Stories Of Hope

Ashley Johnson thought she was going to die. She thought there was nowhere else to go once you’d hit the bottom. But Ashley thought wrong. This is a story about how an ex-Sunday School teacher mother of two came back from the dead. Learn how you and your church and help victims of human trafficking at SendRelief.org/Human-Trafficking.

Some people see what no one else can see. In this episode of Stories of Hope, meet two of those people—one in Alaska, the other in Oklahoma—and hear about the superhuman steps they’re willing to take so that no one in their community has to try and survive a pandemic on their own. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

COVID-19 has held our attention for three months. But problems like poverty, broken families, and racial division have been around much longer. In this special episode of Stories of Hope, Colleen Smith, a single white woman living in inner-city Baltimore, tells a story about adoption, race, Jesus and a thousand other important things. Go to SendRelief.org/foster-care-adoption to learn how you and your church can reach out to children who need shelter, protection and care. Go to Namb.net/undivided for resources that can help you and your church discover the role God calls believers to play in racial reconciliation.

People in Beauregard, Alabama call March 3, 2019, “the day the world stopped.” It’s the day a tornado touched down here and killed 23 people. This is a story about how one congregation caught in the path of that storm helped their neighbors see that even when the world stopped, God’s love did not Go to SendRelief.org/crisis-response to learn how you and your church can reach out to people whose homes and lives have been upended in a disaster .

No one plans for a pandemic. But in this episode of Stories of Hope, hear how God used a hurricane to prepare a group of New Orleans churches for the work of saving lives and sharing Christ in communities hardest hit by COVID-19. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

When Sandra Viena, a 70-something year old grandmother in inner-city Detroit, decided she wanted to adopt two special needs children, everyone said she was crazy. Fortunately, Sandra Viena never cared much about what other people said. This is a story about foster care and adoption and about how the Viena family came to be a part of God’s family. Go to SendRelief.org/foster-care-adoption to learn how you and your church can reach out to people whose homes and lives have been upended in a disaster .

One month ago, Lexie Green began recording a daily video journal to help her cope with her job as an ICU nurse at a New Orleans hospital. In this episode of Stories of Hope, here what happened when Lexie, a former Send Relief Gen Send missionary, decided to share her private diary with the rest of the world. And then, Bryant Wright was named as the new president of Send Relief just days before COVID-19 changed the world. He’ll share what he’s learned in the last two months about what churches can do, and are doing, to meet needs and share Christ. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

In communities where people were already struggling with the basics of life, what does sending relief look like In the age of coronavirus? In this special episode of Stories of Hope, hear how missionaries at Send Relief ministry centers are bravely and creatively loving their neighbors. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

Everyone can do something, even now. On this special episode of Stories of Hope, hear how coronavirus quarantines have created a unique and unexpected ministry opportunity for a violinist in New Orleans. Then, there’s an important first step you should take if you want to help people who’re hurting and stressed because of COVID-19. Send Relief missionaries Taylor Field and Andrew Mann talk about a starting point for ministry that many people overlook. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

For many churches, COVID-19 is not just a health crisis. It’s a financial one as well. One small Georgia congregation has taken drastic steps to help other churches survive the age of coronavirus. Hear their story in this special episode of Stories of Hope. Then, get practical, expert advice from Send Relief missionaries Taylor Field and Andrew Mann about how you can share the love of Christ with people living on the streets, even in a time like this. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

Three weeks ago, your life was probably normal. Today, it’s probably not. In this special episode of Stories of Hope, hear how two churches bravely and creatively stepped into worlds turned upside down by COVID-19. Go to SendRelief.org to learn how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by the coronavirus.

Coronavirus has come and now nothing is as it was. In this special episode of Stories of Hope, hear how God has miraculously opened doors for a group of churches in Southern California to creatively love their most vulnerable neighbors. And then get practical, expert advice on how you and your church can share the love and hope of Christ with a frightened and stressed-out world. Go to SendRelief.org to learn more about how you and your church can tangibly share the love and hope of Christ with people whose lives have been affected by coronavirus.

German is ten years old and he can tell you exactly where his family keeps their whistle. For children in Ponce, Puerto Rico, the family whistle has become an important survival tool. This is a story about a powerful earthquake and even more powerful friendship that came out of that disaster between German and a Send Relief volunteer. The hurricanes and earthquakes that have hit Puerto Rico have created ministry opportunities for every kind of church and every kind of believer. To see how you can meet needs and change lives there, go to SendRelief.org.

Mary Anne Kramer tried. She’d lost most everything she owned, so she had no choice. Mary Anne reached out to anyone in Pittsburgh who she thought might be able to help her get back on her feet. No one replied. This is the story about Mary Anne’s call for help and what happened when someone finally answered. There are hurting people just like Mary Anne in your community. Find out how you can help provide the basics of life and build witnessing relationships with them at SendRelief.org.

Phyllis Harbaugh was just average. But then God introduced her to deaf Iraqi refugees who were moving into her suburban Detroit community. In this episode of Stories of Hope, see what happened when a regular, everyday housewife was asked to do a job no one anywhere anytime had ever tried to do. Find out how you can serve refugees and internationals at SendRelief.org.

Most people would not see two months in jail as a good thing. But Crystal Harris is not “most people.” This is the story of how God used uncommon circumstances and people who are uncommonly in love with Jesus to save Crystal from a dangerous and deadly lifestyle. Some of the material in this episode is graphic and may not be suitable for young ears. Learn how you and your church can help victims of human trafficking at SendRelief.org/Human-Trafficking.

One day, Cody Huff disappeared. This is the story of what happened when he ended up living on the streets of Las Vegas and how God is now using that experience to shine a light into places most people never see. Go to SendRelief.org/Poverty to learn how you and your church can reach out to people who need the most basic necessities with practical help and the hope of the gospel.

Caskets and headstones are typically not symbols of hope and peace. But there’s nothing typical about the story of Barron Martin and Roderick Shaw. This is the story of how, in the inner-city of Memphis, Tennessee, God is turning hurt into healing. Go to SendRelief.org/Poverty to learn how you and your church can reach out to people who live in challenging inner-city environments.

It smells like popcorn and Fraser Fir, and it sounds like a thousand kids together in one room on Christmas morning. There are games and gifts and music and ponies and teenagers in minion costumes and grandpas in Santa hats and tables piled to the ceiling with all-you-can-eat candy. This is a story about some churches who love foster kids so much, they threw the biggest, most exclusive Christmas party in the history of Valdosta, Georgia. Go to SendRelief.org/foster-care-adoption to learn how you and your church can reach out to children who need shelter, protection and care.

Once a year, on a sidewalk in New York City’s Lower East Side, Christmas shoppers start lining up at midnight. But they’re not waiting to get into a store. On the next episode of Stories of Hope, find out what’s so special about this one December night and this one inner-city church that everyone is waiting to get into.