Gateway Church Austin

God is not surprised when we sin, and there’s nothing we can do to hide our failures from Him. Thankfully, Jesus offers grace and mercy to those who put their trust in Him! But He also tells us to “go and sin no more.” Knowing that we all fall short and will continue to make mistakes, what do Jesus’ words really mean for us?

When Jesus plans to step into a person’s life to bring about radical healing and change, He often sends Christ-followers ahead to be a living picture of His love. If we can push aside our fears and excuses, we are able to be a part of God’s world-changing plans. Will you jump into the meaningful, radically impactful life He’s calling you to, or will you stay content in your spiritual easy chair?

When God calls us to follow Him, it’s not a call to comfort and convenience. God calls us to leave, to go, to follow Him often out of our comfort zone. As we walk by faith and follow His lead, life gets way more exciting than we could ever imagine. Do you view your life with God as an adventure?

Being a mom is one of the hardest and most important jobs there is. It can be rewarding, frustrating, humbling, and so much more. Mothering inevitably shapes identity, and moms shape our futures. Whether you are celebrating your mother, whether you’re a mom yourself, or whether you fill a mom role in the lives of those close to you, it’s important to acknowledge all God has given us through mothers and honor them for all they are. What does God tell us about identity in motherhood, and how can we honor moms as God intended?

We put our faith in people and things every day: the mechanic who fixed our car, the payroll clerk in our office, the labels on the food we eat. Do you consider faith in those things a blind leap in the dark, or are you confident there are good reasons to believe those things? What about faith in God and His promises? What does it look like to truly trust?

Throughout our lives, we are inundated with different perspectives concerning how the universe came to be, how long it’s been in existence, and how different people of different faiths and standpoints might view such matters. Many of us have been made to believe that the Bible and science contradict each other. But is that really true? Are faith and science incompatible, or do they fit together just as God intended?

One of the most difficult questions many of us confront in our faith journey is how a loving God could allow so much evil and suffering if He has the power to stop it. In the face of sickness, loss of a loved one, financial ruin, war, abuse, etc., we are left wondering what the purpose was, whether God cares, and how to find hope in the midst of pain. What truths might we learn about suffering when we ask God the tough questions?

While skeptics may often ask “why,” doubts and questions are not inherently bad—questioning can actually lead to a solid faith. In fact, the opposite of faith is not an unending list of questions, but rather a lack of trust in God. The followers of Jesus were full of doubts and questions that first Easter, yet they found reasons to believe. The truth has nothing to fear—so what are your questions?

Do you ever wonder what motivates us to do some of the things we do? Or what other people are thinking when they do the things they do? Seemingly inexplicable, we think and do things sometimes without even realizing why. For example, why do we isolate ourselves from others? For the Christ-follower, doing that seems antithetical to God's mandate to go and spread the Good News to everyone, yet we find ourselves doing it. Sometimes we form cliques because we want comfort, or we draw away from others because we fear being hurt. Senior Pastor John Burke examines the chapter of Luke and how it explains the human nature of isolation, and how we can move away from it toward real connection.

Dying to self can be a difficult and daunting undertaking, but it’s what God calls us to do daily in order to experience true life and freedom. This even goes for our expectations of God. Many of us believe God is good, as long as He gives us the answers we think He should. But it’s important to remember that God, our creator, knows best, and just as Jesus had to die on the cross, an unexpected turn of events for those present during that time, we must die to self and kill false expectations of God in our life to walk in the freedom He promises. What expectations of God might you need to die to today?

There’s no denying the impact that social media has had on life in the 21st Century. Although there are certainly positive aspects of social media, our love for these platforms is a strong indication of the struggle most of us experience with people-pleasing. We care a lot about what other people think, but God tells us that people-pleasing is a distraction from a life that serves Him. Are you more concerned about pleasing God or pleasing people?

What really motivates you in life? What motivates your behavior? Is it money? Power? Perhaps accolades and approval from others? Many of us claim to have good intentions and motivations, but so did Judas, a disciple of Jesus chosen by the Messiah Himself to help in His ministry. Yet Judas was unwilling to admit that what he really worshiped was money, so his greed kept him from experiencing the joy and freedom the other disciples experienced. What might you be worshiping through your thoughts, priorities, and decisions that could also be killing your connection with abundant Life?

Have you ever wondered about the amazing effect of music? Music has the ability to move the human soul—to lift it somewhere beyond the present moment. Its transcendence is remarkable. But what does God say about music? What does the Creator of everything think about our musical creativity, and how does worship relate to all of this?

Did you ever consider that God, as our creator, created us to create? We all have creativity inside of us that can be used, even if we don’t always realize it. Perhaps the key to discovering our creativity will come through discovering our own story and learning how God can use that to impact culture and change our world. What were you created to create?

Jesus promised that if we obey His teachings we will experience life-giving freedom. The modern world also promises life and freedom, and yet so many people who chase after what the world promises are left empty and scarred. What does it look like to truly experience the life and freedom promised by Jesus? What part can we play in helping others experience the best Jesus has to offer?

In this tense political season, it’s easy for us to get caught up in the fervor by attacking or defending various candidates and their policies. Sometimes those attacks turn towards each other in an effort to prove our own point of view; however, Jesus calls us to a different way of responding — a love greater than politics. How can we rise above our differences to love where we live as Jesus demonstrated for us?

For what are you searching? Chances are that it’s something you believe will lead to the “good life” — one that is meaningful and fulfilling. However, even when we’re pursuing good things like healthy relationships and success at work, we still feel like something is lacking. Could what we’re missing be the abundant Life that God is offering us?

As we get older, many of us look at our goals that have gone unaccomplished and careers that might have gotten off track and wonder if we’ve truly lived a meaningful life. Should we measure success in terms of accomplishment or something else? These questions and regrets can rob us of joy. But in Philippians 3, Paul describes where real meaning comes from.

The world tells us to be proud of our success, our power, our wealth and our prestige just to name a few. Yet the irony is while we take pride in those things, we often find our lives still wanting and the important relationships around us adversely impacted. Our feelings about ourselves can actually undermine who we want to be. So of what should we feel proud? Let’s continue to journey through Philippians to find out!

The life of the Apostle Paul is one of hardship, pain and uncertainty, and yet his letters to the early churches are filled with expressions of peace and joy! How did this man, who endured so much, encourage so many to have joy in all circumstances? Let’s take a look at his letter to the Philippians and find out.