Mission to Colombia
Wednesday
Our first day of travel was an extended one. Leaving Monroe early in the morning, we arrived in Atlanta for a long layover before flying out to Bogota, Colombia. The One Kingdom team traveling to Colombia included Director Ryan Lee, elders of White’s Ferry Road Church, Mike Kellett and Robert Ables, and myself.
Long layovers and long immigration lines late at night could’ve knocked the wind out of my sails, but instead of exhaustion, I was filled with joy and excitement as soon as my feet touched the ground in the Bogota airport.
Upon our arrival, we met with Esteban Valle-García, our ambassador to Latin America as well as our translator for this trip. The brotherhood between Esteban and the others on our team was immediately felt, and I could tell that his role in the purpose of One Kingdom was an important one. Esteban led us out of the airport to meet with Ginna Garcia, a woman whose life was impacted by World Radio in a significant way.
Years ago, Ginna heard the World Radio broadcast hosted by our One Kingdom Speaker Ricardo Martinez. She had been questioning the need for her own baptism, and Ricardo spoke that very day about the need for baptism into Jesus Christ. Ginna pulled her car over and called into the radio station to speak with Ricardo, and he traveled later that day to Bogota to study with her. Ginna’s was baptized into Christ just days later.
Ginna is a woman who is on fire for the Lord and for building community within the church in Bogota. She took us to a very late dinner in Bogota to meet the preacher of the local church, Byron Cana, and his wife, Sandra. Despite the language barrier that night, there was a deep connection with Ginna that exists because of our shared love for Jesus.
After dinner, our team retreated to our hotel to rest before an early flight the next day to Bucaramanga.
Thursday
Another travel day, this one began with an early trip to the airport to prepare for departure to our final destination of Bucaramanga. Bucaramanga is home to Ricardo and Estella Martinez and their World Radio ministry. There was a lot of excitement within the team to reach Bucaramanga. We were eager to begin investing in the culture there and understand the impact that World Radio is having in the region.
Ricardo and Estella were ready and waiting for us when we arrived at the airport. From the air, the area of Bucaramanga looks like a lush valley surrounded by mountains. The area called “Bucaramanga” is actually three cities together in one valley. The three cities are La Florida Blanca, Giron, and Bucaramanga. With a total population over two million, the area is urban and highly concentrated.
Meeting Ricardo and Estella was one of those moments that seemed surreal. His energy and joy when hugging Mike, Robert, and Ryan helped me realize that our purpose here was the ministry of presence. There are many different ways to serve on the ground with mission work, and one that has been preached to me through One Kingdom is this type of ministry. To be available and present with those serving One Kingdom in these faraway countries has an impact that can’t be overstated. To be present with Ricardo and Estella was a “refueling” of sorts. It filled him with the energy that can only come through communion with fellow believers in the fight.
Ricardo introduced us to two other World Radio speakers, Freddie Medina and Humberto Velasquez. Each have a radio broadcast in the region and were mentored by Ricardo. Freddie and Humberto had driven 14 hours on a motorcycle to be with us this weekend, and we were honored that they put so much effort into meeting with us.
Ricardo took us to his radio station and I was taken back by how professional the studio was. In my American arrogance, I assumed that his radio production would be makeshift, but Ricardo’s program is anything but. Ricardo has a fantastic setup with a radio conglomerate, so his studio is located in a downtown building with all of the bells and whistles of modern technology. Ricardo is on the forefront of modern radio broadcasts by including a Facebook live video broadcast at the same time as his on-air show. This type of intentionality proved to be a continual thread woven into everything Ricardo showed us in Bucaramanga.
On air, Ricardo was fantastic. His interview with Mike and Robert was especially impressive. Ricardo asked them both very pointed questions about how to progress his local church body into more of what he saw when visiting White’s Ferry Road Church years ago. Ricardo visited West Monroe, Louisiana, and attended a Celebrate Recovery service. In the on-air interview, Ricardo spoke with Mike and Robert about the long-lasting impact that the visit had on him and his desire to reach out to those who are considered outcasts in his local community.
Ricardo sees the need for abundant grace, and his traditional roots convict him of the need for abundant truth, so his questions were about how to mix the two and create a thriving church body. For instance, he asked about how to welcome the sinner but not the sin into the church. In Colombia, there seems to be a great social divide between the believer and the unbeliever, and Ricardo’s heart is stirring towards the grace he has seen offered during his time at White’s Ferry Road Church.
After the interview, our team spent the rest of the afternoon walking in downtown Bucaramanga and visiting with Ricardo and Estella.
Friday
Our team had a slow morning avoiding the rain and then met up with Ricardo to be introduced to two ladies who had been impacted by his radio broadcast.
We met with Ilida and Maria at a mall food court in La Florida Blanca. With Esteban’s help we were able to interview both ladies about their experience with Ricardo’s radio broadcast. Both had found the radio broadcast by accident, and both had been moved by the same segment on tithing. The ladies told us they loved Ricardo’s message about offering the Gospel message with love and grace, and that in his voice they heard more hope than condemnation. It was a breath of fresh air for each of them, so they began listening to the radio broadcast on a regular basis and eventually got plugged into a local church body.
After the interviews with Illida and Maria, Ricardo decided to take our team to see a local tourist spot called Parque Cerro del Santisimo. We were able to take a gondola ride up one of the nearby mountains to see a beautiful view of the
entire Bucaramanga valley as well as an enormous statue of Jesus overlooking the cities down below. This was an incredible sight for our team and really gave us an appreciation for the beauty of the region.
Saturday
This day, the team was able to go with Ricardo and Estella to meet the Venezuelan refugee children that are served through his weekend program. Saturdays are reserved for crafts, songs, and prayers with these children who live in a part of Bucaramanga called “The North.” “The North” is a neighborhood in extreme poverty with a predominant population of Venezuelan refugees.
One thing I noticed immediately is that even in the most dire of circumstances, these children felt joy, love, and support from this ministry. It was once again another reminder that the ministry of presence is so important to Kingdom work.
Looking at the children, it was obvious that there were material needs. It is a difficult concept to grasp, but meeting their material needs at this place would have no benefit to them in the long run. What Ricardo is doing is making their families feel supported, praying over them, and giving them one day a week of the greatest gift: hope. The impact that this will have will be far greater than 100 pairs of new shoes.
As a team we helped the children with their craft of the day and handed out snacks. We sang songs with them, told stories to make them laugh, and gave out lots of hugs. Mike, Robert, and I went with Ricardo to visit some of the parents who were lived in nearby houses. The circumstances for many of these families were dire—health, finances, and safety were all a daily struggle. Mike and Robert both spent time praying over these families and over their children.
The goodbyes that day were difficult ,and the children gave out plenty of hugs and shouts of te amo! (love you!) as we tried to leave.
After lunch we were able to go to Ricardo‘s apartment. It was very special to be there and to be invited into his home. Ricardo and Estella were able to speak with the One Kingdom team about their hopes for the future of their ministry, as well as the challenges that they face going forward.
Ricardo and Estella really want to do something different and better than what has been done before. They have big dreams. They believe in what they are doing, and they want to do it with excellence. It was one more reminder for me that the ministry of presence is the most impactful work of One Kingdom.
Sunday
On Sunday morning, the team decided to head to the local church early, because we were told that the congregants typically meet early for a potluck breakfast. We joined in and were able to speak with many members as they came in and dropped off their homemade dish.
Ricardo had planned for three local church bodies to meet in one joint Sunday service, so the room was full of families who had come together to worship. The live-streamed service began with Ricardo leading worship as the church body sang out loudly. It was a beautiful worship service. All three local pastors preached a message during the service, as well as our own Mike Kellett.
After the service, our team was invited to lunch at a restaurant with several of the church members. We said our goodbyes to the members of the local church, and we spent the rest of the afternoon preparing to leave Bucaramanga.
Monday
This last morning in Bucaramanga was dedicated to spending our last few hours with Ricardo and Estella. They took us to get some coffee, and we sat together and allowed Ricardo to talk about what he really needs to continue his ministry work in Colombia.
It was a wonderful experience to hear Ricardo’s passion for his work, his humility in asking for prayers and help, and his vision for what is next for his ministry. Ryan was able to encourage Ricardo and let him know that One Kingdom is not just a monetary supporter of our speakers around the globe; we want to support him spiritually above all else. This time with Ricardo and Estella was vital to the connection established between our team and his family.
After this, we headed back to the hotel to gather our things and head to the airport for our departure flight and our return journey back to West Monroe, Louisiana.
As we flew away from Colombia, I couldn’t help but sit in gratitude for the great work being done by Ricardo, Estella, and their team. At One Kingdom, there is always the hope that our partners are accomplishing great Kingdom work around the globe, but to see it in action was a confirming experience.
The work of spreading the Gospel by investing in local leaders within their own nations and communities is a different type of mission work. It requires trust in those local leaders, and trust in the Holy Spirit to raise up those leaders.
It is evident that the Holy Spirit has raised Ricardo and Estella for the people of Bucaramanga, Colombia, and that means that the Holy Spirit will continue to finish the work of raising up more leaders around the world. It is with this confirming thought that I traveled home, ready to pour myself out into the mission of One Kingdom, because the work being done is and will continue to have an eternal impact.