Chris Tomlin started leading worship at Main Street Baptist Church in Grand Saline, Texas, at thirteen. By his early twenties he was guiding Breakaway, a campus Christian ministry at Texas A&M, and had partnered with Louie Giglio to launch what would become Passion Conferences. The Houston region saw some of that foundational work. On Saturday, September 19, he returns to the area as a Grammy winner with 12 million albums sold and a catalog that lands in more church services worldwide than just about any other songwriter’s, headlining the AWAKE Houston rally at Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land.
About the Show
AWAKE Houston is the next city stop on AWAKE America, a nationwide revival initiative founded by Dr. Michael Youssef as a call to prayer, worship, and spiritual renewal. The evening pairs Tomlin’s live worship sets with a message from Youssef, who established The Church of The Apostles in Atlanta in 1987 and whose teaching ministry, Leading The Way, now broadcasts in 28 languages worldwide. Also on the program: Dr. O.S. Hawkins, Chancellor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, serving as host, and evangelist Ahmed Joktan as a guest speaker.
AWAKE America launched as a grassroots gathering in March 2020 and has since grown to more than 550,000 prayer participants across all 50 states; previous city-wide rallies have been held in Boston and Washington, D.C. Youssef has framed the movement around a clear conviction: “The only hope for America is a return to the Truth of Scripture and a revitalized Church.”
Tomlin brings a catalog that most congregations already know by heart — “How Great Is Our God,” “Our God,” “Holy Forever” among them. TIME called him “the most often sung artist in the world” in 2006, and the record still holds: 30 top-ten hits, 157 weeks at number one, 12 million albums sold, 8 billion global streams. His 2013 album Burning Lights debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, only the fourth contemporary Christian music album in history to reach that position. He won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album in 2012 and has collected three Billboard Music Awards and 30 Dove Awards over his career.
Venue & Logistics
Houston‘s Sugar Land suburb is home to Smart Financial Centre, a 6,400-seat arena about 20 miles southwest of the city — the scale of room the AWAKE Houston gathering needs. Doors open at 6:00 p.m.; the program begins at 7:00 p.m.
Tickets
Tickets are priced $20–$60, fees included, with financial assistance available for those who need it. Buy tickets