Leaving Cuba after a ministry trip, Paul Johnson, Mesa Global’s Director of Spiritual Formation, felt the weight of both grief and hope. He witnessed the realities of dengue, blackouts, fuel shortages, and economic hardship affecting the island nation, but he was also encouraged by Christian leaders who are supporting one another in the midst of these challenges.
Paul was invited to Cuba to lead a training for over 30 pastors on developing Spiritual Mentoring groups among the country’s Christian leaders. The event was hosted by Open Eyes, a ministry who offered space for these pastors to worship and fellowship and also provided them with practical ministry tools. .
In Havana, Paul was moved not by the crisis in Cuba itself, but how leaders are responding to it. “They didn’t come seeking survival strategies or ministry techniques,” Paul says. “They came hungry for something deeper: to learn to walk alongside other leaders as they serve Christ in a challenging context.”
Mesa Global's ministry in Cuba began in the 1940s, when we partnered with national believers to establish a Bible school that would train pastors and church planters. After U.S. missionaries were forced to leave during the Revolution of the 1960s, Cuban pastors continued to lead underground churches. Mesa Global re-established contact with the Cuban church in the 1990s, and we continue to support theological education, missionary training, and spiritual formation for this next generation of persevering church leaders.
In the midst of hardship, the Cuban church remains strong. Leaders are supporting one another, worshiping with resilience and joy, and bearing witness to God’s faithfulness.
In difficult times, the church remains, as it has throughout history, bearing witness that this journey of faith is not meant to be walked alone.
