Forgiveness Triumphs Over Hatred and Pain

LHM-Lebanon: ETS in Syria

LHM—Lebanon organized an Equipping the Saints (ETS) workshop from May 8-9, 2009 in the Homs district of Syria, near the northern Lebanese border. Thirty two people attended the program. All of them are already Bible Correspondence Course graduates, as well as committed church members who volunteer to distribute Gospel materials.

One of the Bible course students who participated in the ETS conference was Samar, a lady who keeps contact with LHM staff through phone calls and letters. We continued to encourage her and strengthen her faith as she coped with difficulties in her life.

Samar was living a hard life with her parents. Her father physically abused both her, and her rich and very educated mother. He would keep asking for money to go gambling. And when Samar’s mother refused to give him money, he would shout at them, as he beat and hurt them. Because during that time (20 years ago) there wasn’t any law to protect women from such kind of abuse in Lebanon, her father kept his cruelty raging on until he wasted their fortune.

After all that misery, they ran away to Syria, where Samar’s mother had a nervous breakdown. She went to a mental hospital where she got the care she needed. With a lot of prayers she eventually got much better.

All the sorrows that Samar faced have left deep wounds in her heart and this was reflected in her letters to us. We kept in contact with her, praying for her, advising her, and teaching her about God’s love that we get in Jesus. Samar was brought to faith by the power of God's Spirit, and became involved in a church where they took care of her.

Finally after years of correspondence, we invited Samar to the ETS conference. She gladly accepted and warmly welcomed us. After participating in the program which is about evangelism and the urgency to witness, she expressed her desire to serve her Lord in every opportunity. She will use her personal testimony as she explains to others that forgiveness is an essential part of healing. She will distribute the same LHM booklet on the topic of forgiveness which helped her overcome the hatred she had for her father.