Man finds God, ministry after 21 years as police officer

A deal with God led Manny Rodriguez to exchange his handcuffs for a Bible and eventually paved the path to Sedalia.

Rodriguez became the pastor of Amigos de Cristo in August. His wife, Letty, is the church outreach ministry coordinator.

Rodriguez gave up his 21-year career as a police officer in Miami about nine years ago to teach the word of God. His daughter, Kristine, who is now 9, was born with tumors on her heart and brain.

“I made a deal with God. I said, ‘If you save my daughter, I will dedicate my life to you,’ ” Rodriguez said.

At one month, Kristine’s condition improved and the tumors from her heart were gone. Rodriguez says God intervened, and “I stuck to my promise.”

However, Rodriguez said he later learned, and preaches to his congregation, “You don’t make deals with God.

“It is His will; not our will,” Rodriguez said. “That’s the thing I tell everyone. It’s not your time; it’s His time. It’s not your will; it’s His will.”

Letty Rodriguez said she was surprised and overjoyed at her husband’s decision to become a pastor.

“It was literally a leap of faith for both of us,” she said.

Letty remembers praying “that this child would change his heart.” Manny attended church, “but never opened the Bible” before Kristine’s birth.

“God had something in store for him, for all of us,” Letty said.

The road to Sedalia began in Cuba for Manny, and in Puerto Rico for Letty. They each grew up in New York and later moved to Florida.

Manny Rodriguez lived in Florida for 27 years, the majority of which he was a police officer. A college friend dared Manny to join the police force with him.

“He left after two years to pursue his career, and I stayed for 21 years,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez’s commanding officer could hardly believe his decision to leave the force.

The family had to adjust to Missouri weather after moving to St. Louis so Rodriguez could attend Concordia Seminary of the Lutheran Church. He worked two part-time jobs and attended seminary classes part time for six years.

The Rodriguez family started a mission as part of Trinity Lutheran in Springfield in 2006, immediately after Manny’s graduation from seminary school. The outreach in Springfield began to stall near the end of 2007 when many Hispanics moved away to pursue other work and flee from an immigration crackdown.

“A lot of undocumented workers were deported, and the ones who were not deported were afraid, so it started to decline,” he said.

The Rodriguez family came to Sedalia after Amigos de Cristo was left without a full-time pastor for nearly two years. Rodriguez also is a pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, an English-speaking church in Knob Noster. Letty Rodriguez says she misses the malls and variety of restaurants in the bigger cities where they previously lived, but she is beginning to think of Sedalia as home.

Amigos de Cristo is, above all, a place to worship. But it is also a Hispanic center where people can find resources.

The Rodriguezes teach English as a Second Language courses two days a week, and Manny plans to offer a Spanish course on Tuesdays. Letty also helps Spanish speakers with their mail and paying bills.

The mission also has a strong emphasis on children and youth, including a music ministry where teens learn to play instruments. Also, a puppet ministry is being revived at the church.

The couple would also like to see the church grow. Attendance averages 68 people at Sunday worship, which are a blend of traditional and contemporary services. The Rodriguezes have noticed an increase in English speakers too.

“We’d like to see this place jam-packed,” Manny said. “We’d like to build and expand.”

Services and classes at Amigos de Cristo

•Church services begin about noon on Sunday, with Sunday school starting at 10:30 a.m. for children and youth.

•English as a Second Language classes are offered free of charge from 10 to 11:30 a.m. and 6 to 7:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. The morning classes are offered at the Sedalia Housing Authority, and evening classes are at the church.