Rev David Sims – otherwise known as @tiktok_vicar – posted a short video on social media asking if anyone wanted a Bible. He never imagined he’d have to start a crowdfunding campaign to meet the demand
My phone buzzed as TikTok burst into life. A message landed in my inbox: “Hi Vicar, I don’t know where to start, but maybe reading the Bible would be a good place…”
Before I could reply, another one came through: “Can I request a Bible…I need some verses to help me know that I am not alone…”
As I began to type, my phone lit up again with a message from another person looking for something and not sure where to find it: “I want to start my journey, but I have no idea where to begin…”
And so, it continued. Day by day, every time I opened TikTok, I had more and more messages from people. Asking for bibles. Asking how to pray. Asking if they were allowed just to turn up at church on a Sunday.
Could this be a tiny glimpse of what people are referring to as the quiet revival? What the Bible talks about in Joel 2:13 - people rending their hearts and returning to the Lord their God?
The start of something
My journey onto TikTok began during Covid-19. It first, it was an amusing way to pass the time during lockdown. However, it soon became clear that the possibilities for preaching the gospel were too big to ignore. So, I changed from filming silly dad-dances or jumping on the back of amusing trends to focus more on telling people the good news of Jesus - and offering them the chance to get to know the only one who offers life “in all its fullness” (John 10:10).
I expected to receive maybe 50 or so replies. But the response took off
I’d still do fairly cringeworthy dance routines and respond to cheesy trends, but I also started weekly “ask me anything” live sessions where I’d chat about topics that included sexuality, prayer, life after death and spiritual warfare! Angry atheists regularly tune in, as well as seekers looking for answers and wondering if there’s more to life than this. Those hurt by church. Those who feel they’re not good enough. Those with hectic lifestyles who can’t make it to a Sunday morning church service.
Taking it online
Eventually, I started TikTok Church - a short weekly online ‘service’ at 8:30pm on Sundays. We sing songs, have a short reading, and then there’s a reflection, with space to pray. We always make sure that there is the opportunity to say yes to Jesus, too. I do this at St Thomas’s, the church where I’m vicar, so why not online too, with 60 or so strangers?
Every week, people get in touch to say that they responded to Jesus for the first time - and we send them a Bible and try to connect them with a local church.
Nearly half of new believers said reading the Bible was significant in their faith journey
We’ve been regularly posting out around 15 Bibles each week and, while we don’t always know what happens next in that person’s faith journey, we trust that “he who started a good work…will carry it on to completion” (Philippians 1:6).
We don’t send out Bibles because it’s nice to give people a shiny book, or even because the Bible is fun to read. We do it because we want people to know Jesus, the only one who offers eternal life. We want seekers to encounter the Word as they read the ancient words of scripture.
Next level
The Finding Jesus research from the Evangelical Alliance revealed that nearly half of new believers said reading the Bible was significant in their faith journey. That’s why we do what we do. So I thought I’d step it up a gear. I made a silly video asking people specifically if they wanted a Bible.
@tiktok_vicar #bible #christian #faith #jesus #life #book ♬ Confidence (sped up version) - Ocean Alley
I expected to receive maybe 50 or so replies. But the response took off. As of last week, we have posted out 1,603 Bibles to people across the UK – and more requests are coming in every day!
The demand has been so high that we had to start a crowdfunding campaign to fund it. We partnered with 10ofThose.com and St Andrews Christian bookshop, and organised weekly Bible packing parties. Volunteers bundle up a Bible, a Why Jesus? booklet, and a handwritten note.
We also pray over each parcel before it goes out. We pray that the Lord, by his Spirit, will continue to draw people to himself. And it is great fun playing our part in this kingdom adventure. More Lord!
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