Pastor Training Blessings
Hello and many blessings in the Name of Jesus Christ! My name is James Johnson and I am receiving pastor training blessings as I study at Christian Leaders Institute. I live in San Angelo, Texas in the United States of America. I was born and lived my earliest childhood in a small town in east Texas. We had a neighborhood church that influenced me greatly in that I learned early about God and living in a godly manner. Sadly, the neighborhood church moved to another part of town. My family then attended a Baptist church outside the immediate neighborhood but still close by. However, this church did not have the strong impact on the neighborhood that the earlier church did. When I was between seven and eight years old, my family eventually moved out of the area but not before a noticeable decline in the neighborhood.
The location of my family’s new house was not close to any church. My mother and father divorced and attended different Baptist churches. We were required to attend a church on Sundays so my older brother found a nearby Primitive Baptist Church. They had few weekly services other than Sunday, and they started early and ended early. He and I attended this church when they had services so we would be close to home and able to be the first to the swimming pool during the summer. This church closed and then we were required to attend my mother’s Baptist church.
At the age of eleven, my family changed churches again. I attended this church from the age of ten until about the age of sixteen when I witnessed some ugly and seemingly ungodly business meetings and other behavior that made me question the church. I met a family and was invited to the Church of Christ, it was just up the street from my home. This was a much smaller and much more serious church and it was there that I was baptized and received the Holy Spirit at the age of sixteen. It was also there that I began to walk with the Lord and my life changed.
My ministry dream is to share the Word of God without denominational restraints. I believe our churches and communities grow weak for lack of the Word of God being taught. His Holy Word needs to be unleashed. One of the pastor training blessings I see is the heavy dosage of scripture in this first course at CLI. It has renewed my desire to walk with God in spreading His Word to all communities.
I mostly identify as a Pastor and Teacher. A pastor because two large churches I and my wife attended closed after internal strife. And most of the leadership and members walked away leaving large debts. My family and several others stayed and paid those debts because it was the right thing to do. While there, I was asked to lead by the remaining members. I preached and taught weekly and loved it. I also learned to love those in attendance. I was asked by the leadership about ministry before the church broke up, but I felt others were more qualified than myself. When I did purse going to a local seminary health issues interfered. I have since been able to take and complete quite a few Bible courses and classes that have increased my knowledge and abilities. These pastor training blessings are being continued here at CLI.
I believe the big challenge for my area is the teaching of God’s Word without political motivation, cultural acceptance and/or other man-made conditions. People need to hear what God says, what He expects and what He accepts. This may very well require a new church plant so I will not rule that out.
My local church has been supportive of my efforts, however many are not aware of my endeavors but they are aware of my passion for the gospel and teaching and learning. My wife of thirty-three years shares my passion for spreading the Word of God.
A study scholarship with Christian Leaders Institute would be a big pastor training blessing and it would help me become ordained to move forward with preaching God’s Word.
Learn about local ecuministry ordinations with Christian Leaders Alliance.
Free Christian Leader Classes
My name is Gabrielle Marie Sipes and I am receiving free Christian leader classes at Christian Leaders Institute. I am from Greenfield, Missouri. It is wonderful to be a Christian leader. Being a Sunday school teacher means I have the teens and younger children that look up to me. Even living in a small town you have drugs and teen pregnancies and a lot of other stuff. I didn’t ever think that I would have younger children looking up to me but it makes me feel like their big sister if that makes sense. I want them to know that they can always come and talk to me about anything and everything, no matter what it is.
My childhood was troubled. I grew up in Iowa with my mom and whatever guy she was with. I didn’t know who my real dad was until the age of ten. Growing up, my mom stole and lied in front of me so I thought that was the right thing to do. I ended up in several programs and being sent away for awhile. I even ended up in foster care for a couple of months. When I was ten, I moved in with my dad. That situation was not any better. It was a mental and physically abusive situation. He used us kids as slaves and always had a new girl over every week. He was a person who read the Bible but didn’t follow it. I didn’t really believe in God until I got a little older.
Even though my childhood was hard, I have fixed the relationship with my mother and kind of with my father. I feel like I have faced a lot of obstacles. There was a time when I was depressed and suicidal and I cut myself. I thought God had abandoned me, but slowly I fought the depression on my own and stopped cutting. I turned to Jesus and He helped me through my family life. The abuse never stopped. The women my dad married made sure of that.
When I moved here to Missouri, I felt I might know peace with my husband Jake. I believe that God put him in my life to help me get out of a bad situation. That is when I realized I wanted to strengthen my relationship with God. I got re-baptized at the age of 19 by my own choice. I became a Sunday School teacher and that is when I really felt the presence of God. My husband has helped me through so much and so has God.
I started taking Christian Leaders Institute free Christian leader classes for a few different reasons. One, to expand my knowledge of God, and two, because I feel like this school will help me on my spiritual journey as a Christian leader. I always like learning new things and this school has a lot of things to teach. When I am in my church is when I feel the most connected with God, but I want that connection all the time and I feel that CLI will help me with that. Expanding my knowledge of God will also help when we decide to have children. I cannot wait to see what is in store for me at CLI.
Learn about minister ordination with Christian Leaders Alliance.
Bible College Classes
My name is David Kohen and I am taking free Bible college classes at Christian Leaders Institute. I am originally from Israel, but I currently live in Ghana. I was adopted by a Christian family who raised me. Therefore, I grew up in a Christian home. I was surrounded by God and the church from the very beginning. Even though I was raised in a Christian home, I just followed through the motions of doing “Christian things” that I thought I was supposed to do. I didn’t know Him, I just knew about Him.
I found myself searching for purpose and meaning in people and also in myself. Whether that was through my friends or relationships, I poured my whole heart into them. I also became very fixated on myself and my image. I became very consumed with what people thought of me and was living for the acceptance of the world.
At my lowest point when I was alone and afraid, God drew me to Himself. From growing up in a Christian home, I knew what to do. I knew that He could save me if I just let Him. I confessed that I am a sinner and that I was trying to find life in other people and myself. I acknowledged that He sent Jesus to die on the cross so that I can be saved from my sin and have eternal life. I committed to living for God instead of others.
Since knowing Him, God showed me that being a “Christian” isn’t about just doing good works. He made it clear that I do not have to earn my salvation or His love (Eph. 2:8-9). He has given me fulfillment and purpose and joy. I am not perfect and I still mess up, but God loves me despite my flaws and imperfections. And where the things I was pursuing before continually let me down, God has never once left me or let me down. He has shown Himself to me in His Word, the Bible. God loved me even at my lowest point and He rescued me from myself and eternal separation from Him. I am thankful that God has led me to Christian Leaders Institute for free Bible college classes to learn more about Him and so I can better serve Him in His kingdom.
Learn about minister ordination with Christian Leaders Alliance.