I did a double take when I walked into the church. Although I shouldn’t have been surprised, I was delighted to see a familiar picture on the church’s bulletin board.
When my family arrived in Holguin, Cuba, in 2017, we were struck by the new sights, sounds, and smells of a culture with which we were unfamiliar. Having traveled to far-flung settings ourselves, Rebecca and I knew how exhilarating it is to find oneself in a new place. But this was our children’s first international experience, and it was a joy to see Cuba through our children’s eyes and to watch them develop friendships with those who, as we would learn, were not so different from them.
So when we walked into Kerygma Baptist Church and saw a picture of our church on their bulletin board, the sense of partnership and solidarity in Christ became real in a way I had not expected.
Kerygma Baptist Church wasn’t just our church’s friend. They were brothers and sisters in Christ.
In the last few years, we have not been able to be partners with our friends in Cuba as we would have liked. While we were able to provide financial assistance through some creative and extraordinary means, we have not been able to host Pastor Ernesto or send an envoy to them from our church. In addition to the political challenges that create such hardships for travel, the pandemic made visits and the transmission of gifts and goods nearly impossible. However, flights into Holguin have resumed, and travel for goodwill and humanitarian efforts is again permissible.
A door for renewed engagement is now open.
As I shared with the church several weeks ago, our friends at Kerygma Baptist Church are suffering. Rolling blackouts, a collapsing economy, and a shortage of necessities have made life for our brothers and sisters in Christ especially difficult. They have significant needs with limited options for meeting them. We must continue to pray for our friends in Cuba.
But an opportunity for us to take medicine and other valuable goods to our friends is upon us. Our missionary friends, Stan and Kim Dotson, are again willing to arrange for us to take a small team to Holguin for several days. The purpose of our trip will be to bring supplies to Kerygma Baptist Church and to encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ with our presence in worship and the life of their church fellowship.
You may be interested in being a part of this Mission Trip Team. If so, share your information with us about your availability in late January and February by completing this online form here.
This Sunday is World Communion Sunday. We will be sharing the Lord’s Supper at a global-sized table. The tablecloth and communion linens we will use this Sunday will be the ones our sister church in Holguin made and presented to us during one of our last visits.
Rest assured, Kerygma Baptist Church is praying for us. We have been praying for them, also. For the first time in a long time, however, our prayers can take the form of loving kindness with the gift of supplies and the presence of our physical embrace.
Thanks be to God.