Former 'Facts of Life' star shares truths of her faith
Conference: Lisa Whelchel hopes experiences can help mothers and others

BY CARLA HINTON Comments 0
Published: October 17, 2009

Lisa Whelchel may be best known as the TV character Blair Warner, the spoiled rich girl with a big heart on the 1980s sitcom "The Facts of Life.”

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"A Grand New Day"

When: 7 to 10 p.m. Oct. 30 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 31. Preconference event will be 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 30.

Where: Ford Center, 100 W. Reno.

Cost: $89, $109.

Information: (888) 493-2484; www.womenoffaith.com.

"Facts” centered around a group of girls at a boarding school, and these days Whelchel finds herself surrounded by a close-knit group as she tours with the 2009 Women of Faith conference ministry.

The conference, with the theme "A Grand New Day,” will be Oct. 30-31 at the Ford Center, 100 W Reno.

For Welchel, taking the stage with presenters Patsy Clairmont, Marilyn Meberg, Sheila Walsh, Sandi Patty and Luci Swindoll is like being among friends.

In a recent telephone interview, she said it has always been important to her to use the platform that God has given her to share about the Lord. She said the opportunity to travel and speak at the popular Women of Faith events "is like playing in the World Series to a baseball player.”

"And that really pales in comparison to what it has meant to me on a personal level, just to have the benefit of relationship with such incredibly strong and grace-filled women,” she said.

Whelchel said she lives near Frisco, Texas, where Marilyn Meberg and several of the conference core presenters reside. She said Meberg suggested she join the group since she also travels and speaks about her Mom Time ministry, her books and her life experiences.

This year was a great time to tour with the group because her family life has changed. Whelchel said she married and left show business years ago to raise her family with her husband, Steve. Now two of the couple’s three children are in college, and the third is a senior in high school.

"I guess it’s time to spread my wings a little bit as they fly out of the nest as well,” she said.

While raising her kids, Whelchel found time to write several books on home schooling, parenting and scrapbooking. She said she created Mom Time groups to encourage women to have fellowship, offer support and learn from each another.

Meanwhile, Whelchel said this year’s conference theme, "A Grand New Day,” seems to resonate with women because sometimes people wish for a "do-over” — to wipe the proverbial slate clean and begin certain aspects of life anew.

"It’s based on the fact that no matter what we’re going through, we have a chance every morning to receive new mercy from God and a chance to start over,” she said. "We can decide that this day is the day that we are going to trust Him or ask Him for help or we are going to rest in His love or believe in His grace — whatever it is that will make a transformation in not only our day but the rest of our lives.”

She said people often recognize their need for God as they are faced with economic troubles or other dilemmas. She said God steps in when people realize they can’t solve the problems alone.

"That’s when He works best.”

Besides Whelchel and the core presenters, others appearing at "A Grand New Day” include contemporary Christian recording artists Stephen Curtis Chapman and Nicole C. Mullen, authors Steve Arterburn and Marcus Buckingham, dramatist Allison Allen and storyteller Lisa Harper.

Whelchel said she knows many conference-goers may feel a connection with her because they grew up watching her on TV. She said that connection is a blessing for her to "step into” as she seeks to share her faith story.