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River of Life Ministries

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“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
John 7:38 NKJV

Announcements – July 8, 2026

Current River of Life study focus: Judges, Ruth, and Romans.

July 11: Pastors Tim and Trina Johnson, who evangelize and pastor in the Dominican Republic, will be ministering in both services.

July 15: Pastors Baker will lead us in a graduation-related sermon and celebration for Alexandra Vander Vliet. Cards and gifts are welcome.

July 18: There will be a birthday offering for Deacon Ron Slawson.

July 18: In the second service, Victoria Gonzalez’s sister, Karen Duran, will be ministering the Word.

July 20: ROLLWMS will have a work night at the church from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM.

July 25: This is the next ROLLWMS meeting. ROLLWMS students will share during the first service. We will share the Lord’s Supper during the second service.

July 26: We will begin studying the deity of Christ and the prophetic words in Scripture concerning Him. A study sheet will be provided.

July 31: This is the next due date for all unreviewed student work.

August 15: There will be a birthday offering for Deacon John Roark.

August 22: There will be a birthday offering for Pastor Karen Vander Vliet.

Advance notice—Feast of Tabernacles: We will celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles during both Sabbath services on September 26. On Wednesday, September 30, we will have the Roll Call of Nations.

Schedule reminder: As always, please be aware that events may be disrupted by unforeseen circumstances and that arrangements can sometimes change.

Light Force: Each Saturday night until after Labor Day, September 7, River of Life does street ministry. We meet at 7:30 PM by Kilwins in downtown Grand Rapids, which is right by Rosa Parks Circle, kitty-corner from the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel.

When we start, we pray together. After prayer, we minister to people. Around 8:30 PM, we return to the place where we started and share highlights from our ministry encounters. We close with prayer.

We trust the Lord to lead us to whomever He wants us to reach that night. We do not have any particular “targets” in mind. Over the years, we have prayed for active Christians, backsliders, and unbelievers. We have touched the hearts of both rich and poor people.

We prefer that you be extremely cautious about giving money to the needy during the stated hour of ministry. Grand Rapids is blessed with quite a few programs that meet the needs of the poor. River of Life regularly sends money to a few of those programs, including the Salvation Army, Guiding Light, and Mel Trotter Ministries.

If it is 68 degrees or below, or if it is raining, we will not do this ministry that night. Please check the weather at 7:00 PM and react accordingly.

The instructions stated here refer to our “official” Light Force time. However, how wonderful it would be if people also chose to minister independently and unofficially downtown or in other places at any time.

In-service prayer time: We have a rotation of prayer leaders for Sabbath at 9:30 AM and Wednesday at 6:30 PM. Our prayer leaders are Robert, Annie, Edie, Dylan, Karen Cook, Hannah, Karen Vander Vliet, Karen Roark, and Cliff.

Hannah oversees the prayer rotation schedule. Please let her know when you cannot take your scheduled turn. You may contact her at Hannah.Menninga@gmail.com.

Wednesday night service speakers: Pastor Cliff Baker schedules the Wednesday night speakers. He will send notices to the speakers asking them to tell him when they are available to speak.

Please let Cliff know if you cannot keep a scheduled speaking time. He will make sure someone speaks in your place. Please do not arrange a replacement yourself. You may contact Cliff at cliffanniebaker@comcast.net.

If it is a last-minute situation, such as the day before or the day of your scheduled speaking time, please let Rosemary know because she is always willing to fill in for people.

The speakers are Cliff and Annie Baker, Karen Roark, Karen Cook, Karen Vander Vliet, and Hannah Schneider. Richard Menninga is a backup speaker.

To the speakers: In the rare event that Robert and Rosemary make another plan for a Wednesday night on which you are scheduled to speak, you may preach your sermon another time. Please tell Cliff that you need to be rescheduled.

Senior singles: This group, for singles aged fifty-five and older, meets in the fellowship hall on the first Sabbath of every month after the second service, unless announced otherwise.