Blog: A Bilingual Christian Church in La Paz

Blog: A Bilingual Christian Church in La Paz

Destino Cristiano is a bilingual Christian Church in La Paz. But what does this mean? How do English-speaking pastors share the word of God to a mostly Spanish-speaking congregation? And how do these members of the congregation share the deep things of their hearts?

This is a puzzle that only God can put together. Since arriving on the mission field in La Paz in April 2013, God has given us the pieces to this puzzle as we have needed them. We have our vision, and what we believe God wants to do with us and through in our Christian church in La Paz, but He is the Master Builder.

As the Master Builder, God holds the plans, and he is preparing the phases and the steps because we need a strong foundation to build from. First, God is putting us with Spanish speakers because we need to learn the language. But more than that, God wants us to connect with our hearts and minds, and to become comfortable with a culture that is foreign to us.

At the same time, we are being vulnerable and transparent. We are letting Spanish speakers into our world, sharing our culture and our hearts with them. We all agree that love is a universal language, and so everything stems from this. And it’s about respect. We are not trying to change a culture, but to change hearts. This may in turn, change some aspects of the culture. And along the way, we are changing from the inside out, even re-examining some of our cultural beliefs and norms.

Eventually, we will speak Spanish. But until then, we will continue to serve the people of La Paz in whatever way God wants. Destino Cristiano is His house.