The most important thing a person can do in this world is to accepting Jesus's sacrifice for each of us personally. That that is not the end of the journey, it is the beginning of a relationship, a relationship with the God of the universe and beyond!

And like any good relationship, it does not remain forever the same, it grows in meaningful and often unexpected ways.

Growing in that relationship is often called discipleship. Discipleship is both the way we go about maturing in our relationship with God, but also a big part of how we respond to the love and blessings God gives us as part of our relationship.

Discipleship can be broken down into the following four steps. Then tend to occur in this order. And note that each of them is very much an action rather than a feeling or intention.

As people gifted with an aptitude for IT, it is a natural response to want to use our gift(s) in ways that serve other and our church. The PluggedIn Ministry is intended not simply to attract more volunteers to work on church IT projects, it is intended as a way for IT folks to use their gift(s) as part of personally growing through discipleship.

Worship

Our skills, insights, aptitudes, passion, influence, and so on are gifts from God. Gifts that prompt us not simply to give thanks for our ability and opportunity, but for the opportunities to server others, and the kingdom.

When we find an IT solution or insight it often seems like we are just observing what is happening and coming together from, elsewhere. We are amazed, thrilled, impressed, and thankful. Not for anything we are responsible for, but for what has been given to us, and the work being done through us.

Connect

Connecting with folks who share our fascination with IT, ideas, solutions, patterns, principals, creativity, etc... is wonderful. But it can also be an opportunity to share our faith with others.

Connecting with people in and outside of the church demonstrate is part of doing IT. The people we work with, assist, and interact with in anyway might easily be in need of the personal loving interaction we can provide as IT folks.

Grow

Everyone in any sort of IT knows that you are always learning, your skill, knowledge, insights, and effectiveness are always growing and refining. You are also always growing in your ability to interacting with others who are not as tech savvy. This puts you in a special position to let others see Jesus through you.

But IT is not the only thing we need to continually learn. As part of our relationship with God, we want to learn more about him in the different ways he teaches us.

Serve

There is a principal seen in the two seas in Israel. Fresh water flows into the sea of Galilee in the north. The Jordan river flows water out of Galilee and into the Dead sea in the south. And there it ends. What is the difference between the two bodies of water? Fresh water flows into both, but only Galilee flows water out. It gives to the other and thereby gives and grows life, and the other gives to nothing and remains dead.

We have each received much. And as God 'makes a new heart in us' we begin to understand how important it is that we use what we have been given to then give grace to other. Following Jesus, means following his example, and serving other by giving grace is something he demonstrated often and with passion.