Missouri and Florida Churches Bring Ministry Curbside
In 2024, Ozark AG in Ozark, Mo., began offering drive-thru prayer on Tuesdays, creating an inviting atmosphere for people to pull in and share their needs.
“Our goal is not to get them to come to our church but to take their needs to the Lord,” says Bob Smyer, 59, who serves as pastor of the church he attended as a teenager. “We introduce ourselves, ask how we can pray for them, and write their names and needs down.”
Sandwich boards, signs, and an orange canopy in the parking lot attract attention. The idea for drive-thru prayer came to him one night while he was preparing to step in and lead the church. He had a strong impression of his wife, Laura, sitting in the parking lot of the church with a sign reading, “Need Prayer?”
“One of my dreams was to pray for the community,” Smyer says. “Prayer is the key. If we’re not praying, we’re missing the mark of what we’re supposed to be doing. I’m a huge believer in prayer. Starting off every day in an hour of prayer has been a habit of mine for years, so this was a no-brainer.”
A number of drivers have pulled in to ask for prayer for cancer. One man said he had stage 4 cancer, then came through several weeks after receiving prayer to say he was healed. Other common requests include healing of broken families and personal hurts.
“Some people pull in and don’t know why,” Smyer says. “We get to tell them about Jesus.”
In Boca Raton, Fla., Church of All Nations AG launched a similar outreach ministry this year and paired it with their weekly Saturday food give-away, says longtime church member and staff member, Joao “Joe” Bezerra.
The church sits on a street that is well-trafficked during rush hour, when many drivers pull in seeking spiritual and physical sustenance.
“We ask them, ‘How’s everything going?’ and start a conversation, then ask, ‘What can we pray for you today?’ says Bezerra. “Some people say, ‘I don’t want food. I just want you to pray for me.’ Sometimes they are just broken. They open their hearts to us, we pray for them and they go away happy. Some come back the next Saturday and give us the testimony from the prayer of the Saturday before. I’m telling you, it’s been an amazing experience. I can’t wait for Saturdays.”
Church of All Nations’ drive-thru prayer and food give-aways run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Saturday and draw around 140 people weekly. According to Bezerra, one woman requested prayer for money to buy equipment for her dentistry practice and testified that funds began coming in the week after receiving prayer. Others report resolution of serious family problems and substance addictions.
“You start to see things happen,” says Bezerra, who came to the U.S. from Brazil some decades ago. “It’s one of the best ways to reach out to people. Some people don’t want to go to church, for many reasons. You have to go after them, like Jesus said: Go and make disciples. We have to go back to the basics. We have to reach out to people.”
Longtime staff member Elke Henrichs calls the 60-year-old Church of All Nations vibrant and missions-oriented, and says that in addition to the primary language of English, Spanish, Creole and Portuguese translations are offered in some Sunday services. Haitian and Brazilian groups meet at the church during the week.
The prayer ministry, which is run by volunteers, is going “really well” and joins other prayer ministries already functioning there, she says.
“Those that come for prayer have really appreciated it, and it has brought a lot of encouragement,” Henrichs says. “People are very touched as we pray for loved ones, or upcoming surgeries, or healing — whatever they need. We’ve had nothing but positive feedback. Come rain, shine, wind or whatever, we’re out there.”
Smyers in Ozark says drive-thru prayer “has given us a heart of missions not only for our community but in general. Our missions giving has grown and I know this is part of it.”
