My name is Abebayehu Abdela from Ethiopia, east Africa. Currently, I am a lecturer at EIT-M and I am participating in the ministry, specially in church planting and evangelism as a bi-vocational. I am happily married to my wife in 2016. I received Jesus Christ as my personal savior 6 years ago after hearing the saving gospel of Jesus Christ in the congregation I have visited for first time. It was an expected as I had been persecuting the believers and their respective faith mightily. Glory be to God He has won me through His pure love.
I have clearly identified that I am called to the ministry of Lord and I am making the possible effort to be prepared for the required ministry I am called for. Jointly, I strongly believe, this ministry training will help me in many ways as I am sure that I am called to the five-fold ministry. It will equip me in doing the work of Christ Jesus in such a way that He can get the honor and His body, the church get benefited. It will be a nice capacity building for the spiritual ministry I am called to.
Finally, the scholarship I am going to get will play a great role in removing the stress i am expected to come across as we are now have limited resource that we can expend to our life and the the ministry work. It will be a nice bless brought to us by God almighty through Christian leaders Institute and I ant to bless the ministry in advance in Jesus mighty name!
My name is Jerry Stringfield, a husband to a beautiful wife (Tracey) with four children and two grand daughters and two on the way. We live in the sub-area of Henrico County, Va I work from home as an adult caregiver where I take care of disabled veterans in my home. I was born in Suffolk Va, lived in Wakefield, Va until my adult years where I moved to Richmond, Va meet and married my lovely wife, Tracey. We’ve been together for 20 years but been married six of those years. I was born and raised as a Baptist but strayed away from my religion once I got older…started to doing my own thing finding my way…which I thought I was. Not only did I get involved in alcohol and drugs, but I also allowed them to cause me to get two DUI’s which put me in jail for about a year. I then started to asking myself what have I gotten myself into. See, at that same time, I had just gotten married, was about to move into my house. But the day I was to move in, four days before, I got locked up. It was then where I saw my life flash right before my eyes. That’s when I found out that I needed to give my life to Christ…started a church ministry in jail with a minister I met inside there that helped me get to know the calling God had upon my life. I began reading the Bible, studying and start having regular meeting with the other inmates, some even getting saved by what they experience and saw happening to me by the grace of God. In less that a year, I was released, found myself a church..my wife and me, got involved in the church, started working as an Usher until I became a deacon in the church. From then on, I found myself ministering at different events, Men’s Day Celebrations and Usher Anniversaries. I believe since the turn a round that has been placed on my life; I now see the calling on my life. That’s why I wanted to enroll myself into CLI…to get the leadership training needed to become more knowledgeable of God and His Word so that I can further myself in becoming an ordained minister. It’s is now when my wife and I go places, people come and ask me If I’m a minister. I’ve been ministering still at other churches, but I feel the need to be ordained…to me, it looks more appropriate for me to be out ministering with the proper credentials.
Leticia G. Dominguez, USA
My journey began several decades ago in a small Kentucky town in the United States. With a stormy start, I, Leticia, was born to a young mother, soon to be widowed due to cancer. At the time of my birth father’s death my mother was pregnant with my little sister. With two young toddlers and another on the way, adoption was her only choice during the early 60s.
I was adopted at the age of three along with my sister and brother to Dr. Calvin and Stella Jones. God blessed us with loving, well-educated individuals who choose to give their hearts and lives to their three children.
Pregnant out of wedlock at the age of 17 I was asked to leave the church that our family attended because they did not believe I was a positive example for the church youth. That was a pivotal point in life for me. At that time, I decided that if God didn’t want me (church) then I didn’t need him either. Then I became even more bitter and angry at God when at 23 I lost my mother and best friend. Life seemed to be one struggle after another.
Many years later I stepped into a church service. This time, I realized that it wasn’t God’s choice to excommunicate me from His presence. For the first time I heard a sermon on what grace was and that Jesus Christ died for ALL sin and that I was loved. That was when I rededicated my life to Christ.
I have had many other detours on this journey. My past is filled with both good and bad choices. However, each experience has helped me learn, grow and develop into the person I am today. Here is a writing after attending a Women’s Banquet Weekend:
As I took my daily stroll
Down the path of life,
I didn’t care to think about
What was wrong or right.
But on my way I saw a face
That glowed with beauty, kindness and grace.
He looked as though He could see right through
The pain and trouble my life knew.
I kept on waiting for Him to say
You’re not worth the time of day.
Ye,t He reached down and took my hand
He said, “Follow me to the promise land.”
I accepted His offer and begin to learn
Eternal life is “freely given”, not “earned”.
My path still has traps and snares to dodge
But, He is there when my feet get lodged.
I’ve learned through Him that life won’t end.
My LORD, my Jesus died for ALL sin.
Then through His grace I finally knew
I was forgiven and my life made new…
Currently, I still reside in Kentucky and regularly attend a local church. Sometimes I fill in for Sunday school, help with projects and events. Mostly, however, I fill my days as a rhyme writing, retired, homeschooling, babysitting Grandma who loves God and desires to lead by the example.
My ministry goal is to be the best Ambassador for Christ Jesus, as I can be, in this human body, and getting to God is only one step that I can choose towards that goal. I have desired to increase my education for several years, yet there have been road blocks each time. Roadblocks were things such as, times, classes, transportation, money, always something to prevent moving forward. Until now. I am not so much wanting a degree as I am desiring to learn. I don’t have a need to say, “hey see what I did”, but an education based on biblical truths and Christian doctrines that can be shared on a daily basis.
The more I learn and apply Cristian concepts into my life, the more I can share by example. I believe our brains are like computers, “garbage in/garbage out”, therefore I enjoy submerging myself in God’s Word. Knowledge and history are one of the aspects I can work on in developing and strengthening my relationship with God and those God places on my path.
I don’t know what God has planned for my future but I want to be usable vessel. If it is missions, let me be ready to go. If God wants me to teach, then I want to teach truth. God answers prayers and I pray for time to devote to the LORD and for education which has brought me here, right here, one more step towards my ultimate goal.