Surprised by Cuba!

Wow, Lord!

All I can say about our trip to Mexico City and Cuba is Wow! Wow! Wow! Well, at least that’s how I feel.
I had some concerns as we prepared to go on this trip because in both places we were up against some significant challenges, but God came through in a big way. Thanks so much for praying. Dawn and I asked a number of friends and groups on Facebook to lift us up in prayer. It might have been the most prayer covering that we’ve ever had on a trip, and I think it was one of our most fruitful trips ever.
There’s so much to share. I’d like to focus first on our time in Cuba.

The Challenges of Cuba

It was my fourth trip to Cuba and Dawn and my second trip together. Cuba is a hard place to visit. There’s so much oppression, and many people struggle to just to survive. There are very few people in Cuba who eat meat every day. They have to live off of rice and yucca. Most Cubans live off of $25 a month.
One of the reasons this trip was even better than past trips to Cuba is that we were able to build off of the relationships that we made their last year. The last time Dawn and I were there together it was only a month and a half after Hannah moved to heaven, so we were in a much more vulnerable place.

Thankful for Our Cuban Friends

The Cubans are a warm and friendly people. Those that we met last year embraced us this year. We felt very loved. One of the younger church planting couples that the Lord gave us a special connection with when we first met them was there as well. Their names are Mario and Yanny. Yanny is close to Hannah’s age, so I remember when Dawn first met her she started crying because it reminded her of our daughter. Yanny and Mario reached out to us in love. It was so good to see them again and to be able to deepen our relationship.
So it was so good to see them again and to see all that the Lord was doing in and through them. Mario was able to buy a horse that they used to provide more income for themselves so they could build their church. I was excited to learn how his church was becoming a self-sustaining church as they looked for creative ways to fund their ministry.

The couple that leads the group is very special also, Oniel and Heidy. Last year the Lord used Dawn’s prayers to bring healing to their daughter, Rosa.  What the Lord did in healing their daughter has helped Oniel and Heidy to grow in their faith, and it has encouraged a number of people. Oniel is on the short side, but he’s a very dynamic preacher and leader.

We also love Justo and Sara, who are amazing evangelists. They have a deep love for Jesus. Sara gets up at 3 AM every morning to prayer, and both of them share their faith with almost anything that moves. I don’t know if I’ve ever met a couple that has led more people to Christ than Justo and Sara. They have already planted a number of churches. I’m just in awe of their love for Jesus and their passion for the gospel.

Our Wonderful Team

Dawn and I went to Cuba with a team of five Mexican national partners and two Americans who we also partner with in ministry. It was such a blessing to serve together. One of the many things that struck while we were together was hearing our Yoli, who is from Mexico share with the group that when Americans come to Tijuana to visit most think that they are poor or that they have very little and live under difficult position. Then when we were in Cuba together our Mexican friends realized how little the Cubans have and how much they suffer. It was an eye-opening experience for all of us.
The Lord blessed us with six church planting couples that we were evaluating. They were also awesome, and I’d like to share about them in my next post.
Thanks so much for praying. We felt it, and we saw the Lord answer in major ways as we saw breakthroughs. Yay God! Yay Jesus! We pray for more!
In His Grip, Dave
DiasoLifeOnTheBorder.org