Enroll in Free Ministry Schooling at CLI
My name is Jamin Bush, and I am glad to enroll in free ministry schooling at CLI. I grew up in the small farm town of Wapakoneta, Ohio. At the age of two, my parents got a divorce, and I lived with my mom. She ended up marrying the mailman, and my dad married the divorce lawyer (it was a small town).
My Early Years
My mother raised me in the church. At the age of eight, I remember one Sunday morning at church. It was when I went down to the altar to give my life to Christ. I was more of a wallflower at church, never really getting involved. I didn’t have a relationship with Christ. It was more knowledge of Christ, not knowing Christ personally.
I had my first asthma attack when I was six months old. On average, I was in the hospital once a month and missed a lot of school time as I got older. The doctor said I was not allowed out in weather under 40 degrees because of my breathing difficulties. Also, living on a farm didn’t help my breathing issues either. I was mainly in my room. That is where I discovered my love for art.
According to the courts, my father had visitation rights every second weekend. In all honesty, I remember years that I would go from one Christmas to the next without seeing him. He was an absent father.
Grown-Up Struggles
I went away to art school when I was 18. It was my first experience away from home, and soon I was joining the party life. I got involved with drugs and alcohol. Depression was also setting in. While I was away, my Mom and stepfather got a divorce. Soon after, my mom got a rare disease called RSD, with which her muscles were slowly atrophying. I left school to care for her. She could do very little physical activity. My mom saw how my life was spiraling out of control.
I started dating a girl and fell in love. Soon we got engaged, bought a house, and moved in together. My mom was upset that we were living together and not married. We had been together for around three years when she left me for my best friend. Their relationship had been going on for a while without my knowledge. Through this loss, my friends sided with her. They told me I should accept it.
So, I decided to move on, and thus, I lost all my friends. At the age of 24, my only friend was my mom. My depression got worse. Besides work, I spent all my time either at my mom’s or in an art studio I had in my basement. Mom always encouraged me to go to church, but I did not listen.
Reconnecting with God and the Church
Then, one Saturday night, I drove around looking for a church that was having Saturday night service. There is a road in my hometown with 15 churches on it. So, I drove down that road. It seemed all of them were closed until I reached the last church. People were going into the church, so I did too. I loved it. It was a very warm and welcoming place.
The senior pastor reminded me of my college professors. I learned a lot from the service and continued to go every Saturday night from then on. A couple of months after going back to church, I was sitting in my basement one night crying. I prayed and surrendered to God’s will as I asked God to use me and make my life worth living. I rededicated my life to Christ.
Marriage and Ministry Service
Two years later, at the age of 28, I met Lindsey. She was the children’s pastor at the church I was attending. I wasn’t sure at first if she was just a pastor reaching out because she felt bad for me or if she liked me. It turns out she liked me! We married on December 28th, 2012. She’s fantastic and a true blessing from God.
In 2015, we moved to Highlands Ranch, Colorado, where we both came on staff at a large church. She was the children’s ministry coordinator, and I was an events supervisor. It was an amazing adventure. Colorado is beautiful, but we were working anywhere from 50 – 75 hours a week. The work and life balance was a struggle.
Then, we discovered an excellent opportunity in Virginia Beach for Lindsey that would fit her skillset, so we moved. We found a new church there. Currently, I assist my wife, who is the children’s ministry director.
God Adventures and Enroll in Free Ministry Schooling at CLI
I have seen God completely flip my life from so much darkness and despair to joy and adventure. The adventure is continuing as I enroll in free ministry schooling at the Christian Leaders Institute. I want to change the world for Christ, and I’m so excited to see what God has in store!
Learn about low-cost college degrees at CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
Getting Free Ministry Training at CLI
My name is Zivanayi Mafuta, and I am getting free ministry training at Christian Leaders Institute. I live in South Africa but originated in Zimbabwe. I am the second born of six children of my father and mother.
Early Church Experiences
I started going to the Baptist Church with my parents. Later on, I attended a Catholic School, where I began serving in the church. Later on, I joined the Pentecostal Church. However, by this time, I was wary and without an understanding of the Bible and the gospel message. Yet, the Bible became the best book for my growth and knowledge of God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Soon, I was baptized and became a new man in the Lord Christ Jesus.
Ministry Dreams and Getting Free Ministry Training at CLI
When I was a young man, my dream was to consider mission work though being a full-time missionary. My ministry goal is for God’s people to be saved and taught in the faith. My spiritual dream is Christ living in me so that I may proclaim Him to everyone.
And now, getting the opportunity to study with Christian Leaders Institute will help me so tremendously. I am currently serving at my local church as a sound engineer. I believe there is a ministry service for me to do. CLI will equip me spiritually and strengthen me for the task. Thank you, Christian Leaders Institute, for this fantastic opportunity of getting free ministry training!
Learn about ordination opportunities with the Christian Leaders Alliance.
Call to Chaplaincy Training at CLI
My name is Daphne Estrada, and I am a born-again believer in Jesus Christ. I was baptized in Jesus’ name and filled with His Holy Spirit on March 18, 2001, and have been serving Him ever since then. The following is the story of my journey to a call to chaplaincy training at CLI.
As a child growing up in Los Angeles, California, I attended a Catholic elementary school, where I learned that God existed. However, I didn’t have a relationship with Him and never read the Bible. As an adult, I began to cry out to God when I felt that I had nowhere else to turn. I had been suffering through a painful marriage for almost ten years. As I began to cry out to Him, He began to reveal Himself to me. My husband and I separated and eventually divorced.
Saves by God’s Grace
But during this time, my older sister had an experience at a church that radically changed her life. She shared her experience of baptism in water for the remission of her sins and received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. She was delivered from years of depression on that day and was suddenly (and still is) on fire for God!
I had already begun to recognize God’s voice. However, I was still involved in some situations that were clearly out of God’s will. I purchased a Bible and began to search for more, and He began to convict me of sin in my life. After about eight months, I finally decided to turn away from those things that were not pleasing to Him and to trust fully in Him. I repented of my sin, was baptized, and filled with His Holy Spirit. This event marked a fantastic new beginning in my life.
My Missionary Call
My sister encouraged me to be faithful in going to Bible study, Sunday school, and church services. She also helped me to seek God in His Word, pray regularly, and pay my tithes and offerings. The Lord began to challenge me to let go of plans that I had for my life and activities that I enjoyed and to seek Him for direction. God revealed that I was called to ministry, although I didn’t know in what capacity. So, I began to attend Bible college in the evenings.
Eventually, through a dream, He revealed that I am “called to be a missionary to many nations.” The Lord supernaturally led me to Youth With A Mission (YWAM). He directed me to be trained and later serve in Perth, Australia. I served with YWAM for a little over seven years. I also spent one year in East Africa and traveled to several other countries for shorter periods.
A New Direction
The Lord led me to leave YWAM and move to Florida to study nursing. However, first, I was to train to be a Certified Nursing Assistant. I obeyed the Lord. Through my obedience in serving in this way, God brought me to my future husband. He was a bus-driver for my first client. Neither one of us was looking for a spouse because we were each believing the Lord would choose one for us in His perfect timing. The Lord revealed His plans, and in faith and obedience to the Lord, we married five months later.
We have been very happily married for over four and a half years. We are serving together as pastors of a small Spanish church in Cocoa, Florida. My husband had been pastoring this congregation for about 19 years before our marriage. I have not yet trained to be a nurse. But, I served at a nursing facility for almost five years. There God led me to start a prayer meeting for the patients and a “Word of the Day” bulletin board with a new scripture posted each day. I had the freedom to talk with and pray with many patients.
My Call to Chaplaincy Training
Recently, the Lord led me to resign and prompted me to study to become a chaplain. I desire to have a job that allows me to minister full-time. He is making way for me to have the credentials to go into hospitals and nursing homes by training to become a chaplain.
I searched for online chaplain training courses and prayed for God’s choice in training, trusting that He would provide the finances needed. After reviewing at least eight other online schools, God confirmed that I am to train through the Christian Leaders Institute. However, not because it is free, but because it is His choice for me. Yet, because it is free, I rejoice that He also provided the finances! Hallelujah!
Learn about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance.