My name is Tammy Hawk, and I am receiving free Bible School studies at the Christian Leaders Institute. I live on the East Coast of Florida in the United States. I was born and raised in southern New Jersey until I graduated high school and moved to Florida on a collegiate softball scholarship.
As a child, I was raised to know Jesus. My grandparents made sure my siblings and I attended church and Awana youth group. I loved playing sports, so eventually, my schedule became too busy to attend church activities. I still loved the Lord, but I was so busy with school and sports.
Challenges
The less time I spent with God, the more I spent doing things that led me to times in my life where I didn’t recognize myself. After five years of “living up” the college athlete’s life, it all ended when I began having unexplained seizures. I could not finish my last trimester of college for my Bachelor in Accounting.
During that dark time, I met a man I ended up dating for 16 years. We had a beautiful daughter together, had great jobs, built a house, and played softball. However, God did not play any role in our life. In 2006, I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia.
More Challenges
In 2013, we had a house fire and lost just about everything! Standing in Walmart covered in black soot, I was desperately trying to think what my family would need to at least sleep that night. That was the first time I felt God’s presence pour over me! His Peace carried me through the next few months.
I met with the insurance adjuster at the house to review our contents. She handed me a book that had been in a cabinet with all my other books five feet from where the fire started. She could not even identify most of the books; however, the one my uncle gave me years ago didn’t have a black mark. It even still had its paper cover! That Joyce Meyer devotional, ”Hearing from God Each Morning,” changed my life!
Later that year, I lost my corporate job and became a single parent. My daughter and I were baptized together in 2015. However, I struggled to find God’s purpose for my life.
In 2018, my health began to take a deeper decline. In 2019, I was hospitalized with major neurological issues. I was having difficulty walking, talking, seeing, and thinking. Since then, my symptoms come and go. I have been to over 15 specialists so far, and none can explain any of this.
New Life and Healing in God
During this last year, my life as I knew it ended. Almost every relationship in my life ended or became distant. My brain struggled in the most basic of tasks. Then the pandemic hit, I had nowhere to turn but to God!
I poured every last bit of energy into my relationship with Him, and I began to know his Peace again. In August of 2020, God brought some amazing people involved in Ministry into my life. That is when my healing began. The first time they prayed and laid hands on me, my right leg grew even to the other. The doctors still have no idea what is going on with my brain; however, I continue to get better and better!
Call to Ministry and Christian Leaders Institute
God is calling me to go into ministry to help heal the sick and broken. He led me to the Christian Leaders Institute. My finances are more than a mess after my health issues, so the opportunity to begin my Bible School studies free is an answer to my prayers! May God bless the amazing people that make this possible for people like me to follow God’s calling!
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
Japan’s Ready to Meet Jesus
Hello! I am excited to receive free Bible credentialing and training at the Christian Leaders Institute as I reach out here in Japan.
Japan is a beautiful and fascinating place in a lot of ways. There is so much opportunity here to minister for Jesus since less than one percent of the entire country’s population claims any connection to Christ. To serve Jesus in Japan was an instant death sentence until more recently. The Japanese have a state religion of idols. Therefore, to embrace Christ is to become an enemy of the state to the Japanese people. They have embraced religious pluralism (believing that all religions are the truth) and wide-scale-open-idolatry (idols on nearly every corner). However, things get a little uncomfortable once you mention Jesus.
On the other hand, the Japanese people are not constantly immersed in denominational theologies and, thus, jaded. For that reason, the people here seem more willing to hear the Word of God with an open heart.
How I Met Jesus
I was living as an Old Order Amish at one point but not baptized into the denomination, so I was never a member of that group. I was once a part of a couple of other strict denominations, but I didn’t meet Jesus until one day while I was in a Church-house praying at my bench alone after taking communion. The moment Jesus walked into my life, I felt a joy that was so intense! The best way I can describe it is that I wanted to laugh, cry, shout for joy at the top of my lungs, and praise Jesus for being there! I tried hard to meet all the requirements the best way I knew how, before and nothing worked!
However, the day I met Jesus, my whole life philosophy, self-image, plan, outlook about others, and eternity CHANGED instantly. I’m not saying that I’ve been perfected or that I’ve reached entire sanctification in the twinkling of an eye (we’re not there yet). But, I can tell you that Jesus was right there in that service. I remember the moment that my heart flooded with the presence of the Blessed Holy Spirit of God! I know Jesus lives!
Called to Serve
The King invited me to serve others and preach the Gospel Truth that He’s alive today. I have not always been faithful to that calling and have stumbled on the way. BUT GOD! He’s able! I have a lot of growth and maturity to look forward to, but I have learned one Kingdom secret. Jesus is truly alive and wants to walk among us and dwell within us. That’s how it’s possible to be imperfect yet holy, by abiding in the True Vine, Jesus of Nazareth.
I thank God for CLI’s Leadership Excellence School and Christian Leaders Institute! They are furthering the cause of Christ by offering free Bible credentialing and training (with a fee for administration at the college) to bear fruit for the Lord. This present world and the Kingdom of God (that is in this world but not of this world) have completely different agendas. Namely Heaven and Hell. Too often, the Kingdom mingles with the world and the world with the Kingdom. It gets to the point that it’s hard to tell who’s who.
Is it not the highest calling of the Church to bear fruit? It seems that, often, seminaries, Bible colleges, and denominational trainers turn out people who have not been introduced to Jesus in their training and ordination programs. Christian Leaders Alliance is a bright light on this front! May Jesus greatly bless this mission with every good thing!
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School. Learn more about Bible School training at CLI.
Hello, friends! My name is Mellissa Lopez, and I am getting a free education for ministry at CLI. I am 35 years old, married for 13 years, and have three beautiful children. I live in the Caribbean on the lovely twin-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago. At the age of 17, I gave my life to the Lord. There were many times I did not live the way Christ called me to live. There are moments that I am not proud of, decisions I regret, things that I would make right if I could, and people I have hurt.
Struggles and Renewal
Although I loved the Lord, I didn’t love Him with my whole heart. For a long time, living my life my way meant everything to me. I am embarrassed to say that I was a very selfish person. My relationships suffered because of it – my marriage, my friendships, even my children. I kept putting my wants and desires first, and in doing so, I made many mistakes and lost much time. Chasing after things to make me a success, I wanted to live a certain lifestyle and fill my life with all the things successful people have.
Strangely, I always prayed and kept God on my mind. I remembered to thank Him for the things that made me happy. Always “things.” God was on my mind, but not in my heart. Not the way He wanted to be. However, my mistakes led me to press into prayer more. Pressing into prayer led to spending more time with God. He started to speak to my heart. I stopped chasing money and appreciated that God always gives us enough to ensure that we are well cared for. When I started to appreciate that, I realized that I had more time on my hands. Therefore, I spent it with God.
Free Education for Ministry at CLI
With the free education for ministry at the Christian Leaders Institute, I desire to gain as much knowledge as I can about the Bible and understand God’s will for my life. In turn, I hope to guide and minister the word to people, like myself, who need direction, hope, and mercy. I want to focus on the Women’s Ministry and also become a Christian Life Coach. Even now, as I write these words, I pray that the Lord will give me a heart like His, a spirit of obedience, and fill me with courage.
I look forward to my time here at CLI. I hope to forge new friendships and go deeper into the spiritual things of God. For the opportunity that CLI has given to me, I am truly thankful.
Learn more about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.