Grab a cup of tea or some Cuban coffee and take a moment to catch up with our colleagues and Church of God church planters, Alejandro and Carmen DeFrancisco, as they fill us in on this season of ministry in Madrid!
3W: Before you moved to Madrid in the Spring of 2018, you were Church of God pastors in America, right? What did your ministry there look like?
Alejandro and Carmen: Yes, we spent the previous 17 years in ministry, with some very talented teams of people, planting 17 churches in 15 cities in the US! Much of our time was spent in Florida. With our past 6 years in Spain, we’ve been serving in ministry for 23 years! I can’t emphasize enough that ministry and church planting is a team effort! We have been blessed over the years to serve with committed people, working and using their gifts, to make a healthy discipleship/church planting network. And we are thrilled to be serving alongside amazing people now in Spain.
3W: What does your current ministry in Spain look like?
Alejandro and Carmen: We continue to witness all the ways God is strengthening and expanding the church in Madrid. En Mi Lugar meets for its regular service on Sunday morning, followed by a meal and time of fellowship. The members of the church body carry the mission and vision of the church as they step into leadership roles, create and share devotionals, and host church meetings in their homes.
As the church expands, we are still searching for a new place to gather. We host church services in the basement of our home. With 62 members in the church, we are past full capacity. We trust that God will meet our needs and provide a new location that allows our church to continue to grow and flourish.
3W: How does En Mi Lugar gather together during the week?
Alejandro and Carmen: In the last few months, we have focused on developing programs for the church. Because church members come from a long distance, we discovered new ways to minister to them over technology throughout the week. We stay connected through the online discipleship program, daily men's and women's devotionals, and recorded sermons.
3W: What’s a way that you have seen God move recently?
Alejandro and Carmen: This month, we celebrated six baptisms at En Mi Lugar! We have watched God move in mighty ways through the testimonies of these six people, and we are excited to walk alongside them as they take this new step of faith. We hoped to host the baptism service at the pool in our housing edition, but we were unable to do so. This is one of the challenges we face as a small church in a cultural context where Christianity is not widely accepted. God still provided the perfect place for a baptism service at the backyard pool of a local nonprofit. It was a beautiful day of celebration for everyone involved!
This month, we celebrated six baptisms at En Mi Lugar!
3W: What is something that you are looking forward to in the coming months?
Alejandro and Carmen: We have a vision to create a coffee house/café in our neighborhood that will serve as a gathering place, and place to build community amongst diverse groups of people, and a place of hospitality for anyone who visits. We are excited to see how God will use this place and how people will experience God through this café!
You can follow and support En Mi Lugar, the Multiply Madrid Network project, and the DeFranciscos through these links and also social media. Thank you for connecting with the Church of God in Spain!