Graduate Profile: Victor Claudio

My name is Victor Claudio, and I was born and raised in the small state of Rhode Island. I've been married for almost 20 years to my lovely wife Suhylah, a true gift from God. The Lord has blessed us with two children, our daughter Isabella and our son Isaiah.

The most important event in my life was when the Lord saved me back in February 2009. I stumbled across the preaching of Paul Washer on YouTube when the Lord grabbed a whole of me and changed my life. By the kindness of God, without my permission, the Lord granted me repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth. I remember very specifically the joy I experienced when first reading Romans 8:29, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become CONFORMED to the image of His Son.” It was here where God made it clear to me that “salvation is of the Lord.” With this new-found joy in Christ and the fruits of a changed life, as one hymn writer penned, “I left the dungeon, flamed with light.”

Having experienced firsthand that the Scriptures are that which gives light, my life became consumed with the study of God’s Word (Ezra 7:10). Very early on, the Lord opened the doors of Reformed theology to me, and I recognized even more that God is sovereign, and He does all things for His own glory.

The Lord bestowed upon me a desire for the ministry during the time of membership in my first Reformed Baptist church. It was a very small congregation with only one elder who also had commitments to the US military.

It was during this time providentially the Lord opened multiple opportunities for me to serve Him with the measure of faith given to me. Though I felt it was not my place to take on such a role, the Lord, without my permission, enlarged my heart even more to serve Him by caring for His sheep.

It was during the exercise of the gifts and graces that God gave me, that Pastor Robert Ventura, who has been my pastor for the past 15 years, encouraged me to enroll in Reformed Baptist Seminary. With a poor education as a result of prioritizing the street life, this was no easy task.

However, through the sorrow of one church split, working 50+ hours a week, along with seminary studies in the evening, after prioritizing my wife and children, the Lord has sustained me through it all. I found that His grace is sufficient.

Seeing the Lord's mercy to me, I no longer see my life as my own, for I have been bought with a price. My heart is to be His royal throne.

I am grateful to God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, first and foremost for His goodness and kindness towards me and saving me. I am also grateful for the pastors that He has given me, pastors Robert Ventura and Jack Buckley who have been great examples and mentors. I am also grateful for the brethren that the Lord has placed in my life at Grace Community Baptist Church in North Providence, Rhode Island. I found their encouragement and prayers most beneficial to me.

With all these matters, I rejoice in the Lord’s goodness to me.

S.D.G.