Pastor Isaac Arbalat

About Us

I was born into a Christian family, and from a very young age I learned about missions and the importance of sharing the Gospel with those who do not yet know Him. However, although I participated in many church events and activities, it was not until my teenage years, during a campaign in Galicia, that God brought conviction of sin to my heart, and I surrendered completely to Him.

Throughout those years, the Lord was working in my heart, and as I was about to turn 18, during a trip to Brazil, I saw the immense spiritual need among children, and God confirmed in me the desire to dedicate my entire life to the cause of the Gospel.

Years later, I met the one who is now my wife, and through her God opened the door for us to serve together as missionaries in El Salvador. There, we confirmed our commitment to God’s calling to serve Him as missionaries and eventually return to Spain to continue the work.

Current Roles and Challanges

I currently serve as pastor of the local church in Talavera de la Reina. Since we do not have a full-time ministry team, my responsibilities include general administration, ministry organization, preaching, and family counseling.

Although the church has been in existence for more than 30 years, in a sense it is relatively new, as it has gone through various leadership changes and seasons of crisis that nearly brought it to closure. I began serving as an elder in 2014, and in 2018 I was ordained as pastor. During this time, we have worked on establishing solid foundations and walking alongside the few families who remained after those difficult seasons.

Today, we are a multicultural church, and we could also describe it as a “transitional church,” as many families gather with us for a season but eventually move to other parts of Spain in search of better employment opportunities. While this presents challenges, we have also learned to see how God allows us to be a place of refuge and care for these families during their most vulnerable times.

About Our Organization

The Evangelical Christian Church of Talavera de la Reina is a community that seeks to be faithful to God’s calling in the midst of our city. Although small, it is a vibrant, multicultural church, eager to be a testimony of Christ’s love in its surroundings. Our vision is to be a place of welcome, discipleship, and sending for the extension of God’s Kingdom. At present, we have 30 members, but on recent Sundays attendance has reached between 70 and 80 people.

Mat & Cheryl

Ministry and Vision

Our ministry began in 2004. During the first decade, we focused on immersing ourselves in the local culture. We chose to work within the house church system, partnering with and training these communities to reach out to Muslims. This initial phase emphasized training and collaboration.

In the second decade, our small partnership began to grow, and some local house churches committed to starting missions aimed at the Muslim population. Through trial and error, we recognized that local churches needed to embrace a transformative vision to be effective in the mission field.

As we enter our third decade of ministry, we are beginning to see missionaries sent by the house churches produce encouraging results. We anticipate that this decade will focus on making local Muslim converts and disciples. The transition is challenging due to strict religious controls imposed by authorities, but surprisingly, we have witnessed a rise in conversions, especially over the past two years.

Steve & Myra Neufeld

Mobile: 587-377-5013
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.iemission.com

About Us
Steve was born to a missionary couple working in Northern Canada. At a summer Bible Camp as a boy he chose to accept the gift of salvation. Myra was raised in a pastor’s home and received Christ as her Saviour at a Lindquist Brothers Crusade when she was a young girl.

Steve and Myra were high school sweethearts in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada. They have three adult children, and 8 grandchildren.

The Neufelds have completed their 35 th year in international, transcultural global missions. They left for their first term on January 1, 1989. After language school they served in Lima, Peru until February 1992.

In 1993 they began the EFCCM work in Mexico. Church planting and evangelism was their focus resulting in the beginning of the Agua Viva EFC (now Árbol de Vida EFC) in Hermosillo, Mexico.

In May of 1998 Steve began as Latin America Area Director. He carried this role through to the end of 2020. The focus was to do all he could to facilitate success in ministry through giving visionary leadership in the management and expansion of EFCCM ministry in South America, Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.

My Current Role in IEM Mission
Steve serves as missionary leading ministries in Cuba and Mexico for The International Evangelical Ministries of Red Deer (IEM Mission). The IEM does not have resident missionaries in Cuba and so Steve is the lead missionary as we solidify and expand our partnership ministries within Cuba. Teams go to Cuba at least twice a year as we serve together with three evangelical denominations in church planting, evangelism, teaching, acquiring house churches and fixing ones they own, finding resources for ministry, sponsoring summer camp, sourcing transportation for pastors and a multitude of other activities all designed to speed along the vision and dedication of our partners in the church in Cuba. A major component of these ministry projects involves facilitating the involvement of individuals and churches. People from Canada, Mexico and Spain working in partnership with each other in any of the countries represented. Mentoring and training present involvement and the next generation.

About IEM Mission
IEM Mission has taken over responsibility for the Encourage Cuba Ministry and the Hermosillo, Mexico ministry from the EFCC. The IEM is committed to making biblical followers of Jesus Christ here and to the ends of the earth. We are focused on pastoral care to Christian leaders, evangelism by all methods, church planting new communities of faith and demonstrating through holistic, compassionate ministry the Gospel to those who are hurting spiritually and physically. We intend to serve globally with boldness, creativity and excellence!