Testimony of Puro De Jesus Juarbe

The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage: (Psalm 16:6)

By Puro De Jesus Juarbe.

The Lord has been good to me. I was born in Puerto Rico, in a home. (Roman Catholic people consider themselves Christians in the true sense of the word.) My parents were Catholic. That made me a Catholic. I was born December 25, 1936. As you can see, I'm a Christmas baby. That is why I respond to the name of Puro De Jesus (Which means, Pure of Jesus). Very cute, right?...

But let me tell you how this name came to pass, as my father told me. It was the day of December 24, 1936. My mother was expecting her third child very soon. My father was a heavy drinker, and that particular night he was drunk. When he came home he told my mother: "If it is a boy, and if he is born at twelve midnight, I'll call him Puro De Jesus (Pure of Jesus.). And lo and behold, my mother delivered me that Christmas night. It is important to let you know that my father’s first name was Puro, and I was the third child. Why my father did not call his first son Puro was always beyond my comprehension. It seems to me that the idea of my father calling me Puro De Jesus (Pure of Jesus) came straight from heaven. God had something in mind, that not even my father could perceive or understand.

My parents divorced and my home fell apart when I was three years old. That divorce left five (5) little children with a broken home. I was always striving to sort out why two Catholic people, considering themselves Christians, could commit such a horrendous crime. After this, that Christmas baby became very bitter with his parents, the world, and God. I swore to myself never to become a nominal Christian.

But thank God, He never paid any mind to me. That Christmas night, God started a work and He was going to finish it, all by Himself, in His own time. Until I was sixteen years of age, I was living my own life, too miserable to recall, but God’s eyes were upon me as His eyes are on the sparrows. When things got at their worst, I moved to New York, ready to continue on my rebellious and dangerous path. I got involved with a gang and one day my friends and I had been talking and planning, up to no good behavior when a pastor came to us. The pastor said, " We are starting a new evangelical church. We are having Sunday school tomorrow at ten o’clock. Would you come? "For some reason known only by God, my response was quick and positive. "Yes, we'll go." When the pastor left, my peers told me "Puro, you know we have plans for tomorrow. We' re not going with those crazy people. My response was "I’ve told the pastor that we're going, and if you don't want to go, I'll go."

That Sunday morning I visited a church for the first time in my life. My, how they treated me. Every one was very happy to see me. Every one gave me a nice welcome. They made me feel so good and so loved, that deep in my heart I said, "This is what I need. This is what I've been looking for."

I went back to the church that same night and gave my heart to the Lord Jesus. For the first time in my life I felt that my name Puro De Jesus (Pure of Jesus) was fitting me perfectly. I felt new. All the hate that I had for my father and mother left me. All the hate for the world left me. All the hate for God was turned into such a love, that, even today, I can feel.

I later registered in the Bible School of Theology. There I met my lovely wife Gloria. We both graduated at the top of the class and were recruited to teach in the Bible seminary. Then the Lord called us to the pastoral work. I was an employment counselor for the Labor Department in Washington, D.C. at that time, but I resigned from my job to become a full-time pastor. It was a step of faith, but God never let me down, always so faithful to me and my family. Twenty-five years after my conversion, I was called to pastor the church that I visited the night that the Lord saved me. The Lord gave me three wonderful daughters-Esther,Ruth, and Deborah. All three of them were an excellent and dedicated help in our pastoral work. My oldest granddaughter, Tabitha, is serving God as a full-time minister.

Yes, The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

There are many more things that God has done that time does not allow us to write them all. Only one thing I want to tell you: If God did it for me, He can do it to you. Give your heart to Jesus. Tell Him, "Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, for there is room for you." To me it is not important whether I am a Christmas baby or not, any more. The important thing is that Jesus is real in my life, and with the help of God, "As for me and my house we will continue to serve Him until He comes," "Come, Lord Jesus."

You, too, can give your heart to Jesus, right now. Please pray the prayer below.

I,__________________ confess that I'm a sinner. I'm asking you, Lord Jesus, to forgive all my sins. Come into my heart right now. Write my name in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. In Your lovely name I pray. Amen.

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