Javier Pantoja was commissioned by the Iglesia Hispanic de la Comunidad in Columbia as a missionary to his home village in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Javier Pantoja, center, is commissioned as a missionary of his church, the Iglesia Hispanic de la Comunidad, to the village of Oaxaca, Mexico. As pastor Miguel Hernandez, left, prays, Eduardo Lorenzo of Guatemala lays hands on Pantoja, blessing and charging him for his mission.Pantoja had been serving as a lead musician and worship leader for the Columbia mission. He is looking forward to being reunited with his family and fulfilling his missionary role in his local church.
His pastor, Miguel Hernandez, said, “I have very great memories of Javier’s active participation in our church. He hardly missed a service or a music practice. He always was ready to support our ministry activities at church, regardless of the task or the time involved.”
Pantoja continued his music ministry until the last service before he left for Mexico. He was thankful for the opportunity to improve his English through the English-as-a-Second-Language ministry at Temple and Calvary Baptist churches, and at the Hispanic mission.
The mission was officially recognized as a new start of Temple, Calvary, and South Belt Line Baptist churches during 2007. The Hispanic congregation is affiliated with Columbia Metro Baptist Association. Its pastor, Hernandez, is a Baylor Seminary graduate and native of Monterrey, Mexico.