Petronila got a call from her daughter Gloria’s school, telling her that she had to send Gloria to the fund-raising party that they were having, because the school really needed to raise money. However, Petronila had her doubts. She knew the kind of things that go on at these parties and didn't think it was a very healthy place for her teenage daughter to be.

Then she started hearing what she calls "spirits" talking to her, like a little angel and a little demon, one on each shoulder. One would say, "Don't let your daughter go to these parties." And the other would say, "Go ahead, just let her go."

Then one night, when both her teenage daughters were at one of these parties, Petronila couldn't sleep because she was so worried about them. While she was tossing and turning, she heard a voice say to her, "The Devil is trying to destroy your family." At that moment, she realised that it was the Holy Spirit who was warning her so she fell on her knees and cried out to God.

Faith in action

She had become a Christian many years before this. She was one of the first group of believers to be baptised by the SIM missionaries in Caazapa. She and her husband attended Bible studies regularly, but the missionaries did not see much fruit in their lives. It was only at this moment years later, when she heard the Holy Spirit's voice, that she understood just how much God loved her. It was as if a light went on in Petronila's life and she recounts, "All those years I thought I understood, but I didn't at all."

She saw that her own life would have to change if she was going to have any hope of saving her children from the dangers of the world. Since then, her faith has been growing in leaps and bounds.

She knows the Holy Spirit is guiding her life and now when she reads the Bible, she understands it in a way she didn't before. She says she has more patience nowadays. She doesn't get angry with her son, who is leading a wayward life. She finds it a struggle to handle him, but God's love has transformed her attitude towards him. She no longer tries to change him—she knows that only God can do that. She prays for him and knows that God is in control.

Since the change in Petronila's life, her daughters have started going to the church youth group regularly. At a youth camp, both Gloria and her sister Sarita made a commitment to follow Christ—now the difference is being seen in their lives too. Petronila's sister has even noticed that Gloria doesn't hang around with boys like she used to.

People have noticed a new joy shining through Petronila in recent times and she is now mentoring other women in the faith. She also leads the prayer ministry at church, organising prayer meetings and encouraging people to get together to seek God for their needs. She holds fast to James 4:7, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." and Phil 4:13, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength."

Knowing her life is a spiritual battle, she declares, "God is my strength and the Bible is my weapon!"