Rejected by family and friends after escaping a drug addiction, Cindy – with her husband Arnaldo and daughter Jenny – lived isolated in a small shack. Desperate to earn an income, they borrowed money from moneylenders whose unreasonable rates plunged them further into debt. Then Cindy sought a loan from CCT, HOPE’s partner in the Philippines, and, touched by what her loan officer shared, accepted Jesus into her heart. A physical and spiritual transformation began, resulting in a profitable business and reconciliation with her estranged family. “[God] saw me, came to me, and upheld me. He really loves me,” Cindy testifies.
![Before Eveness Mulungu joined the Walusungu (“mercy”) savings group through our church partner in Malawi, she faced days where she and her family ate animal feed because they couldn’t afford human food. But that changed when she joined the savings group. Eveness used her first group loan of about $1.70 (U.S.) to start a business selling doughnuts and beans.
“By the end of my first cycle I made $140 (U.S.),” Eveness shared. “My life is no longer the same now; [I] was regarded as no one in the community. ... This was the first time in my life that I ever touched and owned big money like this!”
Pictured: Eveness, with her husband in front of their piggery—a third successful business that she operates.](https://blog.hopeinternational.org/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)