Last year I spent most of the weekend of April 27th crying.
When I wasn’t crying I was grinning ear to ear.
It was our first ever attempt to gather women and (in)courage readers from across the globe together in real life. Nearly 2,000 sisters in Christ showed up and it flat out took our breath away. {That’s me on the right with my friend Christy who helped host our meetup}.
For months the (in)courage team had been praying for women to find community and Jesus in the same time and space. Instead of hosting a conference at one location, we wanted to bring the conference to you. So that the women you connected with could become local, real life friends.
But to see all your faces, to meet His daughters face-to-face? It was overwhelming.
I’d be scrolling through pages and pages of Instagram pics with the #inRL hashtag and my husband would look over and say, “Having another moment?” And I’d just nod dumbly and thank Jesus for the gift of the body of Christ as tears made their way down my grinning cheeks.
Today marks the beginning of doing it all again. The brave, the stepping out of our comfort zones, the being willing to open our hearts and our front doors to friends we may not have met yet.
Click here to come over to our (in)RL page to register and find out more. Because:
- It’s FREE!
- Everyone who registers today and TODAY ONLY gets a copy of our (in)courage 365 Daybrightener while supplies last (US residents only).
- Everyone who registers TODAY AND EVERY DAY gets a copy of our first eBook: Best of the Beach House 2012: A Collection of Your Favorite Posts from the Writers of (in)courage.
The webcast kicks off on Friday, April 26th and Meetups follow on Saturday.
Click here to get a look at the webcast line up and to preview a bunch of them!
Last year we explored the nitty gritty of community. This year we’re taking a closer look at what it takes to stay rooted in community when sometimes just walking away would be so much easier and tons more convenient.
On Saturday April 27th, meet up with old friends and new to spend a few hours in real life community.
This is the fun part – connecting with other local sisters in Christ. Seriously, this is the very best part. You don’t want to miss out – our friend Deidra wrote a whole post about the regret of missing a real life get together like this one! We want you there, nervously knocking knees and all 🙂
It’s easy: just look for a meetup in your area and join it. If there isn’t one near you yet, why not grab a friend or two and host one together! This is what makes (in)RL special – the real life connections we make with friends we didn’t realize lived right around the corner.
Want to know what others are saying about their (in)RL experience?
Don’t believe me? Here’s a snapshot of what (in)RL meant to the thousands of women who were impacted by connecting with other local sisters in Christ last year. It about blows us away.
And is the reason I’ll probably be right there crying through (in)RL 2013 same as last year.
And I’m looking forward to it!
Now, what are you waiting for? Come over and register already!
And if you’ve still got questions – we’ve got tons of answers over here on the FAQ page. Or leave ’em in the comments. Or come and join us on Twitter tonight to chat about it.
Everyone welcome. Just the way you are.
Still not sure what it’s all about – here’s the trailer. It’s lovely. Just like you!
~ Lisa-Jo, community manager for (in)courage and fan of real life friendship.
Leave a Comment
Katie says
Blogged about it and look forward to being a part of the fun!
http://echoesofmyheartcd.blogspot.com/2013/01/real-life-friendships-and-inrl-event.html
Kaitlyn@incourage says
What a beautiful post, Katie, and how wonderful to have a husband and friends come around you. We are so glad you’ll be a part of (in)RL 2013!!
Courtney Lindsey says
Registered, hosting, and ready to open up the “beach house” in April! 🙂
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Woohoo!!! Where will you be hosting, Courtney?
anna {girlwithblog} says
Ditto what Courtney said + a big WOOHOO!!!
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Anna, girl your meet-up is already ROCKING. 22 girls in the Twin Cities SO excited for community! We can’t wait to share your post later this month, by the way. 🙂
julie+ says
what comes after ditto!!! so there!
Lisa-Jo @incourage says
Ahhhhh you all are good for the soul and the nerves. A thousands thanks and you ARE (in)RL to us!!
Angela says
I’m due to have our third little one at the end of March so, I’m sad that I can’t make it. Maybe next year there could be one in Washington? That would be awesome!!!
Lisa-Jo @incourage says
Hey Angela, the great thing about the (in)RL conference is:
1) You can have a meetup anywhere you are.
2) You can watch from the comfort of home 🙂
Check out the details over here http://www.inrl.us
For When You Long for Community In Real Life - Jacque Watkins says
[…] at (in)courage spent two years listening to women in the comments section–women who were craving local, […]
Cindy in PA says
Registered and volunteered for a meet-up in my home. Can’t wait until April!
Kaitlyn@incourage says
So glad you’ll be joining us Cindy!
Christmas in January says
[…] other news, did you see this? I did it last year, along with thousands of other women. YOU should join in this year! […]
Lisa White says
Registered, set up to host in small-town Illinois, and looking forward to it! I’ll be sharing on fb + blog as soon as I get my kids settled with schoolwork. Running behind today!
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Lisa don’t worry about running behind! Aren’t we all?! We’re so glad you’re looking forward to it, though. 🙂
The Next Best Thing to Having Friends Fall Out of the Sky and Land on Your Doorstep says
[…] hosting a meet up for (in)RL 2013, and if you’re in the Colorado Springs area, I’d love to welcome you into my home. Some […]
erin says
Do you get my college-aged girls joining? I thought my daughter and some of her friends might enjoy but not if it’s all moms.
Amanda says
Erin – I totally think they would enjoy it, and learn a lot! They could have their own little event if they don’t have another meetup they want to join. 🙂 Our group last year was quite varied in age, but mainly women in their 20’s.
Lisa-Jo @incourage says
Couldn’t agree more – I even know of college groups doing meetups on campuses!
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Hi Erin! I’m the (in)tern at (in)courage and am in college. YES, your daughter and her friends should be a part! I participated last year and will be hosting a meet-up on my campus this year.
Debra says
I am so excited about the registration day, and the upcoming (in)RL 2013 event. I’ve registered and invited others. This is sure to be one of my personal event highlights of the year to remember.
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Woohoo!!!
Carol says
I think I just registered. Do I get a email confirmation ? Love the connection with (in) courage emails. They get me through my days the last year❤
Amanda says
They’re sending email confirmations about every hour — you can check your spam folder if you don’t see it soon. 🙂
Dana Butler says
Registered! Excited! Will blog it later…
Kaitlyn@incourage says
We’re so excited too! Thank you for be a part.
The Importance of Showing Up says
[…] more information, or to register for (in)RL, follow this link (I hear they’ve got […]
kathy says
I was wondering IF this is the ONLY day that you can host one of these???
Lisa-Jo @incourage says
Hi Kathy,
Meetups will only be on Saturday April 27th, if that’s what you’re asking. That’s when the webcast will be live.
Amanda says
So excited to be co-hosting an event in Minnesota! I attended last year and was SO nervous, but so glad I did. I was able to reconnect with my former Bible camp counselor, who has since become a dear friend (we’re co-hosting together this year!). I’m looking forward to building in more time for discussion this time, and probably a time to sing in worship together at the end. 🙂 Oh, and a “photo-booth” area just to be silly and document our time together! 🙂 Thank you SO MUCH, (in)courage, for putting this together.
Lisa-Jo @incourage says
We LOVE the story of you and Anna – ah-ma-zing!
Joy says
This is my first year and I’m hosting a meetup: http://churchplantingconfessions.blogspot.com/2013/01/in-real-life-2013.html
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Yay!!! Way to be brave, Joy!
cassi says
So bummed, second year in a row I will have to miss the meet up. Last year I caught parts of it on the flight to CA. This year I will be shooting a wedding for my photography business. Going to miss it. Have a great time MN gals.
Kaitlyn@incourage says
We’re bummed you can’t join us. 🙁 Are you able to watch on Friday night at least? If you’d like to watch last years (in)RL you can always purchase the DVDs through Dayspring.com
Ann says
So, this is a bit of a techie question and this probably isn’t the best place to ask, but last year I read all the meet-up stuff and could never figure this out and never saw a place to ask. Is there a way to test and make sure I can indeed stream the content? We live in a rural area and our internet is, um, “special”. I don’t want host a meet-up and then have everyone have to sit thru hours of buffering.
I was very scared last year to host a meet-up – we’re new in this area and I was worried that only like 2 people would actually show up and it’d be awkward and weird and that my lack of tech skills would unravel the whole thing and it’d be even more awkward…
I’m feeling a lot more confident this year and would like to host a meet-up, but without being able to nail down the tech stuff I don’t feel like I can sign-up/invite people.
Kaitlyn@incourage says
Hi Ann 🙂 If you go to this link right below, and look to the right side of the page, there is a section that says Host Downloads. One of the downloads says Webcast Technical checklist. That should help you make sure the connection will work! Hope this helps you 🙂 We’d love to you to host. 🙂
https://aws.incourage.me/inrl-host#hosting
Ann says
Ridiculously helpful! Thank you so much.
Stepping Out « Empowering Lives 4 Him says
[…] second happened yesterday after I signed up for my first (in)RL conference. The signing up was the easy part – I was so excited that I had it on my calendar so I […]
inspiration-driven links: week of 1.13.13 « inspiration-driven life says
[…] you heard about the (in)RL conference? Sponsored by the blog (in)courage, it’s gatherings of women all across the map on April 27, […]
A Few of My Favorite Bloggers | Skipper Clan says
[…] – just as you are. Just go ahead and sign up for the emails. Also, they are hosting another (in)RL Conference in April, so there is an opportunity to get to know other ladies in your area, not just […]
Normal Days Filled With His Goodness. | The Gratitude Journal says
[…] We were all strangers to each other less than a year ago, but today we are interested in each other’s lives and keeping up with each other ever since meeting {in}RL through this website and “conference”. […]