Drive Thru Prayer Conference: Next step in faith and prayer

Trinity Southern Baptist Church of Casa Grande partnered with the Arizona Mission Network of Southern Baptists to host the Third Annual International Drive Thru Prayer Conference April 13-15. Attendees represented churches and ministries spanning Arizona and beyond.

The conference was packed with incredible speakers as they shared testimonies of how Drive Thru Prayer has impacted their church generally, and their life personally. Drive Thru Prayer’s vision is to expand to all 24 time zones around the world. Keynote speakers were Richard Blackaby and Rick Fisher of Blackaby Ministries International.

The three-day event kicked off with a dinner organized by an crew of volunteers (affectionately known as the “Red Shirts”) and a welcome to the city by Mayor Lisa Fitzgibbons. As a vocal supporter of Drive Thru Prayer, this is the second year she has led the opening ceremony. Attendees received words of wisdom from Arizona State Representatives Teresa Martinez and Chris Lopez, both of whom have attended Drive Thru Prayer at local churches.

Richard Blackaby, president of Blackaby Ministries, called for attendees to seek opportunities to pray for people whenever and wherever they meet them, and to do so boldly. His humorous anecdotes, examples, life experiences and stories of his father, Henry Blackaby, challenged those assembled to go deeper in their personal prayer life by not simply praying in Christian cliches. His call to a life of fervent prayer was highlighted in his sessions titled “Increasing Your Praying Percentage,” “The Power of Prayer” and “A Model of Prayer.”

Rick Fisher, vice president of Blackaby Ministries, has been the keynote speaker at both the First and Third International Drive Thru Prayer Conferences. He shared spiritual insights and many stories through his messages titled “Becoming a Person of Prayer” and “The Posture of Prayer.” His dedication to the Lord arising from his personal experience in pastoral ministry was an example of fervent and passionate prayer in the life of a believer even in the face of setbacks and uncertainty.

Attendees also heard messages from AZMN Executive Director Monty Patton and leaders from a dozen other churches and organizations, including AZMN pastors Mike Black, Mike Cardello and Jacob Levitt, as well as Karen Antle, who works alongside Ev Hardee at First Baptist Church of Chandler’s Drive Thru Prayer. For the second year, the conference emcee was Ron Coronado who, along with his wife, Megan, were this year’s Drive Thru Prayer Conference coordinators.

Drive Thru Prayer’s companion ministries, Walk Thru Prayer and Break Thru Prayer, also had reports of how the Lord is moving through prayer. Walk Thru Prayer is for remote areas and highly dense urban areas, and Break Thru Prayer seeks opportunities to pray in hard-to-reach places, such as homeless shelters, prisons and rehab centers.

Pastor Bishnu Regmi was commissioned as Walk Thru Prayer’s first international missionary at Drive Thru Prayer 2025 as he prepared to take this ministry to Nepal. Break Thru Prayer, led by Donna Shepherd and Guy Lewis, launched its first prayer site at the Casa Grande Home of Hope.

At the conclusion of the conference, attendees were given the opportunity to share their feedback and thoughts. They said they were greatly encouraged by the unity among Drive Thru Prayer churches, where nearly 10 local congregations offer Drive Thru Prayer in Pinal County alone. In addition, attendees returned home with a renewed sense of passion and zeal to reach the unchurched, under-churched and never churched with the gospel of Jesus Christ through prayer.

Philip W. Calvert is senior pastor of Trinity Southern Baptist Church in Casa Grande and founder of Drive Thru Prayer.