Featured speaker, Women of Faith (WOF) Conferences
Grammy-nominated vocalist
Creator of the popular Children of Faith Conferences
Former 700 Club co-host and Heart to Heart host
Lives in Dallas, Texas, with her husband, Barry, and their 11- year-old son, Christian
Guest bio
Sheila Walsh: A Word About Prayer
By Heather Salon
The 700 Club
CBN.com
– GET OFF YOUR KNEES AND PRAY
Sheila Walsh admits that prayer was a challenge for her throughout her life. This prompted her to do a study on prayer for two years. One thing she learned and an area that she gets a lot of correspondence about is the problems Christians have with prayer. Many Christians are not sure how to pray or what to ask for. Many wonder, “How does my prayer make a difference?”
Sheila studied Hebrews 12:2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
She also studied the biblical passages that show how Jesus prayed, especially in his final hours before the Crucifixion in the Garden of Gethsemane. Christ left a path of how to pray. In Gethsemane, Jesus prayed to let this cup pass. He trusted in Father God’s heart, “…not my will but Thine be done.” Jesus exhibited full humanity through His sorrow. We need to trust God enough to be honest with Him, because being totally honest brings the space for grace. We cannot add to the finished work of Christ – God wants us to trust Him. There is no right or wrong way to pray. We just need to start where we are. We shouldn’t measure ourselves against others. God is always listening and God is always trying to speak to us. His children need to take the time to listen to Him. God can speak through the Word, godly friends, inner peace. If something is done through compulsion, it may not be from God. God is a God of order and speaks in a still, small, quiet voice.
One of Sheila’s favorite quotes about prayer is by the late Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, who said, “Prayer is not preparation for the battle, it is the battle.” Prayer is a lifestyle. It is a moment-by-moment, constant communication with God and a commitment and consistency to that. Many times, prayer is a last resort for people; it should be the first resort. Prayer is an invitation to walk side by side with God every single day. We should take that more seriously as Christians. God has a history of being trustworthy and He can be trusted. God’s grace is the same no matter what. Strength, grace and mercy - He will give us what we need.
We also need to pray according to Jesus’ will; our demeanor should represent whom we are going to meet and remove triviality. Prayers should reflect the heart of the Church – we need to pray in the company of saints around the world and reflect the body of Christ. When we pray, we should think about laying up treasures in heaven.
Personally, Sheila starts each day with God in prayer. She goes outside and tells God she is going with Him that day. When Sheila reads the Bible, she expects God to speak to her. She has a notepad and pencil beside her and writes down what she “hears” the Lord tell her, so she can meditate on the Word. Sheila says part of prayer is reflecting and meditating on what He’s saying to us.
WOMAN OF FAITH
Sheila has traveled 30 weekends a year as a featured speaker with Women of Faith Conferences for 12 years. With 4 million women attending each year, the number of salvations keeps increasing each year. Her husband, Barry, and son, Christian, travel with her.
Over the years Sheila has come to realize that she is not alone in the quest to find out what on earth God had in mind when He created Eve, the very first woman.
"We are all on a journey in this life; we have no choice on that front, but we are either growing or shrinking inside. We are either becoming more fully the woman that God knows us to be or becoming less recognizable daily," Sheila said.
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