13 minute read
Reflections on Lebanon
Global Voices
Lebanon has recently been front and center in global news headlines, but it has long been in the heart of College Church. We have supported Arab Baptist Theological Seminary since 2010, as well as commissioned short-term (up to three months) and mid-term (three months to three years) missionaries there. Read these recent reflections on how the Lord has been at work in this country.
THE FACES OF LEBANON
By Nicole H. (Fall 2018-Summer 2019)
When I think of Lebanon, there are so many memories that come to mind: the busy and crowded streets, the call to prayer ringing throughout the neighborhood and families heading home to have dinner together. However, the two main things that come to my mind are the stories of hope and love.
There is Shaimaa*, a teacher at a makeshift school. Shaimaa’s story is of a mother whose daughter was so ill that the doctors announced that she would pass away. Her daughter would never get better. Shaimaa prayed that if God healed her daughter, she would give her life to him. God heard her prayers, and her daughter was healed. As a teacher, Shaimaa is now able to share with her students the hope her family has found in God.
I also think of my student Hamze*. For a long time, it has just been his mother and him. It was obvious that Hamze was lonely. However, when he heard about the Son, his life began to change. Now he boldly proclaims in front of his friends that he is a believer and his heart now belongs to the Son. Hamze can now share about a Father who not only loves him but others as well.
There is also Fayez*, a former sergeant in the army, who is now the bus driver for the school. Every day he drives a van full of children. Even though he complains that the students are too loud, it is clear that the Father has opened his heart to these students and their families. On my last day in Lebanon, Fayez sat down with a Syrian refugee family and drank tea with them (historically, there has been tension between Lebanese and Syrians) as he listened to their story. This simple act is proof that God can change the heart of anyone.
There are countless stories like these. Even in hardship and difficulty, it is clear that God is working through his people. He is sending them to areas where few have heard about the good news. He is opening doors for believers to be a light to those who are looking for hope. Miracles are happening and hearts are being opened to the good news. Even in the darkest places, the name of the Son is being boldly proclaimed!
*For security purposes, pseudonyms are used in place of names.
Connections gives thanks for Nicole’s international experience as a third-cultural kid (TCK) in Bolivia and her studies at Moody Bible Institute that primed her heart for God’s work overseas.
A SUMMER EXPERIENCE
By Kiersten Oslund (summer 2019)
Two summers ago, I served as the intern for Kids Alive International in Lebanon. I only knew a little about the organization from short-term missions trips to the Dominican Republic with the high school youth group, but I had the itch to spend some time abroad and give overseas missions a test run. With my Spanish minor, I figured I would be well-suited to serve in Guatemala, but on the last day of my online interview, I changed my mind and told the director about my interest in Lebanon. I have always been passionate about working with refugees, and the Syrian civil war meant that there were over one million refugees residing in a country that is two-thirds the size of Connecticut. I purchased my tickets, flew to Lebanon and lived on the Dar el Awlad campus in Beirut for the next few months.
Dar el Awlad, “The Children’s Home” in Arabic, is the longestrunning Kids Alive program. For more than 70 years, the campus housed a boys orphanage, raising them in family-style units and teaching them the Christian faith. In the last couple of years, Dar el Awlad welcomed its very first girl: a feisty and adorable four-year-old, who has been able to remain united with her twin brother. As the only girl and the youngest child, she gets to grow up under the loving care of 19 older “brothers.”
While there, I served as a tutor and playmate for these residential children. The campus also holds a co-ed school, admission reserved for the most vulnerable children in the neighborhood. The Oasis is a program of this school and hosts a classroom for Syrian children who have never attended school. My role was to teach English and math. For someone who has never had ambitions to teach, it was quite the challenge to educate a classroom of children, ages 6 through 13, who only spoke a few words of English. But God was good, and he softened my moments of frustration and exhaustion with daily kindness, respect and enthusiasm from my students. The absolute highlight of every day was the bundle of hugs that greet me first thing in the morning before the first bell.
For three weeks of the summer, Kids Alive hosted several VBS camps. During one of the camp sessions, the children used craft time to make “salvation bracelets.” These bracelets used different colored beads to go through the gospel story. As the children worked on their bracelets, one of the maintenance workers on Kids Alive’s campus wandered through the room and took an interest in what the children were making. This maintenance man was a migrant worker from Bangladesh and did not speak the Arabic language. One young girl, noticing his curiosity, approached him to explain the significance of the colored beads. The young girl was from India, and due to the proximity of Bangladesh and India, she was able to share the gospel in a common language with this older man who had never heard it in full before. The girl’s face beamed with excitement as she shared all about her Savior, Jesus Christ. The rest of the day, she was positively joyful that somebody as young as she could share such important news.
Jesus is very alive and present at Dar el Awlad. He has come in dreams to several students and teachers at the school, causing them to convert and dedicate their lives to the one true God. The residential boys in the orphanage learn about Jesus in class, prayer group and church. A few of the older boys act as mentors for the younger ones.
The events of 2020 have shaken both Lebanon and the campus of Dar el Awlad. The country has faced economic collapse, rampant political corruption, COVID-19, and most recently, the devastating explosion in Beirut. Throughout it all, Kids Alive continues to trust in God. The organization has led groups to provide aid to families affected by the explosion. The teachers have undergone additional training to be competent in speaking to students about stress and trauma. They have also hosted a three-day VBS camp for children affected by the explosion, with a theme focused on how to be lights in the darkness.
There is still a lot of prayer needed over the situation in Lebanon, but God is clearly at work and in control.
Connections gives thanks for Kiersten’s life passion to serve refugee families as they resettle here in the U.S.
LOVE FOR ENEMIES
By Julie Clemens
President Elie Haddad, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary
Jesus tells us in this passage from Luke to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us. Most of us probably think of our enemy as someone who isn’t nice to us or doesn’t share our views. But on a trip to Lebanon in March, I saw Jesus’ teaching firsthand in a far deeper way than most of us can probably imagine.
As a country, Lebanon has a unique position; it lies in the Middle East, and yet has a significant Christian presence. I was privileged to visit the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD), and everyone had a story of why they should hate the Syrian people—because of family members injured or dead at the hands of Syrians in war.
One woman told us of how she and her family were fleeing from the Syrians. It was like a story from the movies with trauma you wouldn’t wish on anyone. She told of a time when she was pregnant and held at gunpoint alongside her husband and oldest child. Her only prayer was to not die in front of her child. She feared it would be too difficult for her son to see. God answered that prayer in even greater ways and spared her life and those of her family. She is now employed by LSESD and tells with joy how the organization comes to the aid of the Syrian people. LSESD is based in Beirut and demonstrates the love of Christ throughout Lebanon.
Elie Daher, IT Manager, Lebanese Society for Educational & Social Development
Even as it struggles with the aftermath of the explosion this summer, Lebanon continues to struggle with the overflow of Syrian refugees. There are six different branches or ministries in LSESD. MERATH (Middle East Revive and Thrive) partners with churches to help meet the needs of these refugees. They provide food, family support and even train women to help support their families.
One church we visited was near the Syrian border. They told a story about how refugees knocked at the door to ask for help, and soon, lines began to form of people asking the church for assistance. LSESD helps support churches as they help these vulnerable families. Refugee camps are hard places to live. Children are especially vulnerable; some have disabilities and they are often suffering from the stress of terrible things they’ve seen.
Here’s the beauty of LSESD! SKILD (Smart Kids with Individual Learning Differences) is another ministry under the umbrella of LSESD with occupational and physical therapists as well as psychologists who work with children outside Beirut. They also partner with MERATH to help meet the needs of these individuals.
I saw the genuine love of Christ on display as we met many people in Lebanon. These brothers and sisters of ours are working with the true hands and feet of Jesus daily and are wonderful examples to us all.
Connections gives thanks for Julie's commitment to vulnerable indiviudals and families.
THE CHURCH IN MOTION
By Marilyn Papierski
When I heard about the explosion in the port of Beirut on August 4, my mind immediately flashed back to the coastline we saw during my visit in March of this year. I’m pretty sure we saw those grain silos as we drove back to the guesthouse from the ancient city of Byblos on the northwestern shores of Mediterranean Sea. Julie Clemens and I were in Beirut at the invitation of the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS), a College Church-supported partner, and SKILD, a vibrant ministry to individual with disabilities—both ministries under the direction of the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD).
In the course of the week we were there, we saw the beauty of the country through its landscapes, its food and its people and their warm hospitality. We heard stories of how God brought forgiveness to the hearts of the Lebanese Christians toward the Syrian people in the years following the 29-year occupation of Lebanon and how they now unashamedly serve the Syrian refugees in Jesus’ name. We heard of financial hardships caused by the decreasing value of the Lebanese lira and the tightening grip of a corrupt government. People were becoming desperate.
So, when Beirut hit the news again, Really? was my first response. How much more can these people take? My heart broke.
The blast resulted in more than 200 deaths, 6,500 injuries, at least $15 billion in property damages and an estimated 300,000 left homeless, and all this on the tail of COVID, the country’s worst-ever economic crisis, joblessness and government corruption.
Departing from Beirut in March, I would have told you that God is moving in Lebanon and that I now knew some of the most innovative, capable, compassionate, passion-driven and Spirit-motivated individuals I’ve ever met. But that was only a foretaste of these past three months. What I’ve observed from afar since the disaster is a remarkable resiliency among believers. They have hope, and they seek to share that hope with others.
No time was lost in mobilizing and redeploying resources to serve the people of Beirut. Dorm and guesthouse rooms at ABTS were set up to accommodate the homeless. Food was collected and distributed to the displaced and hungry. Basic medical assistance was given, and counselors engaged in trauma counseling. SKILD counselors quickly organized playground events to offer activities, evaluations and crisis intervention for children traumatized by the scenes they’d witnessed. Despite their own personal hardships, the church stepped up.
In times like these, believers are called to encourage and support and pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ. College Church was privileged to take part in this relief effort through a $5,000 gift to an LSESD fund, Help Beirut, as well as $1,000 to support tuition scholarships at Beirut Bible School (BBS)—another ministry under the wing of LSESD—to students needing financial aid. (BBS supports a student body that is 92% Muslim and is situated in a predominantly Muslim neighborhood.)
Please continue to pray for this nation’s recovery and for the tireless work of Christians setting about Jesus’ work in Lebanon. If you wish to know more about the work of LSESD and its six integrated ministries, head to the webpage, www.lsesd.org. Specific information about relief efforts may be found at mebo. org/helpbeirut/.
*MEBO (Middle East Bible Outreach) is the U.S. affiliate for LSESD. LSESD ministries include Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, Baptist Children and Youth Ministry, Beirut Baptist School, SKILD, MERATH, Dar Manhal Al Hayat (DMAH publishing/distribution of Christian books and materials.)
Connections gives thanks for Marilyn’s years of missionary service in Ecuador and her work with short- and mid-term missions here at College Church.
