|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Location:
6425 Jefferson Rd. For
directions, click here.
FROM
THE PASTOR From The
primary Hebrew word we translate as
"wait" means not just "to wait" but "to
look for, or expect." The Greek word
translated "wait" has the connotation
of "expecting fully." Note that neither
the Hebrew nor the Greek suggests
inaction. We
began talking about a new facility for
Gateway Church many years ago. But,
frankly, for a long time we really
didn't do much more than talk. I guess
we were waiting on God in the wrong
way! Seven
years ago, we started taking action and
purchased property on the Jefferson
Highway. Three ago that we received
what we believed to be a prophetic word
that we could be in a new building in
18 months if we were united, prayed,
and believed God. The
timing hasn't worked out as we thought,
but I believe the message for us now is
to be strong, take heart, and wait for
the Lord. In other words, we are to
"fully expect" Him to finish what has
been started. We
have good reason for such expectation.
God has not been inactive in our
pursuit for a new facility. When we
started moving, He started
moving. He
led us to a specific piece of property
seven years ago. Eventually, we
purchased a total of 15 acres for
$165,000. Now we're selling less than
one third of that land to the Georgia
Department of Transportation for
$160,000. The property we have
remaining is valued at
$280,000. In
other words, when the transaction with
the DOT is complete, we have spent a
net amount of $5,000 for land worth 56
times that amount! That looks like a
"God thing" to me! Our
"Rise Up and Build Campaign" a few
months ago was extremely successful. We
received more than $130,000 in pledges
to be paid by the end of this
year. Yes,
we still have a ways to go in
fundraising, but when the pledge funds
are combined with the DOT proceeds, we
will be close to being able to start
construction. We even have a reasonable
expectation of being able to construct
this building without debt! And
there's more! In recent weeks, we've
been able rework our building design so
that we will have enough space to hold
both our worship services and our
discipleship classes in the new
building. A few months ago, we thought
we wouldn't have enough space to make
that possible. Praise
God from whom all blessings flow!
Yes,
we're close. But we're still "waiting
on" God for the rest of the elements to
come into place. But while we're
waiting, we must not be sitting still!
There are things we need to
do. One
of the most important is to spend time
in specific prayer! I
need you to pray: (3)
that God would provide the means for
everyone to pay their pledges on
time; (4)
that the Lord of all creation would
give us favor with the charitable
foundations from which we are
requesting grants; (5)
that He would give us favor with
government officials who must review
and approve our plans; (6)
that we would choose the right
contractor for the
construction; (7)
that in all this we would conduct
ourselves in a manner that would
honor Jesus Christ. Let
me quote my good friend, Charles
Sineath, a wonderful man of God who
recently retired as pastor of a church
in Marietta: "It is God's work, done
God's way, in God's timing that will
not lack God's provision." I
believe that. I'm asking you to believe
it with me. As we
wait on God together, let's wait
actively -- on our knees -- praying,
trusting, hoping, and fully expecting.
God
really does love you! And so does the
preacher! See
you in church Sunday!
Gateway
Church gathers
for worship
Sundays
at 10:30 a.m.
(Hwy. 129) in Athens,
Georgia.
Ministry
of the
Word:
Recent
sermons
Our quarterly e-magazine
Gateway
Today
For the Gateway family
The
Gateway
Blog
(online
newsletter)
Gateway
Today
The
e-magazine of
Gateway Church
WINTER
2003
Waiting
on God
Wait for the LORD; be strong and
take heart and wait for the LORD.
(Psalm 27:14)
For
reasons we don't always understand, God
has a specific timetable for
accomplishing His work in the world.
Often, His timetable isn't the same as
ours. This is why the Scriptures
instruct us to "wait on the
Lord."
Some
people have the idea that waiting is
just sitting around doing nothing --
like waiting to see the doctor. That's
not the kind of waiting the Bible is
talking about.
by
Jerry
Sermons
Be
encouraged!
Active
waiting(1)
for Kjierstin Fellerer, the
architect working on our
plans;
(2)
for the pastor and building
committee as decisions are being
made about the project;
Looking
unto Jesus
