Video Transcript: Credential Programs for Church and Kingdom Ministers

Henry Reyenga - We want to welcome you back. So Steve, what did you think  about the fire department metaphor and thinking about ministry?  

Steve Elzinga - Well, my, you know, my dad was a fireman all his life. He was in the the full time, full time fire, full time Fire Department of that, but he in the  Navy. He was part of it there. So that was maybe a part time kind of a thing. And then I have a nephew who does the volunteer thing. So, you know, you're like  

Henry Reyenga - steeply into the fire department, yeah, sure, but as a  

Steve Elzinga - metaphor, I think it's a really good one, even if you're not into  the fire department world, because these are the sort of the categories of people we're trying to help in terms of your ministry.  

Henry Reyenga - You know, it's interesting. We did a poll at the Christian  leaders network, and over 120 people responded. And it was interesting that  82% of people who are at Christian leaders institute sense of calling into  ministry, but they're going to be in the volunteer fire department  

Steve Elzinga - of minister. Yeah. So what were the other the other two then,  

Henry Reyenga - well, 1% actually were already, yeah, that's right. And then  there was, like 6% that would be part time, and then the rest would be Kingdom  ministers, in which we're gonna talk about that a little bit. But the bottom line is is 82% in this poll. So that might be you, and probably is you, that you sense a  calling into ministry. You need a free option of ministry training that's high quality, but you are bi vocational. Nothing is going to stop you from serving the Lord,  because you feel that calling in a strong  

Steve Elzinga - right, and who knows it may morph into so we've had a lot of  experience, oh yeah, where students will start volunteering, and that's really nice to start you volunteer, you you prove yourself in a way in ministry, and then  doors tend to open up,  

Henry Reyenga - right, right? And we have Christian leaders college where you  can get the credentials often needed for full time minute church work,  

Steve Elzinga - right? So we, like all three, we do. We do the fire departments.  Yes,  

Henry Reyenga - we do. Now it's interesting. We should probably talk about  one thing too. We've noticed these categories, and I mentioned them in the poll 

that we took at the Christian leaders network, and that's the church minister and  the kingdom minister.  

Steve Elzinga - Okay, so, yeah, what's the difference between those two?  

Henry Reyenga - The church minister is really in the circle of the church  influence. There is a church building, there is a group of people that come to the  church. There could be a role, and we have so many programs for volunteers,  for part time, and for career church type ministers that are ministering within the  circle. So you love the troops,  

Steve Elzinga - Bible studies, all music, whatever the church needs. Yes, and  you could be a volunteer in that, or you could be part time, or you could be a full  time worker. And we have programs for  

Henry Reyenga - all of us, and through the Christian leaders Alliance, we have  credential programs for the commended Minister, the licensed minister and the  ordained minister. Now the kingdom minister. These are people who go  

Steve Elzinga - to a we just talked about the church. Now we're switching to the kingdom. Yeah. So the kingdom  

Henry Reyenga - minister. So these are called ministers, who go to their local  church, but they are penetrating into society, maybe at their workplace. They  might be a professional, a doctor, an attorney. They might be a janitor. I there's a commended Kingdom minister, for instance, who is infiltrating a school district  as a janitor, right? Okay, so you could have, there's a lot of ways that  

Steve Elzinga - might be an official Kingdom cause, right, that you're  volunteering  

Henry Reyenga - Yes, our food kitchen, or Yeah, outside. The key issue there is outside the circle of the local church. So it's various circles of connection, right,  right, right. So what we're saying here is that there's Kingdom minister, there's  church minister, Fire Department metaphor, 82% of you are probably volunteers. 

Steve Elzinga - 30% of those were Kingdom volunteers, yes, and 30 right of 80, right, exactly. So that might be you too,  

Henry Reyenga - right. Now, one more thing we should say here is how the  program works out at Christian leaders, is that the Institute, You can get all this  free training. The Alliance has Minister credential programs, both for the 

kingdom minister and the church minister. Of course, the church minister has a  lot more programs, because there are roles defined at local churches. So we  have those types of programs. And then if you do go on to be a career church  minister or career Kingdom minister. There is the Christian leaders College,  where you can get more credentials and get your degree and even go on to  Master's education studies at various partners like Liberty and Ohio Christian  and Calvin and Western. So there's all sorts of opportunities, whether you're a  church minister calling, or whether you have a kingdom Minister calling, or  whether it's commended, was more like lay credentials or licensed part time  types of credentials, or even full time ordained credentials,  

Steve Elzinga - all of that. So why don't you explain a little in more detail the  kingdom side. I think, you know, we've done, we've explained, in some ways,  the church side and kind of in the past, but the kingdom side is sort of a new  concept. Well, Aquila  

Henry Reyenga - and Priscilla would be examples of in the Bible. Of that here  they were tentmakers, and yet they're reaching out to other tent makers with the  gospel. So they're like out of special ops for the gospel, but they're also in a  training. They're professors for somebody like Apollos who had an inadequate  understanding of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And you know they were, he  was baptized into John, yeah. Okay. Then all of a sudden, here comes. He  comes into that town. So they're professors on faculty and early ministry  training. They have a church. In fact, we know of at least two churches that they  planted. The Ephesus church was likely planted by them, where we get the book of the Ephesians was actually started by them. So they had a church piece, they had a kingdom training piece. They also accompanied the Apostle Paul on  missionary journeys. So, but they would be and they were probably never paid  in any one local church. They were Kingdom ministers.  

Steve Elzinga - So within the kingdom Minister orbit, what sort of are the  options in terms  

Henry Reyenga - of training? Oh, very good. So we have a commended option  that's for more the that's like a lay level. And there's a whole program of mini  courses  

Steve Elzinga - right that you take to get right. And then you need one in a from  someone else recognized.  

Henry Reyenga - Oh, yeah, you need a recommendation. Yes, you didn't  outside, good one, and outside recommendation commended, right? And what 

they what we do have in the commended is one little licensed status, and that's  to do weddings, okay? Because we find that a lot of the people who are  commended ministers as volunteers, penetrating, will be asked to do what?  Yeah,  

Steve Elzinga - because that's a connection point for a lot of people who want  going to church, they want to get married, they don't know who to do it right. See you as a person of character and of the Lord, yes. And  

Henry Reyenga - so then they ask you, so it's a great, yeah. We don't want you  to go to the Universal Life Church or some outside. We have all of that here,  legal credentials with a whole training that is actually a one credit training,  beyond a mini course where there are quizzes, and it's excellent, but we really  feel that's an you need to have that as even a lay commended Kingdom  minister, and then the licensed. So  

Steve Elzinga - you have a you have a commended Kingdom Minister, the next  is  

Henry Reyenga - the licensed Kingdom minister. That adds a few more classes, and you need another recommendation,  

Steve Elzinga - right? So that's like the next step, yes, okay,  

Henry Reyenga - and then the ordained is all of the previous that's the next  classes, plus a few more full classes from the institute that would could be  college classes if you wanted to take them to college, right? And then have three recommendations. So there's an example of a kingdom Minister role that is  commended, licensed and/or.  

Steve Elzinga - And you can start with one yes, say the lowest step, and then  you can add to that the second step, and then you can add to that. So you can  get started. If you don't know what you want to do, right, right? You can just get  started, yes. And  

Henry Reyenga - 31% of the people who come in are interested in this kingdom thing. So that one role has 31% and then 51% are interested in church ministry,  but then that's a lot of roles that Christian leaders Institute and the Alliance and  college. So that's why I think we took a little more time of the kingdom, because  that one role fits so many people,  

Steve Elzinga - and even if you went into the church part having the kingdoms. 

Side is, of course, you want to be involved in the kingdom. That's the whole  point of getting out there. And you know, the church should be out there. So, you know, so some of you might do both, right? So where do  

Henry Reyenga - you find out about all this? Is at the guidance and credential  panel. In fact, you can click around over there and you see the institute. That's  where the free classes are at there's the Alliance for all of the credentialing  Minister credentialing program. You'll see the tab commended, licensed,  ordained. And then there's the college tab, if you're interested in really pursuing  a college degree. Now what I like Steve, is that that get your college degree,  even if you're going to be a commended Kingdom minister. I mean, the more  training. You know, I never think anyone should  

Steve Elzinga - stop. No, no, and a lot of our students don't they, sorry, do. But  maybe you're just getting started, and, you know, you don't even know if this is  for you. So getting started none of it's wasted. You know, keep building on  whatever you've done in the past, you  

Henry Reyenga - don't go back to your dad. I mean, your dad had the same  training as a volunteer had when it came to going into the burning houses. So as far as we're concerned, I Well, he's,  

Steve Elzinga - you know, he got into the full time because he went into the  Navy, and he happened to get thrown in the Fire Department of the Navy. He  said on the end of a runway, planes would come in, and if they crash, they would do something about it. But he had no concept of firefighting at all, right, so this,  that experience that he just got thrown into, gave him a taste. And then when he  came back, he said, You know, I'm going to look into this. Yes. So anyway, so  we  

Henry Reyenga - thought, after talking about the fire department type of  metaphor, we should really explain the teeth that takes it on, and then you can  check it out yourself. What is God calling you to do? And as you're getting  confident and competent and credible, you're going forward, and just see where  that fits you.