Mexico
Husband and wife lead congregation

By Stacy King
Adelante staff writer

Francisco Martínez began his quest for the personal religious experience as a teenager in El Salvador. Outdoor evangelizing there eventually led him to the Baptist church. What got his attention at the services was the approach.

ADAM WILLIAMS/Adelante Music plays a key role in the worship services at the Church of the Nazarene in Mexico, Mo. As Pastor Elpidio Sandoval plays the guitar, members of the congregation sing a hymn from "Gracia y Devoción, " a religious songbook.

“It was not about politics, but how to get people closer to God,” Martínez said.
Now he enjoys the interaction with fellow believers as one of about 15 members of Friendship Baptist Church in Mexico, Mo. His wife, Ana, said she likes the deep, more active atmosphere. Martínez said he still likes to listen to Catholic Masses.
“Anywhere the word of the Lord is spoken – that is a good place to be,” he said.
But the biggest religious Latino presence in Mexico, with a congregation of nearly 60, is the First Church of the Nazarene. The typical service is full of children bouncing on laps and overflowing into the aisles. It’s the children, in fact, who open the service with a presentation from their Sunday school class.
The service is as boisterous as it is colorful; members celebrate with jangling tambourines and colorful metallic flags. And the Rev. Elpidio Sandoval accompanies members with the sounds of the keyboard or guitar.
If Elpidio Sandoval is the church’s head, Elía Sandoval is its heart. A leading advocate for the newly arrived immigrant workers, she calls doctors, makes appointments, and looks for houses or furniture. She also helps with job searches, translations and writing. “After all this, we can share the Gospel,” she said.
“We show them that the Lord cares. We are preaching, but we are acting.”