TESTIMONIALS
TESTIMONY OF A GENTLEMAN PARTICIPATING IN THE GRACE COURSE PORTION OF OUR TRANSFORM EXPERIENCE
To be Fruitful: Don't work harder, but work smarter by prioritizing your connection with Jesus. I am the vine, you are the branches. What is a branch's #1 responsibility? Remain connected to the Vine. Jesus. Apart from Jesus, we can do nothing. Yes, I often default to trying, so hard, to make everything perfect and under control. Which leads to anxiety. But, Jesus says, "Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you REST". It's not doing nothing. It's walking WITH HIM & following His leading. First, we rest in Him; and then we work in Him. Trust Him, and then bear fruit.
God knows so very much more, and better, so the wisest thing is to Trust what God says. Then, He promises to make our path straight. Since Jesus says the Truth will set us free, it's so important to read the Word. God's promises are not just for others (I've had this lie said to me, but I will no longer believe it), now I will lean into the promises in His Word (and believe Him!). Tough times are where we learn to trust Him. "My heart is not proud..." says King David. And he's a king! But he learned to rest in God, in the difficult times; so he can rest in Him in times of fruitfulness.
"I urge you, brothers & sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices." Jesus died on the cross as a literal living sacrifice -- I'm thankful! We're secure, dressed in a robe & shoes from Him -- just remain in Him, in Jesus. He loves us!
TESTIMONY OF A PARTICIPANT IN THE FREEDOM IN CHRIST COURSE
APRIL 2025
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The Freedom in Christ course has done an amazing job at tying together all aspects of faith in our daily lives as Christians. It emphasizes the need to recognize God's truths and renounce Satan's lies. It teaches real working methods that we can all use and rely on in our daily lives as Christians.
We are only halfway through the course at this time and I can say I look forward to what each session brings. It is amazing to me just how much sense it all makes each week as we discuss how to truly be free in Christ and accept and live by God's truth. One aspect that really stuck out to me was physically speaking out loud God's truth, and renouncing the lies that we can be led to believe. There is real power in our words and prayers and it really works.
I suffer from anxiety and I can say these techniques truly do work! I think every member of this church and every Christian should partake in this course at least once. I am also very fond of the Keys to Health, Wholeness and Fruitfulness course, so I hope the church can run a few of those as well. Who knows maybe I will take a crack at leading one, one day.
TESTIMONY OF A LADY TAKING THE GRACE COURSE SEGMENT OF
THE FREEDOM IN CHRIST TRANSFORM EXPERIENCE
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God drew me to “ Transform” through a dear friend who along with her husband had taken the course before. I saw in them amazing transformations – they seemed to experience new victories through hard challenges – all with a greater joy and peace. I too was craving change – really, a heart transformation, something life changing and a deep longing I couldn’t quite put into words.
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The word, “GRACE” just kept resonating in my being more and more. I realized that a grace encounter with God and intimacy with Him were and are the greatest desires of my heart. God is revealing His heart to me in so many ways so far in this journey. Through diving into the scriptures, hearing and seeing the transformed video presenters and testimonials, I have begun to have hope that true change and freedom is possible for me too. I am beginning to grasp that His heart for me is greater than I can comprehend, and I just want more!
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The GRACE course has been the biggest catalyst for my newfound freedom. God is showing me my eyes have been blinded and my heart locked up. TRUTH, - its power and taking God at His word has changed my life and put me in a different direction. Because of the deep rooted lies I’ve believed about God and myself my whole life; I’ve been living with shame and low grade guilt as my constant companions – until now. You could say I’ve been in ‘sleep mode’ reading the bible and not being able to claim it’s truths at face value for myself. Perhaps the promises and truths apply to others, but not me…..
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Now my eyes are opening to see things as they really are – what God says is true of Himself and me as His child with my identity in Jesus. I used to shy away from the word ‘repentance’, in guilt and shame. Now through the Steps to Freedom in Christ and understanding that my growth comes from being a holy, accepted precious child of God, the word is freeing as I learn to renew my mind with the tools Freedom in Christ has given me. God is showing me I cannot be passive about taking hold of freedom – I need to fight for it always and lay hold of the truth – believe it, walk in it, and not my ever-changing feelings and behaviors. There are many growing pains rooting out deep lies and pain in the renewing of my mind process, but it’s time to form new grooves of truth and abundant life, learning to walk in the reality of what God says is true.
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The teachings presented on the prodigal son – especially learning of the significance of the robe, ring and sandals have been so powerful. It’s truly a joyous relief that I don’t have to earn nor keep my Father’s love and relationship, for they’re unchanging. Now, I am beginning to see myself as a saint, a child of God, safe and secure. God is also working to heal deep wounds and revealing His unconditional magnanimous heart to me! Learning what forgiveness is (and isn’t) and choosing it as an act of will is hugely impactful as well. I’m in process with so many of the new concepts, learning to walk in newness, and practice, practice…
Lakeside Baptist Church, Kenora
TESTIMONY OF A FREEDOM IN CHRIST COURSE PARTICIPANT
JANUARY 2025
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I am humbled and encouraged to share my testimony with you, as an encouragement for you to consider taking this course. I am willing to make myself transparent as to why I signed up for the Freedom in Christ Course last fall and how having freedom in Christ has changed my life in a way that I never dreamed possible.
Upon hearing about the course, I wonder if that is a course that I should take? I remember talking to Karen out in the foyer about it. She shared how it impacted her life and walk with Christ to the point where she became a facilitator of the course because she wanted others to experience freedom in Christ. It struck a chord in me as I had learned some things about freedom in Christ in the past but questioned myself. Why should I attend? What do I need Christ to free me from? Perhaps you are asking yourself the same questions. I began to pray about it as Karen had encouraged me to do.
As I prayed, the Lord stirred my heart and I had peace that I should attend the course.
During the course, as I was learning about the differences in regard to the truth about Christ and the lies of Satan. My eyes were opened to the truth of what I was carrying, and with the Lord’s help, I gave Him my hurts and burdens, one by one. During this process, Christ in His tenderness, mercy and love held my hand and at times carried me as I brought forward the burdens that I was bearing. He showed me these were not mine to bear, but His because He paid for it all on the cross out of His love for me.
During the course He revealed to me the LAYERS of burdens that I was bearing and the lies that I had believed and cloaked myself in, which prevented me from moving into a deeper trusting relationship with Him. Studying God’s word gave me the truth, while the course gave me the tools to discern truth from lies. This led me to have healing from past childhood abuses, which led to feelings of unworthiness and abandonment. God showed me that I am a worthy, wanted and a loved child of His.
As I gave Him my fears and anxiety, He gave me peace in these areas. As I acknowledged the sorrows, hurt and anger from broken relationships, God helped me to give them over to Him so that I could be free to forgive and pray blessings on them. He also helped me understand how I needed to forgive myself. I delt with stuff; some of it was heavy burdens that I was accustomed to carrying. I learned how to be free from it all.
I continue to have a peace and quietness in my soul like I have never had before and freedom from all the bondages that Satan had held me hostage to that are no more because I have received freedom from Christ. I have His truth and the course’s tools so that I can continue to be free. I am so grateful that our church offers this course. I encourage you to come and see what God has instore for you. Maybe you have some stuff or a lot of stuff that you want to be free from; come, there is freedom in Christ for all of it . . . for each of you.
TESTIMONY OF A PASTOR IN THE MARITIMES AFTER COMPLETING A
FREEDOM IN CHRIST COURSE IN HIS CHURCH
DECEMBER 2024
Just a quick note to say we just completed our first Freedom in Christ course at Good Shepherd Church (using the DVDs; with me leading, facilitating and guiding discussion). We had 21 students (including a number of Elders and Deacons) from a congregation of less than 50. We did the 11-week version; i.e. week 1 being an orientation, introduction, Meet the Presenters video and Why We Believe the Bible video. I kept the sessions to 90 minutes (plus we had snacks each week; everybody took their turn).
The response exceeded my expectations; I found the presenters excellent and the testimonies powerfully applicable for our people. The Leader’s Guide and the FIC handouts were also both excellent. Five students were unable to join us for the Steps group session; however, they have committed to going through them. I made the group aware of the availability of a more ‘formal’ Freedom appointment for any who may want it. Of the 21, several have had the kind of broken, traumatic background that would benefit greatly from going through a Freedom Appointment with an encourager & prayer partner.
I am expecting to offer the Grace course the Spring of 2025 and will do the Freedom in Christ course again if there is sufficient interest. There are two (maybe three) individuals who I will likely use as prayer partners (for any appointments) and later, hopefully, have them able to be an encourager themselves; and will have them help deliver the course the next time so there will be more than me who can facilitate this.
Some of the students are sending me their responses to the course — three are below:
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The thing which impacted me most was realizing that forgiveness is between me and God. Forgiving a person is not letting them or me off the hook.
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Mine was learning that my life goals should be goals that cannot be blocked by another person, (employer, family). Lining up my life goals with the goals God has for me has brought peace and has released me from performance/perfection type of thinking. Still a work in progress but getting there!
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Personally, I found it beneficial. While some concepts were familiar to me, others provided new insights. One, in particular, was the discussion on forgiveness from the heart. While we can all choose to forgive, truly allowing that forgiveness to flow from the heart is another challenge. I am asking God to help me in this area.
May the Holy Spirit indeed help us prepare more fruitful disciples! Have a great week.
Pastor Eric Malloy
Good Shepherd Church
TESTIMONY OF A GRADUATE FROM OUR TRANSFORM EXPERIENCE
NOVEMBER 2024
I was put up for adoption when I was born and grew up with a father who expressed his frustration in an unhealthy way by yelling at everyone around him when he was angry. I was very nervous as a kid and walked on eggshells around my dad, not knowing when something I would say would set off an angry outburst. At some point I began to hate my dad, who professed to be a Christian.
When I became a Christian, I tried to forgive my dad for the things he had done or said in the past. There was some change in the way I felt, but I could still feel the wall of protection around me. Five years later I attended a Restored Conference at my church and learned how to forgive from the heart. During the forgiveness step, God brought to my mind a couple of incidents from the past with which I still had pain associated. I forgave my dad for what was said and done and told God how it made me feel. At the time, I didn’t notice any difference in how I felt toward him. However, some days later I received a phone call from my dad, who was upset about something that happened. He was angry and yelling about the situation. Normally I would have felt like “why are you yelling at me; it’s not my fault.” For the first time ever I felt compassion for him. I realized then that God had changed the hate in my heart to love and I felt the wall of protection was gone too.
During the forgiveness step, I also forgave God for putting me in a family with an angry father. And I forgave myself for embarrassing things I had done when I was a kid, and now those memories don’t haunt me anymore with feelings of regret and embarrassment.
I feel like the bad things in my childhood didn’t even happen because I no longer have any pain associated with my childhood memories, and I am free from hate, anger, and bitterness.
EXCERPT OF THE TESTIMONY OF A MATURE CHRISTIAN PARTICIPANT IN THE EARLY PHASE OF THE TRANSFORM EXPERIENCE AS SHE ANSWERS TWO OF THE REFLECTION QUESTIONS
OCTOBER 2024
What are some of the main things that you notice have changed in you since you became a Christian? And what do you wish would have changed but hasn’t?
I was raised going to church, attending children/youth group, reading the Bible, watching veggie tales and other biblical movies, and listening to praise music. Despite all of this, It wasn’t until I was 9 years old that I got baptized; I accepted God as my Lord and Savior at the age of 5. I don’t think anyone, at that age, knows the full measure of what truly following God means, so it can be hard to notice change. However, looking back I did experience a renewal when I gave my life to Christ. I have become more aware of my wrong doings. I feel conviction and need repentance, when I know I have made a mistake and need God’s forgiveness. I give a lot of my troubles to God instead of trying to fix everything myself. I have more peace knowing that above all else I can turn to God with everything and He listens and helps me endure through.
One thing I wish changed more was my desire to be more “on fire” for God. Some friends of mine, who didn’t grow up Christian, came to know God and they seem so outgoing and proactive in following God’s calling on their life. I wish I felt that way about myself. I still do a lot of things I know God is not proud of despite following him. I wish I found it easier to give up those things that hold me back from a more fulfilling and godly life. I think being raised in a Christian home can sometimes become a “crutch” and the only reason I say this is because I think we can become “comfortable”. We can base our beliefs or values on other people’s – from what we were taught from a young age, rather than our own understanding and discovery through our own reading of the Bible and relationship with God.
What practical steps and daily choices can we put in place to ensure we act as a “spiritual person”?

We can choose to walk by the spirit every day. That takes endurance to say you are going to obey/follow God’s promptings rather than the promptings of the flesh. We do have free will, but we should seek to do what is the will of God. We need to take responsibility of our growth in God, and be proactive in seeking Him, not just when we need something from God or are in difficult times. I always go back to this, but pray; set our sights on God and be in community with Him – these are sure ways to steer our lives towards being godly, spiritual people.
We have freedom if we make the choice to live by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit. “Being yoked to Jesus doesn’t work if only one of us is pulling” – this is a great example of what life is like if we live by the flesh. We will never be one with God if we aren’t doing our “share” and making daily decisions to follow Him. When we walk with him we learn that His ways are good, and we find fulfillment and peace. He will not lead us in a direction that is not good, so we shouldn’t be reluctant to give up the desires of our flesh in pursuit of what He promises to be better.
LETTER FROM CHARLENE AND IVORY MUNRO
SEPTEMBER 7, 2024
Hello fellow Canadians! Ivory and I returned from Zambia on Tuesday evening, August 27, just in time for Ivory’s school, which started on Thursday, August 29.
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We want to thank you for all of your support in this mission trip. For those of you who prayed, we so appreciate your hard work and care for us and for the Kaonde people. Many of you have supported us financially—we would not have been able to do this work without your generous contributions! And we received encouragement and support for us and for Rod and Kushinda while we were away. Thank you so much for all of your partnership in the Lord’s work!
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Charles and Kellan have specifically asked me to thank all of you for the laptops, cases, phones, and other help. The hospital chaplains, church leaders, and other participants in the Bible studies have all expressed their thanks for the teaching they have received, and continue to receive through Charles’ ministry. They love the Freedom in Christ principles and are enthusiastically processing and applying them.
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Charles, Everisto (church leader), and Njulu (hospital chaplain) have appointments tomorrow, on Sunday, September 8 and Monday, September 9 to do The Steps with two other church leaders. Please pray for all five of these men, for God’s covering, guidance, and dramatic working in their lives. This will be the first time Charles will be leading and that Everisto and Njulu will be prayer partners. Also please pray for these five and others that God will raise up to get a strong start in the Freedom in Christ ministry in their area.
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Dorian, Everisto’s wife, learned much from Ivory in jewelry making. Together, they made dozens of beautiful earrings and rings for sale. Please pray for them as they now try to sell them that God will bless the work of their hands and give them favor. We hope that this will benefit the Mayaya family with a regular income and that it will be one spark to help in the local economy. We are still investigating other options for bringing income and employment into the community, so please continue to pray for other initiatives as well.
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Ivory and I will be sharing at our church, Northgate Baptist Church, on Sunday, September 15, 2024, at the morning service at 10:30 am. Please join us there to hear more about our mission trip to Zambia.
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Also, Rod and I will be starting a Freedom in Christ Discipleship Course at our church on Mondays from 10 am to noon, starting on Monday, September 16. Please let us know if you would like to join us.
LETTER FROM CHARLENE AND IVORY MUNRO
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Hello from Zambia!
Mwabuka byepi? How are you? I am remembering some of the Kikaonde I used to know when I was here in Zambia 27 years ago. Many wonderful memories are returning to me—the sights, sounds, smells, and especially the Kaonde people. I have reunited with good friends and we are enjoying our time together.
Ivory also loves Zambia and all the new experiences. Kellan Mafuleti, Charles’ wife, cooks amazing Zambian food for us and Ivory enjoys it thoroughly. Ivory has even suggested moving to Zambia, though she’s also starting to miss home “pacheche” (a bit).
As for our ministry here, we have been accompanying Charles to his two weekly Freedom in Christ classes—one with four men who do ministry at the hospital and at their churches, Christian leaders. They meet at the Muselepete community.
The other group lives at a distance of about one and a half hours’ slow drive on a terrible, unpaved, winding road, in the Kabasenga community. Charles doesn’t know whether they are saved or baby Christians—they are not doing well spiritually. However, they are hungry for God’s Word and want to follow Jesus. They just don’t have anyone to teach them and lead them. He said there were 17 the week before I arrived. Last Saturday, they had more than doubled to 40, plus children.
We also started a third group for the hospital staff at Mukinge. Since we only have the lunch break to work with, we go Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and cover one session a week in thirds. The chaplains have been attending and appreciate the teaching.
We have led two people through The Steps so far—my friends Vivian and Everisto (who comes to Charles’ Muselepete group). We have found it a struggle to get through The Steps because of the language barrier. Though they speak English, it’s not their mother tongue. It has taken about 8 hours over 3 visits for Everisto and 5 hours over 2 visits with Vivian, even though neither of them had difficulty with any step.
They both report incredible blessing and relief after doing The Steps. Vivian says she is completely “empty” of garbage and weight and negativity now. Both of them want to share it with others and Vivian has already started. We praise God for their freedom and pray they will continue to grow.
So now, the most arduous work comes with the translating. They need the materials in their own language. What a monumental task ahead of them! Imagine our surprise and delight to learn that God has gone before us and had the materials translated into Kikaonde already!!!
We went to visit a missionary, Fran Schrader, who had taught me Kikaonde 27 years ago. She retired here and lives just ten minutes’ walk from the Mafuleti’s, where we’re staying. I wanted to ask her to review Charles’ translation of the “Who I Am in Christ” list. She told us she already done it! She and another missionary, Judy Wadge, had translated much of the Freedom in Christ materials just over 20 years ago and Judy taught it throughout this area. She had even taken Kellan along to train and help with the teaching! Unfortunately, since Judy retired back to Canada some years ago, nobody has led the Freedom in Christ ministry here, the printings have ceased, and the books are no longer available.
We have been able to locate one copy. I’m hopeful we can use it to get going again with Freedom in Christ in Kikaonde. Who could have expected to discover Freedom in Christ in the remote bush country of central Africa?!? God never stops working to coordinate His people to accomplish His purposes among us, praise His Holy Name!
Please pray for the three groups in the studies, for the Mafuleti’s and other leaders to get the training they need, for Ivory and I to serve God and the Kaonde people faithfully and humbly, for the translation and printing, and for Mbunji, one of the Mafuletis’ sons. He doesn’t follow the Lord and has a problem with alcohol. He needs the Lord and he needs freedom. We have also been looking for long-term, sustainable ways to help at least a few Kaonde people to overcome poverty, which, though not as severe as 27 years ago, is still the main concern after the spiritual needs.
Twasanta kwi Lesa pa buwame wanji, mu jizhina ja Yesu, amen.
We thank God for His goodness, in the name of Jesus, amen.
Charlene and Ivory Munro
​TESTIMONY OF A PASTOR AND TRANSFORM GRADUATE
August 2024
One of the greatest challenges I had as a minister had always been to understand what this subject of freedom is all about and how can someone experience it in a practical way, since my studies of the Bible with all my prayers and fasting couldn’t help me out of the bondage in which I struggled until the day I finally come to the knowledge of the truth (John 8:32) by going through TRANSFORM. This program had really opened my eyes to the truth of the scriptures passages I’ve read and even preach on in several occasions but without understanding.
As I look back today, I remembered those days of my pastoring in my country Cameroon how many people came to me seeking for a solution on personal issues related to uncontrolled behaviors and I could not really help because I was also facing my own issues which was affecting almost every aspect of my spiritual life, social life, ministry, marriage, career (Matthew 15:14). I’ve tried many other options but without any permanent results, and if I’m sincere, I think that many other ministers like me will understand what I’m saying.
It wasn't until I came to the point where all my personal efforts were completely exhausted unable to help myself nor others that I then started seeking for help and the Lord had mercy on me by directing me to FIC. As I usually say, “how can somebody who hasn’t experienced freedom help another person find freedom" (Matthew 15:14 – 2 Peter 2:19). It takes humility and courage to seek help from others, especially when it happens that you have been in a spiritual leadership position and now have to drop down and admit your weaknesses, failures James 4:6 - 5:16.
It is absolutely truth that “the knowledge of truth sets free,” and I’m so thankful to God today because of what He has done to me through TRANSFORM, and today I’m so motivated and ready to proclaim this life changing message to as many as possible everywhere the Lord will send me. To Him be all the Glory for ever and ever, in Jesus Name, Amen.
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TESTIMONY OF A RETIRED PASTOR AFTER FIFTEEN YEARS OF ACTIVE SERVICE
MAY 9, 2024
GOSPEL STRUGGLES:
Definitely some of my biggest struggles as a leader is proper budgeting and having vision for the future. In budgeting I sort of do things in a general way without specifics written down. In other words, I play things by ear. As far as having vision for the future, I am speaking about planning events for the upcoming year, months ahead of time. I really don’t like doing that. I like doing things and planning things as the Spirit of God leads me.
Another area that I have some difficulty with is Time Management. I believe my biggest issue is procrastination. I tend to wait until it’s crunch time before I complete the task in full. Sometimes I do get started in advance, but then I only do a few things and end up facing crunch time again in which it becomes a do or die situation. This causes anxiety and some sleepless nights as the deadline looms.
GOD SPEAKS:
As I listen to God’s voice in regards to these issues, wisdom and encouragement comes. God does care about me growing in these areas. In the area of having vision for the future, He has shown me that working with team members is a key. Instead of trying to figure things out on my own, God has shown that brainstorming with other leaders opens up a huge amount of creativity and ideas on things that can be done. This has turned out to be huge in my leadership capability and reduced lots of stress that would have otherwise occurred. This understanding of the importance of brainstorming with other leaders has come very recently. As I have been going through Free to Lead, God has been speaking to me and leading me to wiser ways of doing things.
In the area of procrastination, God definitely speaks to me with His inner voice encouraging me and reminding me to proceed and move forward in all of the things I need to do. One way that He reminds me is to write everything down in my planner that I need to do. This acts as a reminder to do something today in regards to completing the task. As I work on it consistently, progress is made and stress and anxiety are relieved. Praise the Lord!
GOOD FRUIT:
Through Free to Lead, I believe that I have become a more effective leader. It might only be a small amount of more effectiveness, but still, it is moving forward in leadership capability.
One way that I have grown is making sure that I communicate more with group leaders that I oversee. I believe God has shown me the power of brain storming with these creative people who come up with amazing ideas. Also, because they are involved, they are ready to assist in ways that take a load off of my shoulders. This may sound strange, but just by going through Free to Lead has sort of blasted my brain with new leadership ideas and terminology that has been a bit overwhelming. However, it has allowed new thoughts and methods to arise that apply to my oversight situations. The result is greater outcomes and progress. Also, a greater Team camaraderie has developed because of working more things out together.
I do want to mention that my prayer life has improved recently. I give credit to something I read in Session 9 of Free to Lead. “When you take time to pray, you connect with the reality of God.” When I first read that, it hit me like a bulldozer! I felt its impact immediately. It was truth that made me grow in the knowledge of God. It helped me see God in a greater way. The result was that I prayed immediately and have prayed more over the last week than I have in a long time. This alone makes going through the entire TRANSFORM training worth while.
TESTIMONY FROM A MATURE CHRISTIAN LADY - A SERVANT OF GOD
Learning about people systems has been crucial for my freedom. I once worked for church for 17 years. At some point I was the most popular person in the church and gave my testimony on TV along with the minister. Everything was thriving, but the leadership changed.
With the change of guard, the atmosphere began to change; policies and procedures changed.
Somehow over time I quickly ended up at the bottom as far as reputation was concerned. I was accused of things I didn’t do; it was a disaster. How was it possible that I can be the exact same person, doing the exact same thing, be a hero one minute and a villain the next? Nothing about me had changed. The guilt, the constant wondering what went wrong, or what did I do to deserve this. It never really left me. I felt sad, guilty, not good enough for anything. I did not see or realize at that time, but one third of the church left and leadership was changed again.
It was not until I took TRANSFORM that I began to learn about people systems and that in the first 15 years at my old job there was a healthy pastor and a healthy people system at work. Once the healthy pastor was removed, a very unhealthy pastor took over and changed the people system. I bore the consequences as well.
Once I realized the workings of the people systems, I realized how I fell under this unhealthy people system with the unhealthy pastor. I did not realize how much false guilt, self-condemnation I was under. Deep down I believed God was punishing me. He was mad, and this was his discipline. I stuffed it deep inside and pushed it far away and lived the best I could.
The huge load that fell out of my being was indescribable. I was not being punished by God; the leadership and people system were not my problem but theirs. I had no part in that. I took all those lies on myself, and it crippled me until the day I took TRANSFORM. Like my husband, I feel more joy now than ever. It’s almost like capturing the joy and newness of life when I was a kid.
Learning my identity has been an amazing propeller forward in my Christian growth. It has been tremendously healing to know I am loved even though I screw up. I have to hang on to my identity for dear life sometimes. Just last week our church had collected food for the harvest. Harvest project was coming in a few days to pick up food for the needy. Innocent (our African refugee) was hungry and had no food. I took some of the food from the bin and gave it to him. I thought nothing of it until the church lady reported me to the minster that I had taken food out of the bin to give to Innocent. Policies are such that what is donated to the church and Harvest are to go to Harvest. It is a serious offense for me to have given food to someone, even if they are in need. I felt sick about it. I had no idea such policies existed and took responsibility and made restitution – with the promise I would never do this again. Somehow, I felt like a criminal. When you are made to feel so guilty you defer to feeling condemned.
I don't want to go there--there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. I am still loved, accepted and important to Him. He is kind, gentle and humble. I refuse to let my Christian brothers and sisters make me feel worthless. I am so relieved to be able to fight back in my spirit having my identity as a weapon. What was that saying? Saints in heaven – o what glory! But down here, now that’s another story! I concur!
Some other changes I am working on. I need more rest - as out of rest flows ministry. My doing will flow from my being. I don’t make unhealthy goals anymore. I desire to do the Freedom in Christ course at our church. If only 1 person shows up, it's not my failure; if 100 show up, it is not my success.
When I get sad or down, I check my thought life. I constantly check to see what lies I might be believing because wrong thoughts usually steal joy. I ask God regularly, lead me to the truth so lies won’t get the best of me. I do recognize some lies when they come. I have come to the conclusion that in fact it doesn't really matter whether I am being lied to or not, I need to focus on Christ and do His will. I will have to ignore discouragement. I think discouragement is a mighty tool of the devil as well.
Let God open and close the doors. Not worrying about outcomes is very restful.
In summary, TRANSFORM has changed my life. The changes are permanent, and with the Lord these newfound tools propel me forward. I don’t think I ever knew the meaning of the word transform so well. What a great name for a great course--a course that really lives up to its name.
Sincerely,
Liz
TESTIMONY OF A PASTOR AND TRANSFORM GRADUATE
WHO GREW THROUGH SOME REALLY TOUGH TIMES
(Some minor edits to preserve confidentiality)
April 2024
God’s timing is perfect in all things. I took this transformation course after a very difficult/hurtful experience in my church. I am currently the Associate Pastor of Children’s and Outreach Ministries in my church. The hurtful experience I endured was when two families tried to push me out of the church. They slandered my character to other members and called other families trying to undermine my teaching and leadership. They also were making outrageous accusations against me as well.
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The stress of ministry was making me physically ill every Sunday for months. I was losing sleep and I was at a point where I wanted to quit. My wife was very supportive through this difficult time and encouraged me to stay, which I am glad I did. This whole ordeal was fourteen long months of church board investigations, my denomination evaluating me, etc.
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Taking this transformation class, I learned a lot through my difficult experience in ministry. For one, it really spoke to me when Ron Woods said that people are not the enemy. I was struggling through the difficult experience with poor self-esteem. I was reaffirmed that my identity is found in Christ Jesus and that I am accepted, secure, and significant. Satan will do anything to undermine this and plant seeds of doubt. I was struggling with the accusations that these ladies were saying about me, like I was incompetent, that I was not pulling my weight, I did not meet their expectations, and then they started to accuse me of humiliating their children, and the list went on and on. They kept writing letters to the board and other pastors. Through these struggles, I kept trying to change to appease people, accommodate them, etc.
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I learned several things through the Freed to Lead course. For one, I should lead out of my security and not lead out of people pleasing. I also learned that I need to forgive these people, which is very difficult for me. During the Steps, I forgave the ladies who tried to throw me out of the church. Even though they ended up leaving our church, I still have to forgive them.
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I also learned the importance of submitting to those in authority (Romans 13:1). The board was very careful in how they handled this. They told me that part of pastoral ministry is you give grace you don’t expect it back. They asked me to sit down with the people who had issues with me and to apologize for the things I did wrong. This took weeks of praying and humbling myself before the Lord before I was able to do this. I found out later they asked me to do this in case any complaints kept coming, they could say “Well, Rod apologized and is trying to make things right.”
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One of the emphases of the Freed to Lead is that humility is a key component of godly leadership. Jesus washed his disciples’ feet the night before He died. He even washed Judas’ feet, despite knowing that Judas was going to betray Him. We are to serve the people in our people systems and love and forgive them even if they betray us.
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I also learned through this course the emphasis of leading out of who we are, not out of what we do. The result of what we do will come from who we are. I wish I had taken this course before my hurtful church conflict; however, God’s timing is perfect and I am grateful to be on this transforming journey.
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Through my difficult time in ministry, my name got cleared. I went through the intense evaluation from my denomination and at the end of the process, the people who were not happy left and, after about a year, the church ended up ordaining me. To be honest there were many moments when I did not want to submit to the leadership or to show grace to others. But, I am reminded of John 16:33 which says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
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We will have opposition and trouble in leadership and in the church. How we respond is the key question. We as leaders need to know and understand our identity in Christ and work towards teaching others their identity within our people systems. If the ladies who were attacking me could understand that they are accepted, significant, and secure, I believe this conflict would look much different.
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TESTIMONY OF A GRANDMOTHER, SUNDAY SCHOOL LEADER, TRANSFORM PARTICIPANT
This Transform course has impressed and impacted me on many levels.
From the time I became a new believer, at the age of 29, I jumped right into “working hard, to be acceptable to God” I never felt good enough. Over the years, even though I have loved my callings, I have “carried a heavy load “of responsibility, as a wife, mother, wage earner, ministry leader, caregiver and now grandmother.
The Lord used the Freedom In Christ course to open my eyes to my position in Christ. I have found the practical tools of stronghold busters helpful in renewing my mind, over 40 days at a time, to really claim my new identity!
The Lord used the Grace course to shed light on how I resemble the elder brother slaving away, in the fields, instead of celebrating Life with the Father and serving from a place of rest, seeking to spend time in His presence and listen to Him.
My new name is “Beloved “, “My delight is in her”, “Accepted”.
As we entered the Freed to Lead section of the Transform course, I realized just how much anxiety I carried over, working hard to prepare, and make things perfect, in any leadership roles I had. It was quite a revelation, to see, that this was another area of my “slaving away”, that I needed to confess and renounce so I can serve the Lord with joy and leave the results to Him.
This is a work in process. Maybe my new name should be “Easy Breezy “! LOL!!!! or better still… “Joy”! This is my goal!
Another really helpful concept, that was new to me, was the diagnostic tool for assessing the spiritual health of people systems. I now have greater perspective on how to evaluate my own expectations as a leader in influencing others.
Lastly, I have recently witnessed leaders in a couple of churches in our community fall into pitfalls that have led to hurt and dissolution of the congregations they lead. I believe Freedom in Christ ministries offers the tools to provide the inner scaffolding to stabilize the spiritual health of our Christian believers and leaders and am excited to share it with others!
I am so thankful to God for this ministry and the timely way God has raised it up as a life line to spiritual health and wholeness.
Submitted joyfully by Wendy Bowes, April 10/24
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Testimony of a TRANSFORM Participant
January 2024
When I was 15 years old, I was diagnosed with a progressive eye disease that has made me legally blind for most of my life. At the moment, I have about 5% of my central vision. I have lived with this in such a “matter of fact” kind of way, often saying “It is what it is” or “I don’t know any different”. I learned to live with it and developed mobility skills for doing life. Life was good and I was fine until Covid lockdowns began. With the Covid lockdowns, we were all confined to our homes and our small little spaces. There was to be one household shopper and since I cannot drive, my husband was the shopper, so I rarely went out. Once things opened up again, we had rules in place such as to stay 6 feet apart. I have such limited vision that all my focus is on what is immediately in front of me. How was I able to tell if I was within 6 feet of another person? So by God’s grace, He humbled my pride and for the first time in decades I finally agreed to use my white cane. It was necessary for others to know I couldn’t see them. Simultaneously, I had also realized that what coping skills I had previously had weakened during the lockdown, and this scared me.
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I am not characterized as a fearful person; in fact, I usually come across as confident. In lesson 4 of The Grace Course, I came face to face with my fears that had gained a foothold during Covid but were growing stronger in my life. I was more anxious when I had to go out and made up “rules” for myself: I will only go to places I’m familiar with. I would only go for walks if someone was with me. I would even ask my adult kids to walk me into stores and push the shopping carts so that I could follow them instead of navigating the stores myself, etc., etc.
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Days before doing Lesson 4, I had an appointment downtown and I had no one to take me, so I had to go on my own on the bus, something that I have been doing for over 25 years in this city. I felt so nervous and worried the entire trip and my fears came to a screaming pitch when the bus dropped me off and I realized that I was on the road. The driver had dropped me off in the bike lane, not at the sidewalk. I freaked out inside, prayed, put my white cane out and found the curb, then the sidewalk. I stopped and caught my breath. Since when had I become this afraid? Steve Goss gave an illustration of how a big snake will coil around its victim and squeeze the life out of it every time it exhales until its victim suffocates. This is how fear works. This is what my fears were doing to me, making my physical world smaller and making it harder for me to function outside of my home and space.
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In this lesson, we had to write down our list of fears and identify the lies behind them. It was like I was finally addressing the elephant in the room. I was afraid of losing all of my vision. I was afraid of injury (I’ve had 2 major injuries in the past 10 years). I was afraid of missing visual cues and being embarrassed and I was afraid of going out on my own. The Holy Spirit showed me what lies were behind these fears. Finding Bible verses to speak God's truth to me was so powerful!! I cried as I read the Scriptures. I cried during the teaching. I cried during the reflection and in the sharing. There was such release and relief as I renounced the lies behind my fears and declared His truth over my life and my vision.
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This was more than just teaching and homework. This lesson changed me. That very week, I went back to doing things I had done previously. I went for a 5 km walk by myself. I let my kids stay in the car while I went into stores on my own. I had to make the same bus trip downtown and was completely at peace. My fear was gone - I was set free! God is SO good and I am deeply thankful for this lesson. I didn't know how much I needed it until I heard it. He deserves all the praise and the glory for what He has done.
Testimony of a new Christian who is currently participating in Transform
December 2023
Dear Lord Jesus,
I come before you today as a broken sinner in need of a savior. Romans 3:23 states that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. I have walked this journey of life for many years and have been unwilling to recognize my need for you as my Savior. So, I cry out to you, Lord; help me with my unbelief.
Growing up in the Episcopal Church in the United States, I left the church without ever getting to know you as the Holy One, Redeemer, and Sanctifier of my life. Living in the world, caught up in the tenets of worldly ambitions, idolatry, and fleshly desires, I failed miserably in many areas of my life. Psalm 51:3-4 states “For I know my transgressions and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” So, I cry out to you, Lord; help me with my unbelief.
May I, my Lord, renounce the lies that have kept me in bondage and far away from you as my Savior.
I renounce the lie that I am rejected, unloved and shameful. In Christ I am accepted and have been adopted as God’s Child.
I renounce the lie that I am guilty, unprotected and abandoned. In Christ I am secure and cannot be separated from the love of God.
I renounce the lie that I am worthless, inadequate, helpless, or hopeless. In Christ I am significant and that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
I renounce the lie that You, Father God, are impatient, angry with me or have rejected me. I choose to believe the truth that You, Father God are patient, slow to anger and that when you discipline me, it Is proof of Your love and not rejection.
I renounce the lie that You, Father God, have condemned me based upon my sinful past and will no longer forgive me. I choose to believe the truth that You, Father God, have forgiven all my sins and will never use them against me in the future.
I renounce the lie that You, Father God, are distant and uninterested in me. I choose to believe the truth that You, Father God, are always personally present with me, have plans to give me a hope and a future, and have prepared works in advance specifically for me to do.
I know now that Satan is a destructive force in my Christian walk in faith; that spiritual warfare is a daily battle and that I can command Satan to leave my presence in the name of Jesus Christ.
I know now that Jesus is the only one who can redeem me from my brokenness. May I no longer be bound by my past sins, may I come to know the Holy Spirit within me and willingly accept the Lord’s ample supply of his grace and mercy. I John 1:9 states If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
May I, my Lord, now embrace these statements of Your Truth.
I believe that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us. I believe that He came to destroy the works of the devil, and that he disarmed the rulers and authorities, made a public display of them, and triumphed over them.
I believe that God demonstrated his own love for me in that while I was still a sinner, Christ died for me. I believe that He has delivered me from the domain of darkness and transferred me into his kingdom and in Him I have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
I believe that I am now a child of God and that I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms. I believe that I was saved by the grace of God through faith, that it was a gift and not a result of any works on my part.
John 5:24 states “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”
Amen
Edward Schultze, Montreal, PQ
Testimony of a retired pastor who is currently participating in TRANSFORM
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FORGIVENESS WAS THE PIVOTAL turning point in my life
…For the first 32 years minus 2 days, life was very good to me: Raised in wonderful loving Christian home... great Bible-believing church... great grades through university... wonderful Christian wife and 3 children... great teaching career... smooth transition in 'full-time' Christian ministry... much fruit in ministry... I had it all...
…When suddenly fired and wrongly accused… my world came crashing down… ministry came to a sudden halt… nervous exhaustion... painful back injury leaving me flat on my back in the hospital with nowhere to look but straight up... how could this happen to me when I had given up all to serve the Lord…
…Indeed what was done was WRONG... my reputation sullied... emotional health shattered... I set out on a new quest to 'set the record straight'... the harder I tried the deeper a hole I dug for myself... I was at the end of myself...
…Then the Lord spoke (the closest I'd ever come to hearing His audible voice)... and this is what He said: “Doug, whose reputation counts - yours or Mine?"...
…And the wrestling match was on... 'till finally I cried 'uncle', surrendered... and forgave. That was the turning point in my life. Yes, what was done and the way it was done was wrong but that no longer mattered.
I learned what it meant to "forgive" and be set free.
…That pivotal moment in my life set a pattern for many other hurtful experiences where I had to choose to forgive. But I don't know where my life would be were it not for the grace and graciousness of a Father who loved me enough to experience that valley which was as dark as death itself.
…Indeed FORGIVNESS has proven to be the single most significant lesson for me to experience freedom, faithfulness and fruitfulness [albeit imperfectly] over the succeeding 48 years of my life to this day.
Thank You Lord for loving me enough to allow me to identify with the Christ who loved me and gave Himself for me.
The lesson? Whatever is thrown at you Doug…
Receive it as a Gift... Respond with Gratitude... Rely on His Grace... Rejoice in His Goodness... …All that I might…
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Reflect and Reveal His glory for His glory!
Testimony of a TRANSFORM participant from Nova Scotia at week five,
when we talked about who is responsible for what
"This lesson was hard for me. I wrestled with much of it and the Spirit revealed faulty beliefs in my heart. The extra video confronted me of my responsibilities in my Christian walk!
So when I read the reflection question: "Are there any area of responsibility you need to pick up this week?", I know what He wants me to do. 1. Seek Him FIRST - before I check the news, look at my to-do list, pick up my phone or dive into my day. 2. Live by the SPIRIT - do what I sense He wants me to do. 3. Be transformed by the renewing of my mind.
I keep listening to "experts" for guidance; it's time to take my struggles to God and apply His Word to my struggles."
Testimony of a Senior Pastor as he was approaching the end of his TRANSFORM experience
August 2023
"I identify with many of these pitfalls that I have fallen into over the course of different leadership positions I have held in the past 30 years, as well as the delusions I have had about leadership. Over the course of my experience as a leader I think I have grown and been able to identify many of these too. However, this video just laid it out so well, along with the solution to avoid them. It just really reiterates and emphasizes again how much our being influences not only our behavior and what we do, but also how we think. Our relationship with God allows us to have a viewpoint and insight that those who do not know Him just cannot. As my relationship with God has grown, in particular over the past six months I understand the importance of this more and more, and that we have the opportunity to just grow our relationship more and more, and therefore have access to His wisdom more and more.
This week I just want to continue in my relationship with God and just continue to grow in my knowledge of Him but also in my intimacy with Him by continuing to study His Word, pray more, and fellowship with other believers".
By way of explanation, one of the sessions in the Freed to Lead component of Transform deals with personal pitfalls and another deals with group pitfalls.
Testimony of a lady who has completed the Freedom in Christ Course recently as it relates to her anxiety
September 2023
In 2020, when Covid locked us all in our homes, I felt safe in my home and didn’t leave for about 4 months. I worked from home, watched church services online, and sent my husband to do all the shopping. Then things started to open back up, I went back to my office to work and freely went everywhere, except for the church. I kept watching online for a bit but eventually, I didn’t even do that. For about a year I had no church involvement and I was ok with that. I believed that I could be ok without the fellowship and friendship of other Christians. This, of course, was the lie I started to believe. As time went on though, I was unable to go to church. Anytime we headed towards the church, I would feel anxious and nauseous. When I walked into the church, I would just want to run back outside again. I had an unexplainable, irrational fear of being in the church...I even went to church with my parents when we were in Ottawa. Sadly, I only lasted until they finished the first song before I went running out of the church. I knew then that it wasn’t just Northgate Church that was the problem.
Moving forward to September 2022, I got an email from Charlene about…her small group, and something inside me was saying, you need to take this course. I was very skeptical…I went to the church the first week feeling anxious and after the first class I thought I would get nothing from the course but I kept going because I knew there was a reason I was there. As the weeks went by, I learned how to recognize the lie and that’s when I knew I had to deal with my fear. As I told those in the group about my fear, the weight started to drop off and I was able to at least stay in the church for Sunday service, although it was by the front door and not in the sanctuary. I went through the Steps to freedom and through this process, I realized that I needed to renounce the fear and ask God to fill me with his strength and comfort. Over the next 4-5 Sundays, with lots of people and prayer support, I gradually moved closer to the sanctuary door and eventually, I was able to cross the line that Satan had drawn to keep me out. The day that I walked into the sanctuary and sat with my family was the greatest freedom I will ever feel. I am now able to cross in and out of the sanctuary doors and I don’t feel anxious or nauseous anymore.
TRANSFORM – T22 – Canada Hub West
TANYA S. - JUNE 2023
This course has been so good on so many levels. I have appreciated the opportunity to go deep, peel back layers, and allow God to have his way with me and draw me closer to him. What I so appreciate about God is that he is so tender and loving, and so even when He disciplines me, he can bring me back to the right way of thinking without shame or guilt. He does it so beautifully through his Word. His grace and mercy are always at the forefront of everything he does. What a good, good God and father he is!!
We have covered so much ground in this course and I have learned some excellent principles, in particular, being reminded of my need to rest in Christ. This theme ran throughout, and I really appreciated the practical suggestions on what that might look like, and how to actually practice rest. However, I think what impacted me the most was when I allowed God to show me what was holding me back, what lie I was believing that was blocking progress and creating unwanted behaviour.
Stronghold busting is a game changer for me. As I think about this assignment stronghold busting actually encompasses all three aspects: gospel struggles, God speaks and good fruit. I had been struggling with what I considered a negative personal character trait for some time. Anxiety was creeping into my life and I didn’t understand why or how. Honestly, it was confusing and a little disorienting. Ironically, when we did the first stronghold buster exercise I didn’t think I needed to do one! I thought I had a handle on things. It wasn’t until the second opportunity to do one, during the Grace Course, that I decided to work backwards. I started with the behaviour (anxiety), and asked God to show me the lie I was believing. When He did I had the audacity to argue! I could hardly believe that God was telling me I didn’t trust him. Of course I did, didn’t I? God was patient with me as he peeled back the layers and I wrestled with this. In the end I chose to believe God, and that my trust in him was all in my head and still needed to drop into my heart. Thankfully, FICM doesn’t leave us there, but provides a way to move forward past the lies. I jumped in with both feet and found 22 Scripture portions that extolled God’s faithfulness and the fruit of trusting in Him. By the time I was done the 40 days I had added a few more. I still read them and have chosen to commit several to memory.
The fruit of all this is no more anxiety, and a concrete example of the power of Scripture. God’s Word is powerful. Truth is powerful. I have shared my stronghold buster with my small group and the ladies I am discipling. Several joined me with that particular one, starting their own 40 day journey. Some have created their own. It has renewed in me a passion for God’s Word. I have always loved it, but occasionally read it in a hurry. Gave it a glance so I could tick my mental box – done. Now I am highlighting, ruminating on and resting in Scripture. It has come alive in a brand new way for me. I’m actually a little excited about what this means. As God’s Word transforms my life, and the lives of those I touch, it has birthed in me a desire to impact more people. Who else needs to hear the FICM message and be touched by God and transformed by Him? I look forward to finding out!
Inspirational Testimony of Julie, currently half way through TRANSFORM
May 2023
"I didn’t realize how important rest was. A period of time of preparation, of seeking God, of waiting on Him, of being patient. That I need to be stripped of all my productiveness, DIY attitude, even my own knowledge and skills in order for God to start from the beginning with me so that I can carry out his purposes.
I can no longer rely on the personal advances I have gained over the years to carry me through what God has planned for me for the next half of my life. It is very difficult for me to separate what has happened over the last few months due to this Freedom in Christ and what God is teaching me through many various methods including prayer, scripture reading, contemplation and encouragement from other spirit led Christians.
I do recall the change from inability to read about who I am in Christ to standing on the promises in those verses. I find that the most consistent way to hear from God is to seek him in prayer, He has never let me down. The expression of God’s love has been made more real to me, that he gives good gifts, and that he is my shelter and my rock and that I need only to trust in Him for my provisions. He knows every part of me because he knows what I can be taught and when. The Holy Spirit has led me on a journey of truth at the perfect pace for me and he has dealt with me patiently, fairly and lovingly.
I have shifted in my motivation of why I do things. Before I was very focused on “proving myself” to others. It may not be visible to others as I learn to serve God in my actions and for his glory and not my own. I have become involved in a local ministry after seeing others in Hawaii care for those in need and who dedicate so much time with no praise or accolades. I want to give God the glory, so this is an ongoing process for me to humble myself and lift him up through the works of my hands.
As a greeter in the church and an introvert, I have had to rely on God to give me love for the people entering the church and to welcome them the way Christ would, with love and acceptance and joy. A couple of people have told me I am in the exact right position in the church, which I know is not a result of anything I can do in my own strength, but only that they see Christ in me. I am also resigned to the fact that if God has called me to a certain ministry, he has the path laid out for me and I do not need to “make it happen”. I must therefore, be following him wherever he leads me and be in preparation, learning what he has for me to learn each day and be open to how he desires me to be changed".
TESTIMONY FROM A KEYS TO HEALTH, WHOLENESS & FRUITFULNESS COURSE PARTICIPANT
April 2023
During the last session of the Keys to Health, Wholeness & Fruitfulness course, one of the participants mentioned about chronic pain in her right leg. At the end of the session, the course leader and three participants laid hands on Esmé's leg and prayed for healing. The next morning Esmé emailed this testimony:
“Oooh but I have lovely news this morning about God's Grace. Last night when I came home my leg felt different, sort of like I was actually standing equally on two feet rather than more weight on the left foot. I walked up stairs to bed, and usually by bedtime, my leg is tired and I feel the last couple of steps. But last night, it was smooth operating all the way up. This morning, I knew I had to practice my dances for Sunday’s dance workshop, but was reticent because I didn't want to be disappointed. But eventually I did start doing them. But I was not disappointed, instead, I am in awe! I worked my way through the dances waiting for the pain to develop as it always has done, AND IT DIDN’T HAPPEN! When I came to the two dances I’ve been practicing all week again I was afraid to hope—yet the one dance had no pain and the second dance, that usually hurts after the second repeat (it repeats about 4 times) and really hurts by the end, only gave a bit of a twinge in my ANKLE! and that was all.”
TESTIMONY FROM A GRACE COURSE PARTICIPANT
April 2023
That year and half, after been born again in the Holy Spirit, was so wonderful. I was able to completely not give in to my personal issue. Yet I didn’t recognize it as an issue when I stopped. But it came back due to stress from dysfunctions in my immediate family life as a young adult. It was later that the Holy Spirit helped me see my issue clearly. There was no real help, directly addressing it at the time, only secular acceptance of it. The Holy Spirit made it clear, but by then, I had other issues aggravating my stress levels, so I kept falling short even as I was trying to break free on my own mostly. There was not real effective Christian help until many years later. And now, it is slowly dissipating, especially since the Grace course.
Being reconnected to God’s Agape Love helps me resist better and for longer. But there are still some hard-to-discern lies that I need to concretely face with Scripture stronghold busting--more steps of refinement, healing and freedom, but with more hope and knowing and feeling more encouraged to draw closer to God’s Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus, by His Word, and with godly encouragement from safe and mature fellowship.
Now with more life experience, the head knowledge is connecting to living-it-out application so my heart and mind are one in Christ. It is easier to keep the perspective that my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit; this one is temporary; the eternal one is to come. My spirit was always aligned with the Holy Spirit. Growing in self-discipline and self-control is really about the mind, heart and will.
I had stress also, not from suffering alone, but the inner conflict--my old sin nature dying at the cross and my new nature in Christ growing. The old shell needing to let go so I could grow and become who I am in Jesus.
Glory Is God’s
Elisa Kim
TESTIMONY FROM A KEYS TO HEALTH, WHOLENESS & FRUITFULNESS COURSE PARTICIPANT
February 2023
I would recommend the course "Keys to Health, Wholeness, and Fruitfulness” to any Christian (or anyone for that matter). Whether you are a lifelong believer or someone new to the faith, this course outlines ways to blend three major areas of our lives together that are often overlooked or not considered when thinking of one's own personal health. Blending the importance of being healthy spiritually, mentally, and physically in a way that just seems to make sense and bring a feeling of wholeness when practiced in our daily lives. I can admit I always knew these areas are important but often it seems easy to forget that you need a combination of all three to really know what it feels to be whole. Even as someone who has been a lifelong Christian, it was a great tool to remind myself of how intertwined these three topics of our health really are. It has been two years since I did the course, and I still find myself practicing some of the methods I learned throughout the course. The only complaint I have is that I will likely have to do the course again as a refresher and a way to continue on my journey towards a healthier mind, body, and soul! And that is not a bad thing!
Jeremy Schwartz
A PASTOR'S CRY FOR HELP
January 2023
(Slightly edited for confidentiality and website accuracy purposes)
"Almost 30 years ago, in 1994, a few months after accepting Christ into my life I read Neil T. Anderson’s book, The Bondage Breaker. It changed my life. I had grown up in a very legalistic church and it helped me to understand what freedom in Christ was, as I was released from the shackles of tradition.
For nearly 29 years God has led me on a journey, with the ups and downs of life. From 20__ to 20__ I served as a youth pastor in my church. In 20__ I left the ministry due to burnout. I never thought that I would go back. This past year God told me otherwise. HE CHANGED MY HEART! I have never had such a desire to let others know Him as their Father. I am now the lead pastor at our church in ... and feel quite inadequate to lead the church, but God has been faithful and with much support my wife and I look to serve God so that we can train the people of our church on how to make God known.
Recently, I was counselling someone on habitual sin and the Lord reminded me of the book I had read so many years ago. I suggested he read the book, and since then I have recommended it to a few more people.
This morning the Lord told me to look at how we could make this as part of our “required reading and/or study” for the leaders of our church. I went to Google (of course ) and I came across the Freedom In Christ website. Until this morning I had never heard of Freedom in Christ Ministries. I looked through the material and courses that are offered and realized this is exactly what I need, as I lead the church, and what our church needs. Our church has dealt with the bondage of unforgiveness, gossip, and pride for decades. I have been struggling on how to overcome this. When I was reading through the website it was as if the Lord spoke to me and said…”Here, this is the approach you need to take.”
Therefore, I have decided to contact you to see if you could help me with what the proper steps would be for me to take, so that I can first of all, be an effective leader for our church, but secondly how we can use your materials to free ourselves of our bondage. Would you be able to guide us with this"?
If you would like to know what happened next, please contact us.
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A Poem by a recent graduate of the
Freedom In Christ Discipleship Course
December 2022
Let there be light
I go to church. I claim the faith. I’ve left my life of shame
I’ve walked the path. I’ve served the poor, and all in Jesus’ name.
In all these ways I claimed His truth
And know Whom I’ve believed
My mouth confessed. My words declared
To Him alone I cleave.
And yet at times a shadow seemed to hide his word from me
My mind said ‘yes’ to all His Word. My heart yearned to believe. But I pressed on by will alone and buried all my doubts
Is it just me? Is there not more? ‘What’s wrong?” my soul would shout
At times I pleaded with my Lord
“Where is your work in me?
I see no fruit. I haven’t changed.
I’m longing to be free”
I didn’t know or understand the steps I was to take
For God has given all I need to walk in Jesus’ wake
It is His work. I have a part, and things that I must do.
For faith is choosing to believe and acting on that truth.
And now my love for Him has grown
How real His word to me
For what I knew is now made known
And I am truly free
Anonymous
REFLECTIONS OF A NOT REALLY RETIRED PASTOR
December 2022
The Freedom in Christ Discipleship Course
An Invaluable Tool for Growing Disciples
Doug Sargeant
On retiring four years ago from a lifetime in a fulfilling church-planting and pastoring ministry in Ontario, my prayer was that my remaining years would count for eternity through a church-based lay ministry. My desire was to make disciples who would become disciple-makers and so began a search to discover the best tool that would enable this.
In the fall of 2019 I had the privilege to attend a discipleship conference in the US which featured a workshop by Neil Anderson. Here I was re-introduced to the Freedom in Christ resources. Many years prior I had used the Freedom in Christ Beta Course in my church and now my interest was re-awakened.
My wife, Dorothy and I attend a large church in the Greater Toronto Area and are blessed with a godly pastor who wholeheartedly endorses the Freedom in Christ teaching and enthusiastically encourages all in the church to take this course. Starting in 2021, at the height of the pandemic, we started with a group online. Together we were challenged by the truths of our identity in Christ, the need for repentance and for the renewing of our minds with God’s word (Truth, Turning, Transformation).
Over the last two years we have facilitated this course both online and in person with 9 different groups to include over a hundred folks from our church. Here is a sampling of some of their testimonies:
“What has impacted my life from this course is about forgiveness. It’s a struggle to forgive those people you trusted so much but the Lord opened my eyes through this course to forgive them… to be merciful to them for God is merciful to me. This freedom I experienced is the best Christmas gift I ever received. I am no longer chained to this spirit of unforgiveness.”
“The course met my expectations and more! The videos and material were very organized and structured. It has been helpful in restoring my fellowship with my Abba and Jesus.”
“I hope you have even a small understanding of how drastically your heart for God is impacting us. This class is fantastic and your hearts for God is a tremendous encouragement.”
“This course has far exceeded my expectation. It takes a practical approach to reaffirm God’s truth backed up by scriptures, using breakout groups to encourage one another and challenging us to reflect and take action.”
How grateful we are for this amazing discipleship tool that teaches us how we can have freedom from habitual sin, negative thoughts, fears and unforgiveness, helping us grasp the amazing truth of our identity in Christ and how to resist the enemy’s deceptions. It gives such practical and tangible ways to help us move forward by “putting the cookies on the bottom shelf”, moving truth from our heads to our hearts and into action.
We are especially delighted that some who have gone through the course and have assimilated these principles are now embarking on taking others through Freedom in Christ either one-on-one or in groups – disciples becoming disciple-makers.
If, today I could turn back the clock on my pastoral ministry and do a make-over, this is the discipleship tool I would absolutely implement in the church.
November 2022
The Northgate Baptist Church in Edmonton is one church of many that is using the Freedom In Christ course as part of its regular curriculum.
The Freedom in Christ Discipleship Course on Thursday evenings has been very fruitful so far. I love this course so much because I get to see people significantly grow in their faith and Christian practice in a relatively short time. And this teaching applies to every Christian, female or male, every culture, whether new or mature in the faith, young or old. In fact, in this particular class, we have a wide age range of participants—from 18 years old to a great, great-grandmother of 85! Even I myself learn and grow every time I run this course, despite having done it dozens of times already. And what a blessing to contribute to the increasing freedom of my brothers and sisters in the Lord!
Two people have done the Steps to Freedom and a few more are booked for November. Please pray for these individual Steps meetings, as they often have the most dramatic positive spiritual impact of all we do in the class. During the Steps, we do an in-depth, moral inventory of seven areas that can hinder our faith and walk with God, just as His Word instructs us to do in Psalm 139:22&23, “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” We renounce anything incompatible with our faith and affirm the truth of the Bible and our commitment to Jesus.
Restored Conference
Rosewood Park Alliance Church
Forgiveness Testimony – Clay Harmon
September 24, 2022
"One of my earliest childhood memories at four years of age was hearing my mother scream. I looked around the corner into the kitchen. My dad had thrown a knife at her, and it was stuck into the cupboard doors inches from her head. I recall him saying that if he wanted to kill her, she would be dead. Ensuing years involved living with relatives and finally a foster home for me and my four siblings.
At age ten, my dad visited me in the foster home and told me that the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. I had no idea what he was talking about. I found out later that my mother had been living in the same house as my dad and his girlfriend and that my mother had hung herself. I grew up attending seventeen schools and living in seven foster homes and the homes of two uncles.
I married, and we had four children. The oldest, a son, was given up for adoption because we were not yet married, and the youngest one, another son, died from a crib death. Friends introduced me to the Holy Spirit, but I chose the spirit of Johnny Walker instead. A life of adultery, drunkenness, and the trigger of the death of our baby led to divorce. I then married a drunk, and we had two more children. I sobered up, and she kicked me out of the house when I poured her hidden bottle of vodka down the sink.
At the time my business was prospering with some retail stores, and with a partner, we owned an upscale billiard club in the Okanagan. I chose to teach the ladies’ pool lessons. I was attracted to one lady and invited her to spend a weekend with me for fun and frolic in Calgary. She looked me in the eye and told me that my time would be better spent reading the Bible. To her astonishment, I did just that and a few months later submitted my life to Christ. Within forty-eight hours I was broke, unemployed, living alone, and suicidal. God was teaching me about self-sufficiency.
This lady gave me a mimeographed sheet containing the Steps to Freedom, and over weeks I worked through the Steps on my own. When I got to forgiveness, it was easy for me to identify that I needed to forgive my dad. I forced myself to think of the few good times instead of the violence in our home and was able to forgive him. Sondra encouraged me to visit my mother’s grave, and while there, I had a strong impression from the Holy Spirit that I was to pray. I was astonished at the anger towards my mother that came out because she had abandoned me as a child. Through the power of prayer, I came to understand that the hidden hurt had brought much destruction on my life and the lives of those close to me. I came to see that the verbal and emotional abuse I had inflicted on my two wives was an expression of that anger. It had been hidden from me. Recognizing that it was there, I could now forgive her.
The lady that challenged me to read the Bible is now my wife of twenty-seven years. Because I had learned to love Jesus, I learned how to love her. I have a good relationship with all my children. God has restored everything far more than what I could have imagined. God is good."
Restored Conference
Rosewood Park Alliance Church
September 2022
"We recently hosted the Restored Conference here at Rosewood Park Alliance Church as a way of providing a great spiritual growth opportunity for our church and those in our community. One of the things we have recognized over the years is that as Christians we are regularly caught in bondage or negative sin patterns that seem to stall our spiritual growth and our walks with Jesus. The Restored Conference has been an amazing tool for our church as it provides a very simple, non-invasive opportunity for our congregants to deal with some of this bondage and sin patterns, in order for them to be free to continue pursuing all that Jesus desires of them.
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Our hope for our church having gone through this is that more and more individuals would be able to freely move on the path of discipleship as they grow in their relationship with Jesus. We pray that these individuals would learn how to live out their faith well, here in our church and out in the world. We hope that the freedom that they have found in Christ is an amazing witness to those who don’t yet know Jesus!"
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Associate Pastor Joel Cyr