Trip summary

The arrival at Holguin was late in the evening and made a bit later by some initial delays.  I was at first detained because the customs officials expected me to have a Cuban passport.  It turned out that I had emigrated to the US only two months before the deadline for this requirement.  Once they realized this, they were very apologetic and courteously allowed me entrance to the country.  Another team member was detained because she had packed 300 toothbrushes (a rare commodity in Cuba these days) to hand out to conference participants.  The officials were somewhat embarrassed that they were obligated to open the bags, check the merchandise and finally declare it a benign import not for commercial gain.  What made it humorous is that they ignored many thousands of dollars worth of musical equipment that the team brought in!

We spent the first few days in Bayamo which turns out to be a historically significant if not large city in that region of Cuba.  The Cuban national anthem was authored by a native of Bayamo and in its lyrics the "Bayameses" courage is invoked.  Men are called to not fear death on the battlefield, for to die for one's country is to live.  I am only now noticing the similarity to the apostle Paul's passage in his letter to the Phillipians 1:21: "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." 

We stayed in picturesque Bayamo over the weekend and visited two churches on Saturday and Sunday.  The music is what struck me as the central feature of worship among Cuban believers.  And a very lively music it was, not stripped of its many influences  as I imagined might be the case.  A lot of conga drums and bongos were involved!

We traveled about 3 1/2 hours on Monday morning to Moa where the Huellas de Adoración Conference was to be held.  The full name translated is: "Imprints of Worship" and its slogan translated is: "Marking hearts for Christ through the arts in worship."  It was conceived planned and executed by Cuban believers themselves.  That's impressive enough, but what makes it all the more so is the lack of resources with which Cubans have to contend for organizing such an event.  But they have to deal with this harsh reality every day of their lives.  Their spirit of overcoming with the help of God has been developed to a high degree due to the difficult circumstances.  They regularly see the hand of God in delivering their needs on a daily basis.  They are strong believers because of it.   

I made so many wonderful and lasting friendships that it will be a challenge for me to stay in touch regularly with all of them.  But some in particular made a significant impression on me.  Wilter, the pastor of the relatively large church hosting the conference, is a very alert and strong leader with a great sense of humor.  We bonded almost immediately.  The other person whom I grew to admire greatly is the president of the denomination, Eliseo Navarro.  His more subdued personality belied his depth of character, brilliant mind and servant leadership qualities.  Many others touched my heart such as Yudismir the head organizer of the conference.  In his late 20s with three daughters, he already has his plate full of responsibilities, Yet he boldly stepped up and led several large teams of people to a very successful fulfillment of the event in all its intricate details.  I was very impressed with the overall management of people, resources and the resulting impact.  

I taught visual arts workshops daily and gave one presentation on art from a Christian perspective summarizing Francis Schaeffer's Art in the Bible.  There were numerous other workshops held simultaneously on various aspects of music, dance and evangelism.  Each evening a fabulous concert was held culminating in a finale on the last of the four and half days of the conference.  I was moved more and more each night and was deeply touched by the Christ-centered worship of my Christian brothers and sisters.  It changed my attitude toward worship altogether.  

Throughout the entire time there, I was most impressed by the joy on the faces of all the believers with whom I came into contact. It was contagious.  It was difficult to consider my departure even before the time came for us to leave.  I honestly wanted to stay.  I have contemplated over the days there, and even beforehand, the possibility of living in Cuba permanently.  Since then, I have continued to pray and felt more and more that this may be God's will for my life at this point.  Whatever happens, I am extremely open to that possibility.  

In the event that happens, I would miss my connection with the dear  and close friends I have been privileged to meet at church and elsewhere  But in another sense, they will remain a part of me as I have felt they made possible my initial steps on my journey toward a mission in Cuba.  As my life unfolds and more opportunities arise to do more and more permanent ministry in Cuba, I would hope that future connections with More people may be possible.  I would love to share my heart with others for the Cuban people and the much-needed work among them through short-term vision trips and other experiences.