HE SAID : CRAIG WHITE
BASICALLY , it all started with CMA . In 1999 , I ended up being with a bunch of CMA ’ ers at a HOG rally in Missouri . They were so much fun that I had to find out more about CMA and what it meant to be Christian and “ born again .” At that time , I was one of the lost . Just living for my own pleasure , doing what I wanted .
Long story short , I ended up transferring to California , finding a church , being saved and baptized there , then transferring back to Missouri in 2000 , where I met Threasa . I quickly figured out she was the one for me . A beautiful , smart , funny , and Godly woman that God had planned for me to marry . We got married in February of 2001 . We had good jobs , a house , cars , bikes , and hobbies that filled our time . It sure seemed like we were blessed . But we were not really doing anything for the Lord . Sure , we were saved and churchgoers , but not much more .
Well , I came across a flyer for a CMA chapter one day , and we got involved . Seriously involved . We both caught the vision of CMA and jumped into the ministry fully . In our chapter , we both held officer positions and eventually ended up as Area Reps for Southeast
Missouri . Both of us were committed to “ Whatever you want us to do Lord , we will do .”
I was dissatisfied at work after spending 19 years at the same place , eventually losing all of my staff to downsizing and office closings . I prayed , “ God , I ’ m too comfortable here . Good money , lots of vacation , but no satisfaction . I want to do something meaningful , but you ’ re going to have to make me leave .” My prayer was answered in June 2014 , but not how I imagined it . After 19 years there , my position was eliminated . Well , that was not how I planned for this to go .
I had some severance coming , so I didn ’ t have to start looking for a new job right away , and Threasa knew it was going to be a challenge for me to figure out “ what ’ s next ,” so she suggested I ride down to Hatfield and volunteer at CMA for a while . That sounded like a great idea , so off I went on my bike . Hello , God ’ s plan .
While volunteering , I got to talk to many people and share my story . They all said I should talk to Clint , the IT manager . It took a while , but I finally met Clint at chapel on Wednesday morning . After chapel , we talked for about an hour and a half about our lives , CMA stuff , and the types of work we had done . I went back to folding shirts , and later Clint came out and asked if I had a resume I could send him . I said sure , not really thinking anything of it . Later that night , while talking with Threasa , I mentioned the resume and that I may have just had an interview . She immediately said , “ No , you did not . I ’ m not moving to Arkansas .” Well , I ended up getting an offer , and after praying over it , we decided we needed to continue to follow where God led , even if we didn ’ t know how we could afford it .
I started working at the CMA Support Center on September 1 , 2014 , at a third of my former salary . Threasa also came on board at CMA as the Run for the Son Coordinator in 2015 at less than half of her former salary . With both of us taking such a salary cut , how would we survive ? What would we need to give up or do without ? The answer was nothing . We believe God called us both here , and He has provided for us each step of the way .
All the bills are paid , we have all we need , and time together . And we are working in jobs that have a meaningful impact on lives for the Kingdom each day . Now , we are truly blessed .