Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: “Who should I send? Who will go for Us?” I said: “Here I am. Send me.” Isaiah 6:8
It was November 1900. A group of five missionaries were looking over the rail of their banana boat that had just arrived in Cuba. As they leaned over the rail watching the ship cargo being unloaded, one of them heard and understood his first Spanish words in Cuba, “Poco a poco.” The group had been on an intensive Spanish course in the last few months as they got ready to leave for Cuba. Mr. Jones understood that it meant “little by little” in other words, “take it easy.” He took these words as a sign from the Lord. Ministry was going to take a while, and he was not to try to rush it. Their first convert was the carpenter that built a few benches for their meetings. Ministry in Cuba did take a while, but by 1927, there was an independent, thriving church in Cuba.
Why am I telling this story? Those five missionaries answered God’s call and joined Him on mission. When God asked “Who should I send,” they answered, “Send us.” They could never have imagined the impact that their answer would have on thousands of Cubans. They impacted the lives of thousands of people they never met. I am one of them. I came to know Jesus in one of those churches founded by that group of missionaries, and those who followed them. It is interesting that I am writing this in November because every November we celebrated the lives of those five missionaries. I remember how we had to learn their names in Sunday School. By the time I was old enough to understand salvation, there were no missionaries left in Cuba. The Communist regime revoked all of their visas and they had to leave, but their work and the Holy Spirit remain in Cuba. Generations continue to worship the Lord and study the Bible in spite of all the hardships.
Those five missionaries were not super-Christians, but ordinary people like you and me. They just heard a call from God and answered it. If you hear His call and answer it, the Lord will send you on an amazing journey, and you will never know until you get to Heaven the impact that you had on many lives.
Isabel Hines
Global Outreach Council