Missionary Testimony - Through Trials

By Luis and Cintia Aguilar

Luis and Cintia Aguilar serve as Christ For the City International missionaries in Mexico. Their passion is ministering to the indigenous peoples in the mountains. However, lately, their primary mission field has been to a four-month old bundle of joy named Abigail. Here, they share about how God has used trials and tribulations as the catalyst for growth in their lives.

When the Lord called us to missions in 2011, it was a beautiful and supernatural moment, but He never showed us the whole panorama of the future, only enough to begin walking by faith. We didn´t know what was going to happen, but God had set us apart to serve Him.

From that moment on, the Lord began to work in us by strengthening our character, changing our thinking and fine-tuning our faith. He wanted us to be able to follow His will and be more fruitful. That´s when we understood that the supreme goal that our God has for his children is to make us more like Jesus. Often, the best way to learn how to do that is through trials. We can see an example in Joseph (Genesis 50:20) and the trials that changed his life. In the same way, God shows us His face and allows us to feel His presence in ways that are only possible through affliction.

During these years, the Lord has allowed us to live through many experiences. Some have been beautiful and others have broken our hearts, but in each one, the Lord has been faithful. He has never abandoned us. He has helped us through adversity without allowing us to sink into depression in the process. When prosperity has come, He has showed us how to use it for building His Kingdom, not our own. The joy of living each day for Jesus has helped us keep our balance, in spite of the ups and downs of the circumstances.

All the trials and difficulties in our walk as missionaries have challenged our hearts and convictions and have helped us discover who we really are. God, through His mercy, has made it possible for all things to work together for our good. No adversity has been without purpose. All of it has been under God´s control because He desires to fulfill His goals in our lives and ministry…which is why we give glory to His name!

We still have a lot to learn as missionaries (and right now we are busy learning to be new parents to boot), but we will not fear. The Holy Spirit renews us from within each day and helps us be fully confident in the Lord´s sovereignty. This Spirit is the guarantee that we have to hear God´s voice and the power that will lead us to fulfill the Great Commission.

Edited by: John Michael Den Hartog