Make a Difference | Growing Up
GROWING UP
Make a Difference
Week 1 SOUL TATTOO: You don’t grow up by being perfect, you grow up by Knowing God.
Week 2 SOUL TATTOO: We’re not just better together, we’re stronger together.
Week 3 SOUL TATTOO: You don’t just “Discover Your Purpose”, you grow into it.
1 Corinthians 13:11 (NLT) 11 When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.
Direction, not perfection. One next step at a time.
“The purpose of life is to discover your gift…the meaning of life is to give it away.” - Pastor Chris Hodges
SOUL TATTOO: We’re not just here to grow, we’re here to make a difference.
We grow up when we discover our gifts, and start giving our life away.
3 Keys to “Making A Difference”:
1.) We are called to minister, not just attend.
1 Peter 4:10 (NLT) 10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.
Ministry isn’t a position, it’s a calling for every believer.
We were never meant to sit on the sidelines, we were created to step into the story.
SOUL TATTOO: We’re not just here to grow, we’re here to make a difference.
2.) God uses our gifts to heal a broken world.
2 Corinthians 5:18-20 (NLT) 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
If we’re paying attention:
A conversation
A moment of encouragement
A simple act of kindness
God meets needs through people who are paying attention.
Think about how many moments we miss in a day:
Someone discouraged
Someone overlooked
Someone hurting
Maturity is learning to notice what God is doing around us.
We don’t have to look far for purpose, it’s usually right in front of us.
SOUL TATTOO: We’re not just here to grow, we’re here to make a difference.
3.) Purpose comes alive when we give our gifts away.
Proverbs 11:25 (NIV) 25 A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
We don’t fully experience purpose by:
Thinking about it
Talking about it
We experience purpose by living it!
Our purpose is discovered in us, but fulfilled through others.
The life we’re looking for is often found in the difference we make for someone else.
This isn’t a program, it’s how we grow up.
We grow up when we stop living just for ourselves and start living for others.
SOUL TATTOO: We’re not just here to grow, we’re here to make a difference.
“The purpose of life is to discover your gift…the meaning of life is to give it away.” - Pastor Chris Hodges
REMEMBER:
1. Know God = Start the relationship
2. Build Relationships = Grow with others
3. Discover Purpose = Find your design
4. Make a Difference = Give your life away