Discipleship Ministry Calling
My name is Lora Lamberth, and I have a discipleship ministry calling. I was born and raised in the mountains of West Virginia. My mother was an accomplished secretary and an inspirational speaker. My father served in the Air Force during Vietnam and was an accomplished Special Education teacher after the war. I have three brothers -two older and one younger.
My grandfather on my mother’s side was an amazing man who fought in WWII and liberated from Belsen-Bergin concentration camp on April 15, 1945. My grandmother on my mom’s side was a school teacher and spiritual leader for our family.
I did not spend much time with my dad’s family. My grandfather was an alcoholic and a mean drunk. When he wasn’t drinking, he had a love for nature and animals. He accepted Christ just before he passed away in his late 70’s. My grandmother on my father’s side was a great prayer warrior. She was a quiet woman who liked to paint. She loved God and prayed a lot but was afraid to make much noise. When she passed, my dad showed me her old worn out leather Bible. There were prayers and marks she made in her Bible for all of us.
Spiritual Development
I learned the most about God from my mom’s mother who had MS and was bedridden most of my life. Even from her bed she diligently sought ways to minister to others and give back to the community. She taught me Bible studies from the time I can remember. I still have all my Oral Roberts certificates from my childhood where we would read the books together and take the quizzes and send them in to receive a certificate of completion.
My mom’s dad was God’s love in action. He did not say much, but he was an example of grace, mercy, and love. Grandfather worked for over 20 years at a funeral home for free because he promised the man’s mother he would look after her son when she passed. He was a mailman in the mountains of West Virginia – not an easy job. He would often bring groceries, medicine, or provide transportation to town for people who would otherwise have no way. My grandfather never grumbled and never hesitated to help at any hour.
My grandmother encouraged him to serve others even though she required help herself. Both my father and mother worked so I spent most of my formative years with my mom’s mom. She taught me how to cook and clean, how to be modest and proper, how to serve others and to love as Jesus loves us. Even though she couldn’t walk, she and I would make meals for the church to deliver to others in need or we would sew clothes for our family and others. We didn’t have much money, but we were rich beyond compare.
Marriage
Fast forward to when I was 15 years old, and I fell madly in “love” with my future husband. I thought he was my dream come true. At 18 years of age, I left home, and we married shortly after. My parents did not approve. We had a good life for several years – starting with almost nothing and working our way up to having many luxuries.
After about seven years, we had our son. Nothing was ever the same. I began to feel the discipleship ministry calling of God on my life as I looked at this perfect little boy. I would need to guide and nurture him as my grandmother did me. My husband was not happy about being a dad and quickly became jealous of how much time I spent taking care of our son. He didn’t like that we couldn’t do things as we used to (going out, drinking, non-child friendly vacations, etc.).
The marriage became a nightmare, and he became abusive to both our son and me. Divorce to me was not an option. I tried prayer, counseling, and getting help from our local church, but nothing helped. He had no desire to change. When our son was five years old, he left us with my parents and never looked back. That was the best thing he ever did for us. I became a single mom, got a job and raised our son the best I could on my own. We joined a church, and I was baptized with my son by my side.
New Beginnings
Just over three years later, God sent me my current husband. We dated for a year. On December 20, 2003, I became Mrs. Lora Lamberth. A year later, he adopted my son. In 2011, we had beautiful twin girls. Ruby is called to be a worship leader. Rose is called to be a prayer warrior. Rose has Sensory Processing Disorder and is on the Autism spectrum. Both girls faced many obstacles that have made them stronger. My son has many hurts in his heart from his past but has overcome much. He attends church and is close to our pastor Father Rob but does not have an intimate relationship with God at this time. He did when he was little but has let the hurt in his heart build walls around forming a real relationship with anyone.
Discipleship Ministry Calling from God
I would not say that I am a Christian leader in my area. I was a youth leader at our current church, but that is not my calling. At one time, I taught Bible classes to adults at another church. I loved it with a passion. My calling is to teach and to help others understand the Bible for themselves so they can listen to and talk to God. Each of us has a responsibility to develop a personal relationship with God. After my divorce, I dedicated my journey then and there to know more about God, how to listen and talk to God, and how to love like God. I am not perfect and have fallen many times, but God has always been faithful never to leave me nor forsake me.
Obstacles Strengthened Me
There were obstacles in my life that shaped me and my discipleship ministry calling. After my divorce, my real understanding of God’s grace and mercy began. I had to forgive my husband and forgive myself for staying in that abusive relationship. The next obstacle was when I became pregnant with my twin girls. I was 40 years old and diagnosed with Crone’s disease. I was on bed rest or in the hospital for the entire nine months. After they were born, I was very ill and spent over a month in the hospital in critical condition. The doctors did not know if I would live.
Therefore, my husband took a family leave with no pay to take care of our newborn girls. He had never taken care of a baby before, and now he had two! Rose was sick from the time she was born. She cried non-stop and hardly slept. Ruby cried a lot because her sister cried. When she was around one, Rose was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder and placed on the Autism spectrum. I struggled with bonding with my girls because of my illness. It took me about a year before I had strength or energy, and two years before I went into remission. Now, eight years later, I am still in remission, and the girls are doing great.
The next obstacle was when my dad got sick. He was diagnosed with dementia and began exhibiting signs of PTSD from Vietnam. I cared for him and moved my parents across the street. I took care of dad while my mom watched the girls. In a few short months, dad had to be put in a lockdown unit. I visited every day. He passed away on December 20 three years ago. Within months, my mom had a stroke and was on a ventilator and feeding tube. No nursing home would take her because of the vent. She moved in with me. I took care of her 24/7 until she passed in February of last year. These “obstacles” served to draw me closer to God and rely on His strength. It was a privilege to take care of both my parents, and I wouldn’t have changed much of anything.
CLI TRAINING
Through the free ministry training at Christian Leaders Institute, I hope to be better equipped for my discipleship ministry calling. I desire to help others understand God’s love and how to have a real and intimate relationship with Him. This training at CLI will help me communicate in more effective ways with the world and the church.
The Holy Spirit led me to this point and CLI. I feel God leading me to more in my discipleship ministry calling. I think that CLI will help me develop my relationship with God so that I can effectively minister to others.
Learn about ordination at Christian Leaders Alliance.
Enterprise Ministry Call
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! My name is Wilson Bumuh, and I have an enterprise ministry call on my life. I was born on June 27, 1977, in Bamenda, the northwestern province of Cameroon to Rev. Alfred V. and Mary A. Bumuh. I have an elder sister with two little sisters and a little brother. My parents worked at the Cameroon Baptist Theological Seminary (CBTS) in Ndu in Cameroon as teachers. When I was three, they moved to Nigeria and were students at the Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary. After their studies in Nigeria, we moved back to CBTS in Ndu, Cameroon. Growing up as a kid, we were involved in preaching, witnessing, and bringing people to Christ. We attended the Christian youth camp and went to Bible crusades.
Presently, I live in China. I moved here in 2004. I got married to my wife Pamela here in Shenzhen in 2009. We have three beautiful children: Willa Keali-An, our daughter who is eight, Wilmore, our son who is six, and Willis, our son who is three. My children speak very little or no English since they go to schools taught in the Chinese language. Plus, they spend most of their time with their maternal grandmother who is Chinese and barely speaks English. We bring them up in a Christian way as I was brought up by my parents. However, it’s not easy since there are very few churches and the Christian community is scarce. My wife and children go to a small church group at my friend’s home every Saturday.
Businessman
I’m a businessman here in China. When I first came to China, in 2004, I started as an English teacher as that was the only available job to get. I did that for a year and then switched careers to hotel management from 2005 to 2007. In 2008, I started my first company with a partner which lasted only for a year, and we dissolved the company to go our separate ways. I got married in 2009 and had our daughter in 2010. The year 2010 was the first year since I came to China to go to church.
For the six years before my marriage, I was far away from God and the Bible. I didn’t even know where my Bible was. I got involved in heavy drinking, partying, and all kinds of girlfriends. At that time, I was far away from my family and hardly called them even though my father was seriously sick. Those years, I was into the party life, work, and the stress of life here. I was trying to survive and make it. I was in a confusing world, so different from how I grew up with everyone around me fearing God. It was an abrupt change.
Marriage Changes
However, after I married, I reduced all those unnecessary habits. My drinking reduced. But, due to the business culture here, you have a drink while eating at dinner or after a business meeting. Even when Chinese friends invite you out to eat, you drink what they give you to drink to show respect and appreciation. But my drinking got intense again from 2011 to 2016. Those years, we were involved in some strenuous business deals. At the same time, we worked in selling land here which is challenging to get. But since my company was part of a joint company, we had the opportunity to sign deals with very wealthy people and other real estate companies.
I had very little rest. Therefore, in 2016, I had a stroke where I was rushed to the hospital. I could not speak again, I couldn’t think well, and one side of my body was all numb. I forgot almost everything. The news went around the whole world quickly. Thank God, with the social media we have these days, everybody that knew my family and me was on their knees praying to God for total healing. My wife and my daughter stayed with me in the hospital.
Enterprise Ministry Call
Miraculously, in five days I was up, took a shower by myself, walked outside the hospital ward, and made some phone calls even though words were difficult to understand. The doctors were surprised; they didn’t know how come I could stand and walk. But, they advised me to stay with them for another week for observation. I did and left the hospital a week later.
I thank God for sparing my life. God was telling me something and placed an enterprise ministry call on my life. In the twinkling of an eye, He can take this life from my body. It was a harsh reminder, and I remembered the story of Jonah in the Bible. I’ve been called to serve the Lord, and I am back on track. Thank God that the Christian Leaders Institute offers theological courses and business management courses online for free. My dream is to take the CLI courses and get trained to become an influential Christian leader in the business field and church planting here in China.
Learn about ordination at Christian Leaders Alliance.
Free Bible College Studies
My name is Tristin Griffin. I am from Australia. Here is the story of my journey with the Lord. My spiritual journey brought me to free Bible college studies at Christian Leaders Institute. I am very grateful for this opportunity for free Bible college studies.
Medical Struggles
In December of 2005, I had a neurological failure which resulted in multiple organ failure. My liver, pancreas, and spleen stopped functioning normally, and I had several minor heart attacks and seizures. I lost mobility due to nerve damage in my right leg and gained a sporadic tremor in my hands. I was in and out of the hospital for the next four years. My marriage broke down resulting in divorce. My wife at the time could not handle the lifestyle change and extreme physical transformation and pressure. I remember passing at one point at the hospital. I’ve since read many people’s near-death experiences. For me, there was nothingness. I knew where I was, and I knew that the life I had led up to that point had brought me there.
By March 15, 2009, my health had declined to a point where the doctors said, “There’s no easy way to say this, you have three years to live. You need to get your affairs sorted out.” After that, they discharged me.
A New Perspective
This news put everything into a new perspective for me. What was it that I wanted to do with the rest of my life? I left Lismore and moved to Grafton. I spent the next few months learning to walk again by first picking a coin up off the floor. Then, I began walking to a corner store 50 meters away. After doing that for a bit, I purchased a bike and started to ride to the corner store. It was difficult as I also had middle ear damage which gave me constant vertigo (the sensation of spinning). During this time, I also established a computer game company, working as a freelance programmer.
Once I was able to ride a bike to the corner store, I purchased a car. Soon, I began driving around Australia. Financially, I was able to work wherever there was an internet connection. So, usually a day or two at a time, I worked. The rest of the time I spent sightseeing and searching. This journey took me a year and a half. It was on this journey that my life’s purpose became clear to me. I had a Bible with me, one I received at birth. As my trip was coming to a close, I thought, “What is next? What legacy am I leaving behind?” I had lost everything and was homeless, living in my car.
New Beginnings
Shortly after, I rushed back for the birth of my nephew. I visited my parents and needed somewhere to stay. So, I drove through Kingscliff and saw a room for rent. I rented the place and moved in that same day. The following day, I went to the local cafe to see if there was an art course. They didn’t have one, but there was one in the nearby town of Murwillumbah, and I could start the next day.
It is there that I met my wife, Marija. A few weeks later, we began dating on the condition that I go to church. Previously, I had a negative experience with the church. After all, they are filled with imperfect people. However, it was there that I surrendered the remainder of my life to God.
Fast forward a year, Marija and I were married. Then, nine months later, we had our daughter Belle. I received water baptism at this time. When I rose out of the water, I saw the world with a new perception. It was after this baptism that my life transformed. I can only describe it as a rollercoaster adventure. Even my art instantly changed, my work took on a more in-depth exploration. There was a yearning in the core of my being I expressed through my art.
Free Bible College Studies at CLI
After we relocated to Armidale from Kingscliff, I felt the call to take courses at a Bible college. I began my free Bible college studies with Christian Leaders Institute in 2018 and completed the certificate course later that year. This period was spent dedicating most available time to Bible study. I was able to spend time meditating on the free Bible college studies I took. I genuinely felt my mind and heart changing. It felt as though my mind was being rewired for God’s purpose in my life. I began to process my past. I felt a new appreciation and gratitude for my present circumstance. God has blessed me with my wife and our children, my family, and our new church family.
Learn about ordination with Christian Leaders Alliance.