John Jairo Leal and Susana Castro are ordained pastors in Colombia and have served as pastors and church planters in Medellín. John is currently the field director for Community Church Planting with Impact Latin America and is part of the Colombian ministerial education and guidance board. Susana is the leader of the Developing Healthy Leaders pillar for the Latin American Area and is pastor of the Camino de Vida church in Medellín. She also mentors our FM leaders in Honduras. John Jairo and Susana are passionate about developing leaders and multiplying disciples who spread the gospel with words and love in action.
Children: Isabella, Valentina, Alejandro (nephew)
Pray For
- the whole family to maintain healthy rhythms amid multiple tasks and travel
- their children to know God more fully and love Him with all their being
- much fruit in the development of healthy leaders at the local, district and area levels
- leaders to experience deep connections with God and one another through pastoral care groups
- the expansion of the Community Church Planting movement as God opens doors and prepares hearts
Recent Heartbeat Articles
Ministering in Brazil
The Free Methodist Church in Campo Grande, Brazil, ministers in a poor neighborhood rife with drug trafficking. Two hundred children are involved in weekly discipleship groups that meet mainly in homes, with a few taking place at the church. ICCM sponsorship of...
Mobilizing and Uniting
There are three general conferences in Latin America: Haiti, Brazil and the Dominican Republic. Each has its own vision, mission and government, and consequently only has a fraternal relationship with the Latin American Area. The relationship first began to change...
Living in Transformational Community
As we sat together in the conference room for the Strategic Planning Retreat, we realized in reverent gratitude that almost everything God was doing in our midst was new. Flipchart sheets compiled during the week lined the walls, each one capturing a small part of the...
Freedom in Bolivia
Two years ago, the transformational church pillar of the Latin American Area began sponsoring “Freedom Week” to create awareness of modern-day slavery and to begin initiatives to combat trafficking. Area-wide programming in the first year inspired more churches to...