ASSEMBLIES OF GODPastor! Pastor! Come quickly!” “What happened?” Missionary Mark Baumgartner asked Peter, the man on the phone. Peter said, “My brother Patrick. He was working a construction site, and he fell three stories! The ambulance is taking him to the hospital now. They told me they don’t expect him to make it alive.” Mark could hear the lump in Peter’s throat as he spoke. He knew Peter was trying to hold back tears. “I’ll meet you at the hospital,” Mark said. “But first, let’s pray.” Mark led Peter in a prayer for Patrick, then assured Peter that he would contact a prayer chain so that many people would be praying together.
After hanging up the phone with Peter, Mark called several church members to get the prayer chain started. Calvary Assembly International Church on Tenerife Island was only two years old at the time of Patrick’s accident, but the people had captured a glimpse of the endless possibilities of a miracle-working God.
Everyone knew Patrick. He was from Africa, but he was living in the Canary Islands and attending Calvary Assembly International Church. He was well loved and always quick with a joke. And now his life was hanging by a thread.
Finally Mark headed to the hospital on Tenerife Island. Finding Patrick wasn’t easy. After questioning several people, Mark learned that Patrick had been taken to a different hospital in another city. Finally Mark reached the right place and found Patrick’s brother Peter.
With tears streaking his face, Peter said to Mark, “The construction workers thought Patrick was killed instantly. When the ambulance arrived, they said there was still some life in him, but they didn’t think he would last long.” Mark put his hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Listen, Peter—Patrick made it this far. And the last chapter has not been written yet.”
Mark found a nurse and asked if they could see Patrick. The nurse brought them into the room. Mark could see that Patrick was badly bruised. He looked like he had been beat up. But he was awake and smiling.
The nurse said, “I have to tell you—after a fall like that, I expected to find lots of broken bones. I don’t know why or how, but none of his bones are broken. He doesn’t even need to be in the Intensive Care Unit.” Mark stood at Patrick’s bedside. “It’s good to see you alive, Patrick. How are you feeling?” Patrick smiled and said, “Pastor, can I borrow that book I saw in the coffee house: How to Live Through a Bad Day?” Mark and Peter laughed. Not only was Patrick well, but he was well enough to tell a joke.
Mark told Patrick how the entire church had prayed. Patrick is now a living testimony to the fact that God answers prayer and cares about our lives. Remember, kids, no matter how bad things seem to be, we serve a God who can do anything. We need to learn to pray to God when we have problems or need healing. God always hears us and wants to take care of us. Trust him! Information for this story was provided by missionary Mark Baumgartner and is used with permission from Assemblies of God World Mission