Cayla Sanderlin
San Jose
Beeswax is ideal for making candles. It is hardy, smells sweet, and is known to burn the slowest and longest of any other wax candle. The reason for this? It has an extremely high melting point, about 50 degrees higher than that of paraffin candles. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of heat to melt the wax to the point where it can be molded and shaped.
Sometimes discipleship is like making candles from beeswax: it takes time, patience, and a strong fire to bring people to a place of peaceful surrender. That was the case for Alejandra.
Alejandra is the mother of three beautiful, rambunctious kids. Her resilience and drive to provide for her children overcame many obstacles. When the father of her daughters went to prison, when her family faced potential homelessness, when she scrambled to make ends-meet, she pushed hard for her kids.
Alejandra’s boyfriend and the father of her son is Rafa, Nayeli’s older brother. For years Nayeli shared with Alejandra and Rafa about her new found hope in Jesus. When Alejandra would tell Naye stories of disputes with family members or struggles at work, Naye would respond, “Girl, you need Jesus.” They would laugh and Alejandra would respond, “Girl, bye.”
Eventually, Alejandra began building a relationship with Janet, one of the pastors of our church. Janet invited Alejandra to attend a Bible study at their home and Alejandra reluctantly joined. Slowly, Alejandra became more and more engaged in group discussions, sharing insightful questions, exhibiting genuine curiosity about faith. What did Jesus truly mean for her and her family?
Second Chances, Yuki Umeda
This was a question our community was eager to answer: her Bible study group welcomed her without reservations, answering her questions and hearing her doubts. Our church rallied together to help her family find and secure an apartment and vehicle. And Alejandra herself intentionally pursued answers about Jesus. She vulnerably opened herself up to prayer ministry and Christian counseling, and kept her commitment to the community Bible study.
And when their son was born, Alejandra and Rafa dedicated the baby in the church. Getting to this point with Alejandra wasn’t easy. She is a hard shell to crack—or better yet, a tough wax to melt. But she is pushing through her reluctance, willing herself to be vulnerable, and letting God mold and shape her into something incredibly beautiful. And we trust that she is in it for the long haul, that she will continue to burn slow and strong for the sake of her family and her faith.
Cayla leads the Servant Partners internship in San Jose, California.