Best Devotions of Sheila Walsh, The - Softcover

Walsh, Sheila

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0310241723 ISBN 13: 9780310241720

Publisher: Zondervan, 2001

Synopsis

Sheila Walsh is refreshingly real, a woman who has learned that faith and honesty walk hand in hand. If you, like her, have discovered that Christianity is something other than a panacea for life’s problems, these sixty devotions will strike a resonant chord within you. Sheila talks about God and life as they are, not as we think they should be. Honed to a practical edge and tempered with good humor, Sheila’s faith smacks of authenticity. Kick your shoes off, settle back, and unwind. Or give this book to someone you know who would enjoy a chuckle, a reflective pause, an 'Aha!' moment, maybe even a tear. Insights and encouragement lie within--and more than a few grins!

About this title

About the Author

Sheila Walsh is the creator of Children of Faith and the Gnoo Zoo, a ministry to children that communicates God's love for them. She is the author or coauthor of several books including "Honestly", "Gifts for Your Soul", "Living Fearlessly", and "The Best Devotions of Sheila Walsh". As an accomplished musician, Sheila has recently released the CD "Love Falls Down". Sheila, her husband, and their son, live in Nashville, Tennessee.

From the Back Cover

Sheila Walsh is refreshingly real, a woman who has learned that faith and honesty walk hand in hand. If you, like her, have discovered that Christianity is something other than a panacea for life s problems, these sixty devotions will strike a resonant chord within you. Sheila talks about God and life as they are, not as we think they should be. Honed to a practical edge and tempered with good humor, Sheila s faith smacks of authenticity.

Kick your shoes off, settle back, and unwind. Or give this book to someone you know who would enjoy a chuckle, a reflective pause, an "Aha!" moment, maybe even a tear. Insights and encouragement lie within--and more than a few grins!

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Vision For when [King] David had served God s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep. ACTS 13:36 One year my summer job was working behind the haberdashery counter of the largest department store in town. It took me a while to become familiar with all the stock. We had roll upon roll of ribbon, boxes of but-tons, zippers, cotton thread, pretty handkerchiefs, and one very strange item. I came across it one day when business was slow and my boss told me to clean out all the drawers. It had obviously been some time since they had been cleaned, and I spent most of the day rerolling ribbon and putting but-tons into little boxes. The item was in the bottom drawer. I pulled it out and dusted it off and thought, What a stupid thing. No one wants one like that. I dusted it off and put it back in the drawer, convinced it would never sell. When Miss Ferguson came back from her afternoon tea break, she asked me how my task was progressing. I showed her all the clean drawers, the neat rows of rib-bon, and the boxes of buttons. I didn t mention the item in the bottom drawer. Perhaps she had ordered it. It was hardly my place to tell her that I thought it was about the stupidest thing that this sixteen-year-old had ever seen. The trouble is that I can never leave things alone. I m like a terrier who buries a bone in the yard and digs it up every twenty minutes to see if it s still there. I couldn t contain myself. "Miss Ferguson," I began, "we have only one of those items in the bottom drawer." "Oh, I know," she said. "We sold so many in May and June." You have got to be kidding! I thought. She continued. "I m sure we had at least twenty at the beginning of the summer. You can imagine how popular they are with our young ladies." "You mean girls buy these?" I asked incredulously. "Of course, dear, who else?" "Well, I wouldn t want one," I said doggedly. "Oh, they all say that, but someday you will," she replied with a smile. "Miss Ferguson, I don t mean to be rude, but what would I want with a lacy plunger?" Miss Ferguson, who was in her seventies, looked as if she were about to choke. "A what?" she cried. "A lacy plunger," I said. "It s not very practical and the lace will get wet when you stick it in the sink." "My dear child," she said with tears rolling down her cheeks, "this is for bridal bouquets. You arrange the flowers in the top and you carry it by the white handle deco-rated with lace." I could have died. By the next day the "lacy plunger" story was all over the store. Salespeople can be merciless! How wrong I had been in miscalculating this item s purpose. One verse buried in the Acts of the apostles refers to King David, who "served God s purpose in his own generation." Christ too was so clear in the purpose of his life. His mission statement was well defined. Do you and I know why we are here, what we have been made for, our purpose? Sometimes we live out what other people perceive as our vision and calling and never discover for ourselves what that really is. Sometimes we are afraid to reach out and live the life that we believe we have been called to. But fear is no friend. It may seem to protect, but it slowly suffocates. Someone recently asked me if I could state in a sentence what my life is all about. I replied, "The purpose of my life is to learn to love God more and to communicate that love and grace to others." That is why I am on the planet. When you know what your mission statement is, life is so much easier; you become free to line up your activities, relationships, and goals with that stated intent. What is your place in the kingdom of God? If I were to ask you to give me a sentence that encapsulated your vision for your life, what would it be? David discovered his purpose and fulfilled it in his generation, and so must we. Otherwise, you and I could be using our lives to clean sinks, when we were made for so much more! *** Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; Naught be all else to me, save that thou art: Thou my best thought, by day or by night, Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light. ANCIENT IRISH PRAYER, TRANS. BY MARY BYRNE

Edition details

• Publisher: Zondervan
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0310241723
• ISBN 13: 9780310241720
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 197