Hello, my name is Sebastian Baxter, and I am getting more educated about faith in Christ at the Christian Leaders Institute (Learn more about online Bible classes, Click Here). I grew up in the state of Nebraska in the USA. Currently, I live here with my wife, our daughter, and my father-in-law. My wife and I married in December of 2018, and the Lord blessed us with our first child in October of 2019. I love my family very much, and apart from Jesus, who is my priority, they are the next most important in my life.
As a licensed plumber and work for a small family-owned company based out of Omaha, I appreciate the opportunity to minister to people through my labor and conversation. So, I’m blessed when I have the chance to do that in my work. I’m also blessed to have a job that allows my wife to stay home with our daughter. I thank God for that and wouldn’t want it any other way.
My Youth
My brother and I grew up with a single Mom and a Dad who wasn’t around much. He got in touch every once in a while. Then, we would connect and spend time together, but the struggles in his life kept him away more often than not. He died in 2008, while I was still pretty young, which affected me more than I realized.
At the age of 13, I started into drugs and alcohol. I quickly became addicted, and in a short time, I was completely consumed by that lifestyle. Around the age of 15, I became addicted to crystal meth. My life spiraled down so quickly that I didn’t think there was any hope of a future for me. I hated God and myself and was utterly hopeless. I was also just a terrible person living a terrible life. Actually, I started to lose my mind and see and hear things that weren’t really there.
My Salvation in Christ
In the winter of 2015, the Lord led me to a homeless shelter in Omaha called the Open Door Mission. There they presented the gospel of Jesus Christ to me. When I accepted the gospel for salvation, the transformation was so incredible that I can’t even describe it. I was born again, and God truly made me a new creation in Christ. My Mom said that I turned into a different person practically overnight. I got sober and have stayed sober. Nothing but the Lord could have done that for me. I also grew to love reading the Bible and studying it.
At this point, I’ve come to find that the two most important things in this world are knowing and loving Jesus and learning how to love others. I’ve been on that journey since salvation and will continue to be for the rest of my life. I thank God through Jesus Christ for saving the horrible wretch of a person that I am. And I thank Him that through Christ, I am made clean. Left on my own, I am so unworthy of God’s love and salvation, but He is just so good to me.
Wanting to Be More Educated About Faith
Since I’ve become a Christian, I have been diving into the Bible, reading it, praying, and trying to learn about God and how to serve Him in my life. I am far from perfect, but I know that He calls me deeper and deeper as I continue to walk with Him. My good friend Dustin and I lead a Bible study at our church, which is awesome. I love studying the Bible and teaching others how to do the same. I also feel like God may call me into some form of vocational ministry down the road. However, at this time, God has left the future somewhat of a mystery. I have felt a strong calling to become more educated about the faith, which led me to Christian Leaders Institute.
As a husband and a parent, with a demanding job, along with being responsible for a Bible study, I didn’t really know what options there would be for Christian education with my time and financial restraints. I hope and pray that CLI is right for me and that as I continue through these classes, God will begin to give me some clarity in His desires for me in the future. Even if that is just plumbing for the rest of my life, I want to be equipped to be a servant for His kingdom as best I can be.
