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CBN.com – "I wanted to have power over the things that scared me. I thought that it would give me that."
Growing up Shalom was known as Sheila. As a teen she began searching for truth. Her fascination with the occult and her love for nature led her to Wicca.
"I was always very much in love with nature, and it was a natural thing to worship nature," Shalom says. "So it was easy for me to get into that."
As Sheila became more involved with Wicca, she became very outspoken about the religion. She felt it was her duty to let the world know that witches were nothing like the normal perception.
"I’m a good witch like Glenda," she explains, "and that’s kind of the way I looked at it for myself."
Despite thinking she was a good witch, Sheila began to dive deeper into the occult lifestyle. Drinking, drugs and sex became a way of life.
"I didn’t believe in sin. You know that opens the door for you to get into just about anything you want to."
Even though Sheila practiced magic and attended pagan gatherings, she still felt hopeless. At 25 the man she was engaged to marry walked away from her after his family learned she was a witch.
"His sister-in-law was the one that said she knew all about it, because she had watched The 700 Club. So she got everybody to have a big circle pray around him, and they finally talked him into leaving."
Devastated and alone, she turned to her magic hoping to find peace. She recalls, "I just thought I’m not really in harmony with nature enough yet."
Sheila searched everywhere for answers. She spent time worshipping her favorite tree, doing spells and appealing to the god and goddess for answers.
"I really, really thought I was on the right track. I thought I was really getting somewhere. I thought I was becoming enlightened, but things were still a mess."
A few years later another man came into her life, Kevin. Before long, the two fell in love and decided to marry, but just like before, his family found out she was a witch and wanted the relationship to end.
"I was really angry that once again Christians had interfered with my love life," she says. "So I decided I’d have a little talk with Jesus. I still believed that Jesus had existed, and He was a really smart guy. I said, 'I’m really suffering here; I need Your help. You’re supposed to be the Prince of Peace. I need some peace here.' It was really strange, because I actually experienced peace at that point."
She began reading the Bible and studying Christianity. She wanted to understand the peace and power that came over her after she prayed.
"I had so many viewpoints that had to change, but it was a process. I literally felt like scales were being dropped from my eyes -- like Paul’s experience."
Sheila and Kevin got back together and began studying the Bible and going to church together. The couple gave their lives to Jesus and soon married… this time with the blessing of his family.
"The first thing I thought was, 'Boy, what a lot of wasted time that I could have been happy, that I could’ve been sober, that I could’ve been worshipping the right God.'"
After experiencing the power of God, Sheila wanted to make sure she was leaving her old life behind. So she decided to change more that just her lifestyle.
"I always wanted God’s shalom, His peace, and I thought that was kind of a neat name. That’s why I chose to the name Shalom."
Now her duty has changed. She no longer seeks to educate the world about who witches really are, but instead who Christ is.
"After practicing magic for over 20 years, I never encountered any power like the power I encountered since I’ve been a Christian."
With the peace she’s always longed for, Shalom is hoping to help other Pagans and Wiccans find it too.
She advises, "You can find forgiveness. [It] doesn’t matter what you’ve done. He’s still going to forgive all of that. There is hope."
A caring friend will be there to pray with you in your time of need.
