Partner Churches

Matt Chandler

Living Hope Ministries has been a huge asset and partner for The Village in walking individuals towards God and away from bondage. It has been an amazing benefit to take people impacted by the Biblical discipleship Living Hope offers, and then continue to teach them to walk in the light and freedom in Christ within our fellowship.

Historically the church has been passive or openly hostile towards homosexuality. The Living Hope conference has educated our lay persons, staff, elders, and strugglers of homosexuality about the hope and truth the Scriptures offer people.

Our partnership with Living Hope has created a desire within our church to not run away from the issue of homosexuality, but to engage with love, grace, and truth. This is what the church has lost sight of and the Living Hope conference seeks to equip people to address these issues.

Jonathan Pokluda

Ricky Chelette has truly blessed us with his ability to speak on homosexuality with authority and clarity.  As one of the leading voices to the church on the topic of homosexuality,  Ricky does an outstanding job explaining the nature and origin of sexual struggles. He presents his message with excellence-teaching from scripture and pointing ultimately to the hope given us in Christ. He has addressed our crowd of over 2,000 young adults, and aided many of them in turning from the bondage of their struggles.  We have had him back and will do so every year, as long as he is willing.

Dr. Richard Lan

We want to encourage you to consider how God can work through you and your church to reach men and women who struggle with homosexuality.

Dr. Jimmy Draper

Thousands of people long to be free from the struggle with homosexuality. God is looking for people who will reach out with His saving, healing love through Jesus Christ. We pray you will make yourself available.

Barrett Duke, Ph.D

Living Hope, Lasting Change offers churches a great opportunity to understand the unique challenges of ministry to homosexuals. Many men and women trapped in this lifestyle want out, but they don’t know where to turn. This conference will help church leadership and members to develop ministries that can help homosexuals leave their destructive lifestyles and find real, lasting peace through Christ. Living hope, lasting change–that’s what the church is all about. This conference can help churches extend that blessing to thousands of men and women looking for God’s help. I enthusiastically encourage you to attend.

Daniel E. Crosby

Living Hope is a wonderful partner for any church or any ministry. Their focus on Christ is constant, their love for the struggling is consistent, and their heart for the hurting is committed. I am thankful for a ministry to which I can refer those who struggle because I know their Bible-based program of help will honor the Lord and minister grace to the individual. The Living Hope/Lasting Change Conference we had here at Cleburne’s First Baptist Church was well-organized and made good use of the time. It met the need of information for those just learning about the ministry as well as the need for caring concern for those who are struggling. I heartily recommend the ministry of Living Hope!

Pastor Gerson Santiago

We had the great blessing and honor of having Pastor Ricky Chelette at our church, during  the Family Weekend Congress.  Pastor Ricky’s compassionate heart, word of wisdom, and scripture revelation, brought to the Church a powerful movement from the Holy Ghost.

His teaching and testimonies reflects in all means the anointing the Lord has poured over him, in order to effectively deliver the message of salvation and transformation that our world desperately needs.  Also, his conference with our church staff  opened our hearts and minds to be ready to work in discernment and grace.  God Bless Pastor Ricky and Living Hope Ministries, and we expect having him back in Puerto Rico, next year.

Becoming The Real Veronica

by Veronica

I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and my mom had me when she was 16 and couldn’t really provide for me. My dad disappeared and didn’t want to have anything to do with us. My mom left to go to the US to make more money and left me with my grandparents, who raised me, and I called them Mom and Dad. My mom hoped to make enough money so she could get us to go to the US as well. At six, I finally made my way to the US.

When I was about 11, I remember watching the television one day, and somehow there were two people having sex on the TV. My aunt finally noticed it and quickly turned it off and said that we would not talk about that ever again. But I wanted to know what I saw. I wanted to know why it made me feel a certain way, and I began to search for those images online. That search developed into a very serious porn addiction.

By sixth grade, I realized that I was attracted to girls. I had a best friend who lived down the street and had a similar experience with porn, and I suddenly began to have an attraction to her. Suddenly I realized that I wanted to be close to her forever.

At 18, I left home and was homeless for a while. I finally knew that I was supposed to go to school. I showed up at a college and just walked into the administration office and showed them everything I had, and said to the lady there and said, “I know I am supposed to be here.” She started to cry and walked off. The next thing I know, she came back and said you have classes now, and you’ve already missed your first few days.

One day I was in church and heard a pastor teaching about homosexuality and pornography addiction, and at the end of his message, he said he wasn’t going to do an invitation but simply put up a slide that said, “Living Hope Ministries” and the website and I felt the Lord touch my heart and say, this is for you. I called and started coming to Living Hope. I hadn’t talked to my mom in years at this point.

Coming to LHM forced me to stop being the Veronica everyone expected me to be. I could say I struggled, and everyone understood me. Living Hope gave me a place to just be honest with others who also knew that struggle and understood where I was coming from. There was so much freedom that came from sharing my struggle and being heard and known.

I graduated, reconnected with my mom, and moved back home for a while. I told her about my struggle, and she heard me and loved me. I still struggle at times, but I’m doing things I never imagined doing. I now have the strength to share His love with others all over the world. I’m very involved in my church and in a mission in Latvia. I don’t have all the answers, but I have found the One who does. I now know I have a Lord who loves me and is with me on this journey. I have discovered that He is enough for me.