NRH Story
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On September 16, 1999, the Lord placed a desire in the heart of Pastor Robert Morris to start a Bible-based, Spirit-filled church in Southlake, Texas. Pastor Robert dreamed that this church would impact Northeast Tarrant County, the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and beyond. He began to build a leadership team and developed a working relationship with the pastors at Trinity Fellowship Church in Amarillo, Texas, asking them for wisdom and guidance. On Sunday morning, April 9, 2000, Pastor Jimmy Evans and the elders of Trinity Fellowship Church prayed for and released Pastor Robert and the founding elders of Gateway to start the new church. The elders of Trinity Fellowship Church continue to serve as the apostolic and spiritual covering for Gateway Church and are an invaluable support to our ministry.
Gateway’s first service was on Easter morning in April of 2000 at the Hilton Hotel in Grapevine, Texas. Three weeks later, the church began meeting on Saturday nights at Christ Our King Church in Southlake. With a strong Saturday night congregation, the church continued to grow steadily. In July 2001, Gateway Church began meeting at A World of Learning training facility in Grapevine, during which time the church grew to five services with more than 2,000 people attending weekly.
We broke ground for our current church facility in Southlake during Gateway’s third year of ministry. As we constructed our building, the church continued to grow. During June 2003, we moved into our present location and Phase II construction began during the fall of 2003. By Easter of 2004, attendance was around 5,000. On Easter of 2007 we gathered as a congregation of almost 15,000 people. Plans are now underway for a facility on 189 acres on Highway 114 between Kimball and Carroll Avenue.
During the spring of 2007, a building was purchased in North Richland Hills at the corner of Davis Blvd and Starnes. This building is almost 50,000 square feet in size and sits on approximately nine acres. Additionally, the building is located in the geographic center of Gateway’s demographic and is being renovated into a regional campus for Gateway Church. During the week, this regional campus will be a multi-purpose facility with an emphasis on ministry to the youth. On the weekends, it will accommodate both Saturday and Sunday services with live worship and a video message.
