When we launched Anna Club in 2016, it was a simple act of obedience. We heard Jesus’ call and we followed. But as the years have unfolded, our “yes” has grown into something much larger than ourselves. I began dreaming of a national movement mobilizing the elderly for prayer.
On my recent trip through Texas, I realized something profound:We aren’t the ones dreaming. God is the one dreaming, Across the nation, His people are finally waking up to his dream.
Austin: The Sound of Breaking Silence
My journey began in Austin, joining a small team that has spent years pouring into a local nursing home. They led the residents in worship and then handed the service to me. I shared our core message with the residents: God is not finished with you. You have a purpose. You are called to the ministry of prayer.
The atmosphere shifted. The team later testified that residents who they had never heard speak were suddenly lifting their voices in prayer. In that room, the “Anna” calling wasn’t just a concept; it was a living, breathing reality.
Nacogdoches: “I Don’t Want Her to Go to Hell”
On Tuesday, I was in my birthplace Nacogdoches, Texas with Elder Spencer and his church. We led a service of hymns and prayer. At one point, a woman stood up to pray for her roommate who regularly treated her with anger and vitriol.
With tears in her eyes, she cried out, “I don’t want my roommate to go to hell!” The room went still. I asked her to lead us, and we all joined our faith with hers. But the prayer didn’t end in that room.
The Roommate
After the service, the woman led us directly to her room. I looked at the roommate and asked a simple, heavy question: “Do you know Jesus?” She stared back with a lost, vacant expression and shook her head no.
“Do you want to know Him?”
Suddenly, her eyes cleared. With a striking, childlike innocence, she nodded yes. As we began the prayer of salvation, she started to drift toward sleep—a physical heaviness seemed to pull at her. I spoke to her body: “You will stay awake until we are done, in Jesus’ name.” Her eyes snapped open. We finished the prayer together, and I have no doubt the angels in Heaven were shouting louder than we were.
Afterwards, Elder Spencer offered to take me to dinner, but I had already scheduled a meal with one of my partners, so I declined. When I arrived at the restaurant, their card machine wasn’t working, so we changed plans and went to a barbecue place instead.
And there was Elder Spencer.
We ended up eating together, and my friend who is also a local minister were encouraged simply by the unexpected way God had arranged it all. I left that meal amazed all over again: God is real, and He pays attention to the details!
Lufkin: A Whisper from the Hebrides
The “coincidences” continued. The next day, I found myself at a prayer meeting in Lufkin.
A woman leading the group shared that she was heading to a nursing home later that week. When I shared that I had transitioned to full-time nursing home ministry, she looked at her friend in shock. “This sounds familiar,” she whispered.
I joined her at the nursing home a few days later. After worship, she stood up and told the story of the Hebrides Revival. She spoke of two sisters: Peggy & Christine Smith, one 84 and blind, and the other 82 and crippled with arthritis. These two women, confined to their cottage, cried out to God for hours every day for their island. Their prayers birthed a move of God so powerful that 90% of the island was converted.
She looked at the elderly residents and echoed what I know realized is God’s dream not mine: “God is not finished with your life! He still has purpose for you!”
I walked up and hugged her. “I have a new friend,” I told her. “The same dream God whispered to me in Kansas City, He whispered to you in Lufkin.”
Something is Happening
That night, my friends asked, “How has your week been? Just normal, lethargic Lufkin?” I told them, “No. God is moving in this city. Something is happening in East Texas.” He sees the elderly. He is stirring their hearts, and He is demanding that their voices be heard.
God is not finished. And neither are they.
