Christian songwriters Keith and Kristyn Getty are continuing to share their music during lockdown to help others continue to worship in song.
The Gettys, from Northern Ireland, are two of the best-known Christian artists today, having written modern favourites such as ‘In Christ Alone’ and ‘The Power of the Cross’ alongside Stuart Townend.
While ordinarily they would sing to packed arenas, the lockdown has only increased their reach as they instead broadcast their songs live on social media from their home in the US.
Lonely
In the early stages of social distancing Keith and Kristyn, alongside their four young daughters, decided to sing songs around the piano while live-streaming to the world.
Keith said: “It was Kristyn’s idea because she’d been hearing about so many lonely old folks at home on their own, and friends of hers were talking about how bored their kids were.”
“As Christians, we believe life doesn’t stop at death”
He said none of them had expected the traction it would get, saying: “By the end of the second week it was total chaos with 1.1 million people tuning in and before we knew it we were all on Fox News.
“It’s been a huge hit, in a way we never imagined.”
No fear
The songwriter added that he and the family are taking comfort from their faith in God during the crisis.
“We don’t know when lockdown will end, or how it’s going to end, we don’t know if our jobs are going to be the same as they were before and we can’t be sure we won’t get Covid-19 or even a variant in a few years’ time.”
But Keith said there was no need to fear death: “As Christians, we believe life doesn’t stop at death, and that what happens next is extraordinary.
“If anything, this is a time for people to start having these conversations about what happens next”.