Today we are meeting in the ARC center, with some of the Pastors of Gateway Christian Fellowship. This is primarily a meeting for the Life Group Leaders (Shepherds); but today our entire Life Group is joining. We started with a couple testimonies, followed by some words by Pastor Brian.
Brother Al :My wife and I have been in the ministry for 20 years, and we decided (after prayer) to make a change and leave our church. That was 14 months ago. In
one day I lost all my friends and pastoral associates. We hid for 14 months "licking our wounds." But we should have known better. We were asked to get involved with Gateway. Things started moving forward, then one day I was paralyzed with inaction. We came to the last Shepherd's meeting. Pastor Brian invited people to take a step and be Shepherds and he shared his vision. At that moment we became re-invigorated. Then Pastor Scott led us in prayer. And on the way home, both my wife and I both realized that we were both moved deeply.
I asked, is everything going to happen again? Am I going to lose everything again, down the road.
John 21:15-17 Read it as if you are Simon Peter. "When they finished breakfast Jesus asked, Simon do you love me more than these..." Three times, and Peter was grieved. But it was not about Peter and this is not about me. That is why Paul said I pour myself out like a drink offering...Paul was poured out and not burnt out. (
Phil 2:17)There is a difference.
The work we have been given is important work...Tending the sheep.
Pastor Scott:If you have spiritual ears and spiritual eyes, you can learn something from anyone.
Sister Carol:I am called for the ministry of deliverance. When I prayed, people would throw up, and I realized they were being delivered. We moved into a new home and at 10:30pm at night, my doorbell rang. A mother was on her way to the hospital with a young daughter on the verge of a nervous breakdown. But on her way, she remembered we were involved with healing and deliverance. My husband and I brought the woman's daugher into the house and we let her pour her heart out to us about the rejection in her life. Rejection from parents, boyfriends, etc. I then said, Sweetheart you are so fortunate, you are at a crossroads of your life. I began to share about the cross and what Jesus could do in her life. She accepted Christ. I told her that I was wounded as a child, and abused. And I told that girl, that she would surpass me and leave me in a cloud of dust. I told Pastor Brian and Candace that I wanted to minister to those who were wounded by rejection. Half-a-dozen people came, I cooked meatloaf and everyone was raving about it. Then I began to minister, yet, there was a new young girl, who had a spirit of rebellion. Then I immediately cast out that spirit in the name of Jesus. Then everyone ran to the bathroom and started throwing up. I thought it was my meatloaf. It wasn't. There is nothing that compares to your fulfillment with watching the lives being changed.
Bob Jones died and went to heaven. The one question God asked was "Did you learn how to love?" This is what these life groups are about.
Pastor Brian:The health of the church is in your hands (the shepherds). On Sundays, some people who come in know very little about each other and the Lord. We have all kinds of people from non-churchgoers to deep Christians. Bob Jones told asked me repeatedly, "What are you going to do when 8,000 people come to your church?" We are all priests and it is not a one-man show. Every member at Gateway is to be involved in ministry. "
If you clean the toilets or raise the dead, the pay is the same in God's kingdom." --Bob Jones.
When we understand who we are in God, we won't look at men, the size of ministry, etc. "
Outer Court Ministry" is
repentance based. "
Holy Place Ministry" is
revelation based.
(
Zech 4:6)
Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord.You do
not have a ministry or an anointing. It is
HIS ministry and
HIS anointing. What are we going to do when 8,000 people come to Gateway?
God spoke to
Chuck Pierce, and told him to go to Burlington VT. Chuck said that God told him to announce that the awakening has begun! They still can barely talk about what has happened.
Earlier this year,
John Paul Jackson said when the Connecticut river would flood there would be an awakening.
Last night,
Yom Kippur began. My wife and I were fasting and praying. The Holy Spirit was there all night. The Lord told me his people had itching ears and in 2006, a wave of deception would hit the church--a message watered down. This is not a feel-good moment. It is more than just that. Who knows what is yet going to come? We need to be ready, God is about to do something powerful. I am so encouraged that you are here, and I am so discouraged that others aren't. We have a church of 1100-1300 people. We need more leaders, more people. There were 1400 people who came to Gateway last Easter.
We need to start
common cause groups--people who have a common burden but are not connected. What about a bunch of people who care about the poor? Join Life Groups that are near you, as well as those that have the same cause.
I want to have
online small groups. I want to have e Groups. With a Moderator. Every now and then they can meet face-to-face. I want to have an online pastor that comes in at 6pm and works until midnight. All 25-year olds do that and sleep-in the next morning. I have one in my basement. Pray with me that God would give me understanding and wisdom. What about a Brazilian pastor who ministers online to the Brazilian community.
The five Biblical reasons we need small groups:2 Cor 1:3-7Have you ever been comforted by someone who went through the same situation you went through? Or did you comfort someone who faced the same circumstances you did? A divorce, a miscarriage, a period of depression, etc.
1.
Comfort. Small Group members comfort one another. A fellow sufferer touches you emotionally better than a "know-it-all" can. We need the sweet comfort of the Holy Spirit in our Life Groups. Twenty percent of our church are moved deeply by God when I speak...another 20% are simply moved...60% are not touched at all when they leave. But perhaps, the next Sunday they are touched.
In small groups 80% are touched
weekly.
2.
Confession. Small Groups provide a safe environment for confession. I want you to provide a safe environment for the emotionally unstable, or drug addicted to come out of the closet or to get some help. Confession is a primary pathway to
Community. As a leader, you hang out your dirty laundry, or provide an environment of confession, and they feel safe enough to tell you they were raped three years ago. And that opens the door to healing. We are bringing more people to Jesus Christ than any small church I know. That was not the case when the church was 300 people. That is the dynamic of the large church.
When we don't want to come to the group that is when we are having problems. When the Kuna Indians began to backslide, we would tell them we would have the meeting at
their house! They came out of darkness to His marvelous light!
James 5:16 First confession and prayer,
then comes healing. Leaders are doormats.
Song of Solomon 7.
3.
Companions. Small groups provide close companions. You can't get intimate with 1200 people on a Sunday morning. Jesus
sent out 70, He
chose 12 but John was the
one who leaned on His breast.
4.
Listen. Small groups teach us to listen. Everybody needs to be heard. It is important to be a listener. People talk out of their insecurity. They fill space with words. Let a person finish, don't interrupt.
5.
Laughter. Small Group Fellowship incites laughter.
Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine.
Jim Carrey is the wealthiest actor in the world. He makes money making people laugh. Tickle people when they come in. :-) People don't want to come and cry every week. "A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,..."
Proverbs 15:30 The deep emotional need of hearts is met only by small group dynamics, not by a large church.
