He climbed the ranks quickly and found favor with his superiors in the navy diving community; yet, he was empty and troubled. Assigned as a 2^nd Class Diver onboard the U.S.S. McKee in 1984, God surrounded him with Christians who loved him, prayed for him, and answered any questions that he had. For the entire month of May 1985 he was under conviction as a hopeless sinner doomed to eternal punishment. On June 3, 1985, after nine months of Christian witness and conviction from the Holy Spirit, Jon searched out one of the Christians, Electrician’s Mate 3^rd Class Vincent Lawrence. Jon asked Vince to pray for him because if Jon didn't repent, he knew he'd be eternally lost; yet, he knew that he couldn't possibly repent until God changed him and made him capable of repenting. Vince invited him to kneel and pray with him. They knelt together in the divers’ berthing compartment and Jon prayed the while Vince was praying, God convicted Jon of his utterly wretched, sinful life, and how God poured out His just and righteous wrath upon His holy Son, Jesus Christ. When Jon surrendered to Christ and repented from his sins, peace flooded him. He believed by faith that Christ forgave him and declared him to be in right standing with God. When Jon stood up, he knew something was different. He knew that Jesus changed him. He was a new creature in Christ, born from above, by the sovereign grace of God.

Vayahiy, Call to Ministry...

Since receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior, God had blessed Jon with being involved with some kind of ministry service or another. Prior to salvation, Jon was called up for this diving job or that one, usually at a moment’s notice. After bending his knee, however, Jon was able to serve the Lord in a number of capacities: children’s ministry in Honolulu; worship team in the Philippines; Bible studies in Japan. Interestingly, Jon seemed to “fall into” the ministry opportunities that came his way.

In 1986, assigned as a 1^st Class Diver at Mobile Diving & Salvage Unit One in Pearl Harbor, God blessed Jon with the time to serve in the children’s ministry at Calvary Chapel of Honolulu. Attending a Darrell Mansfield concert with two friends, one saved and another unsaved, a bulletin announced the need for workers in the children’s ministry. Both friends (even the unsaved one!) suggested that Jon call about helping out. Calling the following week, Johnny Potter told Jon to show up on Sunday morning. “Don’t you want to pray about it first?” Jon asked. Johnny said, “We have been, brother, and you called.” Jon was the assistant to the kindergarten church for the first three weeks and immediately had to start teaching the class when circumstances called the husband/wife teaching team away.

In 1989 Jon merely wanted to be a blessing to Calvary Chapel of Olongapo City by purchasing a guitar for the church. Pastor Mike Vrooman said, “We can’t accept this gift unless it comes with the guitar player.” Thus, Jon entered worship ministry. In Japan there was a need for a Protestant Lay Leader. A sailor spoke up: “Hey, Chief Cardwell’s a Christian; how about him?” A Bible study was born.

By 1992, because of some very intense martial arts activity in years past, Jon’s knees were not holding out on the diving station as they used to. With the imminence of a medical discharge facing him, he spoke with Mike Vrooman in the Philippines and Mike said, “Come on down and see how the Lord leads you.” So in July 1993, with an honorable discharge, Jon “fell into” missionary work.

Back in the U.S. since 1995, Jon just couldn’t seem to find his ministry niche. He studied, taught Bible studies, and encouraged cross-cultural missions involvement wherever he could. While attending Calvary Chapel of Corona in 1998, the pastor of a small, independent Filipino Methodist congregation (where Jon’s mother-in-law attended) invited him to speak. Soon he was preaching there regularly and teaching a Bible study in his home. In January 2000, the Filipino congregation invited him teach regularly and to oversee their Christian educational curriculum.

Fourteen years after placing that first phone call to Johnny Potter, Jon had been involved with every sort of ministry imaginable, from cleaning bathrooms to leading Bible studies. As the years passed he wasn’t aware how God had been training him to be an under-shepherd to His flock.

By 2001, the pastor of the Filipino congregation was resigning to pursue another opportunity and Jon was invited to become their pastor. He privately told his wife that he would place his name in for their consideration but he would not accept the position unless they voted unanimously. In June 2001 the board of First Filipino Methodist Church unanimously approved of Jon as their pastor. Thus, he “fell into” the pastoral ministry.

While in that first pastorate Jon had come to realize that the Scripture verse that primarily sums up the Lord’s call of ministry for him is Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.”

As “crucified with Christ,” Jon prays that the work of ministry the Lord has blessed all of us with will be so given over unto God that the only desire of our hearts would be to delight in the LORD (Psalm 37:4). Additionally, being “crucified with Christ” means to submit to His call and be available for whatever plans and purposes God desires (Isaiah 6:8).

Ministry Influences…

A great many lives and literature have influenced Jon’s ministry over the years. Here are just a few of the most prominent (in no particular order):

• Pastor Jeff Noblit, First Baptist Church of Muscle Shoals
• Paul Washer, HeartCry Missionary Society
• Pastor John MacArthur, Grace Community Church
• Pastor Chuck Smith, Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa 
• Pastor Bill Stonebraker, Calvary Chapel of Honolulu 
• Pastor Wilson Ladringan, Bible Study & Worship Center 
• Pastor Jim D'Alessandro, Calvary Chapel of Jurupa Valley
• Pastor Mike Rodriguez, Calvary Chapel Corona
• Pastor Gayle D. Erwin, Servants Quarters 
• Chuck & Nancy Missler, Koinonia House
• Pastor Jon Courson, Searchlight
• Kent Hovind, Creation Science Evangelism 
• Brother Andrew, Open Doors International 
• Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
• A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God
• Charles H. Spurgeon
• John Bunyan
• William Guthrie
• Jonathan Edwards
• Asahel Nettleton
• Andrew Bonar
• George Muller
• John Calvin
• Louis Berkhof
• David Martyn Lloyd-Jones
• Melissa (Lisa) Cardwell, wife
• Leah Cardwell, daughter*
• Rachel Cardwell, daughter*

*Note how Lisa keeps Jon humble by naming his daughters with the same names as the daughters of the biggest crook in the Bible— Laban (Genesis 29:16).

Jon was also the guest on the Mike Corley Program aired live on WQBC radio in Vicksburg, Mississippi, March 7, 2007.  You can hear that interview by CLICKING HERE or streaming it on flash player below...

Jon also had the priviledge join Pastor Ken Silva and Pastor Paul Walker as guests of CrossTalk America with Ingrid Schlueter on February 21, 2007.  You can hear that interview by CLICKING HERE or streaming it on flash player below...