Following the Lord
Hey, y’all! My name is Dustin Keeton. I’m from Jasper, Alabama, United States. Since I was 19, I knew that my calling in life was to serve The Lord and take His Words to all! Recently, my beautiful wife turned me on to the Christian Leaders Institute for the online Biblical courses study opportunity (Learn more about studying the Bible online, Click Here). Now, I am so excited to see where The Lord takes me! This submission that I’ve written barely skims the surface of my life, what I’ve been through, and how God has worked in it! My whole testimony is nothing short of miraculous, and I can’t wait to see how God uses it and me for the benefit of His Kingdom!
Part of My Story
I ran and ran from my calling, but I am done running for one year now! I have fully devoted my life to God and what He has called me to do! In my running from my calling, I have been on mountaintops and in valleys. However, when I say mountain tops, they were nothing but fake mountains. I have learned so much from suffering and His lessons to get me to where I needed to be. I have worked almost every job you could think of in the past 15 years. The jobs ranged from owning a Barbershop to being a Bilingual Sales Executive for a medical software company. I went to college too.
I also lived behind dumpsters and owned two-story houses with anything I wanted in them. However, none of that ever made me happy. What made me happy and whole was accepting my calling from my Gracious Savior Jesus Christ. I just said, “Yes Father!” I never knew true joy, peace, love, happiness, forgiveness, or anything that is Truth until I met Jesus and said yes! By God’s Grace, I am able to write this entry because I could have been dead ten times over. Yet, God kept me here, and now I see why!
The ministry training and Biblical courses study opportunity at the Christian Leaders Institute is just what I need. Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the Christian Leaders Institute! As I said, even writing this is another miracle. However, all things are possible through Jesus Christ! By the means necessary, He will get His objective completed! God Bless!
Register for a Study Account
Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Getting Started Class at the Christian Leaders Learning Platform. The Getting Started class will take you less than an hour to complete.
When you log in to the Learning Platform, you will notice that the Getting Started Class automatically appears on your dashboard.
The Getting Started Class will orientate you to the Christian Leaders Learning Platform, and the Programs offered, including:
- Minister Awards, Certificates, and Diplomas with the Christian Leaders Institute.
- College Degrees with the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
- Minister Credentialling (Ordination) with the Christian Leaders Alliance, including local Soul Center registration possibilities.
Note: You can enroll in tuition-free courses or mini-courses immediately without finishing the getting started class.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
Hi, my name is La Biance Bezuidenhout. I’m from Hartbeespoort, South Africa. I am a student at the Christian Leaders Institute (Learn more about studying the Bible online, Click Here). The tuition-free ministry and Bible training online will equip me for my call to minister.
How I Met Jesus
What a question, “How did you meet Jesus?” Well, I met Him at the very young age of eight years old. It was during a church rehearsal for a theatre show on life after death. I have, ever since, loved and adored Him. I have pledged my soul, life, and heart to Him and live only to know Him and to be close to Him.
My Youth
I grew up as an only child which felt very alone at times. However, I was always aware of the Holy Spirit’s presence. When I was 14, my parents were called by God to start a children’s home. So, they did, and soon one child became ten which became thirty. At the very least, it was extremely overwhelming and lonely. I was almost always set apart, never fitting in, never feeling welcome, and never feeling at home. However, it pushed me closer to the Holy Spirit, and He has become my best friend.
I learned a lot about broken homes and broken hearts as all these children came from extremely broken environments. I obtained a great awareness and empathy for broken hearts, so much as to feel the person’s emotions. This definitely created compassion and love for people who need healing of the heart. I felt this urgency to make known the love of God even for myself. We needed (and need) compassion and trust in our God, Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Jireh, Elohim, my soul savior and first love, Jesus Christ.
Marriage Struggles
I married at the age of 23 in the year 2021 to the man I had been praying for my entire life. However, he came with an extremely broken and hardened heart. God entrusted me to patiently endure the healing process and be a pure vessel through which God was going to conduct this process. This process may have been the most difficult trial of endurance I ever faced, a very painful and tearful journey.
Married for a year now, I see the amazing and fruitful work God has done in this man’s heart and life all in a year. However difficult, this had been a time when I grew very intimate with God, learning to hear the Holy Spirit as clearly as a person speaking.
How I Ended up at CLI
I always knew that I was called according to God’s purpose. However, I never quite knew what God wanted me to do. At this stage in my life, I don’t want to do anything unless it has to do with God. Nothing interests me as much as knowing God, being in His presence day and night, talking to Him, and just grabbing Him with everything that I have.
Then, I realized I wanted to study to be a pastor when my mother made a joke about me acting like a pastor. I asked my pastor, who is my spiritual father appointed by God, where he had studied. He mentioned the Christian Leaders Institute. I googled, read up, and felt it is right. Then, when I saw the video of Francis Chan on the webpage, I was sold. With the tuition-free ministry and Bible training online, I trust CLI to lead me further in my studies with God.
Register for a Study Account
Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Getting Started Class at the Christian Leaders Learning Platform. The Getting Started class will take you less than an hour to complete.
When you log in to the Learning Platform, you will notice that the Getting Started Class automatically appears on your dashboard.
The Getting Started Class will orientate you to the Christian Leaders Learning Platform, and the Programs offered, including:
- Minister Awards, Certificates, and Diplomas with the Christian Leaders Institute.
- College Degrees with the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
- Minister Credentialling (Ordination) with the Christian Leaders Alliance, including local Soul Center registration possibilities.
Note: You can enroll in tuition-free courses or mini-courses immediately without finishing the getting started class.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
My name is Danny Qin. I am originally from Guangzhou, China. Currently, I am residing in Victoria, BC, Canada. I am a student of the Christian Leaders Institute to get ministry training and credentials (Learn more about studying the Bible online, Click Here).
My Testimony: Beginnings
I lived in China for ten years before coming to Canada. China is not a nation that fears God, in fact, it actively pushes against God, limiting its citizens from worshipping Jesus. My parents found Christ when I was seven years old, and we began going to an underground Church as a family. It was not as exciting as you think. When we were there, our church was largely unrestricted, I thank the Lord for that.
Though my parents were devoted believers, I did not understand the Christian faith. I grew up on documentaries about nature, dinosaurs, and evolution, I understood God to be something mysterious, like Santa Clause. My parents made sure to bring me up in the way of the Lord. They read me Bible stories, sent me to Sunday school, and encouraged me to read the Bible on my own, which I did. I gained a belief in God.
The Journey Continued
In those days, China still had its “one-child policy.” My parents, however, decided to have another baby against the wishes of the government. Why? Because God gave them peace as well as the knowledge that ALL human beings are precious and made in the image of God. It was a stressful experience. We had to go to Hong Kong to have my sister. Even after her birth, population control would knock on our door once every so often. Because of this, my parents decided to move to a country with more freedom. So, we came to Canada in 2011.
I was 11 years old when we came to Canada, and my parents put me in public school. A terrible mistake that God used for good. In school, I was desperate to make friends. Sadly, I mixed in with the wrong crowd. I won’t burden you with the details. However, the things I did and talked about were vile and totally against the ways of the Lord. That line of behavior continued into high school (a Christian school). On the surface, I was a good kid, but in my heart, nothing but darkness dwelled.
A few years later, I was given a Christian book to read. In it, I found tremendous wisdom. It prompted me to begin reading the Bible more seriously and praying. Then came the turning point.
The Turning Point
One day in grade ten, my friends and I were chatting about vile things again. Our language was just terrible. All of a sudden, my best friend said this: “Guys, you know God is watching us, right?”
That day, I believe the Holy Spirit convicted all of us of our sins. The fear of the Lord was within me. I understood that my actions have consequences and that, one day, I will need to give an account of my life before God. I knew immediately that I needed to clean up my act. So, we did. From that day on, we held each other accountable for following the Lord. It was a huge turning point in my life.
From that day on, the Lord continued giving me growth opportunities. I studied the scriptures, prayed, and spoke at church in various small events. The spiritual growth in that period was tremendous! In my recollection, I never had a “born again” experience. All I know is that I am indeed born again, and the Lord Jesus has saved me.
Spiritual Dream Led to Ministry Training and Credentials
As time went on, I encountered many difficulties. The Lord only used those to humble and grow me. I began more ministry ventures such as leading the Kids Club, Youth Group, preaching, camp ministry, online ministry, and Bible studies. Currently, my dream is to 1. Become a preacher. I have the gift of teaching and preaching. So I’d like to use that to the fullest and edify the Body of Christ. 2. I’d like to publish my own Christian-themed graphic novel/comic. It is why I am currently studying Sequential Arts at SCAD.
Art school isn’t cheap, but I also had a great desire to get ministry training and credentials. Christian Leaders Institute was a perfect option for me. I can study at my own pace, and the cost is very manageable (because it’s free, haha). I go to a small assembly, so I am not knowledgeable when it comes to the academic side of Christian ministry. So learning at CLI will be a great experience for me. At CLI, I can gain ministry training and some credentials which will be helpful for me in the future.
I look forward to what the Lord has in store. I am very thankful for CLI! You all are doing a good work!
Register for a Study Account
Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Getting Started Class at the Christian Leaders Learning Platform. The Getting Started class will take you less than an hour to complete.
When you log in to the Learning Platform, you will notice that the Getting Started Class automatically appears on your dashboard.
The Getting Started Class will orientate you to the Christian Leaders Learning Platform, and the Programs offered, including:
- Minister Awards, Certificates, and Diplomas with the Christian Leaders Institute.
- College Degrees with the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
- Minister Credentialling (Ordination) with the Christian Leaders Alliance, including local Soul Center registration possibilities.
Note: You can enroll in tuition-free courses or mini-courses immediately without finishing the getting started class.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.