Richard Sims

Messy Ministry

At Tapestry Church, we want to be a place "where people who are broken or frayed are woven together into the body of Christ." What do we mean by "people who are broken or frayed"?

Just what it says. All of us have sinned. All of us are broken and frayed in some way. The good news is that all of us are loved dearly by our Heavenly Father. But there are lots of people around us who haven't heard that incredible news. And that should break our hearts.

There are broken, frayed, messy people all around us. Many of them need to know Jesus. The truth is, lots of churches want these messy people to know Jesus, but they don't really want those messy people in their churches.

I do. I want God to send to Tapestry messy people who no one else wants. I want us to love them, and I want them to understand that God loves them.

This isn't an easy ministry. Messy people are, well, messy. But God loves them just as much as he loves me. He sent his Son for them, just like he did for me.

Here's where the church comes in: "And God has given us the task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. This is the wonderful message he has given us to tell others." (2 Corinthians 18b-19)

So let's tell others. Let's love people, even messy people. Especially messy people. Let's invite them. And let's make sure they hear the wonderful message that their Creator loves them and wants them to be reconciled with him.

Sunday Recap

What a great Father's Day! It started out with breakfast in bed along with a Sunday newspaper, which featured a picture of me and the kids and Father's Day greetings from them. I am so blessed to have three incredible children!

Lots of Tapestry folks were out of town this weekend, but those who were here, well, we experienced a truly powerful service. Jason Sartain and the band rocked it out, then Louie Giglio talked about grace while sharing the story of Ashley, a college student in the last semester of her senior year.

Here's one of the many takeaways: "Most people who aren't followers of Christ, it isn't because they don't believe in God. It's because they don't think that God believes in them." Let that sink in for a moment.

The band led us in "Mighty to Save" to close us out, and, wow, just a great experience. Thanks to all who joined us and to those who helped us set up and tear down. Special, special day.

Up next - no worship service this Sunday, June 28, but we'll have InsideOut for grades 6-12 at 7pm on the 28th.

Waiting and Trusting

If you're a believer, then chances are you've read Isaiah 40:27-31 before. My high school, the Northside Eagles, used it on our FCA t-shirts. It's printed on just about everything in any Christian bookstore. I know, I've been in a few.

But today as I read those words, God really spoke to me. Some of us are out there trying to live a life that's pleasing to God, trying to do what's right when the rest of the world doesn't care, and we're tired. Some of you have been praying and praying and praying, and God hasn't responded, at least not the way you want him to. Maybe there are areas of your life where you've been struggling to have the patience to wait on God's timing. When all of those feelings start creeping in, it's easy to begin to doubt that God will do anything.

Then we start reading Isaiah 40:27-31. God does hear our prayers. God does know what's best. God's going to provide for me, when he's good and ready. (God is never in a hurry, and he's never late.) How could I ever doubt any of that? After all, God is the Creator of the universe.

When we get tired, when we start to doubt, when we pray and God says "wait," or even "no," God is there to provide us with his strength; strength to do, strength to wait, and strength to trust. When we don't have the strength or the patience or the faith, all we have to do is lean hard into the One who has all the strength, patience and faith we'll ever need.

Fruitcake and Ice Cream

I'm so excited about this Sunday's message, Fruitcake and Ice Cream. If you were h ere at Tapestry back in June 2008, then you may remember the Hope video series with Louie Giglio, and the story of Ashley, a young college student at the University of Florida. Well, in Fruitcake and Ice Cream, Louie speaks about grace while he reads from Ashley's personal journal. The message is encouraging and challenging to believers: the way we live our lives is crucial, and no matter how far away from God someone is, we can't give up on them.

Fruitcake and Ice Cream has so much to say for the unbeliever as well. They'll recognize a lot of themselves in Ashley's journal. This is a perfect opportunity to invite someone who doesn't usually attend church!  A lot of our regular attenders will be out of town or away this Sunday, so if you're anywhere near here, join us for this Sunday's service and invite someone to come with you. 

Sunday Recap

Last night we wrapped up the short, 2-part series Boulevard of Broken Dreams by looking at the story of King David and the rebellion of his son, Absalom. It was a unique perspective on that story, as David's dreams were crushed right before his eyes. His dreams were dashed, but not his faith. When you realize that your dreams can't come true, that isn't the time to take control of the situation. It's the time to lean hard into the only one who was ever in control in the first place, your Heavenly Father.

It was great to have James David Carter back with us leading worship! He did a great job and it was good to spend some time with him again. I really felt God speaking to many of us during the closing song, "Never Let Go."

You don't want to miss this Sunday! Louie Giglio continues last June's series Hope with a one-part video message entitled Fruitcake and Ice Cream. I'll share some more insight into this message in future posts.

Sunday Recap

First, let me say a great big THANK YOU to all who volunteered at the Georgia Barbecue Classic on Saturday! You were great! The Classic is the major fundraiser for the Good Neighbor Homeless Shelter, and you played a big part in their ability to serve people for the next year. Great job of serving your community.

Stephen Cope led us in worship on what may have been his final time at Tapestry, at least for the foreseeable future. Stephen was recently called as worship leader at the Columbia, South Carolina, campus of NewSpring Church. NewSpring's original campus is in Anderson, SC, and they are branching out with campuses across the state using video messages and live worship bands. Congratulations, Stephen! Please pray for the Copes as they make this transition in ministry.

Sunday night we started the 2-part series, Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Wow - so many times our natural tendency, when things don't turn out like we planned, it to grab the reins of life ourselves. Problem is, doing that almost always makes things much worse. Broken dreams don't mean that life is out of control. They just remind us that we were never in control to begin with. So instead of trying to take charge ourselves, maybe we should try leaning hard into the One who has been in control from the start. Can't wait for part 2 next Sunday!

Sunday Recap

We wrapped up our "Prayer" series with a look at unanswered prayer last night. Actually, there is no unanswered prayer, it's just that God responds with either a "yes," a "no," or a "wait."

Thanks for letting me share my story about Lisa, my first grade best buddy. I don't have any answers for why God didn't heal Lisa, but I do know that God loves her, and he knows what's best.

Whenever God doesn't answer our prayers the way we want him to, just remember that he loves you more than you can imagine, he is able to do anything, and he knows what's best. Sometimes when we don't get the answer we want, we just have to trust him.

Something Different This Weekend

This weekend is a long weekend, with lots to do as summer officially kicks off. There is no service this Sunday at Tapestry Church. So what should you do?

Have fun! And do it strategically.

What I mean is, take this opportunity to invest in the lives of friends, neighbors, co-workers, and classmates who don't regularly attend church and who may need Christ.

The sky's the limit on what you can do this weekend, but instead of just hanging out with church friends, why not spend this valuable time with people who need Christ? You never know what God will do when we offer ourselves this way.

So...have fun! Step out there, get a little uncomfortable if you have to, and know that you're making a difference.

 

Ok, so how many of you guessed that we'd open our Prayer series with "Livin' On A Prayer"? Thanks to Jason Sartain and the band for opening us up with that song and for leading us in worship.

Prayer is so vital to the Christian life, yet many of us just don't pray enough. How about you? Do you have a strong prayer life? Or does your prayer life need a boost? Are you completely honest with God when you pray? Do you pray throughout your day? Do you pray about everything that's important to you?

Since we're talking about prayer, here's something important that we'd like to ask you to pray about. We're currently blessed to be meeting at New Covenant Church, a church who has opened her arms wide to us and to whom we're so grateful. We still view this location, however, as a temporary one, and we're praying and searching for property that will allow us to move back to a Sunday morning meeting time.

But not just any property. We want to create an irresistible foyer environment. So would you consider praying this prayer on a daily basis? "Heavenly Father, please provide us with a Sunday morning environment where we're comfortable inviting unchurched people to attend." 

If you'd be willing to pray that prayer with us, let me know by adding your comment to this post. I am pumped about what God has in store for us!

Sunday Recap

I have said it on here many, many times, but I absolutely love Danny Dukes! Not only is rehearsal a blast when Danny's here, but he brings a passion for Christ and a love for Tapestry that is contagious. Not every worship leader can pull off a solo act, but Danny was outstanding last night.

We closed out the series Why Worry with the story of Elijah and a question God asked him when he ran away from Ahab and Jezebel: "What are you doing here?"

Are you worried, stressed out, running? Are you at a place in life that's far from where God wants you to be? If you've allowed worry to drive you into behaviors and habits in which you shouldn't be involved, what are you doing there? Go back where you were. Face tomorrow with confidence. Tell God, "Father, I've done all I can do today, and I'm going to trust you for tomorrow." The only other option is to worry.