Ministry Degree with Free Courses

Do you seek an Associate or Bachelor degree in ministry? Christian Leaders Institute partners with Christian Leaders Institute to help you realize your dreams!

The partnership brings you the benefit of studying and completing college-level courses in a generosity-driven approach. This generosity-driven approach allows the classes to be offered free to anyone who has access to the Internet. Foundations, churches, Christian individuals and students form a vision partner team to support the free classes. Many colleges encourage their alumni to give to capital campaigns. Christian Leaders Institute asks that alumni give to keep the college-level correspondence classes free.

Christian Leaders Institute Role

What role does the Christian Leaders Institute play? The Christian Leaders Institute is the administrative and oversight organization that applies the standards of accreditation to your college experience. There are low fees for collegiate credentials. The oversight of a Degree is very important. There are over 2o standards that assure students that they are not wasting their time or money. A ministry degree with free courses sounds attractive on the surface, but you want to make sure that it is truly a worthy pursuit. Both the Institute and the College are mindful of outside accrediting sources reviewing our processes to ensure that your study is credible.

Christian Leaders Institute began granting degrees in 2014. In 2019, Christian Leaders Institute took that role to ensure that accreditation standards were applied to a students experience. Since 2014, hundreds of ministry degrees with free courses have been granted. Click here to see our degree statistics.

The fact is your ministry degree with free courses is not easy to accomplish. Students are asked to share their experiences with the free courses at Christian Leaders Institute and the administration role of Christian Leaders Institute.

Ministry Degree with Free Courses Testimony

David Bosshard lives in the small central Wisconsin town of Marion, located just north of Neshkoro. He has completed the Christian Leaders Institute Bachelor of Divinity Degree. Read about his experience.

The Effects of CLI’s Bachelor of Divinity Degree Coursework and My Ministry

Over the last two years, I have had the privilege of working through Christian Leaders Institute and then transferring to the Christian Leaders Institute Bachelor of Divinity program. When I first started my coursework, my only intention was to solidify my ability to be an effective lay leader in my church. Through the process, however, God has made a calling to vocational ministry that I have been ignoring for over 20 years evident to me. And, not to just me, but also to those around me including my pastor, fellow elders, and my wife.

As I have completed my coursework, I am now looking forward with anticipation to continuing my education at seminary. The work I have done at Christian Leaders Institute gives me a solid foundation to continue to seminary. Also, it gives me the tools necessary to succeed in seminary and the confidence to continue growing as a minister of our Lord Jesus Christ.

God’s Call on My Life

I have long held the belief that the Lord had plans for me to be a minster of the Word. It is a calling that I have long ignored. I served as a lay leader in my church for years. However, there was always a call for something deeper. I made and gave every excuse that I could possibly contrive to those around me who saw the call on my life. Continually, I lied to myself that I could not make the sacrifice to gain the education that was necessary.

I searched off and on for many years for some remote or online course that provided a bachelor’s degree. There are many out there that are nothing more than “diploma mills.” They have a vapid offering of courses that guarantee a degree for a minimal effort and sufficient funds. That was not what I was looking for. I required coursework with substance, that required work. Coursework that allowed me to feel what I was working on was worthwhile. It needed to truly advance my knowledge and skills in sharing the Gospel.

Finding CLI

By God’s providence, one day, He brought me to CLI’s website. I researched the program and was immediately impressed with the curriculum. It seemed to be too good to be true. This thought is what caused me a very brief pause before beginning. Once I started to take courses, I knew that this was the real deal. CLI is a ministry formed to equip people like me for ministry.

I also had a good background in scriptural knowledge and am a history buff who enjoys church history. At my church, I went through a rigorous ministry intern program and had good mentors in my life. This ministry training, however, went much deeper. The professors wear their hearts on their sleeves at Christian Leaders Institute and Christian Leaders Institute. There is a sincere desire on their part for students like me to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and not just for ministry, but personal growth as well.

The Professors and Staff are a Blessing

My first courses with Professor Henry Reyenga, Jr., set the stage for my entire time at Christian Leaders Institute. Therefore, it was only fitting that I ended with him in Church Planting. It was the perfect bookend of my coursework. To say that Pastor Reyenga has a heart for ministry is a tremendous understatement. In every video course he taught, it exuded from him. To make an observation, his “evangeliving” was apparent and sets a high goal for the future of my ministry.

Dr. David Feddes is another professor who stands out among the crowd. He has a deep-seated desire for students to become effective ministers. Ministers who are firmly grounded in the Word of God and have a firm foundation in the fundamental beliefs of Christianity. It also extends to the staff as well. I am indebted to Ann Merkle, Brianna Prince, and Abby Dominiak for their help over that last two years. And, though it has been a short time, they have made me feel like family.

Ministry Degree with Free  Courses

Every course I took at Christian Leaders Institute was highly worthwhile. Indeed, I learned something from each and every one of them. However, there are some courses that stand out in my mind as truly stretching me and causing my belief and understanding of scripture to grow. There were also a few that at the time I was taking them I felt like they were wasted time. But in hindsight, I know that they were worthwhile in my overall, well-rounded education.

Some of the courses that fit into that last category would be the Christian Basics, Ministry 101, Old Testament Survey, and New Testament Survey. Much of the information taught in these courses, at least for me, was more of a review. However, looking back, I can see the absolute importance of taking them. The Survey courses were excellent in providing not just the overview, but the big picture that made deeper courses like Old Testament Literature and Biblical Interpretation much more understandable.

The Pastoral Courses

The “Pastoral” courses gave me a fuller understanding of what ministry is all about and have prepared me for ministry. Christian Ethics, Church and Ministry, Deacon Minister Ordination, Pastoral Care and Marriage, and People Smart for Ministry are some of the courses that taught me some of the most valuable shepherding tools.

Prior to some of these courses, I would have thought it impossible to be discipled through an online course. I was wrong. Through these courses, it was as if I was taken under the wing of my professors. Through a built-up relationship, I was mentored. The manner of their training felt personal, like it was meant just for me. Therefore, that helped to boost my confidence in dealing with people and handling difficult situations.

The Practical Courses

The “Practical” courses gave me a much deeper understanding of the mechanics of being a minister of the Word. Apologetics, Evangelism, Sermon Construction and Presentation, and Prayer are all courses that contributed to me being a grounded minister. Though I have prepared and delivered sermons in my home church on many occasions, the Sermon Construction and Presentation course allowed me to build and sharpen many tools. I improved in not just my preparation but my delivery of the Word.

The Prayer course for obvious reasons was one of the most profound courses I took. It was absolutely instrumental in me being able to work through the degree program and fulfill my calling as a minister of the Word.

The Theological Courses

The “Theological” courses gave me deep knowledge and a deeper desire to study the weighty things of Scripture. I include Hermeneutics and Exegesis, Theology 1 & 2, and Missions and Revivals in this group. These courses cannot be underestimated. For, how can we understand the Word if we do not understand how to read the Word!

The hermeneutic and exegesis course reaffirmed classes that I had previously taken and were fundamental to understanding Theology 1 & 2. It seemed to be an undertaking too large to study Theology in two courses. And, it surely is a lifelong pursuit. The information covered in those courses gave a complete foundation in all the various aspects. Dr. Feddes is an excellent professor in explaining the difficult to make it understandable.

Missions and Revivals became one of my most cherished courses. Learning from the past makes me realize that God can bring revival again. This course taught me to be in constant prayer for just that. The signs of the times are all around us, but God is longsuffering. I pray He brings revival, and I am willing to take any part in that God has for me.

My Support of CLI and CLI

I don’t think that my list of courses that had a significant impact on my life and ministry leaves many out. As I said earlier, I learned from each and every one of the courses that I took over the last two years. I hope to take a few more courses after graduation to keep my skills sharp as I prepare for seminary. I also plan to continue to support the Christian Leaders Institute as a Vision Partner and by referring as many people as I can to this worthy institution.

The two years that I spent working toward this paper have been some of the most challenging and rewarding years. I will be eternally grateful for Christian Leaders Institute and Christian Leaders Institute. They have had an impact on my life. Not only on my life, however, but only in eternity will we see the impact that these institutions will have had for the Kingdom of God.

I pray for God’s deepest blessings on Christian Leaders Institute and Christian Leaders Institute. And because of them, that God would also bless my work and ministry for the only one who matters, the Lord Jesus Christ.