Christian music artists and leaders are linking up to partake in a special simulcast in an effort to help small churches financially impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Two Christian organizations, the AND campaign and PULSE, will host the online simulcast called “Churches Helping Churches” on May 15 to raise money for the churches.
The event will feature chart-topping Christian music artists like Lecrae, Lauren Daigle, TobyMac and For King & Country,
"We are rallying with churches and men and women of God from across the nation," Pulse founder and evangelist Nick Hall said. "Preachers, athletes, and artists are coming together to raise awareness for ‘Churches Helping Churches,’” he added.
The AND Campaign has created a Coronavirus At-Risk Church Relief Fund which aims to provide $3,000 grants to churches facing closure due to the significant decline in church giving, CBN News reports.
"Specifically during this COVID-19 pandemic, there are churches in the urban and immigrant communities that are at risk of not making it,” Hall noted in a statement.
“We are rallying together to raise money and awareness to help our brothers and sisters in Christ,” he added.
A Barna Group survey conducted in the last two weeks of March revealed that 5 percent of churches are not very confident or not at all confident that they will survive the COVID-19 pandemic.
Regarding financial giving, about 42 percent of pastors said giving was "significantly" down while 28 percent noted a slight decrease in giving. Only about 26 percent of pastors said that giving “stayed about the same.”
According to The Christian Post, the simulcast is an extension of the goal set back in April by the AND Campaign to raise $500,000 for churches at risk of closing.
About 471 donors raised $431,000 and identified 125 churches for grants in the past month.
Ex- NFL star Benjamin Watson, who is the spokesperson for the event, stressed the need some churches have for immediate funding as “it may take months” for some of them to receive government assistance.
“A $3,000 grant may not sound like much, but oftentimes, it’s enough to get some of these smaller churches through the next week or the next month,” Watson told The Christian Post.
“Many churches are just like small businesses that are struggling right now.”
The simulcast, which is sponsored by RightNow Media and Reach Records, will air at TogetherGeneration.com/CHC on May 15 at 8:00 pm.
Proceeds from the event will be sent to at-risk churches.
Related:
More Than $400,000 So Far Raised for Small Churches at Risk during COVID-19
'Quarantine Revival' – 132,000 Respond to Jesus during Virtual Evangelistic Event
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Terry Wyatt/Stringer
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
