At 3349 Rubidoux Boulevard in Jurupa Valley, Life Church of God in Christ is a Bible-teaching, Christ-centered church known for a dynamic presentation of the Gospel, an extensive ministry network, and Life Christian Academy. Its rhythm centers on worship, prayer, Christian service, education, and outreach. Bishop Ron M. Gibson founded LIFE in Riverside in May 1987 with his wife, Evangelist LaVette D. Gibson. Over the following 24 years, the congregation grew from nine members to approximately 4,000. The church's work includes three Sunday worship gatherings, weekday Bible study, schools, ministries for children and adults, community evangelism, missions, healing, and care for families in bereavement.
Three Sunday Gatherings at 8, 10, and 6
Sunday worship takes place at 8:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., and 6:00 p.m. at the Rubidoux Boulevard church. All three gatherings are offered in person and streamed live through YouTube and Facebook. LIFE presents its teaching as Bible-based, Christ-centered, transparent, relevant, and intentionally dynamic.
The monthly pattern gives the congregation regular opportunities for Communion, baptism, and public affirmation of its children. Communion is served at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. on the first Sunday of each month. Water baptism takes place at 6:00 p.m. on the first Sunday, while child christenings are scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on the second Sunday.
Sunday School Spans Preschool Through Twelfth Grade
Children and adults have several Sunday School starting points:
- 8:00 a.m. in the chapel: Pre-K through kindergarten, with additional classes for children in first through eighth grades.
- 8:30 a.m. at the elementary school campus: a coed adult class and New Members Class.
- 10:00 a.m. in the chapel: preschool through fifth grade, plus sixth through twelfth grade.
COOL Church, the youth ministry, gathers at 10:00 a.m. on the second and fourth Sundays at the elementary school campus. The ministry exists to attract unchurched teens, connect young people with God and other believers, encourage faith in daily life, and equip them for ministry. Its approach uses contemporary aesthetics, modern music, high technology, drama, dance, and rap while remaining centered on healing, Scripture, holiness, and the Gospel.
Midweek Prayer, Bible Study, and Morning Manna
Morning Manna begins at 6:45 a.m. Tuesday through Friday. Wednesday has a fuller schedule. The Abundant Life Bible Study meets at 12:15 p.m., then intercessory prayer gathers in the sanctuary at 6:00 p.m. At 7:00 p.m., adults meet for Bible Study with Bishop Gibson, children ages 3 to 11 meet with the Sunshine Band, and youth ages 12 to 18 attend Youth Bible Study. Thursday's schedule includes band rehearsal at 5:30 p.m. and praise team rehearsal at 7:00 p.m. Together, these gatherings provide corporate teaching, focused prayer, and age-specific fellowship.
Mentoring Through Different Seasons of Life
The Brotherhood of Life is a Monday night mentoring program for boys and young men. Weekly faith-based lessons combine open discussion and activities around manhood, male sexuality, relationships, money, job interviews, college preparation, and career choice. Activities also include games, live entertainment, poetry, outings, camping, and educational field trips. The program is facilitated by Brotherhood Committee members, with in-house teachers and outside assistance when needed.
A separate Daddy's Girls gathering for ages 8 through 21 meets Monday from 6:30 to 8:45 p.m., beginning with a light dinner and continuing with a general session and breakouts. First Lady LaVette Gibson and the Daddy's Girls leadership team lead that gathering.
Marriage, Women, and Practical Support
Married couples participate in M.O.R.E., an acronym for Making Our Relationship Extraordinary, directed by Elder Roy and Cecelia Bennett. Monthly meetings are scheduled for the third Friday, with activities that include marriage classes, seminars, retreats, worship, couples' outings, drama, marriage conferences, prayer, and marital and premarital counseling. The ministry seeks to help couples build love, peace, romance, financial responsibility, and shared purpose rather than simply preserve a marriage.
The Christian Women's Council, led by President Angie Williams, provides instruction, encouragement, and support for women through its monthly meetings. Discussion topics include parenting, relationships, mentoring, finances, and family concerns. Its larger aim is to strengthen women in their homes, relationships, work in the church, and service in the community.
The Young Women's Fellowship serves women ages 18 to 35, married or single. Through a Christian-service focus, it addresses spiritual growth, finding a Godly mate, building a home, parenting, and career building. Nicole Ford, Monica Penland, and Martha Watkins serve as co-presidents under the direction of First Lady LaVette Gibson.
Outreach That Reaches the Community
The Life Evangelism Outreach Ministry goes into the community on the second and fourth Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m. Its methods include one-to-one conversations, door-to-door outreach, street preaching, and door hangers, with an emphasis on evangelistic training and monthly distribution of materials. Training meets on the second and fourth Thursday evenings at 6:30 p.m. Sonya Fowler serves as evangelism leader.
The Missions Department frames its work as sharing the Gospel and reaching people who are less fortunate, with support for the weak as a central scriptural responsibility. H.E.A.L., or God's Healing Hands, spreads the Gospel by communicating love to sick people, older adults, and widows. Its directors, Elder Fletcher and Tina Brinson, also encourage and pray for people in hospitals, convalescent homes, retirement homes, and special care facilities. The Consolation Ministry serves families during seasons of bereavement, seeking to minister with love and draw grieving people closer to God.
Through a separate Community Development Corporation, Bishop Gibson established a home for young men who are wards of the Juvenile Delinquent System. The vision was for those young men to experience the redemptive work of Christ that had changed Ron Gibson's own life. Giving is also available through the church's online giving option.
Life Christian Academy at the Rubidoux Campus
Life Christian Academy's preschool is at 3270 Rubidoux Boulevard in Jurupa Valley. Child-care options range from part-time attendance at 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to full-day schedules beginning as early as 6:00 a.m. and ending as late as 6:00 p.m. The program includes a two-year-old potty-training class, a class for three- and early four-year-olds, and a class for four- and five-year-olds. Payment plans include weekly, semi-monthly, and monthly options, with discounts for additional children in the same family.
The adjoining school campus also hosts the 8:30 a.m. adult and New Members classes and the second- and fourth-Sunday COOL Church gathering, connecting the academy with the church's wider family and youth ministries.
Salvation as LIFE Explains It
LIFE presents salvation as God's plan to free people from the consequences of sin and describes being saved or born again as the most important experience in life. Its teaching asks four direct questions: Do you want to be forgiven and saved? Do you believe Jesus Christ died for you? Are you willing to repent of sin and follow the Lord for the rest of your life? Do you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that God forgives sin and cleanses from unrighteousness?
A person who answers yes is invited to pray, confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, receive the new birth, and believe that the Holy Spirit now dwells within. The church connects salvation with a transformed life, describing the believer as a child of God whose old things have passed away. Its teaching stresses trust in God's Word rather than feelings.
What LIFE Believes
LIFE's core beliefs affirm the Bible as the inspired and only infallible Word of God and one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Salvation is described through repentance, faith in the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and acceptance of the gospel, with regeneration by the Holy Spirit essential for personal salvation. LIFE also believes that Christ's redemptive work provides healing for the human body in answer to believing prayer, that baptism in the Holy Spirit is given to believers who ask for it according to Acts 2:4, and that the Holy Spirit's indwelling enables believers to live a holy and separated life. The church also affirms the Blessed Hope of the Church of God being caught up at Christ's return.
Built by Bishop Ron and Evangelist LaVette Gibson
Ron Gibson received his early Christian training at Paradise Church of God in Christ, later renamed Faithful, and was licensed as a minister in 1981. He was ordained an elder by Bishop J. A. Blake Sr. in 1982. His early years included ministry and service in Southern California First Jurisdiction, followed by a period away from church before he committed his life to the Lord at 25. Those experiences became part of a ministry to people who needed to see the delivering power of Christ.
In May 1987, Ron Gibson became the founding pastor of Life Church of God in Christ in Riverside, and LaVette Gibson helped establish the church that same month. The couple had moved to Riverside in 1983 for ministry. Ron Gibson later served as an administrative assistant to the jurisdictional prelate, and in 2011 he was consecrated as Prelate of the Dominican Republic Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction. He, LaVette, and a small ministry team began work in the Dominican Republic in January 2012.
Ron Gibson earned a B.A. in organizational management with a biblical studies minor from Vanguard University in 1997 and received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Saint Thomas Christian College in 2003. LaVette Gibson studied religion and biblical studies at Southern California College, now Vanguard University, graduating in 1980. The couple has conducted numerous revivals throughout Southern California and continued their shared ministry in Riverside and the Dominican Republic.
Beginning in 2000, Ron Gibson made four ministry trips to South Africa and Kenya, carrying the Gospel and providing financial support to ministries in need. LIFE also sponsored the Christian broadcast Living in Fullness Everyday for ten years, and Bishop Gibson helped establish the annual Koinonia Conference to promote fellowship among varied segments of the Body of Christ. LaVette Gibson's church responsibilities have included leading Women of Life, the Missionary Unit, and the New Members' Class, teaching the Wednesday Abundant Life Bible Study, and serving as an advisor to Life Christian Academy Preschool.
Coming to a Sunday Gathering
The main worship address is 3349 Rubidoux Boulevard, Jurupa Valley, California 92509. The church's administrative office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. A Sunday can be shaped around three worship times. Families with children can arrive early for the 8:00 a.m. Sunday School, use the 8:30 a.m. adult and New Members classes, or choose the 10:00 a.m. gathering, while older children and youth have dedicated classes. Worship is available both in person and through the church's live streams, and the 6:00 p.m. service includes first-Sunday water baptism.
A Church Centered on the Bible
LIFE's schedule is broad, but its pattern is consistent: gather for biblical worship, study and prayer, form people through mentoring and schools, and carry faith into the surrounding community. Sunday's three services, Wednesday's classes, Morning Manna, COOL Church, the H.E.A.L. and Consolation ministries, the academy, and community outreach all belong to one church centered on the Bible and service to God and others. At 3349 Rubidoux Boulevard, LIFE Church of God in Christ remains a congregation built around worship, instruction, family care, and mission.