Meet Eduardo Nieto

When Eduardo Nieto was manning an interpreter’s booth at a 2019 conference in Italy, he heard Chuck Gianotti mention the need to translate BER’s material into Spanish—and he immediately sensed God’s call to help. Already employed as a freelance translator, he soon joined BER’s Spanish team and is now leading the second phase translation of BER material into Spanish.

Raised in a Christian home in Colombia, South America, Eduardo put his faith in Jesus Christ at age 12 and grew up to become a family man with a passion for discipling his two daughters and seeing local churches—his own and others—thriving under healthy biblical leadership. He has served as an elder for the past 10 years and now teaches, preaches, and disciples local believers.

Get to know Eduardo (pictured above with his wife and daughters) and find out what God is doing in Colombia.

How did you come to faith in Christ?

Growing up in a Christian family, I learned the ins and outs of the Christian life. I was told that since I prayed the sinner’s prayer at the age of 5, I was a Christian and I should live like one. But when I was about 12, while reading my Bible, I started wondering if I really believed what I was reading and what I had been taught, and I realized I had been living a Christian life without Christ. I saw my great need to be saved and to really follow God. Over time, I started reading the Scriptures more and more, and that simple decision I had made in my room became more real as I realized my condition as a sinner and the greatness of God’s love for me through Christ. I’m so thankful that God has provided in Christ the perfect salvation I need.

Tell about your family.

My wife, Paola, and I have been married for 16 years, and we have two daughters: Sara, age 12, and Elliana, age 10. We enjoy hiking and fishing, and we try to spend as much time as possible together. Since I work from home and we homeschool our daughters, God has given my wife and me the opportunity to be the main influencers in our daughters’ lives.

What traits characterize you as a husband and father?

My wife is my best friend. Because I am so busy with work and ministry, I try to look for time to spend with her while doing simple things like cooking or taking our daughters to music class. The best time for us to talk and pray is late at night.

As a father, my greatest desire and focus has been leading Sara and Eliana to Christ. I can try to give them the best this world has to offer, but what they really need is a close relationship with the Savior; that’s why we chose to homeschool them. I also try to spend time with them playing or just hanging out. Every night I take them to bed, we talk, read some portion of the Scriptures, and pray. I also have a weekly discipleship session with each one of them.

How have you seen the biblical model of eldership benefit churches in your region?

Unfortunately, not as much as I would like to. Some churches are strong in their leadership and faithfully following what we find established in the Bible for church leadership—and these vibrant churches are moving forward, supporting missionaries, planting new churches, and growing. But some other churches struggle, mainly because of the need to equip and train new leaders who are willing and gifted to take care of God’s flock. I have seen this great need for decades in many churches, and that why BER’s ministry is needed.

What spiritual disciplines have been most important in your life?

• Reading the Bible yearly: This is number one. For many years, I’ve been doing it at least once a year, starting on my birthday, and it has made a great difference in my life.
• Prayer: When we read the Bible, God is speaking to us; when we pray, we are speaking to Him. That creates the kind of conversation that builds our relationship. Praying helps me keep the proper perspective of who God is and who I am.
• Journaling: I record my prayer requests and the dates when God answers them, what I am thankful for, what God is teaching me, and key verses from my reading. Journaling helps me to keep God’s Word in my mind.
• Fasting: Since I started fasting a few months ago, I have seen how God uses it to talk to us. Fasting is a time when I am just focused on praying, reading the Scriptures, listening to and singing worship music, and listening to a good preacher. I have enjoyed these times alone with God.
• Tithing: In this world there is so much pressure to put our trust in the money we have in the bank, but tithing has shown me God’s faithfulness and has helped my wife and me to remember that he is the one who always provides.
• Spending time in nature: I love enjoying creation—it helps me to focus on my creator and learn from what he has done.

What is your favorite book of the Bible, and why?

Ecclesiastes because its message is what God used to call me to faith in Jesus and to follow him.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Reading, mountain biking, hiking with my family, photography (especially landscape photography), and DIY projects.

What is the BER Spanish team working on these days?

During the first Spanish translation phase, the material of “What is Biblical Eldership?” was translated. Now, in the second phase, we are translating the material in the “Effectiveness” section of the website. We’ve also been advising churches about how to train new leaders, and we are praying about starting a podcast next year to reach more churches and leaders with relevant church leadership topics.

How do you sense God working in Colombia? How would you describe the religious and cultural climate?

Catholic by tradition, Colombia has been turning more secularized in recent decades. We have a growing mix of polarized religious and secular views, and in the midst of that, God’s church is still alive.

The COVID-19 crisis has proven who are the real disciples of Christ and has moved His church to reach the lost in many creative ways. I have seen God starting to reveal the difference between the wheat and the tares in His church.

How can we pray for you and your ministry?

Please pray that I can take more time to serve with BER (LBI in Spanish), that the podcast may become a reality starting in January 2022, and that we can continue advancing the translation process.