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Jonathan Melendez
When Jonathan Melendez was shot in the back and leg three times, his life looked like it was ending. “My doctor said to my family that I wouldn’t make it through the night,” he tells.
A young man involved in drugs and the wrong crowd, Jonathan had hit rock bottom before he came to the Lord in his hospital bed that night. As he explains, “I surrendered my life to the Lord, and this experience has been a tool of evangelism for those who are hopeless like I was.”
Now a master of divinity student at Asbury Seminary’s Florida campus, Jonathan is passionate about Christ’s Message of Hope, and he knows that the foundations of biblical knowledge and ministerial preparation are essential to his calling. He has also been transformed through the close-knit, diverse community on the Florida campus. “It’s an enriching experience to see other people and their love of Christ,” he explains. “Now, I see the Body of Christ as a great whole.”
Seeing the Body of Christ working together inspires Jonathan for his own calling to urban ministry and later, military chaplaincy. “I believe my future will take me back to the street…I will go back to where God rescued me.”
Many of us may not be as willing as Jonathan to go back to the place from where we needed rescuing; perhaps we do not even like to remember our life during that time. But for Jonathan, returning is part of the journey. “On earth, everything we do is [potential] fruit for the Kingdom of Heaven,” he reflects.
A life that is now only beginning, Jonathan is a wonderful reminder that our lives can be fruitful no matter what we’ve done in the past, and there is always a chance to share the love of Jesus. And at Asbury Seminary, we would like you to consider partnering with us as we seek to equip students like Jonathan to return to their places of rescue to reap souls for the Kingdom.