The State of Gateway '08

Written by Ed Allen
Sunday, 01 June 2008 12:09

General Sermons

Our apologies, due to technical difficulties, the first few minutes of the sermon are missing. We've tried to capture the main points in the notes.

Sermon Notes

First, Three Current Concerns at Gateway

1. The building is not moving forward

• We started the process 4 years ago and thought we'd be in the building by Spring 2008.
• We're still a ways a way and that can create a sense of "stall."
• We started the building campaign (Up To Something Good) 2 1/2 years ago
  • Giving has been quite a bit short
  • We pledged aggressively ($1.8m)
  • Consultants tell us we should have collected approximately $1.3m by this time, but we're around $700k.
• We're still meeting in a school
  • Early on in Gateway, there were advantages to being in a school. Everyone had to be -- got to be -- involved.
  • But now, we've grown enough to have room for people to sit out and watch and not help. And some are doing that. We've got to remember that we are called and need to participate.
  • There are also disadvantages to being in a school. We're not yet at the point where those outweigh the advantages. We do need to remember though that God knows where we are at and He is in control.
• We are still 2.5+ years out from being in a building.

2. Giving is down

• Every year up until this year, through God's generosity through you, our giving has grown every year and almost every year, it has exceeded expenses. This has allowed us to build up a surplus of funds early in the life of our church.
• God has been good to us.
• But this year has been tough. We're approximately $90k down (expenses over income) and we are eating into that surplus because we've built a budget based on growth and we felt like God would bring it.
  • Long-term, if this continues, things could be compromised. Programs, staff, etc.

3. We haven't grown appreciably.

• We've consistently grown up until the past 3 years.
• People who study this say there are specific places where churches become different kinds of churches.
  • At about 100 people, a church moves from being a family church to a small church.
  • At about 300, a small church becomes a mid-sized church. We've been bumping up against this 300 mark and have not pressed through.
• 3 areas of focus:
  1. Structure and Leadership:
     • We have less than perfect leaders.
     • We may not be structured for that next level.
     • That is a call for prayer and a call for some effective strategic planning.
  2. The Right Approach:
     • We think that we're taking the right approach.
  3. The Right "Gimmick":
     • The right "gimmick" isn't going to do it.

Caution: The entire discussion above has nothing to do with God.

Other reasons

1. Spiritual warfare

• There has been an assault on the heart, will, and character of our leaders.
• The enemy does not want Gateway to succeed. He wants nothing more than to see us stall and get discouraged and become ineffective.

2. God's will

• There are unknown factors hidden in the will of God. We need to cry out to God.
• We've got to remember that God doesn't need America or Northern Virginia, but that we need God.

Things that Ed has felt that showed him that God would use Gateway mightily but have been challenged...

1. We didn't experience rapid growth, but it was consistent growth. That gave the sense that God is building, laying the foundation slowly. However, that has been challenged. Our growth has been flat for a few years.
2. Our core relationships have been amazingly frictionless, but there has been friction and conflict.
3. Connections that people seem to make at Gateway. People that dived into Gateway almost always stayed at Gateway unless they were moving out of the area. However, we have now had people who have dived in, but have now left.

Reasons that Ed feels that God is still up to something good here at Gateway.

1. Ed's dream – God wants a place where people come back to life in the context of community.
2. Our land – God has already given us the land. We need to pray that God will allow us to go in and take the land.
3. The people here at Gateway.
4. God is sovereign. God is in control and He does what He wills.
5. God loves people and He is still drawing people to Himself.
6. We live on the edge of one of the most important cities in the world and God wants to see this area drawn to Himself.

Summary of our challenges

• These are challenging times
  • God is up to any challenge.
  • There is not a nation or a group in the Bible that He didn't allow to go through challenges.
  • God allows us to go through challenges, because they strengthen us and drive our roots deeper.
• It's at least 2.5 years until our circumstances change and we get into a building, but that is 2.5+ years to get ready.
  • We've got to more than double our number of small group leaders
  • We've got to increase the capacity and depth of our teenagers and youth ministry...
  • We haven't really gotten ready over the past 2.5 years. It's time to get ready.

Five things that we need to do

1. Let's pray. Pray that God will allow us to meet the challenges. We need a desperation for God.
2. Let's connect. Connect and do life together. This fall we're going to reboot our home fellowships.
3. Let's give.
4. Let's talk.
5. Let's sing.

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Small Group Questions

Icebreaker:

What attracted you to Gateway?

Worship:

Matthew 16:16-19 Thank God for the victory He has given us in Jesus.

Application:

Pray for each of these as individual issues

1. Pray that we at Gateway would increase our passion for prayer
2. Pray that we at Gateway would have hearts for the unchurched
3. Pray that many people will trust Christ for salvation and get connected in us
4. Pray that we at Gateway would handle our money God’s way
5. Pray that the Home Fellowships would have true spiritual connections
6. Pray that individuals would “sing” understand their spiritual gifts and embrace their personal ministries
7. Take some time for personal prayer request