countdown full of blessing

With little less then a week before we leave for the SHE SPEAKS conference, so many blessing are been poured on us.

I wish I could share them all with you. However, you can image all the packing that is taking place. Three little ones going to the cottage for nearly two weeks, and Joey and I leaving for the conference/ travelling and then hitting the cottage scene for a few days.


I can hardly believe that my little Daniel and Esther are now two years old. It hard to believe that they are becoming the little independent person which they are. Esther is constantly asking to go to Grandma's house, hence, I am having no problem with granting her request by leaving her and her brothers in the great care of Grandma, Grandpa, and Great Aunt Jane. They will have a blast, and so will we.


I was feeling shy about going to SHE SPEAKS. Shy of the fact that I am a Christian Catholic attending a Christian (mainly Christian Protestant) conference. Or should I say simply shy of being Catholic. Not because I am shy of being Catholic, or I am. It is more because I don't want do dealt, again, with the pressure that I should 'convert' to some Protestant denomination. You see, years ago I dealt with that. The pressure to 'convert or stay" which I felt by my friends who were Christian Protestant and the member of the various ministries I was involved with, was so intense I nearly went insane. I must also say the pressure I felt from my friend that were Christian Catholic was nearly as bad too! Eventually God is the one that lead me to remain a Christian Catholic. I had prayed that he show me the way, because only he could understand all the various aspects.
Now, I have gone to a few Christian events since, that period of my life, but never in a way that I fully let go (surrender) and let God do whatever he wanted to do with me. To some of you that concept might be very foreign. However, I can assure you that there is joy, comfort, and security in realizing that God has your best interest at heart and you can totally trust him to lead you to become the person you are meant to be. Now, I am heading off to SHE SPEAKS the leaders say it's a life changing conference. I want it to be a life changing conference, not because my life sucks but because I want to be even more ME. The me God created me to be. But, will it be a life changing conference, if I am shy of being who I am. NO! Because I will have a wall around me which God will need to brake down all weekend, instead of speaking directly to my heart. No, because I will be watching what is happening, rather then participating in what is happening. So, I prayed and ask God help me with all of this....

He lead me to attend a bible study at the MET Church, here in Ottawa. The title of the study is "Free to be me, and all God created me to be!"... How appropriate. I enjoyed the speaker very much. She shared how she met God, and the affects it had on her life. Then we were suppose to brake out in a small group for some discussion question. Ok, let's be honest. It is safe for me to go listen to a talk, but actually talk to people???? They might find out who I am, that I am not one of them, and might very well get the whole pressure to convert thing again... I really didn't feel like taking part in this small group,.. but I felt lead to go, like my body just followed the crowd and went to the small group section, and found a table with these two beautiful blond hair women, which I tough had know each other their whole lives, .... I should say it was like God was holding my hand walking me to this table, like a mother would walk a nervous child. I started to talk to these incredible women. Yes, the dread question came up, after all it was on the sheet of question to discuss,... How long have you been coming to the Met? Turns out, neither of the women, attended the church regularly. They were in fact very familiar with the Catholic Church and only attended the Met occasionally,... JUST LIFE ME. This blew me away. Actually sharing that I was a Christian Catholic, reduced their discomfort. We shared many things around that little table that night, things of God, things that penetrated our hearts,... we were Christian women sharing in the joys and difficulties of life, and encouraging each other, loving each other the way Jesus wants us to love, with the dividers down!
This is what I am planning on doing at SHE SPEAKS to meet sister in Christ and love them as each one of them is made in the image of God, and only in getting to know them, for who they are, can I truly get to know my Almighty God.

Thank you ladies from Wednesday night. You know who you are. You spoke so much to my heart. Hope to see you two in a few weeks.

So, I am still shy about being a Christian Catholic? I hope not. I hope I can learn from Wednesday evening, and just be confident that my sister in Christ will accept me for who I am, and not judge me on our difference but embrace our common ground. That we all have the same Heavenly Father, the same Jesus Christ who saved us, and the same Holy Spirit who help us one our day to day lives. I am excited at finally meeting all these women who a long with me feel called to speak, write, lead, and infulence and who live their lives for God.

This might be the last post for a while, as we are heading off in a few days, and life will be getting busy preparing for the trip. God bless all you and check out the blog in in the middle of August, for some details of the trip.

Love with all Jesus' love;