Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Inside Zulueta

Today we loaded onto our “guagua” and headed out to Zulueta Del Sur, a small town in the Villa Clara region of Cuba. There we hope to minister to the children of a tiny Pentecostal church lead by pastors Yordanis and Wilter, whom we met the other day through Pastor Otto. It took a little over an hour to get there from Sancti Spiritus. When we arrived the service was just about to start. The ministry time opened with the nursery kids singing a cute song about letting Jesus into your heart. The children’s ministry volunteers lead them in a wonderful time of praise and worship. Then we were visited by a clown (pastor Yordanis’ wife, Lisandra) and her clown friend who taught us about being responsible versus having no cares. We sang some more and even did a conga line/choo choo train style dance as we sang one of the songs. Then it was our turn to minister to the children. Margarita lead a song about insects and animals, as the rest of the team participated as puppeteers (holding up the fans that our children had made for the children of Cuba). We handed out the fans to the kids so they could participate by holding up their creatures at the appropriate points during the song. Then we sang and danced some more. The leadership of the church laid hands on us, anointed us and prayed for us and the success of our mission there in Cuba. A woman serenaded us with a special song. We ended by distributing goodie bags that the Boyce Sistors and Renier assembled in a small storage room behind the chancel. The congregation, as poor as they are, blessed us with a tasty luncheon. In the upper room, above the Sanctuary, we found tables set with beautiful floral arrangements and an array of fruits and vegetables and pork fried rice. For dessert they made us peanut butter (Crèma de Mani) dulce with crackers. Charlie put sliced bananas on top and said it tasted delicious. Some of us followed suit and boy was he right! Then we presented our gifts (bibles, tracts, children’s ministry aides, crafts and resources) to the Pastors. After that we walked around the town and came across a meat/produce market that served fresh squeezed sugar cane juice (yum yum). Then it was back on the “guagua” and back to Sancti Spiritus. Ministering to kids sure does take a lot of energy because most of us fell asleep on the ride home.
Posted by Naka Piohia

Sunday, September 28, 2008

"Trust In The Lord With All Your Heart"~Part II~Monday, August 18, 2008

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6; Have you ever applied this passage to your life and/or your circumstances? Team Cuba Mission 2008 did and the results were spectacular!



After a well rested night I woke up early and said my morning prayers. It was a wonderful time spent alone with God. Afterwards I went downstairs to meet with the team for breakfast. Everyone was in a cheerful, joyful mood. I had written Hannah a card reminding her how much God loves her and cares for the things she cares about. I inserted the cross in the card and gave it to her during breakfast. She was in shock. She thought she had lost that cross forever but God had other plans. It is so encouraging to see God at work.

We all met in my room for morning devotions. It was a special time of scripture reading and praying. These were some of my favorite times because God's presence was so evident. I felt led by the Spirit to anoint each missionary with oil and I did so, praying over them as I anointed them with oil. It was amazing!


The day before Nicole's family had asked me if we could visit Nicole's greataunt, Nero. She had been diagnosed with cancer and was at the last stages of her illness. I explained to them that our time was limited and we had to get to Sancti Spiritus, but that we would visit her on the way back. Again, we plan and God laughs.

Hurricane Fay was making herself known. The rain had begun to fall and I was becoming increasingly concerned because we still had not secured the transportation to Sancti Spiritus. My cousin and I devised a plan. He would get on the horn from his house and contact everyone he knew that could facilitate the transportation and I would get on the public phone at the hotel and call all the car rental agencies in the telephone book. As I dialed the upteenth number, the Lord made His will known. "You will not leave Havana until you visit Nero. Go to her house and pray for her." I heard Him so clearly that I couldn't ignore Him. I went to the lobby where the team patiently waited and shared with them what the Lord had said to me. We all agreed we would go to Nero's house in Cotorro (approximately 45 minutes from our hotel). We called their house to tell them we were coming. They were so excited. There were several taxis parked outside the hotel ; we filled up four cars and off to Cotorro we went. I had given my cousin Nero's telephone number and instructed him to call me if anything came up. Nicole's family was waiting for us to arrive. They had great news, my cousin had called. There was a bus waiting for us at the hotel. At the moment I didn't realize this was a test. We were elated by nonetheless focused on carrying out God's instructions. As we walked in the door we were ushered to Nero's room. There she laid, in the throes of death. Her eyes has lost their sparkle. There was no life in her. Several of us gathered around her bed and we began to pray. The Spirit filled the room and we continued praying. Several minutes later, Nero's eyes lit up. She said she wanted to get up. She was assisted and led to the livingroom. She sat in a chair, drank some juice and posed for pictures with the team. We read scripture to her, we asked her if she knew the Lord and she said yes. We again prayed with her. Her family members were in awe and many of them came to know Christ that very day. We sang worship songs and thanked God for the opportunity to minister to this family. We visited for a couple of hours and then it was time to return to the hotel. Sadly, Nero lost her battle to cancer a couple of weeks later, but we are sure she is in heaven with her maker. Later, as I reflected on the events of the day I realized that God had tested our faithfulness. Were we going to rush the visit to get back to the hotel? Or, were we going to obey God and minister to Nero and her family? It was a no brainer.

When we arrived at the hotel we were dismayed to discover that the bus had been assigned another route. We were back at square one. After much negotiation the bus driver agreed to take us to Sancti Spiritus. It was late in the day, and the storm was looming in the horizon. In Cuba it is very dangerous to travel at night; there are potholes on the road and many times there is danger of livestock on the highway. We had to trust that God would cover us with His protection. We we packed like sardines in the mini bus. It was so full that John had to lie down on the floor in the center of the bus. We left Havana with an addition to our team, Nicole's cousin Reinier, a fine young man who loves the Lord deeply and whose ultimate goal is to attend Seminary.

Half way there the driver informed us that they needed to refuel. By this time the sun had set and it was pitch black outside. The bus detoured off the highway and onto a very isolated road. Several minutes later the bus stopped in the middle of the road, the bus driver informed me that we had to dismount in order for them to refuel (company policy), so there we were in the middle of nowhere. I can honestly tell you I was not afraid. Later I found out that several of my teammates were a bit apprehensive. As we waited the team entertained themselves with a frog. Hannah even picked it up! Ugh! I took the opportunity to get to know the driver's girlfriend and found out that her grandfather was ill. I told her we would pray for him. On the road again, but not for long. Everyone was hungry so the driver made a food stop, except there was no food, just beverages. Oh well, 'tis Cuba! We were able to go to the bathroom and stretch our legs. Several of the men in our team decided to share the gospel with our driver Rogelio. We don't know if Rogelio accepted Christ, but we gave him a Bible and the seed was planted.

Betty had researched the history of the city and shared with us that Sancti Spiritus is the sister city of a Brazilian city, both are known for their practice of a pagan religion (vodoo). She suggested we pray before entering the city gate. I asked the driver to let me know ahead of time and he did. We prayed over the city, our mission and the people. We prayed for wisdom, discernment, protection, provision and the infilling of the Holy Spirit. God is in control!

We arrived at Rancho Hatuey (our hotel) a little past midnight, hungry, tired and sleepy. By now the skies had opened up and rain was falling hard. We checked in and proceeded to unload the bus, a huge task. But God again came through. There were a couple of security guards making their rounds, when they saw us unloading they immediately came over and took over. They carried our suitcases to the respective rooms and then one of them asked Nicole if we were missionaries. Nicole said yes. Yovany then began to share his testimony with us. He had been a leader in his church, but had left it and was not walking with Lord. Right then and there he recommitted his life to the Lord. Amazing day!

"Trust In The Lord With All Your Heart"~Part I~August 17, 2008

As Christians, most of us have read the words…"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6; and we've even memorized the passage; but have you ever applied it to your life and/or your circumstances? Team Cuba Mission 2008 did and the results were spectacular!

We had planned every detail of our trip. We had every hour of the day filled with some sort of activity. Then came the news, the religious visa to do mission work in Cuba was denied by the Cuba government. We knew God wanted this (His) mission to be carried out, so the team decided to move forward.

The week prior to our departure the travel agent called. She informed us that we would be staying the first night at Occidental Miramar (a 4 star hotel) in Havana. I was taken aback. Our plans did not include a night in Havana. I suddenly realized this could work. The airport is in Havana (6 hours from Sancti Spiritus) and it would be easier if the team spend the final night there. I asked to have the reservation changed from August 17 to the 24. The agent told me she would try to change it and would call me back. In the meantime I earnestly sought God's direction. The next day she called back. She had bad news. The reservation could not be changed! I was at peace. God had a plan and we just had to trust Him.

We had a few stumbling blocks. There are no flights from L.A. to Cuba, our options were limited. We could fly to Miami and then on to Cuba or drive to Tijuana and fly from there to Mexico City, and on to Havana. After crunching the numbers we concluded that Tijuana was the least expensive option. There was however the transportation issue. How are fifteen people with thirty something pieces of luggage going to get from Downey to Tijuana? We prayed about that too. We needed vans and drivers. We approached several people in our church family but things weren't working out. You need a US passport to re-enter. The people that had vans did not have passports and the ones that did weren't available on that day. I found out there was a bus we could take in Huntington Park that would take us to the border (not the airport). The fee was $45.00 per person, but then we had to secure transportation from the border to the airport. We would have to take taxis in Mexico…NO WAY! I called the local area churches that had vans, they couldn't help us. I then remembered our Christian directory and decided to give it a try. However, there were no listings for transportation, so I called the directory's main office. I was given the name and number of a limousine company in Buena Park called "Bella Sera". Wouldn't you know it? The owner, Francis is a Christian! And he was willing to help. Praise the Lord! The bus fare would have cost us $675.00 but Francis would charge us $580.00. We were going cheaper, direct and in style! Only God would do something like that. Our luggage was over the limit allowed and we were taking religious materials (100 Bibles 31 Jesus movies, 10,000 tracts, 12 women's bible study books, 80 children's study booklets, 100 bags with our logo and John 3:16 printed on them and Jesus loves you blankets, toys, pencils, beach balls etc.) into a communist country without a religious visa. No problem, God is in control!
Finally, the day arrived. Saturday, August 16 was a beautiful day. The team and their families met at the church. Before leaving we circled up, and covered the journey with prayer. The space inside the limo was filled to overflowing and there was still luggage to be loaded, so we tied the suitcases to the roof, and since there was no room left for me I sat upfront with the driver. It was a sight to see. After several minutes on the road the team informed the driver that the air conditioning was not working. Our driver, Ed exited the freeway and got it running again, but only for a few minutes. God was preparing us for what laid ahead. We were supposed to get Mexican insurance at the border, but it was after 6:00pm on Saturday and all the agencies had already closed. So we did the next best thing, we stopped at Carl's Junior and ate. I called Francis and explained our situation. He gave Ed the go ahead to enter Tijuana. We had the best insurance anyway. God was in control. At the border I was informed by the Mexican police that we needed an escort to the airport, so I jumped in a taxi and he lead us right in. Yikes!

We had been warned of the staggering fees Mexicana Airlines charges for excess baggage and truth be told we were a little apprehensive. Thankfully only a few of us were charged. But the trials were just beginning. All of the sudden I'm being called by a couple of the team members. Some of names on the boarding passes did not match the names on the passports. Furthermore, Betty was being told she wouldn't be allowed to travel. In the midst of this chaos some of the team began to pray as I went to speak with the ticketing agent. I explained who we were and what we were doing and asked him to help us and he did. God is in control!

Upon arriving in Mexico City we discovered that two of the visas had whiteout on them therefore rendering them invalid (our agent had made a mistake and tried to correct them). Thank God the solution was simple-have new ones issued for a fee of $30.00.

We were the last leg of our journey on to Cuba and although tired and emotionally depleted, the excitement began to rise in us as the plane began its descend. As we broke through the puffy white clouds, a magnificent island covered in emerald green vegetation appeared. The harvest was plenty and the workers were few but we were ready.

The team had decided to break into groups as to not raise suspicions. The excess baggage was one of our main concerns. There is not set price per pound, and customs has a history of overcharging. Everyone went through without a hitch except for the Boyce Sisters and me. I was charged $317.00 (because I'm a Cuban national), their way of welcoming me back, ha, ha, ha. The Boyce sisters were stopped because they were carrying walkie-talkie (a no-no with the Cuban government). Customs Officers opened the walkie-talkies recorded the serial number, warned the sisters not to use them and released them. God was watching over us because they didn't detect the second set of walkie-talkies I was carrying in my backpack. It could've been ugly. Thank you Lord!

At last we were all outside the airport and ready to go to our hotel. My cousin Raul had secured the transportation (3 vans and a taxi plus Nicole's family's car). We loaded the luggage and proceeded to the hotel. A light rain was falling and the aroma of wet earth filled our nostrils. We were drunk with excitement. The hotel nestled between palm trees, overlooking the crystal blue Caribbean Sea was breathtaking. We checked in and decided to have lunch at one of the many restaurants in this beautiful place. There were twenty-two of us and would you believe the bill was $77.00? God is in control!

After checking out our beautifully decorated blue & gold rooms and freshening up a bit we were ready to see Old Havana. The first lessons of the trip: communicate and prepare! My intention was to walk around, enjoy the views and shake off some of the stress of the trip. Unbeknownst to me, my teammates saw this as an opportunity to pass out tracts and share the gospel. We armed ourselves with material, but not with the Armor of God and was it ever apparent. Although God was glorified because several people accepted Him as their personal Savior, we encountered opposition from the enemy in the form of a demon possessed woman who cornered several of the missionaries. But God, who "never leaves us, nor forsakes us" equipped them with the tools necessary to defeat the enemy. Karen & Debbie began singing worship songs and prompted by the Holy Spirit, Margarita quietly commanded the demon to stop talking in the name of Jesus Christ and she did. Praise be to God! It was here in Old Havana where many people encountered God. Betty and Margarita led three young boys as well as two women to Christ. The rest of the team passed out tracts and shared God's love with everyone they encountered. I noticed a policeman following us, but all of the sudden he stopped and to my surprise he was began reading a tract. I didn't see him after that. Many seeds were planted on that day and we learned a valuable lesson. We ended the day with cafe con leche and sandwiches at the hotel cafeteria.

Monday, September 15, 2008

A Wonderful Evening


Sharing God's Word


Bible Study on the porch

There is no greater gift than to share God's Word with the people you love. I was given the opportunity to do just that on this wonderful evening. My family gathered around and listened attentively to what God had to say to them. Praise the Lord!

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Praying on the Whole Armor of God

After a major turning point in Cuba, our team started to begin our days with reading Ephesians 6:10-19,

The Whole Armor of God (NLT)

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

19 And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.

and praying it over us. If we were entering an extra "spiritually hostile" area, we would read it and pray it over ourselves. We became a team of prayer. We prayed over everything we did. Lost passports had us praying. Angry horse & buggy drivers had us praying. A team member sharing the gospel or praying for a person had the rest of us praying. If we had no food to eat, we prayed for God to sustain or suppress our hunger. When I fell and scraped my arm and leg, I prayed that my minor injury would not distract me from God's mission in Cuba. We learned to become absolutely dependent on God for everything. The biggest and smallest of details were covered in prayer. That's how we survived in Cuba; in a land where we had virtually no resources...no 24hr, drive-thru anything! Our time in Cuba was spent waiting on the Lord for our every move. We would have been completely lost without His day-to-day, moment-by-moment guidance.

posted by Frances Vázquez

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

No Beach...but Many Blessings!

Hi everyone,

I was planning to leave for the beach this morning accompanied by my family. Well, God had other plans. There is a new hurricane looming in the horizon. Holguin, in the eastern point of Cuba has been evacuated due to heavy rains and winds. Here in Sancti Spiritus we are enjoying beautiful blue skies, although this morning it rained like mad.

Audrey, Debbie, Karen, Greg, Nicole, Elsa, John, Betty, Naka, Hannah, Margarita, Beatrice, Carlos and Frances your friends Claudia, Dianelys, Sugeily, Vitico, David, Isaida, Wilder, Freddy, Cristina, Raul, Victor, Betty, Ivelis, Rayza, Tia, Tio, Mami, Barbarita, Dinorah and me miss you very much. We cannot wait to hear from you. Send me an e'mail to cubamission08@yahoo.com

WE LOVE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!

God bless you, Lourdes