New Around the Mission
Ministry to Truckers Plants Gospel Seeds
February 13, 2012
At a truck stop in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tom Sumwalt met an Iranian truck driver who asked him for copies of John 3:16 written in Arabic, Hebrew and English. The driver then asked Tom to pray for him in the parking lot. Tom, an over-the-road trucker, finds many such opportunities to share his faith as he drives his 18-wheeler cross-country for days and weeks at a time.
Eileen Sumwalt holds a booklet of prayers that Tom wrote while on the road.Tom and his wife Eileen, who travels with him, use the Sunday mornings when they can’t attend The Solid Rock Church in Winter Haven, Florida, to reach out to truckers at whatever truck stop they find themselves. Most truck stops do not provide any kind of Sunday services, but if management is open to the idea, Tom and Eileen offer their skills as accomplished singers and musicians, providing a short service including Bible reading, songs and prayers for those who want to participate.
“Truckers are asking the ultimate questions because they see life and death every day,” Tom says. “They know that there is a higher power who helps them through storms and other rough weather, and protects them from many dangers in construction zones and heavy traffic.”
He recalls a trucker he encountered at a truck stop in Virginia who had just witnessed a fatal truck crash earlier that morning. The man had been the first responder on the scene and had to be treated at the hospital for exposure to hazmat material. Since their trucks were parked next to one another, Tom was able to listen to the man’s story and pray with him.
Tom Sumwalt shares God's Word at Cochran’s Travel Center in Ringgold, Georgia.Tom also uses the CB (Citizen’s Band) radio as a tool to share the gospel with truck drivers and their riders. While sitting in a truck stop parking lot, he might announce over the CB that he’ll offer a short worship/devotional on a rarely used channel a few minutes later. Then he will share a Bible passage along with a few comments, a song and a prayer. Some truckers have figured out who is giving the devotional and thanked Tom for his efforts.
At home, the Rev. Andrew Doan and other members of TSRC support Tom and Eileen’s work in prayer. Andrew urges other churches to approach a local truck stop to see if it would permit them to occasionally conduct a service.
“It makes me wonder how many more men and women who keep this nation moving by being on the road all year round would love to have and would attend a worship service at truck stops,” he says.
To be successful, Tom says, churches must post correct meeting days and times outside of the meeting place, keep the message short and simple and be prepared to listen to truckers who want to share their stories. He and Eileen also try to get to know the leaders of existing ministries to truckers and assist in worship when asked. One Sunday morning in Milford, Arkansas, Tom attended a truck stop service where he volunteered to play the piano. The chaplain replied that he’d been praying for God to send them a piano player since their regular pianist was in the hospital.
Driving mile after mile, in sunshine, rain or snow, Tom listens to truckers’ stories, prays for those in need and even hands out a booklet of prayers he wrote while on the road. He believes that truckers—often lonely, disconnected and suffering from poor sleeping and eating habits due to their high-stress job—need this vital ministry of prayer and support.
“In this work, it is not always easy to see the good that you are doing, but God’s Word is always true and it produces whatever results that God desires,” he says. “You may be planting seeds for someone else to harvest, or you may be harvesting the fruit from seeds that someone else planted. This is where we trust the body of Christ to complete the task of discipleship.”
Learn more at The Solid Rock Church.
Posted By: Cynthia P. Brust
Categories: Outreach
