My Journey into Ministry
My name is Stacie Hutchens, and here is my journey into ministry. I am a forty-year-old mother of two, a daughter almost fourteen and a son nearly twelve. My husband and I met at work and have been married for seventeen years. However, we have been together for nineteen years. We live in southern West Virginia, where we enjoy spending time outdoors in this beautiful world God has created. We also spend a great deal of time volunteering with sports teams our children are a part of and working in our local church. I am also an elementary school teacher serving children before, during, and after school.
My Early Years
I grew up in a Christian home that centered around ministry. My grandfather planted a church, and there, my Christian roots and foundation began. Within the walls of his church, my grandparents pastored me, my father and uncle ministered to me, my mother and aunts taught me. The family led every branch of the ministry within this church. We lived in a small southern town that fostered the idea of strong family ties. Those ties intertwined in faith and ministry. I knew my whole life that ministry would be where I found my calling and place with the Lord. However, it took me a little bit of time to truly understand just what God was calling me too.
Struggles and Back to My Faith
As a teenager, I found myself pulling away from what I thought were strict parental rules. Also, I pulled away from God’s direction and guidance in my life. I sometimes gave in to peer pressure and went out into the world to “figure it out for myself.” I found that I could not run from what God had placed upon my life.
In my early twenties, I found my way back to my faith. I rediscovered the foundation and roots established years prior, and God, who never left my side. I returned to the church I grew up in ready for wherever God leads on my journey into ministry.
My Journey into Ministry
After having children, God stirred a desire within me to work with the children’s classes at our church. Therefore, I began helping my mother in the nursery. From there, God grew me into a children’s teacher, a girl’s club leader, and VBS director.
While God stirred in me and moved me to step into places of growth, He also did the same within my husband. God began using my husband to minister to children through the boy’s club, the youth, and the children but also adults. As he stepped into ministering, my grandfather became sick, which led to us stepping into leading our church more than we previously had. We found ourselves drawn into pastoring in some facet, and yet we were unsure how God would do this within and through us.
My Journey to Ministry Schooling at CLI
Fast-forward a few years, and currently, we are children’s pastors within our church working toward pastoring in a fuller facet. We are branching into family pastorship and potentially associate pastoring soon. We are open and ready for wherever God leads.
Looking for ministry school classes to learn more about God, His Word, and ministry, I found the Christian Leaders Institute. I desire to come to know God on deeper levels every day and to allow Him to know me deeply and in all areas of my life. I want to do all that I can to help others come to know Him and to help His kingdom grow.
Learn about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.
Answer God’s Call to Ministry by Studying at CLI
Hello, my name is John Boyd, and I want to answer God’s call to ministry through my CLI studies. I have a wonderful wife named Kara. We live on a farm in Southside, Virginia. There we raise livestock and produce small grain crops and vegetables.
My Youth
As a young child living in New York City, I traveled to Virginia during summer vacation. I stayed with my grandparents to help them on their farm. I loved farming as a child and riding to church with my grandfather on his mule and wagon. He was a Deacon at a small church in Bracey, VA. My father and mother are now trustees at the same church.
While growing up, my parents attended church regularly. I have had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ from an early age. Since my teenage years, I knew that I needed to answer God’s call to ministry. I have also been an advocate for civil rights and led marches and rallies in Washington, DC. I hope to bring change in Congress for the betterment of all people.
Answer God’s Call to Ministry
The roads I have traveled were not easy. However, I always put God first. I have reached the point in life where I can no longer keep running from the calling God has placed upon my life. I am called to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others.
Then, I asked my wife Kara to help me find the requirements to become an Ordained Minister with credentials. After much research and several disappointments due to scams, she shared with me the Christian Leaders Institute. I was amazed to learn that the tuition was free, and I could complete the requirements online.
While watching one of the course videos, I determined to finish this course because I want to be that 1 in 10 who crosses the finish line. Therefore, it is with great anticipation that I look forward to receiving my ordination with the Christian Leaders Alliance and a Bachelor’s degree at the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School. These credentials will help me answer God’s call to ministry.
Free Bible School Training Opportunity
My name is Sharoina Clarke Lindsay from Brown’s Town St Ann in Jamaica. I am excited about CLI’s free Bible school training opportunity. I’m married to a wonderful man of God who has a heart and a passion for missions and ministry. He’s also a Bible Teacher who served with Wycliffe Bible Translators for 18 years before moving on to another leg of ministry.
I was saved in 1996 at a crusade at my local church while in my early teens. This event was the beginning of my journey into Christendom and my never-ending walk with the Lord. I continued to serve at my local church as a Sunday school secretary and attended the church service and Bible study every week. Even though I was growing in the Word due to my personal Bible reading, my relationship with God didn’t deepen until 12 years later.
Encounter with God and My Calling
In 2009, it was during a week of spiritual empowerment and fasting at my local church. During this week, I fasted and prayed at home like never before. I was drawn closer to God as a result of my desire for God. During the fasting, praying, and worshiping in the privacy of my home, I felt comfortable just to let go and let God take control. I experienced a new level of anointing as the Holy Spirit fell on me; I felt like how I believe the disciples felt on the Day of Pentecost.
A few days later, as I prayed early one morning, I felt God’s precious Holy Spirit overshadow me again. From that very morning, I heard the voice of the Lord for my self for the very first time. He spoke, and it sounded like it was coming from deep within my heart and spirit yet in an audible way. He said, “I have called you by name to proclaim my name before the nations.”
Bible School Training for Free at CLI
The free online Bible school training at the Christian Leaders Institute will prepare me for my ministry calling from God. I am thankful for this Bible school training opportunity. I want to be used by Him, and spend time in His presence, equipping myself as He prepares me for ministry. One of my favorite Scriptures is Isaiah 6:8, “Here I am, Lord, send me.”
Learn about ordination at the Christian Leaders Alliance. Interested in a low-cost degree? Check out the CLI’s Leadership Excellence School.