CBC Students Visit Berlin & Cologne

CBC-Colorado staff and students in front of the Berlin Cathedral, Oberpfarr- und Domkirche (Supreme Parish and Collegiate Church). (Click to enlarge)Germany has become a ministry hotspot for Charis Bible College students from Colorado. While every CBC mission trip offers its participants ample opportunity to pour out the love of God in the surroundings of a foreign land, the teams that have visited Berlin over the past few years seem to have had decidedly different experiences than that of the other teams. Perhaps it is because street ministry in Germany more closely resembles ministry in a metropolitan American setting than that of a third-world nation; the people, with whom the ministry is shared, are just as needy in spirit, but they are not trapped by economic shortage. Whatever the case, to see those whose bondage stems more from having society's advantages, than from poverty and lack, receive Christ, provides a different sense of joy.

Students performing a drama in the center of Berlin, Alexanderplatz, with the International World Clock in the background. (Click to enlarge)In mid-April, 23 students and three leaders from Colorado Springs, including, CBC Mission Coordinator, Michelle Patterson, visited Cologne and Berlin. For nearly two weeks, the Colorado team was hosted by Jeff and Barb Serio and their Berlin-based ministry, European Initiative, and they spent most of their time ministering on the streets and in the open spaces of both cities.

Some aspects of the street ministry were a stretch for one CBC student, Justin McCormick. "I was way outside of my element," Justin said, "Dancing and skits just aren't my thing. However, I was committed to doing the Lord's work."

Although Justin soon realized that the trip was not about what he was comfortable with, but about blessing the people of Germany, he found that he was having limited success ministering to After watching one of the street performances, the two young ladies (left of center) had just received Jesus.
(Click to enlarge)the people after each performance. Justin asked God to show him what the problem was, and God quickly responded. Justin said, "I asked God, 'What's the deal?' He said, 'Quit leaning unto your own understanding. Trust me, and I will fill your mouth.'"

Instantly, Justin thought of Proverbs 3:5-6 and Revelation 12:11, and with newfound boldness, he approached two girls from the crowd and began to tell them about the skit they had just watched. As he spoke, he asked if they had ever heard of Jesus, to which they both replied, "No." As he shared Christ, he stopped mid-sentence and looked at the girl to his left and said, "You have heard of Jesus. In fact, you have heard a lot about Him, and have been considering asking Him into your heart." The girl began to cry, and the Holy Spirit prompted Justin to share more with her. Moments later, she accepted Marcus Gresham (second from right) stands with some young men who received Jesus as their Savior.
(Click to enlarge)Jesus as her Savior.

"On this trip I learned to trust God and let Him do the work. I stepped out in faith, and He did the rest," said Justin.

CBC student, Marcus Gresham, also found that as he spoke to the people of Germany, the Lord filled his mouth with His words. Marcus said, "Sometimes I spoke to groups as large as ten people. No matter the size, the Holy Spirit downloaded everything to me that I was to say to them. It was just like the instructors of CBC have taught—God will give you the right words to speak in that moment of time. The results were astounding! I personally was able to see 33 people make the decision to follow Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior."

The CBC team working with another ministry, Christliches Jugendzentrum Orenienburg, to help remodel a home to be used for child foster care.
(Click to enlarge)Another CBC student, Tim Spadino, came across a group of Muslim students visiting from nearby Belgium. Tim found that one student was suffering with pain from a broken knee, and he offered to pray for him. "I offered to pray and he accepted, so Jeff [Serio] and I put our hands on his knee and commanded the pain to leave. Then I asked him to move it around, and he got super excited and started running around and saying, 'It's a miracle!' His teachers came over and asked what was going on. With a big smile, I told them to ask the boy about his knee. Then I got to tell them that Jesus was the One that healed him. They had to leave before anybody could accept Jesus, but I'm confident that this will change their view about Jesus—a little bit."

Letting Jesus' light shine in Germany—Hard to miss enthusiasm like this! (Click to enlarge)With each mission trip to Germany, more and more seeds are planted in the hearts of the German people, and the harvest for each team continues to grow. “This is my third time to lead a team to Germany, and I can see God moving, opening doors and transforming lives. The first team we took in 2011, only saw two people receive Christ. In 2012, we saw 44 salvations, and now this year, we had 121 people to accept Christ during our street ministry...The people are hungry, searching and opening up to receive," said Michelle.

Rebuking the Enemy & Speaking Life

In her early teens, Taylor had been an active healthy athlete. At age 15, she stopped playing soccer and her social circles changed. Out of boredom she began using marijuana, cocaine and Xanax. (Click to enlarge)There was a sense of panic in the air, as EMT's and hospital staff worked feverishly to revive a young woman. She had been dropped off at the hospital by unnamed friends. When EMT's approached her, she was unresponsive, not breathing and without a pulse. By all accounts she was dead. How long she had been that way was unknown, but it was evident that she had overdosed on drugs. The panic at the hospital spread as her friends and family were notified of the dire situation.

The young woman's uncle, a police officer and EMT, was the first family member to arrive at the hospital. He recognized the bleakness of his niece, Taylor's situation. Assuming all was lost, he chose to wait at the hospital to comfort his sister, Taylor's mom, when she arrived.

Taylor was totally unaware of the earthly chaos and severity of her circumstances. "I opened my eyes, and I was in a grassy meadow. It was beautiful with trees surrounding it, and I felt this overwhelming love—like nothing I've ever felt before. It [heaven] is indescribable. I looked in front of me and I saw my grandmother sitting in the field (she had died about six years prior to my overdose) and I walked up to her and sat beside her. I started to ask her Taylor was born again when she was very young and had been raised in a Christian home. Both her mother and her grandfather frequently listened to Andrew. Taylor's grandfather would call each day, when she was small, to let her know Andrew's TV program was about to start.
(Click to enlarge) why I was there with her, but she beat me to it. Her reply was in my mind, it wasn't auditory, 'You're in a hospital. You stopped breathing.' I was very confused by this, and I asked her, 'Well, do I have to go back?' She responded, "Yes, you do have to go back. It's not your time to be here yet," remembered Taylor.

Upon receiving notification of the situation, Lindie, Taylor's mom called her father, Frank, Taylor's grandfather, to share the tragic news. As she frantically told Frank, a longtime follower of Andrew's ministry, that Taylor was dead, he interrupted her. In a firm, but reserved tone he said, "Lindie, settle down. We're going to do exactly what Andrew and Jamie did when they got a call about their son being in the morgue. We're going to rebuke the spirit of death—command the spirit of death to take his hands off of Taylor, and we're going to call the life of Jesus back into her body. And, we're going to do that over and over and over until you get to the hospital and see what her condition is."

They both prayed on their journeys to the hospital. As Lindie prayed she heard the Lord say, "She will not die today." Shortly before Lindie and Frank arrived at the hospital, the medical team revived Taylor. Although she was still unconscious, she was breathing and her heart was beating. Once stabilized, Taylor was moved to the Intensive Care Unit where doctors induced a coma. They also Taylor and her sister Carly. Taylor's family prayed and stood on the Word, believeing that Taylor would live and not die—even as she "coded" for the third time. Her mother, Lindie, stressed, that it is important for people to believe God's report and not the doctor's reports. "I heard what they said, but I just chose to believe what God had told me when I prayed, which was, 'She will not die today.' (Click to enlarge) lowered her body temperature to protect what was left of her brain.

The hospital staff worked diligently with Taylor, but because of the quantity of drugs found in Taylor's system, they fully expected her to die. Though shaken, Lindie remained calm, prayed in the spirit and continued to rebuke the enemy's attempt to take her daughter.

Upon his arrival at the hospital, the medical team informed Frank of their concern for Taylor's brain. "Don't be concerned about her mind; it's as good as yours or mine," he said unmoved by the scene. Afraid Frank had not understood the severity of the situation, the doctors reiterated their worries. Frank, confident in the Lord's faithfulness, acknowledged what they had said and repeated his statement. The doctors stormed away in disbelief.

A few days later Taylor woke up and was completely unaware of her situation, but based on her family's reaction, she sensed that something terrible had happened. Later that day, she sent the ICU into a frenzy when she went into respiratory and cardiac arrest. The medical team was able to revive her temporarily, but she died for a Taylor and her daughter. Taylor was 22 when she overdosed, and her baby was only five months old. When Taylor took her daughter to school for the first time, Lindie saw that Taylor was crying. Lindie asked her why, and Taylor replied, "I'm just so happy to be here." (Click to enlarge)third time a little while later.

"My sister, Carly, told me that there were ten to fifteen people in my room doing CPR and trying to keep me alive. She said that there was a pool of blood on the floor under my bed, and my eyes were empty like I was dead. She said, I was also bloated and swollen and my fingers were blue," Taylor recalled as she shared what her sister had seen.

Finally, the team stabilized Taylor again, but they told Lindie that if Taylor's blood pressure didn't rise, they would lose her for good. Taylor's family and Deuane Woodard, a close family friend and CBC-Colorado graduate, sat outside of Taylor's room and prayed for about six hours for her blood pressure to return to normal—by the following morning it had.

Taylor was in the hospital for nearly two weeks, and she flat-lined three different times. The actual time she had been dead, prior to her arrival at the hospital, is uncertain, yet she not only left the hospital, but she left without any sign of brain or organ damage.

Taylor is thankful that her grandfather was aware of what had happened to Andrew's son, and how he used Andrew's testimony, and applied it to Taylor's situation. Today, Taylor loves the Lord, attends church and listens to Andrew when she can. She is also attending classes at a local college. Taylor's future is bright.
(Click to enlarge)Lindie recalled the first time she and Taylor met with the neurologist, "Dr. Matthews said, 'Not only should you not have lived with all the drugs that were in your system, but if somehow you did live, you should have been a vegetable. I cannot believe I am sitting here talking to you. It is a miracle that you are here—you should not be here."

While Taylor was dead, she heard Jesus tell her that when she went back, she would be a different person, and that she would become the person he had planned for her to be. Her mother attests to this saying, "Taylor is a completely different person than she was before her overdose. Taylor had a bad temper, and she never gets mad now. She has patience and love beyond belief—that she never had before..."

Taylor said that her life before the overdose was very self-serving and hollow. Now, she enjoys the little things, like worshipping at church and watching her daughter do everyday activities. "Recently she started school, and I can't even tell you how grateful I was to have been there, to take her on her first day. She was only five months old when this happened, and to think that I would have missed out on all of this greatness freaks me out sometimes. So I enjoy the little things, the warm sun on my face, my daughter's laughter, singing at the top of my lungs in the car, my family and a good movie. At the end of the day, that's all that matters—the love between us all.

CBC-Florida's Clermont Campus

CBC-Colorado graduate and director of CBC-Florida's Clermont campus, Terry Hull and his wife Melanie. (Click to enlarge)Twelve years ago, Terry and Melanie Hull were living, working, and raising their family in Colorado Springs. Terry worked for the insurance industry performing crawlspace inspections, and Melanie was at home raising their three children. Their growing family was happily maintaining their status quo, until an injury changed the course of the Hull's lives forever.

Terry's job required that he work in tight spaces, often while carrying and maneuvering heavy equipment in those cramped quarters. In 2001, Terry suffered a herniated disk in his lower back, which led to an excruciating case of sciatica. The pain in Terry's back became so uncomfortable that standing and sitting were unbearable. Even doctor prescribed pain medications would not alleviate Terry's discomfort. At the time, the only place Terry was able to find relief was flat on his back on the floor.

Approximately six months after Terry was injured, Melanie's mother, Eva Coldiron, gave her one of Andrew's teachings, You've Already Got It. Eva had just seen Andrew minister at a church in Colorado Springs, and she felt impressed to share his teaching with Terry.

Andrew prays over the Hulls, including their sixth child, Kate Evelyn, whom the enemy tried to steal during the pregnancy. Melanie suffered miscarriage-like symptoms, and doctors repeatedly made claims of abnormalities including Kate having the markers for Down syndrome. The Hull's chose to believe God, and did not share the negative reports. The baby was born without Downs and remains perfectly healthy. (Click to enlarge) Melanie was vaguely aware of Andrew's presence on TV (she recalled changing the channel any time she saw him) but because of Terry's situation, she was happy to share the teaching with her husband. Terry had not heard of Andrew, but began listening to the tape from his mother-in-law. He played the message, not once, but over and over again. As he listened, Terry began to realize that he didn't have to wait any longer for God to answer his prayers for healing—he needed to receive what Jesus had already provided.

After listening to You've Already Got It about 50 times, Terry had a new revelation, and the gospel finally made sense to him. Within two months of receiving the teaching from Eva, Terry's back was totally healed. Because of the impact of Andrew's message, and because he wanted to know more, Terry enrolled in classes at Charis Bible College in Colorado Springs in the fall of 2001.

The message of God's grace and healing lit a fire inside Terry, and he would come home from classes excited to share what he had learned with Melanie. Over the course of Terry's two years at CBC, the Hull's lives were radically transformed, even down to the way they spoke to and interacted with their children. They had known that God Andrew, Jamie and the Hull's enjoy conversation outside the school in Jacksonville. (Click to enlarge)loved them, but they had never had their eyes opened to all that Jesus had purchased for them. This revelation of God's goodness changed their lives.

As Terry's graduation neared, the Lord began to lead the Hulls in a new direction—southeast—to Florida. God used Genesis 31:3, to lead Terry back to his homeland. Although they weren’t sure why they were to return to Florida, they knew that they knew God said He would be with them. Content in that promise, they made arrangements to relocate to Terry's hometown, after graduation, with the simple plan of living, continuing to raise their family, and getting involved in a local church.

Several years after their move, the director of CBC-Florida, Danon Winter, opened a secondary extension school in Orlando, and things became clearer for the Hulls. They realized that part of the reason they had been led to Florida was to be in a position to help with Classes at CBC-Clermont are currently offered on a part-time basis on Monday and Thursday evenings. The Hulls plan to offer full-time classes in the near future. Here, Terry (foreground) facilitates a DVD class.
(Click to enlarge)CBC-Florida's Orlando campus and the future expansion of CBC-Florida.

In an effort to be prepared to participate in CBC-Florida's continued growth, Melanie, now a mother of six, enrolled in first-year classes via the correspondence program, a program she hopes to complete this summer. As Melanie continues her studies, she and Terry have been part of the launch of another campus in Florida, about an hour south and west of CBC-Orlando. "We felt the Lord was leading us to start a school here in Clermont to make CBC classes more accessible to the west Orlando areas. After speaking with Danon and our pastor, the doors were literally flung open and we began our first year in September 2012. We have a church that is totally behind this, with the pastor attending all the classes as a student," said Melanie.

Melanie said that she and Terry would not trade the knowledge of the Word and the understanding of the peace of God that they now know for anything they had before attending CBC. "God used CBC to be the greenhouse of our spiritual growth. Before Andrew and CBC, we hoped God may heal us. Now we know that healing is ours. Andrew and Jamie stand with the Hulls and CBC-Clermont's first-year students. (Click to enlarge)We have seen sicknesses leave our children instantly by the Word. We have had miraculous provision in times of need. Now we walk in the blessings of God more than ever before and have the privilege of pouring these blessings out to others," she said.

As director and facilitator, the Hulls share the administrative duties of the school. Terry coordinates the schedule, and teaches live sessions, and Melanie helps facilitate DVD classes. As the current academic year draws to a close, the Hulls are looking forward to next year when, for the first time, they will accommodate both first and second-year students. They see a great opportunity to share the grace and faith message with the people of Clermont and the surrounding area.

CBC-Clermont currently offers classes on a part-time basis. Classes are held on Monday and Thursday nights. For more information visit the CBC-Florida website or Like Charis Bible College Clermont on facebook.