About us
Teri Bickford
Teri's first tour to the Holy Land was in 2010. She has been back 17 times since then!!!
Although Teri enjoyed her first tour to Israel, she really felt that something was missing. She wanted to have a more personal, life changing, spiritual experience. Teri wanted to feel the presence of the Lord as she visited His Holy Land. This is when God placed it upon her heart to start her own tours. Life Journey Tours was born!! This is not a business for Teri, it is her ministry. It is her desire to have everyone experience a walk where Jesus walked, to see the places where He performed His many miracles, to sit where Jesus taught the Word of God. In 2015 Teri took her first group to Israel. Even though she organizes the tour, it is not TERI'S TOUR, it is the people who accompany her, it's THEIR TOUR. She loves to have those in her group share their testimonies, pray, lead worship songs and even dance!! Teri encourages the group to teach devotions at the Holy sites. She wants everyone to be fully immersed and experience all that the Holy Land has to offer. We start at the northern tip of Israel around the area of the Sea of Galilee and travel all the way down south to the Dead Sea. In recent years we added an excursion to Petra, Jordan. This is an awesome addition to the tour.
Teri has the most wonderful tour guides who live in Jerusalem. She has known them for 12 years. They are licensed, experienced, and they take the very best care of us. Teri has also had the privilege of having an amazing staff who joins her each year as we make our pilgrimage to The Holy Land.
Pastor Joel Toppen is a wealth of information. He is an AMAZING teacher of the Word of God. He is a wise and knowledgeable servant of the Lord. Pastor Joel brings the Bible to life as he teaches and explains the scriptures to us. Gloire Ndongala, who is an Apostle for Christ, is on hand to minister and reveal the Holy Spirit to us. He brings a spark of enthusiasm to everything he does. He is on fire for the Lord and it shows!! Gloire is our ray of sunshine. Tanya Harper is Teri's right hand gal!! She is always making sure that everyone in the group stays together and is present and accounted for. Teri truly does not know what she would do without the help of these wonderful people.
Teri love the Holy Land, she never grows tired of visiting there. She wants to invite everyone to join, it is safe, the people are very welcoming and it is truly the "Trip of a Lifetime".
Believe her when she says.......
"You will never be the same!!!"
Tanya Harper
Tanya Harper has been traveling to Israel with Teri since 2017. In 2016 Teri invited her to join Life Journey Tours. Teri shared all the wonderful reasons why she had already been there several times. Tanya had already been considering going on a trip with another ministry, but after visiting with Teri and praying she felt that she was supposed to join. She was so thankful she did, not only did she had a wonderful time, but she also met many amazing people that quickly became family.
The Bible was brought to life in an even deeper revelation than she had already experienced. Being able to walk where Jesus walked and experience the culture of the people in the country, Tanya was able to experience first hand the real life in Israel from her own experiences and not how the media portrays it there. While in Bethlehem the Holy Spirit showed Tanya that she was to offer Teri her help in doing her ministry. Excitement filled her heart with the thought of being able to do so. Mentioning it to her the next day, Teri welcomed her with open arms.
Since then, Jesus has built an entire team to provide the experience he wants for his people to enjoy on his tour. Teri is the most amazing at setting up every detail of the tour, she puts so much love into every single thing that we do. She truly has a heart to reveal Jesus to people the way he has led her to. We are also so blessed to have Pastor Joel and Apostle Gloire join us. They bring life to each stop with detailed accounts of the Biblical teachings that occurred there. Pastor Joel has a huge knowledge of history which also adds so much insight and detail. The Gospel is walked out each day as we travel through the countryside. We have been able to witness so many events of Jesus working through miracles of healings and deliverances. Jesus always does so many amazing things within our group and within the people that he has cross our paths.
Tanya is so excited to be part of this ministry helping God’s people see the Holy Land. Her part is helping Teri travel to share the tour and help with fundraisers during the year to pay for our pastors to be able to join us. In 2020 Holy Spirit showed Tanya that we were to do videos of the tour, which he very quickly provided for us just as he does. Jesus opened the door for a wonderful young man, Kyle Pettis who was able to join us on our next tour. He did an amazing job with all the videos and the website you are on now. God always provides the way for whatever he wants to have accomplished and Kyle was that blessing. While in Israel Tanya is the shepherd of the group and helps Teri and our guide with anything that she can. Paying attention so no sheep wander off and get lost. Each year Tanya has witnessed so many extraordinary things and has met so many loving people that have become family. God has used this ministry to heal her in many ways, she is so thankful and blessed to be part of his plan. Tanya is looking forward to joining you in the Holy Land--
Pastor Joel Toppen
Since 2015, Joel Toppen has been pastoring the Four Winds Assembly of God church on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Browning, Montana. After meeting Teri in nearby Cut Bank, Pastor Joel has been travelling to Israel with Life Journey Tours since 2017. He combines passion for ancient history with his love of the Word of God. Pastor Joel’s on-site teachings help to make the Bible come alive on Life Journey Tours!
Pastor Joel also brings his love of adventure on our tours. Whether it’s climbing the Jewish stronghold of Masada, exploring the caves of Mount Arbel in Galilee, or hiking to the high places at Petra, for those who are so inclined, he is always eager to ensure that your trip to the Holy Land will be one you will never forget!
Apostle Gloire Ndongala
Gloire Emmanuel Ndongala was born in the Capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa. When he was a child, the tyrant Mobutu came after his father. By the grace of God, they all escaped and came to America. Between the ages of 14 and 15, his father abandoned his family and he was taken in by a Hispanic family in Colorado, the Luceros.
Overcoming all these odds, Gloire managed to make it through college graduating with Bachelors in Church Ministries (Leadership), an Associates in Psychology, and an Associates of Arts in Bible. He is married to his lovely wife, Katie, and has two children: Dóxa (son) and Penayel (daughter).
Gloire is a full time minister and an author. One of the ministries he does is deliverance ministry. God has used the trips that Gloire has taken to Israel to shape his ministry and influence his books.
