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Christian Dickson has served as a missionary in Paraguay since 2003. Here Christian recounts the relationship he has had with one young man, Janathan, during those nine years, and the change Christ has made in Janathan’s life.

Three weeks after I arrived in Paraguay, I was sitting in a stuffy room on a Sunday morning. I stared at 10 children who had come for Sunday school and wondered if they understood anything I was saying. One of these children was a wild-looking seven-year-old boy named Janathan.

Of all the kids in the class that day, Janathan was the most difficult for me to understand and seemed the least impressed with what I had to say. A few weeks later I met his parents and siblings who were all active in the church.

Several months later, Janathan’s family invited Angelica (my girlfriend at the time and now my wife) and me to their house. It was a one-room house in which five people slept on three beds and shared an outside bathroom.

Soon after that, Janathan’s father was sent to jail. The family was having a hard time paying their bills, and Janathan’s mother was pregnant with her fifth child. I had to pay the hospital bill so the hospital would release the baby since the family could not afford the $64 bill.

Over the years Angelica and I and our church stepped in to care for Janathan’s family. We found sponsors in the States so Janathan could attend school. Church members hired Janathan for odd jobs so he would have enough money to eat. We had to bail his older brother out of jail. We have given Janathan and his siblings countless rides so they would not have to walk home from church in the dark. We helped pay for food and electrical bills and helped Janathan with homework. Most importantly, Angelica and I often spent time in prayer with the family after church or during visits to their home.

Eventually, all of Janathan’s family members stopped attending church. But Janathan never stopped coming. He was present at every church service and activity. Over the years he had become quite inquisitive about the Bible. He often tried to stump me on my biblical knowledge or at least test my beliefs.

Five years ago, we noticed Janathan was getting even skinnier than usual. Turns out, he had started living on the streets. (His mother’s new boyfriend was abusive to Janathan.) He never mentioned it to any of us, but we discovered he had been on the streets for months.

We talked with our pastor and decided that Janathan could live at the church. Church members give him a few dollars after church to buy a meal, and he is always picking up odd jobs. He is the drummer for our church band and a leader in the youth group.

Janathan has recently decided to pursue ministry! He will start seminary at The Instituto Metodista (The Methodist Institute), while continuing to finish high school and work.

One day I invited all of the boys in my Sunday school class over to watch football. They wanted to see an American football game and for me to explain the rules to them. I had each child get permission from his parents, since the game would end late in the evening. One of the children commented that Janathan didn’t have to get permission from his parents.

When the game ended much later than I had anticipated, I only received one phone call. It was from our pastor, asking why Janathan wasn’t back at church for the night. While Janathan had been seen as disposable by his parents, he is loved and cared for by our Christian community in San Vicente.