The Immigrant Soul: Paco Amador on Calling, Culture, and Finding Home in Little Village (Part 1) | PT 149

What happens when the story of migration becomes the story of calling? In this episode, Pastor Paco Amador joins Tara Beth Leach and Mark Quanstrom to share his journey from Mexico to North Carolina to Chicago’s Little Village. With honesty and humor, Paco reflects on his encounter with Jesus as a teenager, the grief and beauty of leaving home, and the long road toward discovering where he truly belongs. 🎙️ In This Episode: Leaving home at fourteen and encountering Jesus on a North Carolina benchHow immigration shapes faith, identity, and dependence on GodThe unlikely path from Mexico to Moody Bible InstitutePlanting a church in college that became his lifelong ministryBuilding a multicultural congregation in Chicago’s Little Village ⏱️ Timestamps: 00:00 – Introducing Pastor Paco Amador 04:00 – Leaving Mexico at 14 and learning to start over 08:00 – An unmistakable encounter with Jesus 11:00 – A teacher’s nudge, a missionary’s challenge, and the call to Moody 15:00 – Starting a church in college and learning by failing forward 20:00 – Two years in Spain and an unexpected love story 24:00 – Planting roots in Little Village, Chicago 28:00 – Preaching in Spanish, English, and Mayan 31:00 – God’s quiet work in a vibrant immigrant community The call of God often begins in disorientation. Paco’s story reminds us that in every language, every journey, and every act of leaving, God is already at work turning exile into belonging.