'They Are Getting Help and Hope': OK Church Feeds Over 50,000 Families Hit by Coronavirus

As churches remain closed due to COVID-19, one megachurch in Oklahoma is offering practical help and hope in a time when many need it.  

Victory Church in Tulsa has been holding drive-in services with the pastor preaching from the rooftop to thousands parked in their cars.

In partnership with small businesses in the area, the ministry has also fed more than 50,000 families who have fallen on hard times due to the coronavirus crisis.

Pastor Paul Daugherty explained that the community has come together and many people are making sacrifices for the sake of their city.

"We have small businesses who are giving up their monthly salary and their paychecks to pay for people to have food to eat right now," he said.

"And 53,000 hot meals and groceries to people who are laid off from work or reduced in their hours," Daugherty explained. "They’re saying 'if you guys weren’t open, we don’t know where we would go right now'."     

The pastor told Fox News that serving those in need is what the church stands for. 

"The mission of our church and every church is love God, love people, and desperate times call for desperate measures," he said. "We started doing our drive-in services and started seeing so many unchurched people come on our parking lot in desperation and they are getting help and they're getting hope."
 
Daugherty explained that the City of Tulsa is rallying around his initiative - even local government officials are supporting the church's relief efforts.

"I called our mayor, chief of police and the governor and said we are helping thousands of people and I think you don't want to stop this. They said, 'you're absolutely right...you guys are an essential business and what you're doing for the poor in our city is what our world needs right now,'" he added.

And Daugherty is even hearing stories of restored hope from people who attended his drive-in worship services. 

"I talked to them about the only place we can put our hope - in the Word of God and the name of Jesus Christ," he concluded.

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