This story begins in 1983, in a prison in La Plata Argentina…
Marcos, an inmate at Penitentiary Unit No. 9, never imagined a cell would be his home. In that tiny cement cage, hunger, fear and guilt taunted him every night, reminding Marcos of the events that led him to this dreadful place. Little could this young prisoner know that one day he would be a fiery evangelist winning many souls to Jesus – a person he had never heard of at this time.
The routine was always the same, day in and day out. But one day, 28 years ago, something out of the ordinary changed Marcos’ life forever. A stranger was standing outside his cell. “God bless you brother,” he said and handed Marcos a booklet from Every Home for Christ through the cell bars.
The word “brother” caught Marco’s attention – he had no brothers here. Then the stranger turned and said: “We have a meeting in Ward Four this afternoon – see you there.”
A few hours later, Marcos nervously walked towards the meeting room. Suddenly he felt a heavy hand on his shoulder and turned abruptly to defend himself when he saw the stranger. Shocked, the stranger was reaching out to embrace him. The stranger introduced Marcos to the rest of the men. They were all excited because today a special preacher was coming from the outside.
Marcos could only wait and see what would happen. The speaker, Rino Bello, the EHC National Director for Argentina, was introduced. He spoke about sin, forgiveness, repentance and grace. But it was the man named “Jesus” that touched Marcos’ heart. For the first time he heard of someone who loved him and was willing to forgive him. When Rino asked if anyone wanted to follow Jesus, Marcos didn’t hesitate for a second.
That afternoon, Marcos received Jesus as his Saviour.
After the meeting, Rino gave Marcos a Bible. Marcos was grateful, but he didn’t tell the preacher that he couldn’t read or write. Rino asked Marcos if he understood the message. Marcos hesitated, then told him that this was the first time he had ever heard about Jesus and there was much he didn’t understand.
“You will never forget the words I spoke today. God will keep them in your heart. What you do not understand now, you will understand later. This Bible is the Word of God,” Rino said. “One day rivers of living waters will rain upon you and in that day you will remember all the words spoken today.” Marcos was intrigued by the authority with which Rino spoke and wondered how all this would be.
From that day, Marcos began his personal search for God. He was released from prison the following year and, while he knew God had His hand on his life, he forgot the preacher and the stranger who touched his life.
Then, late one night, Marcos received a revelation from the Lord, who whispered in his ear, “I am Jesus and I died for you on the cross of Calvary. Today, with my blood, I will cleanse all your sins.”
Marcos’ eyes were suddenly opened to who Jesus truly was – and is. He searched for the Bible and opened it at random. He wished he had learned to read. And then, something amazing happened. All those strange letters and symbols suddenly came alive. Miraculously, Marcos could read!
It was like Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit came upon those in the Upper Room and they began speaking in languages they didn’t know. Only a miracle, like in Acts, could cause an illiterate former prisoner to suddenly have the gift of reading as he looked at the pages of the Bible.
Today, Marcos is married to a wonderful woman named Gladys and they have six beautiful children. Marcos actively preaches God’s Word, visiting prisons and churches. This former prisoner-turned evangelist now clearly understands what it meant when that preacher visited his prison years earlier and prophetically told him: “Rivers of living waters will rain upon you.”
Rino writes to us: “The Word of God planted 28 years ago has truly produced amazing fruit and is seen beautifully today in this transformed life.”
Praise God for those who come to know Jesus and become evangelists for Him!