Refreshing Hope Ministries began as a simple daily devotional from Pastor Dion Todd sent via email, with personal testimonies of God’s work in our lives. Our vision was, and still is, to help renew hope in the world by sharing the love of Jesus Christ. We believe that God’s people are being beaten down by poverty, cynicism and religion. In such a world, even a small light will shine in the darkness.
Over time, the email list grew and we started receiving a great deal of correspondence and prayer requests. We eventually developed a private prayer network, which allowed volunteer prayer warriors to help lift up the needs of the ministry’s followers. We even started publishing books to focus on areas that will eventually be a toolbox for those in need.
Through email and the prayer network, we started getting to know the people who were following our ministry. We realized that many of these people had a lot to offer, skills and wisdom that could benefit others in the body of Christ. Unfortunately, there was no easy way at the time to connect them all. Through prayer and thought, we came upon the idea of an “online church”, a place where people could connect, pray, encourage and share their special God-given spark. We wanted to use the power of social media, but wanted it to be a safe and clean place for Christians to connect, which left out Facebook and Twitter. It took months of work and a good deal of expense, but we believe the Lord was with us and we eventually succeeded in launching this online church in February of 2015.
The response of the ministry’s members to this new stage has been a great blessing. People are connecting with each other in prayer, growing in wisdom and knowledge, and just enjoying each other’s fellowship. There have even been those who have stepped up in leadership to help moderate the website and run small groups, which has been truly amazing. There is still much to do in the development of this church, but now there are many hands, hearts and minds to co-labor with us. With these people and God’s blessings, we have great hope for the future.
Thank you for being part of Refreshing Hope Ministries!
The Essentials of What We Believe
Our Beliefs
In essential beliefs – we have unity.
“For there is one Body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.” Ephesians 4:4-6 NLT
In non-essential beliefs – we have flexibility.
“Accept him whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters... Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.” Romans 14: 1, 12-33 NIV
In all our beliefs – we show love.
“If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:2 NIV
Statement of Faith
GOD
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are coequal and are one God.
Genesis 1:1, 26, 27, 3:22; Psalms 90:2; Matthew 28:19; 1 Peter 1:2; 2 Corinthians 13:14
JESUS CHRIST
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is coequal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14-15; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 1:3-4; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Timothy 6:14-15; Titus 2:13.
HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit is coequal with the Father and the Son of God. Believers can be both spirit-filled and spirit-led. We believe in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and the manifestation of gifts.
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8 NLT
“Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Do not stifle the Holy Spirit.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17-19 NLT
2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14:16-17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians. 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18.
BIBLE
The Bible is God’s Word to us. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture of error.
2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 1:13; Psalms 12:6, 119:105 & 160; Proverbs 30:5.
SALVATION
God created humans to have fellowship with Him, but they defied God by sinfully going their own way. As a result, we need God’s saving grace to end our alienation from Him. Salvation comes only through God’s grace - not human effort - and must be received personally by repentance and faith.
Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 1:12, 14:6; Titus 3:5; Galations3 :26; Romans 5:1
SECURITY
Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the true believer is secure in that salvation for eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot “lose” it. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives us this security.
John 10:29-30; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25, 10:10 & 14; 1 Peter 1:3-5.
ETERNITY
People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.
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Sylvia: In the section Statement of Faith under God....I think there is either a missing letter i or an apostrophe! It says "God s the creator...."
I appreciate all that y'all are doing here at Refreshing Hope Ministries. I enjoy the devotionals and teachings of Pasor Dion.
Thank you and may God continue to bless this ministry.
Oh, thank you very much, Michael, I will fix that! Appreciate your sharp eye, and thank you for being part of the family here :)!
Yes, my husband reminded me of this. He is now researching the WEB reference. WE are King James Bible people. We have the wisdom to check things out scripturely.
Rhonda, You make a great point, Recently even the King James versions and the NIV are being modified, not just for better understanding and clarity, but in meaning, and why no one is saying anything about it is beyond me.
I believe that the Bible was written by man and inspired by God. I also believe that it was written in acient Hebrew and Greek. What I don't know is who translated it to King James version and even American English. I have never studied King James the king, was he a God fearing man? was he a tyrant? Did he want his nation to serve God? Or did he want to control his nation?
Growing up, all I ever heard was that a bunch of scholars got together and translated the bible. I only know two things about scholars, all they want to do is 1) Profit & 2) Control. This is why it's so important to be led by the Holy Spirit.
Beautiful. Well said:)
This was eye-opening! I have been feverishly writing down notes! It may begin my own healing of my years and years of nightly dreaming of dead loved ones and other strangers and ppl alive now.
Dion & Sylvia Todd,
Thank you for what you are doing, the bible says that the harvest is plenty and the workers are few. Thank you for being part of the few. I too want to be part of the few, but I also would like to see that number increase.
amen ....thank you for refreshing hope !!
Hey there, Angie :)! Dion has an in-depth teaching on the "Once Saved, Always Saved" question that may enjoy :): https://www.refreshinghope.org/blogs/1/320/once-saved-always-saved
I am brand new here. Just sign up today. And what is the first thing I see? An argument over KJV vs NIV! I am sorry to see this. I personally use several Bibles, cross-checking all the way for the best understanding. I also take what I have come up with and cross-check that with the original languages where I can. It is truly revealing and exciting. After all, isn't the point and hope that a person will meet and accept Jesus. Believe me in this one thing, if a person accepts Christ as their savior, that person is at that moment fully equipped. God will use that person fully, even if he has no Bible at all! Anything that Jesus needs that person to know, He will make known. It is not the Bible, it is Christ Jesus. Do you carry a KJV? Bless you. Do you carry an NIV? Bless you. Are you more or less knowledgable or better "saved" than I because of the Bible you carry? Well ................................. Some will say that If I preach from an NIV instead of a KJV that people will not get a full and complete understanding of Jesus and Christianity. I have a bit of news....NONE of us has a full understanding, nor will we until we see Him face to face. So quit arguing about it and start leading people to Christ before it is too late.
Completely agree, Randi :). The enemy seems to find amazingly trivial ways to divide the body of Christ.
I TRUELY BELIEVE IN THE BIBLE GOD'S HOLY WORD, NIV,KJV NO MATTER WHAT ,IT'S STILL GOD'S HOLY WORD.
RANDI, I TOTALY AGREE. I DON'T CARE WHAT VERSION IT IS, IF I STUDY THE WRONG THING ,IF THE HOLY SPIRIT DOESN'T TELL ME IT'S WRONG, BROTHER TODD WILL.
Thank you for Refreshing Hope online church. Amen.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the labor past and present, online and behind the scene! I thank the Lord most high and His mighty Holy Spirit that gave you the vision in the first place and inplanted in you the idea to start this wonderful online ministry! There are so many of us here in the States and overseas that are either homebound, disabled, having no local church to go to, often working 24/7, etc., etc. that eagerly await your daily devotions, messages, thorough bible studies which include history and geographical lessons! My prayer is that you receive all the financial and prayerful support that you need to carry on with your mission and outreach! Blessings upon you Pastor Dion and Sylvia!!! "Numbers 6:24-26" - I believe that the Holy Bible is the Word of God, to be taken literally!!! It is GOD's love letter to us! I'm using the KJV, ASV, but also the NIV for comperative reasons, and I totally agree with your statement of faith!!! Blessings (h5)
THAT'S MY BELIEVE TO AND PRAYES THE LORD IT WILL BE MY BELIEVE TILL THE DAY I DIE
Thanking God because of you every day. Knowing tht we are one family in Christ Jesus. RHM has been my daily devotional ever since i joined . Much love and blessings to this entire family in Christ Jesus.