Free Christian Classes: The Motherless Mother, Saved by Grace

Free Christian Classes

Start taking free Christian classes today. Christian Leaders Institute (CLI) offers free high-quality online ministry training. CLI accepts any individual anywhere in their life to learn about Christianity. Read a student’s testimony below who was a motherless mother and saved by Grace and found CLI as a tool to rediscover the pathway to Christ:

My name is Ashlee Peckham. I live in a small town in the U.S.A. Proudly married to the love of my life and biggest fan, and blessed to be the mother of two amazing boys. Living in the U.S is a difficult country. We have so many different religious cultures, some that idolize other figures besides God. We have believers and we have the non-believers. Where I live the population is small but we are nowhere short of a number of churches. In my area, the biggest problem would have to be those who don’t support your religious freedoms. Suddenly praying over your lunch in a restaurant is wrong, saying the name “God” is offensive, and people actually harass you for having faith. Even though I will proudly stand up and confess my love for the Lord, some are scared to even be caught with a bible.

My calling was none the less short of a blessing in disguise, and involving a major traumatic experience in my life; it made my calling so much more emotional. I am 22 years old, and my whole life has been like walking the plank every time I turn around. Growing up I had a far from perfect childhood. The one I wish I could just forget. All through the hardships, my mother was my best friend. We never left each other’s sides, and if we did we had made a promise to always tell each other where we were going even if it was to the grocery store. Life carries on, like mother and daughter relationships we had our ups and downs but never growing apart. Fast forward a couple years, newly engaged, pregnant with her very first grandson and tragedy hits. The day after my baby shower 9 months pregnant and my mother was killed in a car accident. My life is shattered. A motherless mother. At first, I did what most any human would do I begged God to bring her back to me, and when he didn’t I resented him, but not for long. A year later I find myself back in our hometown making a whole congregation cry at my confessions because of God’s Grace I was saved. A couple years later, I look back on how much pain, fear, and just how alone I was and now I don’t see how anyone could walk through their day to day lives not knowing God.

My dream in ministry is to spread the love, word, and belief of God to whoever will listen. I can see myself as a preacher or a youth leader being my age is close to most troubled teens. As mentioned before the thought of people who do not know God is simply heartbreaking to me. They do not know how loved they are, what God has done for them, what Jesus has done for them, they do not even know his story or what he represents. They do not know there is an end to their pain, to feeling alone, being scared, and even if they do know God they think their sins are too much that how could any God love them? They feel guilty, ashamed, unworthy, but the worst pain which I know the feeling all too well, the feeling that you have let God down. I want to show them there is light at the end of the tunnel; I want them to feel that sense of relief and redemption that I felt when I gave my life fully to God. I let the old me go, my old sins, my fears, I gave it all to God. I want others to feel the peace and love God gave me. I know I will be able to start on my journey to my dream through CLI’s free Christian classes. 

None of these dreams would have even been set in place if it wasn’t for the support of my church. One couple, in particular, has made the biggest impact on my life. They have always been there to support me, helped pick up the pieces of not having a mother and try their best to be good role models for my children. When I told them that I wanted to pursue my ministry dream they were more than ecstatic. At that very moment, I knew they were proud of me and even told me so. It came as a surprise to me but my preacher believes that I can make an impact on so many lives, and by him believing so much in me I feel like I can do just about anything. The greatest part about all of this is the impact it has made on my family. I have a new found love for my husband and my children. I find myself walking, talking, and acting like a minister student. It has helped me to grow my relationship with God and set certain things aside that are no longer irrelevant. I even see a change in my husband; he wants to be the reflection image of me as I am of him. We are doing everything as a team, and those daily “I am so proud of your messages” really boost my confidence that I can and will succeed.

Where I am located, colleges are very few to none. Especially a Christian college, and with working full time, and two little boys to raise; a scholarship to CLI would be the biggest blessing. I can work, raise my boys, and take free Christian classes during my free time every day. By gaining this scholarship it will be giving me access to more knowledge of things I do not know or understand yet about God, Jesus, and the bible. I want to take all of the free Christian classes possible, learning and growing every day. My goal in taking classes at CLI is whenever I go to tell people about the word of God, I can answer them knowledgeably, with proof from the Bible, and answer them in a way God would want me to.

In my ministry journey, a prayer I ask for most of all is understanding. Please pray for my understanding of everything I am being taught, knowledge and strength to endure it all no matter the cost. How many times I fail to never let me loose hope or faith in myself, that I ever forget why I am doing this in the first place. That in the end, I will be able to help and reach as many lives as possible. That my dream of saving the lost souls will become true. That everyone that I cross paths with will know God and will know his story. That no person has to ever live without knowing God.

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