Christians call it the
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Great Commission,
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a teaching of Jesus emphasizing mission work and evangelism.
Christians call it the “Great Commission,” a teaching of Jesus emphasizing mission work and evangelism. Twenty centuries ago Jesus of Nazareth told his followers, in Matthew’s gospel: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Responding to this command, San Martin resident Nicole Duarte left her family and job as a vice president of a geological firm in Campbell for a nine days in October. She flew to Cancun, Mexico, to meet up with some other missionaries from her brother-in-law’s church in Monroe, North Carolina. Then they drove south for three hours to reach their destination.
Carrillo Puerto is a relatively prosperous small town in Quintana Roo state, a part of the country known as “La Zona Maya” because it is the area where the ancient Mayan civilization flourished.
They arrived at Sandra’s House (www.sandrashouse.org), a relatively large compound that hosts missionaries on a regular basis. It is presided over by a local Mexican pastor who supports the indigenous ministers in the surrounding villages.
Duarte’s time was busy as she participated in many activities designed to spread the Christian faith among local residents.
There were daily “prayer walks” during which members of her group would travel to neighboring villages. Then they would walk down the main streets, praying for blessings on the people living there and for successful harvests of their crops. Generally, the male villagers would be gone to work and their wives were reluctant to leave their houses, so only children would come out to greet them as they distributed bags of candy with Bible verses inside.
In the evening the missionaries would return to Sandra’s House to eat and then travel to a local church for a service. There they would provide a time of worship, testimony, a sermon by the Rev. Thom Duarte, and “altar time” when people could come up and receive prayers from the missionaries for their individual needs.
One evening they held a special “evangelistic night” in a village completely in the open. It was an outreach to villagers featuring music, puppet shows, skits, preaching and testimony. Duarte felt it was particularly successful because more than 20 villagers responded to the call and came forward to accept Jesus as their savior. Others came forward to receive prayers for healing of their illnesses and disabilities.
Nicole Duarte was deeply touched by this experience, her first travel outside of the United States. Bilingual in English and Spanish, she felt her “heart opened” as she interacted with the Mexican people. She appreciated how content they were with their lives, despite lacking the material things North Americans seem to treasure. They seemed to emphasize family and community, glad to share whatever they have.
Duarte intends to make other members of the congregation she attends in Morgan Hill, Church on the Rock (www.cotrock.org), aware of this Mexican opportunity sponsored by PT1615 Missions Ministry (www.pt1615missionsministry.com) and hopes to encourage more South County residents to become involved.
Chuck Flagg teaches English at Mt. Madonna High School. Write to him at P.O. Box 22365, Gilroy, Calif. 95021.
