WHAT WE BELIEVE
At Divine Encounter, our entire set of beliefs and teachings stems from the ultimate authority of Scripture. Our utmost priority is to uphold the standards of living and leadership outlined in the Bible. We firmly believe that embracing and aligning our lives with God’s Word leads to a life of abundance and deep satisfaction.
The Bible
At Divine Encounter, our foundation for all beliefs and teachings rests upon the authoritative nature of Scripture. Our utmost endeavor is to uphold the principles and guidelines set forth in the Bible regarding how we should live and lead. We firmly hold the conviction that embracing and adhering to the teachings of God’s Word paves the path to a life filled with abundance and profound satisfaction.
The Holy Trinity
Our fundamental belief centers around the concept of a singular God, existing as three unique entities: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. We affirm that God the Father holds the role of Creator, actively engaged in the world and its inhabitants. Furthermore, we hold that Jesus Christ, recognized as the Son of God, descended to Earth with the purpose of saving humanity. Additionally, we acknowledge the ongoing presence and influence of the Holy Spirit, perpetuating the mission initiated by Jesus on Earth. These beliefs find support in Matthew 28:19.
SALVATION
We hold the belief that Jesus willingly sacrificed His life on the cross and shed His blood as a means of atonement for our sins. Our understanding is that true salvation is exclusively attained by placing our trust in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Additionally, we affirm the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and eagerly anticipate His second coming. These affirmations are supported by references such as Romans 5:1 and 5:8-9.
WATER BAPTISM
We hold the conviction that water baptism serves as a symbolic representation of the purifying strength found in the blood of Christ and serves as a testament to our unwavering faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Support for this belief can be found in 1 Peter 3:21.
COMMUNION
We believe in the regular observance of Communion, understanding it as a meaningful practice of recalling and honoring the sacrifice made by Jesus through His crucifixion. By partaking in Communion, we actively remember the profound significance of His death on the cross. This belief aligns with the teachings found in 1 Corinthians 11:24-25.
RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
We hold the belief that every individual who professes faith should actively pursue a deepening connection with Jesus. This relationship is nurtured by faithfully obeying God’s Word, yielding to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and seeking to align oneself with the likeness of Christ. This understanding is supported by passages such as Philippians 3:12-13.
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2 Timothy 1:7
7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.
Divine Encounter Fellowship Ministries International
Vision
Encountering God continuously to effectively encounter men with the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ and reap the end-time harvest.
Our Mission
We seek to initiate, encourage and maximize the experience of a God – encountered people encountering a God -less world with the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, bringing them into the Body of Christ making disciples of them, and showing them how to make disciples themselves, consequently establishing and perfecting God’s people.
About
Apostle Vernon Duncan is the co-founder and senior pastor of Divine Encounter Fellowship Ministries International, which has branches throughout Trinidad and Tobago. Currently, the ministry is headquartered at Ragoo Road in D’Abadie. Along with his brother, Apostle Vivian Duncan, and Pastor Richard Gonzales, he founded the ministry in November 1991. Additionally, Apostle Vernon Duncan serves as the covering Apostle for several affiliate and associate ministries in Grenada, St. Lucia, Guyana, St. Vincent, and the United States.
Having received his call to ministry January, 1986, Apostle Vernon Duncan has since ministered in several countries throughout the Caribbean and around the world, demonstrating his heart for the nations. In addition to his ministry, he is also an author of six (6) books, including “The Zakar Man: Male Man in Full Flight,” “Five Laws of Generational Curses: How to Break Them,” “Beyond Tehilla: The Worship Experience” (also available in Spanish), “The Ultimate Baptism: With the Holy Ghost and Fire,” “Taking Your Nation Through Personal Evangelization,” and “A Handbook on Tropical Vegetable Production.”
In addition to his pastoral and literary pursuits, Apostle Vernon Duncan is also a gifted psalmist, having produced four gospel albums to date, with his latest album titled “Out of the Experience.” This album has been voted among the top five (5) CDs in the Caribbean, courtesy of the Caribbean Gospel Music Awards 2003-2004. The song “Sailing” from this album has also been awarded the top Caribbean Gospel song of the year.
Apostle Vernon Duncan has been happily married to Joycelyn for the past 28 years and they are blessed with three (3) children, Simone, Verneille, and Curtis. Joycelyn also serves as the co-pastor of Divine Encounter Fellowship, and together, they are working towards building a spiritual legacy for their ministry and their nation as a whole.
JUNIOR CHURCH
Junior Church exists to provide children with the knowledge of the Bible and the skills necessary to develop a lasting relationship with Jesus Christ. Children of Junior Church are equipped to encourage their peers to yearn for encounters with Jesus Christ by their everyday lifestyles in speech and behaviour.
Junior Church occurs every Sunday (except the rst Sunday of the month) at DEFMI from 10:00 am – 11:00 am.
Joel Generation
We seek to raise up young people that are focused, highly moral and ethical in their approach to life, who are so inner motivated with destiny and vision that they are not easily distracted by the cheap o ers of the world around them. We will positively impact our generation with the gospel of Jesus Christ by engaging in prayer and fasting exercises (including all night prayer sessions), outreach campaigns (outdoor and indoor musical, drama, dance and other art forms), Joel Generation camps and retreats, Joel Generation Youth conventions, among other things.
THE Zakar Man Movement
THE Zakar Man Movement is birthed out of the concepts enunciated in the book, Zakar Man, male man in Full Flight written by Apostle .J. Vernon Duncan. We endeavour to re-de ne, re-establish and bring into practical dimensions the role of the male man as originally intended by God, that is, to be a competent worshipper, a unique husband and responsible father, who loves his home, guides, guards and governs his Family, his Church, his Community and Society at large.
Triumphant Women Ministry
Triumphant Women Ministry is a division of Divine Encounter Fellowship Ministry International with a vision to empower women to live successful lives, equipping them to walk in triumph, regardless of their circumstances. This can only be achieved by teaching them to live in Christ, recognizing that as people of God, we have great influence in the world while not being of the world. Therefore, we are unstoppable, led by Christ in a triumphant procession. 2 Cor. 2:14
Pastors and Branch Church
Pastors Wilhelm and Yolande Joseph
Divine Encounter Fellowship Ministries International
Pastors Wilhelm and Yolanda Joseph have been serving faithfully as in-house pastors at Ragoo Road D’Abadie since April 2003. Coming out of the social mileu (Pastor Wilhelm a firmer Social Worker) and the field of education Pastor Yolande a former Principal), they bring a wealth of knowledge and understanding in human relations to the ministry. Both of them are great teachers of the word.
Pastor Gabreilla Nicholas Duncan
Divine Encounter Life Center
#2 Penn Terrace Cunupia
Pastor Gabriella Nicholas-Duncan has her heart set on ful lling all of God’s plans and purposes for her life and Life Centre. Her personal mission is to manifest the love of God in such a way that would give the church members and other members of the community a sense of comfort and hope.
Pastor Golda Sutherland-Kalisingh
Divine Encounter Restoration Center
Picton Street Extention, Sangre Grande (in the Coco)
Pastor Sutherland-Kalisingh has a wilful desire to follow her Lord and Saviour and please the heart of God.
Pastor Patrica Palmer
Divine Encounter Harvest Center
Pierre Ville Street, Naparima Mayaro Road
It is through their unwavering faith and trust in Jehovah Jireh, that Pastor Patricia Palmer and the Mayaro Harvest Centre continue to advance, through rough times as well as great and glorious times.
Pastor Allison Modeste
Divine Encounter Regal Glory
161-161A Coffee Street, San Fernando
Pastor Allison Modeste has placed a lot of emphasis on families and several families have joined the church over the period. She sees family as very important to the foundation of the church. “Salvation occurs in family,” she says. Families are very important to her heart.
Divine Encounter Fellowship Longstanding Members In Ministry (20 years and over)
Divine Encounter Fellowship Ministries International (DEFMI) is a fellowship of believers in Christ, whose members all testify of the reality of a “Divine Encounter” as the fundamental to the Christian experience. Our ministry operations officially began on the first Sunday of November 3rd, 1991, with a total attendance of seventy-five people. The congregation grew rapidly, and we soon outgrew the first rented location at the corner of Beckles Lane and Eastern Main Road, Arima. Over 25 years later, our church is now located at its own venue at Ragoo Road, in D’Abadie.
It has been an amazing, and fascinating journey since that first Sunday morning in November, 1991 when we began our ministry at the corner of Eastern Main Road and Beckles Lane, Arima. We started with 75 people that morning after more than fifteen years of being in the music ministry—Apostles 5, the Gospelaires and Trinity Gospel Workshop. Our ministry has been largely apostolic and prophetic in nature bolstered by much prayer and intercession—D-Day Prayer, all night prayer, 3-day solemn assemblies at the end of each quarter, prayer summits (going to the hills and praying over the nation twice per year), Monday intercessory meetings, Command the Morning prayer 5:00 a.m. each morning. Much has been accomplished
In retrospect we count it a privilege to have worked alongside with Jesus to build His Church for the past twenty-five years We have impacted our land greatly through our various prayer initiatives (referred to above). This nation is so much better off because of the effectual fervent prayer of God’s people throughout this land significantly influenced by the spiritual technologies and techniques God has passed on to us. Where do we go from here? We must forge ahead in the way that the Apostle Paul admonishes us: “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, for- getting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.: We must take our cue from the words of the Shunammite woman to her servant: “Drive, and go forward; do not slacken the pace for me unless I tell you.” Get ready to be the Kingdom Church, a fruit bearing and productive church, and not the traditional church, green and flush-looking leaves but no fruit.
Let us at all times invite and work with the Holy Spirit to activate the Kingdom of God in us so that we bear much fruit and bring deliverance to the nations. Do not be like the fig tree that Jesus cursed because it was not bearing. Invite the Holy Spirit to cause you to bear; do not settle for barrenness or spiritual sterility. Make sure you build with gold, silver or precious metal. Everything else will be burnt up and crumble when our works shall be tested by fire before the judgment seat of Christ. The gates of hell must not prevail against His Church.