This post was originally sent as an email newsletter to CHLF supporters on November 25th, 2025. The story of Gaza’s Christians is almost never told. They are a small but deeply faithful community who refuse to leave or let the light of Christ be extinguished from one of the world's darkest places. And as they and their neighbors face extraordinary daily need, scarce food, widespread displacement, and thousands of children traumatized and at risk of death, we are determined to

Here is part 2 of Majd's devotional! Click here to go back and read part 1 first, if you haven't already! From Majd - Olive Trees: The Tough Cookie of Trees, part 2 "1. Like almost all fruit trees, olive trees need trimming. Trimming ensures that more nutrients go into sustaining the fruit rather than the branches. Also, pruned trees are usually kept low to the ground. This serves two purposes: first, it’s easier to pick the fruit that way, and second, the nutrients get to th

Back in October 2025, during the olive harvest, we asked one of our partners in Galilee to write a devotional that would be fitting for the season. Majd, who serves at the church in Tur’an, wrote the following reflection on what the olive tree can teach us about faith and fruitfulness in Christ. From Majd - Olive Trees: The Tough Cookie of Trees, part 1 "Olive trees hold a place of importance and reverence throughout the Bible. In the Old Testament, the olive is listed among

This post was originally sent as an email newsletter to CHLF supporters on October 20th, 2025. We continue to be amazed at the doors God is opening for the women on the Galilee team to reach women of all ages across the Holy Land. In places where faith can feel fragile, relationships strained, and opportunities limited, they are finding new ways to bring light, healing, and hope into people’s lives. Rose, who serves in the church at Tur’an and leads a local radio ministry, an

Randa, one of our Galilee team members from the Beine church, sent us the following account about their 2025 VBS. Every year, VBS is a huge outreach effort for our team! We praise God for the way it opens doors for His love to be shared with so many people in the Holy Land. From Randa - VBS Family Day “The Lord magnified His work with us more than expected on the last day, and we give glory to Him for He is good. On the last day, we invited the parents with their children who

The Jordan River (for safety purposes, baptized individuals are not pictured) In September 2025, we witnessed something extraordinary. In the span of just seven days, twenty-five people, most of them young adults, followed God in obedience through baptism. Fifteen one weekend, ten more the next. One after another, they stepped into the waters of the Jordan and came out with faces radiant with the joy of new life. At CHLF, we believe every part of what we do matters. Helping s

Over the spring and summer of 2025, the Galilee Team lost several family members. Among them was Um William, the mother of Andera, sister of Pastor Hanna, and grandmother of Majd. Her husband, Abu William, had gone before her only a few months before. And Abu Rami, father of our team member Ekhlas, and of our partner, Ziad Farraj, pastor of the church in Tur’an, passed away in late July. The Christian community in Galilee is small, and the loss of these stalwart elders was fe

This post was originally sent as an email newsletter to CHLF supporters on August 1st, 2025. *Names marked with an asterisk have been changed for safety purposes. These three stories were shared with us by Hani, one of our partners who ministers in Cana of Galilee. Each carries the weight of heartache, but also the unmistakable light of hope in darkness. You won't hear of these God sightings on the evening news, but they are glimpses of God on the move that remind us why our

This post was originally sent as an email newsletter to CHLF supporters on June 26th, 2025. I want to thank you, on behalf of our team in Israel, for lifting them in prayer. For two weeks, our partners in Galilee and others across the Holy Land endured daily air raid sirens and alerts warning of missiles launched from Iran. Some had purpose-built shelters in their homes, but many did not. For them, a simple interior room had to suffice. We thank God that our partners and thei

For over 20 years, the annual Mother's Day Celebration put on by the Galilee Team has deeply impacted women from across Israel. And it hasn't just been limited to one day a year. This event has launched dozens of small group Bible studies and discipleship gatherings! Here is a powerful report about the 2025 celebration from Rose, who is the visionary and director of this beautiful and fruitful event. “More than 600 women gathered this year, with a higher percentage of unchurc