DALLAS – While the end might be in sight for federal workers who are furloughed, many are still struggling to pay their bills right now.
That’s why a church in Dallas handed out $2,000 checks to federal workers in its congregation.
Concord Church Surprise 
What we know:
Federal workers who have gone without pay for more than a month were asked to come to the altar on Sunday at Concord Church in Dallas.
Last week, Pastor Bryan Carter asked the workers to sign up to be added to a prayer list.Â
“We’ve been praying for you all week long, all week long. Since you turned in your prayer request, I want you to know we’ve been praying for you,” he said.
While the list was used for prayer, it also helped the church identify how many in its congregation might need financial assistance during the government shutdown.
Two hundred people signed up. What happened next shocked them all.
“So each one of you will get $2,000 to help you with your mortgage, help with your utilities, with food as you go through this season. We want you to know your church loves you,” Pastor Carter said.Â
What they’re saying:
Demetri Drayden has been a member of Concord Church and has worked for the federal government for 41 years.
“I have seen plenty of shutdowns. Never this long and never this detrimental,” he said.
Keylen Jones is a TSA agent. He had no idea his wife had put him on the prayer list and showed up for church shortly after getting off work at Dallas Love Field.
“It’s difficult. I am not going to lie. The essentials of money are needed to live our daily lives. It’s not everything. I rely on my faith in Jesus Christ because whatever he takes away he gives back tenfold,” he said.
Pastor Carter said that while the surprise is in the spotlight, he wants the public to know that giving back to the community is something many churches are doing.
“Every day this is happening. This happened for us in this moment, but it is happening every single day by churches doing good work. Many of times it’s not seen. This is what the church does,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with prayers, but there are moments when God gives you the resources or provides the resources like he did in this case to be able to answer their prayers and to help people,” Pastor Carter said.
Dig deeper:
Concord Church said it collected $400,000 in donations to give to the workers. That included funding from a few big donors.
At a reception following the service, each federal worker received a $2,000 check and other resources to help them until they get paid again.
The church’s food pantry also handed out food to about 400 families last week. That’s usually the number of people they feed in a full month and just shows the broad impact of the shutdown on families, Pastor Carter said.
The Source: FOX 4’s Steven Dial gathered information from this story by talking to Concord Church Pastor Bryan Carter and federal employees at the church.