The Faith It Takes

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 their families were kept safe. But many others were not, and we continue to pray for comfort and healing for every family touched by this violence. This latest flare-up is yet another chapter in nearly two years of heartbreak and devastation since October 7. Truly, the land yearns for peace and healing.

Throughout this time, we stayed in close daily contact. I let our partners know that messages were pouring in from many of you here in the U.S., pastors and friends letting us know their churches were praying for peace and protection. Thank you for bearing this burden alongside your brothers and sisters.

At the heart of our mission is the belief that, no matter how many miles separate us, we belong to one another in the family of God. When one member suffers, we all feel the pain.

And yet, even in these dark days, God is on the move. One brother sent me a photo of a last-minute baptism for seven new believers. A leader in Galilee shared how she had spent the day on the phone, praying with and encouraging a young Syrian refugee single mother. A minister in northern Israel wrote in our group chat with powerful words of encouragement and a challenge to stand firm in the Lord and find ways to love our neighbors. Meanwhile, our Galilee team continued to prepare for summer children’s outreach programs next month, which will reach hundreds of unchurched families.

I keep thinking: what kind of faith does it take to plan a VBS from a bomb shelter?

Our brothers and sisters in the Holy Land continue to challenge all of us to let go of the things that distract or divide, and to return again to the way of Christ. The way of unity in Him. The way of peacemaking. Of neighbor-loving. Of gospel proclamation. The way of faithful presence in hard times.

Thank you for believing in this critical work in the troubled land of Christ's birth.

Matt Nance

Executive Director

Christian HolyLand Foundation