WHERE HEAVEN TOUCHES EARTH: a reflection on our visit to Lebanon and Syria.
We’ve just returned from Lebanon and Syria, our hearts deeply stirred by the people of this region—their resilience, their boundless love, and their generous hospitality. In the midst of hardship, we encountered sacred moments where heaven touched earth. These encounters were not rare—they were radiant, rooted in faith and community. We carry their stories with us, and we invite you to share in the joy, the beauty, and the hope we witnessed.
RESURRECTION IN RUINS: a Christian response to Syria’s elections
On Monday, 15 September 2025, Syria will hold its first election since the fall of Assad. The elections may not offer direct representation for believers, but they do offer a chance to reclaim moral imagination. To insist that peace is not the absence of conflict, but the presence of dignity. And to remind Syria—and the world—that the Church, though bruised, is not broken. In this fragile moment, the Church’s role may be less about power and more about presence: a quiet but resilient sign of hope in a land aching for renewal.
SYRIA’S CRY, HEAVEN’S RESPONSE: In a world that turns away, we choose to draw near.
We have been inundated with heart-wrenching updates from Syria, shared by local pastors and dear friends from across the region. The news is devastating, and our hearts ache, consumed by sorrow as we cry out to the Lord for the people of Suweyda in southern Syria. The crisis has escalated into chaos, and civilians are being subjected to horrific acts of systematic extermination. And heartbreakingly, the Church has not been spared from the violence.
FEAR OR FORGIVENESS: The Church in Syria Responds
Christians in Syria were in mourning after a suicide bombing struck a Greek Orthodox church in Damascus during a June 22 Divine Liturgy. At least 20 were killed and more than 60 injured after an attacker, reported to be armed and wearing an explosive vest, entered Mar Elias, a Greek Orthodox church in the city’s Dweila neighbourhood. But for believers in Syria, and all of the Middle East, persecution is neither a new theology nor an unfamiliar territory. There has always been a deep-rooted understanding that to follow Christ is to share in His suffering. Unlike the responses often seen in the West, this has never diminished their witness—it has only refined it.
LEBANON: Reframing faith in the context of conflict
We have just returned from a visit to war-torn Lebanon, meeting with local as well as Syrian leaders. Our hearts were deeply touched by the commitment and resiliency of those who follow Christ in extreme circumstances. It will be impossible to share all our experiences in a way that will give justice to the situation, the people and the experiences we had – but we would like to focus on EIGHT lessons we felt the Lord teaching us during this time of exposure.
NAVIGATING OUR WAY THROUGH DARKNESS: a Christian response to the Syrian massacres
Some Christian commentators are exploiting the suffering of people in Syria by placing graphic videos of beheadings on Social Media with inflated figures of Christian casualties. Amid a barrage of opinions, one spiritual principle emerged: The significance of Christianity is not the need to expose darkness but how to navigate our way through darkness. Darkness cannot overcome darkness. So, instead of cursing the darkness, light a candle. Here is a response from Syrian Christians to the events unfolding in Syria.
SYRIA: A voice in the storm
Syria, after more than a decade of war, finds itself undergoing profound political, cultural, and social transformations. These changes will have significant implications for the lives of ordinary Syrians, especially religious minorities such as Christians. This shift is affecting not only daily life but also the broader societal dynamics in the country.
GAZA, LEBANON and SYRIA: the darkness of the tomb or the darkness of the womb?
What if the darkness in Syria is the darkness of the womb and not the darkness of the tomb? What if the darkness in Gaza is the birth pains of something so beautiful that only God can comprehend it. What if God, in His sovereign goodness and His desire to seek and save the lost, can use this darkness to birth a nation, to raise a people, and to establish His presence through the beauty of His church. What if this is the darkness of the womb and not the darkness of a tomb?
NO, SYRIA HAS NOT BEEN LIBERATED: a time for courage
No, Syria has not been liberated. Terrorists do not liberate, they enslave. The Syrians need courage, more than ever before. Courage to endure, to persevere and to survive. But the passive bystanders from the outside world also needs courage, but a different kind of courage.
IT IS NOT FOR EAGLES TO CATCH FLIES.
Isaiah 40:31 But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. One of the many lessons I brought back from Syria is that our impact on society is directly, and proportionately, related…