MAINE – This fall, Dunntown AC Church in northern Maine was blessed with an unexpected opportunity to welcome a Spanish-speaking brother who joined us while working in the area. Although he didn’t speak English, he felt prompted by the Lord to attend one Sunday morning, intending to rely on Google Translate to understand the service. By God’s providence, two bilingual, native Spanish speakers in our church family were there to welcome him that day. Over the following weeks, we developed a system to provide him with printed translations of songs and sermons, as well as closed-captioning in Spanish for other parts of the service. Through frequent use of Google Translate, we’ve been able to welcome him, and sometimes his coworkers, into one of our small groups and into our daily lives.

He hopes to return to the area next year, and we’re working to improve our Spanish skills and technical capabilities — not only to welcome him back but also to reach the growing number of temporary workers in the area who are native Spanish speakers.

This was something we had never envisioned, but it has been beautiful to be used by God to encourage this brother while he was away from his family. It is our hope and prayer that God will continue to use us in unexpected ways to care for his children and reveal his kingdom to the world.