Puerto Rico: When an Unexpected Yes Becomes Ministry

Sometimes God opens a door so quietly that you almost miss it.

There was no long-term plan. No months of preparation. No carefully designed strategy. Just a message. An invitation. And, surprisingly, I was available.

That is how I ended up in Puerto Rico this summer, serving as an interpreter for an intensive training focused on discipleship, mentoring, and sharing the Gospel through sports. And what started as an unexpected opportunity became one of the most meaningful ministry experiences of my year.

Three weeks, a campsite, and a lot of learning

The training brought together athletes and coaches from different parts of Central, North, and South America. The participants stayed together at a campsite, and the schedule was intense. They worked from early in the morning until late at night, learning how to disciple and mentor others and how to walk alongside people intentionally while sharing the Gospel through sports.

I was there primarily to interpret because some of the trainers were English speakers and one of the participants did not speak Spanish. And when I say interpret, I mean interpret. For long stretches, I was interpreting from approximately 7:00 in the morning until 7:00 at night. It was challenging, physically, mentally, and emotionally. But it was also a tremendous privilege.

Seeing discipleship through a different lens

One of the things that impacted me most was seeing how intentionally this ministry approached sports. The goal wasn't simply to give young people something fun to do. It wasn't, “Let's play sports and hopefully we can talk about God along the way.” The training was much more intentional than that. The participants were learning how to mentor, how to disciple, how to walk alongside someone, how to build relationships, how to share the Gospel. And they were expected to pursue excellence in their sport as well. That really spoke to me.

As Christians, we often talk about doing things “for God,” but sometimes excellence is not the goal in ministry. This experience reminded me that many of us know how excellence is also an expression of worship.

If we are going to use sports to reach people, why wouldn't we pursue excellence in sports? If we are going to mentor someone, why wouldn't we intentionally learn how to mentor well? If we are going to disciple someone, why wouldn't we take the responsibility of discipleship seriously?

Watching this happen in practice was beautiful.

I was there to interpret, but I was also there to learn

One of the most humbling parts of the experience was realizing how much I was learning while I was serving. I got to meet missionaries and ministry leaders from different countries and hear their stories. I learned about their ministries, their challenges, their successes, their questions, and their dreams. We prayed together. We studied the Bible together. We shared meals. We talked about what was working and what wasn't. We dreamed about ways we might be able to work together in the future. There are even a couple of ideas that came out of those conversations that we are still exploring. I will share more when they are ready to become something concrete!

But perhaps one of the greatest gifts was simply seeing that I am not alone. Missionaries and ministry workers in different countries may have very different contexts, but there are so many common struggles. The questions about how to serve people well, the desire to see communities transformed, the challenge of finding sustainable ways to do ministry, the joy of seeing someone grow. The moments when you wonder if what you are doing is actually making a difference. The need to keep trusting God.

I came home encouraged by the faithfulness of people who continue saying yes to God's call in places very different from their own.

God keeps surprising me with the skills He has given me

There is another part of this experience that I have been thinking about a lot. Interpreting.

For years, I assumed that the things I studied formally, the things I trained for, and the professional skills I developed would be the things that took me where I needed to go. And then God started using interpreting to take me places I never expected. A training in the middle of nowhere in Puerto Rico. A summit for churches and organizations working with families and youth. International conferences. Humanitarian settings. Even interpreting for high-level public figures. I've been able to serve people in North, Central, and South America, the Caribbean, and Asia thanks to this skill. Different places, different people, different needs, same skill.

And every once in a while I stop and think, “God, I never would have planned this.” But maybe that's the point. We don't always know what God is preparing us for when we learn something. We don't always know why He gives us a particular ability, connects us with a particular person, or takes us through a particular experience. Sometimes we only understand later. This trip reminded me that our skills are not just professional tools; they can become ministry tools when we surrender them to God. Whatever you know how to do: teach, cook, organize, translate, build, create, communicate, coach, encourage, lead; God can use it.

An unexpected invitation

I had never been to Puerto Rico before. I certainly did not plan to spend part of my summer there. But an invitation arrived, I happened to be available, and I said yes. And God turned those two weeks into much more than an interpreting assignment. He gave me new friendships, new ideas, new ministry connections, new perspectives, a deeper understanding of discipleship and mentorship, and a reminder that He is faithful in ways I could never predict.

I came home grateful for Puerto Rico, but even more grateful for the people I met and the lessons I learned. And I came home reminded of something I have seen over and over again throughout my years of ministry: God prepares us long before we understand why.

The skills we develop, the experiences we have, the relationships we build. Even the things we sometimes wonder whether we should continue doing, he can take all of them and weave them together for something bigger than what we can currently see.

So here I am, still learning, still serving, still saying yes when I can, and still amazed by the places God takes me when I put what I have in His hands.

Puerto Rico was one of those unexpected gifts.

And I am so grateful I said yes.

Julia A.