The Middle of the Story

PART THREE of the Following Jesus Birthday Trip.

You can read PART TWO here.

Sheri heard weeping the moment she stepped outside, beyond the smokey fire-charred remains of her store.

It sounded like a child.

Following the wailing to the garden, she discovered a little girl under the canopy of prayer requests.

This precious one, unable to find the card she had written during a previous visit to the purple shop, was distraught.

Sheri assured her not to worry, “Your prayer is safe with God.”

Fire may have destroyed the building and its contents, but the real treasure—the prayers offered to God, remained unscathed.

Photo: Angie Byers

Sheri’s unwavering faith in God flowed like refreshing streams. Her yielded heart, sensitive to the Spirit, poured out as she recounted the wonders of her journey. My friend and I gulped down like parched pilgrims every ounce of glory God had shown this precious sister in Christ. Her blessing was ours, and praise swelled big.

After the fire, an outpouring of love and support for Sheri and the restoration of her shop began. A local man urged the community to pray for Sheri. “She prays for everybody, it’s time for us to pray for her.” They did. But when the prayer cards multiplied to a staggering 44,000 requests, the powers that be required her to remove them.

Another loss pummeled Sheri’s ravaged heart.

Photo: Angie Byers

Over the years, a piece of land a few blocks from the store became a sacred place for Sheri. She said she would often ‘steal away’ into the garden-like sanctuary to pray. Drawn to this parcel of earth that tugged at her heart, she longed to buy the property and expressed her interest to the current owner.

After the store burned, the landowner of the garden-like sanctuary approached Sheri about purchasing the property. The cost of rebuilding and reopening her little purple shop on Main Street made acquiring the land impossible.

More loss crushed Sheri’s tender soul.

When rebuilding occurred, Sheri took most of the unscathed prayer requests and placed them under the new foundation.

Almost three years after the fire, the shop reopened. Enter the store, and you are walking on the prayers of those who believe God hears and answers prayer.

While visiting Blowing Rock for the weekend, a woman and her daughter explored the little purple shop, met Sheri, and heard of the fire and the not-one-lost prayer story. Later that evening, the woman contacted Sheri wondering if she could meet for breakfast the following morning before they left town. Over coffee and a meal, the woman asked Sheri to tell her more about the prayer garden she envisioned. Before parting, the woman slid an envelope across the table to Sheri.

“I sensed the Lord telling me to get $5000.00 in cash before we came here this weekend. I had no idea why, but now I do. Please use this as a down payment on that sanctuary you long to create.”

Another woman, a recent widow, heard of Sheri’s desire for a prayer sanctuary. When the woman realized which property Sheri wanted, she gave Sheri the rest of the money needed to purchase the land. Her late husband adored the property, spent much time dreaming there, and longed to own it as well. How fitting. Only God.

Sheri intends to create a time capsule for the remaining prayer cards, then bury it in the new garden sanctuary. And the little girl who was crying outside of the store—will probably be there to help.

We are all in the middle of the story—God’s story. Declaring the outcome before it occurs, judging, or determining situations according to our limited knowledge can hinder our ability to recognize God. Reality can be distorted or unrecognizable, like wearing someone else’s eyeglasses.

A devastating fire, a child thinking her prayer was lost, the prompting to withdraw $5000, a late husband’s desire, an impossible opportunity, and the persistent longing to create a prayer sanctuary in a specific location are all middle-of-the-story moments.

God is in the business of redemption. His kingdom economy means up is down, loss is gain, and death brings life. Seeing and realizing the kingdom requires lenses of faith. Anything less, and our perspectives will be off kilter. The fingerprints of fear, doubt, unbelief, and impatience smudge our perspective clouding our vision of Reality.

What middle-of-the-story moment are you experiencing? Have you been tempted to judge a situation or determine the outcome before the rest of the story unfolds? Take heart, God is working.

Talk about taking a load off and experiencing peace—acknowledging we are in the middle of the story transforms life into one grand adventure! And I think we are much kinder, more patient, and eager to extend grace when we remember God’s good ending and that everything else is just the middle.

Interested in seeing a literal display of beauty from ashes? The following video commemorates the redemption of the little purple shop on Main Street. Enjoy! And may it bring you a measure of fresh hope for whatever middle-of-the-story you find yourself in today.

Blessings friend!

https://www.facebook.com/TakeHeartBoutiqueNC/videos/1644394239267589

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Ephesians 6:18