My Story

I grew up in Nebraska and lived there until I went to college at MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, KS.  My parents are both volunteer youth pastors in their church and have been in that position for around 25 years.  Youth ministry is their passion, and growing up in a house surrounded by it, I developed a passion for ministry as well.

 

I knew from a young age that God was calling me to be a missionary.  It was honestly something that I rarely doubted.  The call grew stronger the older I became, but the lessons I needed to learn grew more difficult as well.  Especially during my college years, I had many experiences that stretched, molded, and shaped me.  I had the opportunity to travel to South Africa as a representative of the United States in a global leadership conference, serve as a missionary intern in Ecuador for seven weeks, and teach English in the Dominican Republic for three and a half months.  I served on a ministry team for a summer at Mount Rushmore National Memorial and worked with inner-city kids for three and a half years.  God has opened several doors for ministry over the past few years, but I have found that I have walked away having gained more than perhaps I ever gave away.

I have learned that even God-given visions must be laid on the altar of sacrifice.  So often I have chased after the dreams God gave me and left Him in the dust.  He then brings me back and calls me closer to Him, reminding me that it is Him that I serve, not His plan.  It is He who is my love, the passion of my life.  He is the treasure worth giving everything I have to possess.  What an honor it is that we could know Him; not just who He is, but know His heart.

So many times I have broken down, and there was a time when I gave up my calling.  God chased me down in a supernatural way and reminded me that He called me to be a missionary, not because of what I could do for Him, but because He wanted me.  I saw myself as useless and a hindrance.  He saw me as His child.  I learned that it is not what I do for Him that defines my worth; I am worth it to Him just as I am, and He proved that when He died on the cross.  Even before I cared about Him or gave Him my heart, He loved me and He gave all of Himself for me.  Therefore, I no longer serve Him out of obligation or the need to repay a debt I feel I owe Him.  I serve Him from the center of me, out of His love that overflows, filled by His Spirit.

This past year of living in Nashville has been a time of refining, growth, and discovery.  I am no longer the scared child I was for so many years.  God has taught me so much about faith and His trustworthiness with the unknown in my life.  He is always at work, often times much deeper inside my heart than I knew existed in me.  He knows me far better than I even know myself, and He believes in me more than I think He should sometimes.  I am learning more every day how to shed the lies of insecurity and fear that I have believed for so long and to put on the truth that God proclaims over me.

In April, God presented an idea to me that I stubbornly tried to ignore.  However, if you’ve ever tried to duke it out with Almighty God of the Universe, you know that it is a battle you can’t win.  A friend of mine began recruiting me for a program in South America through Extreme Nazarene Ministries.  It started out as a simple trip to a coffee shop, then over the course of a couple weeks became something that I couldn’t get out of my mind.  Finally, I gave in and applied for the program and during my interview in June, God confirmed His call that I will be going to South America in September.  What an overwhelming decision that was, knowing that it would take nothing short of a miracle to be able to pull that off in just a couple short months.  However, I also know that He is more than able to do anything, and He loves the word “Impossible”.  He will not call me to something that He will not come through on, and I am trusting His heart to do this big and enormous thing that He has promised.

We will be moving to Arequipa, Peru in mid-September and will attend language school and training for the next five and a half months.  In March, we will arrive in our new home in Ecuador and serve for at least two years.  We will be given the task of evangelism, with the goal of planting thriving churches and cell groups throughout the city in which we will be living.  Each of us from the United States (there will be 4-5 of us) will be partnered one on one with an Ecuadorian that will serve with us throughout our time there.  If you would like more information, please contact me through Facebook, Twitter, or the email address below.  I would love to talk to you!

Probably one of the most amazing parts of going into missions full-time is the opportunity that I have to partner with people in the United States and around the world both financially and through prayer.  Everyone who has done missions knows that there is always fundraising involved.  However, when it is done right, it involves the development of a relationship and the sharing of two journeys in ministry.  So many people that I know are passionate about missions but are not able to move to another country to live and serve.  However, they have the opportunity to support me as I go, and I in turn have the opportunity to share not only what God is doing on the field but also learn in greater depth what God is doing in the lives of my supporters.

Would you be interested in being one of my supporters?  There are a few different ways that you can.  You can support me with a one-time donation.  These are important as I need around $4,000 physically in the bank to be able to leave.  The big thing I would like for you to consider, however, is supporting me monthly while I am on the field.  It costs a little more than $1,000 per month to live there, and I am excited about the opportunity I have to build strong relationships with those who would pledge to regularly support me.  I must have around $37,000 pledged in order to go.  This cost covers all our living and travel expenses as well as language school for the next two and a half years.  For more information, you can visit my profile on Extreme’s website at:  www.extremenazarene.org/weber.  On this website, you can also sign up to be a prayer partner, and I will add you to my newsletter list.  You can also email me personally at cweber@extremenazarene.org.

Thank you so much for being a part of my story, and I look forward to sharing in yours as well!  God is doing amazing things in this world, and we are so blessed to play a role, however small, in this great dream of His.  May His Kingdom come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven!  For His is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever, AMEN!