Credentialed to Care: How Christian Leaders Alliance Trains Ministers for Christian Domestic Violence Support in Local Communities

In communities across the globe, stories of domestic violence remain far too common—often hidden behind closed doors, shrouded in silence, and weighted by spiritual, emotional, and physical trauma. But there is hope.

Christian Leaders Alliance (CLA) is equipping a new generation of ministers—credentialed, trained, and called—to bring Christian domestic violence support to the hurting. Through accessible, donation-supported programs, CLA offers ministry credentials that empower believers to walk alongside survivors, provide biblical care, and help rebuild lives through Christ-centered hope and healing.

A New Kind of Minister: Credentialed and Called to Serve

Whether in a church, nonprofit, recovery program, or community outreach setting, survivors of domestic abuse need ministers who are both spiritually grounded and practically trained. Christian Leaders Alliance provides a comprehensive pathway to becoming such a minister—one who can offer informed, compassionate care and who carries recognized credentials.

CLA’s credentialing process includes three standout programs that directly serve the mission of Christian domestic violence support:

Life Coach Minister Program: Empowering Survivors to Thrive

The Life Coach Minister program trains Christian leaders in personal coaching skills with a pastoral heart. For those serving survivors of abuse, this program is essential. Life Coach Ministers learn how to:

• Help individuals develop personal growth goals

• Navigate emotional recovery

• Rebuild confidence and spiritual identity

• Provide structured support for life after abuse

This role is perfect for those starting faith-based support groups or working one-on-one with survivors in mentoring relationships. Life Coach Ministers are commissioned and credentialed through the Christian Leaders Alliance after completing rigorous training through Christian Leaders Institute (CLI).

Licensed and Ordained Minister Programs: For Church and Community Leadership

Christian Leaders Alliance also offers step-by-step paths to becoming a Licensed or Ordained Minister, designed for those who feel called to more extensive ministry leadership. These programs:

• Equip leaders with biblical, theological, and pastoral skills

• Prepare ministers for preaching, teaching, pastoral care, and officiating

• Include specializations like Women’s Ministry or Pastoral Care Minister

Many women and men called to serve in Christian domestic violence support ministries are choosing these programs to gain credibility and theological depth. Their credentialed status gives them standing in churches, courts, hospitals, and local organizations.

Ministry Chaplain Program: Bringing Comfort in Crisis

For those ministering in more formal settings—such as hospitals, shelters, or first-response environments—the Ministry Chaplain Program provides vital training. Chaplains learn how to:

• Offer trauma-informed spiritual care

• Respond with grace and calm in moments of crisis

• Serve as a trusted voice for those feeling unseen and unheard

This program prepares leaders for frontline Christian domestic violence support, especially in emergency rooms, counseling centers, or transitional housing facilities.

Free Ministry Training, Real Credentials, Global Access

All Christian Leaders Alliance credentialing programs begin with free ministry training through Christian Leaders Institute. The model is simple and powerful:

• Study high-quality online ministry courses

• Receive guidance from a global network of volunteer mentors and ministers

• Complete a recommendation and assessment process

• Become a credentialed minister with the Christian Leaders Alliance

Because the training is donation-supported, it’s accessible to anyone called by God—regardless of income or background.

Christian Domestic Violence Support Starts with Called Leaders

Ministers like Sherrie Davis, a CLI student from Carlsbad, New Mexico, are a shining example. With a background of surviving and overcoming abuse, she now feels a profound calling to help others. Through CLI and CLA, she is preparing to launch a faith-based domestic violence support group in her community—armed with knowledge, credentials, and the power of God’s grace.

My Name is Sherrie Davis

I’m from Carlsbad, New Mexico. I have my GED and completed one year of college, working toward an associate’s degree in criminal justice. However, my life’s direction has since shifted.

Our town faces serious issues, including widespread drug use and frequent reports of domestic violence. Walking with individuals who struggle with the painful aftermath of abuse isn’t easy, but as a church, we are called to minister to the hurting. The church should be known as a place of refuge—a safe space where people run for comfort and healing. After all, we are called to be the hands and feet of Christ (1 Corinthians 12).

My Youth

My parents divorced when I was seven years old. I don’t remember much from that time, but I do remember my father being abusive toward my mother—until she found the courage to leave him.

After the divorce, I was passed between both sets of grandparents. Thankfully, they were all Christians and attended church regularly. At age 13, my dad moved me in with his girlfriend, but it wasn’t a Christian environment. Once again, he became abusive, and we ended up back at his parents’ house. That’s when the abuse began to affect me directly. One wrong comment led to a severe beating—I ended up with a concussion and bleeding from my eye.

At 17, my father moved me in with another girlfriend, and this environment was even worse. During that time, I started dating a boy from school—the son of my grandmother’s best friend. We were together for six months before everything changed. To put it plainly, he didn’t take “no” for an answer. A few months later, I found out I was pregnant with my first child.

My Adulthood and My Calling

At 19, I met a man at church and began dating him. We married in 1999, when I was four months pregnant with my second child. About a year into the marriage, everything changed. He became abusive—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I discovered he was using methamphetamine. Because I had made a commitment to him and to God, I stayed.

Over the next six years, the abuse escalated. He drugged my coffee with meth when I left it unattended, eventually leading to my addiction. He choked me until I passed out. Worst of all, I later discovered that he had begun molesting my daughter. When she was seven, I learned the truth and divorced him.

A year before the divorce, I was diagnosed with uterine cancer. The day after my hysterectomy, my father’s ex-girlfriend’s daughter and her underage friends came to my house with alcohol. Though I hadn’t purchased it, I was the only adult present and was arrested and charged with a fourth-degree felony.

About six months after my divorce, I met a man who swept me off my feet. We dated, and eight months later, we married. But immediately after the wedding, he changed. He was emotionally abusive to my children and eventually to me. He isolated me, forbade me from having friends or talking to family, and made me carry the entire burden of our home—working, paying bills, and doing all the housework alone. Still, I had made a vow before God, so I stayed and prayed daily for God to make a way.

After nine years of misery, God answered my prayer. He left me—because he wanted a woman who could have children. That was my deliverance.

In 2017, I found a new church (I was raised Nazarene but now attend a non-denominational church). I rededicated my life to God. I’ve been clean and sober since 2005 and cancer-free since 2004. On October 29, 2023, I was baptized and experienced an overwhelming calling to help others who have gone through what I’ve endured—and to lead them to Christ.

Plans for Using CLI Training

Before I discovered Christian Leaders Institute, I didn’t know how I would gain the skills I needed to fulfill this calling. But CLI’s free, high-quality ministry training is exactly what I had been praying for.

Through CLI, I am preparing to launch a faith-based support group for domestic violence survivors at our church to serve our city. God is on the move, and I believe He is positioning me to minister to and coach individuals who are living through—or recovering from—abuse.