Following is a report from Tony Campos, HFC Field Coordinator and Pastor of Casa de Luz in Sacramento, CA. This illustrates our philosophy of casting vision and training Hispanics in North America to reach out to their homes in Latin America. What better missionaries are there!
Mission team from Casa de Luz.
Back in September 2011 some members of Casa de Luz in Sacramento visited a community in Mexico and came back with a burning desire to help. For the next several months they worked incessantly to motivate people and share a vision for helping a community where the church could have a significant impact. The people of San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, in Mexico have now experienced first-hand the love of Christ through the lives of believers.
What started as an idea of some individuals from Casa de Luz became a great experience for most of our church. Soon, there were people collecting school supplies, toys, bicycles and (you guessed!) soccer balls. This joy began reaching people who until now have not thought of Casa de Luz as a sending church… God had started to move in His people to be a blessing to others.
There were also some members of First Baptist Church of Elk Grove (FBC) that decided to join the adventure and became part of the team. A couple of men from FBC Men’s Ministry and others members of “the big church” became key in reaching Casa de Luz’s goal.
A group of eight men spend a whole week in San Luis RC building a stage for the church Jehova-Sama, located in one of San Luis’ poorest communities. Among cardboard houses, dusty roads and millions of needs, the team worked hard to complete the project and bring joy and pride to a community that has very little.
We were also able to minister to the spiritual needs of the people in San Luis. Some members of the team went on several occasions to visit the community. Armed with joy and faith (and in some cases a stick because of the dogs!) we invited people to come to an evangelistic service. God moved in the hearts of the people and some even started to arrive and hour early! The service was powerful with songs, testimonies from our team and the preaching of the Gospel. At least 9 people gave their lives to the Jesus for the first time and many others returned to him in reconciliation.
It was an amazing week. We finished the project and were able to minister to many people. Even in the middle of some difficulties to get there, God showed us that he was preparing us for this. Our effort has brought glory to God. The church and the people of San Luis Rio Colorado have experienced the love of God through his people. God has changed our lives allowing us to see how much we have to be thankful for.
Casa de Luz has started a relationship with Jehova-Sama church that we hope will turn into a long time partnership in ministry. Plans to continue to work in San Luis opening new churches have already been discussed and one day we hope to see people going back to their own country serving God as missionaries.
