The "JESUS NAME" Project

All through our lives we experience so many things through the people we meet and the places that are visited. Over a lifetime so many memories are played out, some are so sweet that we hold on to them dearly, while some would be best forgotten. Through all of it though we build testimonies, so we can say, “look what the Lord has done in my life this is how I was, and now because of the grace of God, I have a new life!” I have a memory that I am so happy to call it that, just a memory, because at the time my life was lived much differently than it is now.

I will just say it, I was into witchcraft, and the saddest thing is at the time I didn’t know it .I had it confused with spirituality. The reason could be because witchcraft is within the supernatural realm. I read my bible and I prayed to Jesus. I had accepted him as my lord and savior and I wanted to live for him. I was so hungry for God that I thought surely I have found him. Sadly the so called, “spirituality” that comes with witchcraft is very deceiving. Some people as myself, can have the perception that this comes from GOD. Satan knows how to fake a counterfeit, so at the time I was doing horrible things such as channeling, communicating with spirits, and other things that were not of God. I would live with guilt, fear and confusion never knowing, that my lifestyle was causing these symptoms. I honestly believed this was okay. I was living at the time in a small town called Wishart, Saskatchewan, there was nobody to show me anything different. But I did meet some people who helped me delve deeper into the pit I was already in. It became to me like an addiction, I would see them, then go home and practice what I had learned. I would feel an actual high and now I had people to support my habit. Oddly it gave me a sense of empowerment, and I liked that feeling.

I am married and have 4 children They knew very little of what I was doing, From 1992 to 1999 I had all 4 of my children baptized when they were babies in between the Roman Catholic and the Lutheran church. I thought it was biblical, not that I was an expert on anything biblical!

Then in 2000 during a very cold snap in February, my family moved to Kelvington Saskatchewan, just prior to the move I had a horrific dream. It involved Myself and my husband. We were driving down an old country road in the middle of nowhere in an old beat up truck. And of all things we were hauling pigs in a crate in the back of the truck. As we drove we came to a forest. We entered it, and drove further and further until it got to dark to see anymore. We decided to stop. As our luck would have it we saw a cabin to stay the night. We settled in, when during my dream I was awakened to the most horrible screams. I jumped up and looked outside. There were huge male lions grabbing the pigs and killing them, not to eat, they were doing it for the fun of the kill. They were the most demonic looking lions I had ever seen. Then they realized I was watching them so ever so controlled and menacing they came toward me. The closer they came the thinner the cabin’s walls got until there was hardly anything separating us. Their eyes were glowing red and were so evil. The biggest lion roared and lept, with is huge paws coming right at me! I screamed and jumped out of bed. I was sweating and sobbing and didn’t want to go back to sleep. I was so terrified that for many weeks I found it hard to sleep. That lion became a part of Me, I would see it every time I closed my eyes. I took this dream as a sign to get out of Wishart. I felt like death was calling my name. And God was telling me we had to leave this place.

This is where my testimony really begins to show the greatness of God in my life!

We started attending a Trinitarian Pentecostal church in town. The pastor had his work cut out for him explaining things to me. I would learn here that babies are not to be baptized. This was a real revelation for me and my husband. It was here that I also found out about full immersion baptism. I wanted this so badly. I loved God so much, what I knew about Him, that I wanted to show my obedience to scripture and be baptized into the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. So it was set, all of this was to take place on the 26th of August 2001.

I was so excited and could hardly wait for the big day. There was something else that I was really looking forward to, a wedding, Karen, an old school mate of mine. We had spent our youth together, then like many childhoods, her family had to move away. We had always kept in contact with each other. She had moved to Outlook, Saskatchewan, and was getting married on the 24th of August. From Kelvington to Outlook it is a 4 hour drive with little kids a 3 ½ hour drive without. So I had two exciting events to look forward to. Little did I know these would happen on the same night!

The week before the wedding I had to get my power steering pump changed .That poor old pump would grind every time I turned a corner. Then to make matters worse the hose came off and all the fluid was drained out. Now it was really shot! My husband fixed it as best as he could. I ordered a new pump at a garage in Kelvington. The day I ordered it was on a Tuesday. The attendant assured me it would be in on Thursday. So I could come in on Thursday get it changed and be on my way to Outlook for the wedding. Thursday came, I took my van in the morning and asked the attendant if it was to early to leave it at the garage, he said no problem, until he started looking through what the courier had brought. And guess what no pump! So he phoned the place that was to have sent it out. Cause the couriers receipt had a part on it, but the part was still at the warehouse. Of all the parts ordered, mine was the only one that was forgotten.

The wedding was the next day and I felt terrible, I phoned up Karen and told her I wouldn’t be going. My husband had left to go to work the day before so the only vehicle I had was this van. She was upset for me and we both had a little cry. She said she understood, not only was the part not in, I was also really low on cash. Well, I thought what’s the worst that can happen? I packed up my kids, and we left early Friday morning. I prayed that Jesus would keep my power steering pump working. I went on faith and faith alone! Needless to say the old devil was not too happy with all this.

The wedding was beautiful, so was the bride and the groom was glowing. This was the first time I had ever been to an Apostolic wedding much less a church. I had never heard prayer like I did that day. After the ceremony we went to the church basement to have fellowship and food. Everyone was talking and laughing, this was the first time I had ever been to a wedding with no alcohol being served. Well you wouldn’t have known it for the joy that was among everyone. I met Karen’s pastor Don McQuinn and his wife Lois McQuinn. We sat down across from each other and started talking. There were others beside us. She said lets pray and holding hands we did. It was then that I felt Gods anointing coming over me. I was holding up my hands and praying as best as I knew how, then nothing. Nothing I say because I knew I could feel there was to be more, but it was if there was a huge blockage between myself and this something wonderful. Luckily this kind of stuff is real business with this congregation! Sister Lois’s son Mitchell, who at the time was home from Bible college noticed a block and said to take me upstairs to find out what it was.

I was not prepared for what happened next, Sister Lois started praying over me, when all of a sudden this huge fierce looking lion leaped out at me. This is the same lion that tormented my dreams, my thoughts and was affecting all areas of my life. I fell to my knees immediately screaming and sobbing in so much fear. Well sister Lois was not going to have any of this and commanded the beast to leave in Jesus name. She then told me to tell it where to go as well In Jesus name! I did and you know what it left. I then closed my eyes and seen the most brilliant lion. It was magnificent it was much bigger than this evil one. It absolutely glowed with a brilliant white light! I would like to think this is the Lion from the tribe of Judah! Sister Lois told me later that night that the only thing a lion is afraid of is a lion bigger than itself. I then told her how thankful I was to be getting baptized on Sunday. She looked at me and said what way are you being baptized? What do you mean there is only one way to get baptized , in the Name of The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. She looked at me with a seriousness and said something she later told me she had never told anybody before, “Honey the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost is not going to do it for you!” she then showed me Jesus name baptism. With scriptures, in the bible, showing me the way to true salvation. Well the scriptures literally jumped off the page and into my heart. I heard a voice from within say, this is good, this is so very good! “I want this, ohh how I want this, but when could I be baptized?” Sister Lois said we have a tank and lots of water to fill it. I looked at Karen and her husband Wayne, after all they had just been married. I said to Karen,“This is your day this is your wedding day how can I do this and take away from your wedding day.” She looked at me and said, “No Karen, this is the day that the Lord hath made”. Well with that the tank was filled. Sister Lois gave me some time to go over the scriptures just to make sure this is what I wanted. There was no doubt in my mind. I got to pick out some music, some songs I had never heard sung but with beautiful words, that was to be played for my baptism.

I remember stepping into the tank of water and feeling more excited than I have ever been before. Pastor Don THEN BABTIZED ME IN THE NAME OF JESUS!! For the remission of all my sins. I came up out of the water put my hands up in worship and this war cry streamed out of my throat. Then I was speaking in a different language, I was talking in tongues! I had been filled with the Holy Ghost! Everyone was rejoicing around me and they were dancing, I was overcome with emotions I had never experienced. Never had I felt anything as amazing as that day. I am now a new person! I got a make over from Jesus! I’ve never been the same since that day, and that is for the better. My baptism is a precious gift from God and to anybody else who wants it. I know that as long as I live I will never learn all there is to know about God but I do know that the scriptures are written for me and for you. They are for a close personal relationship with our Lord and Savior. The book of Acts is the most wonderful book in the whole bible, it lead me right into salvation. And now I can say Look at what the Lord has done with this sinner!! I can’t believe how He could have loved me, the person I was before I was baptized. Once I got a hold of this, there was no looking back and to this day I am still living within this miracle…