Pastor Roberto describes himself as follows: I was born to animist parents in the village of Watina in Guinea Bissau. As my birth was not recorded, my exact age is not known. In 1968, because of the war, the Portuguese relocated our entire village.
When I started school in 1969, I met a Portuguese Captain who was also a Catholic priest. He taught us about God and Christian morals. There I became a helper and, after some time, a candidate for baptism. A week before I was to be baptized, I attended an Evangelical Church service and asked Jesus to come into my heart.
Since that day my life was completely transformed. As I stopped doing idol worship, my family persecuted me and even tried to kill me. Since they could not kill me, they decided to isolate me. On Sundays when I went to church, they refused to even feed me. As God is faithful, He has always given me the grace to make my life different from my family and colleagues.
In 1975, I went to work for a missionary doing construction and, with his help, started attending a Bible School in 1976. I also received training as a Sunday School Teacher. I became a Sunday School teacher and then the Superintendent. I also served as Youth President for the local churches.
In 1979, as I was preparing to marry my fiancé’, Luisa, my family insisted on our being married in the traditional animist manner. When we refused, they threatened that we would never have any children. But I did not obey them and was married in the church. We called our first child Miracle. Today I am the father of 5 children.
In 1983, I went to the Bible Institute finishing in 1986 and have been serving as a Pastor since then. Today I am taking care of 5 churches and 3 cell groups.