Apostle Jessie R. Bates, Administrative Advisor to Ambassadors for Christ Ministries since its birth, April 24, 1997, is also President of Beyond Walls Covenant Ministries, Hub Leader for the Decatur region of the Illinois Apostolic Prayer Network, as well as the Presiding Apostle at Abundant Life Christian Center International, Decatur, IL.  Apostle Bates was recently recognized as an Apostle and accepted into the International Coalition of Apostles, where C. Peter Wagner is the Presiding Apostle.  Apostle Bates was miraculously converted in 1990 when Jesus came into his heart through the preaching ministry of Bishop Eddie Lee Long at the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. After having been a major drug dealer for 15 long years ( the last 7 1/2 of those 15 years ending with crack cocaine addiction), Apostle Bates was later "called" to preach the gospel in 1995, and subsequently attended Lincoln Christian College in Lincoln, Illinois to help prepare him for what God was "calling" him to do.

Apostle Bates now holds local and state-wide workshops, seminars and conferences on street, door to door and personal evangelism, the ministry of deliverance, the apostolic/prophetic mandate, the ministry of intercession, events planning (including open-air tent, neighborhood crusades, street hoops festivals, community-wide prayer gatherings, etc.). He is especially anointed to train Christian church and ministry leaders how to successfully cross or tear down denominational, racial, social and gender barriers.             

Under direction of the Holy Spirit, Apostle Jessie and his wife Janice, Administrative Pastor, planted the Abundant Life Christian Center International on June 9, 2002, as an extension of the outreach venue, Ambassadors For Christ Ministries, to pastor and disciple men, women and children born into the Kingdom, who will in turn take the Gospel throughout the entire world and make more disciples.  This couple has dedicated their lives to serving God, building and strengthening the Church and reaching the lost for Jesus Christ.