Music Ministry Journey
My name is Byron Green and I have been on a music ministry journey. I was born in Florence, Alabama. As a child, I began to play and write music. Music was my first calling. It came so naturally. My father’s best friend was road production manager for “Little Richard”. I got to meet and greet with him at 14 years old in a very personal setting backstage. The odd thing about it was that he simply took my hands in his, bowed his head, and prayed that one day my hands would play for the Lord. I didn’t know God then. I thought he was a crazy person.
Fast forward a few years to graduation and the career began. Unfortunately, with no godly roots, it led me down a path of destruction. From 2005-2016, I traveled many places around the Southeast, leading people to sin. One night after two DUI arrests, watching my marriage fall apart and in the process of losing everything, I fell to my knees. I finally came to the realization that I wasn’t able. Praise God! His grace is sufficient! I came to know the Lord in a very unlikely place [a bathroom floor]. Nobody gets alone with God on their knees and fakes it. I prayed for real for the first time. God worked a miracle that night on my music ministry journey. I had been trying to work on my own for 10 years. He broke the chains of alcohol addiction. It was instant. I was free.
In pure joy, I began to tell my Christian wife I had been saved. I was changed [try telling someone who has heard it all before]. Again, His grace is sufficient. By continued steps of faith, prayer and daily devotion to His word, in less than 7 days He repaired the relationships I had spent my whole life destroying. We began looking for a church. I was called to First Baptist Church in Lexington, Alabama for a tent revival. There, the pastor expressed they had been praying for an entire year for a worship leader. I agreed to help as an interim until one came. A month later, after various talks about my faith, and a unanimous vote by the congregation, Little Richard’s prophecy that I had completely forgotten came to pass. I was serving the Lord. I began to give my testimony locally and see God work in the hearts of people who were just like me. People were being freed and accepting Jesus! Powerful confirmations came that entire year. That was this past year. I began to read and teach small videos on Facebook live from passages in Acts. Several of the people who watched asked why I didn’t continue with further education because they saw potential in me.
Finally, a member of the worship team came forward and confirmed my calling externally as I had already been feeling the call internally. I feel my call to be a small group leader as well as a music minister so strongly. The problem with further education now on my music ministry journey is that I had lost everything in the battle with addiction. My wife and I still currently live with my parents as we work diligently to recover and reestablish ourselves financially. My favorite pleasure in reading the word is when the passage says something and then drops what I affectionately refer to as the “but God” bomb. He always makes a way! I thought I would never have this opportunity, “but God” provided me with Christian Leaders Institute. So I praise Him and thank Him for it! I want to effectively disciple believers in an easily reproducible way. By the time I finished the first course [a day and a half], I was equipped with that knowledge already! I can’t wait to finish the program and pray that God makes a way for our local church to set up a mentor center!
Learn about minister ordination at Christian Leaders Alliance.
Youth Minister Call
My name is Ethan Most and I have a youth minister call in my life. I live in the United States and my wife and I just moved back to my hometown of Colorado Springs. To do ministry here is truly an adventure because you never really know what opinions or people you might encounter on a daily basis. I say this because I was heavily involved with a college ministry and children’s ministry in the two churches where I have spent most of my life.
I came to know the Lord as a youngster in my parent’s bedroom. Before this, I had heard all the stories and I wanted Jesus to come into my heart. I wanted Jesus to save me from my sin so I went to those who knew how to lead me to Jesus, my parents. I can remember every single second of that meeting as a young boy. I got up on my parent’s bed and I asked them how to ask Jesus into my life. They led me through a prayer and from then on I was changed. I knew the big picture and I had so much joy in my heart.
My ministry vision for my youth minister call is simple. I want to reach the children and youth of my church and my community for Christ and to disciple them in expanding the kingdom in their own communities. Our youth are lost because of the myriad of influences in their lives. I want to lead them to Christ and a life that has purpose and fulfillment. God has truly given me a heart for them and their craziness. One of the biggest influence on my life was my youth pastor and his patience for a pretty adventurous and troublesome lad. I want to carry that work on in my own life.
This class with Christian Leaders Institute has been very rewarding to me. I have been praying and asking God as to what I should do next in my life and He led me to my youth minister call. Starting this class has given me some tangible evidence that this is where God wants me and I will keep working hard for that purpose.
When I was in high school my youth pastor left for another ministry opportunity in Illinois. I was devastated, in some regards, because the man that had taken the time to mentor me and encourage me was leaving. However, in the years that followed, we had Godly man after Godly man step up and lead my youth group in growing in Jesus. I came to a realization that I wanted to be like those men who stepped up and trusted God for their leadership. In my youth minister call, I wanted God to use me like He used them and that has been reinforced by my college and children’s ministry experience.
In Colorado Springs, there is a mix of a heavy Christian influence and a very secular, worldly presence. We have Focus on the Family, New Life, Navigators and other very large organizations. On the other hand, Colorado has a seen moral decline from places like academia, government, media and most importantly the family. Colorado has become a melting pot of people because of marijuana and other social activities. This is dangerous to the influence on the lives of the youth but at the same time a great opportunity for the gospel to flourish through the youth.
The Bible helps me realize my sins and failures and shows me my strength in Christ. I could not have done any of the ministries in my life without Christ and the Bible to give me confidence and hope to share that with my community.
My church in Flagstaff gave me many opportunities to serve and helped train me for ministry. I served the local church through a myriad of opportunities, such as teaching Sunday school, being a college intern, being the Children’s Coordinator, and leading a young adult group.
My small family has given me the support that I need from them. The role of the family has been influential and incredible in helping me be accountable and humble in my walk with God. My family is important in my faith in God and helping me discern His purpose for me in life.
Christian Leaders Institute is an answer to prayer. I felt a youth minister call but did not know how to go about pursuing it. Through a conversation with my father-in-law, I was told about CLI. After looking into it, I realized that CLI fit exactly with attaining a debt free Christian ministry education. I am not the best student and, quite honestly, dreaded seminary. CLI has been a huge blessing in my life. Being able to get quality training for free has opened so many ministry outlets with coworkers, students, and friends. I am truly thankful that I will not have loan debt and can focus on my community, family, and work.
I ask the leaders of CLI to pray that as I get involved with my community and youth that I stay focused on what is important. That is showing men and women, young and old, that Christ brings salvation and that they can have a personal and purposeful relationship with Jesus. That is what I desire and that is what I pray for.
Learn about ordained minister study programs with Christian Leaders Alliance.