Our Story

Chris's Story

When I think about how I became a Christian, John 6:44 comes to mind: "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.” At age 6 I knew something was missing in my heart. God decided to draw me in, and so when I was only a boy, I asked my father "what is happening to me?" I heard the good news that Jesus was my bridge to be with God and I believed.

I was raised in the what I would call Southern Cultural Christianity. I really felt I was a Christian because of the church I attended and the people I spent time with. God had saved me but I was not living a transformed life.

I went to Baylor University in 1987, but to show you how weak my relationship with God was, I did not even take a Bible with me. I had to buy one at the book store for my Bible classes. Then I joined a fraternity and made some other bad decisions.

One Sunday my college minister asked me to give the offertory prayer and I was still “polluted” from the night before. This was a moral turning point in my life. Knowing this lifestyle was not right, I began to take steps to move back toward the Lord. This was God's Spirit working on me, making me uncomfortable and motivating me to choose God's best for me. I realized that I should take responsibility for what I believed; I could not rely on my family or my surroundings.

I graduated from college, stayed involved in the church, and embarked upon a career in the booming cellular telephone industry. I was succeeding: 3 promotions in 6 years.

Then one day my career ambition was gone. I was walking with God during those days, depending on Him for my decisions. I struggled with God in prayer: if my purpose is not career success, then what is my purpose?

God began to show me, in bite-sized pieces that missions is a valid career choice. More importantly, he was calling me to obey Him and discover my purpose in life as I obeyed. I went on a 5 day in-state trip, then Mexico for 1 week, then Mexico again for a weekend. Then I took a sabattical from my job for 2 months in Guatemala working with Wycliffe Bible Translators.

At the end of the most exciting, restful, productive, humbling 2 months of my life, in Nov 1998 I knelt down and prayed “Lord I will do this if you want me to, BUT I don’t want to go alone.” At almost the same time, the Lord beginning preparing a young lady to be my wife – but that’s her story. . .

In 2000, another promotion moved me from Texas back to Tennessee. Maybe you can see what I couldn’t at this point - that I was firmly in denial about what the Lord wanted me to do.

Beverly and I met in connection with a mission trip to Italy that she went on. We became friends – I really looked forward to seeing her, talking to her, and honestly I was just very taken by her. What finally allowed me to ask her out on a date was when I found out she was interested in missions also. So our first date was on Valentine's Day 2001.

God provided a like-minded spouse to say clearly: "Don't you finally get it. I called you, I'm equipping you, and my dear Son, I need you to obey."

The thought I want to leave you with is this: being sinful and short-sighted, I lack perspective on many things about my life. But I do not doubt for a second my calling to be a missionary. When I have moved in obedience, however reluctantly, toward being a vocational missionary He has always met me there.

At this point in my life I seek to make Jesus Christ the focus of my life. I do fail, but I recognize that my priorities are: 1) to love Christ and seek His kingdom 2) to love my wife as Christ loved the church 3) everything else.

Beverly's Story

[The following testimony was published in the West End Community Church women's newsletter]
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My name is Beverly Crowder. I have attended West End Community Church since June of 2002. I wanted to share my story with the women of West End Community Church. In 1995 I got a divorce from my then abusive husband. I thought my life was ending. I had been married for 4 and half years and had dated him for 3 years before marrying. It was the classic case of as soon as we got married he changed. Some of the signs were there before we married, but they were very subtle.

Before this experience I knew about the Lord and had attended church since I was 12 years of age, but I did not have a relationship with Him. After praying for so long that my ex-husband would change, I finally started praying that the Lord would change me. And boy did He! I learned that my body is the Lord’s temple and should be cherished and not abused. I also learned that to love others as myself, I had to learn how to love myself. I had a huge change in self-esteem, and the Lord started making me a leader instead of a follower. I began reading His word and He began writing it on my heart.

I gave my life over to the Lord, and He started calling me to missions in 1998. I committed my life to missions as a single female in November of 2000. But, lo and behold, even though I was willing to sacrifice being a married missionary, the Lord brought my husband Chris Crowder into my life in December of 2000. The Lord asks us to be willing to sacrifice everything, and I had been willing.

Now the Lord has directed us through many steps of preparation for the mission field starting in 2001. We are preparing to go to Sudan in May of 2005. We start training October 23rd in North Carolina and have just sold our house and dispersed our belongings. Again being willing to give everything up is a common theme with the Lord. He loves us and expects us to love Him first and foremost above ALL other things.

Matthew 6:33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
1Cor2:9 “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.”

Last updated on April 04, 2008 01:57 PM.