What's the difference

God needs a tool to use to catch our attention. He needs to be able to put His finger on an area of our lives when He wants to walk us through the process of change and growth. As we know, there is always another side to everything in God. The enemy would seek to confuse us and tell us all our faults so that we merely feel condemned. How do we tell the difference?


We talk a lot about the conviction of God and the condemnation of the enemy. How do I tell the difference?

Here is what the Dictionary says:
convict1. to prove or declare guilty of an offense, esp. after a legal trial: to convict a prisoner of a felony. 2. to impress with a sense of guilt. –noun 3.a person proved or declared guilty of an offense.

con·dem·na·tion 1. The act of condemning. The state of being condemned. 2. Severe reproof; strong censure. 3. A reason or occasion for condemning.

When I look at the word "condemnation' it seems to carry with it an implication of value. When a building, for example, is condemned, it is no longer of value. It is beyond hope of repair and the only path to take is to tear the building down, it is considered a danger. A prisoner on their way to their execution is 'condemned'. This is contrasted with 'conviction' which is merely a statement of guilt or innocence. When a person is convicted, most often the plan for punishment also includes a plan for rehabilitation- there is hope for them still. This is a key to understanding the difference.

Jesus never shys away from identifying a guilty party. Look at the woman at the well, Peter, Judas, and the woman caught in adultery, Jesus doesn't overlook the sin in their lives, but His focus always was the way out. We can feel the weight of our guilt, but if it of God there is no condemnation.

Here's what the Bible says:
Romans 8:1 1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

John 3:17 ForGod did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

As we process through the things that God puts His finger on, there is always HOPE, there is always mercy, and always forgiveness.

Am I condemned?

We have a lot that God can speak to us in our lives. As Christians there sometimes seems to be such high standards for our daily conduct that sometimes it can be overwhelming to meet them. There are also times when in our lives, a lot needs to change, and there are many aspect that God needs to speak to us about. He puts His finger on something, we try to deal with it and then on to the next thing.

Occasionally though, there are competing voices. In our vulnerability to be open to God's voice, we sometimes can be subjected to the competing voice of the one who would try to destroy us. In the midst of hearing from God about our opportunities for growth there can be a nagging, incidious voice that would mock our pain, lie to us about our future and remind us of the mistakes of the past.

Recently I have made a new friend, I am privileged to call this amazing woman my friend. She is a very new Christian and has a lot of questions. She is thirsty for the truth and wanting to be completely surrendered to God. As we began to speak about the things of God, it became clear that she was SO open to direction and promptings from God and those who are further along in the walk that she was getting tossed to and fro by the 'helpful' words of people around her. She rhymed off a laundry list of things that she needed to 'work on'. I could see on her face and hear in her words that she was feeling the condemnation of too much input from 'loving people'.

There is not a day that goes by that I am not confronted by the LONG detailed list of things that I want to address in my life, but the only way to get through the day and to be successful in what gets dealt with is to just focus on those things that GOD is calling me to focus on.

So how do we tell the difference? More next time.....

What else can I say?

The Headline Reads "Canadian Killed", and once again, our collective hearts mourn.

In the midst of this conflict, though, there IS hope:

"We are making the area more secure, more secure for us and more secure for Afghans, because the Taliban don't make the difference,"said Laroche, commander of Canada's military forces in Afghanistan.
"That's what Canadians are doing, and we won't stop helping the people of Afghanistan."

This will be like that.....

I have posted a couple of times about the story of David, when he spoke to Saul before going against Goliath. He recalls his past achievements-killing a lion and a bear- and says to Saul "this will be like one of those"
As soon as I read that a couple of months ago, I KNEW that it was a significant scripture. I didn't know why or for what purpose, but I knew that it was going to be a changing scripture in my life.
I posted a couple of weeks ago about those experiences, and how I am going to 'enroll' in seminars on killing "bears" and "lions"because I know that there is a Goliath coming in my life that will go beyond my current experience, yet I need to have those experiences to draw on.
A plan is beginning to take shape, but the precursor to this is fitness.

I have begun to work out hardcore with the assistance of a well trained gym employee who has offered her services - and her friendship. In the course of a month and a half, I have gone from saying "I hate the gym" to lying in bed this morning, trying to find an excuse that would over-ride my desire to get up and go!! It is amazing when you begin to share an experience with someone, and you find that you can do much more than you ever thought possible. Somehow, a weight that I didn't think I could lift once, is too light at the end of 3 sets! It doesn't make sense. Each day is another piece of evidence that says... whatever God calls you to, He also equips you for. I can look back to yesterday and remember what I accomplished, and know that I am stronger today than I was yesterday, and I will be stronger tomorrow. The next weight level is another "this will be like that" moment.
Ultimately, I know that this is not a journey toward a weight-lifting title, it is more about the journey than the destination. I am enjoying though, the destruction of the lies of the enemy that have, for so long, kept me from seeing the fullness of my destiny.

Is there a "Goliath" in your life, that you need to be convinced, in God's power, you can overcome?

Amazing Night

I had the most amazing night.....In celebration of my birthday this weekend, my mother treated myself and a couple of good friends to a hockey game. Not just any hockey game.... Canadian Forces Appreciation night!

4 of my biggest passions are: Family, friends, Hockey, and the Forces.... what an amazing way to celebrate my birthday! And we won!!

Any opportunity we have to honour those who are willing to do what our Forces do is so special.

A Husband of My Own

As a single women, I am continually seeking a relationship with God that fills all the needs in my life. I seek Him in the morning for the strength and purpose for the day, I chat with Him throughout the day if I am lonely, have a question, or if He lays someone on my heart. I have learned that, in many situations, that there is ABSOLUTELY nothing that I can do to change the outcomes. Whether it is a friend in need who is making what I think is a poor choice, or the hurt of a friend going through a touch situation.

I really don't like the feeling that there is nothing that I can do to change things, but I know that God can do anything.

There is an intimacy with our relationship that I don't think has eve existed before, I want to do more, be more, and accomplish more for Him, in His strength.

The one thing that God cannot do.... GASP...... is change a tire!

I had a situation this weekend, where I had a completely flat tire, normally I would just call my roadside assistance, but I was on my way to host a 60th birthday party for my dad, and couldn't spare the time to wait! I was fighting the overwhelming feeling that was gathering, and trying to reassess the situation, when I received a phone call from a friend- I happened to be in line at the gas station to see if I could leave my car there for a few hours. I told him that I would be late to meet up with the group and explained the situation.

As we were leaving the gas station, one of the men in line a head of me, turned and said "can I change your tire for you?".

I was shocked that a complete stranger would make an offer like this! I was cold and he was likely on his way somewhere... I, of course, took him up on his offer and began to empty the trunk so that he could get at the spare and the jack. As I began to lift the stuff out of the trunk, he came around and said "let me do that for you, you guys go get warm!!!!" I am getting better at accepting assistance, but I still have a hard time not 'paying' for it by doing as much as I can to limit how much work people actually have to do! My friend Leah, who was with me, also had her car, and so we sat in her car, and got warm while this amazing man changed my tire!!!

As we sat there, watching this complete stranger go so completely out of his way for me, I was overwhelmed at how well God takes care of us! Although God normally doesn't change tires, He did conspire to have that man there, and have that phone call come in, so that I could be assisted... how amazing a husband is that??? He is truly everything that I need...

It is my prayer that this man who so generously bailed us out of trouble would be completely blessed beyond measure this week!

Lions and Bears!!

We all know David was a great king, a warrior and called of God. God anointed David at a young age to be King. We also know that David was a shepherd, he killed a lion and a bear, and then he killed Goliath. Before he went out to fight Goliath, he reminded Saul that he had killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands… he said Goliath “will be like one of those”. David’s faith in God’s ability to protect him came from a life of service to God and his family. While it is always remarkable when someone kills a lion with their bare hands, I wonder if actually killing a lion was really that remarkable. In our lives, where the we never encounter lions or bears, it would be News-worthy, yet, in David’s world, protecting sheep from lions and bears and other predators was part of the daily ‘grind’. While I don’t know in scripture, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that all of David’s brothers had, at one time, killed a lion or a bear, perhaps it was part of the rights of passage, like a young man from a hunting family who bags his first deer!

We look to David’s life, and these events as pre-cursors if you will that show that God’s hand was on his life right from the beginning. We see the greatness in the stories and we all draw the conclusion together that these are “kingly” events. But wait, was it those events which qualified David to be King?

Let’s play a game of “what if?” What if, early in David’s life, he fell out of tree and broke his leg. In those days, he would have been left as a cripple, and not able to kill a lion, or a bear, or even Goliath… would that then have disqualified David from being God’s choice? Is the prerequisite for rule the killing of a giant, a bear and a lion? What about you and I? What about the calls of God that are in our lives that perhaps require skills of us that we have missed out on? We are all crippled in our own ways, life sends us challenges or disappointments that can seem to limit us from the call of God.

In my life, I see the times when I wanted to be able to slay the lion, yet I was held back by my fear of the sheep! I couldn't even do the day to day work that would have opened the door to the greatness of God’s calling.

Does this disqualify me? NOPE! I am realizing though, that I might just have to take a few steps backward and attend some lion killing classes! Then there is the seminar on what to do when a bear comes around! Only when I master those skills can I step into the fullness of what God has. Obviously I am speaking metaphorically! I don’t know exactly what these classes are going to look like, but I am excited!

Oh what a night!!!

There is so much that is amazing about living in community with one another. Recently, I have been taking a group of single women in our church through a study of a book called “Lady-In-Waiting”. It is an amazing book wrapped in the principles of the story of Ruth. It’s focus is on becoming the woman that God wants us to be. As we shared together, grew together and even cried a little together, it was so amazing to see the relationships that came about from this experience. Between 2 events, our entire group spent New Year’s together-what a special treasure to have friends that you can celebrate with.

We wrapped up our time together with a night of Blessing. We invited some amazing “Titus 2” women who would pray and pour into the women. As a group, we were awestruck at the goodness of God, that He would speak to each of the women in such a personal and loving way.

A very unexpected thing came about as a result of this evening. As we were listening to what God would say to each woman, I realized how much I knew about each of the womens’ longings, and desires, and their relationship with God. This is significant because, for the most part, I have known these ladies less than 1 year, yet, I was able to, as they were being spoken to, acknowledge how ‘on’ each word was. What an amazing thing. It made me realize, once again, that longevity doesn’t always equal intimacy, there are people that I have known for years, yet wouldn’t have been able to say the same things!

This is what comes from “doing life together”. There is a quote that says “A friend is someone who you have fun with no matter the activity, but an acquaintance requires an event.”

This is so true, I have friends who I could sit with in an empty room for a couple of hours and say “that was fun”! It is all about Who they are not what we are doing together! I am so happy to have found more ‘friends’! I love it!

Still sick!

I can't believe that it is already the 8th!!! There is a lot going on, but not much to tell so I haven't really been able to post-that and I am still ill. I have no idea what is going on, but it is taking everything I have just to get through the day!

I tell you that so that you don't think that I have abandoned my blog.....

Happy New Year

What can you say at the beginning of a new year, a clean slate, yet one where the echos-both good and bad- from the last year, still reverberate in your ears? I am not even sure how to approach this new year. I feel like I need to put the whole world on pause for a month or two and just process what God did in my life last year, and to gain some focus for this year. But obviously that isn't going to happen.

I am still a woman without a direction..... I have purpose and hopes yet I am waiting on God to point to the next step. There are things that I want to accomplish this year, but mostly I just want MORE.... MORE of God, more intimacy with Him. I had planned to start the year with fasting and prayer, and I got a good start but then my body melted down... almost literally. The back pain was so bad, that I didn't even realize that I had bronchitis- although I did wonder how back pain causes a fever! I got medication for the back and it revealed the level of the other illness.

I suppose that can be a metaphor for life, right? We get so caught up in the debilitating pain of what we think God has "done to us" or at the very least "allowed" in our lives that we can miss the reality that we are choking on something else entirely!

I don't think that it is a coincidence that I got sooo sick the same week I had planned to fast. I have found a few times recently that when I feel like God is planning something big, and I am intentional about getting alongside what God is doing, that I will randomly get sick. When I say randomly..... I mean RANDOMLY! I few months ago, everything was great... feeling good, the morning of the encounter weekend, I woke up with a mild fever and a weak feeling. I was determined to be there because I knew what God was going to be doing, so I persevered. I am hesitant to give the enemy too much credit, however, I do think that we need to be alert to his schemes.

I have a sense that this year is going to be huge.. another level of what God did last year. There is an urgency I can't quite explain. Like even now on the 4th of January, I see that in a few weeks it will be Easter, and then May, and then all of a sudden I know that we will be facing another Winter. It is strange that this sense of urgency is combined with a willingness to invest the time into getting something right. If it takes 3 months for the next step, than that is how long it will take. I don't feel like it is a long time. I am not explaining this well.....

I have a feeling that by the end of January there will be a lot more clarity, and that there is something major coming in March.

Hold on tight, it's gonna a 'fun'!!!