Qatar (Photo courtesy of Ayush Pappini via Unsplash)

On Wednesday, Israel struck Iran’s South Pars gas field. Iran responded on Thursday with strikes across the Gulf region, which included a gas facility at Qatar’s Ras Laffan plant. These events have made crude oil prices even more volatile. 

As the economic impacts of the war spread across the world, so do the psychological and human costs. Fadi Sharaiha from the MENA Leadership Center recognizes people growing numb to living under sirens, missiles, and drone strikes. 

“This is what we call the mechanism of defense for people. If you are going through a trauma, what happens is you justify the trauma, or you normalize it,” he says. “This is really a dangerous I would say ‘mental health’ concern that I have for people.”

Iranian boy in a jacket (picture courtesy of Hiva Sharifi via Unsplash)

The numbers surrounding this war keep rising, yet Sharaiha notes, “The first casualty in a war is truth. So nobody knows really the numbers, or what is really happening on the ground.” 

Even with the mass of data in Middle East news reports, the fact remains that every person who has been killed was made in God’s image, as well as every person displaced or suffering any kind of loss. 

“For me, those are not numbers. Those are faces. Those are people who are created in God’s image. They have aspiration, goals, feelings, emotions. They want to live their lives,” says Sharaiha. 

Find your place in the story

As Christians watch the news and pray, Sharaiha urges us to think personally, “to have a face to the number.”

“Please pray for the peace in the Middle East,” he says. “Pray for those people who are being displaced — like 1 million people in Lebanon.”

Lebanon (Stock photo courtesy of Nathan McBride via Unsplash)

Pray for endurance for Christians in the Gulf region. This is so important, because Sharaiha says, “It’s very easy to lose focus and faith whenever you’re going through a trauma, war, or conflict.” 

Also, pray a big-picture prayer! Ask God to use His people around the world to speak the true hope of Christ in significant ways during the Middle East conflict. This is tied to what Sharaiha calls “the prophetic voice” of the Church. 

“That [prophetic voice] is not politics. We need to go back to peace-building, reaching the unreached, loving people, and making sure that we are available for people to help and support,” he says. 

In early March, the MENA Leadership Center’s most recent online training was attended by students whose countries were being bombed in the newly-begun US-Israel-Iran war. Sharaiha says future courses will include an introduction to refugee ministry and a course on conflict resolution. 

“We are trying to respond to whatever is happening today, on the ground of people going through war, going through trauma, going through bad times,” he says. 

Learn more about the ministry and mission at menaleadershipcenter.com. 

Header photo courtesy of a user named Pavellllllll on Pixabay.

“There’s a great sense of ‘Not this again’ here in Lebanon, because we’re living the same style of war as we did in the fall of 2024, where we have airstrikes every night,” says Pierre Houssney with Horizons International.

People on the streets of Lebanon in fall 2024. (Photo courtesy of Horizons International via Facebook)

Last week, Lebanon appealed to European leaders and the United States to intervene diplomatically as it seeks a solution with Israel, who is bent on neutralizing Hezbollah. More than 800,000 people have been displaced since the latest Israel-Hezbollah hostilities began on March 2, 2026. Schools, streets, and other public spaces across Lebanon have become shelters. 

“The infrastructure that we have available to help those people is really limited,” says Houssney. 

In the chaos, Horizons has a pulse on the real-time needs of 130 partner evangelical churches across Lebanon. With donor support, they are equipping these churches with food, bedding, and more to serve families in need. This opens the way to share the hope of Christ.

“The good side of people losing hope in the things of this world is that they often open their eyes and put their hope in the things of eternity,” says Houssney. 

Yet in the bigger picture of the Middle East conflicts, Houssney is concerned that narratives in politics and media are drawing Christians into division and even hatred for those considered enemies.

“What I’m seeing in the world is one side cheers when bombs go one way, and another side cheers when bombs go the other way,” he says. “When bombs fly in any direction, when people die, whether they are military or civilian, poor or rich, brown or white or whatever color or nationality they are, God’s image is in those people. And His heart is burdened and really angered when that image is marred. So I think it’s a time for a heart check, so that we can align our hearts with God.”

(Photo courtesy of Horizons International)

Please pray for Lebanon, Israel, Iran, and all those caught in or watching the Middle East conflicts unfold. Then, with God’s help, enter your community as a peacemaker. 

“I would encourage every [reader] to be looking at the community that they’re in — talking to the people that are around them and encouraging them toward not taking a side in the political matters, but starting to take a side in the spiritual war,” says Houssney. “Taking a stance on the side of love,  the side of forgiveness, the side of praying for those who persecute you, blessing those who curse you — you know, really loving your enemy. That’s the side that Jesus is on.”

Header photo courtesy of Nathan McBride via Unsplash.

Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon says, “We’re just glued on our TV, seeing, ‘What is the government doing? What is Hezbollah doing? What is Israel doing?’ It’s like the whole thing has escalated in a way that we did not expect.”

Hezbollah fighters train in southern Lebanon, May 2023. (Photo courtesy of Tasnim News Agency/Wikimedia Commons)

Israel added Beirut to its hitlist yesterday following overnight attacks from the Iran-backed political and militant group, Hezbollah.

“Hezbollah started to send weapon missiles towards Israel, and Israel decided, ‘Okay, they want war. Let’s do war.’ They started to bomb heavily, and they killed most of the main chiefs of departments in Hezbollah,” says Nuna. 

As thousands of people fled the deadly strike zones, Lebanon’s government sought to distance itself from Hezbollah’s actions — with a bold ban on the militia that it has held back from making until now. 

“We had an emergency Cabinet meeting, and the whole Cabinet decided to name Hezbollah as a terrorist organization that is not affiliated [with] the government,” says Nuna. “This is very important, because this might create a civil war.”

The threat of civil war comes from the fact that Hezbollah is both a militant and a political group within Lebanon. It has held the support of Lebanon’s more than 30% Shiite Muslim population for years. Many see the group as a protector against Lebanon’s neighbor to the south, Israel. But Monday’s bombing was Hezbollah’s first claimed attack on Israel in more than a year. Some say it could prove to be Hezbollah’s undoing within Lebanon.

“Now it’s like they gave a carte blanche to Israel to say, ‘okay, you can kill whoever, and you can just destroy whatever is belonging to Hezbollah,’” says Nuna. 

Believers and ministries rally

Aid groups like Triumphant Mercy Lebanon are taking action, too. Believers called an emergency meeting to coordinate responses.

(Photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

“It’s very important to see Christian organizations working together, and not as entities by themselves,” says Nuna. “We need to pray, really, for the unity of the organizations that are working [together].” 

Pray for Gospel opportunities as people celebrate Purim, which commemorates the saving of the Jewish people in modern-day Iran. 

“Purim is meaning not only the liberation of the people of God, but also the opening of eyes of the king,” says Nuna. 

Don’t forget to pray for Iran as well. 

“We pray the purposes of God to come to pass. And the purposes of God are that Iranian people will be saved,” says Nuna. “In the flesh, we want Iran destroyed. But actually, God wants Iran to be saved — yes, saved from this regime that is oppressing people and killing its own people.”

*Pseudonym

Header photo of Beirut, Lebanon courtesy of Maxime Guy/Unsplash.

The ceasefire agreement is controversial. Camille Melki with Heart for Lebanon notes that there are different interpretations on where the agreement requires a complete disarmament of Hezbollah.

“Lebanon claims that this [December 31] deadline is only for the southern part of Lebanon. Of course, Israel claims that ‘No, this is for the entire Lebanese territory,'” Melki says. “Regardless, Lebanon did not meet that deadline.” 

Melki says some of the places Israel struck this week hadn’t been targeted since the November 2024 ceasefire, which made the attacks a surprising move. One Tuesday strike in Ghaziyeh, a district of Sidon, hit two miles from one of Heart for Lebanon’s ministry centers. The team has continued to serve through many dangers the past year, but it was a shock.

“Of course, some [staff] were quite shaken, as they live also near the center, and they could hear and see the damage early in the morning,” says Melki. “A lot of the buildings had broken glass.”

Today, January 8, an important cabinet meeting is happening with the Lebanese government, where the chief of Lebanon’s army will deliver a briefing on the current status of disarming non-state groups, which includes Hezbollah.

Food aid distribution
(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

“A lot is expected from that meeting,” says Melki, “not only to hear what the head of the army has to say about this deadline, but also how the army will continue in its quest to disarm Hezbollah.”

Find your place in the story

Pray for wise leaders to take bold and proper steps. Pray also for opportunities for the churches to share the hope of Christ with their communities.

“This is our moment to show boldly and clearly the Christ that we believe in,” says Melki. 

Glimpse how the team at Heart for Lebanon spreads practical aid and the gospel at heartforlebanon.org.

Finally, to those who follow Mission Network News reports, Melki extends a special greeting: “Happy New Year! Hoping that this 2026 brings joy and hope and well-being from our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Header photo: IDF displays weapons captured from Hezbollah in December 2024. (Wikimedia Commons) 

The violations have been acknowledged but not resolved. Yet that may be changing. 

Last week, the still-armed Hezbollah urged Lebanon’s government not to negotiate further with Israel. Israel responded by ramping up strikes in southern Lebanon against what it says were Hezbollah targets.

Hezbollah fighters train in southern Lebanon, May 2023. (Photo courtesy of Tasnim News Agency/Wikimedia Commons)

Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon explains the escalation is something to take seriously. 

“It means that if Hezbollah doesn’t give up the weapons, we’re going to have another war,” Nuna says.

“If Hezbollah keeps the weapons, Israel has said it very bluntly that ‘We will not allow it.’ They will have a war again until they completely destroy Hezbollah.”

Lebanon’s government pledged this summer to implement a disarmament plan against Hezbollah, with the goal of completion by the end of the year. It has already taken steps toward this goal, but Hezbollah says it will not disarm.

“The government says something, Hezbollah says something else, and nobody says anything about it. Nobody is keeping Hezbollah responsible [for] their acts,” says Nuna.

That shows a fear of Hezbollah’s weapons, which Nuna says is understandable. A civil war is no solution to the conflict. 

“But at the same time, this solution must be found, because we cannot keep Lebanon hostage [to] the will of one small party [Hezbollah] in Lebanon,” says Nuna. 

Hope for restoration

With Hezbollah and Israel on opposite sides and the clock for 2025 ticking, the conflict is coming to a head. 

“We cannot do anything about it, except pray and ask that the Lord will have mercy on Lebanon and find a solution,” Nuna says.

Beirut House of Prayer gathering October 9-11, 2025 (Photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

During a 50-hour prayer gathering in Beirut last month, believers prayed for Lebanon’s restoration. 

“I think we felt the Lord was saying, ‘I’m sending my arrows, and when the arrows hit the ground, it will shake the nation,’” Nuna shares. “We are seeing a shaking now. Is it easy to be in the shaking? No, but we don’t want to stay in the status quo in any way.”

Pray for God to reshape Lebanon for His good purposes during this tense time of upheaval. Pray that for the entire Middle East as well. 

“Look at the new era for Syria now, with the presidency in the US, with France, with the accords that are starting to shape with Israel — the Abrahamic Accords. All these things. Something is changing in the whole region,” says Nuna. “So let’s pray that the Lord who is in the business of changing the Middle East will do it according to His plans, and He will not allow any of man’s plan to succeed.”

*Pseudonym

Header photo: Beirut, Lebanon (Stock photo courtesy of Muhammed Beyrouti via Unsplash)

One woman we’ll call Isabel works with nonprofit organizations that meet humanitarian needs in Yemen. As a Christian in that field, she sees glimmers of hope.

“I think it’s easy in a place like Yemen to think of how oppressed women can be, and so it’s even more encouraging and beautiful to hear how God is working through the lives of women there.”

(Photo courtesy of Lara Jameson/Pexels)

She knows one woman who grew up deeply questioning her status. After searching earnestly for answers, she discovered Christian resources that opened her eyes to life in Christ. 

“What I love about her story is that in the end, her husband ends up meeting Jesus first and totally changing. Then she does as well shortly afterwards, and their whole family, and part of their community too,” says Isabel. 

“I love that because of her courage to question and to journey through that and share with others, she ends up not only just changing her life, but changing everyone around her’s life as well.” 

Stories of devastation in Yemen are real and sobering. But you can pray in faith for God to bring hope and salvation to women in that nation. He sees every one of them. 

“God sees the injustice, the inequality, the effects that these things have. He’s there, and He’s encouraging and speaking to even those in the lowest of these situations,” Isabel says. “That continues to be encouraging to see God’s character in that way that He has not forgotten the women. He’s not forgotten the children.”

Learn more here about the specific challenges many Christians in Yemen face.

Header photo of children in Yemen courtesy of Irwan Zahuri via Pexels.

Other nations have taken one step closer to the fray. Since Sunday, Israel has launched more than 300 airstrikes on weapons stockpiles and military infrastructure in Syria. It also has seized “temporary” control of a buffer zone between the two nations.

“There’s a power vacuum right now,” says Mark* with Global Catalytic Ministries. “They (Israel) don’t want to see whoever grab these stockpiles of [chemical] weapons, of munitions that will eventually be used by someone hostile to Israel.”

He says that although Israel is denying reports that their troops are advancing into Syria, “a lot of people on the ground are saying they see armor vehicles from Israel 15 miles out from Damascus, which is a really significant thing. We haven’t seen anything like this [before], which is provoking a strong response from its (Syria’s) neighbors, [including] Turkey.”

Türkiye and other nations have denounced Israel’s actions, while the UK and US are more supportive of Israel’s security concerns. Türkiye’s precise involvement in the events of the past two weeks is unclear, but it’s of course deeply interested in what happens in Syria. It has also had troops in northern Syria since 2016. Meanwhile the US has itself carried out strikes this week on more than 75 Islamic State targets in Syria.

It’s complicated, to say the least. 

“We’re in a time that’s uncharted territory. We’re seeing a radical shift on the ground almost comparable to the Arab Spring,” Mark says.

“It could increase into a serious escalation in the region. This (Israel’s actions) could pull Turkey in, which would cause a lot of issues, because they’re a NATO member.”

Syria’s new interim prime minister, Mohammed al-Bashir, is closely tied with the leading Syrian rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Despite their promises of moderation, HTS still has an Islamic agenda. The UN, UK and United States all designate HTS as a terrorist group, though there is talk of whether to change that. We’ll see what happens. 

“It’s really a time for the underground church to hold the ground and start to multiply disciples in the midst of that, because this is where we hold the ground and demonstrate the gospel,” Mark says, “Because there’s going to be a lot of people that are suddenly shocked at how radical this group is. Even though it’s a different change of pace from Assad’s regime, it’s still going to be a very, very difficult situation for both the Muslims and the Christians.

(Image courtesy Global Catalytic Ministries)

“There’s not going to be a democratic government installed by any means,” he adds.  

If you take only one thing away from this story, pray for Syria and for boldness for the underground church! 

“There’s a significant population of Christians, even though it’s dwindled in Aleppo from 250,000 at the beginning of the civil war to now down to 25,000. With stricter Islamic rule coming into place, the persecution is going to increase even more,” Mark says. 

Pray for Jesus to make Himself known in the midst of the unfolding chaos. Connect with Global Catalytic Ministries to support their work in Syria and beyond.  

“We have strategically placed disciple-makers within the region that I believe this is going to be an hour for them to reveal Jesus,” says Mark. “There will be a lot of people really feeling hopeless that are going to grab hold of that hope.”

*Name withheld for security

Header photo: Syrians in Germany celebrate Fall of Assad Regime, 8 December 2024 (Photo courtesy of Shark1989z via Wikimedia Commons – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0)

“That was quite frustrating, but it’s encouraging to know that things are, at this time, looking like they are going forward. You do get the feeling that it could fall apart, but we are all hopeful that it could really be true.”

Under the agreement, officials anticipate a 60-day period in which the Israeli army will withdraw troops from key positions, handing them over to the Lebanese army. If Hezbollah attempts to reestablish ground near the border, the Lebanese army will be responsible for dealing with the threat. Israel reserves the right to strike if no action is taken. This would be done in coordination with and under approval from the US, Houssney says. 

Nearly 3,000 people have been killed since the conflict began in October 2023, when Hezbollah first fired rockets into Israel. Israel has been conducting airstrikes in response and launched a ground invasion on October 1st of this year. Since September, Israeli forces have targeted and killed at least seven of Hezbollah’s top leaders, destabilizing the group. 

“We do get the sense that the Hezbollah operatives that are sending missiles are not under central command, Houssney says. 

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

The flow of weaponry to Hezbollah has ceased or heavily dwindled under the Israeli offensive, but the group is still able to operate from hidden stashes of missile reserves. 

“There has definitely been a triage when it comes to Israeli strikes on these weapon caches where they’re striking the bigger locations,” Houssney explains. In an effort to eliminate the weapon depots, Israel is moving from bigger targets to smaller ones. 

“God only knows how many micro-reserves of weapons there are, but you do get the sense that they are dwindling,” Houssney says. 

Interacting with Christians on the ground in Lebanon, Houssney hears hesitant hope. He says the idea of a ceasefire brings psychological relief.

Still, the road ahead is long. Believers can pray for people whose homes and livelihoods have been destroyed in the conflict.  

“Even if tomorrow morning they were to go back to their areas,” Houssney explains, “they would be setting up tents where their homes used to be.” 

He also asks for prayer “that God would continue to work in the hearts of people and use the church that’s present here in the Middle East to make the biggest Gospel impact that we can in the midst of the crisis.”

Header image courtesy of fahed kiwan via Pixabay

(Graphic courtesy of Heart4Iran)

Nazanin Baghestani with Heart4Iran shares what their team is hearing from Iranians today.

“They are actually hopeful and happy for the strike (from Israel). They are looking to see more strikes. People are so tired of this current regime that they’re looking at any political person, country, anything that will destroy this regime and set the people free,” she says. 

Crippling inflation is making daily life extremely difficult for Iranians. Baghestani says Heart4Iran has seen a 35% increase in the number of first-time callers to their 24/7 call center this month. The ministry reaches Iranians through social media, satellite TV and other channels. 

“Once people have nowhere to go, they are going to call us for help and prayer. Iranians really believe in prayer,” Baghestani says. 

She says Iranians are in bondage under their government and are hungry for freedom, but they aren’t looking in the right places. 

“We explain to them what is the true freedom, that we are actually free — that’s only found in Jesus Christ,” Baghestani says.

(Photo courtesy of Heart4Iran)

“People are worried. They’re anxious, they’re restless. But once they call us, we tell them that ‘You need to rest in the Lord. You need to give all your worries to Him, because He will give you peace.’ That’s a main message.”

Pray for Heart4Iran to have many of these Spirit-led conversations that bring more Iranians to know hope and peace in Christ. 

“The current situation is really hard for the people inside the country. My team and the counseling center, we are always praying for them.”

She also asks for prayer for Iran’s leaders to be freed from hatred.

“It’s been 40-plus years that they have been in power. All they talk about is ‘death to [the U.S.]’ and ‘death to Israel.’ That’s what they want to carry out, even if they have to lose their power, lose the country, sacrifice all the people in the country. They don’t care,” says Baghestani. 

“I would pray that the Lord will stop them miraculously. [That He would] give them wisdom, give them compassion for the people of the country, because [today] there is no compassion.”

Header photo courtesy of Heart4Iran. 

Pierre Houssney with Horizons International says many Lebanese ages 34 to 50 are reliving the country’s civil war (which lasted from 1975 to 1990). Young adults and kids are grappling with this trauma for the first time. Sometimes it’s catching.

People on the streets of Lebanon. (Photo courtesy of Horizons International via Facebook)

“I grew up outside of Lebanon during the civil war, so I don’t tremble when I hear the airstrikes. My kids are not afraid of the airstrikes, because they see how I’m comfortable, I’m relaxed, I know what’s going on, I know where the strikes are happening,” Houssney says. 

“But other people of my generation, they actually start to physically tremble, and that gets passed on to their kids as well.”

The UN says 1.2 million people have been internally displaced in Lebanon in the past three weeks, 400,000 of them children. Their education has obviously been put on hold, which is one more reason officials are concerned for the future of Lebanon. The nation has endured so many crises already in recent decades.

“We have over 1.2 million internally displaced people, and this is a country [where] the “nationals” — the indigenous people, Lebanese — are maybe 4, 4.5 million total. Plus we have over half a million Palestinian refugees who have been temporarily here since 1948. We also have upwards of 2 million Syrian refugees,” Houssney says.

“The whole country is in chaos right now. There’s a lot of fear, and we’re really now in a wartime mode. It’s been quite intense.”

Ministering in “wartime mode”

Horizons’ School of Hope is not open. Instead, the classrooms as well as the building where a Kurdish church once met are shelters now for hundreds of internally displaced people. Their staff have dropped their original job descriptions to cook for, pray with and minister to the displaced.

The Horizons’ medical team distributed vital supplies and provided care to individuals sheltering at the School of Hope. (Photo courtesy of Horizons International via Facebook)

The situation Horizons staff are seeing on the ground is urgent. Houssney asks that we focus our prayers with them on the spiritual battle.

“These crises that happen in the worldly realms, they always represent open doors for the spiritual impact of people,” he explains.

“We get to know them, and we see that they’re open. We do not spare any opportunity to share the gospel in a way that shows genuine love so that they can understand we [are] helping them in the humanitarian [means]  because we truly love them with the love of Christ.”

Learn more about Horizons International and support their response to the crisis in Lebanon here.

Header image courtesy of Horizons International.