Ministry Training Journey: Rising Above It

Ministry Training Journey

Hi there! My name is Bre Lashae. I am on a ministry training journey which has led me to Christian Leaders Institute. I am twenty-nine years old, and I have two children. My first born is eleven, Camryn Paige. My second born, Joseph Aceton, is two.

I was born and raised in Petersburg, a very small town in rural West Virginia. I am the eldest of four. I was not brought into this world by God-fearing parents. So I had to learn on my own through hardship and circumstance. My mother walked away when I was only nine years old, and my father was heavily addicted to drugs. I have gone to bed hungry more often than not, and I was forced to fend for myself at a very young age. By seventeen, I was an alcoholic. I was pregnant with my first child, expelled from school, and homeless. I had no one. I was lost.

As life went on, and I got older, I began to sell methamphetamine and black tar heroin to supply my drinking habit, feed myself, and ensure that I wasn’t alone. I found that, when you’ve got something everyone else wants, everybody will be your “friend”. I was “popular” for a moment’s time, but in my heart, I was completely empty. Inside me, there was a void that no one or nothing could fill.

I was destructive. Dangerous. Suicidal even…and that’s when God began His work. He placed a young man in my life who had been raised a Christian. I watched and listened intently when he prayed. I wanted that sense of trust and hope that God instilled in him. I too began to pray when no one was around. I cried, begged, and dropped to my knees, and I asked God for a way out, even if it meant I had to die. I was so tired.

It was no more than two months afterward that I was on my way to federal prison. I was twenty-one. I fought constantly and spent most of my time alone. Finally, in that cold, filthy cement cell, it was just the two of us…me and God. I was right where He wanted me. I was given a KJV Bible and permitted to leave my quarters only on Wednesdays when I was given one-on-one counseling with a pastor. I was shackled and cuffed, but still, I went, dragging those cold, heavy chains on my skinny, exposed ankles.

Four and a half years I spent worshipping and learning at the start of my ministry training journey. Always hungry for more, my heart was changing, and I felt more alive than ever. I was baptized; reborn. My God saved me from a lifestyle others are not able to escape. Life has been a trial, and I often find myself wondering “why?”

Upon my release in the year 2015, the trial had only begun. My family was very poor. My anxiety was through the roof, so I chose to sleep on the neighbor’s screened-in porch instead, for the sake of privacy and my own sanity. Less than a month later, I received a call that my best friend was very sick, and it was possible that he may not survive through the night.

I sat in the ICU, holding his hand for eight days. I prayed to God and fasted. I fervently prayed for a miracle as my best friend lay there with tubes hooked up to him. I recall the terrified, exhausted expression on his face when we locked eyes. I didn’t know what was best for him. And so, I held his hand and prayed for comfort. I held his hand and prayed that he accept Jesus in his heart. I whispered to him, hoping that I could lead him toward salvation as I watched his veins turn black with poison. This was my reunion with my best friend, my big brother. The one person I could count on.

Despite my pleas, he didn’t pull through. My faith was tested, but I held on. I threw myself into my new job, and I left home. At the new job, in my most vulnerable state, I unwisely got into a relationship with a self-proclaimed satanist, an abuser and an addict. I saw a mission, thinking I could “save” him, and in turn, forget about my problems. Instead, I was trapped in a terrible, manipulative, abusive relationship for three years. I gave birth to a son. I struggled in my faith, I fought with my God. I moved 500 miles from my family, and ultimately, became totally isolated from everyone and everything I held dear. But, lo and behold, my Savior rescued me from sin. My God rescued me from confusion. My Father rescued me from myself, and he brought me home, once again.

That hideous serpent will do ANYTHING to make us feel we are nothing. But God has brought me into the light, and I know my purpose is greater than I’ve given Him credit for. I feel the desire to share my testimony with other struggling women and girls. I pray that I can make a difference with God as my teacher and my guide on my ministry training journey. I pray that I can help others out of the darkness and into a place of unending love and light in Christ.

The devil is a liar, who seeks to steal, kill, and destroy. But he will not steal, kill, nor destroy me. My name is Bre Lashae, and I am a survivor. A victor in Christ Jesus my Lord. A humble servant of Jesus Christ on a ministry training journey. And I’m ready for this ministry training journey at Christian Leaders Institute in His loving name. I will go where He leads me and do what He wants me to do for Him.

Learn about Ordination at Christian Leaders Alliance.