Pilgrim provides his reality of church

He's not your typical pastor. He works full time at an Apple store and writes music. At one point, he sold shoes.

But his first name is Pilgrim. For real. His "Christian hippie" parents named him after The Pilgrim's Progress, a famous Christian allegory written in the 1600s. They nixed the name Luke because Star Wars was all the rage.

"It was either Pilgrim or Moonchild," he says with a laugh.

Years later, the name suits him well. Pilgrim Benham came to Tampa to bless the city, starting in the downtown core.

Benham started Reality Church last year out of a small N Florida Avenue storefront. Up to 50 people gather every Sunday for 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. services. His Christ-based message is simple: Help people live right with God.

He and his wife, Jenny, and their two young children came to Tampa with the intention of scratching it off their list of potential cities to plant a church. Austin or Charleston crossed their minds. But Tampa?

That changed the moment they arrived. Walking down Franklin Street, seeing the Tampa Theatre and the then soon-to-open Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, they knew they found their place.

"We saw a city that was on the mend and growing," he said. "A place that was ready for renewal."

Needing a steady income, he landed a job selling shoes at Johnston & Murphy. Soon after, he went to work at International Plaza's Apple store. Interviewing was like auditioning for American Idol, he said. Of the 100 applicants who turned out, just he and one other person got a job.

Reality Church has four purposes: to care for the lost, seek the young, heal the injured and spiritually feed the healthy. Members believe serving the community starts in small, but meaningful, ways.

Like handing out bottled water to joggers on Bayshore Boulevard.

Like posting prayer requests on Twitter.

Like hosting neighborhood movie nights on the Benhams' front yard.

Benham, 32, uses trips to the bank, grocery store and coffee shop as opportunities to invite people to church. He relies on social media over glossy brochures and, thanks to his Apple job, owns i-everything. This year, he hopes to expand into a larger space, possibly in the Channel District.

"I'm not just doing it to build a business," he said. "I want to build people."