Follow Jesus. Love People. That Is the Whole Mission.
Westover Hills Church describes itself with a four-word mission statement that shows up everywhere from the front doors to the giving page: "Follow Jesus. Love People." The congregation sees itself as a place for families to meet Jesus, find community, and grow in their faith. At Westover, the staff and members believe better is possible. That simple mission shapes everything from weekend services to small groups to a sprawling sports outreach that draws in families from across the Westover Hills area of San Antonio's west side.
Around that mission, the church has built five core values. A bigger heaven is a better heaven, meaning the gospel is shared freely with anyone and everyone. We are better together, so life with Jesus is even better with friends. Saved people serve people, so generosity of time, talent, and resources is expected. Strong faith builds strong families, which is why Westover invests heavily in marriages, children, and students. And it is good to grow, because God loves people too much to leave them as they are.
From a Storefront on Culebra Road to One of the Nation's Largest Churches
The story of Westover Hills began in April 1986, when Pastors Jim and Denise Rion held the first service in a rented storefront on Culebra Road under the name Ingram Assembly of God. Within two years, the search for a permanent home led Jim to an undeveloped stretch of San Antonio that locals already called Westover Hills, an area he felt led to plant in even though it looked like open ground at the time. The land would go on to become one of the fastest-growing parts of the country.
That first building in 1988 gave the congregation a base. By 1999 the church had outgrown multiple services, and a new Worship Center opened in December of that year, tripling the seating capacity of the original sanctuary. A Family Life Center followed in September 2007, and the old sanctuary was handed over to the middle and high school ministry as the Student Center. The next major expansion came in February 2014, when a renovated, 2,200-seat auditorium with state-of-the-art technology opened at the flagship campus.
Two other milestones shaped the church's reach. In the fall of 2010, Pastor Mario Escobedo joined the team to launch Westover Hills - Español, a Spanish-language congregation that meets at the same flagship location on Saturday evenings. In 2012 the church planted a campus in Castroville called Westover Hills - Medina Valley, led by longtime children's pastor David Barnes; that campus became its own independent Assemblies of God congregation, Discover Church, in the fall of 2020.
In 2015 Pastor Jim announced plans for a five-million-dollar Sports Complex intended as an outreach to the surrounding community. The dream was realized in the fall of 2018 with the launch of outdoor youth leagues. Today, Westover Hills describes itself as one of the 100 largest churches in the United States.
A Saturday and Sunday That Has a Place for Everyone
Weekends at Westover Hills are built around six services in two languages plus a more traditional gathering for older adults.
Saturday evenings begin at 5:00 PM with a service aimed at families. A Spanish-language service, Westover Español, meets at 6:30 PM in the same building. On Sunday morning the church offers three identical English services at 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and 12:00 PM. Each service typically runs about an hour and features dynamic, inspirational worship and a Bible-centered message. Members and visitors alike are encouraged to arrive ten to fifteen minutes early so they can park, find their way around, and get kids checked in.
Older adults have their own gathering. The Westover Seniors Classic Service meets at 8:30 AM on Sundays in the Chapel and offers a more traditional style of worship. It is part of an active ministry for adults sixty-five and older.
The dress code is simple: wear whatever makes you feel comfortable. Favorite jeans and a t-shirt are perfect, and so is business casual. Some like to wear their Sunday best, and that is welcome too. Reserved parking for first-time guests sits near the Main Entrance, marked with a banner. Visitors who let the church know they are coming ahead of time are met at Guest Central, given a tour, and shown where to take their kids.
Westover Kids, Newborn Through Fourth Grade
Westover Kids offers age-appropriate programming during every weekend service for children from birth through fourth grade. The ministry is split into three environments: Infants (newborn through two years old), Preschool (ages three to five), and Elementary (Kindergarten through fourth grade). Parents are encouraged to arrive fifteen minutes early to check children in and let them meet their teacher and classroom.
Safety is taken seriously. Every child and parent receives matching security tags with a randomly generated code when they check in. Tags are matched at pick-up. Every staff member and volunteer in Westover Kids has been screened and has passed a criminal background check. First-time visitors get a special sticker so team members know to give them extra attention. The children's ministry also runs Blue Crew, a serving team for third and fourth graders where kids begin helping in the church and grow as leaders, plus a New Life track for families whose child has just decided to follow Jesus.
Westover Students, Grades Five Through Twelve
Westover Students is the middle school and high school ministry of Westover Hills Church. Students gather in the Student Center on the second level during every weekend experience - Saturdays at 5:00 PM and 6:30 PM, and Sundays at 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and 12:00 PM. Services are designed specifically for students, with powerful worship, relevant teaching, small groups, and a community where friends become family.
Beyond the weekend services, the ministry offers a monthly Student Leadership gathering for high school students, a Family Ministry Internship with tracks in Early Childhood, Kids, Middle School, High School, and Español Students, and parent resources for every stage of raising a teen. Students who have recently decided to follow Jesus are pointed toward a baptism class as a next step.
Young Adults, Seniors, Men, and Women
Westover's ministry map is built around the seasons of life. The Young Adults ministry serves eighteen- to twenty-nine-year-olds, including college students, young professionals, and young married couples. Seniors sixty-five and older are encouraged to join the Westover Seniors community, which meets at the 8:30 AM Classic Service in the Chapel on Sundays and includes additional Bible studies, get-togethers, and activities throughout the year.
Westover Men run year-round Men's Groups and a weekly Bible study called Elevate. Westover Women run year-round Women's Groups, a weekly Bible study called Women of the Bible, and an annual gathering called THRIVE. Each of these ministries exists to help adults grow alongside peers who share their stage of life.
Groups, Classes, and the Next-Steps Path
Small groups are how Westover Hills keeps a large congregation feeling small. The church runs four flavors of groups. Rooted Groups help new believers build a foundation of faith and make a great next step after First Steps. Interest Groups connect people through shared hobbies like running, coffee, or hiking. Community Groups gather people in similar stages of life for relationships and faith conversations centered on the weekend message. Study Groups dive deeper into the Bible through guided study and discussion.
In addition to groups, the church runs a four-week First Steps class for anyone new in their faith or coming back to Jesus after a long time away. Equip Nights happen on the second through fifth Wednesdays of the month and offer Grow classes the whole family can attend. Other ongoing classes include Love People, an introduction to serving, plus Elevate (men), Women of the Bible, and a baptism class for those ready to take that step.
Dream Team and the Joy of Serving
Volunteers at Westover Hills are called the Dream Team, and the church treats serving as a primary way to follow Jesus and love people. The Dream Team Culture Code is four lines: We make a place for people; We are on mission; We live Spirit-led; We love when we give.
There are twelve Dream Teams to choose from: Connections, Creative, High School, Kids, Middle School, Online Hosting, Parking, Prayer, Production, Safety, Ushers, and Worship. Each team description is written like a personality match, looking for the one who introduces people to each other at parties, the one who always takes the photo, or the one who does not mind being the very first face someone sees before they have even parked the car. Anyone interested in serving starts by filling out a form, then attends the Love People class to learn the details before joining a team.
Generosity, Tithing, and Financial Stewardship
Westover Hills takes generosity seriously enough to publish an annual Generosity devotional and an Annual Report. The giving page quotes 2 Corinthians 9:7 - "each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver" - and frames tithing as an act of obedience and worship rather than a transaction.
Gifts can be made online, by texting an amount to 210-610-2129, in service with a Give envelope, or by mail to the church address. The church also accepts cryptocurrency gifts, stock and investment gifts, and estate-planning gifts. Donors can use the keyword KINGDOM when they text to give to direct extra giving toward outreach, building projects, and other initiatives.
Westover Hills is accredited by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, which means the church adheres to standards for board governance, financial transparency, integrity in fundraising, and proper use of charitable resources. Audited financial statements are available to all members by request.
Westover Sports, Field of Lights, and the Easter Egg Hunt
Westover's reach into the surrounding community runs through three main events each year. Westover Sports, run from the church's own Sports Complex, offers affordable indoor and outdoor leagues for young children, teens, and adults, a long-standing outreach to the Westover Hills neighborhood and beyond. Field of Lights, the church's annual Christmas experience, immerses visitors in more than 300,000 synchronized Christmas lights set to music. The Westover Easter Egg Hunt takes over the Sports Field with candy-filled eggs and hunts for children eleven and younger, free to the community.
Westover Hills Worship: Music Beyond the Walls
Westover Hills Worship is a diverse community of Spirit-filled musicians and creatives whose songs grow out of the worship life of the church. The team recently released a single called "Hallelujah (You Will Be Exalted)," inspired by the truth that God is always moving, speaking, healing, and providing. The song is available on major streaming platforms. The church also runs a merch store where every purchase helps further the mission of Westover Hills Church.
What Westover Hills Believes
As part of the Assemblies of God, Westover Hills Church subscribes to the denomination's sixteen-point Statement of Fundamental Truths plus a seventeenth on Christian conduct. Four of those are highlighted as core beliefs: Salvation, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, Divine Healing, and The Second Coming of Christ. The full Doctrines of Faith include the verbal inspiration of Scripture, the Trinity, the deity and virgin birth of Jesus Christ, the fall of man, salvation by grace through faith, water baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper, the baptism in the Holy Spirit with the initial physical evidence of speaking in tongues, sanctification, the Church and its mission, divine healing, the Blessed Hope of Christ's return, the Millennial Reign, the Final Judgment, the New Heavens and New Earth, and a statement on Christian conduct that defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
Leadership at Westover Hills
The Lead Pastors are Jonathan and Danae Mussett. Jonathan joined the staff in 2011 and has a passion for seeing families win in their faith; he and Danae serve together as Lead Pastors. Will Randel serves as Executive Pastor, focusing on building strong teams and developing leaders. The Global Pastors are Jim and Denise Rion, who founded the church in 1986.
Other pastors include Tony Garza, Campus Pastor for Westover Español; Fernando Castillo, Senior Adults Pastor; Leah Carreon, Connections Pastor; Johnny Jonkhout, Campus Pastor for the Boerne campus; Rachel Petz, Kids Pastor; and Lindsey Calderon and David Calderon, who share the role of Worship Creative Pastor.
Planning a Visit
The address is 9340 Westover Hills Blvd., San Antonio, Texas 78251. The main phone line is 210-523-1505, and the general email is info@westoverhills.church. Services are livestreamed online, and a sermon archive is available along with the church app on the Apple App Store and Google Play. Giving can be done online, by text, or in service.