My Journey of Grace

I'm Marcial Banda Rafael and have been a pastor for 24 years. Currently I am a district superintendent and coordinator of NDI in the South America Region. I am married to Zoila Cieza Garcia, and our two children, Mateo and Mariagrazia, are gifts from God.

Since my childhood, our loving God has surrounded me with His prevenient grace, first reaching my great-grandfather. Thanks to the visit of the North American missionaries Robert Brunson and Clyde Goliher—we were the first family in my community to be saved when they came to our remote town. In them, we experienced God’s love, His providence, His interest in us. So when I was 10 years old, God’s saving grace reached me, and I decided to follow Jesus.

God’s Call, My Obedience

At the age of 17, God called me to be a pastor after hearing a message from missionary Alfredo Swain. With the fervent desire to serve Him, I studied theology. At the age of 20, I was pastoring my first church. In my fifth year of pastoring, I had a traffic accident that resulted in a chronic traumatic encephalopathy, and I was unconscious for 7 days. When I recovered, God helped me understand that to make disciples I had to first be a disciple. I was determined to serve Him without reservations or conditions.

Matthew 16:24 became the verse that ordered my life. I gave up all my plans and professional opportunities that would divert me from the pastoral ministry. God spoke to me, and I understood that in everything God has a purpose. Just the way Christ asked the disciples to renounce everything, He asked the same of me as a pastor. Even though I had experienced God’s sanctifying grace as a student at seminary, I was still missing something; I still needed to grow in grace, allowing God to continue to perfect my character. I can now see the growth in my life and in the lives of others as we follow Jesus together. Even though we are not free from all anguish and difficulties, we can rely on His sustaining and sufficient grace.

COVID-19 Strikes

During the year and three months of the COVID-19 pandemic, we lost more than 100 members and 8 pastors in our North Peru District church. Each week became more difficult and was full of uncertainty. While fulfilling my ministerial responsibilities by going out to strengthen the churches and families, I was infected with COVID-19. On July 24, 2021, I started experiencing the symptoms of COVID—muscle pain and fever. With medical care at home, I improved for six days, but then the fever increased. Thank God, I was taken to get a lung scan. On August 3, my lungs were 55 percent compromised. Hospitalization was required, but beds were not immediately available. Finally, on August 5, I was admitted to the hospital and was put on six liters of oxygen. However, that same night, the medical staff had to increase the oxygen to 15 liters, further increasing to 45 liters on the second day. For six days, I was in the valley of the shadow of death.

The Great Physician Takes Over

On the sixth night, the doctor on duty arrived to transfer me to the ICU (Intensive Care Unit). It was at that time that I had a special experience and visit by the great Physician, who was clothed as a physician. He was on the opposite side of my stretcher and spoke to the doctor on duty and her nurse. He said: "Do not transfer him, wait for the results tomorrow morning." He said this twice, but they did not listen to Him. Then suddenly my oxygen saturation went up to 97, and they screamed: "Oh this is unbelievable! It was at 94! We better wait until tomorrow morning and decide!" They left the room, and suddenly I felt the Physician put His hand on my lungs and tap twice. He encouraged me with the words: "I am with you." I turned around to thank Him, but He was gone. I cried and cried until I fell asleep. The next day, I had a test to check the oxygen level in my blood, and the doctor on duty exclaimed: "Marcial, what have you promised God? The oxygen in your blood has risen dramatically and you are not going to be intubated!” Jesus had healed me. One doctor on duty shared with me: "You are coming out after 14 days; this is not normal. With all of the oxygen you required, you should have been hospitalized for at least 30 or 40 days.”

My restored health is a result of God’s grace and the powerful prayers of thousands of brothers, family, and leaders who prayed with all their hearts for my healing, through social networks, family altars, and other means and ways. Now, as I sign letters of recommendation for brothers who are going to study at the theological seminary, I am reminded that one of them made a promise to God: "If you extend the life of my pastor, Marcial, I will be a pastor like him." 

Together, we focus on this new Journey of Grace paradigm to continue to make Christlike disciples in the nations. We do so with a willing heart, with no reservations or conditions, indebted to the One who has provided each of us with grace upon grace.