Finding Faith amidst Crises
- jenminotti
- Apr 2
- 2 min read
By Joyce Bou Charaa
PROMPT—I am grateful for ...
The last four years have changed everything in me: my mindset, my perspective, and the way I face challenges in life. From the start of 2020, the world was facing wars and crisis, and Lebanon was entering an era of endless conflicts. As Lebanese, I had to endure many different issues, starting from coronavirus, Beirut port explosion, ending in a war at the end of 2024. I became a real warrior, fighting for my life and for a future I know nothing about… until I found faith.
The surrealism Lebanon is still living in is truly unexplainable. It’s like a doomed fate one has to survive. Many like me are left traumatized and mentally broken from the recent war and the economic crisis that still has no end. Year after year, I found myself in the middle of nowhere, trying to escape this bleak forest that kept on dragging me down without mercy. But, something must show up, something must help me, keeping me strong, and that is faith in God.
Every time I get lost, I find myself again, find a way to the light inside me. So, amidst all the tragic scenes of war around me, I had the will to pray, and to hope for tomorrow every night before I go to sleep. Praying was a task to me, but now it became a will I have to forfeit to win my battles, when praying became a sword I carry with me anywhere I go. Now, I hold it inside my heart and walk through the woods, fearless.
Having faith during war, praying in the night while hearing sounds of explosions and airstrikes near my house was the most courageous thing I’ve ever done. I was looking to keep my soul safe. I was holding the cross in my cold palm, praying for my family’s safety, because this war was crushing me, and I was praying and praying till the night ends, praying for another morning sunrise.
I decided to pray in a prayer bead that was a gift from neighbors. The moment I lay my eyes on it, I fell in love with it, even though it’s a small one with a wooden cross. There was something magical that captivated my sight, as if I knew that this prayer bead is my only salvation in life.
Within me, I found comfort, peace, and strength each time I hold the wooden cross in my hand. That was a changing point for me this year, and I’m grateful for it.
Many ask, how can I pray? How can I believe in something? I say, there’s no answer for it. Faith is hope, a peace of mind, a feeling that God is always by my side, and that there’s nothing else to fear.
Joyce Bou Charaa is a Lebanese freelance writer and book editor. Her articles are published in several online publications and magazines like Tint Journal, Aniko press, and The Indiependent. She writes from Sin El Fil, Al Matn, Lebanon.