A St. Louis pastor and his congregation stopped their church from being robbed after using their surroundings to their advantage and the best tool in their arsenal, prayer.
The members believe the men were overwhelmed by the power of prayer despite being armed, changing their minds from their original plan to stick up the building during service.
Pastor Marquaello Futrell, the senior pastor for the All Creation Northview Holiness Family Church in Ferguson, Missouri, said on Sunday, Feb. 12, a group of young men entered the worship service with firearms in their waistbands, KSDK reports.
Futrell, who served as a police officer for 10 years, said he relied on his experience in law enforcement and his work in the ministry to help him assess the ordeal.
The incident was captured on Facebook Live.
Futrell said he saw one man come into the sanctuary carrying two bags. That man began talking to the church’s children’s services director, which caught the clergyman’s attention.
He said, “I immediately just had the hairs on the back of my neck I’m like, ‘OK, something’s about to happen.’”
Soon after the first young man came in, four additional men entered with masks covering their faces.
The pastor said, “Me being a former police officer, I immediately noticed their waistbands, I’m like, ‘There’s something there.’”
Futrell said his instinct was to go into prayer and direct the spiritual words toward the men.
Another member saw one of the young men drop their gun, and this prompted the pastor to instruct the director to “lock the doors” in an effort to “keep the children safe.” He also instructed his media department to focus on the faces of the young men.
The service went on as scheduled, according to the Christian Post, with members worshiping and praising God. And about one hour in, the live stream captured the preacher approaching the back and saying, “In the purple, tell me your name. I…
Read the full article here
