Hope from the Edges
Watch the latest stories of what God is doing in Tanzania, North India and the UK.
Hope from the Edges LIVE prayer event
Your prayers are urgently needed for people in the Middle East. In a time of upheaval, many are opening their hearts and asking questions about Jesus. CMS partners on the ground are doing all they can – meet them and hear what God is doing. Wednesday 19 November, 12 noon GMT.
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Video transcript
Hello and welcome to Hope from the Edges. I’m Andy Roberts, CEO of CMS. In the next few minutes we’ll bring you inspiring news from three edges in our world, stories that you are making possible through your gifts and prayers. First we’ll go to Tanzania, where new opportunities are making all the difference to people with disabilities. From there we’ll go to North India to see how Christians are creatively responding to the challenge of persecution. And then finally we’ll meet a man in Reading here in the UK, who is doing something amazing for mission in honour of his parents.
[00:00:39] First let’s go to Usa River, near Arusha, Tanzania, and meet a man called Elinaja. Elinaja was an able-bodied man in his early thirties with a job, a wife and four children. One day as he was returning from work his motorbike was hit by a bus as it veered off the road. His right leg was severely injured. After six painful weeks without improvement the doctors advised amputation. Suddenly disabled, he was no longer able to find work. He could no longer provide for his family and despair crept in. Three years later a sponsor paid for Elinaja to get a prosthesis fitted, which allowed him to walk with a stick instead of heavy crutches. On the day he received his new leg he visited the SAFI office. SAFI stands for See Ability First International and was started by mission partners Ben and Katy Ray to provide training for people with disabilities so that they can earn a living. Elinaja was invited to join Sawawa, a micro enterprise group producing handcrafted wooden homewares. Elinaja seemed to have a natural talent for woodturning, but standing all day at a lathe on his prosthetic leg became too painful for him to continue. SAFI reached out to Tools for Solidarity, an organisation that supplies refurbished tools. By chance they had just received a compact tabletop lathe ideal for Elinaja to use. He completed his training. And now he’s producing his own range of wooden items. Bowls, pots, honey dippers and light fittings. Today Elinaja is part of a purposeful, friendly community at the SAFI centre, taking part in devotions, praying and singing along with other members of his community. And he can support his family once again. Ben and Katy have plans in place to start 12 micro enterprise groups like the one Elinaja joined. These will help dozens of people with disabilities like Elinaja find dignity and hope.
[00:02:32] Next let’s go to North India, to the foothills of the Himalayas. This area is home to a people group who were once considered unreached by the gospel. Where they live is also almost unreachable, geographically speaking, due to the mountainous terrain. Despite this, in recent years due to grassroots mission efforts, close to 5,000 members of this people group have decided to follow Jesus. Eddie, whose name has been changed, is one of them. He came to faith in Jesus 35 years ago at the age of 15. Over the years he became a pastor and has helped train 50 to 60 house church leaders for this area. Each leader looks after 5 to 10 house churches. Recently, the rising hostility and threats of violence from religious fundamentalists means these Christians can’t meet together in groups of more than a few. This has led Eddie to introduce a creative idea, what he calls Moving House Churches. Eddie, his colleague George and other house church leaders get together for fellowship, prayer and Bible study while hiking in the mountains for a few days or a week at a time. This is truly church on the move, and this remarkable story shows how resilience and creativity can overcome oppression in places where followers of Jesus are in a minority. You can read more about it on the CMS website under the Stories tab.
[00:03:52] Finally, speaking of resilience… Let’s meet someone embarking on a huge challenge to raise financial support for CMS. David Hubbard from Reading is preparing to cycle 5,000 kilometres around East Africa’s Lake Victoria at the beginning of 2026. David is doing this incredible sponsored challenge in memory of his parents, Laurence and Wendy Hubbard, who served with CMS in Africa from 1966 to 1973, and Laurence was also later the regional secretary for CMS. David’s cycle will take him through Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, and he’ll get a chance to spend time in places where his parents lived and worked as well as visit current CMS mission partners and projects. We are so honoured to see David preparing for this inspiring fundraising endeavour, and we’ll be praying for him on his journey.
Do you have a fundraising idea, or would you like to borrow one of ours? Find out more at churchmissionsociety.org/fundraising.
[00:04:52] Thank you for joining me for these stories from the edges and for your prayerful support, which of course makes them all possible. Please share this video with your church, small group or anyone you think of who could use some fuel for their faith.
Until next time, we are so grateful for your gifts and prayers as together we go:
With Jesus
With each other
To the edges
ENDS
Be sure to receive Hope from the Edges every time!
