“I identify most with the term youth leader because I enjoy being able to be creative and find ways to present the Word in a fun and interactive manner. It is also my passion to help youth overcome their circumstances and experience the peace and love that comes with knowing the Lord. I am so passionate about this because when I was growing up I experienced some negative things with peers which led to some damaging behaviors. Also, youth are bombarded by the media to live according to the world’s standards, which only brings heartache. It is so important for our youth to have a positive place to go where they have a chance to experience the love of the Lord.”
Being A Youth Leader Is More Than Just A Job, It’s A Passion- A Calling
My name is Ashley C and I live in the United States of America. I recently received my Masters in Social Work, which was a vital step in deciding to be involved in ministry (I will answer how Social Work led me to ministry later in my story).
I enjoy doing youth ministry and seeing the change in those we help. Doing ministry here has its pros and cons. I am thankful for the freedom that we do have to live as Christians and it is great connecting with fellow Christians as well. It is awesome to see the people that do accept Christ, and being able to help disciple those the Lord leads to us. There are challenges that we face in that there are so many who come against Christ and claim that Christianity is bigoted and oppressive. With so many people following mainstream culture it is often difficult to get people to understand what the Bible is really about. Often times they believe the twisted lies our culture tells them about the Bible instead of studying the Bible for themselves or being open to hearing another view point. There can also be challenges in coming together as one. There are times when people see denominations as dividers and get caught in seeing each other as competition rather than uniting as Christians to be more effective.
I grew up knowing about the Lord but did not understand what it meant to surrender your life to Christ and follow His will. There were also things I saw from Christians that were hurtful and that I did not understand. When I reached my mid-twenties I started to feel hopeless and to think that there had to be more to life, so I started to study the Bible for myself. During this time I took an internship in Child Protective Services. I started to feel more hopeless because of what I saw happening in families, but the Lord led me to various other books and tools to help me realize I needed to surrender my life to Christ and start living my life for Him.
I currently work in ministry with my husband. The Lord laid it on our hearts to be a youth leader in a youth center. We co-founded 2 Rise Above Youth Ministry where we provide a positive environment for youth to rise above the negative circumstances in their lives. We utilize the Word of God in conjunction with evidence based psychological interventions to help youth live out their faith. It is our dream to be able to do this ministry full-time, as well as share Christ with more youth and help them to heal and grow in their faith. It is our goal to create more curricula related to life skills and social/emotional/spiritual well being; as well as travel throughout Wisconsin and share this ministry with others.
The Lord prompted me to start a ministry when I was taking a Forensic Social Work class and I saw just how oppressive our juvenile justice system was. We were using methods that actually increased criminal activity rather than decreased it. After doing a paper on ways we could improve our juvenile justice system with positive interventions, I saw that this was something my husband and I could do through as a youth leader in a youth center.
Our ministry is located in a small town. We have encountered challenges with the community being guarded to a new presence and seeing us as a threat rather than a partner.
We have had to rely strongly on the Lord while preparing our ministry because we went through a period where individuals at our previous church were dissuading youth from being involved in our ministry. There was a sense of competition from these individuals who were not willing to see how we could work together. We ended up finding another church (for various reasons) and they have offered prayer and encouragement when we have faced challenges.
Training with CLI to become a youth leader would help achieve our ministry goals because I want my biblical training to be as in depth as my training in social work. I want to provide accurate biblical information in the curricula and these classes would allow me to do that. Training to be a youth leader under CLI’s free online study program, would further help achieve these goals because I have already accrued a lot of student loan debt and thus do not have the funds to pay for other high quality biblical instruction.
My husband and I would appreciate prayers for wisdom, perseverance, guidance, and strength as we continue our ministry. In regards to our ministry we would appreciate prayers for unity, increased connections, funding, and future students.
Enroll With CLI To Prepare As A Future Youth Leader
If you feel led to be an important factor in the lives of our youth, then click here to begin your free online ministry training and become a Youth Leader! Be a friend. A mentor. A listening ear. A person who cares. Let us make our youth feel just as important to God. They may not be adults yet and have adult problems, but if it’s important to you, then it’s important to God. No issue is too little or too big for our Father.
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Evangelist In The Making For Future Panama Revival
My name is Jeremy Williams, I am from the United States. I am a Christian faith author and chef. I live for Christ, I am blessed that the United States has freedom of religion, and because of that I have been more open about spreading the gospel of grace. For the past 8 years I have been reaching out to people through small group leadership, youth ministry, church summer camps, and bible studies.
My journey with Christ started when I was 16. Up to that point of my teenage life, I had been involved in a lot of negative situations, dealt with a lot of difficult situations as a child, and I lived a very destructive lifestyle as a teenager. I felt the prompting of the Holy spirit and believe Jesus was calling me. After that I began seeking Christ and learning more about being a Christian. I was baptized and openly confessed Christ when I was 18.
I believe the Lord has called me for ministry and has placed in my heart a desire to relocate to Panama and start a grace ministry. My wife supports this dream, as does my church and family. We believe we can passionately take all of Panama, even Central America for the Lord, not that there aren’t ministries and missions working diligently there, but that we will go and help spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and the grace he has given. My heart is torn between two cities, Panama City and Ciudad de Colon. Panama City is a bustling metropolitan that is ever growing, while Ciudad de Colon is wasting away. I believe through my ministry the city of Colon will experience a shift. What happened in the past 100 years that caused the city to fall, God will reverse in half the time and bring beauty out of the ashes. I also believe that Panama City will experience a ripple effect and the people of the city will draw closer together and help support the growth and revitalization of Ciudad de Colon. My wife and I have a desire to plant a church in Panama City, be an evangelist of the gospel of grace, and build an army of ambassadors for Christ that will touch all parts of Panama and Central America. We also want to plant an extension of the church in Ciudad de Colon, where we will have missions, an art education center, possibly a school, and a local church.
I mainly identify with the words Pastor and evangelist the most because I believe wholeheartedly that God, through His Ruach HaKodesh, has given me inexhaustible wisdom to lead people to life and given me an understanding of His Word and a passion for the lost. And I long to reach those people who are lost, hungry, sick, dying, hurting, and longing.
I would have to say, honestly, I believe the call to minister was on my life from my childhood days. However, I believe the true moment was probably when my father passed away, it changed something in me. I watched my father deteriorate in his health, and I was there when he died, and I remember reading to him passages for God’s Holy Word. And having to take that step was intense, but we were assured before he passed away that he received Christ, which he did. I don’t want anyone leaving this earth before accepting Christ into their life, and hopefully we can intercept a lot of people before they get to that point in their life where they’re about to pass on.
I don’t know the challenges that we will face in Panama, I do know that the gospel of grace is being attacked on every corner, but it prevails in every way because it is the power of the new covenant. In America, we still deal with traditional beliefs about religion versus relationship. Where some people believe they can fall out of grace with God. And if that is believed in America, a country 73% Christian, then what about the rest of the world? I believe Christianity is a relationship and that grace is the heart of that relationship.
My local church has allowed me to get involved with the youth ministry here. They also support my plans to relocate to Panama. The pastor is excited about helping my wife and I to plant a grace church in Panama. So we’re excited to work alongside of him. He wants to equip us with the knowledge and resources that will help us to lead people to Christ in Panama.
I will always have the support of my friends and family, whether financially or spiritually.
CLI’s evangelist training is important to me because it will allow me to gain more education in biblical studies and equip me to be an effectual leader for Christ. I recently left from culinary school with debt looming over my shoulder, having to focus on that and save money to make a move to Panama feasible, it’s hard to have anything left to go back to a biblical study school. This will allow me to receive the evangelist training and education I need to live out the dream God has placed in my heart.
Evangelist Training With CLI
Do you see yourself as an evangelist or pastor? Are you inspired as a missionary or leader? Click here to enroll with CLI! Our ministry training courses are available to all for absolutely FREE! All classes are done online so no relocation issues to stress about. Begin a life journey of being a part of transforming lives!
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In April of 1997, I was battling all types of spiritual attacks which I had no idea of how to fight until I attended a conference with one of my daughter’s teachers. I began to learn about salvation and spiritual warfare. I fell down so many times. So many times I ran away when I realized that GOD was calling me into ministry. Finally, after I moved to Mississippi I accepted my call into ministry and decided to continue my Christian educational journey. Thanks to my daughter, Abiegail Billingslea for introducing me to your online bible school in July 2014. I am so happy for that.
My name is Rhonda B. Riley. I currently live in a small community in the state of Mississippi where I’ve been since 2011. I am originally from Detroit, Michigan. It was there that I accepted Christ at the age of 12. Though I was in church, I had no clear understanding of what it meant to be a Christian. Living in an urban city you see so much of what’s suppose to be okay to do and don’t do when you’re saved. It was very confusing, so I just walked away from church. I returned to church years later only to leave again because I had no grounding.
My family attended church with my cousin and I felt so at home. I joined the church and finally my husband, daughter, grandson, and brother also joined. I knew that GOD was getting me ready for ministry. Jesus was calling my entire family into ministry. I finally accepted my call in ministry and it feel so good to know my place. My pastor encourages us to visit other churches and seek more in depth Christian education. My pastor and first lady seriously lead by example. I was so happy to tell my pastor about CLI.
As a Christian Leader I believe that it is important to be properly trained so that you may train others. A free Christian education from CLI will enable me to be an effective weapon in GOD’S army. I desire to minister to people about the salvation and goodness of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I am on a very fixed income right now and can’t afford at this time to pay for bible college. CLI is very important in furthering my christian education and ministry work. CLI is so vital for today’s educating and preparation of Christian’s for their walk with Jesus. The Christian’s Basic Course sets a definite foundation regarding what it means to be a Christian and the importance of walking upright with Jesus. It is an important ministry work that I believe to be ordained and put in place by Jesus for the advancement for His kingdom.
As an evangelist I am called to declare the gospel of Jesus Christ. I plan to teach the people and as well as preach to them. Preaching brings you out of the world, but teaching brings the world out of you. My ministry will be used to bring revival to my community and then throughout the state of Mississippi. With the assistance of Christian Leader’s Institute’s free Christian education, I plan to set up Ministry Mentoring Centers throughout the state. The people need this type of foundation in Christian education. So many people will benefit from this. CLI has opened my mind and eyes to a whole new world of bible school. Distance learning is so vital in today’s society.
In Jesus’ name I thank CLI with all my heart. GOD has truly taken the excuse out of being a untrained Christian. Thank you for the quality Christian education. I encourage my alumni’s to continue supporting CLI financially. I also encourage others to support CLI. Please pray for revival to my home community.
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