Oilfield Prayer Breakfast story connects family to aid
Group’s annual breakfast is Oct. 19
The young woman grabbed a Bible from Tom Beddow in passing, the encounter happening so quickly that the oilfield chaplain almost missed her parting words.
“Can I have one of this for my Daddy? He really needs this,” she said as she walked away from Beddow at an oilfield appreciation dinner.
Beddow shared the story of that meeting at last year’s Oilfield Prayer Breakfast in Oklahoma City. He asked the crowd to pray for the young woman’s family, but one oil company representative did more than that.
In one of series of events that Beddow describes as “divine” rather than random, the oilfield executive told
Beddow that he wanted to help the family in crisis — and he did.
Beddow recently talked about linking the family with much-needed aid as he discussed preparations for the 2017 Oilfield Prayer Breakfast.
The breakfast is set for 6 a.m. Oct. 19 at the Tower Hotel, formerly the Marriott, at 3233 Northwest Expressway. Richard Spears, managing director of Spears and Associates and a member of Christ Presbyterian Church of Tulsa, will be keynote speaker
Beddow and Jeff Hubbard said the seventh annual breakfast is hosted by the Oklahoma City chapter of Oilfield Christian Fellowship. They said the gathering brings people from all areas of the energy industry together for prayer and fellowship. “People really need to see the power of God’s word in the oil patch,” said Beddow, a Southern Baptist minister from Ada.
Hubbard is a leader with Oilfield Christian Fellowship. He is a senior account manager at Schlumberger oilfield equipment supplier and member of Crossings Community Church.
He said guests at this year’s breakfast will be given more details about the ways the Oilfield Christian Fellowship event connected a deserving family with more support than they ever hoped for.
For Beddow, it all started with the oilfield Bible that he distributes everywhere. Titled “God’s Word for the Oil Patch: Fuel for the Soul,” it includes the New International Version of the Bible, plus stories and testimonies of faith from workers and others in the oil industry.
Beddow said the young woman who had asked for a Bible for her father was concerned about her parent because he had been laid off his job in the oil field and was diagnosed with cancer soon afterward.
The chaplain said the family needed help and help came through the oilfield fellowship group and the concerned oilfield representative who felt led to offer assistance.
“When God is doing things, they seem like random events, but when you look back on it, it’s God’s perfect plan,” Beddow said. “I want God to get the glory.”