Recently I was at Gateway Fellowship Church in Helotes, Texas. Gateway was one of the first churches that CMN partnered with to provide Matching Funds for their launch.

While at Gateway, I was reminded again why I love being part of a movement that is committed to starting vigorous new churches everywhere. I asked each attendee to reflect on where he or she had been in their spiritual journey two years ago - before Gateway Fellowship existed. Then I asked them to consider their current spiritual condition. Next, I asked them to raise their hand if they had experienced significant spiritual growth because of the ministry of Gateway Fellowship. I estimate that 90% of the congregants raised their hands. Finally, I asked them to consider the consequences if Gateway had never been born. It turned into an “It’s a Wonderful Life” moment. Clearly, Gateway has been used by God to bring significant spiritual transformation to a group of previously lost folks and for them the idea that Gateway might never have been started was unthinkable.

In the last couple of years, well over 500 AG leaders like John and Stephanie Van Pay (lead planters of Gateway) have said “yes” to God’s call and stepped out in faith to start a new congregation somewhere in America. These new churches have impacted the lives of tens of thousands of people who, in turn, have impacted their communities with a fresh manifestation of God’s love, truth and grace. Thousands of persons and their communities forever impacted by the power of the gospel. Imagine the tragedy if those 500 plus churches had never been born. It is unthinkable.

Here’s something else I find unthinkable. What if God has called you to lead or be part of the start-up process of a new church or satellite, but you choose to go in a different direction? Don’t let that happen to you in 2010 or any year for that matter. Too much is at stake. Jesus said He would build His Church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. When the church is built, people and communities are transformed. When no church is built, our only hope is in commerce or government or just plain luck, and that is unthinkable.