First Presbyterian Church Received $1.25 Million Grant

The funding will expand the Day1 media ministry to reach younger and spiritually curious audiences.

Updated on Oct. 1, 2026 in Christianity

Gouache-painted illustration of a single vintage microphone standing in a sunlit hall, representing faith-based media expansion. — The Lilly Endowment awarded $1.25 million to the First Presbyterian Church of Marietta to modernize the Day1 media ministry’s video production capabilities. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded a $1.25 million grant to the First Presbyterian Church of Marietta to support the expansion of the Day1 media ministry. This initiative aims to increase digital outreach to younger audiences through enhanced video production.

Why it matters

The grant supports the modernization of the legacy media project, allowing it to better engage with contemporary, digitally native demographics. This funding is part of a broader push to revitalize faith-based media through the Compelling Preaching Initiative.

The grant supports the digitization of over 4,000 historic sermons, including materials from Ebenezer Baptist Church. Day1 ministry experienced a 51 percent year-over-year increase in podcast downloads during the first quarter of 2026.

The players

First Presbyterian Church of Marietta

This local religious institution is the recipient of the grant funds intended to facilitate the expansion of the Day1 ministry.

Lilly Endowment Inc.

Headquartered in Indianapolis, this private philanthropic foundation focuses on community development, education, and religion.

Day1

Formerly known as The Protestant Hour, this media ministry operates under the Alliance for Christian Media.

Alliance for Christian Media

This Atlanta-based organization manages the operations and distribution for the Day1 media ministry.

Ebenezer Baptist Church

This historic church is providing sermon materials that will be digitized as part of the new grant-funded initiative.

The details

The project will scale up full-length video production for sermons and interviews while preserving historic audio archives. These efforts are designed to ensure that long-standing religious content remains accessible to modern digital users.

1945: The ministry was founded as The Protestant Hour.
2025: The ministry reached nearly 300,000 people across digital channels.
Q1 2026: Podcast downloads increased 51 percent year-over-year.
October 1, 2026: Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded the $1.25 million grant.

Roadmap

This project highlights a shift toward digitizing legacy theological archives to compete in the crowded podcast market. It reflects a growing industry trend where traditional religious institutions leverage high-quality production to maintain relevance in digital-first landscapes.

Residents may see an increase in locally produced digital religious content featuring church leaders from the Marietta area. This expansion provides the local community with broader access to sermon archives and updated digital video interviews.

The takeaway

Investment in legacy religious media proves that traditional institutions are successfully adapting to modern audio and video formats. Listeners and viewers can expect a growing library of high-quality content as these historic archives are digitized.