Meet Guillermo Puppo | Pastor of Ciudad de Dios Foursquare Church

We had the good fortune of connecting with Guillermo Puppo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Guillermo, how do you think about risk?
As a local church pastor, there are always decisions to make. Those decisions may mean different things to different people. So, it is not easy to make everybody happy. Some may criticize the decisions for being too liberal, too conservative, too religious, or too mundane. In any case, taking an educated risk is always better than taking no risk or making no decision. When you choose an action or lack thereof, you choose the consequences of your choice. For example, not taking action against injustice is choosing for injustice to keep existing. I seek for my risk-taking or decision-making process to lien towards God. God is love. Therefore, I aim for love to manifest not only in my decisions but, more importantly, in the consequences of my decisions. I know that no matter what risk I take or what decision I make, I will be criticized by someone. That is okay. As long as I can bring a little more of God’s love into the world, I am at peace with risk.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My career developed in to rails: Ministry and Education. On the ministry side, My wife and I founded Ciudad de Dios Foursquare Church in 2012. We had a clear calling to serve and love the community as an expression of God’s love for this world. His love is for everyone, so we needed to love everyone. It was not easy! But, the more you look at people through God’s love, the more you learn to accept them and love them for who they are, and for whom they were created to be. Our church has grown not because of great programs or projects but becase we are learning how to love every person with God’s love. We are still a work in progress, but it is going well! My education began with the Bible Institute in 2003, then I got a Master of Arts in Global Leadership and then a Doctorate of Philosophy in Organizational Leadership. That was not easy either. What kept me pushing was a sense of calling/ destiny that my education will help develop and empower others, especially the underserved or disenfranchised, the voiceless, the powerless. Now both emerged in my research study about how the Church can be an agent of transformation in the city.
What I learned through this journey is that you need to fight for who God created you to be. There is nothing better than accepting God’s adventure for your life and becoming the full expression, the best version of yourself.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Martin Tagliaferro has been my best friend for 45 years. He still lives in Argentina but we talk every week for the last 25 years. First, I would take him to our church ! LOL! I still think an awesome worship experience is the best thing that can happen to anyone and so I wish everyone can have it. After that, I would take him to Red Rocks for a day hike. For dinner, we would go to Smokin’ Yard Bbq. The next day we can go to the Botanic Gardens, grab a bite from Chilli’s lunch specials and for dinner we go to Fat Sulli’s Pizza, the best pizza in Denver. The next next we would go to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs and pick a Mexican restaurant in downtown Colorado Springs. I would love to take him to a concert in Red Rocks. I would also take him to Oregano’s for some good Italian food and then to Magill’s Word of Ice Cream! We would go to the Center for Performing Arts and catch some awesome performance there. He also likes cars, so, if possible, I would take him to the Bandimere Speedway.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to shout out to several people. I will begin with my wife. She is the light of my eyes and the wisdom of my soul. Without her, I would not be the person I am today. Also, to the entire Ministry Team at Ciudad de Dios Foursquare Church Denver. They are a fantastic group of people who dedicate an immense amount of hours to serving God, His Church, and our neighborhood. They are the hands and feet of Jesus for our community.

Website: www.denverciudaddedios.com

Instagram: _ciudaddedios_

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CiudadDeDiosGlobal

Youtube: Ciudad de Dios