely a supporting church.
Sunday at Ten: Songs, Prayer and a Message
Sunday worship begins at 10:00 a.m. every week at the church's Eden Prairie building. The rhythm begins before the service with preservice prayer at 9:30 a.m., then moves into songs, prayer, and a message. The church describes the gathering with three simple words: real people, authentic faith, and God's presence. Its worship is celebratory, shaped by the conviction that people have been saved, healed, and forgiven and should celebrate that together.
Visitors do not need to learn unfamiliar religious rules before arriving. Dress is casual. People may raise their hands and dance, but no one is required to dance. The church identifies itself as non-denominational and says it is affiliated with TrueBridge Churches. It is also plainly charismatic, meaning that it believes the supernatural spiritual gifts spoken of in the New Testament are alive and active today. Those who are uncertain about such language or about their place in the church are still welcome.
There is no pressure on a guest to give financially. City Hill teaches that giving should be voluntary and joyful. After the service, the congregation often stays to talk, eat, and pray with one another. Community is central to the church's understanding of God's plan, and City Hill emphasizes that every person is made in the image of God and loved by him, so there is always room for one more.
For anyone who cannot attend in person, the 10:00 a.m. gathering is livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook. A Ministry Prayer gathering follows the service at 11:30 a.m., while the earlier 9:30 a.m. hour is set aside for prayer together before worship.
The CODE That Gives City Hill Its Shape
City Hill organizes its vision around what it calls the CODE: Community, Outreach, Discipleship, and being Empowered by the Holy Spirit. The vision describes a church empowered by God's Spirit, where disciples of Jesus are made, community is lived out each day, and each member does their part to bring Christ to the world. These four strands appear throughout the church's worship, relationships, training, and mission work.
Community is described as one body with Christ's hands and feet, made up of broken people who have been redeemed together to advance God's Kingdom. Outreach expresses the servant heart of the greatest who serve by laying down life. Discipleship calls people to learn and teach the commands of Jesus, speaking into one another's lives with time and commitment rather than words alone. Empowered by the Holy Spirit points to healing, cleansing, resurrection, prophecy, and a willingness to receive greater things that God has prepared.
City Hill is an elder-led, autonomous local church with Apostolic oversight. Christ is its head, the Bible is its guide, and the Holy Spirit empowers its members. The church holds that every believer should be equipped for the work of ministry. That conviction helps explain why the church gives such prominence to small groups, mentoring, children's training, practical service, and partnerships with people working in the name of Jesus around the world.
What City Hill Believes
City Hill's statement of faith begins with the Bible, which it identifies as the infallible Word of God, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and having supreme and final authority in the matters to which it speaks. It teaches that there is one eternal God revealed in three equal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God's attributes include love, faithfulness, compassion, grace, holiness, and justice.
Jesus Christ is affirmed as God the Son, fully God and fully man, the only person who lived a sinless life. City Hill teaches that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, suffered and died on the cross for humanity's atonement, rose bodily from the dead, and ascended to the Father's right hand. He will return in power and glory. The Holy Spirit glorifies Christ, convicts people of sin, brings new life, empowers believers for service, produces spiritual character, and guides believers into truth.
Humanity was made in God's image but separated from him by sin. City Hill teaches salvation as a gift of grace received through faith in Jesus Christ and his sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection, not as a result of good works. Sanctification is the continuing process of yielding to Jesus' lordship through the ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. The church also teaches the baptism of the Holy Spirit as a subsequent and distinct experience from the Spirit's indwelling at salvation, and it says believers should earnestly desire the gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12 through 14 while those gifts remain harmonious with Scripture.
Jesus is the head of the church, and the church is the body of Christ, made up of those in whom the Holy Spirit dwells. The local church gathers for prayer, worship, teaching, and other expressions of Christian life. City Hill observes two sacraments: water baptism by immersion following faith in Jesus, and the Lord's Supper as a time of communion using bread and wine in remembrance of Christ's sacrifice and covenant with his people.
City Hill describes its approach to belief as united in love. It holds unity in its statement of faith while allowing discussion of disputed matters such as end-times teaching, divine sovereignty and free will, and speaking in tongues as evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Across these conversations, love remains the governing principle.
Children: Disciples Before They Can Follow
City Hill calls children its first disciples, its future, and the people for whom the church models God's love. Its goal for them is biblical, Spirit-filled, and joyful training. The children's work includes a Christ-centered nursery and play for infants and toddlers, ministry for preschool and kindergarten, classes for first through sixth graders, and opportunities for teenagers. The learning environment combines biblical lessons, arts and activities, evening events, and outreach so that children can learn by doing and understand what it means to serve others.
Children's ministry is designed around more than information. City Hill wants young people to grow near other children who are learning to love and serve God, discover the gifts of the Holy Spirit, follow Jesus as a lifelong journey, and eventually teach others about God. The nursery and playroom give families with young children a place to begin, while the elementary and teen options help children remain part of the wider church community.
Awana adds a Wednesday evening program for children ages 3 through 5th grade. It meets from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. and uses games, Scripture memory, Bible teaching, small groups, crafts, songs, and age-appropriate activities. Cubbies serves children ages 3 through 5 with Bible stories and foundational teaching. Sparks welcomes kindergarten through 2nd graders with energetic games, Bible teaching, friendship building, and handbook activities. T&T serves 3rd through 5th graders with games, teaching, and activities focused on grace and following Jesus in everyday life.
Families are encouraged to partner with leaders in nurturing faith at home and building relationships with other church families. Charlie Oglesby serves as City Hill's Kids Director, giving the children's work a named leader alongside the elders and pastoral staff.
Summit: Wednesday Nights for Students
Summit is City Hill's student community for grades 7 through 12 and adult leaders. It gathers on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. for games, worship through music, teaching from God's Word, and time in small groups. The mix allows students to enjoy one another's company while also growing in worship, understanding Scripture, and deepening relationships.
Summit reflects the same values as the church as a whole: community as one body, outreach as one mission, discipleship as learning and teaching, and empowerment by the Holy Spirit. Alivia Kamin serves as Summit Youth Director, and adult leaders share responsibility for gathering, teaching, and caring for students throughout the school year.
Connect Groups Where Faith Meets Everyday Life
Connect Groups are an integral part of City Hill's community. Life Groups meet regularly in one another's homes, where people eat, laugh, study, dance, pray, cry, and live together. Small groups make it possible for people to know one another with greater depth than a general congregation can provide. They also support each member in the particular place where God has put them and treat the group as a missionary support team.
The discipleship rhythm within groups includes learning and teaching, giving people opportunities to speak into one another's lives, and making room for honest prayer and Scripture. Groups also sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, joining the church's emphasis on the Holy Spirit to a practical life of relationship. The goal is not simply another Bible study, but a shared pattern of Scripture, worship, hospitality, service, and accountability.
Interest-based Connect Groups make room for people who want to build friendships around familiar activities. Groups have included drawing and art, visits to art shows, bicycling, boating, bowling, pickleball, golf, board games, picnics, and outdoor meals. Some are designed for women, others for men, and others for couples, families, or people at different stages of life. These shared interests become a natural setting for conversation and spiritual conversation.
City Hill also gives particular attention to mentoring and accountability. Its Women's Mentoring ministry, described as Drink in. Pour out., matches a person seeking a mentor with another woman willing to walk alongside her and seek God with her. Men's Small Groups provide another setting for honest connection. The Ask the Elders ministry is intended for people wrestling with deep questions. City Hill acknowledges that it may not have every answer, but it wants to come alongside people and wrestle with God together.
Serving With the Gifts God Has Given
City Hill's Serve Teams invite people to use their time and talents in the life of the church. Separate teams help with Sunday worship, while the Deacons focus on skilled, practical ways to meet needs. The biblical pattern is straightforward: those who have received gifts are to use them to serve one another, with strength supplied by God.
Generosity at City Hill is broader than money. It can appear as hospitality, financial giving, volunteer time, or the sharing of skills and resources. The church's Impact work gives members several ways to participate: committing finances, praying for ministry partners, joining local serve teams, or going on short-term mission trips. Projects can be local, regional, or global, so a person can respond to a need in the community while also helping support ministry elsewhere.
City Hill's teaching makes clear that giving is to remain a voluntary and joyful expression of faith rather than a condition of participation. Financial giving is available through Pushpay, while service teams and the Impact Fund provide ways to give time, skills, prayer, and practical help.
A Sending Church With Ministry Partners Near and Far
City Hill describes itself as a sending church. Its Executive Outreach Team walks with ministry partners from God's calling on their lives through retirement and beyond. This partnership can include financial and prayer support as well as logistics, preparation, training, communication, and help with the work itself. The goal is to equip people for the purposes God has given them and to help them prepare others for ministry.
- Prepare Ministries: Gary and Stella Gilbertson lead a campus-based young adult ministry and have published all-age Bible study helps titled Draw Thru the Bible for the Old and New Testaments. Their focus is preparing a generation for the return of Christ and the establishment of his Kingdom.
- Wycliffe Bible Translators: Paul and Linda Humnick serve in Bible translation and linguistics work. Paul works on a Kumyk translation project in Dagestan, Russia, while Linda consults on language and translation projects across Eurasia. Their aim is for people without Bible access to hear Scripture in their mother tongue.
- YWAM Twin Cities: Steve and Barb Norell serve with YWAM. Steve serves on the leadership team and oversees work connected to Kids Against Hunger, vehicles, and other responsibilities. Barb leads hospitality, staff care and development, and personnel responsibilities. Together they help equip young people for missionary service.
- New Mercies Ministries: Charlie and Karen Oglesby direct work in Rwanda that addresses physical and spiritual needs among vulnerable people. Their Faith Village project provides safe homes for girls who have experienced abuse, with care, recovery, restoration, and discipleship as central themes.
- CRU Twin Cities: Steven and Robin Ose work with CRU to reach college students with the gospel. Their focus is to form students who will serve as leaders in business, education, missions, and other fields wherever they go, with the phrase Reach the campus today, reach the world tomorrow capturing the aim.
- Charis Bible College Singapore: Cindy Pearson directs the college in Singapore and emphasizes Biblical training and the needs of Chinese-speaking communities. The ministry has supported students ministering in drug rehabilitation centers, local churches, and families in Vietnam, along with translation work involving Chinese languages.
- Gospel Community: Paul and Bobbi Wichterman direct an intentional-community discipleship program in Eden Prairie. Its community houses emphasize hospitality, prayer, Scripture study, worship, service partnerships, evangelism, and care for neighbors without housing while remaining integrated with a local church.
- Central Asia and Taiwan: City Hill also partners with workers whose ministries include focused prayer, encouragement, and practical training in Central Asia and a freestyle basketball outreach in Taiwan that combines athletic creativity with Gospel proclamation.
Mission is not confined overseas. City Hill's local Impact work has included hot meals for people experiencing homelessness in Minneapolis through In Love, Word and Deed; a Christmas Store for families facing financial strain; fresh produce for PROP; Thanksgiving meals; Words of Hope for people experiencing suffering; prayer at holistic fairs; and evangelistic gatherings such as Trunk or Treat. These projects show the church's pattern of sharing resources, preparing people for service, and pairing practical help with spiritual care.
Elders, Pastors and Ministry Directors
City Hill's leadership team combines pastoral oversight with ministry leaders who carry particular responsibilities. Ben Mailhot serves as Lead Pastor, Kurt Ullrich as Executive Pastor, and Brian Dueber as Lead Elder. Matt Schoeneck serves as a pastor and elder. The elder team also includes Charlie Oglesby, Dan Kral, Josh Knutson, and Eric Janssen.
Ministry directors include Charlie Oglesby for City Hill's Kids work, Alivia Kamin for Summit Youth, and Bobbi Wicterman for worship. The emphasis on an elder-led, autonomous church with Apostolic oversight means that leadership, discipleship, service, and mission are connected rather than treated as separate parts of church life.
City Hill Church's office is at 12901 Roberts Drive in Eden Prairie, with telephone 952-941-7290 and email office@cityhill.org. The church's continuing story is one of worship becoming discipleship, discipleship becoming service, and service becoming mission - a body of people formed to bring Christ to the world.