From an early age, both Jordan and Katie Yeggy sensed that God was calling them to missions. As they grew in their faith and learned to surrender more fully to Christ’s leading, that calling became clearer. Today, they can look back and see how God has been preparing them for this next step all along.
For many families in Kenya, especially those serving in ministry, making ends meet can be a daily challenge. Pastors and church leaders often dedicate themselves to serving their communities while struggling to provide for their own families. Recognizing this need, CMF missionary Mary Leonard has been helping women develop microbusinesses that can create sustainable income while strengthening their impact in their churches and communities.
John Sankok faithfully leads an extensive medical ministry in Kenya that includes eight clinics run by local Christian health professionals. These clinics treat tropical diseases, immunize children, and combat HIV/AIDS. The Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health facility addresses the unique health challenges faced by women and infants in the region. Known as Community Health Partners, this ministry now supplies more than 80% of the area’s primary healthcare needs. Below, John reflects on CMF’s long history with the ministry.
“One generation commends Your works to another.” Psalm 145:4
CMF began this work in the late 1970s and early 1980s with village-to-village evangelism and church planting among nomadic pastoral communities in Southern Kenya. Teams moved with the people, sharing the Gospel in hard-to-reach areas with deep-rooted cultures and traditions.
As churches were planted, the need for healthcare became clear. That same mission of love expanded beyond the church tent. CMF helped build a strong primary healthcare system for these communities. Clinics, maternal care, and newborn support grew from the foundation of local churches.
More than 40 years later, the fruit is visible. Thousands of mothers and newborns have been impacted. Lives have been saved, families strengthened, and hope restored in places that once had little access to care.
Today, CMF is a recognized leader in evangelism, church planting, and healthcare among nomadic communities in Southern Kenya. The name stands for faith that moves, churches that serve, and healthcare that reaches the last mile.
Hundreds of churches are now led and planted by empowered local leaders. What began with CMF missionaries from the U.S. is now carried forward by pastors and leaders raised from within these communities.
For 40 years, CMF has moved with nomadic peoples, bringing the Gospel, healing, and hope. Through churches planted, leaders raised, and communities transformed, CMF continues to fulfill its call—making disciples of all nations, one family at a time.
Father, we thank You for obedience in the 1980s. Seeds planted in the wilderness, among deep-rooted cultures and hard-to-reach places, have become forests of life. For those who are empowered, give us Your strength and will to continue watering the seed and passing on the faith to the next generation. It has been a model that has worked for four decades of faith in action.
Dr. Angela Meipuki is a licensed physician who enables CHP to treat complex cases, respond to emergencies, and ensure patients receive quality, compassionate care. She also strengthens the clinical team—mentoring staff and ensuring excellence throughout all of CHP’s clinics.
Sustaining a licensed, full-time doctor on staff with CHP is essential! Click here to help fund her work.
This June, CMF welcomed 11 missionary recruits to Indianapolis for a week designed to prepare them for the road ahead. Mission Formation Training brought together individuals and families preparing to serve in Ethiopia, England, Ivory Coast, Mexico, and South Asia—many of whom will depart in just a few short months.
CMF’s international campus ministry, Globalscope, is excited to announce a new partnership with Ukarimu Ministries, an established university ministry serving students at Daystar University in Athi River, Kenya. This step reflects CMF’s ongoing commitment to walking alongside students as they grow in faith, leadership, and service around the world.
Globalscope exists to welcome, reach, disciple, and develop university students—equipping them to follow Christ and influence their communities for the Kingdom. Through partnerships with trusted, locally led ministries, Globalscope strengthens existing work rather than duplicating it, coming alongside those already engaged in fruitful campus ministry.
Ukarimu Ministries—named after the Swahili word ukarimu, meaning hospitality—embodies this vision in deeply relational ways. The ministry walks closely with students during formative seasons, offering mentorship, discipleship, and a Christ-centered community where they are known and encouraged. Much of this happens at Ukarimu House, a gathering place and home for student interns.
Through fellowships, small groups, mentoring, shared meals, and one-on-one conversations, students experience more than programming—they experience belonging. For many, Ukarimu House becomes a “family away from home,” where spiritual growth and everyday faith intersect.
Ian and Stella Orunga lead this ministry, investing deeply in students through relational discipleship and leadership development. Ian, a Daystar graduate with a background in Management Information Systems, also coaches field hockey and leads a sports outreach through a local church. Stella, with a degree in Purchasing and Business Logistics, is passionate about student care, discipleship, and worship. Together with their two young children, they cultivate the Christ-centered community at Ukarimu.
Kami Burns Reed, Director of Globalscope, shared her excitement about the partnership:
“For years, Globalscope has dreamed of being part of campus ministry work in Kenya… Each time we explored starting something, we saw that many ministries were already doing excellent work, and we didn’t want to duplicate that. Through connections in the campus ministry world, we learned about Ukarimu and heard firsthand how being part of a fellowship like Globalscope could bless them. I’m excited for them to connect with other Globalscope campus ministers around the world—we all have so much to learn from one another.”
This partnership also opens the door to deeper collaboration within CMF’s work in Kenya. Kami shared her hope:
“I dream that Ukarimu can partner with CMF’s other strategy areas—whether that’s welcoming MOHI graduates as students at Daystar or raising up leaders who serve in churches, clinics, and ministries across Kenya. CMF missionaries have already begun building relationships—BJ Leonard is mentoring Ian, and Sam Loibor-Mongi has led a Discovery Bible Study with students, introducing this impactful approach.”
As Globalscope and Ukarimu Ministries move forward together, the vision is clear: that students would encounter Christ, grow in faith, and be equipped to live out the Gospel wherever God leads. This partnership is a reminder that impactful campus ministry is built on hospitality, relationships, and faithful presence—and that God is at work among students around the world.
How you can be involvedThis new partnership with Ukarimu Ministries creates fresh opportunities to invest in university students in Kenya. If you’d like to learn more about serving with this ministry through Globalscope, we’d love to connect and help you explore the next step. Email us at mobilization@cmfi.org to start the conversation! Truly invest in these students by supporting this ministry here.
What might it look like for young adults across Europe to step into God’s mission—not just locally, but globally?
This August, CMF is taking a meaningful step toward that vision with the launch of EuReach, a European adaptation of the long-standing REACH internship program. Designed specifically for students connected to Globalscope ministries across Europe, EuReach invites young adults to spend the month of August serving alongside CMF teams around the world.
And in its very first year, three students have said “yes.”
These pioneering interns will travel from their home ministries in Europe to Montevideo, Uruguay, where they will serve with La Ruta, CMF’s Globalscope ministry there—building cross-cultural relationships, growing in faith, and experiencing life and ministry in a new context.
Isabella Portela | Valencia, Spain
If you ask anyone at EnVivo Valencia about Isabella, they’ll likely mention the same thing: she brings light into every room she enters.
Since becoming involved in EnVivo in 2023, Isabella has become a natural connector—someone who not only builds community but invites others into it. Her heart for service and generosity has drawn dozens of fellow students into the ministry, and this year she stepped into deeper leadership as part of Las Raíces (The Roots). Recently, she was recognized with the ministry’s Servant Leadership Award.
As a jewelry design student graduating this spring, Isabella is marking this transition with a step of faith—choosing to serve in Uruguay as a EuReach intern.
“I have a strong desire to get to know the culture more deeply and to meet university students from different contexts… I am passionate about my Christian faith and hope to be a connection point between the students I will meet at La Ruta and God.”
Anna Lopez | Salamanca, Spain
Anna, a second-year Art History student at the University of Salamanca, has quietly become a key part of EnVivo Salamanca’s ministry life.
Whether helping lead worship, preparing meals, or hosting prayer gatherings, Anna’s behind-the-scenes faithfulness has made a visible impact. Recently, those walking closely with her have seen something even deeper taking shape—a growing sense of calling.
As one staff member shared, “Her heart is on fire. God has been stirring in her a desire to do more in ministry, and this opportunity couldn’t come at a better time.”
EuReach offers Anna the chance to explore that calling in a new cultural context, expanding her understanding of how God might use her in the future.
Noah | Maastricht, Netherlands
For Noah, EuReach represents both a return and a next step.
Currently completing a master’s degree in social and health psychology at the University of Maastricht, Noah has spent the past year discerning a growing call toward missions. Previous short-term trips sparked that interest—but also left him wanting a deeper, longer-term glimpse into missionary life.
This August, he’ll find it.
“I want to pursue missionary work after graduation, but I don’t yet know what that will look like… I’m hoping this internship will help me better understand what life as a missionary can be and how God is leading me forward.”
Having already fallen in love with South America on a previous trip, Noah is eager to return—this time with a deeper purpose.
EuReach is being led by longtime CMF missionary Sophie Bentley, who, along with her family, has been serving in campus ministry in Spain since 2004. After helping launch EnVivo Valencia in 2015, Sophie has seen firsthand the potential of students whose faith is activated through global experience.
And for her, this first cohort is just the beginning.
“EuReach opens so many possibilities. This year we’re launching with our sister Globalscope ministry in Uruguay, but in the future we’d love to send young adults from all over Europe to CMF ministries all over the world—from everywhere to everywhere.”
The vision extends beyond campus ministry alone. From marketplace initiatives in Mexico to children’s ministry in Kenya to church planters in Ethiopia, the long-term dream is to create pathways for young adults to explore how their unique gifts can serve God’s mission in diverse contexts.
“Our hope is for this program to grow each year and for young adults to be inspired for life-long service. We want them to see missions as a creative, dynamic way to transform lives and bless their communities—wherever God takes them.”
Every movement starts somewhere. For EuReach, it begins with three students, one summer, and a willingness to go.
As Isabella, Anna, and Noah step into this pioneering experience, they carry with them not only their own stories and callings—but also the seeds of something that could impact generations of European students to come.
And this is only the beginning.
CMF was founded by a group of college students with a passion to impact the world through creating dynamic Christ-centered communities. A heart for the next generation continues today as CMF remains committed to providing meaningful missions experiences through short-term trips, internships, and residency opportunities for young adults around the globe. One of the ways we pursue this mission is through strategic partnerships with universities that share a passion for equipping and sending students into impactful cross-cultural service.
Through a partnership with Azusa Pacific University (APU), 11 students and one staff member from APU’s Office of Service and Discipleship recently spent 10 days in May serving alongside CMF missionaries, Jordan and Jaime Shelton, in Piancó, Brazil. Throughout their time in Brazil, the APU team engaged in a variety of ministry opportunities centered on relationship-building and community engagement. Their primary areas of service included sports outreach, teaching English, serving in local schools, worship ministry, and community service projects. During sports outreach activities, the team used soccer and handball as tools for connecting with boys involved in CMF’s local soccer ministry. Through games, conversations, devotionals, and prayer, meaningful relationships were formed that extended beyond the field.
The team also participated in English-language outreach through ESL classes at Missão Ágape, a local community center serving children and teens ages 5–17, as well as through classes at SIBAPI, a local partner church serving adults ages 18 and older. APU students led interactive games in English, answered questions about language and culture, and shared about their personal lives and faith journeys. These moments created authentic connections and lasting memories with the communities they served.
In addition to outreach ministries, the team helped lead worship during a young adult gathering and a local church service. They also participated in a hands-on service project by painting the walls of the first floor of the SIBAPI gym, which is currently being developed into a Community Sports Center. This project helped move the facility one step closer to welcoming children from Missão Ágape into a safe and engaging environment for sports ministry and discipleship.
Partnerships like the one between CMF and APU reflect the shared desire to mobilize the next generation through transformative missional experiences. As students step into cross-cultural ministry opportunities, they not only serve communities around the world but also grow in their understanding of God’s global mission and their place within it.
CMF teams across the globe remain committed to facilitating impactful opportunities for universities, churches, and young adults who desire to learn, serve, and participate in God’s work among the nations. We are grateful for APU’s partnership and for the ways these students served faithfully in Brazil.
Around the world, God is at work—on university campuses, in clinics, in community centers, and in neighborhoods where hope is growing in visible and tangible ways. And in many of those places, there’s a common thread: a need for people willing to step in, serve faithfully, and use the gifts God has already given them.
In the harsh desert of northwestern Kenya, where survival has long depended on scarce water and fragile food sources, God continues to bring both physical and spiritual renewal among the Turkana people.
Mary Stephens has spent several years serving with our Globalscope campus ministry in Viña del Mar, Chile, where she helped launch and build the El Oasis community. Shaped by her own cross-cultural experiences in Peru and Chile during college, Mary has developed a deep love for relational ministry and creating spaces of belonging.
While recently exploring other CMF ministries, Mary spent time with our partners Missions of Hope International in Kenya. In this reflection, she shares a simple yet profound moment that revealed God’s abundance in an unexpected way.
We arrived safely in Kenya and quickly stepped into life with Missions of Hope International, learning about their work among communities facing deep poverty. Over a couple of days, we visited schools, met staff, and spent time with students—receiving far more hospitality than I was prepared for.
One afternoon, a small group of us headed into a school auditorium. I wasn’t entirely sure what we were there for. Earlier that day, we had led an activity for about thirty 10th-grade students, many of whom came from difficult circumstances. So, as we walked in, I assumed we might be doing something similar again.
But this time felt different.
There were about 50 or 60 students seated in rows, some dressed in colorful, almost costume-like outfits. There was a quiet sense of anticipation in the room. As we were invited to move our chairs closer to the front, it started to feel like we were part of something special—maybe even a performance.
Then I noticed it: a white pastry box on a table, slightly too small for whatever was inside, with foil stretched over the opening. It looked like cake. But why was there a cake sitting in front of a room full of students?
A few minutes later, the principal stepped forward and welcomed us to a farewell ceremony.
The pieces began to fall into place.
Students performed dances for us. One student offered a speech and a blessing. Then more singing and dancing—and before we knew it, we had been pulled in to join them, laughing and moving together in the same joyful rhythm.
And then the cake.
The principal uncovered it—a beautifully decorated cake, the kind you might expect to serve 10 or 12 people. As soon as I saw it, my mind began to fill in the next part of the story. I imagined the teachers handing slices of cake to our group while the students—many of whom rely on school meals for daily nourishment—watched from their seats.
I think that thought came from everything I had been experiencing. For the past day and a half, I had walked through places marked by deep need. And yet, everywhere we went, we were met with generosity. People welcomed us into their homes. They prayed for us. They offered tea, food, songs, questions, and laughter.
Students who could easily say, “I have nothing,” kept offering what they did have—over and over again.
So, I expected the same pattern to continue: we would receive, and they would watch.
But that’s not what happened.
Instead, the cake was cut into small, bite-sized pieces. First, the teachers handed pieces to us. Some of us received them on forks, others in our hands, and we all laughed together in the process. Then, just as quickly, the plates were placed into our hands—and we were invited to serve the students.
Soon, everyone in the room was eating cake.
And when there was still more left, we carried it outside and shared it with others—teachers, staff, students, even security guards. Everyone received a piece.
One cake became enough for many.
It reminded me of Jesus—of how we remember Him in the breaking of bread, and of the story of the loaves and fish that fed thousands. What I witnessed that day felt like a glimpse of that same kind of abundance.
Not abundance born out of excess, but out of gratitude and generosity—multiplied by the Spirit.
It left me wondering: what am I holding onto out of fear that there won’t be enough? What has God placed in my hands that could be shared, trusted, and multiplied into something more?
Sometimes, it looks like cake.
