Saturday, April 1, 2000

Prayers for rain were answered in abundance
By Loretta Fulton
Reporter-News Staff Writer

Be careful what you pray for.

That time-tested admonition may be on the minds of some Loraine residents who held a “pray for rain” service March 21, only to be inundated the next day with a downpour reminiscent of a famous Bible story.

At the suggestion of J.A. Sadler, a large ecumenical service was held in the school gym on March 21. Sadler, a retired Colorado City and Merkel city manager who now lives in Loraine, approached local banker Bill Crockett about helping stage the service.

About 75 people representing six churches attended, with one song and one prayer offered by each church.

“We didn’t want anybody to get bored—we just wanted it to come from the heart,” said Crockett, vice president of First Bank of West Texas.

Each prayer began with words of thanksgiving for blessings already received, with kind of a P.S. tacked on that “the rain certainly could be used,” Crockett said.

When as much as 10 inches of rain fell in Mitchell, Fisher, and Scurry counties the next day, people began to wonder.

“There were a lot of raised eyebrows about what went on,” Crockett said. “We were amazed it rained that quickly.”

Lest anyone think the good folks of Loraine are ungrateful, a second service will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Senior Citizens center. Hamburgers and drinks will be served and a praise service will follow.

Mitchell County residents weren’t the only ones to see the fruits of their prayers come to bear. Roby First Methodist Church, Roby First Baptist Church, Rotan Church of Christ, Rotan First Methodist, Rotan First Baptist and Cross Roads Baptist have been holding a weekly Pray for Rain service since Jan. 21, 1999.

A weather observer, Horace Carter, said in 1998 he received 9.05 inches of rain at Cross Roads.

“Since we started the prayer service, the Lord has blessed us with rain,” he said. “We had over 20 inches last year.”

After the big rain on March 22, Carter thought instead of another “pray for rain service,” a praise service would be held.

The service was scheduled for March 23 at the Church of Christ in Rotan — if people could get there because of water over the roads in Fisher County.