“We are a discipleship-centered, family-rooted, and missional church, passionate about seeing lives transformed by the power of the gospel,” says Yara, the partnerships team leader at Resurrection Church.

(Photo courtesy of Resurrection Church in Lebanon)

It’s been a year of continued regional conflict and uncertainty for Lebanon. But Yara says the difficulties will never change Resurrection Church’s sense of God’s purpose for them.

“We believe that the Church exists to be present where there is pain, to care for those who are hurting, marginalized, weak, poor, without discrimination and always with the heart of pointing people to Jesus,” she says. 

“Due to the ongoing crises, the walls people had built started to shatter. They’re more open to share their hearts, their pain. They’re asking questions [that] are deep about the gospel, about life in general, searching for peace and hope.” 

That’s why bringing joy to people this time of year, as well as introducing them to Christ, was a top priority for Resurrection Church’s plans. Instead of merely hosting events, they invited people on a journey with three stops along the way. 

“It starts with a Christmas theatrical play for all age groups, where many people encounter the story of Jesus for the very first time,” says Yara.

Christmas village 2025 (Photo courtesy of Resurrection Church in Lebanon)

“From there, we carry new people and families into our Christmas Village, which we all know is a space for joy, community, connecting with these people, making families and children feel welcomed and seen.”

The final step is the church’s Christmas service, where people will be welcomed in and invited to take the next step with God.

“The vision is very simple behind this, but also intentional,” says Yara. “It is to gently carry these people from their first encounter with the Christmas story and the gospel into His church as a final stop.”

Please join in prayer for spiritual breakthroughs in people’s lives this week.

December 2025 Christmas village (Photo courtesy of Resurrection Church in Lebanon)

“Pray that the hearts would stay open in every step of the way, every step of the journey, that God would draw people forward along this journey and transform lives through it,” says Yara.

Lebanon is one of, if not the most, open countries in the Middle East for sharing the hope of Christ, says Yara. Because of that, Resurrection Church often has believers arriving at their doors, having fled from persecution in different Arab countries.

“We truly believe that God has positioned Lebanon for such a time as this — not just as a refuge, but as a place where disciples are formed and we are able to lead people to the light of Christ,” says Yara.

Header photo courtesy of Resurrection Church in Beirut, Lebanon. 

China (MNN) — It’s no secret that believers in China endure pressure under the Chinese Communist Party. It’s a multi-front struggle that needs the prayer support of Christians around the world.

Floyd Brobbel with Voice of the Martyrs Canada explains that the symbol of the cross, family discipleship, and church leaders are under fire in China. 

“The Communist government has waged war on the cross,” Brobbel says. “We’ve heard that before, where crosses are being dismantled.” A 2020 campaign saw dozens of crosses removed from public view.

(Photo courtesy of Jerry Wang via Unsplash)

The next generation of Christians is also being targeted. The CCP is “waging war on the children’s minds. They’re not allowed to be taught even in Sunday school or Bible lessons,” Brobbel says. (More on regulations for children here.)

Instead of religious education, children have other goals set before them. This summer, a state-sponsored campaign taught kids in Shanghai to resist cults — any religious group not sanctioned by the state.

Underground churches count as “illegal religious groups.” One such church experienced a sharp crackdown this October: Beijing Zion Church. The congregation had lost its building due to state-applied pressures in 2018, but it had since multiplied. In November, eighteen leaders from the church were formally arrested after being detained in October. 

Surveillance by citizens is another strategy the CCP has employed over the years.

“It does hearken back to the days of the Mao regime, where they really clamped down on the churches,” Brobbel says. “But under such severe persecution, the church began to grow.” 

Find your place in the story through prayer. Pray that Chinese believers “continue to present the gospel, preach truth and live biblically and unapologetically — but live wisely as well,” says Brobbel. “[Pray that they] find moments and opportunities where they can advance the gospel and reach out to those that really need to hear.”

Keep watching religious freedom issues in China, so that you can pray in an informed manner. Brobbel adds, “Also then, when we have [an] opportunity to raise a voice to our government, we can do so with a clear understanding of what’s happening.”

Header photo courtesy of Zhang Kaiyv/Unsplash.

“Many people are talking about it, this anniversary. They’re planning to make it a national holiday,” says Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon, who recently visited Syria. “However, people are very cautious, especially the Christians.” 

That caution is well merited. Sectarian violence has checkered the new government’s first year, especially among minority Druze, Alawite, and Christian communities. Nuna describes it as “the waiting season” to see what direction the nation will go.

U.S. Secretary Marco Rubio meets President of Syria Ahmed al-Sharaa in New York City, New York on 22 September 2025 (Photo by U.S. Department of State via Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

Still, Syria’s leaders press forward. Last week, the administration welcomed a delegation from the United Nations Security Council — only one of many efforts to reforge ties with the international community. 

But for many Syrian families, the nation’s political complexities simply no longer matter. 

“Some of them are just saying, ‘You know what, we don’t care. We just want to live,’” says Nuna. “They’re not even thinking about what Syria will be. Will it be allied with Israel? Will [there] be expansion? Will the Galilee be taken? They’re not even talking about it.”

Life remains extremely hard, even for Syrians who are not displaced. Inflation is high. Nuna says the government is planning a 400% increase in electricity prices. “People cannot afford this because the wages have not gone up,” she says.

One NGO that Nuna visited in Syria serves many displaced people. She heard story after story of tragedy — destruction, killing, suicide, and abuse. One boy lost his father. His mother had to work and left him in the care of others who beat him so badly he suffered brain damage.

“This is real life here, and what can we do? What can we do?” says Nuna. “Seeing kids like that is difficult. You just look at it, and you see these are effects of war, and this is something that men should not be living with.”

Syrian children (photo courtesy of Jonathan Ramalho via Unsplash)

Although that NGO in Syria can’t meet every need that comes its way, they do what they can as the hands and feet of Christ. Nuna says that the organization is also preparing a Christmas celebration and sharing the Christmas story. “This is a beautiful thing to see, just to see that light in the midst of the darkness there,” she says.

Please remember Syria in your prayers. Ask for God’s mercy and His gospel of peace to spread across Syria. To learn more about Triumphant Mercy Lebanon’s outreach to Syrian refugees within Lebanon, visit their website.

*Pseudonym

Header photo: A gathering of the people and residents of Daraa city in Al-Karama and Al-Hurriya Square after the fall of Bashar Al-Assad (Photo, caption courtesy of Mahmoud Sulaiman via Unsplash)

One ministry taking that danger seriously is ZimZam Global, a church-planter training organization that approaches children’s discipleship first.

“With the rise of terror groups in Africa, you would realize that the most affected people are children,” says Francis Kataka Kubondo with ZimZam Global. “Wherever there is an attack, definitely the children suffer most.” 

Children’s school attendance and church and family life all come under threat when terrorists strike. Some may be exploited in the worst of ways.

Children are also vulnerable to accepting Islamic State jihadism themselves. Kubondo explains that extremists will sometimes enter communities the same way that Christians do. They might offer humanitarian aid or school sponsorship, gaining influence.

(Photo courtesy of Fatima Yusuf via Unsplash)

“They target areas where people are poor, [they] target area[s] where there is some form of instability, and then they present themselves as a solution,” he says. 

Yet there is a crucial difference: “For Christianity, we are driven by love, as opposed to the Islamists, who are driven by fear.” 

ZimZam Global’s vision is a church for every child. Today, they serve in Africa, Latin America, and South Asia, and their reach is expanding.

“Most [other] church planting trainings focus on adults, but for us, we do it the other way around. We first of all reach out to children, and then through children, the church planter can gain access to family and then through family, now a church can be birthed,” says Kubondo.

The next generations in Africa are on the line, so please pray! Pray that instead of being exposed to Islamic extremism, many more children in Africa will accept Christ, join God’s family and serve His good Kingdom purposes. Pray for more believers to join the work to reach children for Christ in Africa. Pray for resources ZimZam Global needs to carry this mission forward. 

“Our biggest cry in Africa is for God to provide opportunities in His own ways so that we can move up to the northern part of Africa and share the goodness of Christ in those areas,” says Kubondo. “As of now, the engagement is very low.” 

Header photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Michael Ali via Unsplash. 

Christian World Outreach’s (CWO) Greg Yoder says, “First of all, we thank God that these people that were kidnapped have been released, and [we are] just grateful that their lives were spared – others have not been.”

Their safe return brings relief, but it also highlights the ongoing instability gripping the nation, fueled by gang violence and targeted kidnappings.

Children’s feeding program by CWO in Haiti. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)

Around 1.3 million Haitians have fled their homes and are now internally displaced — a 24% increase since the end of 2024.

“We have seen or heard reports of some of the towns, especially in the north where people have been displaced to. The way it was described — it being one of the cities — it’s like ants,” says Yoder.

“You just add more people, which probably adds food insecurity in those areas. That’s how it affects ministries like Christian World Outreach.”

CWO is seeing the impact of displacement firsthand through its children’s feeding program. “We’re just seeing an increase,” says Yoder. “Eighty children gathered in one of our places where we have a feeding program, which is a little bit higher than the norm.”

Pray for an end to the violence and instability permeating Haitian life, and for people to turn to Jesus for hope. Ask the Lord to sustain CWO’s ministry with supporters and spiritual encouragement.

Yoder also urges prayer for the newly freed captives: “Emotionally, that God would heal there. I’m not sure what all they went through, but I’m sure that emotionally it was a draining month. [Pray] that God will work in their lives and they can get back to somewhat of a normal life that they had at that center.”

*Some reports say nine people total were kidnapped from the compound.

Header photo from 2020 of a suburb of Port-au-Prince. (Photo courtesy of Reynaldo Mirault/Unsplash)

The missionary, Gena Heraty, is known for her decades-long care for children with disabilities. EU officials are working to secure the group’s release.

The kidnapping happened not far from the Haiti office of Christian World Outreach (CWO). CWO staff weren’t targeted, but the ministry is feeling the strain of daily unrest.

“We have not directly been affected by any kidnappings or anything recently,” says CWO President Greg Yoder. “But it’s caused ministry to slow down and sometimes be postponed, especially in the Port-au-Prince area.”

Women learning sewing skills at a feminine training center. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)

That’s already forced closures elsewhere. In Mirebalais, another hot zone for gang control, violence has emptied the streets.

Yoder explains, “Recently, with the gangs kind of taking over Mirebalais, that shut down our Feminine Training Center there because pretty much everybody left town.”

Still, CWO isn’t pulling out. If anything, the team sees the chaos as a reminder of why they’re there in the first place. Haiti needs Christ more than ever.

“Our goal is to use those opportunities to share the Gospel. Our hope is, even during these difficult times, that it makes people think about their lives and eternity.”

CWO-partnered churches and training centers continue to meet when they can — sometimes online, sometimes in person, always looking for safe ways to encourage believers and train up leaders.

Pray for God’s protection and encouragement over those who were kidnapped. Petition the Lord for their safe return!

Yoder also asks, “Pray for the believers, that they won’t get discouraged. Pray for them as they evangelize in their communities. Pray for safety of the staff there as they try to continue on with ministry.”

Learn more about CWO’s Haiti ministry.

Header photo features a child in Haiti. (Photo courtesy of TopSphere Media/Unsplash)

“One of our young people, a fourteen-year-old boy, was in the hospital for a long time after being severely beaten. He suffered internal bleeding, organ failure, and other complications — simply because his peers, other teenage boys, decided he shouldn’t be a Christian because he has a Muslim name.”

Iranian boy (photo courtesy of
Atiyeh Fathi via Unsplash)

This is just one of many heartbreaking stories Lana Silk from Transform Iran has encountered in her ministry to Iranian refugees. This particular incident happened in a Muslim-majority host country, but the harsh experiences of refugee children are often universal.

That’s where Transform Iran steps in, with a ministry specifically focused on children. Silk explains, “We work very hard to minister to them and surround them with love and community to help strengthen them.”

The need is urgent. “I was speaking to someone [who told me about their] nine-year-old child. The teacher was spitting on his face, insulting him,” she adds.

Out of this growing crisis, a ministry was born.

“This is one of the reasons we’ve been so active in the children’s ministry lately — because we’ve noticed that children need a strong, loving, non-judgmental, non-oppressive community around them that will hold them tight and love them,” Silk says.

Transform Iran hosts weekly gatherings for refugee children, filled with activities, games, and therapeutic exercises designed by psychologists to support their mental health. “And of course, it’s always the Gospel,” Silk says, “with worship and prayer to help these children cope with the pressures that are on them.”

Another heavy burden these children carry is the fear of sudden deportation. “We have children in our group who have said that they’ll be sitting in class, and suddenly the police will turn up and take children out of class and send them to deportation camps,” Silk shares. There’s a constant fear among the children that, at any moment, authorities might come and take them away. These overlapping layers of anxiety and trauma severely impact their mental health and well-being.

The first thing you can do to help Iranian refugees is this: do not forget them. This is one of the reasons Transform Iran provides a monthly newsletter with updates that you can subscribe to. Knowing that the global community of believers cares gives strength to both parents and children in asylum as they endure immense suffering.

Pray for the safety of Iranian believers and their children, and for the resolution of their cases. Pray that the trauma these children face won’t drive them away from God — but draw them closer to Him. 

Header photo: Iranian boy in a green jacket (photo courtesy of Hiva Sharifi via Unsplash)

The conference speaker invited pastors to come forward if they had a child who was spiritually wandering. Hutchcraft witnessed the majority of the pastors and their wives come to the front to pray. 

“I think the visual of seeing so many shepherds with their hearts broken for their own lambs did something in my heart,” he says.

(Image courtesy of Ron Hutchcraft Ministries)

It led him to write a booklet called “A Jesus of Their Own: Fighting for Faith in the Next Generation.”

“If you’ve got a son or daughter who’s away from the Father, there are some ways to pray, many of [which] were inspired by Hosea experience in the Old Testament,” Hutchcraft says.

If that’s your experience as a parent, here are the brief prayer points Hutchcraft shares. You can find them in full in the booklet here.  

• Lord, frustrate their sin. “A prayer that their sin will not work for them, and it will be unsatisfying and cause them to rethink how they’re living.”
• Lord, block their exits. “Whatever their go-to is when things get rough… Make their go to a ‘no go.’ Block their exit so there’s only one door open to them when they hit a wall. And that is Jesus.”
• Lord, get their attention. “Psalm 119:67 says, ‘Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I obey your word.’ [Pray that God will] do something that would be a wake-up call for them.”
• Lord, remind them of Jesus. “Most of the young men and women from Christian backgrounds I know who are wandering, it’s not because of Jesus. It’s because of Christians. It’s because of Christianity. But thankfully, Jesus didn’t say, ‘Follow my followers or my leaders or my religion.’ He said, “Follow me.’”
• Lord, send a messenger. “Lord, you know the kind of person they would listen to. Send that kind of person who loves you into their life.” 
• Lord, do whatever it takes.

A biblical story of hope

Hutchcraft reminds us of the story in Luke 7 where Jesus raises a widow’s son from the dead. 

“There’s this beautiful little phrase: it says, ‘And Jesus gave him back to his mother,’” he says. “Jesus is still doing that miracle of bringing back to life people we thought were gone, and giving them back to a praying mom or dad.” 

Hutchcraft encourages parents to keep praying and serving God’s purposes in their lives. Our children’s struggles don’t disqualify us.

“What the devil does with the wandering child is to shame the parent, because the real target is the pastor, the shepherd, the Christian leader. The accuser of the brethren says, ‘Who do you think you are to be bringing Christ to other people?’” Hutchcraft says.

“You bring that child to Jesus and let Jesus do His mighty work in their life. But don’t abandon His work. Don’t back down. Don’t retreat because of the attack of the enemy. You’re the real target. Take your stand against the devil’s schemes and let Jesus do that work in your child’s heart to bring that lamb back home.”

Header photo courtesy of Ali Haghighi via Unsplash.

Since October 2023, at least 3,100 people have been killed in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Today an estimated 1.2 million are displaced. In the six weeks since the conflict escalated in late September, 100 children have lost their lives and hundreds more have been injured, according to one article from AP News.

“The ones who suffer the most are children, children who ache silently, suffer quietly,” says Camille Melki with Heart for Lebanon.“You look and see it on their faces, and you can imagine the terror, the fear, the disbelief of all that’s going around them.”

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

The Heart for Lebanon team is trained to work with children and share encouragement in whatever time they have together. On a recent outreach, the team noticed a 15-year-old Muslim girl who trembled at any loud noise. It turns out she had nearly been killed by shelling while out in the fields. 

As the team spoke with her, the girl’s little sister held her hand and told her Bible stories about David and Paul. She had learned them in Heart for Lebanon’s Sunday school.

“It was just beautiful to see a younger sister helping her older sibling cope with fear, quoting the Bible,” Melki says.

“This is not your everyday church-goer. This is a family that was born Muslim and had the opportunity to hear the gospel for the first time through our ministry.”

Would you partner with Heart for Lebanon in this ministry to kids? Above all, pray! 

“This conflict, even if it ends today, the pain, the emotional and spiritual pain would last for at least a generation,” Melki says.

“When we pray, we’re not only asking for an end of a conflict, as important as that is. We are praying for an eye-opener for the communities of the Middle East, where we understand that in order to have peace — the peace that we believe and we deserve, in fact — [we need] a peace with God.”

Pray that Heart for Lebanon will have many opportunities to help children and their families meet Jesus, the true source of peace. Connect with them and learn more here.

Header photo: Guided by spiritual leaders and mentors, children participating in #SummerOfHope explore themes of hope, resilience, and the power of faith. (Photo, caption courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

The attack left two students and two teachers dead. Nine others at the school were wounded. It’s the 45th school shooting this year in the U.S., according to a CNN analysis. It’s a sobering reality for families in the back-to-school season.

“You can’t say, ‘Okay, I won’t be afraid anymore for my kids.’ That’s not real,” says Ron Hutchcraft with Hutchcraft Ministries. “But we can deny [fear] the driver’s seat. It doesn’t have to be the source of our decisions that we make with our children, of our attitude, of our conversations.”

Hutchcraft says children today face cruelty from fellow students, lies that are taught in the classroom as truth, and pervasive cultural pressures from media. It’s tempting for parents to respond by trying to control everything for their children, but that’s exactly what we shouldn’t do.

Children today face pervasive cultural pressures from media. (Photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Kelly Sikkema/Unsplash)

“If I’m afraid as a parent, then I will probably react by pushing harder on my child because I’m afraid. So I’ve got to keep preaching to them and trying to protect them — and in so doing, I’m probably pushing them away,” Hutchcraft says. “I’m going to overreact to things. I’m going to sow fear in my child. There’s no wonder that God says ‘fear not.’”

He points to 2 Timothy 1:7 as a special encouragement for parents and grandparents.

“It says God has not given us the spirit of fear, but he’s given us power, love, and a sound mind. I think that’s the ability to think straight,” Hutchcraft explains. “Fear distorts reality. It makes the problems and dangers bigger and shrinks our faith.” 

Instead, parents can help their kids look to Jesus as they deal with challenges at school. It could be as tangible as praying together in a living room chair.

(Photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Laura Ohlman/Unsplash)

“If we can establish in our home a sense of the realness, the closeness of Jesus that they can take with them when they walk out that door, it makes them make different choices, and it’s a tremendous antidote to fear,” Hutchcraft says. 

Ask for God’s mercy for the families touched in the Apalachee High School shooting. Pray that God gives Christian parents courage and trust in Him to stand against fear.

5 key scriptures for courageous faith

If you’re a parent looking for a practical next step, Hutchcraft shares five Scriptures to walk through with your child.  

1. You are the light of the world. Matthew 5:14–16
2. Cast all your care on God. 1 Peter 5:7
3. Take your stand. Ephesians 6:10
4. Guard your heart. Proverbs 4:23
5. You are God’s masterpiece. Ephesians 2:10

“If they can go armed with those five truths, those are five powerful fear-fighters and [make-a-difference] battle cries,” Hutchcraft says. 

Header photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Taylor Flowe/Unsplash