My Experience on Bogota

One of the great advantages that the theology program at Southern Adventist University has is that it gives its students the opportunity to do evangelism. For many years, I dreamed of being able to lead an evangelistic series. In fact, it was evangelism that attracted me to study theology. Although I have been preaching for several years, this series in Bogota was my first experience doing evangelism, and I will say that I was truly blessed.
As can be expected, I was very anxious when we first arrived here because I didn’t know what to expect and of course, I didn’t know how I would perform under the pressure of being in the spotlight as the evangelist. It is a bit intimidating to be looked upon as the person with all the answers, and this is the way I felt in the church I was assigned to. My church assignment was the “Nueva Jerusalem Church” in the Verbenal section of Bogota. The building is in very bad shape, but they are expecting to have a new temple built through “Maranatha” ministries. Its pastor is Reynaldo Buendia, but I didn’t have to much contact with him. In fact, he was mostly absent for the entire series being sick part of it.
The person who I spent most of the time with, and was my contact and driver, was the churches head elder, Ruben Olave. He was an inspiration to me; he sacrificed income in order to pick me up every day, and as we talked and shared experiences, I realized that I have a lot to learn about being a true Christian who puts others before oneself. Another church member that I was impressed with was the lady that fed me everyday. Her name was Erlicia, and she was so nice and hospitable; she truly reflected what every Christian should be.
Although it seemed to me that the church had not done much groundwork before the series began, I was truly impressed with the attendance the first few nights of the series; the church was “packed.” From the first night, people were very friendly towards me making me feel at ease, and by the time I started preaching the first night, I felt I got my “grove,” meaning I felt comfortable preaching the word of God to them.
On my first Sabbath there, I was given the opportunity to dedicate four children to God, an exciting opportunity since I had never done it. As I got to know the people in the church, I was also impressed by some of the children there, especially by a ten year old boy named Carlos. This young boy loved witnessing and inviting people to church. During the meetings, the first two rows were filled with children, most of which were children he invited and accompanied to church.
My greatest experience during my time preaching at “Nueva Jerusalem” came from meeting a man named Juvenal Giraldo. Juvenal was a homeless man, and on the first night of our meetings, he was passing by and came into the church to see if someone could help him with some food; he said that the people in the church simply ignored him and he left heartbroken, but as he was walking away he reports he felt something telling him to go back and he did.
Juvenal came every night. Some of the brethren including myself brought him food, and by the time I preached the Baptism sermon and made a call for those who wished to be baptized, he came forward wishing to be baptized. The head elder collected some money from the brethren and got Juvenal to take a shower, bought him some clothes, and allowed him to stay in his house though the night. The church board met and decided they were going to try to find him a room where he could stay and pay for at least one month’s rent so that Juvenal could get back on his feet. It was amazing to see Juvenal with his new cloths, a new hair cut and shaved; he was like a new person. On Sabbath May 28th, Juvenal, together with six other souls, was baptized. He truly started a new life leaving behind the old of sin. Juvenal is an example of how God can transform the life of a person who surrenders to him.
Preaching in Bogota was a great experience for me, for one because people looked up to me, they treated me as a pastor and seeked my advice. I also befriended the children; this is a big step for me because normally I seem too stern to the children. However the children and the youth embraced me, and by the time we ended the series, they were hugging, kissing me, and holding my hand during song service. This experience showed me what God can do with and through me if I allow him to. In conclusion, this experience in Bogota was one of the most gratifying experiences I have had and I look forward to see what else God is going to do with and through me.