A Global Mission Built on Local Leadership
For more than 30+ years, Christ For the City International has partnered with local leaders to serve cities through the Gospel.
We believe lasting transformation happens when people within a community are empowered to lead the work themselves. That’s why most of our missionaries are nationals serving in their own countries — bringing deep cultural understanding and long-term commitment.
Today, CFCI works through a network of ministries that serve both spiritual and practical needs, including discipleship, youth outreach, medical care, education, and community development.
Together with partners like you, we are working toward a vision where:
No place is without a witness.
No church is without a vision.
No person is without hope.
No Place Without a
Witness
Ministries that focus on the needs of the community
No Church Without a
Vision
Ministries that help the local church clarify and fulfill their vision
No Person Without
Hope
Ministries that help provide hope to hurting people
How It Started
Christ For the City International began with a simple belief: when the Gospel takes root in a city, everything can change.
What started as a single ministry effort has grown into a global movement serving communities across multiple continents. Over the years, CFCI has expanded through partnerships with local churches, national missionaries, and volunteers who share a passion for seeing lives transformed through Jesus.
Today, that vision continues to grow as new leaders rise up and new cities are reached.
OUR DNA
STATEMENT OF FAITH
- We believe in one God, Creator and Sustainer of the universe, who eternally exists in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- We believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is fully God and fully man. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on the cross for the sins of the world, was raised bodily and exalted to God’s right hand where He makes intercession for His own. He will personally come again.
- We believe that God created humankind, male and female, in His own image. However, all creation suffers the consequences of the fall and is under God’s judgment.
- We believe that God has ordained marriage and defined it as the covenant relationship between one man and one woman. Therefore we will only recognize marriages between one biological man and one biological woman, and sex (gender) is defined by their sexual identity at birth. Gen. 2:18-25
- We believe that because of His love, God sent His Son Jesus Christ, who inaugurated His Kingdom, provided atonement for sin, disarmed the powers and authorities, triumphing over them by the cross, reconciling the world to Himself. He will consummate His Kingdom in righteousness, power, and glory.
- We believe in the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, who glorifies Jesus Christ, working in all peoples to bring them to believe and obey Christ. The Spirit dwells in those who believe, equipping and empowering them for lives of holiness and fruitful service.
- We believe the Bible to be the divinely inspired and authoritative Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice.
- We believe that all who repent and believe in Christ are born into life eternal, delivered from condemnation, and as His Church are called to communicate the Gospel, proclaim the Kingdom, make disciples of all nations, and seek to be instruments of His righteousness, justice, and healing, all to the glory of God.
- We believe in the resurrection of the body, the eternal blessedness of believers in the presence of Christ and the eternal separation of unbelievers from Him.
MISSIOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES
- The centrality of the Church in God’s plan for the world.
- The importance of the unity of the Body of Christ and the consequent obligations of recognition, love, and cooperation incumbent upon its members, transcending their ecclesiastical relationships and their particular interpretation of nonessential distinctives.
- An openness to the working of the Holy Spirit as He reveals Himself in various ways among God’s people and in the world.
- The primacy of evangelism carried out through the mobilization of the Church, using all believers and resources.
- A clear recognition of the demonstration of Christian love and social responsibility as an aspect of the mission of the Church.
- A recognition of the need of the worldwide Church to express the Gospel in the context of its own cultural background and contemporary situation.
- A commitment to administrative integrity in relation to God, to missionaries, to churches in the Anglo and non-Anglo worlds, to individual constituencies, and to cooperating institutions.
CORE VALUES
Community over Individualism
We are better together. We choose to live sacrificially for the sake of the gospel, to empower others rather than seek our own success. This is not a solo journey — it is a shared calling. And in a world that often celebrates individualism, we choose community, collaboration, and Christ-centered unity.
- We aspire to lead through doing.
- We are committed to helping God’s people find His will for their lives.
- We aspire to love and deeply respect the spouses God has given us (if married).
- We affirm the family as God’s primary vehicle for the training and nurturing of His children.
Being Before Doing
Our daily pursuit is to be like Christ — not just in what we do, but in who we are. Disciple-making is not a department — it is our identity. And we do not walk this path alone — we love His bride, the Church, and we serve her with joy.
- We aspire to be Christ-like in purpose, character and ministry.
- We aspire to grow in our understanding, experience and anointing of the Holy Spirit.
- We aspire to. worship God in Spirit and in Truth.
Accountability and Integrity
We work hard. We do what we say. We speak truth with grace, and we lead with authenticity. Vulnerability is not weakness — it is strength in the hands of God. This is how trust is built, and how transformation takes root.
- We are committed to working hard.
- We aspire to live sacrificially for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
A Hunger for Impact
Each of us is a co-owner of the mission. We are not spectators — we are participants in God’s redemptive work. We are here to clear away the clouds that obscure His kingdom, and to invite others into the light.
- We are committed to the Word of God and affirm the need to apply its truth to culture, using creative methods and relevant terms.
- We embrace Christ’s Great Commission as our mandate and the Great Commandment as our guide.
- We are committed to building the Kingdom of God.
How We Serve Cities
Through our global network of ministries, we focus on:
Jake Hjemvick
CEO & PRESIDENT
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness.”
- Lamentations 3:22-23
- Lamentations 3:22-23
Shawn Bettes
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
“But as for me, it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works."
- Psalm 73:28
- Psalm 73:28
Barbara Rowe
Executive Director of Missions
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”
- 2 Timothy 1:7
- 2 Timothy 1:7
Rachel Tonhorai
Director of Mission Teams
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
- Philippians 4:13
- Philippians 4:13
Becky Hjemvick
Bookkeeper
"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."
- Philippians 4:13
- Philippians 4:13
Lindsay Blake
Advancement Projects Manager
"But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second."
- Hebrews 8:6-7
- Hebrews 8:6-7
Josue Sanchez and Nicole Vargas
Communication Specialists
"He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers.”
-Exodus 35:35
-Exodus 35:35
Mario and Xochil Amador
Missionary Care
"Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.”
-Philippians 2:4-5
-Philippians 2:4-5
Be Part of the Story
God is moving in cities around the world — and you can be part of what He’s doing. Whether you go, give, or pray, your partnership helps bring hope to communities and share the Gospel with people who need it most.
Stories & Resources for the Journey
Real stories, practical tips, and tools to help you take your next step.
Social Media
Like us on our Christ For the City International Facebook page and follow us on Instagram (@Christforthecityintl)
