STORIES OF HOPE

God is always at work, even in the most difficult circumstances. Just ask Aida and Jonas.

Although Christianity is the predominant religion in Ethiopia, the reality of the situation is far from straightforward. In certain regions and among specific communities, Christians risk losing everything for their faith. The pressure on Christians in Ethiopia remains high, especially in community and church life. Last year, more than 20 churches were attacked, damaged, or looted, adding to the already challenging circumstances facing the country’s Christian population.

Aida and Jonas live in Ethiopia and lead our SRV program in the capital city of Addis Ababa. Although the country has experienced significant turmoil and instability, they continue to be faithful to God’s call on their life to train leaders and share God’s Word with those who have never interacted with it.

Ethiopia is home to over 80 different languages. Aida and Jonas faithfully train local leaders to share God’s stories in many of these neighboring language groups. Just recently, the Derashe language group crafted 34 stories from God’s Word.

“They are sharing and people are coming to hear,” said Aida.

They also visited the Kefficho and Bench language groups to share SRV’s vision with their local church leaders. Both language groups committed to start Bible story groups within their villages. In addition, our partners will be training leaders within these communities in our trauma healing program.

The couple has also seen God uniting tribes and working among his people in new, powerful ways. Just recently, Aida traveled to Kenya to train a group of local men and women from four different tribes in our trauma healing program. Although these tribes are at war, Aida witnessed them listening and learning about each other’s culture. Through the process, they became close friends and experienced God’s comfort through his stories.

“When we invited the Dashi and Ari language groups to come together for an SRV program, we didn’t know that their people groups have been at war for a very long time,” said Jonas. “They hated each other. When we began by telling each other’s stories, they realized they were the same. They were reconciled, and now they tell each other stories and pray for each other every day.”

Overall, Aida and Jonas trained 736 leaders in their communities. They’ve completed a set of Bible stories in 13 Bibleless languages and started 24 new house churches. They’ve also launched 76 new groups, many of which are second and third generation. Despite the challenging circumstances, God continues to bless the work of Aida and Jonas in Ethiopia.