Hey there,
The testimony of Mrs Fantaye Sarte is a result of a church supporting its people to activate their own portion of resources. The church is facilitating its people in realizing their own potential.
Fantaye is the mother of three children, a widow, and a caregiver of her mother-in-law.At the close of this church mobilization project, Fantaye was invited to give her testimony on the impact of the training, and the former Food Security project as well.
As for me, SGH (self-help group for savings and loans) is the backbone of my family economy and income. Like other poor community members, I do not have sufficient fixed assets, so cannot get loans from commercial banks or other financial institutions to run our small business. Now I am working hard with the loan and supporting my children and my mother-in-law. CCT and refresher training increased my self-esteem and sense of confidence through SHG promotion. I encourage others to establish their SHGs to get relief from poverty”
She concluded her testimony by saying “[the] initial support of resources and technical follow up are very important for people to mobilize their untapped resources and unleashed human skills. We got resource support from the Food Security project, and were equipped with technical support from CCT to mobilize our local resources”.
Fantaye’s story shows a transformation in her view of herself and her life. It also shows the role that the Ethiopia Kale Heywet Church Development Commission (EKHCDC) had in facilitating this process. As pastors and leaders were activating people to meet their own needs and caring for the needs of their community, unexpected results occurred—one district became three districts of churches.
Where our Partner Churches ask to be activated to God's call for them to minister to the whole person (physical, social and spiritual needs), EMCC WP is ready to assist. Through your investment in CCT, we can help facilitate the mobilization of churches who integrate development with their proclamation of the good news of Jesus' Way. Standing with a global partner in this way is valuable.
EKHCDC’s own lessons learned from facilitating CCT give pause for our reflection today.
They say they have learned that:
- Community empowerment is the foundation for sustainable development.
- The church has unleashed potential to transform the entire community.
- Any community development intervention meets its ultimate goal when the communities themselves become responsible to support themselves.
What an encouragement it is to us to hear this from our Ethiopian brothers and sisters!
Take a moment to ask the Lord, What might this mean for me as I consider the resources that Jesus has currently given me and my community of fellow Jesus followers? In what ways could we be a part of transformation?
