Posts by Justo Dorantes

In my list of resolutions every year is to take up the sport of running again. Running keeps me motivated to lose weight and to keep myself healthy. A few weeks ago, I dusted off my treadmill and started to run again. I am doing ok so far; I am starting to get in the zone of running a few miles during the week. I am also trying to eat healthy and to eat less desserts. Three days ago, I…

My recent trip to Mexico Last week I had the privilege to preach in several Mayan villages in the Yucatan in Mexico. Some of the congregations in these Mayan villages are facing different kinds of struggles. It does not matter what your nationality is or where you live, the devil will always try to derail the faith of those who are faithful to God. I was very happy to preach each night and spend time in each village and answer…

In 1998 during the winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan one event competition called the attention of the world. Most of the newspapers had articles saying something like this: “Cross-country skier Philip Boit made history when he became the first Kenyan to compete at the Olympic Winter Games, racing in the 10km classic event at Nagano 1998. Despite coming last, he was enthusiastically embraced by the winner, Norwegian Bjorn Daehlie. It was a moment that marked the start of a lasting…

MY BABY WINDMILL PALM TREE One of my favorite plants are the palm trees. I have planted in my backyard about seven windmill palm trees. I planted them when they were babies and now, they are about eight feet tall and growing. One of the aspects I love of this kind of tree is that it reminds me of the tropical weather where I grew up in the Yucatan. Last summer, one of the palm trees had some fruit that…

OPPOSITION The place where I grew up in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico had only one Church of Christ in the whole region. This congregation was the first Church of Christ that was established in the 1970’s and there were only about seventy members. Just imagine! Seventy people who believe in Jesus Christ and had been baptized for the remission of their sins against the hundreds of thousands of people who oppose us. This was the case if you were…

NEW VISITORS One of our most faithful members in our Hispanic congregation is a man who oversees a crew of workers. This man has worked for many years in North Alabama, and he constantly has new workers under his supervision. This man and his family are a great example of faithfulness to God, they live about one hour from Decatur, but always manage to arrive on time for Bible class and worship. Whenever something is needed of him, he is…

Last week I was approached by a couple who wanted me to help them do their will. I was able to set up an appointment for them with a lawyer and I translated the documents and the visit with the lawyer. The couple got all the information in the first visit and in the second visit was the day to sign all the documents. The will was read so they could verify if all the documents were correct and after…

As Jesus journeyed through a certain village, He encountered ten men who were lepers. They cried out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” The Lord instructed them to go and show themselves to the priest (a requirement of the Law of Moses) and as they went, they were cleansed of the leprosy. One of the men, realizing that he had been healed, excitedly returns to Jesus, glorifies God and gives Jesus thanks for the wonderful gift of healing. Oh, by…

David had 37 mighty men who fought with him in battle (II Samuel 23:8-39). Three were set apart for their valor: Josheb-Basshebeth, chief of the three, once killed 800 men in one battle; Eleazar stood against the Philistines when everyone else fled, taking the victory by himself; Shammah once stood in a bean field and killed Philistines until he was victorious by himself. They were labeled, “The Three.” Others gained notoriety on the battlefield, like Abishai, David’s nephew, who killed…

One method that is used to change people’s belief is the use of public opinion polls. It’s a clever approach because we as humans — for the most part — like to blend in with the rest of society. Daily we are confronted with “statistics” which are gathered from polls as to whether something is right or wrong. A colorful bar-graph in the corner of a newspaper may inform us that 55 percent of all Americans believe that one’s “sexual…

A young man preached his heart out. He was barely 23 years old and this was his first gospel meeting. How his heart did beat when he received the invitation to come and preach for the small group of brethren in this little community. Visions of huge crowds, high excitement, lots of responses filled his head as he contemplated the coming event. When the time came he was almost out of breath with excitement. Although the crowds were fair, there…

The apostle Paul wrote to two young preachers. Both were encouraged to set good examples. Timothy was admonished: “Let no man despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). Titus was challenged: “In all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may…