Welcome to the fourth installment of our series covering Mexican pastors and seminary students. This week we'll take a look at Pastor Juan José Olvera, one of the church's leading evangelists here in Mexico.
First Encounter
Pastor Olvera first came to know about the Lutheran Church in Mexico in 2002. At the time, he and his family were living close to the church El Redentor (Redeemer) in Torreón. Pastor Olvera ran a martial arts school just a few blocks from the church.
Pastor Olvera’s wife Claudia had attended the kindergarten run by El Redentor as a child. One day as she and Pastor Olvera were walking past the church, some members recognized Claudia and called out to her. The Olvera family stopped to chat and became interested in the church.
Through this connection, Pastor Olvera met Pastor Sánchez, who serves the congregation El Redentor. The two became friends, and soon Pastor Olvera started taking confirmation classes. “It was the first time a church had answered my questions using only the Bible,” Pastor Olvera says. “There wasn’t any human reason mixed in the teaching.”
Juan José was so interested that some days he studied between six and eight hours. “I think I finished the course in about 20 days. It may have been a record!”
While they studied, Pastor Sánchez noticed his student had strong leadership skills and a love for the gospel. He started talking about the possibility of becoming a pastor.
“At first I really didn’t want to have anything to do with being a pastor. But one day I went around with Pastor Sánchez and saw what he did all day. It got me thinking that maybe I could do something like that too.”
Becoming a Pastor
In 2003 Pastor Olvera entered the seminary program. He studied for four years and graduated in 2007. After graduating, Pastor Olvera was called to serve the congregation in Juárez.
Unfortunately, violence in Juárez increased shortly after the Olvera family got settled. The Mexican Lutheran Church pulled Pastor Olvera, his wife and their two daughters out of Juárez in 2008.
The family moved to Torreón, where Pastor Olvera continues to serve today. He currently oversees two congregations in the area: Jesús Pan de Vida (Jesus Bread of Life) and Santa Trinidad (Holy Trinity). In both of these locations, Pastor Olvera focuses on evangelism efforts. “I love going from house to house, telling people about Jesus. I show how He can change their entire life.”
In Jesús Pan de Vida, Pastor Olvera is training lay leaders to focus on evangelism. “We have an evangelism group that consists of seven people.” He teaches them once a week and each class lasts about two hours.
Pastor Olvera is also helping the congregation carry out a building project. The group recently purchased property and is currently building a church on it. Pastor Olvera has members involved in the construction of the building, and they look forward to worshiping in it by the end of the year.
In Santa Trinidad, Pastor Olvera is training a group of evangelists as well. And he has set up three different preaching stations near the church, as a way to reach as many people as possible.
Thank you, Pastor Olvera, for your efforts to reach as many as possible while it is still day. We wish you God’s grace and blessings as you continue to do the work of the Lord.
Join us next week as we cover another pastor in this 12-part series.
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