The Door Christian Fellowship Church sits on Kastrin Street in El Paso's Lower Valley, a stretch of South El Paso where the Rio Grande draws close and the neighborhoods of Texas and Juarez meet. Across more than three decades, the congregation has built a reputation for vibrant Spirit-filled worship, a steady stream of bilingual ministries in English and Spanish, and a fierce loyalty to preaching the Bible without apology. The church's weekly rhythm is unusually full for a single congregation: an 11:00 a.m. Sunday service, an evening service at 6:30 p.m., a Wednesday night meeting at 7:00 p.m., and a Thursday night gathering entirely in Spanish. Visitors are invited to come as they are. They will find a casual atmosphere, a children's nursery for the smallest worshipers, and a livestream of every service for those who cannot make it in person.
From Prescott to the Rio Grande: A Family of Churches
The Door in El Paso is one church within a much larger family. It is part of Christian Fellowship Ministries, an association of more than 2,700 churches across roughly 130 nations, all of which trace their roots to a single revival in Prescott, Arizona, in 1970. That revival was led by Pastor Wayman Mitchell, who arrived in the small Arizona town and began welcoming a crowd of young hippies - a group that looked nothing like the existing church members but was hungry for something real. The Spirit moved, and lives changed. Out of that first wave came a Saturday night coffee-house concert ministry - two evenings a week of bands, testimonies, and preaching that drew hundreds of young people and produced steady conversions.
From the start, the movement was built on three pillars: personal evangelism, discipleship inside the local church, and the launching of new couples to plant new churches. In 1973 the first couple was commissioned from Prescott, and churches began to spread across the Southwestern United States. In 1978 the first international church was planted in Australia, and the work fanned out from there into Mexico, the Netherlands, Germany, and onward. Christian Fellowship Ministries today operates as a worldwide network of independent local congregations that share the same doctrine, vision, and approach to ministry.
The Door El Paso is a direct descendant of that vision. The congregation has been serving the city for more than 35 years and describes itself as Bible-based, Spirit-filled, and non-denominational. The church's mission statement is plain: it exists to share the good news of Jesus Christ and to see the Gospel carried beyond its own four walls into El Paso and around the world. In the church's own words, Jesus Christ is the only hope for man's salvation and that is true with every person in every nation on the globe.
Pastor Paul and Renee Stephens and the Pastoral Team
For more than 25 years, the senior pastor of The Door Christian Fellowship Church has been Pastor Paul Stephens and his wife Renee. Together they have ministered the love of Jesus to many thousands across the El Paso area, and Pastor Stephens is described by the church as approachable, available, and receptive - a pastor whose preaching aims at the relevant issues that ordinary people actually face. His weekly blog, The View From Above: Thoughts To Help With Everyday Life, appears regularly with devotional pieces on Christian endurance, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, transformation, perseverance, and the will of God.
Standing alongside the Stephens are three additional pastoral couples:
- Richard and Luz Contreras serve as Associate Pastors. Pastor Contreras ministers in the Word and to families, and brings extensive pastoral experience from Mexico City, Bogota, Madrid, Spain, and Juarez, Mexico. The church celebrates his return to El Paso as a blessing to the congregation.
- Yasser and Jasmin Rabaj lead the Spanish Ministry. Pastor Yasser organizes and preaches the Thursday night Spanish service and is available to counsel in Spanish. He and his wife also minister to the whole congregation with a caring spirit.
- Ernie and Sandra Lopez serve as Minister of Visitation. Pastor Ernie ministers to families and individuals in crisis, walks with new believers, brings teaching on last-days events, coordinates the Home Group Bible Studies, and fields the prayer-requests line.
Each of the four pastors is available for questions, help, or counseling.
A Week at The Door
The Door keeps a steady weekly rhythm of four services plus small groups, designed to give every member of the household a place to gather.
Sunday mornings are anchored by an 11:00 a.m. worship service. The congregation comes together for contemporary praise, congregational prayer, the preaching of the Word, and an altar call at the close of every service. Dress is casual - the church explicitly invites visitors to come as they are. The nursery is open for infants and toddlers throughout the service. Sunday School meets at 10:00 a.m., an hour before the morning gathering.
Sunday evenings add a second gathering at 6:30 p.m. This service follows the same preaching-centered pattern and gives people who work Sunday mornings, or who simply want a second touch of the Word during the week, another opportunity to gather.
Wednesday nights at 7:00 p.m. bring the midweek service. Teaching continues from the pulpit, often with a slightly different theme or series, and the smaller midweek crowd allows for prayer ministry and closer fellowship.
Thursday nights at 7:00 p.m. are entirely in Spanish under the leadership of Pastor Yasser Rabaj. Every Sunday and Wednesday service is also translated into Spanish for Spanish-speaking attendees who prefer the larger English-language services.
Livestream is offered for those who cannot attend in person. Services are broadcast from the church's livestream page at elpasochristianchurch.com, and a link appears five minutes before each service begins.
The Spanish Ministry and a Bilingual Door
Bilingual ministry is woven into the identity of The Door. The Spanish Ministry is not a side program; it is treated as a full expression of the church under its own pastor. Pastor Yasser and Jasmin Rabaj organize the Thursday night Spanish service, lead counseling in Spanish, and serve the broader congregation alongside the English-speaking staff.
In addition, every Sunday and Wednesday service is translated live into Spanish, so that bilingual families can worship together in the main sanctuary without missing a word of the sermon. The Door's promotional materials advertise Servicios En Espanol as a permanent part of who they are.
The result is a congregation that looks like the El Paso / Juarez border region: families that span both languages, second-generation Hispanic believers, English-speaking transplants from other parts of the country, and longtime El Pasoans who have made The Door their church home for decades.
How the Church Operates: Vision and Method
The Door's Vision and Method page lays out the operating philosophy in clear terms. The church believes that God has placed everything necessary to accomplish His will in the setting of the local church, and that the church is the most vital institution on earth - the Bride of Christ, the depository of God's glory and the pillar and ground of the truth. From that conviction, ten priorities shape the church's life:
- The Local Church. The primary place God works through His people.
- Preaching. The Bible is the guidebook of Christian life, and anointed preaching is God's method of bringing it home.
- Evangelism. Taking the Gospel outside the four walls is the foundation of the church.
- Conversion. The church preaches for a decision, and most of the congregation consists of people converted locally by the power of God.
- Discipleship. The highest calling of pastor and congregation is to obey the Great Commission and make disciples of all nations.
- Church Planting. The result of disciples being raised up is that they are released into the harvest field, and the church sends couples to plant new congregations.
- World Evangelism. The vision is worldwide, and the church prays, trains, sends, and supports workers into all nations.
- Family. The family is the first foundation of God's order and the cornerstone of His government.
- Maturity. Members come faithfully, give joyously, worship fervently, and witness loyally.
- Prayer. Daily prayer is a normal part of the church, with the team meeting for prayer every morning and one hour before every service.
In practical terms, this means a church where the sermon is the center of every gathering, where members are expected to share their faith, where new believers are immediately walked into a discipleship pathway, and where raising up a couple to plant the next church is treated as a normal, expected outcome of mature Christian life.
What The Door Believes
The Door's Statement of Faith covers the classic Pentecostal distinctives in some detail, with a doctrinal outline and a series of creedal points available on the church's website.
On God, the church confesses one God eternally existent in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God the Father is the Creator of the universe. Jesus Christ is eternally God, became incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and is forever one Christ with two natures - God and man - in one Person. The Holy Spirit is the Lord and giver of life, given to the Church in fullness at Pentecost, who empowers the saints for service and witness.
On the Bible, the church believes the Old and New Testaments together are the only infallible, inspired Word of God, with ultimate, final, and eternal authority that cannot be added to, subtracted from, or superseded.
On salvation, the church believes that Christ's vicarious death on the cross paid the penalty for the sins of the whole world, that its benefits include healing for body, soul, and spirit, and that salvation is a free gift of God appropriated by faith through personal repentance, belief in the Lord Jesus (justification), and personal acceptance of Him as Lord and Savior (regeneration).
On the Christian life, the church holds to consecration, devotion, and holiness, with the understanding that the shortcomings of the individual are the result of still-progressing sanctification. The Christian life is filled with trials, tests, and warfare against a spiritual enemy, and for those abiding in Christ until death or His return, eternal blessing is assured.
On the ordinances, the church practices Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Baptism is the outward sign of what God has already done and a public testimony of belonging to Christ, performed in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Lord's Supper is a commemoration of the death of the Lord, done in remembrance of Him until He comes again.
On the church, the church teaches that the Church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God among the saints through the Spirit, with every born-again believer having a place in it.
On the end times, the church confesses faith in the bodily, personal, second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the saints, the millennium, and the final judgment that will determine the eternal status of both the saints and the unbelievers.
The Statement of Doctrine and Principles adds a list of creedal commitments that include the verbal inspiration of the original scriptures, the absolute Trinity, the deity of Christ, the personality and deity of the Holy Spirit, the reality and personality of Satan, the natural depravity of the human race, the substitutionary atonement, propitiation only through the Blood of Christ, full salvation by grace through faith and not of works, divine healing through the atonement by the laying on of hands and prayer, the personal Baptism of the Holy Spirit, the necessity of the new birth, water baptism by immersion at the age of accountability, the true church composed of blood-washed believers, the evangelism of the nations, obedience to civil government, divorce only on New Testament scriptural grounds, loyalty to those in authority over us in the Lord, tithing as God's financial plan, restitution for past wrongs whenever possible, the Bible as the final authority in Christian conduct, the open table at the Lord's Supper, the maintenance of good works and holy living, Christian modesty in dress, a literal heaven and everlasting life for true believers, everlasting punishment for the impenitent, and the personal, literal, bodily, premillennial coming of Jesus Christ.
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Among the church's distinctives, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is given particular weight, and the church has an entire teaching page devoted to it. The Door teaches that this baptism is subsequent to conversion, releases the fullness of the Spirit in a believer's life, and is evidenced by the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit. The church expects that this baptism will be accompanied by the biblical sign of speaking in other tongues.
The teaching page builds its case from Acts 2, Acts 10, Acts 19, and 1 Corinthians 14, pointing out that all 120 original disciples - including Mary, the mother of Jesus - were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues, that the first Gentile converts in Acts 10 received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues, and that Paul himself spoke in tongues and described himself as a pattern for all believers for all time. The teaching page also addresses the objection that tongues have ceased: 1 Corinthians 13:8 says tongues will cease when that which is perfect is come, and Jesus Christ - the perfect - has not yet returned. Therefore, the church teaches, the gift remains available.
The Door teaches that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is received by faith, by asking Jesus for what He has promised. In practice, believers are prayed for by Spirit-filled Christians who lay hands on them; as the Lord places a strange word in their mind, they speak it out in faith. The more they pray in tongues, the church teaches, the more their faith is built up. The receiving of the Spirit is also linked to bold witness: Acts 1:8 is quoted as the promise that those who receive the Holy Spirit will receive power to be witnesses to the uttermost parts of the earth.
The church is also strongly charismatic in its expectation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the regular life of the congregation. The Welcome to Our Church page walks visitors through the elements of the worship service - why believers gather, why they praise, why they clap, why musical instruments are used, why hands are lifted, why prayer is audible, why tongues are spoken, why the gifts of the Spirit are active, why an offering is taken, why preaching is central, and why an altar call is given at the close of every service - with Scripture references for each practice.
Ministries for the Whole Family
The Door keeps the heart of its ministry in the home and the small group, with a few larger initiatives around the edges.
Home Group Bible Studies meet in living rooms across the city during the week. The church teaches that God never intended Christianity to be a Me, God, and my Bible lifestyle, and that small groups are the biblical setting for the gifts of the body to operate. In a home group, members use their gifts and talents to minister to one another, encourage each other's faith, share personal insights and testimonies, hold one another accountable, and pray for one another. The home-group ministry is coordinated through Pastor Ernie Lopez.
The Backstage Concert Scene is a Saturday night outreach ministry that combines music, drama, testimonies, and preaching. It is rooted in the original Wayman Mitchell vision from Prescott, in which concert-style gatherings were the training ground for new converts and the on-ramp for personal evangelism.
Nursery and Childcare are provided at all services for infants and toddlers, staffed by trained and screened volunteers. The church follows health and safety procedures to ensure all children are cared for and loved.
Foundations of Faith is a six-week class that the church makes available to all aspiring members. It outlines the fundamentals of the Christian faith, the church's strategy, structure, and a member's responsibilities to the church. Those who complete the class have the opportunity to sign a Membership Covenant, and ministry leaders, elders, and pastors walk alongside new members in their spiritual development.
Addiction Recovery is offered through the church's online resource section, with practical help and biblical direction for those working to overcome addictions.
Marriage Retreat brings married couples together for a focused weekend of ministry and blessing. A separate Bible Conference gathers the congregation around extended teaching from the pulpit.
Beyond the local ministries, The Door carries the responsibility of supporting missionaries and church-planting couples sent out from El Paso into other nations. Giving to the church is explicitly directed toward four areas: evangelizing locally and internationally, planting churches, and planting missionaries to other nations.
Why the Worship Looks the Way It Does
Visitors stepping into The Door for the first time will find a contemporary, energetic, congregational style of worship. The church is casual - come as you are is the recurring invitation - and the order of service is shaped by the direction of the Holy Spirit rather than by a fixed liturgical book.
The church has prepared a teaching page that walks first-time visitors through the elements of the service. Praise is vibrant, with congregational clapping, raised hands, and musical instruments (trumpet, lute, harp, timbrel, stringed instruments, flutes, cymbals - all named in Psalm 150). Prayer is voiced out loud, often by the congregation together, in the manner of Acts 4:24. Tongues and the interpretation of tongues are expected to operate in an orderly way, along with the other gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12. The altar call at the close of every service is treated as a non-negotiable: the congregation is given the opportunity to make a public decision in response to the preaching.
The church is deliberate about describing all of this in advance so that visitors are not caught off-guard. The Welcome to Our Church page reads, We don't have the complex and formal order of service that marks many churches and denominations. It is our belief that the Bible is the greatest guide ever given to man. Instead of following an empty tradition, we follow the direction of the Holy Spirit and the biblical order laid down for the church.
Getting Connected, Giving, and Contact
The Door's building is at 1000 Kastrin Street, El Paso, Texas 79907, in the Lower Valley. Visitors can text or call the church at (915) 731-2446 or (915) 309-3091, or reach the office by email at info@elpasochristianchurch.com. The mailing address for contributions is P.O. Box 963267, El Paso, TX 79996 (checks payable to The Door Gospel Church).
Giving is offered four ways: online through the church's giving portal; by texting the word give to (915) 800-7852; through the EasyTithe app using zip code 79907; or by mail. Tithing is taught as God's financial plan, and offerings are directed toward local evangelism, international evangelism, church planting, and the support of missionaries.
Sermons are posted online for ongoing listening and viewing, and a photo gallery is maintained on SmugMug. A mobile app is available for ongoing connection to the church's content. Weekly text-message updates can be received by texting El Paso Door Church to 1-855-507-0078. A prayer-requests line is staffed through the office, and Pastor Ernie Lopez is also available to pray personally for those in need.
The Door's motto and continuing challenge is simple and consistent: every time someone enters the sanctuary, they will hear the challenging, encouraging, life-blood-giving, uncut Word of God. The whole truth, and nothing but the truth.