A friend, church member, and loyal reader shared this with the assurance of a friend of a friend that it’s true. You decide.

Here’s the story.

A bar called Drummond’s (in Mt. Vernon, Texas,) began construction on an
expansion of their building, hoping to increase their business.

In response, the local Southern Baptist Church started a campaign to
block the bar from expanding — petitions, prayers, etc.

About a week before the bar’s grand re-opening, a bolt of lightning
struck the bar and burned it to the ground!

Afterward, the church folks were rather smug — bragging about “the
power of prayer”.

The angry bar owner eventually sued the church on grounds that the
church…”Was ultimately responsible for the demise of his building, through
direct actions or indirect means.”

Of course, the church vehemently denied all responsibility or any
connection to the building’s demise.

The judge read carefully through the plaintiff’s complaint and the
defendant’s reply.

He then opened the hearing by saying:  “I don’t know how I’m going
to decide this, but it appears from the paperwork that what we have
here is a bar owner who now believes in the power of prayer, and an
entire church congregation that does not.”

I honestly don’t know whether the story is true or not, but I do know many people who treat prayer this way. They make it something to be done but not something to be believed.

Prayer for Jesus was real. He knew that His Father heard Him.

Though Jesus rarely prayed “in public” he constantly spent time with the Father.

In the Acts, you see a church constantly in prayer. Again and again we read words such as these: “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship. to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers” (Acts 2:42). They did mighty works because of their acts of prayer.

When King Herod killed James and, therefore, pleased the Jews, he also arrested Simon Peter and had him placed in prison. The church earnestly prayed for Peter. On the night before Herod was to bring him out for execution, an angel of the Lord appeared, releasing Peter and leading him to the home where the disciples met to pray. Even though they prayed, the disciples had a hard time believing the prayer had been answered (Acts 12). Is it that way with you? Our prayers must be prayers of faith. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. God reveals Himself to people who have the gift of faith.

God speaks when we pray. In Acts 10, Cornelius, a Gentile proselyte to Judaism, prayed and God spoke. At about the same time, Simon Peter prayed and God spoke. Could we have seen this miracle without these being men of prayer?

How do you pray? How will you pray in the future? “The urgent request of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect” (James 5:16).

May we be people who pray urgently, fervently, earnestly, and believing that our God hears and cares.

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