Raising hope

In February 2020 Salvationist featured the Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer. Shanelle Manderson catches up with CEO Richard Gamble to find put how the project is progressing

WHAT IS THE ETERNAL WALL OF ANSWERED PRAYER?

The Eternal Wall will be a huge Christian landmark containing the largest database of hope stories in the world. It will sit on the outskirts of Birmingham by the end of 2022.

Each brick in the wall will recount a personal way God has answered a prayer, explaining how God has come through for individuals in the midst of life’s storms.

The wall’s design is based on the Möbius strip. This infinite loop will represent God’s eternal nature and how he is always listening and answering prayers.

The site will also house a state-of-the-art educational exhibition on prayer, a 24/7 prayer room, a café, a Christian bookshop and a park for prayer and reflection.

HOW IS THE PROJECT GOING?

It’s going well. In 2019 we ran a marketing campaign, which raised £170,000. That allowed us to submit our complete planning application with all its associated costs, for which we recently received approval. Now we’re building the one-and-a-half-mile access road to the piece of land. That’s about a six-month build, so it should be done by the end of the year. Then we’ll be able to start building the arch in January 2022, money permitting. Considering all the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic, we’re in pretty good shape to still be on target.

HOW HAS THE PANDEMIC IMPACTED THE BUILD?

I would say the past month has been the hardest. We’ve had three people from the team in A&E. It’s also made things harder financially, and trying to keep communication levels up on Zoom when we’re working as a team and things are growing very fast has been difficult. Looking at the numbers for the build, it’s easy for us to be discouraged because we’re getting a lot of people saying they can’t help us, but I’ve always said this has to be impossible for God to be glorified. So, the harder it gets, the more I believe God will be glorified through what we do.

If the story of the wall is an incredible catalogue of God answering prayers to get us to completion, then that would be far more meaningful and we’re certainly in that realm. We have some significant challenges ahead of us, but we keep trusting in God, remembering what he’s done so far.

HOW MUCH MONEY HAVE YOU RAISED?

That’s difficult to answer, as not only is the wall being crowdfunded but it’s also being crowdsourced, meaning there are lots of people that have dedicated and donated their expertise. For example, one of the leading barristers on planning lead gives his time for free.

The overall budget for the project is £11.4 million. We have successfully raised almost £3.7 million through online fundraising and crowdfunding. We have acquired enough funding to cover our running costs for three years, allowing us to focus on raising the rest of the funds. We will approach trust funds, charities and individuals to raise the amount needed, alongside regular donations from individuals across the UK and abroad. I recently wrote a book called Remember, and all the profits from that will go towards the physical build. Every penny helps.

WHAT IS REMEMBER ABOUT?

It explores the scriptural importance of remembering answered prayers and how such reflection helps us to greater maturity in prayer and gives us a deeper understanding of who God is. There are lots of books about prayer but not many about what to do after God has answered a prayer. Yet the Bible is absolutely filled with encouragement to remember what God has done and the impact of that. What I’m trying to do with Remember is get people thinking about what God has done in their life and try to restore the lost tradition of remembrance.

HOW MANY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE WALL SO FAR?

We’re at about 25,000. We’ve just completed the Answered Prayer Challenge, where we asked people to share a story of answered prayer on social media and then challenge three others to do the same. As a result, roughly three million people have seen an answered prayer on social media, which is great. Our hope is that about 200,000 answered prayers will have been submitted by the time the wall opens, so we’ve got a bit of work to do.

HAS THE PANDEMIC INCREASED APPETITE FOR PRAYER?

Yes. And, of course, one expects that if lots of people are praying then there are also lots of prayers being answered. We have a culture of keeping quiet about success, but the word of God tells us to proclaim his deeds, to announce them to the assembly. That’s why we’re trying to encourage people to share stories – because it inspires faith.

ARE YOU SEEING STORIES OF ANSWERED PRAYER AS YOU CARRY OUT THE PROJECT?

Yes, absolutely! Here’s an example. In a meeting, one of our advisers said we needed a construction person. I had no idea where to find one let alone the money to pay them, but I really wanted them to be a Christian. I was told I’d be looking for a needle in a haystack. I prayed, there and then. About 10 minutes later a guy who was in his car heard a story on the radio about the wall and felt God say he needed to get involved. He’s the senior construction project manager for Alexander Stadium in Birmingham and he’s now working for us. How amazing is that!

HOW CAN PEOPLE GET INVOLVED?

I’m keen that the whole Church feels it owns the Eternal Wall. Volunteer, donate, submit an answered prayer – you can be part of it in so many ways, but the most important way you can be part of it is to pray.

* To find out more about the Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer or to purchase Remember visit eternalwall.org.uk