Who will you share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with, before the day is done? Make disciples. Invite them to church!

This is a church that believes in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. We believe He accepts you as you are when you surrender your life to Him; then He begins to perfect you, so you can live a holy life before Him. Here, at the Rivers' Edge, we treasure the Word of God as found in the original manuscripts of the Bible and preach it without shame, even when it conflicts with the values of this world. Come follow the teaching of Jesus with us as we put them into practice. As we give ourselves to the Lord, we believe that God gives back to us: Eph. 3.20 How to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, - In this order, God first, others - then yourself, we find that all our needs are met and more. What is your need today? Give yourself to Him, this is your spiritual act of worship. Just watch, over time, how God begins to transform you.

Sincerely,

John Gunden, Pastor

We are glad you are seeking the Lord. That's the most important thing you can do. The second thing is where do we go to find encouragement in the faith? Where can we find a place to serve God's purposes here on earth? We hope you will find your way to our church! The best way to start is surf and click all over this website to see if there is anyone you know, to observe the different ministries and especially listen to a bunch of messages (click on MESSAGES) -all to see if the River's Edge is a good fit for you. Check out our essential beliefs, and the benefits of attending church according to recent studies. Click on ministries which are a key component of the overall vision for the outreach of this church. Even then you will have questions so feel free to email me by clicking contact us! We are glad you are on this journey and know that when you seek Him you will find Him, including the local body He wants you to participate in.

People were made to worship God. Religion is one of the five major institutions of society, and its rewards flow over to all other major institutions: to the family, to education, to the market place, and to government. The more frequently people worship, the more they profit. If the social sciences say anything clearly about God, it is that living according to God's design is good for our lives in many ways, God commands us in His Word (as the body of Christ) to encourage one another and to meet together consistently:

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching," (Hebrews 10:24-25, NIV)

".....you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it, (1 Corinthians 12: 27, NIV) Worship holds personal benefits across all sorts of outcomes, including increased family strength, participation in charitable activities, grade point average, sexual chastity, and psychological well-being. Furthermore, adolescents who worship regularly are (understandably) more likely to do so as adults and this faithfulness to their beliefs will have major impact later on. We hope that the findings shown here encourage you, the church, to worship weekly and to reap the advantages that consistent worship offers to families, individuals, their communities, and the nation.

What does weekly worship strengthen or improve?

Improves Educational Outcomes -

Adolescents who attend church weekly have an average combined math and English GPA of 2.9 compared to 2.8 among those who attend more than monthly, 2.7 among those who attend monthly, and 2.6 among those who never attend.

26% of students who attend church weekly earn mostly "A's" at school, compared to 21% among students who attend more than monthly, 18% among students who attend less than monthly, and 16% among students who never attend church.

Increases Sexual Chastity -

12.4% of weekly church attendees have committed adultery, compared to 17.1 of more than monthly attendees, 20.6% of less than monthly a ttendees, and 24.8% of those who never attend. Women who attend church have an average of 4.33 lifetime sexual partners, compared to 6.25 among women who attend less than monthly, and 8.84 among women who never attend.

Reduces Social Problems -

16% of girls who attend church weekly have become pregnant out of wedlock, compared to 25% of those who attend more than monthly or less than monthly and 27% among those who never attend church.

Strengthens the Family -

Weekly church attendees have an average parent-cild relationship quality score of 50.7 compared to 49.5 among more than monthly attendees, 49.8 among less than monthly attendees, and 48.4 among those who never attend. 60.5% of weekly church attendees say being married is very important, compared to only 48.2% of those who attend more than monthly, 47.4% of those who attend less than monthly and 40.8% of those who never attend. 71.5% of weekly church attendees report believing that having children is very important, compared to 67.5% of those who attend more than monthly, 57.9% of those who attend less than monthly, and 46.7% of those who never attend.

The full report the Benefits of Religious Attendance: Positive Outcomes Associated with Weekly Worship, is available at this link