Doug Coe, who is a remarkable man of faith, told this story about his friend, Bob Hunter. One day when Bob was searching to understand his own faith and what it all meant he asked Doug, "Doug, do you really believe what the Bible says about moving mountains when we pray?" Doug thought about it and answered, "Sure."

Bob was rather incredulous and asked him, "Do you mean to say that you believe that if I prayed for a mountain to move, that it would move?" Doug thought for a while and said, "Let me put it this way. I not only believe it, but I will make you a bet. A $500 bet. Bob, what do you know about Africa?"

"Nothing."   "Then here's the bet. I want you to pray for 45 days, 'God help Africa.' You can't miss a single day. And that's all you have to pray: 'God help Africa.' At the end of 45 days, you be the judge on whether any mountains have moved. If you think a mountain has moved, you pay me $500. 

If you don't think a mountain has moved, you just tell me, and I'll pay you $500, no questions asked."

Bob, being an astute businessman, rather liked the odds. He accepted the bet. And he began to pray daily, "God help Africa."

A few days later, Bob was at a dinner and sat next to an elderly lady. In the course of the conversation, he found out she lived in Uganda, and ran an orphanage there. Bob asked her a number of questions about Uganda and Africa.

After a while, she asked him why he was so interested in Africa. Bob responded, with some embarrassment, "You'll never believe this, but I made a bet with a good friend," and proceeded to tell her about his bet with Doug Coe. By the end of the evening, she invited him to return to Uganda with her in a few days to visit the orphanage. Bob accepted the invitation. When he visited the orphanage in Uganda, his heart was touched by the orphans.

After coming back to the US. he got a few friends together and bought a load of toys and clothes, and sent them to Uganda. The following week, he got a phone call from the woman at the orphanage. "Mr. Hunter, the children are so grateful for what you did, they would love if you could come again so they can make a special presentation to you to show you their appreciation. Can you come?"

Bob accepted the invitation, and was off to Uganda again. After a heart warming ceremony at the orphanage, there was a phone call for Bob. It was the President of Uganda. The President had heard about the gifts to the orphans and called to thank Bob personally on behalf of his country.          

The President of Uganda also invited Bob to visit him that afternoon. When Bob arrived the President was in the middle of rushing out of his office. He apologized as he had appointments, and invited Bob to come along, so they could get acquainted in the car. Bob accepted.

Along the way, at one of the stops, Bob looked out the window to see what appeared to be a stockyard -- only this was a stockyard not filled with cattle, but with men. Bob asked the President what he was seeing.

The President responded that it was political prison, and those men were his political enemies. The conversation went something like this: "But Mr. President, that's not right to have men living in such horrible conditions. You must let them go." "But those are my political enemies--men who have tried to subvert my authority.

I cannot let them go. That would be foolish." "You have to let them go -- it's not right that human beings would have to live in those conditions."          

The conversation did not last long, and shortly thereafter Bob was back in the U.S. About a week after getting back, he received a phone call. This time it was from the State Department, asking him to come to a meeting with the Undersecretary for African Affairs.

Rather puzzled over the purpose of such a meeting, he nevertheless went to the appointment. At the meeting, the Under secretary of State for African Affairs and Bob had a conversation along these lines: "Mr. Hunter, on behalf of the Government of the United States, I want to thank you for what you have done in Uganda." "What?  The US. Government is thanking me for sending some toys to some orphans in Uganda?" "No, Mr. Hunter. It is about political prisoners. The President of Uganda recently released the political prisoners, which is something our government has been trying to get him to do for years, without success.

He told us after taking this action that he was doing it because of what you said to him." Needless to say, Bob Hunter was flabbergasted. But the story doesn't end there. After the State Department meeting, the President of Uganda phoned Bob and asked him to return to Uganda to help him form a new Cabinet for his country. "But Mr. President, I don't know anything about your country or the people who best serve in your government. I'm just an American businessman. How can I possibly help you choose a cabinet?"

Bob went. And did what he could to help the President select his new ministers. A close friendship has developed between Bob Hunter, American Business man and the President of Uganda. The President even stays in Bob's home in the D.C. area when he visits the U.S. And you can guess, after those 45 days of praying "God help Africa," Bob Hunter sent Doug Coe a check for $500.

That night in Gig Harbor, Doug Coe told us that he told his story later to a group of around twenty very successful business executives, all members of Young President Organization, an international association of business people who have become the chief executives or owners of companies above a certain size by age 40. After he told his story at this YPO lunch, 13 of them came up to him and asked him if he would take on the bet with them.

Swallowing hard, after doing some quick math, he accepted the bet. He laid out the ground rules for them, that they had to pray every day for 45 days. They did not have to tell him what they were praying for, and at the end of the 45 days, it would be entirely up to them to decide whether a mountain had moved as a result of their prayers.

After those 45 days, Doug received 12 checks for $500 each. A while later he received the 13th check, accompanied by a letter that went something like this: "Doug, my mountain didn't move. But the discipline of praying every day for 45 days has changed my life, and so I feel I owe you this $500."


Quote of the Year: "The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor. The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything."

 

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