(AI-generated photo by ChatGPT)

Nuna of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon says, “The peace talk is not just military; though, of course, it involves the military side, it’s much more than this.”

As part of the peace talks, U.S. President Donald Trump is urging Lebanon’s government to repeal a 1955 law.

“In our Constitution, there is a [clause] that says Lebanon has no connection with Israel, so we need to change that clause,” Nuna explains.

Under that 1955 law, “everything is very, very closed, and people are not allowed to have any communication with Israelis,” she continues.

“We don’t have the right to have any communication – by phone, by message, anything – with anyone in Israel. [If suspected,] you have to go to Security, where they will ask you questions, take your phone, and check it.”

If negotiations succeed and the Lebanese government normalizes relations with Israel, Nuna says, “Everything will change, not just on the political ground, but it’s going to change the whole face of Lebanon.”

The cost of peace

Although a ceasefire has been in place since mid-April, the Iranian-backed terror group Hezbollah continues to attack Israel.

Hezbollah flag
(Photo courtesy mhrezaa/Unsplash)

“Hezbollah is affiliated with Iran and wants to keep Iranian influence over Lebanon, but Lebanon is trying to get free from it. The whole contention is between these two,” Nuna says.

Lebanese people remain divided over an alliance with Iran. Though Hezbollah represents approximately one-third of Lebanon’s population – followers of Shia Islam – representatives of other major groups seek peace.

“Lebanon submitted an official complaint against Iran for the first time this week. This is unprecedented,” Nuna says.

Lebanon’s government is taking steps toward peace with Israel and independence from Iran – but at a cost. “The Shiite community is really strong in saying, ‘We don’t want this,’” Nuna says.

“The threats in the streets [are] that ‘We’re going to turn our weapons against all the people who are for the change and for the peace treaty.’ It’s becoming like a civil war.”

Nuna says these threats raise an important question: “Do we go through a civil war so that we can have peace, or do we forget the peace and keep the status quo in Lebanon with Hezbollah in charge?”

Christian aid

Fighting between Hezbollah and Israel has driven more than one million people from their homes in southern Lebanon. “There are so many displaced people,” Nuna says.

(Graphic courtesy Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

“They have no homes, no shelter, no food, no revenue, no work – nothing. We’re still there to help them, but we’re also trying to talk about this peace.”

Pray for Lebanese Christians as they care for displaced people in Jesus’ name, and partner with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon to support relief efforts.

“We need to not only bring in humanitarian aid, but also talk about God’s purposes and God’s ways and God’s plan, and bring people into alignment with God,” Nuna says.

“It’s not just a one-way Gospel, just salvation and that’s it, it’s also realignment with God’s purposes.”

Header image depicts working-level peace talks between Israel and Lebanon at the White House in Washington, D.C., April 23, 2026. (Official State Department photo by Freddie Everett)

“In ten minutes, we had like 100 strikes,” says Nuna with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon, referring to a report from the Israeli military. “[The strikes] are so violent and strong.”

Nuna says the increased Israeli military response came because Israel can now focus on a single military front. 

“But also they have intelligence on where the people who are involved in any military activity against Israel are located,” she adds. “All these military people are trying to find refuge in places that have nothing to do with the conflict” — places such as civilian apartment buildings.

(Stock photo courtesy of Etienne Boulanger via Unsplash)

The fact that Hezbollah members are positioning themselves among civilians adds a challenging layer to Lebanon’s strife: It is dangerous for others to help the displaced. Many of the more than 1 million people displaced since Hezbollah fired on Israel on March 2 are Shia Muslims, the same branch of Islam that Hezbollah springs from. This causes others to fear that the family or individual at their door could be affiliated with Hezbollah and might put them at risk of collateral damage if Israel conducts a strike.

The Iran ceasefire has also started an exodus homeward. 

“Because of the ceasefire in Iran, we had so many trying to go back to the south, or to areas in the south,” says Nuna, describing traffic jams in Beirut on Wednesday. “Now with the strikes, it’s a very difficult time, because people are thinking of leaving. Some of them are on the road. Some of them have somebody in one of the regions that were targeted on the way back.”

Communication lines have also been disrupted. Yesterday, someone at a Triumphant Mercy Lebanon center said they could not reach their son and daughter by phone. 

“The emotional trauma is very high, especially when you’re not able to communicate,” says Nuna. 

What will it take for peace?

Any ceasefire for Lebanon must address the root issue of the conflict with Israel: the disarmament of Hezbollah. Otherwise, Nuna says,  “It will just lead to another round of hostilities in a few months, in a few years.”

“Let’s finish completely. Let’s remove the weapons of Hezbollah,” she says. “I don’t want people to die, but I want this dealt with so that Lebanon will be with one government, one police, one military, one just one entity, and not have all these militias inside that are another government within our own government.”

Please pray for Triumphant Mercy staff as they continue sharing the hope of Jesus while under heavy strain themselves.

(Photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

“Everybody’s on high alert. It’s like, ‘Do you want to close the center early? Do you want to let everybody go early?’ And at the same time, it’s not safe to let them go early because we don’t know, so [we should] keep them inside,” says Nuna. 

The hope of Jesus is the foundation of the work Triumphant Mercy Lebanon does. (More on that here.)

“How can we even give an encouraging word, or a word of hope of a future, if we didn’t have the gospel? Without the gospel, I can tell you, we are nothing,” says Nuna. 

Ask God to mercifully allow change to come to Lebanon quickly rather than through prolonged conflict. Nuna asks for this based on Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 and Mark 13. In those passages, Jesus teaches about the signs of the end of the world and the calamities that will occur in those times. 

“Pray that the time would be shortened, because otherwise nobody can sustain it,” she says. “This is what I’m praying, that what God wants to do in this country — the way God wants to cleanse the country, or revive the country — will be done quickly. The time and the extension of time is so tiring and draining and emotionally hard.”

Header photo of Beirut, Lebanon courtesy of Michael Starkie via Unsplash.

Bint Jbeil Road, Southern Lebanon (Photo courtesy of Ahmad Bader via Unsplash)

For many of the displaced, it’s not the first time they’ve been uprooted from their homes in southern Lebanon, says Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon. 

“They went through it one time. They went back. They tried to rebuild home, lives, schools… and here we go again,” she says. “So people are disgusted and angry and really hopeless, and many want to leave the country.”

Nuna says people are angry with Hezbollah for attacking Israel on March 2, 2026, and dragging Lebanon into the Iran war. The conflict in Lebanon has created further divisions among its people, as many fear proximity to Shia Muslims who might be affiliated with Hezbollah and thus a potential Israeli target.

“So now Sunnis, Christians, like everybody is against the Shiites, and nobody wants the Shiite people to come into our area,” says Nuna. 

This places pressure on Christians, who must be very cautious about how they help — or do not help — others. It also makes life extremely difficult for Shia Muslims, who are being denied places to rent.

Refugee child in Lebanon. (Photo courtesy of Ahmad Bader/Unsplash)

“They’re not finding a place. They have to take places by force, and the Hezbollah people are now trying to hide among civilians. That’s basically the situation on the ground,” says Nuna. 

Tensions also continue to escalate between Lebanon’s government and Hezbollah. Last week, the government ordered Iran’s ambassador to Beirut to leave the country by March 29. Hezbollah sharply criticized this decision, and its government representatives responded further by boycotting a Thursday cabinet meeting. 

“It’s like we are hostages, you know, of this political group, military group, that is doing whatever they want,” says Nuna.  

Yet in these troubles, God has strengthened the partnerships between Triumphant Mercy and other local Christian organizations. Despite increasingly limited resources, they still serve as the hands and feet of Christ.

“We have been in wars and many different crises, but we never worked like with each other like we are now,” says Nuna.

(Photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

“The unity starts with us. You know, we want unity in the country. I believe it starts with the church. It starts with people who are from different churches, different backgrounds, and different work focuses, yet working together. And I think this is a beautiful thing that the Lord is doing.”

Please pray for peace to come to Lebanon and for people to be able to return to their homes and have their needs met. Pray that these partnerships among Christians will remain strong and help spread the gospel to the hopeless. 

“Yes, we don’t have many resources to do, but we can do programs. So we’re doing youth, or women, or kids’ [programs]. We are distributing lots of Bibles. We have people joining in our Bible study in our center,” says Nuna. 

*Pseudonym

Header photo is a stock image courtesy of Ian Panelo via Pexels.

After rocket fire and drone strikes from Hezbollah on Wednesday night, Israel ordered all civilians south of Lebanon’s Zahrani river to evacuate to the north.

Nuna with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon says Israel told the leader of one southern Lebanon municipality, “It’s your responsibility. If you allow Hezbollah people inside your village, we’re going to bomb your village. But if you don’t allow anyone to come in, your village is safe.” 

However, a lack of Lebanese military personnel leaves villages vulnerable. On Monday, an Israeli strike killed Father Pierre al-Rahi, a Catholic priest in a village that Hezbollah had infiltrated. His death was one more spur that led Lebanon’s foreign minister, Youssef Raggi, to appeal to the Vatican for mediation on behalf of Christian villages in southern Lebanon.

“He [Father Pierre al-Rahi] died a stupid death, not because of him, but because of some people who have done damage to the village,” says Nuna. “The Vatican can be helpful in keeping Israel on the side, saying, ‘These are Christian villages. Don’t approach them.’”

Distributing aid (Photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon)

But the damage is already done. At least 780,000 people across Lebanon have registered as displaced as of Wednesday. Lebanon is caught between warring sides that refuse to change their stances.

In the crisis, Triumphant Mercy Lebanon and a network of other ministries are laboring to serve as the hands and feet of Christ.

“Now people are very, very open to the Gospel, because people are so disillusioned with Islam,” says Nuna. “Many people are just wanting something else, and they’re seeing that Christians are extending a helping hand.”

She says the people they meet ask for prayer, not just physical aid. Pray for both gospel hope and help to reach them. Learn how you can help resource their work at this critical time by visiting  Triumphant Mercy’s website. 

Header photo of Beirut, Lebanon courtesy of Sara Calado/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.

It was only one of several meetings that Lebanon’s Chief of Defense General Rodolphe Haykal attended, but it was probably the shortest — five minutes, according to US Senator Lindsey Graham.

Senator Graham says he asked Gen. Haykal whether the militant group Hezbollah is “a terrorist organization.” Gen. Haykal replied, “No, not in the context of Lebanon.” This stands in stark contrast with over two decades of US policy toward Hezbollah. The meeting ended after that point.

Rep. Gregory Meeks (center) held a productive meeting with Gen. Rodolphe Haykal (left) to discuss progress disarming Hezbollah and other non-state militias as well as improving control over Lebanon’s borders. (Photo courtesy of House Foreign Affairs Committee Dems via Wikimedia Commons)

Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon says the general’s statement has sparked contention in Lebanon. “Some people, of course, from [the] Hezbollah area are praising this general for his stance. But all the others are just saying that he is bringing the ruin of Lebanon because of that.” 

The issue comes down to disarmament and funding. Last summer, Lebanon’s government pledged to disarm Hezbollah by the end of 2025. The US swiftly authorized $230 million to support Lebanese security forces in this goal. But now, US support may be in question.

After a season of hope for change in Lebanon, the continued uncertainty is crippling many, says Nuna.

“We don’t know if they’re going to take parts of Lebanon and annex it to Syria or annex it to Israel. We don’t know if the US is with us or against us. We’re not sure of the stand of the United Nations. What is the stand of the economic world bank? It’s all intermingled.”

She points to the biblical phrase “deferred hope” in Proverbs 13:12. “It brings sickness to the heart,” she says. “Our job as a ministry is to keep bringing God there. God is sitting on the throne, God has a solution, and God has a plan, and we are not left alone.”

Pray for hope in Christ to guard people in Lebanon against fear. Pray for God’s purposes to be accomplished in this nation.

“I pray that this will happen with no more bloodshed, with no more delays, with no more wars and tensions and hardship,” says Nuna. “It is so hard for people to live — living every day not knowing what’s going to come, living every day knowing that there’s something that is happening behind closed doors [in the governments].”

*Pseudonym

Header photo courtesy of Triumphant Mercy Lebanon. 

Now, more civilians east of the city are fleeing a possible further escalation.

Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon says Syria will fragment into separate federations. “I don’t see a solution, unless with division. They cannot live together.” 

Conflict with the Kurds is only one of many fires the new Syrian government has faced since coming to power in December 2024. Massacres took place last year among Alawite and Druze communities, causing distrust of the administration to skyrocket.

“This is a religious war. More than a religious and ethnic war, more than just the land or dominion. They’re fighting against each other because of beliefs,” says Nuna. “How can you topple that? How can you minimize that and say, ‘It’s okay. Just become friends again and make an alliance again’?” 

Yet Nuna says the clashes between different groups of Muslims (as well as non-Islamic faiths such as the Druze) are doing something else: They are opening people to the gospel.

Syrian citizens celebrate the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, December 2024 (Photo courtesy of Shvan Hark via Unsplash)

“People are disillusioned with Islam. They’re looking for the true truth, if I can say it this way — the real truth,” she says. “So many people are coming to the Lord.”

Media is helping to share the gospel with people in Syria. “It’s a difficult process [for a person to become a Christian], because the families are not supportive. They face persecutio,” says Nuna. “But reaching out on media and responding to [media-based] prompts is something that they can do without being persecuted by their own family.”

Pray for Syrians trapped in poverty. Nuna says three or four people in a household have to work to pay rent and cover basic necessities.

Pray also for many more people to encounter the light and peace of Christ in Syria’s turmoil. Nuna describes the national situation as “a war within each person.”

“Each person is afraid and is watching carefully to see what’s next,” she says. People wonder whether they can stay in Syria and raise their families, or if they should leave. “I understand them, really, when I talk to them and I see the way they’re living. I understand the threats, I understand the fear, I understand the anguish. We have no solution. We [at Triumphant Mercy] just say, ‘Let’s wait and see.’ We cannot say anything else.”

Aleppo, Syria in 2017 (Stock photo courtesy of Aladdin Hammami via Unsplash)

*Pseudonym

Header photo of Aleppo, Syria is a stock photo courtesy of Ahmad Sofi via Unsplash.

“Just [last] week, they found new warehouses — really big warehouses [of arms],” says Nuna* with Triumphant Mercy Lebanon. “So I don’t really know that this is true, that they have completed the disarmament of the southern part of Lebanon.”

She says time has run out after multiple grace periods in 2025 for Lebanon itself to disarm Hezbollah. The December meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump was also significant, says Nuna. 

“We know that the decisions that they made were actually to just finish the job,” she says. 

Over the weekend, Israel conducted strikes on at least seven more Hezbollah sites remaining in southern Lebanon. Nuna says targeted Israeli strikes have happened daily for more than six months.

But she believes much more is coming. “It’s not any more airstrikes only, but it’s a land invasion that we’re expecting.”

For the people of Lebanon, this means more fear and uncertainty as they wait for Israel’s next move.

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

“We don’t know exactly what they’re waiting for, but we’re all watching,” Nuna says, noting that the protests in Iran could change things in Lebanon. “So for Triumphant Mercy, we’re still doing the same — trying to serve people and encourage people and really bringing a sense of security that God is in control. Whatever is happening, God is seated on the throne.” 

God is reshaping the Middle East today. Pray for His purposes to be carried out fully.

“In the Scriptures, we know that Assyria is called the handiwork of the Lord. Assyria is Lebanon and Syria and even part of Iran and Iraq and all these other nations that are in turmoil now,” says Nuna. 

“We’ve been praying that God will just remold His handiwork. Handiwork makes us think of pottery. That’s what we’re praying for, is the new thing that God is birthing, that there will be no abortion of this new thing, that there will be no stealing of the destiny of a nation.”

*Pseudonym

Header photo: Stock photo of Odaisseh Sign, Marjaayoun, Bint Jbeil Road, Lebanon, which is in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel. (Photo courtesy of Ahmad Bader via 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)

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)