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Pastor Craig,
Theresa & family
Craig's
father abandoned his mother before Craig was born. Craig was raised by
his mother until the age of 6, when the alcoholism that plagued her
life finally took it. After his mother's death, Craig was passed back
and forth between his aunt and his grandmother who took care of him
when there was no one else.
Craig grew
up a very angry and insecure young man. He started to do
drugs when he was 11 in an effort to numb the pain of an empty and
lonely life. He began selling drugs at school in 7th grade after his
best friend's dad introduced him to the possibility. Craig was good at
selling drugs and made a lot of money. He thought he had found his
purpose in life.
But the more
money he made, the emptier he got. When Craig was a senior
in high school, he and some friends were getting high one day. Craig
asked them if they were happy. They didn't answer on their own behalf,
but said "Aren't you happy? You should be. You have two cars, two
motorcycles, and twenty grand in the bank." The more they talked about
all that he had, the emptier he felt.
One night
when Craig was doing LSD, he heard voices in his head telling
him to kill himself. So he put a gun to his head and was about to pull
the trigger. At that moment, he heard a voice that he had never heard
before. It said, "Craig, where are you going?" Right then Craig knew
that he could go from a life of "hell on earth" to literal Hell.
So he got
down on his knees and said, "Lord, I hate my life. But, if
you can do something with my life, then it's Yours." And Craig's life
has never been the same. God instantly delivered him from the addiction
of drugs and alcohol.
Craig knew
there were a lot of hurting kids like him out there, so he
started to share his testimony with youth groups in his hometown. Many
people knew his reputation as a "hellion", and came to know Christ as a
result of the miraculous changes in his life. Craig shared all that
Christ had done for him and told the youth that He could do the same
for them if they would trust in Him as their Lord and Savior.
From the day
he got saved, Craig knew, like the Apostle Paul, that he
was to share the Gospel fearlessly.
For 20
years, Craig has had the privilege of helping hurting kids like
himself as a youth pastor. He feels incredibly blessed with the
opportunity to participate in this work of God by pastoring Calvary
Chapel Oro Valley. God has blessed Craig with a godly wife, Theresa and
4 beautiful children. God is faithful and His promises are true. Craig
is a living testimony of God's grace and mercy. |
