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Maranatha Chapel is a non-denominational evangelical Christian church, in fellowship with Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa. This informal association includes the sharing of philosophical and spiritual values and the participation by our pastors in intra-church conferences .  

Founded in August 1984, Pastor Ray Bentley started teaching a midweek Bible study in a recreation center, with 30 people. After three months, the fellowship outgrew the center and began Sunday morning services at a local junior high school.

The new church continued to grow; by the end of 1986, while still meeting in the junior high school, over 1100 people were attending, necessitating three morning services plus an evening service.

On March 17th 1990, Maranatha Chapel dedicated its first facility, on 4.5 acres in San Diego's north county community of Rancho Peñasquitos. The church held three Sunday morning services and added a "Sunday morning" service on Saturday nights, to make more room for growth and the attendance soon grew to over 3000.

In the summer of 1996, Maranatha broke ground at our current facility on 15 acres in Rancho Bernardo.The building was completed in the fall of 1997 dedicating a new 3000 seat sanctuary, new Sunday School buildings, and a 3000 square foot Bookstore and Cafe.

The school, grades K-12, is now located on a beautiful 17.5-acre site approximately two miles west of Maranatha Chapel on Maranatha Drive off of Camino Del Sur.

Maranatha Chapel currently serves nearly 7000 people, offering solid through-the-Bible life application teaching that has become a brand of Pastor Ray's ministry. Ray's teachings are broadcast locally on KWVE 107.9 as well as four weekly live-streaming webcasts and two weekly archived services.

Maranatha's publishing arm, IN THE WORD Ministries, produces a variety of printed and audio resouces for study. Hundreds of Pastor Ray's messages are archived at www.maranathachapel.tv, in addition to special events and various speakers and teaching on video media. Come check it out!