Juan Conde Pena’s Life 5

Juan Conde Pena’s Life  5

Presentado por; Iris de La Rosa Vélez, 2014

Constructing a church in Puerto Rico

The church members and neighbors helped me construct a church big enough to accommodate about 100 people. It was a very special place where we felt the Lord’s presence. Many times we had to close the chairs and move them away from the worship area because the worshippers began to dance in the Spirit. The Holy Ghost manifestation was an indication to start having some evangelistic campaigns in order to win more members for Christ. We also continued praying and fasting in our quest to get closer to God. A Sunday morning while I was praying and fasting, I had a vision. In this vision, I was transported to a church that was located on a mountain – I could clealy see the large stairs in front of the church; and on those stairs, I could see a group of young people that permeated my whole being. I also felt a cool breeze coming through the window, which was delightfully refreshing.

I was promoted to take care of a bigger church

As I was enjoying this extraordinary experience, I heard footsteps behind me and I thought that my wife, as she had done many times before, was coming to invite me for dinner. I waited a while until someone came over and touched my shoulders. I was surprised, when I turned around and saw the Universal Church of Jesus Christ’s President, who came to talk to me. After the usual greetings, we sat down. He offered me the options to pastor either the Caimito Church, or the Gurabo Church. I immediately chose the Caimito Church because that was the church, which I had seen in my vision.

This church is located on a mountain about a half-hour drive from my home. There are two roads to get there. The better road is steep, curved, and narrow where there had been many accidents before. Moreover, it had many potholes and deep ditches on each side. Many times as I was driving up I had to go into a private driveway to allow the car coming down to pass. The church had about 55 members who were very well indoctrinated. Almost all of them paid their tithes on time and attended the services regularly. For the first time after seven years, I started getting a salary. It was not a large salary, but it was enough to pay for my expenses and bring food home. On my first Pastor’s Day Celebration, the people in this church gave us, many gifts. Among them were an expensive suit, living room furniture, an attaché case, and several hundred dollars.

In the beginning, I got all the help I needed; but later on, the church van driver quit, some of the people in the evangelizing committee stopped their work, and I could not get enough help to get the church work done. Fortunately, in addition to God’s guidance my wife was always at my side, and she always was my faithful helper. We visited the sick once a week and evangelized two days a week. Also, we attended the night services six times during the week. Moreover, on Sundays we had Bible school in the morning and a worship service in the evening. Hence, four days a week we were out in the morning, returned home at about two or three in the afternoon, and attended the worship services from 7ː00 to 9ː00 p.m. Furthermore, I drove the church bus six evenings and on Sunday mornings. Additionally, I prepared two sermons and two or three lessons weekly. In spite of praying for many hours during the week and fasting once or twice a week, I did not get the help I needed in the two years I served in the Caimito Church.

 

 

 

We visited our son and wife in Florida and in Virginia and I presented my first grandson to the lord

Since I started receiving a steady income, I was able to save some money. I saved enough to take a two-week vacation to visit my son in Palm Bay, Florida. He had just moved there with his lovely wife, Ivelise. Ivy, as we lovingly call her, was a tremendous help to Junior while he searched tirelessly for a job. She worked to sustain the house until my son found a job. They only stayed in Florida a short time because employment in his field was scarce and because the salaries were low. They also faced the high cost of living. Therefore months later, they moved to Sterling, Virginia. It was in this beautiful state that Ivy gave birth to the most handsome boy in the whole wide world, Nicholas Conde. Nicholas is our only male grandchild. That same year, we made a second trip to our son’s apartment in Virginia. It was so wonderful when Ivy and Junior asked us to present Nicholas to the Lord. As a minister, I can say that it was my biggest joy when I took Nicholas in my arms and dedicated him to the Lord. But since all good things in life must come to an end, we returned to Puerto Rico.

My second promotion to pastor a bigger church

A short time returning to Puerto Rico, I was transferred to the Placita Church. Their church’s pastor retired after serving there for seventeen years, and asked the council’s president to send me there. I was honored to pastor his church. The membership was greater, and therefore there were more members to help the pastor than in the Caimito Church. At one time, I had seven drivers. After working for the Universal Church of Jesus Christ for about ten years. I felt that the Placita Church was the ideal church that church with great expectations. I directed the nominations of the officers (deacons, societies’ presidents, bookkeeper, Sunday school teachers secretary, etc.). we also formed the evangelizing committee and started visiting the community at once. Immediately, we saw a tremendous enthusiasm in all the members and in the neighbors. Consequently, the church began to grow in membership and financially. It was a tremendous boost to my faith because I could see how God was answering our prayers.

The enthusiasm was so great that everybody became involved in improving the facilities. We built a concrete wall to contain the loose dirt that obstructed the driveway to the garage when it rained. About a year later, we built the pastor’s office and remodeled the pulpit. The pastor’s office was decorated with beautiful painting and colorful curtains. It was furnished with a lovely desk, a five-drawer file, and two beautiful lamps. Additionally, it had a glass sliding door at the entrance. For the pulpit we used the best wood we could find, called ambujah. The artisans worked expertly setting the boards in an arc behind the pulpit, which looked like an opened lady’s fan. They also installed four lights on each side. These lights were very helpful to the pastor when he preached because they kept the lectern well illuminated. We kept constantly modifying the facilities to keep the building beautiful and practical. One major project was replacing the roof’s material above the pastor’s office and the youth’s Bible study schoolroom. We took down the zinc planks and use concrete instead because Hurricane Hugo had blown away the previous roof.

I suffered a terrible automobile accident but the church was very supportive

After serving in this church for five years, I suffered a terrible automobile accident. On a Saturday morning while I was driving the church van to a ladies’ meeting, a car coming from the opposite direction invaded my lane. I had no other alternative but to quickly veer to the shoulder of the road. Since it had been raining that day, the earth was slippery, and I lost control of the van. Consequently, the van crashed against a tree and the sixteen sisters who were my passengers and I was hurt. I was trapped between the driver’s seat and the dashboard for over an hour. My left leg was fractured in two places, and the right side of my right foot was burned with the heat that emanated from the manifold. It was trapped between the gas and the brake pedals. Miraculously, about half an hour after the accident, someone managed to free my right foot. His prompt action avoided further damage to my foot. The heat coming from the manifold was so intense that it melted the shoe sole, and I suffered second and third a space large enough to get me out. They had to use two trucks to get me out; one held the van’s front end, and the other pulled away the van’s rear end. They immediately took me to the local hospital. At this hospital, I was informed that the sisters riding with me suffered a fractured arm, a gash in her scalp, and a bump on her stomach.

Fortunately, the ambulances’ workers took us to the local hospital right away. Almost all the sisters were treated and sent home, but they transferred the sister who fell out of the van and me to the district hospital. There the doctors straightened the bones in my left leg and put a cast on it. They had to do the same procedure twice because the bone wasn’t set right the first time. Since they did not anesthetize me, the second time I suffered such an excruciating pain that it is very difficult to describe. I was fortunate that a wonderful sister from my church stayed with me through the whole ordeal.

The doctors kept me there for about four or five hours for no apparent reason. Fortunately, another church member and his wife came to visit me and I told them that I wanted to go home. This couple followed my doctor around and stayed with him until he signed my release papers. Immediately, they drove me home. When we arrived home, they helped me out of the van by lifting me up and sat me on a chair. While I sat on that chair, I had an unforgettable experience – I went into an ecstasy. I lost track of time and my mind went black for about a minute. My friends were worried because I did not react when they called me. As soon as I came back to my senses, they moved me into the house and into my room. In retrospect, I surmised that the experience I mentioned above was caused by a lack of food because I hadn’t eaten for thirty hours.

The lack of medical attention almost brought about a foot amputation, but two wonderful sisters came to my rescue

Although my wife took special care of me, my burned foot got worse. Luckily, my former church president came to visit me and informed me that I should report my case to the Workmen’s Compensation Commission because I was working when I suffered the accident. I immediately contacted two wonderful church members, named Sonia and Rosita, and they took me to the District Workmen’s Compensation Hospital located in Humacao. A nurse examined my foot and discovered that it had a terrible infection. It was unbelievable how bad my right foot was because the nurse had to clean my foot by pulling off the dead skin layers. She referred me immediately to the Industrial Hospital in San Juan. When I arrived there, I was admitted in the section designated for people who had been burned. The hospital’s officials informed my friends that I needed new clothes for my daily changes. My two dear sisters went out at once and bought the clothes that I needed.

 

My first hospitalization and my first encounter with a group of dedicated nurses

It took two operations to repair the damage I suffered in my foot. I still remember the horrible feeling of the needle penetrating my spinal cord as I was anesthetized. The first process consisted in cleaning the foot – the doctors scraped off all the dead skin and kept me on antibiotics intravenously for seven days while the nurses poured a certain liquid on my foot every day. After the seven-day period, the doctors took me again the operating room; but this time, the surgeon sliced a piece of skin about 6’’ by 8’’ from my right thing and grafted it on my right foot. They kept me bedfast all the time. I remember with great satisfaction and admiration how the nurse and their aides kept a constant watch over me. One of the nurses was so caring that during mealtime she shredded the chicken to make it easier for me to eat it. I will never forget that expression of real service and caring.

While I was bedfast, they came daily to bathe me in bed, change the sheets, and apply antibiotic cream on my thing and foot and place ne bandages on them. They used a certain kind of tweezers to pull the dead skin while they cut it with a special pair of scissors. They also fed me three times a day. They not only provided me with the three regular meals, but a dietitian came every day to see if I had eaten my meals. I remembered a special moment when I longed for some ice cream. I was not supposed to eat ice cream, but the dietitian went to the store and bought me a dish of vanilla ice cream. I was so pleased with my ice cream that I acted like a child. I pulled the curtain and hid behind it to eat the treat. Minutes later, the dietitian appeared and playfully pulled the curtain to one side- giving away my secret and both of us laughed at my childish behavior.

I was hospitalized for 47 days-after 14 days I used a wheelchair to move around

I spent forty-seven days in this hospital, and I had a new experience every day. After fourteen days, they helped me get up from bed and sat me on a wheelchair. I felt relieved to be able to move about. In the morning, I managed to go to the restroom unassisted; and in the evenings, I rode on my wheelchair to visit the other patients. I remember how I chose the bathroom with the better showers. Some of them didn’t have hot water. In order to help speed my recuperation, I went to the gym where the therapists taught me a series of exercises to regain my strength. In addition to the physical exercises, I took occupational therapy. It was extremely painful when I stool on my recently skin-grafted foot for brief periods to work on some items. I felt as if a hundred sharp needles were penetrating the sole of my foot while I stood on it. I couldn’t stand on my left leg because it was in a cast. The people passing by were surprised to hera me working so fast. They did not know that I could not stand on my right foot for too long. Therefore, I had to do the work as fast as possible so I could sit down.

When I regained some strength they brought me a walker

I regained my strength slowly; and eventually, they took away my wheelchair and brought me a walker. On one occasion as I was walking to the gym, my pants slipped half way down to my butt. Since I had lost weight and I didn’t have a belt on, I couldn’t hold my pants up because I had to keep both hands on the walker. That made me embarrass and I looked to see who had seen the incident. I discovered that the hall was deserted and I felt a sense of relief that no one had seen me almost naked. Walking with the walker was very painful, so I used the wheelchair whenever possible to visit the other patients.

This was the first time in my life that I was hospitalized and it felt that I was there for an eternity. During my hospitalization many people visited meː ministers, lay people, the Council President, my assistant pastor, and many others. They all brought me words of encouragement that helped expedite my recovery. Among those who came regularly to visit me was my dear wife. She never missed the opportunity to come whenever someone was available to give her a ride. Although my children could not visit me because they lived far away in the state of Virginia, they kept in touch with me through the telephone. It was always so refreshing to hear their voices on the phone because they showed they cared very much for me.

Prayers are powerful-Glory to God

As I mentioned earlier, the first weeks in the hospital were excruciatingly painful. Every morning when the nurse came to apply the antibiotic and to change the bandages on my right foot, I could see on their faces a look of frustration. I realized that the skin grafted on my foot was not healing. So I started praying fervently ever time a nurse came to my room. At first, they just smiled; but a few days later they noticed with relief, that the foot had begun to heal. Thereafter, every day we celebrated the healing process occurring on my foot. During the day, I continued with my physical and occupational therapy, and some nights we met in the gym to watch movies.

Since the place was maintained at a cold temperature to stave off infections, we helped each other to keep warm. Very often, the patients who felt better took down warm sheets from the closet and wrapped them around us. Those sheets were always very warm, and very comfortable. It was amazing how we took care of each other. In a short time, we developed a sort of camaraderie unsurpassed to anything I have seen in my lifetime. This taught me that human beings will assist each during a crisis without regard to race, religion, or ethnic background.

Our group visited the new patients

Every time a new patient was brought in, some of us went to visit him or her. We saw patients who had burns all over their bodies. For those patients, the staff used a steel tank (which was filled with water and a certain solution) and a special leather hammock that hung from one end of the tank to the other. The patients were strapped down on that leather hammock so that the therapist could turn them around for treatment after bathing them. Most of them were in critical condition, and the nurses kept a constant vigil over them. As I watched the great number of patients being admitted and the many others who were being discharged in that department, I kept silently wondering about when I was going to go home.

I returned home from a long hospitalization

My time to go home arrived! However, the day before going home, I suffered a small accident. After taking my regular morning bath, I tried to switch seats from the bath chair to the wheelchair. As I was accomplishing this task, my doctor unexpectedly opened the shower curtain. This happened so suddenly that it startled me. I was so surprised that I dropped the towel that I was holding with my right hand covering the lower part of my body. There I was, naked, holding the wheelchair with both hands to avoid falling, and exposing myself to the doctor, and more embarrassingly, to the nurse who had come to my rescue when she heard the thump on the wall as I fell against it. In spite of this embarrassing moment, I was glad to see the doctor because he came to tell me that I was going home the following day.

After staying in the hospital for forty-seven days, I was allowed to go home and return for treatment once a week. Before my release a technician took me to the first floor where they fitted me with crutches and showed me how to use them. Upon my release, I received a new pair of crutches. Although I only had a rudimentary knowledge about walking with crutches, I managed to walk out haltingly, but successfully. I could not even turn my head to look at those wonderful nurses who were saying goodbye because I was afraid of falling. Fortunately, my wife and a brother from church brought me a wheelchair, and I immediately sat on it.

Once home, I drove my wife crazy because I expected from her the same treatment that I was getting at the hospital. As time passed, I was conforming to any help that she could give me. Since I could not take showers or get into a filled bathtub, I continued to sit on a plastic chair and to cover the cast with a black plastic bag while I poured water on my body. After bathing, my wife applied the medicine and put the bandages on my foot and helped me to my bed. There I waited impatiently for my breakfast. After breakfast, I spent the rest of the day as followsː reading, talking to the people who came to visit, or merely watching television. I also tried to catch up on my Hebrew a Greek Language studies. I was fortunate that during all the time I was at home convalescing, the Lord supplied all my needs. My Lord never leaves your nor forsakes thee.

The dreadful hospital visit

Since I couldn’t get total medical attention at home, I had to go to the hospital once a week. Those were very dreadful days because the doctors had to see many patients. Sometimes we arrived at the hospital at 4ː00 or 5ː00 A.M., and other patients were already waiting to see the doctor. Those patients were left over from the previous day, so they were seen by the doctor before. For this reason, most of the time I saw my doctor in the afternoon, and I returned home in the evening. Although my foot continued to improve, my fractured leg did not. Therefore, in one of those visits to the orthopedist x-rayed my leg and saw that the bone was still out of place. That same day the technician sawed off the cast; the doctor realigned the bone, and put on a new cast. That was the most dreadful pain I had to experience in all my life because he did the realignment without anesthesia. Additionally, the technician exacerbated my pain when he grazed my skin as he cut the cast.