Debbie Nonnemaker:

Our mission trip to Cuba was more than I expected. It was amazing and humbling to visit our sister church where we were welcomed with open hearts and love. Upon traveling from the airport to Amancio over roads that are in terrible condition for 2 hours, we were blessed to meet the family. They were so gracious and had a heart of servitude from the beginning. We stayed in rental homes but partook in the pastor’s home for 3 meals a day, met the board members of the church and shared in their goals, and dreams for the church all to the glory of God. We also were chauffeured to 2 other churches and 1 mission who was trying to start a new ministry.

On Sunday morning and Wednesday night, the church was alive with people traveling from all over to attend. The context of the sermon was miracles in the desert, which was quite uplifting to me for people facing constant challenges of finding food, jobs, inadequate transportation, rolling electrical blackouts, and poor medical help. They truly trusted in God and HIS miracles, which were many for daily survival. Their worship music was lively, filled with the Holy Spirit and liturgical dancers sharing their praises to God. Overall, Cuba has shown me the joy and peace in a culture where daily living is a challenge, and how we need to be more thankful in all we have and not take things for granted.

The experience was amazing between 2 different cultures and lifestyles. Sharing the love of Christ is a universal language and way of life no matter where you are .

Pastor Steve Ezra:

There are multiple blessings for me in being part of a team that visits a mission partner to strengthen relationships, particularly in another country such as Cuba. Seeing God at work in powerful ways in a different culture deepens my own faith and trust in God. When I see persons come to saving faith in Jesus Christ amid deprivation and hardship… when I see God miraculously heal persons and answer prayers with His supernatural power… when I see persons who completely and absolutely trust in God to provide for their daily needs… my faith is revived and strengthened.

It’s also a blessing for me to travel and serve together with members of our church family. Relationship-building time is limited on Sunday mornings, in small groups, and on ministry teams. But when you do life together with people 24-7, even for only six days, you really get to know them. You get a glimpse of their hearts. You hear stories from their lives that have shaped them into who they are today. Your appreciation and love for them grows.

I now feel much closer to my brothers and sisters in the Methodist church in Amancio, Cuba. I have a deeper appreciation for their faithfulness to the Lord. But I also now feel much closer to four other members of our church family. I appreciate and love them even more deeply than before. Oftentimes we think of going on a mission trip as something in which we contribute what we have to others. But as is usually the case, we receive more than we give. I received much more than I gave to our sister church in Amancio, Cuba. I am deeply grateful for our entire church family who made this visit possible with their financial and prayer support!

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Karen Lauket:

My first mission trip to Cuba was in 2004. I didn’t know what to expect. But from the beginning, Cuba and the people captured a piece of my heart and I continued to travel there, leading mission, trips for the next 15 years. I made my last trip in 2018, so I thought.

This recent trip to Amancio with our team from First Methodist was a blessing. My teammates were awesome and it was great getting to know them all better. The minute we got through customs and met Pastor Osmar and the others who picked us up, it felt like coming home. Even though, it was a different area, different churches, different people, it was the same feeling. They were the same warm, friendly, loving, faithful brothers and sisters I remember. They welcomed us, prayed with us and for us and did whatever they could to make us feel at home. I feel truly blessed to have been given the opportunity to make this trip and to meet and get to know our brothers and sisters in our sister church, Amancio Rodriguez.

I have always been amazed at the faithfulness of the Christians in Cuba. Amancio Rodriguez is full to capacity every service. People line up outside the church by the windows to hear and see the service. Because of this, Pastor Osmar, would like to build a cover over the side of the church, so they have protection from the weather. Also, there are many who walk to church. The mission leader in the church walks 3 miles to get to each service.

The church reaches out to community helping, when possible, to feed those who don’t have enough to eat. The pastor sometimes picks people up in his car, he always acts as taxi to take people to the doctor and to the hospital, as ambulance service in the area is not always reliable. So he tries to keep his car in good condition. They also have a couple of newly formed churches in the area that they help out when possible. We visited both these churches. One, called Beacon of Light, is located on the beach by the bay. The pastor and pastora are very young and were an engineer and doctor respectively when they were called into ministry. Amancio has been a big help to them getting their church started. The last mission we visited was Mission #6. It is called this because there is no address. It is a newly formed mission, made up of mostly new Christians, and they meet under a tree. We talked with them about their goals to build a future shelter on an old slab nearby. They prayed for us and we prayed over several people who were ill. There were also two young people who gave their lives to Lord that day!

The children and youth are a large part of the church. They have many activities and they are a big part of worship. We had the opportunity to attend a puppet performance on Saturday morning. One of the goals of the church is to, hopefully, one day, buy the building next door and convert into classrooms for the children, as they do not have enough room in the church.

The church continues to grow and they are a blessing to the community and everyone they meet. They treated us like family and showed us the genuine love of God during our visit. They have so little in the way of material things, but are truly blessed in the Spirit. I am truly blessed to have been a part of this wonderful, exciting trip, and experiencing the work that God is doing in Amancio Rodriguez!

Rex Milligan:

I felt very welcome by the congregation of our Cuban church. I was impressed by the enthusiasm of the pastors in our sister church and in the two startup churches. The third start up church had just started a month ago and are meeting in a field. While attending their meeting, I was very encouraged when people join the church. . Their church now has 30 members. I felt excited that the leaders of the churches felt that Cuba is on the verge of revival.

Our mission trip to Cuba was very humbling and eye-opening for me. Pastor Osmar welcomed us at the airport, along with Wilbur, our translator who is a local Baptist minister, and and Daniel our driver on loan to us from the bishop. After a long ride over very poor roads, we arrived at the church in Amancio. Daniel apologized for not being able to avoid the potholes, but he did his best. We were welcomed by the pastor’s family and served a wonderful meal. Then we were taken to our nearby lodging to get settled in and rest.

On Saturday morning, we were treated to a puppet show for the children of the church. It told the story of Noah’s Ark. The puppets used were a gift from our church on a previous mission trip. I had the wonderful opportunity to distribute small Gideon Bibles to the children of the church. They we’re very excited to get their own Bibles, which had been donated by a friend of mine. In addition to puppet ministry, they have a strong dance and music program that we were able to witness. We were treated to their dance and music ministries on both Saturday and Wednesday.

The church services were filled and overflowed outside. The church leadership has plans to accommodate more worshipers by adding a roof over the patio on the side of the church. Presently, people are without shelter and stand as close as possible to the windows so they can hear the sermons. We were able to leave some money to help with the roof. The parsonage which is two years old replaced an old parsonage building that flooded during the rainy season.

During the week we were in Cuba we visited three startup churches that pastor Osmar helps. One church was the Beacon of Light church which is to the south near the ocean. The pastor helps feed his family by fishing. Another church recently started by two members of Osmar’s congregation and meets under a tree. These are truly mission churches. Pastor Osmar, his leadership team, and his congregation are truly spreading the love of Jesus Christ throughout the area.