About Gateway
Gateway is a fellowship of Christian believers in Athens, Georgia. The information below will tell you a little about our mission, beliefs, and ministries. God bless you!
Our Mission & Beliefs
Our mission at Gateway is to help people experience God — through vital worship, biblical truth, positive relationships, and hands-on ministry.
In our worship, teaching, personal relationships, and ministries, we seek to demonstrate God’s grace and truth, so that people will experience the character and presence of Jesus Christ in their lives.
Gateway is a United Methodist Church.
Our Ministries
Every Sunday morning the adults of Gateway participate in several Bible study groups, and children discover the truths of God’s Word in Sunday School. At 10:45 a.m. Gateway holds a service of prayer, worship, teaching, and Holy Communion. Kids can go to Children’s Church and learn about the love of God in a fun environment. (They can also come to our yearly Vacation Bible School!)
In addition to its weekly service, Gateway supports various other local ministries, including Covenant Care Services (a crisis pregnancy and adoption ministry), Overcomers (a ministry to people overcoming addictions), The Sparrow’s Nest (providing clothing to the needy), and Athens Urban Ministry (an outreach to the homeless, the disabled, the working poor, and the lonely).
We also support international mission work in Brazil, Ethiopia, and India.
Our Leaders
Tom Atkins | Lead Pastor / Evangelist
Tom is the past president of the National Association of United Methodist Evangelists and has preached at revivals, camp meetings, and special services all across the USA. He is also a member of the Francis Asbury Society, a group focused on living and proclaiming that Christian salvation involves not only forgiveness but also transformation through the power of the Holy Spirit!
Bob Beckwith | Pastor
Bob is the Director of the University of Georgia Wesley Foundation, a role he has held since 1999. Prior to that, Bob has spent 15 years pastoring local churches. He is an ordained elder in the North Georgia Conference. Bob and his wife, Annette, have four children: Emily, Rob, Caleb and Laura.
Joseph Slife | Pastor
For 15 years, Joseph served as a radio producer for a parachurch ministry. He has also worked for WORLD Magazine and the Associated Press Radio Network. Joseph has written for Sound Mind Investing and edited MethodistThinker.com, a blog dedicated to issues of the Church with a focus on Methodism. He is a certified Lay Speaker in the North Georgia Conference.
Alex Smith | Worship Leader
Alex Smith has been the worship director at Gateway since January 2010. He has been married to his beautiful bride Audrey since 2007. Alex grew up in Norcross, Ga., and moved to Athens in 2003 to start school. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 2007 and is currently working toward his masters in divinity at Asbury Theological Seminary. He is also the youth pastor and worship leader for the Sparrow’s Nest Mission Church youth group which reaches out to urban and at-risk youth.
