More and more people are asking for prayers as they battle a time of fear and uncertainty of the unknown in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since its creation in 2020 as a response to the emerging lockdowns brought about by the coronavirus spread, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) has received 1,000 calls from people every day asking for prayers to alleviate their fears and worries, The Christian Post reported.
Jonathan Edwards, assistant director to the BGEA, revealed that most people who call their phone lines ask for prayer because they are worried and fearful about what's happening.
When COVID-19 lockdowns are still fresh, Edwards, who also managers the prayer phone lines, revealed that their call numbers rose rapidly - much more than that already rising number of people calling even as early as January.
In an interview with CP, Edwards shared that a lot of people call simply because they do not know where to turn to.
"A lot of folks are just experiencing a lot of fear. People are just calling, and they don't know where to turn. They see where we are in the world and they're just not sure where to turn," Edwards shared, adding that "They just need hope."
Non-Christians are not the only ones to call the phone lines. Even Christians call to ask for prayers.
According to Edwards, people call for a lot of reasons aside from being afraid. Usually, they get calls asking for healing. Others call for them to find comfort. Some call to share their tragic experiences. Others fear what's happening concerning the election and the general politics in America. Some call because they are alone in COVID-19 wards and need someone they can talk to. But whatever their reason may be, every caller wants a prayer to ease the burden of their situations.
In a press release, the BGEA shared a few stories of individuals who called their phone line and how their phone volunteers responded to give light and hope to those who need it.
Edwards said that originally, the BGEA only planned for the prayer line to be a short-term feature of their organization. However, as the lockdowns continued, thousands of people call daily to find hope out of their situation.
"[Call numbers] have been very, very, consistently high. Eventually I thought we'd see that balance slow down, and it hasn't. They need to find the hope of Christ somewhere."
Aside from offering prayers and talking to people about their concerns, volunteers on the prayer line also reads the Bible to their callers to keep the feeling of emotional burden and overwhelm over the many fears and uncertainties that they have to face every day.
Since its conception, almost 7,000 people have decided to follow Jesus after being prayed for by the phone volunteers.
Edwards said that fear is normal, but that people can experience peace with God.
"We're going to experience fear. Nowhere in the Bible does Christ say we're not going to experience fear... There will be times that we're fearful, but you can experience peace with God."
