Richard Sims

GroupLink Is Coming

So last Sunday I shared one of my deeper secrets, the costume I wore on my last night of Halloween trick-or-treating as a kid. (If you weren't there Sunday, you'll have to ask me in person what it was).

After cruising the neighborhood for candy that night, we went to a party at our church. I remember it so well because it was so much fun...no one recognized me! My friends didn't, my youth minister didn't, adults that I'd gone to church with for years didn't. And I won the "best costume" award.

Some of us go through life with disguises worthy of a "best costume" award. There's an image you want to project, but it's different from the real you, so you go through life behind a mask, and no one really knows you.

Maybe it's time to drop the disguise. You don't need to go through life hiding the real you. What you need is a small group of people who truly know you, who accept you anyway, and who love you so much that you can work together to get beyond who you are and become all that God wants you to be.

If you're a TCer, your opportunity to find that small group of people is this Sunday night, February 22 at 6pm. Join us for GroupLink, and register to let us know you'll be there. Come on over. Take a risk. You'll be glad you did.

Authentic Community

It's Friday, which means we'll look at Tapestry's core values.  Today: Authentic Community.

Our mission is to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ, and we believe that in order for that kind of spiritual growth to occur, "community" is vital.  That word "community" can mean a lot of things, but we feel that authentic community exists among a group of people when there is care for one another, a sense of belonging, and accountability.

These three things, care, a sense of belonging, and accountability, are best achieved within the context of a small group of like-minded, relationally-connected believers. Tapestry’s goal will be for every attender, from preschool through adulthood, to be connected in a small group that meets for relational connection, Bible study, and prayer and who does life together, facing together the issues and challenges of life.

Did you follow that logic?  Our mission is spiritual growth; spiritual growth takes place where there is accountability, belonging and care; and those three things happen best in a small group. 

It's easy to see that small groups will be vitally important at Tapestry Church.  That's why small groups were the focus of our ministry to preschoolers and elementary-age children from the start.

Now we can turn our focus to small group ministry for teenagers and adults.  We're in the process right now of making plans for these groups, with the goal of having them in place around the time school starts this fall. Please pray about this ministry, ask God whether this is a place where you may be called to serve, and let us know!

At Tapestry Church, small groups are not a nice addition to our ministry; they are the heartbeat of our ministry.

Andy's Life Timeline

So Andy has a project to do, and it calls for him to create a time-line of his life.  The first thing he has to do is figure out the key events, the most important times, in his life.  You know, things like "started talking,"  "started walking," "first day of school," "first Auburn-Alabama game," the really important stuff.

He gives me his list, and right below "Trip to Disney World" was something that really hit me..."Met Mr. Jonathon."  Andy was talking about Jonathon Burns, his small group leader at the church we attended while planning for Tapestry. Turns out that this happened on September 17, 2006.

Mr. Jonathon has obviously made a huge impact on Andy, not only on Sundays during small group, but even by coming to Cartersville to watch soccer and baseball games. To Andy, Mr. Jonathon is THE MAN!

At Tapestry, starting in Waumba Land and UpStreet, and coming in the future for both youth and adults, we'll major on small groups.  When a child graduates from the high school ministry they will understand that “I cannot survive outside of the context of community.”  It’s just wired into their system from preschool up.

My dream is that every child at Tapestry will list meeting their small group leader as one of the highlights of their life. And my goal is that years from now when your child leaves high school, they will search for a church where they can experience the same kind of community they experienced growing up.

Thanks Mr. Jonathon!  And thanks to all of you who faithfully serve week in and week out in Waumba Land and UpStreet at Tapestry!  You're not just babysitting.  You're making impressions that will last a lifetime.

Community with Insiders

Our mission at Tapestry  Church is really very simple: to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ by creating environments where people are encouraged and equipped to pursue three vital relationships: intimacy with God, community with insiders, and influence with outsiders.

Today I want to take a closer look at the 2nd of those 3 vital relationships: community with insiders.

We want to see people moving forward in their walk with God, in their relationship with God.  And we believe that, ultimately, the best environment for that is in community with other believers.  That's why from day one we've offered small group opportunities for preschoolers and children.  And that's why, as we go forward as a church, you'll see small group opportunities for teenagers and adults.

In fact, small groups will become the central focus of Tapestry Church.  That's because accountability, care and a sense of belonging are crucial to our spiritual growth. These three things are best achieved within the context of a small group of like-minded, relationally-connected believers. Tapestry’s goal will be for every attender, from preschool through adulthood, to be connected in a small group.

We are stubborn in our belief that a small group is the best place for sustained life change to occur.  For adults, Community Groups (groups of 6-12 people that meet in a group member’s home for relational connection, Bible study and prayer) are where they will study God’s Word together and discuss the issues and challenges of life.  At Tapestry, small groups will not be just a nice addition to our ministry; they will be the heartbeat of our ministry.

That doesn't mean that we're ready to rush into a small group ministry right now. As always, we're going to move forward one step at a time, doing a few things and doing them with excellence. But in the spring and summer you'll be hearing more and more about this ministry, and by the time school starts, we'll be encouraging every Tapestry attender to get involved in a small group. 

I'm looking forward to that like a kid looks forward to Christmas (well, like I look forward to Christmas, but that's another story).

Are you as excited about small groups as I am?