What to Know
A Kentucky woman is going viral on TikTok for doing the Lord’s work—perhaps literally—by calling up different churches all across the country and seeing if they’ll really help people in need.
With the government shutdown going on for a record number of days, there are millions of people in need who aren’t receiving their full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
That includes families with babies and children are going without food and formula, which is what prompted Nikalie Monroe to start a social experiment to see if churches are actually willing to help the people who need it most.
She tries several churches, one being the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Knoxville, TN.
She tries several churches.
The first one being the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Knoxville, TN. “Hi, yes, I was going to see if there’s any way y’all could help,” Monroe begins the call.
“I have a two-month-old baby and I ran out of formula last night and so she’s not eaten since last night, and she is starving. I was wanting to see if there’s any way y’all could help get formula for her.”
The receptionist at the church tells Monroe they’re a “main office,” and recommends that she calls other churches because they’re “not that kind of office.”
Next up:
Next up: the First Baptist Church in Jackson, MS. Monroe begins her experiment with the same statement about having a baby in need of formula. The person who answered the phone immediately puts Monroe on hold, where a pre-recorded message says the following:
“You have reached the Metro Assistance Ministry at First Baptist Jackson. Because of limited resources, we are no longer able to accept new applications.”
Next, she tries Lakewood Church in Houston, TX.
This church may sound familiar to you for multiple reasons—it’s famous televangelist Joel Osteen’s church, and it’s the very same church that closed its doors to the thousands of displaced people in Houston looking for shelter from Hurricane Harvey back in 2017.
Needless to say, most people probably weren’t holding out hope that this would be the church that would come through for a (hypothetically) starving infant and a struggling mom. As of 2019, the church had $59 million in net assets, according to Fox Business.
You know, in case you were wondering.
“We do have a benevolence ministry,” the person answering the phone responds. “I can take down your information and put in a request for you.”
When Monroe asks how long it could take to get the request fulfilled, she’s told “a few days or weeks.” And that’s only if the request is approved.
If you've got the time, her church series has over 25 videos on her TikTok account.
And as you can imagine, it’s the same song and dance almost every single time. Every single time but one call that got through to a sweet, kind-hearted great-grandfather at the Heritage Hope Church of God in Somerset, KY. She once again asks if the church can help her with her formula request.
“I’ll see if I can get somebody to do this, we can do this,” the man says. “I’ll just see. Tell me what it is you call it in case I have to go get it myself, because I’m a great-grandpa.”
He asks Monroe what kind she needs and where he can find it.
She ends her experiment with this particular call right then and there, and tells him what she’s really doing and why this particular call is so special.
“I’ve been testing churches in the community to see which ones would actually help, and you just touched my heart,” she explains. “I just want you to know that you are an amazing person.”
She tells him she doesn’t actually need the formula, but expresses her gratitude at how willing he was to help her find it. He explains that while his church is small, he wants to help his fellow parishioners who are struggling amid the government shutdown. He knows a lot of people have too much pride to ask for help, but he “always wants to try to help” anyway.
“The Bible tells us that it will be good to all members, especially those with a household faith,” he says. From that point on, he and Monroe come up with different ideas he can help his community during their time of need.
She ends the video by telling viewers this:
“I don’t go to church. I don’t believe in Christianity, but churches like this, ones that actually help and try to help, really do touch my heart because at least I know that they are doing what they’re doing with a good, pure heart. And that guy was just so adorable. I love it.”
It’s a shame that not all churches operate like that one does. Here’s hoping she continues the experiment and puts all the unhelpful churches on blast.
