Kevin Crawford: When My Parent’s Faith Became My Faith

Kevin Crawford: When My Parent’s Faith Became My Faith

Hi my name is Kevin Crawford and I live in Westford with my wife, Angela, and our 4 children, Molly, Ruthie, Cammie, and Sawyer.  We moved here from Houston, Texas in February.

My story is about God’s grace throughout my life… His kindness that I don’t deserve. 

By God’s grace, I was raised in a strong Christian home which influenced me to accept Christ at a young age.

My parents are Christians, my brothers, my sister, my grandparents, and even the majority of my extended family are Christians.  I was born in Peru when my parents were missionaries with the Christian and Missionary Alliance denomination.  We moved back to the US when I was about 3 and my father became a pastor of a church outside of Portland, Oregon.  I prayed one night to accept Jesus as my savior when I was about 6 because I knew I was a sinner and needed to be cleansed from my sins and I wanted to go to heaven.

We moved to Southern California when I was 8 where my father became an associate pastor at my grandparents’ church and I was later baptized.  As I grew older, I was never fully committed to living a Christian life and I no longer wanted to attend church, but my parents required that I go.  I was more interested in being accepted by the kids at school than living for Christ.  But God changed me…

By God’s grace, He provided strong Christian influences which led me to fully commit my life to Christ.

After living briefly in a rural town in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Northern California, we moved to Stockton, California where I spent my High School years.  Due to my sister and I being negatively influenced by non-Christian kids, my parents put us into a Christian school.  We attended a new church with a youth group of strong Christian kids.  These changes led to my desire to fully commit my life to Christ.  During a chapel service at school, I was convicted of the sin in my life and re-dedicated my life to Jesus.

I graduated high school and left California to attend a Christian university, LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas to study Mechanical Engineering.  I made some strong Christian friends and my relationship with God was no longer my parent’s faith and became my faith.

By God’s grace, He has always provided everything I needed

After graduation, I returned to Stockton and started working for my Christian High School as a computer teacher.  After a couple years of teaching, I desired to leave teaching to work in a field closer to my degree.  I quit my job at the end of the school year and prayed that God would provide a job.  I received a job offer right after receiving my last pay check.

I worked for a company in the San Jose area and then transferred to Portland, Oregon.  After some business trips to Boston, I got re-aquatinted with Angela who I met in college.  We got engaged and she moved to Oregon and we got married shortly thereafter on Mount Hood. 

I was laid off from my job and we decided to relocate to Massachusetts to be closer to Angela’s family and due to a better job market.  Within a couple weeks of moving I was working again.

When we were told we couldn’t have children, God gave us four kids.

When we were struggling financially, God provided a good paying job in Texas.

When we needed a good church home in Texas, God provided the right church for Angela and I, and our kids to grow.

When it didn’t make sense to leave Texas, God led us back to Massachusetts.  Leaving Texas was an extremely difficult decision.  It didn’t make sense financially or make sense to leave our friends and our church.  Even in the challenges of the move, I felt God’s leading and knew this is where God wanted us.  I’m amazed at how God led us to find a home in Westford, and how the kids have adjusted to life here.

While I was writing my faith story, I looked back at my life and I’m amazed at how God has orchestrated every step of my life.  It hasn’t been easy and many times I’ve questioned why or when, but God has always been in control.

I wasn’t saved by attending church or by being good.  I wasn’t saved by my parents’ faith.  I was saved by God’s grace.

Ephesians 2:8-10 says “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

If you have any questions about my story, please come and see me.  Thank you.