The church in sub-Saharan Africa is on the run, with 16.2 million Christians forced to flee their homes because of violence and conflict.
Church on the Run is a fundraising activity that invites your church to get sponsored to run, walk, swim, cycle or move anyway you can to raise vital funds for your persecuted family in Africa, like Pastor Barnabas in Nigeria.
Will your church get moving for them?
“We have been starving, but any time it becomes critical, you assist us. If not for the help of your ministry, I don’t think it would be easy for us to live. But with the aid of this ministry, they cared for us.” – Pastor Barnabas
FAQs
That’s entirely up to you! You get to choose the activity, distance and approach based on what best suits your group. For example, you might like to run, walk or cycle a distance together, or each person in your group does their activity and all your efforts are cumulated together to reach a particular target. Feel free to be as creative and challenging as you like!
Good question! We’d encourage you to do it as part of a group from your church, because this can help bring greater awareness and momentum among your church. It also reinforces the message of the challenge – namely, your church getting on the move to help the church on the run in sub-Saharan Africa. However, if you can’t do with your church, please don’t let that stop you! You could do it with your friends and family, or on your own. Whatever you can do, we’re cheering you on and we’re so thankful for the funds, prayers and awareness you’re raising for our persecuted family in Africa.
Absolutely! Running is not for everyone, but maybe something else is – like walking, swimming or cycling, or something a bit more unusual, such as hopping or skipping. You might even want to do a mixture of activities. It’s doesn’t matter what you do, so long as you’re moving. Get creative and do what best suits you!
There is no set target, but we’d encourage you to set your own target because this will give you something to work towards, and it helps encourage donations. You might like to think about a target that reinforces the cause – like £1,620, which highlights the 16.2 million displaced Christians in sub-Saharan Africa.
If you have set up a JustGiving page, the Gift Aid donations will reach Open Doors automatically without you needing to do anything more. If you have cash donations, we recommend you download a sponsor form and ask your donor to tick the gift aid box if they are eligible. Then just include your sponsor form when you send us the cheques and we’ll do the rest!
We recommend setting up a JustGiving page, as it’s quickest and easiest way to fundraise. As long as you have selected Open Doors UK as your charity, the money will come to us without you needing to do anything more. Facebook is also an easy way to set up a fundraiser and share instantly with your friends. If you have cash donations or sponsor forms, pop them in an envelope with details of your name, address and fundraiser and send them to our lovely Supporter Services team. Currently, we don’t have any facility for you to pay your money in online but we’re working on it so watch this space!
Thank you for supporting our persecuted family through this challenge and for wanting to get more involved! Please sign the Arise Africa petition, if you’ve yet to, and encourage your family, friends and church to do so, too. Have you also thought about volunteering with us? We have several roles and opportunities available – check out our website to see if there’s one that perfect for you!
There are so many other ways for your church to stand with our persecuted family in sub-Saharan Africa. If they haven’t already, encourage people to sign the Arise Africa petition, which calls for protection, justice and restoration for Christians in sub-Saharan Africa. The goal is to present one million signatures to the UK government, United Nations and African Union in 2026. You might also like to look at Scattered Church, which invites you to pray and worship with your persecuted family. The devotional session outline is ideal for church services and house groups, and features videos, song suggestions, creative prayer ideas, plus much more. We also have an amazing team of staff and volunteer speakers, so if you’d like one of them to come to your church to share more about Arise Africa and the wider work of Open Doors, let us know by filling out this simple form (https://www.cognitoforms.com/opendoorsukireland/speakerrequestform). And that’s not all, either. Head to opendoorsuk.org/ariseafrica for news, videos, prayer requests and much more, to inspire and inform your church’s continued support for your family in Africa.
