World Changers

Gateway Fellowship is in the third year of this exciting mission project for students and their families.  The mission of World Changers seeks to provide Christian youth and adults with opportunities to meet the physical and spiritual needs of others through practical learning experiences that teach servanthood and personal commitment to missions.  Groups are typically housed in local schools, churches, or college facilities. Breakfast and dinner are provided cafeteria-style at the lodging site. Lunch is provided at the work site by local churches. In preparation for the week, youth are required to complete a pre-project study based on the theme, Set Apart, including a local work project.  For 2011, our student ministry and adults traveled to Salt Lake City, UT for the second year and participated in roofing, building, painting and landscaping projects.  Four of our men were project crew leaders and supervised the re-roofing of homes in South Salt Lake.  The work was very hard but the students and adults can’t wait to go on the next trip.  The 2012 World Changers trip will be to Joplin, MO to help in the rebuilding of that community and our students are already busy raising their individual funds to go.

Arizona SBC Disaster Relief

So far, eleven Members of Gateway Fellowship are trained in disaster relief.  When they are called out they go.  Training is supplied every spring by the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention.  Arizona has  kitchen unit, mud out unit, chainsaw crew and chaplains that provide spiritual guidance.  Our teams have been everywhere from  Baton Rouge for Hurricane  Gustav to California for the wild fires in 2008 to Northern Arizona for flooding.   Disaster relief provides a unique opportunity to translate the message and person of Jesus Christ into flesh and blood as His followers respond in love and compassion to hurting people regardless of circumstances, social status, financial situation, language, political persuasion, theological stance, education or race. ‘As you do unto these, you do unto me’ remains the guideline for ministry to people in and through disaster relief.”  Their simple saying is “A cup of cold water in Jesus’ name”.

Prison Ministry

Members of the Prison Ministry of Gateway travel to the prisons in Florence, AZ and Eloy, AZ several times a month to minister to those confined to small cells as they serve their time.  Our men bring the good news of God’s Word in group Bible studies and one on one ministry to men who are desperately needing encouragement.  Several of our men even minister to the men on death row.  This specialized ministry is difficult at times, but reaps an eternal harvest for those who receive Christ because of hearing God’s Word.

Casa de Amor

Throughout the year, Gateway Fellowship members and visitors bring clothing, household goods and non-perishable food to help stock the Baptist Center known as Casa de Amor.  This mission outreach site ministers to the homeless and low income families in the East Valley.  Special emphasis campaigns through the year include a Back-to-School drive for a local elementary school where over 90% of the children come from poverty-level homes, Thanksgiving & Christmas food drives, and a water drive for the homeless in the summer.  Gateway members have the opportunity to volunteer time to sort and distribute clothing and food, teach computer literacy classes, teach Spanish language Bible studies, and translate for the CdA staff.  Casa de Amor is located at 819 S MacDonald in Mesa, AZ.  Contact the Center Director, June Carbine, at 480-464-2877 for more information.