Matteo and Raffaela Taronna
"For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" (NIV) II Corinthians 2:15-16.
Matteo Taronna was born on August 21, 1940 in the South of Italy. At the age of twelve he moved with his parents to Venezuela. From the beginning, they had hard times to face and hard work to do. Matteo became a mechanic, and at the age of twenty-one, he owned a garage. But, having left school at the age of twelve, he felt the need to have a better education and for many years he went to night school and finished his high school diploma at the age of thirty-two. (Matteo was married with three years of high school remaining.)
He knew the Gospel even before moving to Venezuela because his parents were believers, but he surrendered to Christ when he was twenty-eight. It was Sunday night during a sermon when he finally understood his sinful condition before God. He went home and got on his knees next to his bed, and cried, he prayed, "Lord, tonight I understand that I am a lost sinner; I deserve your condemnation. But I believe that Jesus died on the cross for me and I beg you to forgive my sins, wash me with the precious blood of Christ, and enter into my heart and do whatever you want with me." From that moment on, he had the peace and joy of Jesus Christ.
A short time later he felt the need to get married and he asked the Lord to show him the woman that would be his wife. A few days thereafter, the Lord answered his prayer and He put in front of Matteo the one that became his wife, Raffaela.
Raffaela Taronna was actually born in the same village in Italy where Matteo was born, but they did not meet until she was twenty years old and living in Venezuela! After six months of engagement, they were married. They became members of a church in Barinas (a city in the south of Venezuela where Matteo had lived since his youth). They served the Lord with joy in various ministries such as teaching Sunday school. Matteo was a deacon, an elder, and treasurer. They had been preaching the gospel in many neighboring villages. (Already the Lord was working through them as missionaries!)
After six years, they realized that their knowledge of the Word of God was limited. They wanted to know more to serve their Savior better. So they sold everything they had and moved to Maracay (a city in the middle of Venezuela) where there was an evangelical theological seminary. After five years, at the end of their studies, they asked the Lord to guide them into a field of work for His glory. For more on the Taronna's ministry, click here.
