Answering the Early Call

This is one in a series of PE News articles on people in the Assemblies of God under the age of 20 who are making an impact in their communities.

Joe Cline sensed the call to ministry before he even began to attend church regularly. At the time, he says he simply felt different, but that calling became clear to him at the age of 15 when he accepted Jesus as his Savior.

Cline is now 19, and attending the University of Arkansas-Little Rock while simultaneously working to acquire credentials as an Assemblies of God minister. He is set to graduate in 2020 with a degree in mass communications media and production.

Although Cline is in a stable situation now, that wasn’t always the case.

He grew up in a single-parent home after his father went to prison. Amid Cline’s search for truth at an early age, he developed a grasp of understanding technology and business. Amazingly, by the age of 6, he successfully operated a small technology repair business, fixing everything from cellphones to videocassette recorders. This skill would later benefit not only him, but the church he attended as well.

When his father returned home from prison, Cline’s family began to regularly attend church. At the age of 15, Cline settled at Brinkley First Assembly of God in Arkansas. Eric M. Harrell is the lead pastor and quickly became Cline’s mentor.

“He’s not afraid to try new things,” says Harrell.

The innovative business and technological tendencies Cline exhibited proved helpful as he began to volunteer at Brinkley First Assembly and other churches in the area. Harrell says Cline helped with sound, promotional videos, worship slides, and various other areas.

Cline felt driven to give to the ministry and already did through his volunteer work, but he didn’t stop there. Starting at age 15, he began raising $1,000 a year for Speed the Light, the AG ministry that provides essential transportation and creative communication equipment to missionaries. Cline held online auctions, mowed lawns, raked leaves, shot photo sessions, and washed cars. He’s even sold candy at school to raise funds for STL.

Despite being so busy, Cline made time to meet with Harrell to share how God ministered to him.

“Joe is a Spirit-filled believer and he is serious about his faith,” Harrell says.

Cline expects to be credentialed officially by December. In the future, he hopes to integrate his skills working with creative media at a church while either becoming a youth pastor or Chi Alpha missionary.

Harrell says Cline’s particular skill-set will help him reach the younger generation.

“I think it will give him that edge,” Harrell says.

Alexa Ramos

Alexa Rae Ramos is the fall intern for PE News. She is studying journalism and photography at Evangel University and will graduate in December 2016.