Demario Davis, Derek Carr seek to spark change with a Night of Worship

Linebacker, quarterback come together for evening of faith, music

Jun 12, 2024 at 10:56 AM

John DeShazier

Senior Writer

New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr and linebacker Demario Davis hosted a Night of Worship at the Mahalia Jackson Theater on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

It was billed as a "Night of Worship," but the goal for Demario Davis and Derek Carr on Tuesday night was to ignite a fire.

The faith-child born of a collaboration between the New Orleans Saints linebacker (Davis) and quarterback (Carr) helped fill to capacity the 2,243-seat Mahalia Jackson Theater, and allowed them to see a sample size of what they'd envisioned when they expanded their bond to spotlight the Christian beliefs and values that have drawn them closer.

Carr and Davis co-hosted the evening, with the former providing a brief sermon between musical performances and the latter closing out with words of inspiration and instructions on how to enhance spiritual growth and maturity.

"Our relationship has grown so much, because at first it was just (admiration) from afar, not being teammates," Carr said about Davis. "The one thing that has bonded us from the beginning was our faith. We've seen this faith unite us and people on the team and we said, 'You know what? Why not do this for our city?' And so, that's the 'why.'"

Davis offered his appreciation for those in attendance, who combined to claim the free tickets online in less than an hour, ensuring a packed house that included several Saints teammates.

"Thank you guys for being here to do this with us," Davis said, after opening the evening by eliciting a "Who Dat" chant from the crowd identical to the ones prior to kickoff in the Caesars Superdome. "I'm so grateful for all of you; you could be anywhere, and you chose to be here. Thank you for that."

The two were able to attract, through personal connections, Christian artists CeCe Winans, a 15-time Grammy Award winner which makes her the most decorated female gospel artist in history, and Grammy-nominated Tauren Wells, who performed several of their hit songs.

Carr presented a series of questions throughout his roughly 15-minute talk, the first of which was:

"Are we trying to be as close to the world that is acceptable, or as close to God as possible?" he asked. "Are we getting as close to the culture as we can get without looking like it but we're close enough to where we fit in, or are we trying to get as close as humanly possible to God?

"Only you can answer that question for yourself. Only I can answer that question for myself."

Each said he believed the Night of Worship could, and did, spark a change.

"I think that there's something happening here tonight that's going to change generations," Carr said. "God's plan for New Orleans is sitting in these seats. If His plan for New Orleans was for somebody else, you wouldn't live here.

"God did something in my life. He radically transformed and changed my life and I can't help but tell people about Jesus."

Davis said not everyone entered Mahalia Jackson in the same stage of life.

"Some of us came in, our faith was full and all we wanted to do was give all of our praise to the Lord," he said. "Some of us came in and our faith was strong, but we needed something to pick us up because we were going through hard times.

"Some of us came in with an understanding of who Jesus is or had heard about Him, but don't know Him for ourselves, but we've gotten a chance to know Him tonight. And some of us are in that place that all of us will experience through life, to where our faith has been shaken. And we believe that God can answer, but we just don't see how it's possible.

"But we just sang about the King of Kings, and you're here in this moment because there is a way. The Bible says, 'We walk by faith, and not by sight,' so you don't have to see the way out, but He'll answer."

Photos: Derek Carr, Demario Davis host Night of Worship