Our Cuban friend

This week we have been hosting our colleague from Cuba, Ismael Madruga. Many of you met him on Sunday as he preached in our worship service and spoke to us during lunch. He was very touched by your welcome. He told me later that he could see joy in the faces of people as he stood in the pulpit. It made me quite proud.

We have a partnership with Ismael’s congregation in Guines, Cuba. It is part of a series of partnerships between congregations in the Presbytery of Chicago and the Presbytery of Havana. The primary purpose of the partnerships is to build relationships. Even as our governments are estranged, the people of the churches are building bridges of understanding, peace, and love. It is a noble and godly project.

Would you like to go to Cuba?

Our presbytery is sending another delegation to Cuba in November. Last October several of us from EPC took the trip and found it transformative. We found a warm welcome, gracious hospitality, great food, informative conversations, and interesting experiences. I plan to go again, and I hope you will consider making the journey, too. I won’t tell you it is an easy thing to do; I will simply say that you will not regret making the effort.

If you think you might have an interest, let me know. You can call or e-mail me, or speak with Ruth Andersen, our mission committee chairperson. We can give you all the particulars, as well as a testimonial to the effect of God at work in a society very different from ours.