Christian singer Chris Tomlin's "Love Ran Red Tour" has been a huge success, with over 200,000 attendees and sold out shows in several cities including Chicago, Seattle, Phoenix, and Dallas.
But that's not the best part. Tomlin's fans did more than just buy tickets to his concerts - they managed to shell out over $700,000 in donations to CURE International, an organisation Tomlin has partnered with to provide life-changing surgeries to children with disabilities.
The donations will fund 700 surgeries. "They're really changing kids' lives," said Tomlin of the organisation. "I've found this is a place where I can trust where the money is going, and it's really going to heal these kids."
Tomlin and his wife Lauren joined the Board of Directors for CURE International, the largest provider of reconstructive surgery to disabled children in the emerging world, last fall. The singer called their involvement with the organisation a "game-changer" because they have been given the opportunity not just to aid physical healing, but spiritual healing as well.
"It wasn't just 'We're going to be a hospital.' We're fixing people's legs, but we're fixing their hearts," he said. "We're talking to them about their heart, and what really matters: Their soul, and how Jesus loves them. About how God has a plan for their life, further than just medicine. And so I couldn't stop talking about it!"
Tomlin said it really moves his heart that they are able to communicate to people through healing, and he said that CURE's efforts are a massive part of God's will. "Kids right now who can't walk, they're being carried, who can't go outside because their faces look different... they get to be kids again," he added. "I know that's the heart of God. That makes God happy."