Loving God, Living Jesus, Walking Together on Topsail Island
The Gathering Surf City sits on the north end of Topsail Island, a block from the Atlantic, in the small town of Surf City, North Carolina. The church has condensed its identity to a single phrase - Loving God, Living Jesus, Walking Together - and members use that rhythm to explain their life together: worship that adores God, lives that reflect Jesus, and a community that moves forward side by side. The church recognizes the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 as its confession of faith. By its own description, The Gathering is a worship community of passionate people loving God through worship and sharing His love with others by being surrendered to Jesus, living Jesus in daily life, and walking together in the Spirit.
Four Worship Hours on Sunday Morning
Surf City is a beach town, so the Sunday schedule has been built for both year-round residents and visitors who arrive in flip-flops. Four worship hours run back-to-back in the Worship Center:
- 8:00 AM - slightly more traditional in feel, with a smaller crowd
- 9:30 AM - contemporary, in a fuller room
- 11:00 AM - contemporary, similar in feel to the 9:30 hour
- 12:10 PM - unplugged, acoustic, conversational; intentionally not broadcast
The dress code question is one visitors ask most often, and the answer is simple: there isn't one. Sandals, shorts, and beach clothes are perfectly normal. Families with young children drop them off in Gathering Kids during the 9:30 and 11:00 hours, and Voyager Youth (5th through 12th grade) meet in the Youth House next door at those same Sunday hours. The 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00 services are broadcast online so anyone who can't make the drive to Topsail can still worship along.
Gathering in the Sand
From mid-April through the end of September, a Sunday service takes over Beach Access #13, just behind the Surf City Fire Department. Gathering in the Sand begins at 9:00 AM and asks worshipers to bring a Bible and a beach chair. The atmosphere is what the name suggests: preaching and prayer with feet in the sand, weather permitting. The seasonal series wraps each fall and picks up again the following spring.
Wednesday Nights Around the Table
The Gathering's midweek rhythm is built around a shared meal. Families and singles arrive at 6:00 PM for dinner in the Fellowship Hall. At 6:30 the children are dismissed to Gathering Kids and the youth head next door to the Youth House. Worship in song begins around 6:40, followed by prayer and announcements, and small-group study runs from about 7:00 to 7:30.
The Wednesday menu varies week to week because the meals are cooked by different connect groups and ministries. The exception is the first Wednesday of the month, when Surf City BBQ brings fried chicken, BBQ potatoes, and green beans; visitors are asked to bring a side dish or dessert on those nights. Several connect groups meet during the same hour, all launching from the Fellowship Hall entrance (the far-left glass doors with the Gathering Kids feather flags):
- Agape Moms - a Bible study for moms in the thick of raising kids, on the second and fourth Wednesdays
- Women's Book Club - third Wednesdays, focused on Christian fiction
- Sowing & Growing - a weekly parenting study
The youth own their own building. The Youth House at 509 N. Topsail Drive is next door to the main campus, and the Voyager ministries use it for small groups during the week and on Sunday mornings.
The Wooo! Church
The Gathering is nicknamed the "Wooo! Church," and the staff's explanation is straightforward: worship here involves preaching, singing, and a deliberate effort to enjoy the room. Encouragement and excitement are part of the expectation, not an interruption to it. Visitors looking for a more contemplative service can drop into the 8:00 hour; those who want to sing at full voice will land best in 9:30 or 11:00. The 12:10 hour feels closer to a living-room Bible study than a traditional service, with acoustic worship and a more conversational tone.
What First-Time Visitors Want to Know
Parking is in the main lot along Wilmington Avenue. The Worship Center entrance is through the front doors, and the Fellowship Hall is best reached through the far-left glass doors of the Gathering Kids wing. The welcome desk in the lobby is staffed by volunteers who answer questions and point visitors toward the right classroom or small group. Children are checked in at kiosks in the Gathering Kids hallway. The church's livestream on Sunday covers the 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00 hours; the 12:10 hour is intentionally unbroadcast because of its conversational style.
A Family Commitment at the Heart of the Church
The Gathering describes itself through a four-part Family Commitment covenant that members are invited to sign. The four commitments are to protect the unity of the church, share its responsibility, serve its ministry, and support its testimony, each one tied to a handful of Bible passages. Unity draws on Romans 15:5-6, 1 Peter 1:22, Ephesians 4:29, and Hebrews 13:7. Outreach rests on 1 Thessalonians 1:2, Luke 14:23, and Romans 15:7. Service is rooted in 1 Peter 4:10, Ephesians 4:11-12, and Philippians 2:3-7. Faithful attendance, godly living, and giving are anchored in Hebrews 10:25, Philippians 1:27, 1 Corinthians 16:2, and Leviticus 27:30.
The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 is the church's confession of faith. A free one-hour class called Gathering 101 introduces newcomers to the church, its beliefs, and its ministries over a working lunch; it's offered periodically throughout the year and is the on-ramp for anyone wanting to learn more or to formalize their membership.
Gathering Kids and Voyager Youth
Gathering Kids is the ministry for children from birth through 5th grade, roughly ages 0 to 10. The team's shorthand is "Gather, Grow, Go" - gather for community, grow in God's Word, and go share His love. Every gathering includes worship, prayer, and play. Children meet on Sunday mornings during the 9:30 and 11:00 worship hours and again on Wednesday nights at 6:30, after families have shared dinner in the Fellowship Hall at 6:00.
Voyager Youth covers 5th through 12th grade and meets in the Youth House next door. The weekly schedule is the busiest of any ministry in the church:
- Junior Voyager (5th-6th grade) - Sundays at 9:30 and 11:00 downstairs; Wednesdays at 6:30 downstairs
- Voyager (7th-12th grade) - Sundays at 9:30 and 11:00 upstairs; Wednesdays at 6:30 upstairs; Thursdays 6:00-7:30 youth prayer group upstairs
- JV and Voyager together - Monday nights at 6:30 PM in the Worship Center for youth large group
The youth ministry's mission statement connects students through friendship, finding God in all things, daily Christian living, discovering the Holy Spirit, and finding their identity in God's kingdom - and doing it all while having a blast.
Coastline Young Adults, C-Salt Seniors, and the Women's and Men's Ministries
Coastline is the young-adult ministry for ages 18 to 25, and C-Salt is the senior adult ministry for the 55-and-over crowd, with regular fellowship lunches and seasonal events designed for that community.
Gathering Women is the umbrella for every woman in the church. Women's Ministry Director Pam Radesky oversees special events (an annual conference, a Christmas tea, a community fashion show), monthly connections (art classes, a bridge walk across the Surf City bridge, beach walks, and Saturday breakfasts that typically fall on the third Saturday of the month), and several ongoing small groups:
- Agape Moms - Bible study for moms, on the second and fourth Wednesdays at 6:30 PM in Room 2; first Wednesdays are set aside for prayer and connection, with monthly Mom's Night Outs and play dates
- Flying Solo - a support and fellowship group for widows and divorcees, meeting on the fourth Sunday of the month, with an annual Derby Party and Valentine's Day Dinner
- Monthly Book Club - Christian fiction, third Wednesdays at 6:30 PM in Room 2
- Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support Group - first and third Thursdays, 7:00-9:00 PM, meeting at the Lonander Home in Hampstead
- Women of the Word - Thursdays at 10:00 AM in the Fellowship Hall
- Thursday Night Women's Bible Study - 6:30 PM
Gathering Men describes its calling as helping every man fulfill his divine purpose and glorify God. The men's ministry meets weekly in the Fellowship Hall on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM for the main Men's Gathering, with a monthly Men's Breakfast on the second Saturday at 8:00 AM. The Men's Alliance, a newer men's connect group launched in 2026, gathers around the fire pit behind The Gathering office on Thursday evenings with a 30-minute workout followed by a 30-minute devotional.
Missions and Mobile Medical Care on the Coast
Gathering Missions is led by a dedicated Pastor for Missions and runs several recurring outreach efforts. A few times each year the Blood Connection Community Blood Center bus parks in the main lot for a community blood drive; each donor earns a donation to the missions fund and points toward an eGift card. In April, the missions team partners with Baptists on Mission to bring a free medical and dental mobile clinic to Surf City, offering screenings and dental care to the community at no cost. Annual fundraisers - including a golf tournament at North Shore Country Club in Sneads Ferry - support Camp Caraway, the Christian summer camp the church sends its children and students to each year. Camp Caraway (for kids entering 1st grade through completed 8th grade) and Camp Longridge (for high school students) are the two-week camp experiences the church actively promotes and subsidizes.
Three Locations Across the Coast
The Gathering is one church with three campuses. The Surf City location at 304 Wilmington Avenue is the original and houses the Worship Center, Fellowship Hall, and Gathering Kids hallway. The Gathering Burgaw meets at 607 S. Walker Street in Burgaw, with Kyle Lewis serving as the Neighborhood Gathering Pastor; the Burgaw campus hosts the annual 1613 Young Men's Conference and a free community End of Summer Bash each August. The Gathering Holly Ridge is the third campus, pastored by Greg Dabb. Together the three locations allow the same family of churches to cover the coast from Holly Ridge and Surf City on Topsail Island to Burgaw inland, all under one shared purpose and one preaching team.
A block from the sand and within earshot of the surf, The Gathering Surf City opens its doors every Sunday at 8:00 AM, with a Wednesday meal an hour later than that at 6:00 PM, for anyone looking to love God, live Jesus, and walk together along the North Carolina coast.