
After a year of airstrikes, sonic booms, and constant fear, more than a hundred preschoolers stood proudly on the graduation stage at Beirut Baptist School in June. Standing before them were not only their parents, but also their teachers.
“They were all amazing,” Nafisa, a remedial teacher, reflected later.
This year’s ceremony honored the students as “real-life heroes”—children who, despite the war around them, were still expected to play, learn, and do their best. For these students, their graduation wasn’t just a transition to elementary school; it marked the end of the most challenging academic year of their young lives.
But beneath the music, smiles, and joy was an air of apprehension that has become commonplace in Lebanon in the wake of the recent war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Phones buzzed constantly throughout the graduation ceremony with news alerts.
That morning, the children, their parents, and teachers like Nafisa woke to news of another war erupting between Israel and Iran. Phones buzzed constantly throughout the graduation ceremony with news alerts. Many people were concerned that the war could spill over into Lebanon, which continues to reel from the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
Knowing they might have to flee their home, Nafisa told her daughters to pack their bags and be ready to leave at a moment’s notice. As soon as the ceremony ended, she hurried home, missing the annual group photo with her colleagues.
This wasn’t the first time Nafisa felt the impact of war. When we met her last October, she was among 100 Beirut Baptist School teachers who had been affected by fighting and airstrikes. Displaced from her home, she was living with her husband, three daughters, and three other family members at a relative’s small home, praying that her own house would not be destroyed by the bombs falling on Beirut.
Thank God, he protected our home and kept it standing.
“It was a miracle that my house survived,” Nafisa said. At one point, an airstrike hit a nearby building, causing severe damage to her home. “They expected our building to be demolished because it was so close. Thank God, he protected our home and kept it standing, and we repaired it even though it was a very difficult process.”
Despite being displaced, Nafisa remained committed to her students. While most classes moved online at the height of the war, Beirut Baptist School determined that such a transition wasn’t suitable for students with learning difficulties.
And so, Nafisa continued to work on campus, teaching, dancing, and playing with her students even as the sound of surveillance drones and airstrikes echoed through the city.
“That really helped me get rid of the stress I was under and the psychological pressure I was feeling,” Nafisa said. “I would come to school and disconnect from the outside world.”
Throughout the war and up until now, Beirut Baptist School supported teachers like Nafisa. In May, several months after a ceasefire agreement brought the war between Israel and Hezbollah to an end, she and her family returned home.
It’s a blessing to be at a school like this—an organization that loves and cares for its staff.
“Beirut Baptist School stood by me in every way, both financially and morally,” Nafisa said. “It is my second family. It’s a blessing to be at a school like this—an organization that loves and cares for its staff to such an extent, treating them as family.”
Such care reflects the mission of Beirut Baptist School, which seeks to be more than just a school. It aims to be a lighthouse in Beirut not only for students and families but also for teachers and staff, reflecting God’s love in practical ways and demonstrating his care for the entire community.
While full-scale war has ended, the dangers and challenges that Nafisa and her family faced haven’t. Israeli surveillance drones continue to fly above Beirut while almost daily airstrikes hit targets across Lebanon.
Such violence affects everyone. Nowhere is completely safe, and for people like Nafisa, there is always the risk of having to suddenly flee home. Out of caution, Nafisa keeps a bag by the door packed with essential documents and necessities.
“It’s in standby mode,” she said. “We could leave the house at any moment, and we never know if we’ll come back.”
Such was the case earlier this summer. Just two weeks after returning home, Nafisa and her family had to flee again as airstrikes once more hit Beirut. It was Nafisa’s birthday.
Eight airstrikes forming a circle around us.
“I didn’t want to leave the house. The whole place was shaking,” Nafisa said. “There were eight airstrikes forming a circle around us and we were right in the middle. But when I saw how nervous the girls were, we left and went to their aunt’s house.”
After the bombings ended, Nafisa and her family returned home once more.
These attacks and more have heightened concerns that another full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah could soon erupt. Such apprehension leaves Nafisa, like the rest of Beirut Baptist School, preparing for yet another uncertain school year. But whether it will be marked by further war, political turmoil, or economic hardship, Nafisa is learning to trust God more as she deals with this new (ab)normal.
“I tell my children that we’re all together, and whatever happens, happens to all of us,” she said. “I want to remain optimistic and hopeful, putting my trust in God. I leave all my worries in his hands. God will make things easier for me, and I’m at peace with whatever he has planned.”
On the day of pre-school graduation in June, Nafisa returned home to find her daughters packed and ready to leave. She paused for a moment, and a sense of peace eased her tension. In the end, she and her husband decided not to leave their home this time.
“I don’t know why,” Nafisa said, “but I felt God telling me that we were safe and that nothing would happen. But even if it did, we were ready to flee.”
Originally published by Thimar LSESD (with Hunter Williamson, Communications Coordinator at Thimar, sharing the byline). Republished with permission.
Ghinwa Akiki joined Thimar LSESD in April 2023 as a communications coordinator. With her profound love for writing, she discovered a platform to nurture her literary passion and communication skills. At Thimar LSESD, Ghinwa engages in various facets of communication, allowing her to grow and refine her writing abilities across different domains. Ghinwa pursued her BA in Arts in Modern Languages and Translation at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK). Her early career in education began at Beirut Baptist School, where she gained rich experience working with students. Ghinwa is a member of City Bible Church in Beirut, where she is actively involved in children’s ministry and singing.
Thimar LSESD is a Lebanese nonprofit organization (NGO) that seeks to strengthen the witness of the Church in the Arab World through inclusive education, community development, and church discipleship.
Thimar works alongside local schools, ministries, and churches throughout the Arab World. Through these relationships, we see God at work, even in times of war and crisis. Come share in His miraculous, life-giving work of transforming communities and changing lives.