By Camille Melki
Heart for Lebanon is committed to help lead people from despair to hope; hope in Christ alone. This commitment is translated in every program and ministry activity. Our Team makes every effort to see that spiritual formation is at the core of our ministry – beginning with Access Ministries and ending at Community Leadership Development. Our heart’s desire is to see individuals meet Jesus on their journey from despair to hope. New believers grow in their faith while attending Bible study and discipleship classes and the two Sunday morning Worship Gatherings keep growing in numbers.
Heart for Lebanon has the same commitment toward its Team. We are committed to help one another grow in our own faith and to continue to mature in the likeness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For that reason, Heart for Lebanon provides multiple opportunities for our Team to pray together, study Scriptures together, and to help nurture a faith-growing environment that is safe and transparent.
Two weeks ago, our Team went on a 3-day spiritual retreat. Though the ministry needs are great and at times overwhelming, it was important to shut down all operations and embark on a journey to learn together about pain and suffering, fear and anxiety, and temptation. Each topic was the focus of an entire day. The subjects were addressed in main sessions, group discussions, one-on-one prayer times, and personal prayers and reflections. The highlight of this retreat was the evenings’ praise and worship. These were moments of sharing from the heart!
What struck me the most is the amount of pain many of our Team carry silently. They are so immersed in reaching out to those who are suffering, that at times we tend to forget our own suffering. We are tempted to ignore the pain that strikes our own families as we are busy helping to mend the pain of the families we serve.
No doubt God has graciously given us heroes of faith to serve side-by-side with. I am humbled by the faith maturity that many have and I am honored to serve with them. I am also reminded that our spiritual formation commitment to one another is equally important to the commitment we have toward the refugee families God has trusted us to serve. I am grateful that we can find space and time to grow together and more important of all, to pray for one another.
The spiritual battles we face are huge and extremely challenging. The enemy can only be defeated when God’s people are in tune with Him. This is Heart for Lebanon’s desire and its our Team’s commitment that we stay spiritually healthy and continue to grow in His likeness.
We are committed to pray for one another, would you pray for us?
