We are so afraid to ask God to give us patience. This is because we're afraid that he will dump the worst junk into our lives and then tell us to just be patient with it all. But what if that was not patience? In this message we will look at how to be "aggressively kind" and "actively patient".

This second message in the "Spicy Living" sermon series focuses on the Spice of Caring. God gives a privilege to the Righteous Ones to care for His needs as they are found in elements of society that others have neglected. In the end, this spice is to be delivered by pinches, not by handfuls.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus asks a question for which he expects no answer: "What can salt do if it isn't salty any more?" The reason he doesn't expect an answer is that salt never becomes non-salty. In the same respect, the believer in Jesus Christ, by virtue of their presence in this world is the salt of the earth. If we aren't, then why are we here? This message is the first in a ten-part series celebrating what kind of a difference we can make in  this world.

Today's Christian thinks of themselves in terms of their individual growth and happiness. That is not primarily how the Church was originally designed to run. This message focuses on how the Body of Christ can really build itself up and see growth that lasts and maturity that amazes.

One smart aleck college student asked: "I'm not interested in life after death; I'm interested in life before life after death". That statement represents some of the population. But a much higher percentage of the population want to know what will happen after we die. In this message we start with the words of The Princess Bride and end with 22 people surrendering their lives to Christ. This service is full of salvation.

And Remember these words of Correction:  Energizer Bunny, Energizer Bunny, Energizer Bunny (my children spent the evening torturing me for this).

On what we call Palm Sunday, Jesus came to the Temple in Jerusalem and turned everything upside down - both literally and figuratively. The Bible also tells us that God does not live in temples made by hands. The temple of God now is the believer in God. He lives in us. This message focuses on how God can clean up those things that stand in the way of others finding God.

The tension between wanting to trust someone and not knowing who we can trust can cause many problems. But in this drive to change and be agents of change, there must at least be a faith/trust in God that endures. In this message, we explore why that is hard, and how to make it more straightforward.

The road to change is sometimes smooth, but most often it faces opposition at many stages. The greatest reinforcement we have is the Holy Spirit. This message focuses on the help the Spirit gives us as we pray for change and make the initial steps to change.

The time has come to discuss how we are going to take the real changes that God has placed in our life and engage with the evil we find all around us: Including our own family trees. This message will take up the cause of engaging the evil in this world through strategically assessing the situation and prayerfully acting.

Once God begins to communicate his burden to you (as in "My yoke is easy and my burden is light), it is then time to take it out into real life. In order to make us successful in the fulfillment of His calling, God helps us with the Burdens by giving us guideposts along the way, insights into the mysteries we are called to understand.

Coded orders are given to a military unit because they are for their eyes only. In the Kingdom of God, it is not so much that God wants to keep secrets as much as He wants every person to concentrate on the particular assignments He gives them and not everyone else's. As we consider the kind of changes that God wants to make in our personal world, we would be well advised to learn how to interpret God's coded orders to each of us.

The secret is not so hard to understand. The secret is not that difficult to put into practice...occasionally. The secret to making permanent changes in your life isn't just obvious, it is workable. But so few people really make it work that it acts like a huge "secret". What is the secret? Listen closely to this message.

Our goal is to see changes happen in our lives. God's goal goes deeper than that. Not only does God want to see change, but He wants it to be exactly the right change that our lives need right now. Only God has that kind of intelligence to understand what we need. We don't even possess it. Just as the Army needs the right intel to make the proper military moves, so we need God's intelligence in the process of becoming the Army of God that makes a difference in this world.

This message begins a brand-new sermon series, exploring and explaining the foundation of Gateway Fellowship's viewpoint on personal change as a Christian and the role that Intercessory Prayer plays with that. The series is called "The Delta Force" and this first message explains the role of the commander of the Delta Force. The Delta symbol in scientific circles represents the measurement of change in a given experiment or series of observations. Come experience what it can mean to appoint a new commander to the changes which you and God know must take place in your life.

Pastor Rick Gall of Gateway Fellowship explores the meaning behind Isaiah chapter 6.

This message focuses on the Government of Jesus as He comes to make his Presence felt in the world. We also have two readings from a collection of stories that were never published about God's miracle working power at Christmas.

Angels are messengers sent by God to announce the mighty works of God. They have been in that capacity since they were created. And they know how to party. In this final message on "The Jesus Party" we look at what the angels get excited about and what they have to teach us by example in this world in the throes of anxiety and depression. The angels know how to party and they are willing to teach us by example.

When Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding in Galilee, the Gospel writer John mentions that this was a sign. The word "sign" means something of importance which has deeper meaning. This miracle, performed at a party, tells us so much about how the Kingdom of God is for blessings and delights. At this party, Jesus brings the wine.

In this second message in the series titled "The Jesus Party" we explore the parable of the Prodigal Son. In this instance, we look not at the return home of the wayward one but rather the celebratory reaction of the father and the poopish reaction of the older brother. In seeing their contrasting emotions we are confronted with our own choices: Do we really love seeing other people changed by God's power?

During this regular service of Gateway Fellowship, the entire second half of the service was devoted to the stories of people whose lives were changed by God and wanted to reflect that by being baptized. After these testimonies, Pastor Mike gave a invitation to receive Christ and 15 people responded by surrendering their lives and being forgiven of their sins. Enjoy these wonderful stories.

From the beginning of time, God has thrown a party for His people. But at the very time when God began to offer the party to us, another party began. This party was unlike God's party. It promised more than it could deliver...in fact, all it delivers is thievery, murder and mayhem. But the God party delivers as much blessing and joy as you can imagine. You have to choose between the two parties...every day.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is given the task of investigating and cleaning up areas of toxic waste and poison to the environment. But that only applies to the physical world. Who will clean up the toxic attitudes that infest our workplaces, homes and entertainment? In this message, the prelude the Thanksgiving week, we embark on an epic journey. From the teaching of Jesus, we will learn what it looks like to live free of toxins in our attitudes and walk in victory through three simple principles.

In our lives, we make decisions and we live by those decisions, but even with the most well-prayed and well-thought out plans, there are delays and detours that cannot be avoided. Some of these delays are from God and some of the detours are not. But there is a process we can enter through regardless of where the changes in plans come from.

Those who have made their living with bold decisions will always tell you that living boldly is the way to go. Those who have thrived with caution and careful planning will tell you that caution is a virtue. But when we look at what it means to live decisively, it actually turns out to be an amazing mixture of boldness and caution. The Bible points out, in the pivotal moment of Jesus' life, what really made him a decisive man. This message explores that moment.

Life is full of difficult decisions: Relationship decisions, health decisions, location, vocation and legal decisions. Many times we think we are making the best decisions only to have them turn out as disasters. In this three-part series we will look at the primary biblical principles involved with making difficult decisions

Builders of new homes in America cannot allow mold to exist in any quantity or form, or else they face the threat of lawsuit. Mold is a greater problem than almost anything else facing a homeowner because it is a living organism, and if left to flourish, it can totally destroy the house. This is very much like sin. In this final message in the series on "The Proper Care and Feeding of Your Soul" we will look at how the soul can be scrubbed clean regularly so that the "moldy" effects of sin can be eliminated or at least greatly reduced.

One complaint of many church-goers is that some in leadership in churches use their authority to control or manipulate others. But the alternative to that is to have a church where there is no authority. In this message we will examine the spiritual implications to authority and how God has designed a unique balancing principle to help prevent spiritual abuse of authority

Do you feel like there are days that you fight an internal battle you just aren't winning? Perhaps the battle isn't against any particular sin or temptation, but ideas, emotions and attitudes that just won't quit and are fighting against the peace we want to maintain. In this series, we have talked about achieving a state of peace, joy and freedom. This message will help with the difficult task of staying there.

Though John 4 does tell us that God is seeking those who will worship in "spirit and in truth", this does not mean that worship leaves out the soul. In actuality, the soul reaps many benefits from worship. Come explore Psalm 103 and see how worship can take an old dilapidated bird and turn it back into a soaring sentinel of the sky.

Back in 2000, one of the most well-read magazines in the country published their annual issue of the 50 most Popular people in the world. On that list were at least 20 people who would not make the list five years later. Popularity is like that; and so are people. One thing that this world teaches us is that everything changes over time. The one exception will be carefully laid out in this message.