Our Mission & Statement of Faith
Teen Challenge®of Greater Cleveland Statement of Purpose:
"To evangelize people who have life-controlling problems, and to initiate the discipleship process to the point where the student can function as a Christian in society, applying spiritually motivated Biblical principles to relationships in the family, local church, chosen vocation and the community. Teen Challenge endeavors to help people become mentally sound, emotionally balanced, socially adjusted, physically well and spiritually alive."
A Brief Teen Challenge History…
TEEN CHALLENGE was founded in Brooklyn, New York, by Rev. David Wilkerson in 1958, and gained international recognition through his first book, The Cross and the Switchblade, which was later made into a movie.
The success of Teen Challenge has been attributed to the "Jesus factor”: a person with life-controlling problems can experience spiritual, mental, and emotional transformation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
"Therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." - 2 Corinthians 5:17
Teen Challenge has grown substantially: over 200 centers throughout the United States and over 1,000 centers worldwide.
TEEN CHALLENGE of Greater Cleveland, Inc., established in 1968, is a Christian Growth and Development Center which provides a residential program for men (18 years and older) who want help in overcoming life-controlling problems such as, but not limited to, drug and alcohol abuse. The program consists of a Basic Induction Phase (4 to 6 months) in Perry, Ohio, and an Advanced Training Phase (8 months) in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
Our Basic Induction Program is located on a twelve-acre rustic campus in Perry, Ohio, 20 miles east of Cleveland, one-half mile south of Lake Erie. Facilities include three dormitories, dining hall and classroom building, work shop, offices and a chapel.
Our Statement of Faith
WE BELIEVE…
The Chapel in winter
the Bible is the inspired, infallible, authoritative written Word of God.
there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miraculous ministry, His vicarious and atoning death, in His bodily resurrection, in His Ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His personal return to earth, at which time he will judge the quick and the dead.
the only means of being cleansed from sin is through repentance and faith in the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and that regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for personal salvation.
in the ordinances of the church: Holy Communion and Water Baptism by immersion.
the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask for it.
the redemptive work of Christ on the cross provides divine healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer.
in the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy life.
in the Blessed Hope, the imminent return of Jesus Christ, followed by his reign on the earth for 1,000 years.
in the resurrection of the saved and the lost, the one to everlasting life and other to everlasting damnation.
in the biblical order for human sexual expression as being between one man and one woman who have committed to a lifelong marriage covenant (Gen 2:24, Matt. 19:5). Any expression of human sexuality outside of the marriage covenant between one man and one woman is sin (Ex. 20:14; Lev. 18:22-23, 20:13; Matt.15:19). God wants us to avoid sexual immorality and live holy and honorable lives of faithfulness.