River Bend is fully committed to seeing the Gospel spread throughout the world.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Several years ago, God led River Bend to partner with a retired electrical engineer, Sam Nicholson, and his wife Marcie. God led Sam and Marcie to start a ministry in Nuevo do Octubre along the Amazon River, south of Iquitos Peru. Sam and Marcie reach the people along a 100-mile section of the Amazon River through medical clinics and River Bend conducts a Pastor Training classes for the village pastors along this section of the Amazon River. In addition, River Bend adopted a village called Buenos Aires, Peru. It is on an island in the middle of the Amazon River with approximately 200 residents. The living conditions on the island are deplorable. There is no electricity, and safe drinking water is scarce. Most of the villagers suffer with the effects of intestinal parasites and other waterborne illnesses. River Bend is helping the people of Buenos Aires with fresh water by providing water catchment systems, which catch rainwater and stores it in safe containers. During COVID we were able to deliver much-needed medical supplies. We have expanded the installation of our water catchment systems to the Villages of St. Florita and Nuevo De Octubre.
Pray for:
Please pray that our efforts to reach the villages and inhabitants of the Amazon Jungle will be in accordance with God’s perfect plans for making His name known among them.
- Please pray for our continued health and safety as we work in the Jungle of Peru.
- Please pray for the continued spiritual strengthening of our fellow Cocama family believers and the little churches that exist in jungle villages.
- Please pray for missionaries Sam and Marice Nicholson and Kyle and Alyissa Pean who give us great assistance for all the work we do in Peru.
John 17:3 This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent, Jesus Christ.
Website: www.cocamaproject.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/cocamaproject
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Peans-To-Peru-105816344993704/
In one of the toughest gang run barrios of San Pedro Sula you will find Ministerio Cristiano Peniel church. After years of faithfully preaching Jesus and ministering to the people in the barrio this church decided something else must be done to change the lives of the children and families living there. That was the birth of the School of Hope. Through quality education and the teachings of Jesus this school endeavors to change the culture of the barrio. In 2026 River Bend partnered with the School of Hope sponsoring every child entering pre-school. It is our plan to sponsor these children all the way through high school graduation. The School of Hope not only teaches children how to read and write but they offer parenting classes and job training. To change the culture of the Barrio they need to change the culture of families.
Pray for:
Luke and Maudie Watson serve in Barnaby, Canada. Luke graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2016 and he and Maudie began serving locally in Texas as part of the “Core Team” in their first church plant, International Baptist Church of Arlington. After seminary, they served in the Baptist Student Ministry with the Culture Connections international student group. In February 2020 Luke and Maudie traveled to Barnaby, Canada on a Vision Trip and are serving there today as church planters. “We are excited to witness the growth of their mission as they share God’s Word in Canada.”
Pray for:
- Pray for our evangelism and outreach. We make relationships with people in our community in many different ways.
- Please pray for our new Bible study. The people attending are folks we have met and befriended through outreach. Most are not Christians or have limited experience with Christianity. We are praying that some of them will receive Christ.
Acts 17:16-17 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/mark1045watsons Giving site: https://missionaries.namb.net/full/luke-watson Address: 231-368 Ellesmere Avenue, Burnaby, BC, Canada, Postal Code V5B3S9
The Wilson Family: Kobus, Marlene, Jacques and Wiehan joined River Bend Baptist Church in 2018. Then Marlene was doing mission work in Myanmar but because of the political unrest resulting in a civil war, she moved her ministry to Tanzania where she functions as the Director of the Disciples for Christ (DFC) Ministry. The DFC Ministry believes Jesus’ Great Commission was focused on seeing people brought to Christ, nurtured, discipled and made into strong disciples who will be trained to become disciple-makers, until the Gospel has been proclaimed to the ends of the earth. The DFC Ministry uses a cyclical training series to help those who attend, to grow in their knowledge of God, to help them grow into devoted and dependable disciples of Jesus Christ, whose lives are being transformed and at the same time who are being equipped to pass on what have been learned to others. DFC trainings in Tanzania are directed at Church leaders and their spouses, National Missionaries, Evangelists, Church Planters and Theological Students.
Both Kobus and Marlene were born South Africa and moved to the USA in 2003. Marlene served with AMG International as a missionary in Myanmar, Southeast Asia from 2005-2020 then moved her ministry to Tanzania.
Prayer:
Isaiah 41:9-10 I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, “You are My servant; I have chosen you and not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
In 2005 the Lord led our church to form a relationship with Andrew Mukasa in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania. At the time Andrew was attempting to raise funds to buy the building his church, Victory Centre, was meeting in. We were blessed to help him reach his goal and assist the church in securing a permanent home. Since then, Andrew has started 5 more churches and two pre-schools. Every week he conducts four radio broadcasts which reach up to 4 million people.
Pray for:
- Continued prayers for Andrew’s health
- Radio program reaching people in his country
- Christian soccer team in his country which he started to help spread the gospel through sports
- necessary financial resources
Psalm 65:11 You crown the year with Your goodness; Your ways overflow with plenty. Zechariah 8:23 The Lord of Hosts says this: “In those days, 10 men from nations of every language will grab the robe of a Jewish man tightly, urging: Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”
Jeff and Julie Johnson have been faithfully serving the Lord in missions for over 24 years. Serving everywhere from Central Asia, to a small town in New Hampshire, God has led them on quite a journey. But it is far from over. After becoming empty-nesters, Jeff and Julie felt the unquestionable moving of the Holy Spirit, one they have grown to know quite well, and relocated to Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Chaing Mai is strategically located in the northern part of Thailand, and many missionary organizations use this city to send missionaries into Myanmar, China, Vietnam, Laos, and many other nations.
Jeff and Julie lead a unique church which ministers to missionaries as they prepare to go to their mission locations or while they are taking a much-needed break.
Jeff has also been working with a team of missionaries translate the Bible into the langue of an unreached people group, the Lahu.
Pray for:
Colossians 3:16 “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
Website: https://letitdwell.weebly.com/
Several years ago Steve and Mercy Bolting joined River Bend and not only have they blessed us by their membership and helping us to reach this area for Jesus but they introduced us to Mercy’s father who leads a ministry in India. Dr. Joseph Samuel is a medical doctor who at the prompting of the Holy Spirit left his practice to continue the ministry established by his father. The ministry is called the Perambur Christian Church and God has called them to the following:
Church Planting, Pastor Training, Bible Seminars, Orphan and Widow Care Ministry, Evangelism, Medical Clinics, Bible Schools, Christian Mission Hospital, Christian school, A future orphanage
Dr. Samuel has visited us several times over the years, and he always brings an exciting word about the ministry. In June of 2008 we were able to raise enough funds to buy 78 bicycles for new pastors, what a blessing it was to know the gospel was going to spread into new areas.
Pray for:
-Dr. Samuel and his family’s health.
-This ministry as they continue to reach others through church planting.
Live Steaming
Groups
