Our Partnership with Herald of Truth in cuba
Can you imagine waking up and never knowing if you would have power for more than one hour each day? Can you imagine driving to work and the newest car on the road is from the 1950’s? Can you imagine going to the grocery store and not being able to buy your daily necessities because the store doesn’t have them?
Welcome to Cuba…
In 1995, the Herald of Truth was blessed to meet a young man named Tony Fernandez. At the time, Tony was 22 years old and was the product of two faithful Christians who thought they were never going to have a child.
After praying for 18 years, the Lord answered their prayers, and Tony was born in 1973. Tim Archer, who has made over 40 trips to Cuba says it was very much a Samuel situation. In the Old Testament, Hannah asks God to bless her with a son and she promises to give him “to the Lord for all the days of his life.”
That’s exactly what Jose Antonio and Hilda Fernandez did. They dedicated their new son to the Lord and His kingdom. What would the church look like today if all children were told they have been set apart by the Lord? What if we spent our lives dedicating our little ones to the service of the kingdom?
What if…
For the last 30 years, Tony has been working nonstop in fruitful efforts to share the story of Jesus with everyone across the island. On an average Sunday, Tony travels 350 miles (round trip) to preach at 7 churches. His day starts at 8:00 in the morning and he gets home around midnight. His energy and passion are endless!
Tony has been instrumental in planting 52 churches in the province of Matanzas in the three decades he has been involved with the Herald of Truth. What started as a small gathering around a table in the kitchen of his childhood home, the Lord has turned into an incredible evangelistic phenomenon. On March 28th, 2025, I was blessed with my first opportunity to travel to Cuba and put my eyes on all the good work my ears had been hearing about. Months prior to planning the trip, I reached out to One Kingdom leaders, Mike Kellett and Robert Ables. They mentioned wanting to be involved in Cuba and so the plan was made to make the trip together.
We and a few others set out on an unforgettable adventure to see how God is working through His people in a country that looks like it hasn’t left the 1950’s. When we exited the airport, we might as well have been stepping out of a DeLorean with Marty McFly. The buildings, billboards, store fronts and cars were all made in the 1950’s or earlier. In 1959, the Cuban Revolution established a new government, and the island hasn’t advanced much since. The church, however, has been growing rapidly in the last several years. It didn’t take a long time before we were vastly aware of how God was using Tony to bring light and peace to a dark and anxious place.
Tony lives in Matanzas which is located about 60 miles east of Havana. His home congregation that meets there is the Versailles church of Christ which hosts a number of events every year. After settling in our rooms on Friday afternoon, we made our way to the church building. “Building” is a relative term which meant an open-air covering connected to a makeshift concrete kitchen and a small bathroom. We arrived early enough to meet church members and begin celebrating the 30 years of partnership and work in Cuba. The following day (Saturday), Robert, Mike and I were all blessed to share some thoughts on evangelism and the gospel at the ministry conference that was held in conjunction with our celebration. It was a great day of rejoicing for a variety of reasons. We rejoiced because we could see God working through His word and His people in a tangible way. Others in attendance rejoiced because breakfast was the first meal that had eaten in 3 days. Every trip to Cuba brings joy in some capacity and we were so grateful for the different ways joy was felt and expressed while we were there.
Food scarcity is real in Cuba. Some travelled a long distance to meet with us and regardless of their motive, they were blessed and so were we. Along with the gift of evangelism through teaching and preaching, God has blessed the church in Versailles with a farm that also aids in sharing Jesus with others. For nearly 20 years, the farm has been growing and helping reach more people with good news of hope, both physically and spiritually.
Tony and his team distribute the farm’s crops every month to over 200 families, including widows and orphans. Several police officers and officials have also benefited from the farm’s generosity and have requested Bibles as a result. Some have already been baptized because they learned about grace and salvation through these efforts. Teach a man to farm…
Lord willing, Robert and several others will be returning to this beautiful country in 2026 to teach a method of raised bed farming that is not being utilized in Cuba. This will not only aid the farm but also individuals who can use these methods at their own home as well.
As we tell others about the beauty of all God is doing through His word, His people and His creation in Cuba, we are often asked about the needs that now exist in a place that has such limited resources. It was important to ask them directly before we left and so we did. Their response was, “please pray for us and the people of our country.” These are a beautiful people of prayer who believe in the power of the Almighty to answer those prayers. This was certainly seen as 11 were baptized on Sunday afternoon before we left. As we said our farewells in the airport, Tony said, “Now is the time. Now is the time for the people of Cuba. They are open and receptive to Jesus. Please be praying as we share Jesus with them and please come back. Your presence means more than you know!”
It is hard not to feel the reciprocity of such intense emotion. I couldn’t help but feel the presence of God’s Spirit through Tony and His ambition to teach others about Jesus. That kind of ambition is encouraging and contagious. The Herald of Truth and One Kingdom are excited to partner together in these efforts and see what God has in store for the future. Will you join us in prayer as we help Tony and the church share the greatest story ever told?
Welcome to Cuba…
In 1995, the Herald of Truth was blessed to meet a young man named Tony Fernandez. At the time, Tony was 22 years old and was the product of two faithful Christians who thought they were never going to have a child.
After praying for 18 years, the Lord answered their prayers, and Tony was born in 1973. Tim Archer, who has made over 40 trips to Cuba says it was very much a Samuel situation. In the Old Testament, Hannah asks God to bless her with a son and she promises to give him “to the Lord for all the days of his life.”
That’s exactly what Jose Antonio and Hilda Fernandez did. They dedicated their new son to the Lord and His kingdom. What would the church look like today if all children were told they have been set apart by the Lord? What if we spent our lives dedicating our little ones to the service of the kingdom?
What if…
For the last 30 years, Tony has been working nonstop in fruitful efforts to share the story of Jesus with everyone across the island. On an average Sunday, Tony travels 350 miles (round trip) to preach at 7 churches. His day starts at 8:00 in the morning and he gets home around midnight. His energy and passion are endless!
Tony has been instrumental in planting 52 churches in the province of Matanzas in the three decades he has been involved with the Herald of Truth. What started as a small gathering around a table in the kitchen of his childhood home, the Lord has turned into an incredible evangelistic phenomenon. On March 28th, 2025, I was blessed with my first opportunity to travel to Cuba and put my eyes on all the good work my ears had been hearing about. Months prior to planning the trip, I reached out to One Kingdom leaders, Mike Kellett and Robert Ables. They mentioned wanting to be involved in Cuba and so the plan was made to make the trip together.
We and a few others set out on an unforgettable adventure to see how God is working through His people in a country that looks like it hasn’t left the 1950’s. When we exited the airport, we might as well have been stepping out of a DeLorean with Marty McFly. The buildings, billboards, store fronts and cars were all made in the 1950’s or earlier. In 1959, the Cuban Revolution established a new government, and the island hasn’t advanced much since. The church, however, has been growing rapidly in the last several years. It didn’t take a long time before we were vastly aware of how God was using Tony to bring light and peace to a dark and anxious place.
Tony lives in Matanzas which is located about 60 miles east of Havana. His home congregation that meets there is the Versailles church of Christ which hosts a number of events every year. After settling in our rooms on Friday afternoon, we made our way to the church building. “Building” is a relative term which meant an open-air covering connected to a makeshift concrete kitchen and a small bathroom. We arrived early enough to meet church members and begin celebrating the 30 years of partnership and work in Cuba. The following day (Saturday), Robert, Mike and I were all blessed to share some thoughts on evangelism and the gospel at the ministry conference that was held in conjunction with our celebration. It was a great day of rejoicing for a variety of reasons. We rejoiced because we could see God working through His word and His people in a tangible way. Others in attendance rejoiced because breakfast was the first meal that had eaten in 3 days. Every trip to Cuba brings joy in some capacity and we were so grateful for the different ways joy was felt and expressed while we were there.
Food scarcity is real in Cuba. Some travelled a long distance to meet with us and regardless of their motive, they were blessed and so were we. Along with the gift of evangelism through teaching and preaching, God has blessed the church in Versailles with a farm that also aids in sharing Jesus with others. For nearly 20 years, the farm has been growing and helping reach more people with good news of hope, both physically and spiritually.
Tony and his team distribute the farm’s crops every month to over 200 families, including widows and orphans. Several police officers and officials have also benefited from the farm’s generosity and have requested Bibles as a result. Some have already been baptized because they learned about grace and salvation through these efforts. Teach a man to farm…
Lord willing, Robert and several others will be returning to this beautiful country in 2026 to teach a method of raised bed farming that is not being utilized in Cuba. This will not only aid the farm but also individuals who can use these methods at their own home as well.
As we tell others about the beauty of all God is doing through His word, His people and His creation in Cuba, we are often asked about the needs that now exist in a place that has such limited resources. It was important to ask them directly before we left and so we did. Their response was, “please pray for us and the people of our country.” These are a beautiful people of prayer who believe in the power of the Almighty to answer those prayers. This was certainly seen as 11 were baptized on Sunday afternoon before we left. As we said our farewells in the airport, Tony said, “Now is the time. Now is the time for the people of Cuba. They are open and receptive to Jesus. Please be praying as we share Jesus with them and please come back. Your presence means more than you know!”
It is hard not to feel the reciprocity of such intense emotion. I couldn’t help but feel the presence of God’s Spirit through Tony and His ambition to teach others about Jesus. That kind of ambition is encouraging and contagious. The Herald of Truth and One Kingdom are excited to partner together in these efforts and see what God has in store for the future. Will you join us in prayer as we help Tony and the church share the greatest story ever told?
