Dana Gunter said it was a conversation she never could’ve expected.
In 2004, she and her husband, John — who at the time were International Mission Board missionaries — were going door to door in the Dominican Republic inviting people to a new Bible study.
And they met Maria.
“Maria told us that she had been praying for a church in her neighborhood for several years,” Dana Gunter said. “What a blessing to be a part of Dana’s prayer. In the summer of 2004, we had our first worship service on the lawn of a house that we rented in the neighborhood.”
‘What a blessing’
And that church — Iglesia Bautista Esperanza Viva (Living Hope Baptist Church) — celebrated its 20th anniversary June 30. The Gunters, who now serve among Hispanics in Alabama, returned to the Dominican Republic to celebrate with them.
“As I sat in the anniversary service, I became very emotional,” Dana Gunter said. “First of all, what a blessing to have been a part of the beginning of this church that now has its own building.”
She said she’s also grateful to see all the Dominicans that God has raised up to lead the church, especially Pastor Ruben Diaz, who has served there for the past eight years.
Visiting the church again was nothing but blessing after blessing, Dana Gunter said.
“I know that God could have used anyone to go to the Dominican Republic to serve Him as church planters, but He chose me and John — and I am so very thankful that He did,” she said. “God has blessed us beyond measure through the friendships that we have made with many Dominicans who are now like family to us.”
One of those is Maria.
“Maria has been so faithful,” Dana Gunter said. “It was so great to see her and her family and see how she continues to be a great leader in the church today.”
Encouragement
Diaz said the church is “deeply grateful” for the Gunters. John Gunter’s “missionary spirit” and example of going door to door “has been an encouragement to our church to continue doing the work of sharing the gospel throughout the neighborhood,” he said.
Over the past 20 years, the Gunters have returned once or twice a year with missions teams to support the ministry of Esperanza Viva.
Diaz said many have been reached thanks to the ministry of Christ through the Gunters and their IMB teammates who started the church in 2004.
“We are very grateful to God for John’s life, for his ministry and his entire team,” Diaz said. “We have seen the result of God having used it as an instrument to evangelize and bring groups of missionaries to the Dominican Republic to win souls for Christ.”
John Gunter, who now serves as a missionary with the Southeast Alabama Baptist Hispanic Ministry Coalition, said it has been “encouraging to see our Dominican brothers and sisters so committed to sharing the gospel.”
‘Henry Blackaby moment’
As the church has grown, it has also planted another church, and John Gunter said that has been a joy to watch.
“As much pride as we have in being new grandparents, it kind of feels like that watching this church grow and multiply,” he said.
He said it started with what he, his wife and the others on their team saw as their “Henry Blackaby moment” — when they met Maria, they felt like God was already at work there in that neighborhood and they wanted to join Him, as Blackaby’s “Experiencing God” Bible study encourages followers of Christ to do.
“That’s what we were seeking, finding where God was working and joining Him there,” John Gunter said.
Share with others: