Answering the Call: Why Being a Latino Missionary Matters

For many years in the past, Latin America was a place where thousands of missionaries from other countries invested their lives so that people would hear of Jesus' love. Today, several years later, the number of Christians in the region is large and continues to increase. Personally, I believe that the fact that my family and I are Christians is because in the past someone decided to leave everything they knew and had, to sacrifice present and future, to be obedient to God, and went to do what God told them to do; so being Latino and being an international missionary is a way to honor and imitate what they did in the past.

The Latin Christian Community has to start saying yes to go and make disciples.

I believe that Latin America has gone from being a mission field to a missionary seedbed. Of course, there are still areas and languages in Latin American countries where the Gospel has not been heard, but I love seeing and knowing missionaries from Europe, America, Asia, and other regions being the hands, feet, and mouth that are passionately taking the Gospel to those places. Latin American youth have to start saying yes to God, yes to the missionary call, and yes to taking the Gospel to other countries of the world. It’s just a simple yes, simple obedience.

Today, I have the opportunity to be a Mexican missionary in Germany and know other Mexican and Latin American missionaries in different countries with colder or more serious cultures. As Latin Americans, we are called to bring the Gospel with a refreshment in the way it's presented. We can bring our Latin American way of doing things, which is more extroverted, open and warm, it includes people (builds community) and seeks to connect people. In colder-cultured places, this is not necessarily what people expect. But this can and is making a difference in nations.

Now, I know, because I have experienced it and continue to experience it, that as Latin Americans we have many challenges when seeking to go abroad as missionaries: finances, immigration processes, or language. In my experience and what I can say about it is: believe and do. Believe in God, He knows everything, He knows everything and He is the one who opens and closes doors. Do, in order to achieve your calling, whether it is to do paperwork, to look for financial supporters, or to study a language.

A few months ago a Peruvian pastor here in Nuremberg told me something that stuck in my heart and will surely make sense to Latin Americans reading this:

When you invite someone to eat in Latin America, who pays?
In the same way, when God invites you to be a part of world missions, don't worry, He pays.

Nothing gets us more excited than when someone finds their place in missions. There is so much opportunity and need for people to get involved.

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