In the Argentine summer, January 2013, various members of the Operation Mobilization Córdoba team and the local church visited a village called Anecón Grande in Patagonia. This village includes people who descend from the indigenous Mapuche tribe, a tribe only found in southern Argentina and Chile.
The team brought various school supplies, as they would serve the local school by providing books and bookshelves. Additionally, the team brought personal hygiene products, backpacks and shoes, which are important for the long treks each student must make from their home through the mountainous terrain to the two-room school.
One OM team member, Mari Freille, worked with the two cooks of the school, Dominga and Julia, who were pleased to meet someone new.
Before each meal, the team prayed. This slowly opened the door for Mari to talk with Dominga about Jesus. Mari shared the stories about how Jesus had transformed the lives of several teenagers in Córdoba, through an OM ministry called El Refugio (The Refuge).
One day while preparing the daily meal, Mari asked Dominga, “Where do you think you will go when you die?”
“To heaven,” Dominga quickly responded.
Just as quickly, Mari added another question. “Why do you think Jesus is going to open a door to heaven for you, if you have not opened the door to your heart, here on earth?”
To this, Dominga had no response. She remained quiet and eventually continued stirring the pot of the day’s meal.
After a few more minutes of silence, Mari asked one more question. “Dominga,” she said, “do you want to open up the door of you heart and let Jesus enter it?”
“Yes, Mari,” she said. “I would like that.”
After praying together, they hugged. “Today, Dominga, God has opened the doors to heaven for you,” Mari said.
Another team member gave Dominga a Bible as well as a devotional book. On the way home from the trip, the team met a local pastor, whose wife had previously served with OM. He made the promise to keep in touch with Dominga and the other contacts they had made.
“I was able to see how the Holy Spirit so naturally brings together the networks of Christians in ways beyond our comprehension,” Mari commented. “God will do what He wants because He is so grande.”
For the original article, visit news.om.org.
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