by Susan Orr
Evansville Courier-Press, May 31, 2008

When the Rev. R.R. Schwambach first heard of dial-a-prayer in 1955, he wasn’t impressed by the idea.

“I heard about a pastor in Ohio doing it and I thought, ‘Oh, that’s a gimmick,'” Schwambach recalled.

But the more he considered the idea, the more he warmed to it. At the time, the technology — which allowed callers to dial a number and listen to a recorded Christian message — was considered cutting-edge. So he traveled to Ohio to visit the church and find out more about how they did it.

Based on what he learned, Schwambach decided to install a dial-a-prayer line at Bethel Temple Community Church, where he was senior pastor.

“I felt impressed to at least try it and see if it went anywhere — if God used it.”

Today, nearly 53 years later, Schwambach is still at it.

Schwambach, now 82, retired from full-time ministry at Bethel Temple in 1991, but he still records Dial-a-Prayer messages every day.

Schwambach launched Dial-a-Prayer the day before Thanksgiving 1955. Boosted in part by newspaper stories, Dial-a-Prayer initially received about 1,000 calls a day, enough to convince Schwambach that he’d discovered something worthwhile.

“When you start getting that kind of response, you think God’s in it — and he is,” he said.

Bethel Temple doesn’t actively promote the phone line, but it still receives an average of 100 calls a day. According to Schwambach’s records, Dial-a-Prayer received 771 calls the week of May 18 and 810 calls the week before that.

Callers to the prayer line (473-PRAY) hear a friendly greeting (Schwambach often begins with “Hello, friend, I’m glad you called”), then a religious message, which includes a prayer and usually a Bible verse.

Dial-a-Prayer’s nerve center is Schwambach’s home office on Evansville’s East Side. File folders in a desk drawer contain printed prayer scripts, written and refined by Schwambach over the years. Each day, he selects the script that seems most appropriate for the following day. Each time he uses a script, he writes the date on the sheet. Some messages, such as one about dealing with fear and depression, have been used more than a dozen times in recent years.

If a special topic is in order, Schwambach reaches for one of his themed messages, organized by topic: “Christmas.” “Rain.” “Tragedy.” “9/11 and Wars.” Sometimes an unexpected event, such as this month’s devastating cyclone in Myanmar, forces him to alter his planned message on short notice.

Schwambach usually records each day’s message from a phone in his home office.

Years ago, recording that daily message was not as convenient. Schwambach had to use the telephones associated with the Dial-a-Prayer number to record his message. He had to repeat his message three times — one for each of the lines — and he had to do the recording when the lines weren’t receiving incoming calls. That meant a nightly trip to church just after 2 a.m., the time the phone lines were least active.

“His consistency is such an inspiration to all of us,” said the Rev. Steve Schwambach, one of R.R.’s sons and Bethel’s senior pastor.

Over the years, R.R. Schwambach has observed some trends.

Calls decrease when the weather is pleasant, and they increase when the weather is stormy. April Fools’ Day tends to be a busy day — people pull pranks on their friends by giving them a fake phone message with Dial-a-Prayer’s number attached.

“That’s cruel — but it happens,” R.R. Schwambach said with a smile.

But in many other instances, the church says, Dial-a-Prayer has been a lifeline for the lonely and the lost.

Steve Schwambach recalls the instance of a trapeze artist, traveling through Evansville with the Shrine Circus some 30 years ago and desperate for help.

“He had decided to commit suicide, and decided to call Dial-a-Prayer to do something religious before ending his life,” Steve Schwambach said.

The caller was so moved by the message, Schwambach said, that he called the church. Although it was after hours, Schwambach happened to answer the phone. The performer came to Bethel to talk with Schwambach, and during that conversation the man became a Christian.

The next night, Schwambach went to watch the man perform at the circus.

“It was just such a profound moment,” he said.

Another time, Steve Schwambach said, he talked to a pregnant woman who said a Dial-a-Prayer message helped persuade her not to have an abortion.

“One of the revelations about this ministry is that a recorded prayer, when it’s sincerely given, seems to have a kind of blessing of God attached to it that you wouldn’t expect to have with something that was recorded earlier that day,” Steve Schwambach said.

Lillian Sheppard of Evansville, a Bethel Temple member, is among Dial-a-Prayer’s regular callers.

“I use it as a mini devotional because (Schwambach) always has a good Scripture and good comments,” she said.

For the past few years, Sheppard had called the line sporadically. Then, about six months ago, she started feeling low. Her doctor prescribed antidepressants, but Sheppard said they didn’t help. So the 87-year-old stopped taking the medicine and started calling Dial-a-Prayer twice a day and praying more often.

That has helped, she said.

“I trust prayer. It’s one of the best medicines we can take,” she said.

Bethel Temple knows there will be a day when R.R. Schwambach is no longer involved with Dial-a-Prayer, but Steve Schwambach said the church doesn’t like to ponder this because there is “terrible trepidation” at the thought of someone else following in his father’s footsteps.

Various church staffers have filled in for R.R. Schwambach when needed, as happened in March when the elder Schwambach was having vocal problems. But his son said Bethel has not identified a Dial-a-Prayer successor.

“We skirt the question,” Steve Schwambach said.

At the same time, the son said, “we are stunned by how many people continue to call in. It seems like it’s this quiet ministry that ought to continue.”

Download Eternal Impact – The Life and Ministry of R.R. Schwambach