…and my aha experience this week
Every employer would like to have an employee like Dapfnne Llaja. For six years, the Peruvian from Lima has been doing her best in the hospital’s administration. Still waters run deep. This expression also applies to Dapfnne, who recently married a young man from Colombia.
This week (July 2023) we had a small talk at the hospital. In what context I asked Daphnne the following question, I can’t quite recall. Or maybe I was just following a spontaneous inspiration, “Dapfnne since when are you a committed Christian?” Her response was so surprising that I asked her to come to my office for a brief interview….
Daphnne is growing up in Lima, a metropolis of 8 million people. Her parents are evangelical Christians, and Sunday after Sunday the family – mom, dad and four children – attends services at the Alianza Cristiana church in the Miraflores neighborhood. Stories from the Bible, pious songs, sermons are a part of their childhood. As an 8-year-old, she makes the decision at a year-end service to consciously place her life in God’s hands. Faith in the reality of God continues to determine her path in life.
In 2016, she applied for a job at Diospi Suyana and soon became a mainstay in the hospital administration.
DS: Dapfnne, since when have you been a committed Christian?
Dapfnne: Since I started working at Diospi Suyana.
DS: Why, what happened? Was it the worship services and discussion groups that strengthened your faith in God?
Dapfnne: No, it was actually my observations and experiences in the daily operations of the hospital. I saw how faith totally changed people. Countless patients, Peruvian staff and even missionaries have been shaped by God during her time here in Curahuasi. Sometimes it was a gradual transformation. In any case, here I saw the real power of God with my own eyes.
DS: You have been with us for a long time, so you have also experienced the many crises we have suffered at Diospi Suyana.
Dapfnne: Yes, I was up close and personal. Back when the unjustified charge of involuntary manslaughter of a patient made such high waves, I marveled at how God keeps protecting Diospi Suyana. And before the youth festival this year there were permanent resistances and hurdles. Actually, the festival was an impossibility. But with the power of Jesus Christ, the event became a huge success – totally blessed by God.
DS: What has particularly challenged you at Diospi Suyana in recent years?
Daphnne: Once I heard a comment from Dr. Martina John. She said, “I get my strength by praying to God in the morning!” – I am a Christian and of course I know that in theory prayers are important. But this one sentence from Martina got me thinking. And finally, in prayer, I have been able to develop more and more tmy personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
DS: Thank you for the honest conversation. /KDJ (Caption: Dapfnne Llaja and her husband Jerónimo on their wedding day on July 8, 2023 in Colombia).
