Dependency on Jesus

Her belief in God didn’t happen overnight. It was a gradual thing. Esperanza Prada was 20 years when her boyfriend told her about the person of Jesus Christ. In the beginning she had an unbelieving heart, but she wanted to find out for herself if what Jose said was true. She began to investigate the Bible, and that’s when God’s Word began to penetrate her soul. In faith she accepted Jesus.

Jose and Esperanza married, and it was during a church service in their hometown of Bogota, Colombia, when Esperanza felt God stirring her heart, asking her to follow Him to the mission field. The congregation was praying and singing a song with the words, “Here am I, send me.”  She had no idea what missions was, but what she did know was that she felt the Lord’s call in her life. Not long after that, Esperanza and Jose were asked to consider church planting in Peru.

“Being aware of our dependency on God is the most basic – but also the greatest – piece of advice that I could ever give anyone,”

She continues with a story that has given her the joy to persevere during difficult seasons: “There is this 90 year old woman,” she begins, “and the first time that I met her she came up to me and Jose and gave us a big hug. She told us, ‘ says Esperanza. Prayers of people she has never met before have propelled Esperanza onward and encouraged her to trust Jesus during those times she wants to give up. “There are moments when I want to go back to my country,” she says. “I won’t lie. I love Colombia and I miss it a lot. But when people I don’t know tell me they have been praying for me, for my husband, and for our ministry, it gives me great courage to go forward.” I have been praying for you since before you were born. For years I have felt so much pain that there is no Mennonite church here in Lima. I prayed that God would raise up someone to start this church. When I learned about you I was so happy, and I asked God for the chance to meet you.’ She was so grateful that she cried,” says Esperanza. “The Lord gave me so much courage in that moment.”

Have you, like Esperanza, felt God calling you to the mission field? Leaving behind your friends, family, and familiar lifestyle is a huge risk – but it’s worth it. “I want to encourage you,” says Esperanza, “that if you feel the call to missions, don’t be scared. God will give you everything that you need. It is true that things will change; that you will have to leave your loved ones behind. But God will supply everything that you need – spiritually, physically, emotionally – everything! Be certain of this: the Lord is faithful and all powerful, and He will always be with you, wherever you go!”

Watch an interview with Jose and Esperanza