A young mother in Chile whose marriage and mental health were in ruins did not expect to find any comfort in a phone call from a distant stranger.
Depressed since her marriage started to sour a few years before, 32-year-old Ximena Flores* suffered steady deterioration of her mental health, cementing her husband’s desire for separation. A schoolteacher with a 5-year-old daughter, Flores’ condition worsened when the COVID-19 pandemic forced her to teach online from home – where the sources of stress and conflict overlapped with work challenges.
“Someone told me that there was another teacher who was a Christian and could help me,” Flores said. “I did not believe this but, in my despair, I dared to tell her what was happening to me. She told me Jesus is the answer, and I said, ‘How?’”
The colleague told her of a local missionary in another town, and Flores gave her permission to have him call her. When the missionary telephoned Flores, they spoke for an hour, and he shared about the Lord with her, she said.
“I thank our Lord and the missionary that God put in my path, who calls me every day to share the Bible and pray for my marriage.”
“We prayed, and my heart rested when the missionary prayed for me – I felt that I was infused with faith despite the distance he was calling me from,” Flores said. “I confessed my sins and asked God to help me. I accepted Him as my personal Savior.”
Defying the conventional wisdom that face-to-face contact is needed for such a personal exchange – especially true in Latin America – the power of the gospel registered even by telephone. Flores said her life began to change the moment she trusted in Christ.
“We prayed for my marriage, and something extraordinary happened – my husband and I reconciled, and since then everything has gotten better each day,” she said. “Today, I do not have depression. My debts have been paid. I am happy because Jesus Christ has changed me. I thank our Lord and the missionary that God put in my path, who calls me every day to share the Bible and pray for my marriage.”
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SOURCE: Christian Aid Mission
