A missionary was serving as a medic at a small field hospital in Africa.  Periodically he had to travel by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies.  It was a two-day trip, so he had to camp out overnight.  He had made this trip several times without incident.  One day, however, he arrived at his destination and saw two men fighting.  One was seriously hurt, so he treated him and witnessed to him and went about his business.

Upon arriving in the city again several weeks later, he was approached by the man he had treated earlier.  “I know you carry money and medicine,” said the man to the missionary.  “Some friends and I followed you into the jungle the night you treated me, knowing you would camp overnight.  We waited for you to go to sleep and planned to kill you and take your money and drugs.  Just as we started moving into the campsite, we saw you were surrounded by 26 armed guards.  There were only six of us and we knew then we couldn’t possibly get near you, so we left.”

Hearing this the missionary laughed and said, “That’s impossible.  I can assure you I was alone in the campsite.”

The young man pressed his point: “No sire, I was not the only one to see the guards.  My friends also saw them, and we all counted them.  We were frightened.  It was because of those guards that we left you alone.”

Several months later, the missionary attended a church presentation in MI where he talked about his experiences in Africa.  One of the congregants jumped to his feet, interrupting the missionary, and said something that left everyone in the church stunned.

“We were there with you in spirit,” said the man.  The missionary looked perplexed.  The man continued.  “On that night in Africa, it was morning here.  I stopped at the church to gather some materials for an out-of-town trip to another parish.  But as I put my bags into the trunk, I felt the Lord leading me to pray for you.  The urging was so great I call the men in the church together to pray for you.”

Then the man turned around and said, “Will all of those men who met with the Lord that morning please stand?”  One by one they stood—all 26 of them!

Reminded of the power of Prayer, Pastor Larry