Probably My Last Post of the Evening

This is the sermon I gave two weeks ago at realife. I've been meaning to share it. It's not really a sermon as much as it is a vision statement. A lot of the ideas have been found in the book Getting Real and expounded on by me. Also, a ton of my ministry philosophy flows out of Purpose Driven Life, but y'all know that. This is just the outline, I interjected quite a bit.


What Is realife?? [071308]

Real is a word we toss around a lot. What does it mean?

Real-life existing or happening in reality: real-life drama.

Real - genuine; not counterfeit, artificial, or imitation; authentic:

Life - the sum of the distinguishing phenomena of organisms, esp. metabolism, growth, reproduction, and adaptation to environment.

What is realife at Trinity Tab?
The VALUES of realife…

1.) RELATIONSHIP is the # 1 goal of realife.
Acts 2:42 (New International Version)
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
a. Ministry flows through relationship – so if we start with relationship, an authentic ministry will be the natural result.
b. You’ll observe a lot of chit-chatting in realife, don’t underestimate the power of the meet and greet. (encouraging words, laughter, joking) All of this is intentional. We are building relationship.
i. This is all relevant ministry, we need to see it as that and make time for it.
c. Transparency is key. (I’m going to put myself out there, I’m nervous tonight, hopefully now you feel like you can share.)
i. My hope is that realife will become just that, a place we can be real and experience life together. (ups and downs and in between) We all have ‘stuff’ we go through.
ii. Often times people groups connect by their strengths (worship team, GATE program, excellence in their field) but I’d like to suggest the opposite in realife, connecting by our weaknesses. Together we can be strong in Christ.

2.) WORSHIP is vital for fulfillment in your life, and therefore vital to realife.
Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.
a. realife will be a place of authentic worship.
b. Worship resets our perspective.
i. You can’t handle your life on your own, but with God you can.
ii. Allow yourself to be real with God in this place.

3.) TEACHING will happen at realife a regular basis.
Acts 2:42 devoted themselves to the apostles teaching.
Philippians 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (none of us have arrived!)
a. Teaching may not look like you are accustomed to seeing it. I’m a big believer that we can’t do it the way we’ve always done it and expect different results.
i. No one will be pushing you to ‘make you believe’.
ii. More of a shared experience, creating a common ground. We are on a journey together, and you can step in wherever you are at.
b. We’ll be discovering Christ’s authenticity together.

4.) MINISTRY is our mutual destination in realife.
Romans 12:4-5 4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
a. Every person is equally important to God.
b. Each person in realife has a personal, God-given mission.
c. Every person in realife is a vital part of this ministry and the church as a whole.
i. Your time in realife will help you discover just where you fit in.
ii.
5.) So let’s sum it all up. Realife will encompass 4 things;
RELATIONSHIP, WORSHIP, TEACHING, MINISTRY.
a. An innovative idea – 20/20/20
b. Building time into our gathering for each of those values.

CLOSING – Pray for the success of realife.
*That the participants will catch the vision.
*For an excitement and a momentum.
*That we would step out of our comfort zones with each other and be real.
*For our leadership, wisdom and discernment, unique thinking and creativity.
*That realife could be a catalyst for our church.
*That we would invite our friends and grow.
*That above all we would remember our purpose and honor God with every aspect of realife.