Care packages for 10th Mtn. Division in Afganistan

Our Church is sponsoring 87 soldiers in Afganistan this Christmas by sending care packages with supplies. Here are a couple pictures of the supplies and ladies boxing it up.

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Feeling Blest

Last night was the last night of the corn maze, and it was a ton of fun. We had a great turn out during the trunk-or-treat time (pictures to come) and we had a a solid last evening of people trying to get their corn maze experience in before it closed down. There were more than 4,000 people who came through the maze over the month and we made money to help benefit the community. The greatest experience for me was getting to serve with and get to know so many people in the church and community. It was an amazing way to jump right into the Palouse. There was a letter to the editor in the Daily News written by a member of our community,

"I would like to applaud Real Life Ministries on the Palouse for the community contribution they have made through the Palouse Corn Maze this fall. It is apparent that much time and energy went into organizing such a flawless production. They succeeded in organizing a safe family friendly event void of any Halloween influences inappropriate for children. In a word, the Palouse Corn Maze can be described as wholesome. Thank you Real Life Ministries for providing a harvest/Halloween event that I can confidently recommend to families with children of all ages." -Britta Johnson

On another note, if you weren't aware my salary for the year is not supplied by the church, but individuals who are investing in m and my future in ministry. I feel blest for all the people who have decided to help and those who are just now starting to support me. The only problem is sometimes funds jump up or down from month-to-month. Real Life has decided to support me and make my budget stable for the entire year. They raised my salary and are willing to cover the expense if the money doesn't come in. I am in awe of how much they are investing in me and look forward to the returns that will come through this year.

As a thank you for the work Bri and I put in at the Corn Maze the church are sending us to Coeur d'Alene for 2 days to spend time together and relax! We leave tomorrow and look forward to a couple days of nothing but fun! Aaron told me he was teaching me an invaluable lesson for leadership. To give good rewards for those who work hard and take on added responsibility. I am thankful I get to learn such a valuable lesson in such a satisfying way ;-)

p.s. the church is doing Christmas care packages for troops just deployed to Afganistan, to learn more about preparing a care package go to www.liferotp.com

Out-of-the-box thinking for a Church

Here at Real Life, we have been talking about what it means to be a Christian.. The more we thought about the paradigm the more we realized that church is only one piece of what it means to live our faith. Jesus came to preach what he called the Kingdom of God, and that encompasses more than just the church, meaning the building, sermon, and ministries rather than the collective Body of Christ. The problem is that for years, we have preached from the pulpit that the best way to influence culture is through the church. If we could only get people "inside" the church there would be a movement toward God nationwide. The truth is, that theory has never been proven.

We watched a video by a somewhat eccentric guy named Lance Wallnau. He teaches that there are 7 molders of culture within society, and he calls them seven mountains. He believes that the Kingdom of God includes not only the church, but these other six molders of culture. This may sound like a simple enough idea for people new to church or outside the church, but to those who have been in the church for a while it is a radical concept. That is because we have told people that the best way to serve God and God's Kingdom is through serving the church, and ultimately if you are serving full time in the church you are serving God's Kingdom in the highest way possible.

This thought process has led to the church separating itself from society and later pointing the finger at culture when it fails. There is a movement calling Christians to start thinking outside the church, to start climbing the other six molders of culture in order to influence the world for the Kingdom of God. The thought process is different because is starts aiming people toward the areas where they are the most skilled and influential to proclaim the Kingdom.

The reason this method can work is because Kingdom principles work. The Kingdom of God is called the gospel, and gospel means good news. It is not only good news for the church, but for the entire world. We can start influencing the world by implementing Kingdom principles throughout every aspect of our lives, primarily where we have the greatest influence, whether that be your family, government or media.

If you have the opportunity and want to hear more details, listen to Aaron's sermon this week. http://www.liferotp.sermonpodcasts.net/.

Sermon Real Life - October 17, 2010

I had the opportunity to preach at our church, Real Life on the Palouse this past Sunday. The sermon is about how to pray for those who don't know Christ and the passage I preached on was Matthew 9:35-38 and the audio link is posted below.

http://www.liferotp.sermonpodcasts.net/index.php?id=177

^{Matthew 9:35-38}
"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

Corn Maze in the Moscow Pullman Daily News today

October promises frighteningly good fun this year

Corn mazes, pumpkin patches abound this fall

Brandon Macz Daily News staff writer

Posted on: Saturday, October 09, 2010

Photos:

Geoff Crimmins/Daily News

Corn Maze on the PalouseWhile the weather is still settling into its fall chill, people taking advantage of the agreeable temperatures this month have a lot to look forward to on the Palouse and the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley leading up to October's Halloween finale.

This new addition to the Palouse opened last weekend just outside of Pullman on State Route 27 and features a 4-acre corn maze made more difficult to navigate the later people go, said Derek Murphy, maze coordinator and leadership resident with Real Life Ministries Church, which is putting on the event.

The Corn Maze on the Palouse runs noon-10 p.m. Saturdays and 6-10 p.m. Sunday. Starting Oct. 15, the maze will be open 6-10 p.m. every day but the earlier start-up times Saturdays all the way to Halloween with a scarier maze on Freaky Fridays, which is "for teens and college students who want to come in and get scared," Murphy said. "We also have a straw maze for younger kids to go through."

The farm was made available by owners and church members, Steve and Kevin Mader, and also boasts a corn launcher - one of the most popular attractions, Murphy said - where people shoot ears of corn from a giant slingshot at a target for prizes.

Admittance to the Corn Maze on the Palouse is $5 for adults, $3 for children 3-12 and children two and under get in free.

Murphy said last weekends run was a great success and the maze typically takes people a half-hour to clear, though many end up never finding the exits, instead coming back through the maze entrance.

"Everybody who went through this weekend was very excited," he said. "It gets increasingly difficult as it gets darker. It's got quite a few deadends, switchbacks. We've had people say they've gone down the same turnaround three times." He added there will be volunteers navigating the maze to offer assistance to "people who may be directionally challenged."

It is highly recommended that participants bring flashlights, and this weekend is also the start of pumpkin sales at the farm though novice carvers will have a chance to learn from an expert 2-5 p.m. Oct. 16 provided by the Daily News as part of our online pumpkin carving contest at www.dnewscontests.com.

Murphy said the church plans on distributing some of the proceeds throughout the community and several members are expected to solicit ideas from the Pullman City Council.

"We really want to fill a need in the community is where we're heading," he said. "We're still looking. We really want to help the community in a big way."

For more information, call (208)882-2484 or visit www.cornmazeotp.com.

The Corn Maze

The first weekend at the corn maze was great. It was a perfect dry run for the madness that will come later in the month, we had more than 45 volunteers out at the maze this weekend and many of them will be back to help later on as the month goes.

The maze itself is pretty awesome, for some people it has taken more than an hour to make it through, others have come out the entrance after 30 min thinking they had found the exit. In the words of one of our volunteers, Beth Mahaffy "the corn maze is totally legit".

The other popular attraction is our giant corn launcher, basically it is a huge slingshot for ears of corn, and in my opinion it is the bomb! We also have a bunch of family activities from a straw maze, to face painting and corn hole. Keep an eye out for updates on the maze. It has been a great and humbling experience to be entrusted with the biggest event ever held by the church. (Pictured above is the Palileo family serving in our snack shack).

Planting a New Seed

Today is the final service at my home church in Boise. I fondly remember the years growing up, and all the  teachers who invested in me: Steve and Becky Overlin, Nick and Lindale Adams, Dave and Eileen Benton, Paxton Tupper, Nadine Mack, Joel Rice and so many more. I remember falling asleep on my parents laps during the sermon and getting woken up by one of the elders in the church week after week. I know I probably shouldn't tell a story about falling asleep in church, but I experienced the love of Christ when Steve Altman took the time to wake me up and talk to me for a few minutes after church.

The church is doing something incredible in my mind. They care so much about the mission Christ has set upon them to reach the world, they are closing their doors. At first glance this may seem like giving up, but it is quite the opposite, they are sacrificing their own pride, name, rituals and traditions and are giving their building and other resources to help plant a new church. The church and its leaders have the insight to see how they have been ineffective in reaching a growing community. They want to see a church in Southwest Boise who is effectively reaching those who don't know the love of Christ.

In my mind they are planting a seed for the Kingdom. Jesus often used farming illustrations when he spoke, and one commonality in all farming illustrations is the care it takes for a seed to grow. Someone must take the effort to plant the seed in fertile soil and tend to that seed. Without the seed being planted the Kingdom would not grow. Today my church is planting a seed that will grow, it will start small, but with the proper care it will grow to effect the world.

Thank you to the people and leaders at Desert's Edge Christian Church for being people who are selflessly looking to better the world and their community and I look forward to seeing the fruit of this seed in Contact Christian Church led by Daro Thol.