By Idalia Dinzey
We love to hear how 3ABN Latino has impacted our viewer’s lives and I’m often moved to tears when I hear how the Lord has brought about a change of heart through His transforming power. I feel so energized and encouraged that I just want to say a big, Praise the Lord!
Here’s a beautiful testimony from one of our viewers in Nuevo León, Mexico, which made me smile. In fact, parts of it made me laugh out loud!
3ABN Latino was invited to take part in a special event held in Mexico City, Mexico, that encouraged people in that huge city to embrace a healthier lifestyle. God really blessed, and we were able to assemble a set where we could interview people who have come into the Seventh-day Adventist Church because of 3ABN Latino programming on the hundreds of cable companies in Mexico!
A “Different” Channel
María Teresa Flores Morales, a wife and blessed mother of three daughters, was flipping through the channels on her television one day when she suddenly found a “different” Christian channel—3ABN Latino.
What is this? she wondered. Who are these people? And what are they talking about?
Because she takes care of her grandchildren, she says that when she discovered 3ABN Latino she’d only spend a few hours at a time watching our programs. “But I made my grandchildren watch the children’s programming,” she admits, “because, after all, 3ABN Latino has something for everyone.”
When her daughters would come to pick up their children after work, they soon noticed that their mother wouldn’t leave her bedroom to say hello or goodbye. Instead, she’d just sit there watching 3ABN Latino intently, with her Bible in her hands!
“Dad, I don’t think Mom’s feeling well,” one of her daughters commented one day. “I think there’s something wrong with her! How can we get her to stop watching that channel and get out of her room?” However, nothing they said could pry her away from her television.
I asked María Teresa what kept her glued to 3ABN Latino, and she answered, “I was enthralled because I was hearing and learning many things I’d never known—and it was all in the Bible! But what impacted me the most was that I never knew the Sabbath was part of the Ten Commandments. I honestly didn’t know! How can it be part of the Ten Commandments? I asked myself. And how is our relationship with God?
“I continued watching and giving God thanks because I was growing in Bible knowledge. I watched all the programs, and all the pastors—including you and your husband John,” she says. “And then I began watching Respuestas Bíblicas [3ABN Latino’s Spanish version of House Calls/Bible Answers]. I had so many questions, but I never bothered to send them in because someone else would beat me to it every time, and I’d get the information I needed to know! It felt like that program was custom made just for me!”
A Frustrated Family
When asked how often she watched 3ABN Latino, María Teresa admits her family got pretty frustrated with her.
“They actually got mad at me for watching that channel so much,” she says. “But I kept telling my husband that it was beautiful, and that they taught the Word of God and presented the truth.”
Her daughter Miriam says, “I was surprised by Mom’s comments, and they actually touched my heart because we were practicing a religion that didn’t explain a lot of biblical things. So I started getting interested, as well. I kept reading the Bible even though I didn’t understand a lot of things, and Mom kept explaining them to me.”
Another daughter, María, says, “Mom surprised us by watching 3ABN Latino all the time! We had a tradition of getting together every weekend for family gatherings and meals, but she was always so engrossed in watching 3ABN Latino. It frustrated me, but one day Mom said, ‘Honey, just listen to this man, Pastor Andres Portes. Listen to what he is saying.’ So I stopped and listened, and to tell you the truth, I felt something nice inside. He spoke so nicely that I felt it was getting somewhere within me; but I still held back and sarcastically asked my mother, ‘So are you going to become one of the sisters? It’s best for me to leave your house!’
“Months went by, and Mom continued watching 3ABN Latino. I told my father, ‘Mom is sick! There’s something wrong with her!’ But because of her sweet spirit, before you knew it, we began to see that there was something wrong with us!”
An Invitation?
The first time María Teresa visited a Seventh-day Adventist church was a memorable occasion. Her husband dropped her off at the church and said he’d be back to pick her up, but as she approached the door she hesitated.
“May I come in?” she asked.
“Of course!” the greeter replied as they offered her a Visitor Pin so others might welcome her, too.
Many people did welcome her, and several asked who had invited her to church that day.
“Oh, I didn’t know I needed an invitation,” she stammered. “I don’t know anyone here!”
Thankfully, a lady who overheard this conversation exclaimed, “The Holy Spirit invited her! That’s why she’s here!”
That made María Teresa feel special, and she proceeded to tell them all how the Holy Spirit had been working on her heart while she watched 3ABN Latino.
Then she surprised them all with a question:
“I’d like to get baptized. How do I go about it?”
Run and Hide
María Teresa was delighted when a couple from church began visiting her home to have Bible studies. She invited her daughters and their spouses, but every time the church members would pull into the driveway, everyone would run and hide! Even little Daniel would pretend to be asleep!
But finally, they were each impressed to join in, and today all but one of her daughters are baptized members, along with some of their husbands!
(And in case you’re wondering about the others, well, I’m happy to tell you that they’re studying to be baptized, too!)
“I’m so thankful that the Lord brought this channel to my family,” María says. “It’s a great blessing that Mom found it, and that she shared it with the family. We are here now thanks to what happened with Mom by finding the channel, by learning about God. ”
Daniel says he loves to go to the church because he’s learning about Jesus. “I’m learning that He has a lot of love for me,” he explains. “I want to be in Heaven with Him!”
I still laugh when I picture those family members running to hide, but I praise God that today her family stands undivided, serving our Lord!
Won’t you continue to pray for 3ABN Latino? Because of you, we can reach much farther than our minds can comprehend.
Thank you for your sacrificial giving! You have truly been missionaries in many countries without paying a penny for a passport or an airplane ticket. Your investment in 3ABN Latino enables us to preach the gospel both here at home and around the world!