Isabella Pérez Sanchez has always believed in miracles.
The 18-year-old high school senior, who was raised primarily by her mother and stepfather in a Christian household in Bogotá, Colombia, had always found that everything came so easily to her, she knew it must be a “God thing.”
Yet the one thing that, at first, didn’t seem so easy was Isabella’s lifelong dream of attending high school and college in the United States. But when the Presbyterian-related Colegio Americano de Bogotá, or the American School of Bogota, where Pérez was a student at the time, told her about their partnership with the Presbyterian Pan American School in Kingsville, Texas, the way seemed clear.
Everything lined up easily, and even though it was hard for her and her mom to let each other go, they both kept saying that this was God telling them, “This is my plan for you.”
The Presbyterian Pan American School is an international, college-preparatory, boarding school related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Established in 1911, the school motivates and equips young people for lives of Christian leadership in the global community and is supported by gifts to the Christmas Joy Offering.
A cherished Presbyterian tradition since the 1930s, the annual offering distributes gifts equally to Presbyterian-related schools and colleges equipping communities of color and the Assistance Program of the Board of Pensions.
Once Pérez arrived on campus, she thrived. Yet in 2019, Isabella, an aspiring doctor, encountered the greatest challenge of her young life.
It was a Sunday morning, and she was coming out of church when she had the strongest pain she’d ever felt and was taken to a hospital immediately.
Diagnosed with an abnormal tangle of blood vessels that irregularly connects arteries and veins, disrupting blood flow and oxygen circulation, she underwent brain surgery and spent nearly two months in the intensive care unit.
“That was when I realized I had a personal relationship with God,” said Isabella. “That was when I received my calling for life, which is to help others and to be God’s hands in the world.”
Today, more than five years later, she is completely and miraculously healed.
Isabella shares, “After my brain surgery, God gave me a second life opportunity and said I should use my hands to help other people. I am completely thankful to everyone who has donated to the Christmas Joy Offering. I hope more people have the opportunity to grow as I have grown, not only in knowledge but also in faith.”
Please give what you can to the Christmas Joy Offering to help more students like Isabella achieve their dreams — for when we all do a little, it adds up to a lot.
Let us pray ~
God, thank you for students like Isabella as they grow into the fullness of who you created them to be. May our gifts be used to ensure that all people are given the gift of education as we all strive to be your hands in the world. In the name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.
Gifts to the Christmas Joy Special Offering of the PCUSA will be received throughout December. By giving to the Christmas Joy Offering, you will be providing assistance to current and retired church workers in their time of need and developing our future leaders at Presbyterian-related racial ethnic schools and colleges. Please consider giving to the Christmas Joy Offering in addition to your regular giving. Give online or by check — mark gifts “JOY”.