Ford's act of faith spreads hope to places he visits

Tim Ford is on a mission and he is sharing God’s “Good News” wherever he goes.

“I left home — Ashdown, Ark., about 25 miles north of Texarkana — on Tuesday, Dec. 28,” Ford said. “The reason I decided to do this trip is to pray for the United States.

“When I go through a town or a city, I pray for the people, the schools, the police department, city hall and all of the offices — that they be filled with Christian people because I believe God will honor that all the way up to our federal government.

“I wanted to start at the local level because if you start at the top, it’s a lot harder to work down that starting at the foundation and working up.”

Ford describes himself as not being a “preacher,” but instead considers himself a plain-spoken country boy who retired from Cooper Tire and Rubber Co., and who dearly loves his country and his relationship with God.

“I have a retirement and I’m old enough to get Social Security — so my living’s already made,” he said.

“If I come to churches, I don’t ask for money and all I ask is for them to sponsor me with their prayers, and everyone — so far — does.”

Ford said the guiding thought behind his trek is his passion for America and the ideals it was founded upon.

“We live in a great country that I truly love, and I am often asked why I am praying for the United States,” he continued.

“I’m here and believe what we have needs a little tweaking and God is the only one that I know who can do it. I’m not going to talk bad about our government because it is what helps see us through.

“Still, I want to say that God’s hand needs to be in guiding our leaders and I don’t want them to just kick Him out because America was founded on His principles. I’m all for keeping it that way.”

Ford noted he had wanted to travel the nation’s roads on his prayer mission for better than 20 years — and decided now was the time to do so in a truly unconventional way via horses and wagon.

Sitting in a leather chair behind his horses, Ford and his ride are a source of curiosity everywhere he goes with people wanting to know his motivation for utilizing this historic form of transportation.

“It gives me a lot of opportunities to meet people and just talk to them,” he said. “Somehow, seeing the horses and wagon puts people at ease about coming up and saying hello or asking me questions.”

During his journey, which brought him through Franklin County via U.S. Highway 84 last week, Ford said area residents have been very good to him and expressed their Christian love through many random acts of kindness.

“I can’t say enough about how friendly the people have been everywhere I’ve gone so far, and they share their love for our country, too,” he went on to say.

“To be completely honest, this has been even better than I expected. I lived in an area that had seen a lot of drug activity and I had pretty much lost a lot of my hope. But seeing and being with so many good people has shown me God is everywhere.

“People offer me stuff all the time, but I always tell them that I would rather have prayer than anything else. Some insist that I take their gifts and I am blessed by their love and generosity.

“The truth is people started blessing me the day I left home — they text, they call and look at us on the ‘Prayer Wagon Tim Ford’ page on Facebook. I covet their prayers every day.”

During his time in Franklin County, Ford camped at the Roxie Truck Stop near the intersection of U.S. Highway 84 and Mississippi Highway 33 and at the First Baptist Church of Bude.

“Mr. Dee and the folks at the truck stop let me pay for some milk, but fed me breakfast and coffee along with lunch for the couple of days that I was there and even gave me a case of water when I left,” he added.

“In Bude, I spent Thursday night at the First Baptist Church and was blessed with lot of food thanks to Brother Tyson (Windom) and his church family. Thanks to everyone in Franklin County who have been so good to me.”

After departing Bude, Ford traveled through Eddiceton, Quentin, McCall Creek and Lucien en route to a resting place in Brookhaven where he and his horses will take a break at Johnny Cummins’ deer camp.

Ford’s mission began years ago by breeding his horses to develop what he called a “good, decent team.”

Even with all of the preparation that went into getting on the road, Ford said not everything has gone totally according to plan.

“My wagon’s a little bit heavy and I started out feeding my horses a higher protein feed and it took all the fat off of them,” he said. “I didn’t replace that fat, and about two weeks into the trip they lost too much weight.”

That’s one of the main reasons Ford and his team will be getting some down time in neighboring Lincoln County before venturing on toward Alabama.

“If I can finish this trip like I hope I can, I want to go in a big circle — heading to the East Coast, cutting across the bottom of the Great Lakes region,” Ford said.

“I have a friend in Wolf Point, Mont., and I was supposed to be there by next winter, but I don’t think I’m going to make it. But, I’m not really on a timetable at all.”

Still, Ford said no matter where the roads might actually take him in the weeks, months and years ahead, he finds it gratifying to be in God’s service.

“I think I’ve been encouraged more than I have actually encouraged others,” he continued. “God’s love is as close as the people I meet along this journey and you can see His presence in so many people that I come into contact with every day.

“For example, there was a couple that invited me to dinner in their home and I had the chance to meet a blind preacher from Wyoming. They all blessed me so much in talking with me, praying for me and encouraging me.

“I guess the thing that amazes me out of all of this is just how good people truly are. It would be very discouraging if all any of us focused on was the bad things in life. There’s a lot of good out there and God is out there among His people.”

Ford said the roots of his faith come from his mother, who he described as a prayer warrior.

“When I was a kid, the first thing I would do when I got home was to get something to eat, and my mother would be inside praying,” he noted.

“She passed away while undergoing heart surgery in December, 1984. I wasn’t saved at that time, but I remember her praying. She had a fifth-grade education, and would read her Bible.

“I never forgot that every time I would come in she would be praying. As I grew in my relationship with God, I can understand why she did. And I want to do the same thing.”

Even with his time on the road, Ford said he also makes time to share God’s importance to his children — a daughter, who is 41 years old, and a son, who is 37 — and his grandson, Tucker, who he adores.

“I’m so thankful for my family and for the support they give me in doing what I have long wanted to do,” he said.