Today our five-part series, "Faces of the Pastorate," continues. These are stories of ministry in various contexts, in the face of various challenges, from people with different perspectives. Today's profile is of bi-vocational pastor, Misael Guzman.
Earlier this year, Misael Guzman received a phone call from a woman at church. She was concerned about her nephew, Ramon (not his real name), who had moved in with her shortly after his father was deported. He had been acting out in school and had begun cutting himself.
Through intentional conversations with Ramon, Guzman learned that he had been spending time with peers who had also been self-harming, and that at times, Ramon had harbored suicidal thoughts. Guzman called Ramon on a weekly basis to check up, and visited him at his home. Eventually word of Guzman's efforts made it back to Ramon's father.
"He told me, 'I know my son needs a father figure in his life, and I've not been there,'" said Guzman. "'I've been praying here in Peru that God would put a man in Ramon's life who would help him navigate some of these things.'"
'We want our young people to know that church is more than just youth ministry.'
This is the kind of feedback that motivates Guzman, 35, a bi-vocational pastor out of Newark, New Jersey.
"When you hear stories like that you begin to realize the effectiveness of the work you do," said Guzman.
Guzman's parents moved to Newark from Puerto Rico before he was born and brought up their firstborn son at Centro Cristiano Calvario (Calvary Christian Center, or CCC). The church serves predominantly first-generation Latin American immigrants, and has Spanish and English-language services.
Guzman relies on outside employment as ministry support. Currently in-between jobs, Guzman has worked in I.T. since he graduated from high school. At his last company—where he worked for seven years—Guzman was based at home. Guzman, who has four children, credits its flexibility for allowing him to balance the demands of his pastoral position and his role as a husband and father.
Guzman works alongside four youth leaders who serve around 40 primarily first-generation American students. "They're grounded in today's culture" said Guzman, who adds that they don't always see the relevance of church—especially once they age out of youth ministry.
"We want our young people to know that church is more than just youth ministry," said Guzman. "Until recently, we had our youth service simultaneously with the Spanish service on Sunday. One of the drawbacks was that it caused a disconnection between young people and the congregation."
Guzman coordinates an annual prayer walk with other churches and organizations; they travel in groups praying for the city as they walk toward City Hall. Guzman's also serves on the Police Clergy Affairs unit and is on a policy review board for President Obama's fatherhood initiative, My Brother's Keeper.
"Part of my calling is to flourish where I'm at," said Guzman. "My heart is in the city of Newark."
