Just Shy of Harmony (17 page)

Authors: Philip Gulley

BOOK: Just Shy of Harmony

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“Forgive my impertinence, but I think it is. And what upsets you more than anything is that God might have used someone you don’t care for.”

Sam didn’t say anything.

“I won’t belabor the point,” Miriam said. “But if God chose to heal Sally through this television preacher, shouldn’t we be grateful? Would you have liked it better if God hadn’t healed her?”

“Of course not.”

“Then let’s give thanks, Sam. It appears we might have a healing on our hands.” She smiled.

Sam smiled back. “I still think he’s a bozo.”

“So do I. But apparently God uses bozos too.”

They laughed.

“Besides, Sam, Johnny LaCosta wasn’t the only one praying for Sally. We had this church praying twenty-four hours a day. The Catholics were praying, and the Baptists. Fern and Bea and the Friendly Women and even Dale were praying for her all along. And let’s not forget that a lot of doctors were working to make Sally better.”

“That’s right. It probably wasn’t Johnny LaCosta after all.”

“We’ll never know, Sam, will we?”

“I guess not.”

“Which means we shouldn’t despise the prayers of any one person, should we?”

Sam didn’t say anything.

Miriam gathered up her papers and rose from her chair. “You take care, Sam.”

“You do the same, Miriam.” He paused. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Sam.”

H
e sat at the folding table in the basement, pondering what Miriam had said. How he’d been discouraged when God didn’t seem to be working, then when God did do something it made him mad. It occurred to Sam that he wasn’t an easy man to please.

Upstairs, the Frieda Hampton Memorial Clock bonged nine times. He rose from his chair, rinsed his coffee cup out in the kitchen sink, turned off the church lights, and walked down Main Street toward home.

Over at the Legal Grounds, Deena Morrison was turning the sign from Yes, We’re Open to Sorry, We’re Closed. She waved through the glass at Sam as he passed. He smiled and waved back.

She cracked open the door. “Have you heard the news about Sally?”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t God good,” Deena said. It was a declaration, not a question.

Sam smiled and nodded his head in agreement.

God is good, he thought. Bewildering, but good.

Acknowledgments

I am indebted to the good people at HarperSanFrancisco for valuing truth above conformity. Their open minds and gracious hearts are deep refreshment.

In addition to writing,

Philip Gulley also enjoys the ministry of speaking.

If you would like more information,

please contact:

David Leonards

3612 North Washington Boulevard

Indianapolis, Indiana 46205-3592

317-926-7566

[email protected]

If you would like to correspond directly with

Philip Gulley,

please send mail to:

Philip Gulley

c/o HarperSanFrancisco

353 Sacramento Street

Suite 500

San Francisco, CA 94111

About the Author

PHILIP GULLEY
is a Quaker minister, writer, husband, and father. He is the bestselling author of
Front Porch Tales
and the acclaimed Harmony series, as well as
If Grace Is True
and
If God Is Love,
coauthored with James Mulholland. He and his wife, Joan, live in Indiana with their sons, Spencer and Sam. You can visit his website at
www.philipgulleybooks.com.

Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.

Glorious
praise
for
PHILIP GULLEY’s
beloved
HARMONY
novels

“Who can resist another invitation to this remarkable author’s domain of dear hearts and gentle people?”

Paul Harvey Jr.

“Reading Philip Gulley is a joyful experience…Gulley reveals through his masterful storytelling that simple pleasures really aren’t things of the past.”

Topeka Capital-Journal

“These short stories about life in the fictional town of Harmony, Indiana, resonate with humor and faith.”

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

“In a league with Jan Karon’s Mitford series…Gulley’s work is comparable to Gail Godwin’s fiction, Garrison Keillor’s storytelling, and Christopher Guest’s filmmaking.”

Publishers Weekly

“Philip Gulley is a beautiful writer.”

Charles Osgood, anchor,
CBS Sunday Morning

BY PHILIP GULLEY

Harmony Novels

Home to Harmony

Just Shy of Harmony

Christmas in Harmony

Signs and Wonders

Life Goes On

A Change of Heart

A Christmas Scrapbook

Nonfiction

Front Porch Tales

Hometown Tales

For Everything a Season

If Grace Is True
(with James Mulholland)

If God Is Love
(with James Mulholland)

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

JUST SHY OF HARMONY
. Copyright © 2002 by Philip Gulley. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

ePub edition January 2008 ISBN 9780061746079

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