Meet Our Directors at Heritage Christian Center

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Arthur Blessitt

Joel Blessitt

Minister Fabian & Christi

Pastor Ana Sweet

Pastor Greg & Dianna

Robin Stiff

Fabian and Christi bring over a decade of Children and Youth ministry experience to HCC. The passion of their life is to help children learn and grow in their relationship with Jesus. They use all kinds of creative, relevant means to show children that God is BIG, He is crazy about them and He is real TODAY!

Christi loves to laugh (really loud!), shoe shopping, great music, and Starbucks coffee! Fabian is a HUGE Texas Longhorn and Dallas Cowboy fan and could eat pizza for every meal!

Fabian and Christi have been married just over a year and have a Pomeranian named Prada. You can find them on any given service day in our children’s department with their amazing team - loving, teaching and inspiring the next generation to live BIG for God!

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Pastor Sweet was born in Mexico DF and became a Christian when she was 17 years old. From the time she met the Lord she knew she would spend the rest of her life serving Him. She was born again in Perdon Amistad Church under the guidance of Bishop Saul Gonzalez, her mentor and spiritual father. She became the youth Pastor when she was 21 years old, and then became an associated Pastor when she was 22. She was then appointed to lead an English speaking congregation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Ana was also in charge of the missions department in the youth ministry and helped to build the drama ministry. Additionally, she was one of the translators in her church, which led to her pre-destined meeting with Heritage Christian Center’s beloved and anointed Bishop Dennis Leonard. Ana was speaking as the translator in Mexico for Bishop Leonard, and by the special Grace of God was invited by Pastor Dennis to come to Denver to help to build Heritage Hispana in this wonderful church family of HCC. Since then, she leads the Hispanic congregation of Heritage Hispana, and in only 3 years it has became one of the largest Hispanic churches of the state of Colorado, with more than 600 families in weekly attendance.

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Minister Blessitt traveled the world as a young man, and has been to 64 counties all over the world sharing Christ. He is the son of Evangelist Arthur Blessitt, and has been blessed to witness many people come to Christ all over the globe. Even though he witnessed those wonderful transformations, he chose to live most of his adult life in the world. While Joel always trusted that God was with him, he was, at the same time, not putting God first in his life. But, with all thanks to the special Grace of God, Minister Joel is an integral part of the HCC ministry today!

Joel began serving God in 2001 at Celebration Church in New Orleans, LA. It was a small, group-oriented church, and he volunteered to be an intern there. Over several years, he rose to the position of Community Pastor. He managed a section of small groups, and ministered to, recruited and trained group leaders. Joel finally felt that he was where God wanted him to be! Little did he know that God had a huge change in store: Hurricane Katrina. It was one of the toughest challenges in his life, but God brought him through and delivered him to Heritage Christian Center. Minister Joel gives thanks to God everyday for bringing him here to the family of HCC. He was appointed the honor of starting a small groups Ministry at Heritage called “Connect Groups.” Connect reaches people through small groups of many kinds, all for the glory of God! Joel gives praise to God for the many doors He has opened, and for the boldness that he has provided to go through them.

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Pastor Arthur and Denise Blessitt are greatly blessed to be serving Jesus and the congregation of Heritage Christian Center. Pastor Arthur Blessitt is perhaps best known for his around-the-world trek carrying a wooden cross. Starting in 1969, Arthur began to carry a 12-foot cross in every country on Earth, totaling 307 nations, island groups and territories on every continent around the world. Arthur has walked a distance equal to 1 ½ times around the world at the equator -- 37,352 miles -- for the world’s longest walk according the Guinness Book of World Records. As Arthur says, “Jesus did it!” Arthur and Denise are still carrying the cross as they complete the last few remaining island groups; they will then have carried the cross in every major inhabited island group in the world.

Here in Denver, the Blessitts minister and serve with the missions and outreach at HCC, sharing Jesus and helping to train others to reach our world for Jesus. Arthur’s love and hearts desire is to share Jesus with people all over the world. He loves to pray with people, and see the mighty works of Jesus in action: salvation, healing, blessings and people’s hearts being turned to become true followers of Christ.

Arthur is the father of seven children and eight grandchildren, and he greatly enjoys being a husband, father, grandfather and friend of all. The Blessitts dearly love Pastor Dennis and Michele Leonard, and find it an honor to be based at Heritage as they reach out to the world together.

Denise Blessitt was born and raised in the UK, and after completing her convent education she studied in Cambridge. She then worked in London for the CEO of one of the largest companies in Great Britain. Her dream, though, was to go to the world ministering the Word of Jesus. That dream came true when she married Arthur, and she has now traveled with him and the cross in over 260 nations and island groups. She assists him on the walk, and drives ahead with water and supplies for the trip. Her passion is studying the Bible and being the mother of their young daughter, Sophia. Sophia’s passion is laying hands on people and praying for them.

The Blessitts love the beautiful people at HCC and Denver, and look forward to meeting new friends who come to worship and serve God at Heritage Christian Center.

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Pastor Greg serves along with Pastor Dianna and a dedicated team of Pastors, Ministers, and leaders in the “Celebrate Life!” Ministries. Celebrate Life! includes: Celebrate Recovery, Connect and Activity Groups, and our HCC Relationship and Enrichment Series. He is a dedicated believer in Jesus Christ, and through God’s grace and mercy, Pastor Greg is a living testament to daily victory over alcoholism, drugs, and sex issues. His recovery date is August 8, 1988. God has been tremendously faithful, taking Pastor Greg’s life, formerly devastated by poor choices and sin, and transforming him through His Presence, His Word, loving people, and a biblical path of recovery and renewal. Pastor Greg is blessed to be living a life of incredible purpose, service, and usefulness. Miracles are a present reality, and Pastor Greg believes that he is a living testimony to that fact!

At Celebrate Life!, we have walked the paths of life, and are here to share our experience, strength, and hope with anyone who is looking to make changes in their life. The Word says, “Freely have you received, freely give.” Therefore, we want to encourage all who are seeking more in their life to begin to trust God, to clean house, and to help others. If you will enter into vital union with God, seek Him, and do the things we suggest, you cannot fail! Life will become satisfying and meaningful, beyond anything you can think or imagine, as the Word promises.

We know that broken relationships can be set straight, wounds healed, and shattered lives can be made whole. Pastor Greg and the Celebrate Life! Ministry invites you to join them for an amazing spiritual journey with the Lord! We know that God will show us the path and bring life in abundance. He has done it for us, and He will do it for you!

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring the Good News to the suffering and afflicted. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted, to announce liberty to the captives, and to open the eyes of the blind. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of God’s favor to them has come, and the day of His wrath to their enemies. To all who mourn in Israel, He will give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, and praise instead of heaviness, for God has planted them like strong, graceful oaks for His own glory. Isaiah 61: 1 – 3 (NLT)

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Pastor Dianna is an integral part of the “Celebrate Life!” Ministry team. She is a dedicated believer in Jesus Christ, and through His grace and mercy, she has daily victory over alcohol, prescription drugs, and sex addictions. She still struggles with sugar/starch addiction and overspending. Her recovery anniversary is July 11, 1987. She is called to the recovery ministry because she has lived through the pain and suffering of addiction; in turn, she also celebrates and knows recovery, because she has been living and learning about recovery for 20 years.

Pastor Dianna and husband Pastor Greg are the proud parents of five children and seven grandchildren. Pastors continue to work on their healing and the healing of their family. It is truly a blessing for them to help others in the Celebrate Recovery ministry.

Celebrate Recovery is based on the 12-steps and the Word of God. Jesus Christ is our Higher Power, our ever-present Healer, and we declare that boldly in our meetings. Pastor Dianna is passionate about her work in the recovery ministry. She truly wants others to receive the gift that has been so freely given to her. Pastor Dianna wants you to know that your life will look very different when you come into recovery: you no longer have to live the old life of pain and struggle, because by the grace of God, a new life is waiting for you. You only need to make the decision to come to our meetings, and we will walk with you every step of the way!

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.

Jeremiah 29: 11-14 (NKJV)

So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust,My great army which I sent among you.

Joel 2:25 (NKJV)

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Robin Angela Stiff Ministry Specialist, Celebrate Life

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. (John 15:7)

This is the good news and the promise that I live for every day. What a joy my life has become - with the knowledge and the understanding that my Father in heaven wants nothing more than to bless me with the desires of my heart! My employment with Heritage Christian Center’s “Celebrate Life Ministry” is absolutely God’s promotion of epic proportion for me. I am so happy to be able to use my gifts of empathy and mercy in service to the Lord. My greatest passion is to be working in cooperation with my God-given purpose. We help the most discouraged person find the amazing gifts of God’s love, mercy, grace, forgiveness, and unearned favor, and also find him or herself renewed and restored in the process. I have no question that God’s healing power can turn a life around and make it whole again. I look forward to my growth as I continue to serve a loving, faithful, and present God. The Celebrate Life Ministry will assist you in planting seeds of healing into your life. And I have witnessed that by providing accountability, support, and the wisdom of the Word, those seeds will take root and grow. This is who I am in Christ!

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