Gateway Christian Center

Gateway Christian Center in Valley Stream was God's idea. While Pastors Sunny & Mercy Philip were busy serving another church and another community, God challenged them to leave their comfort zone and step out in faith to start a multicultural church. They surrendered to God's call and started Gateway as an auxiliary service of their previous church.

As the new church began to grow, they understood what God meant and chose to trust God to build Gateway and leave the other established church. Gateway with its facilities and a dedicated group of people from 20 different nations who worship and serve God here. While God has been faithful, the church still had to deal with several obstacles. They couldn't find any space for their worship services and they felt like it was impossible to get people's attention in the Valley Stream’s highly competitive real estate market.

That is when Pastor Sunny Philip got the idea that would change everything-they would build Gateway right on top of an old structure! It might seem crazy but after all, Jesus said that we could throw our nets into deep water and catch fish. Through some careful research and prayerful consideration, Pastor Sunny decided that now was the time to trust God one more time by building at 502 Central Ave in Valley Stream. And the rest is history.

On November 17, 2016, a day that was perfect in every way-Gateway Christian Center had a grand opening and welcomed all of their neighbors to share this moment with them. Now people from Jamaica, Haiti, China, Vietnam, and many other countries are joining together for worship services here at Gateway.

This church has now become more than just a place to pray on Sundays. It's also where families come by the dozens to have fellowship after school each weekday afternoon. It's where you can drop off your kids so they can play while you attend Bible study on Wednesday mornings or evening service on Thursday nights. It's where you can grab a free coffee and breakfast on Saturdays, or have lunch with the senior pastor at his home every week.

"Seems like Gateway has done everything right this time around-they've created an atmosphere of unity in Valley Stream by becoming one church that is multicultural." said one of the church members.

At the end of last year, the members of The Gateway Christian Center felt that it was time for something new. To grow spiritually and as a community, they wanted their church to be more than just an American-centric institution. With this goal in mind, they decided to change up worship services so that English speakers would not dominate on Sundays by providing them with simultaneous interpretation into Spanish or Mandarin from 11 am until 12 pm each week.

What separates Gateway Christian Center from other churches is that they are a multicultural church- the first of its kind in Valley Stream. In an area with many different cultures, it makes sense to create this type of environment for everyone from every walk of life.

Meanwhile, one member said, "No matter what language you speak or where you're from, we want people at Gateway Christian Center to feel like they belong."

The multilingual worship services have given members and neighbors alike the opportunity to come together as one community that shares common values. The church has grown by leaps and bounds since its decision last year because so many more people now know about them-even those without any previous ties to Christianity.


Ellis Carpet Cleaning Valley Stream

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