Faith Facts

• A Christian academy in Nigeria has baptized over 100 young people in three years through a soccer tournament that requires Bible study participation
• Mission teams in Costa Rica and Honduras report multiple baptisms from door-knocking evangelism campaigns
• A South Sudan evangelist led a three-day seminar that brought 20 new believers to Christ, including two young women delivered from spiritual oppression

Churches of Christ around the world are sharing powerful testimonies of evangelistic success through creative outreach methods that combine practical engagement with biblical teaching. From Central American mission trips to West African soccer tournaments, believers are finding new ways to share the Gospel and see lives transformed.

COSTA RICA

SAN JOSÉ — A balloon sword and multiple sheets of paper provided a visual representation of the “full armor of God” from Ephesians 6 in Dave Domingue’s Bible lesson in this Central American capital. Domingue, director of the Georgia School of Theology in Warner Robins, Georgia, also placed a blindfold over the eyes of his volunteer, Jean Paul Gamboa Fallas, to emphasize that “we don’t always see what’s coming,” Domingue said.

Domingue led a team of students from the theology school, who worked alongside members of the Church of Christ in South San José as they did door-knocking evangelism. The team also taught Bible lessons at Camp Jennie Sue, a family camp.

Gamboa, a graduate of the Brown Trail School of Preaching in Texas, and Andrès Coto Umaña conducted the camp.

“We are grateful for the partnership of the San José Sur congregation,” Domingue said, “and for faithful brethren from multiple congregations who came together with one purpose: to encourage the church, strengthen believers and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

HONDURAS

VILLA DE SAN FRANCISCO — A dozen members of the South Florida Avenue Church of Christ in Lakeland, Florida, participated in a medical and door-knocking gospel campaign in this colorful, historic town about 40 miles northeast of Honduras’ capital, Tegucigalpa. Team members reported multiple baptisms and Bible studies during the campaign.

NIGERIA

URUK OTONG — It isn’t the World Cup, but a school associated with Churches of Christ in this West African village sponsors a local tournament that’s winning souls for Christ. Rhema Christian Academy invites teams from the surrounding villages to compete in the annual contest.

Participants must complete lesson booklets provided by World English Institute, a ministry that helps students improve their English skills using the Bible.

“The finals of the soccer contest are played during our annual Youth Bible Conference in December,” said academy president Aniefiok Akpan.

About 100 youths, including soccer players and fans, have been baptized since the school launched the tournament three years ago.

SOUTH SUDAN

MANGOK RIIT — Demons can’t stop the growth of Christianity in this East African village, said Geng Garang Deng.

Deng, an evangelist who works with World English Institute, led a three-day seminar in the village that resulted in 20 new Christians.

“During our time there, we encountered unusual challenges, particularly concerning two young girls who had been afflicted by demonic spirits that prevented them from participating in church activities,” Deng said.

Church members held prolonged prayer sessions for the girls, during which they often would become unconscious, the minister added.

“Recognizing the urgency of their situation, we prayed fervently for both girls and engaged their families, encouraging them to seek liberation from such affliction by turning to the Lord,” Deng said.

“In a remarkable turn of events, we were able to baptize both girls with their families, bringing them into the fold of the church and away from the practices that had previously caused them distress.”

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Faith Facts

• NBC’s coverage of an Idaho teen suicide blamed state law without presenting medical evidence or expert dissent on pediatric gender treatments
• Major news outlets increasingly frame opposition to youth medical transition as a direct threat to life, while omitting serious safety concerns raised by medical professionals
• European nations including Sweden, Finland, and the UK have significantly restricted youth gender treatments after comprehensive medical reviews found insufficient evidence of benefit

When a family tragedy becomes national news, the responsibility of journalists becomes even greater. Yet NBC’s recent coverage of a teenage suicide in Idaho chose emotional appeal over medical complexity, presenting only one perspective on a deeply contested area of pediatric medicine.

The network’s reporting suggested that Idaho’s law restricting certain medical interventions for minors directly caused the teen’s death. What viewers didn’t hear were the serious medical questions that prompted similar restrictions across Europe and in multiple American states.

It’s genuinely reckless to use a platform the size of NBC’s to insist that kids will die without these drugs and never once stop to explain why serious people have real reservations. These aren’t partisan objections—they’re rooted in basic questions about long-term outcomes, irreversible effects, and the developmental capacity of minors to consent to life-altering treatments.

Countries once considered pioneers in pediatric gender medicine have reversed course. Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare now restricts these treatments to research settings only, citing weak evidence. Finland adopted similar restrictions after its own comprehensive review. The UK’s National Health Service shuttered its primary youth gender clinic following the Cass Review, which found the evidence base “remarkably weak.”

These aren’t conservative governments making political decisions. These are health systems responding to emerging research and the lack of long-term safety data. American families deserve to know this context when major media outlets present one side as settled science and the other as dangerous extremism.

The Idaho law in question reflects concerns shared by medical professionals across ideological lines: that young people experiencing distress deserve comprehensive mental health support, not fast-tracked medical intervention with permanent consequences. That position isn’t rooted in animus—it’s rooted in the Hippocratic principle of “first, do no harm.”

When journalism becomes advocacy, especially on matters affecting children, the public loses access to the information they need to make informed decisions. Parents across America are grappling with these questions in their own communities, their own schools, and sometimes their own homes. They deserve reporting that respects the complexity of the medical evidence, not coverage that weaponizes tragedy to shut down legitimate debate.

Every young person struggling with identity questions deserves compassion, support, and excellent care. The question before us isn’t whether to care—it’s how best to care, based on sound evidence and with full understanding of long-term consequences. That’s a conversation our media should facilitate, not foreclose.

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Faith Facts

• UNESCO voted to recognize Sebastia in Samaria as a Palestinian heritage site, placing it on the World Heritage List and List of World Heritage in Danger
• Israeli leaders condemned the decision as an attempt to erase thousands of years of Jewish history and biblical connection to the land
• The site contains archaeological evidence of ancient Israelite presence and biblical significance dating back millennia

Israeli officials are speaking out forcefully against a controversial United Nations decision that they say deliberately ignores biblical history and archaeological evidence. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization recently voted to recognize Sebastia in Samaria as a Palestinian heritage site, listing it on both the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger.

The decision has sparked outrage among those who value historical accuracy and the preservation of Judeo-Christian heritage. Israeli leaders say the move represents a calculated effort by international bodies to rewrite the historical record and deny the deep roots connecting the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland.

Sebastia, located in the biblical region of Samaria, holds profound significance in both Old and New Testament history. The site contains extensive archaeological remains demonstrating continuous Jewish presence spanning thousands of years. Biblical scholars recognize the location as the ancient capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, where prophets Elijah and Elisha ministered and where John the Baptist is traditionally believed to have been buried.

Israeli authorities argue that UNESCO’s determination to categorize these ancient lands solely as Palestinian heritage sites demonstrates a troubling pattern of historical revisionism. By ignoring documented archaeological evidence and biblical accounts, critics say the international body prioritizes modern political agendas over factual accuracy and religious heritage.

The controversy highlights growing concerns among Christians and Jews worldwide about international organizations’ treatment of sites sacred to their faiths. Many see this latest UNESCO action as part of a broader campaign to delegitimize Israel’s historical connection to the land promised to Abraham and his descendants in Scripture.

Conservative voices in America have long warned about the dangers of allowing international bodies to rewrite history through bureaucratic decisions. The UNESCO vote demonstrates how global institutions can work to undermine traditional understandings of biblical history and the legitimate claims of the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland.

This situation underscores the importance of standing with Israel and defending historical truth against politically motivated revisionism. The biblical narrative, supported by extensive archaeological evidence, clearly establishes the Jewish people’s ancient connection to Samaria and surrounding regions—a connection that no international committee vote can legitimately erase.

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