I was born in the United States and have lived here all my life. God called me to a restorative justice ministry and I am studying at the Christian Leaders Institute for further ministry and Bible training (Learn more about free online Bible courses, Click Here).
My Journey
I was born out of wedlock in St Paul, MN, at the Catholic unwed mothers’ home. I was supposed to be adopted out. However, my mother changed her mind. I was adopted by a man my mother met when I was a year old. He became my earthly father. I have two siblings from my parents. I grew up in the Catholic faith until about 8 years old when my parents divorced. The experience I had during this time in my life formed my religious beliefs. I did not understand religion, and my view of the subject was of disdain.
My life became filled with self-serving pursuits of pleasure. And with that life came spiritual destruction. Through my own marriage and the births of my daughters, I remained selfish, self-centered, and served only myself. I had no moral compass or direction in life. I became an addict to alcohol and drugs and anger. According to my beliefs, I was a victim, and everyone owed me. I knew not the Love God has for me. I did not understand what had been done for me. The truth of His light started to be revealed to me through his Word as I was seeking a way to ease the pain I felt. I later learned that the pain is called the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Praise be to Him!
Finding Jesus
I became sober in 2010 and was introduced to the Lord Jesus Christ thru a recovery ministry called the Way Out. This time is when I was called to work. In 2012, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. My faith was tested at this time. God revealed himself in my life at that time through other members of the body. I had no option but to follow whatever his plan was for me, and I recovered.
Struggles
I remained in the ministry until 2015. At that time, I chose to leave it to pursue a secular career and a domestic life as I was engaged to a woman. I realized my falling away at this time in my life. I no longer put God as the center of my life and went back to being miserable and dying spiritually.
In Nov of 2017, I was struck by a car while going to work. Both my legs were broken requiring surgery and months of recovery. During this time, I was in a spiritual battle where once again God revealed himself. I was given the time to reconnect with Him, and I refused to believe I could be worthy of His love for me.
I continued to live this way until February of 2021 when the pain of the piercing of my heart became unbearable, and I turned back to Him. Deuteronomy 8:2-3 “And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.”
Called to Restorative Justice Ministry
I then went to a men’s restoration ministry. There, I spent several months in intensive study and prayer and fellowship with other men seeking the Lord. I accepted His love and accepted what has been done for me despite my brokenness and rebelliousness. I am loved and wanted the revelation I was given. Now, I share this testimony with other men on a daily basis as part of my vocation. I am amazed at the Lord’s patience and love for me.
In September of 2021, I was placed in the position of director of a men’s recovery program. The classes I have taken at the Christian Leaders Institute are the foundation of my education. The Restorative Justice Ministry Program has been invaluable to the work I am involved in here. I plan to continue my education with CLI. Perhaps at some point, I will join CLI’s Leadership Excellence School and earn a degree.
Steps to Sign Up At Christian Leaders Institute
Step 1 – Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2.
After you register, you will automatically be enrolled in the “getting started” course. You will locate the course at your “home” button when logged in. Scroll down to find the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2 Link. Click the link and open the course.
Step 2 – Complete Part 1 of this course, and then you are allowed to enroll in mini-courses or regular courses.
The Christian Leaders Getting Started Class Part 1 shows you how to enroll in courses and mini-courses. Part 2 of the course connects your calling into ministry with programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute. Part 2 will offer some ministry training and introduce you to the other programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
To Minister Hope in Jesus Name
My name is Connie Morris. I am blessed to be studying at the Christian Leaders Institute for online study of God’s word and ministry training (Learn more about free online Bible courses, Click Here).
I grew up in South Texas during the 1970s and ’80s. My upbringing was tumultuous from the beginning. My father and mother married at the tender ages of 20 and 16. They both came from poor, rural families and life was hard. Alcohol was a staple in the refrigerator for as long as I can remember. As with most alcoholics, physical and emotional violence was a regular occurrence in the home. I was the eldest of four children and remember well the abuse we received at the hands of our parents. My mother suffered from depression, and the isolation of never having a place to call home only worsened it.
My Journey
Around the age of 12-years old, an aunt introduced me to Jesus. It was during the brief time my parents allowed me to attend church with her. I have precious memories of that time as God began His work in my heart. It was the first time I experienced such peace and love during an otherwise unstable childhood. I made Jesus my Savior and received baptism at that time. However, I did not experience Jesus as Lord until I was in my early twenties. This revelation of Jesus as Lord over my mind and emotions changed my life. It was a slow process, but the work that God began so long ago in a hurting girl began to take root in a young mother in her early twenties.
When my children were young, the Lord led us to a small church in south Texas. The Lord started to teach me how to pray effectively during that time. During an intense time of prayer and fasting, the Spirit of God led me in praying for a dying uncle and for a family pet that had only hours to live. God not only healed both the uncle and the dog, but He also healed me from a lifelong and crippling struggle with depression.
Online Study of God’s Word at CLI
The Lord has placed the desire in my heart to see people set free from physical and spiritual illness. I want to see them walking firmly in their faith. Therefore, I want to learn how to share God’s Word in a more relatable way and serve my local church and community effectively as the Lord leads me.
Today, my husband and I have been married for 35 years. We have three grown children and four grandchildren. I desire to see them all secure in their faith and to grow in their walk with the Lord. The Lord has opened a door by way of Christian Leaders Institute for online study of God’s Word so I grow in the calling God has placed on my life. I trust the Lord to use me as He sees fit and develop the gifts He has placed within me.
Steps to Sign Up At Christian Leaders Institute
Step 1 – Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2.
After you register, you will automatically be enrolled in the “getting started” course. You will locate the course at your “home” button when logged in. Scroll down to find the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2 Link. Click the link and open the course.
Step 2 – Complete Part 1 of this course, and then you are allowed to enroll in mini-courses or regular courses.
The Christian Leaders Getting Started Class Part 1 shows you how to enroll in courses and mini-courses. Part 2 of the course connects your calling into ministry with programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute. Part 2 will offer some ministry training and introduce you to the other programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
I am Ed McGugan from Canada. I am excited to be getting an education in the Bible and ministry at the Christian Leaders Institute (Learn more about free online Bible courses, Click Here).
Living “Our Dream”
Well, there are so many things to talk about so we’ll just focus on one aspect of God’s impact on my life. When some men in North America have their “mid-life crisis”, I was working extra hard. Not so much for the money, but because I was living the dream. Our dream. My wife and I always dreamed of farming together. So we bought out her parents’ dairy farm. We started with four cows, 9 acres, and a small barn. We built it up to 40 purebred Jersey cows with a new barn and 200 acres. It was going very, very well.
We were very busy with our church as well. My wife was leading as the Sunday School Superintendent. I was an Elder and taught Sunday School, supported the church’s music ministry, and played in the Country Gospel Band. We had a happy family of five children who were all growing tall and strong.
Also, the engineering career I started out with never went away. My experience and abilities were still put to good use in the engineering field. I had my own engineering consulting firm. Also, I was busy designing lots of interesting machinery and being granted quite a number of patents for my work. The work was very interesting and the money was good.
Changes: Slow Down!
What could go wrong? Well, trying to get too much done in a day was a normal mode of operation for me. One day, while going too fast on a tractor, I injured my back. Badly. Could barely walk as a matter of fact. I thought it would get better with time, but it only got worse. Thankful for the good medical care, I eventually ended up in a wheelchair. We had to make a lot of changes including selling the cows and the farm. My wife got a job.
I struggled to figure out a new way to live, move, and work. While everyone was really helpful, it was still a struggle to adapt to doing everything differently. Of course, I was no longer the “big man” who could do whatever needed to be done! And in that process, it became clear to me that I needed to be more humble. Not only should I accept help, but I also needed to, as the old gospel song says, “put my hand in the hand of the Man who stilled the water.” I needed to trust in God to provide for us and give direction to my life.
Time for God and Inspirational Reading
So, I spent a lot more time reading. While reading my Bible much more, for the first time in my life, I started making notes and lists and really studying to understand. I began getting more of an education in the Bible.
It also seemed there was finally time to read other inspirational books, the very best of which was “Joni” by Joni Eareckson Tada. This very inspirational lady was paralyzed in a diving accident when she was only 17 years old. She described her accident as well as all the medical challenges she faced. However, most importantly, she detailed her spiritual journey as God drew her closer to Him and how He was able to use her for His work – even though she was in a wheelchair.
Getting an Education in the Bible at CLI
That changed everything for me. It gave me the courage to keep moving forward as well as study and work so that God could use even me to encourage other Christians as well as reach out with the gospel to those people who do not believe. It has meant that I have “scooched” up the stairs onto a stage or platform dragging my wheelchair so that we could play and sing some gospel songs for a crowd. Or I have delivered a message encouraging people to open their hearts to Jesus and have confidence in His Word.
It has also encouraged me to run many an archery booth at local Fall Fairs to raise money for The Free Wheelchair Mission (FWM). It is a Christian organization that provides free wheelchairs to people around the world who cannot afford one. Fairgoers enjoy shooting some arrows and love to hear about what the FWM is doing.
Now, since getting an “education” in the Bible has always been somewhat ad hoc, my enrollment in the Christian Leaders Institute is hopefully a way for me to take a more disciplined approach to understand the Bible. Then, my knowledge can increase and I can be more useful to my Lord and Saviour in speaking to both Christians and non-believers as He gives me the opportunity.
Exciting times!!
Steps to Sign Up At Christian Leaders Institute
Step 1 – Register for a free study account that automatically enrolls you in the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2.
After you register, you will automatically be enrolled in the “getting started” course. You will locate the course at your “home” button when logged in. Scroll down to find the Christian Leaders Getting Started Course Part 1 &2 Link. Click the link and open the course.
Step 2 – Complete Part 1 of this course, and then you are allowed to enroll in mini-courses or regular courses.
The Christian Leaders Getting Started Class Part 1 shows you how to enroll in courses and mini-courses. Part 2 of the course connects your calling into ministry with programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute. Part 2 will offer some ministry training and introduce you to the other programs offered through Christian Leaders Institute.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost college degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.