As a Teenager, I Was Discipled by the Persecuted Church | Carla
Carla is a British–Caribbean follower of Jesus who has spent the last six years in Beirut helping churches in the Middle East and North Africa walk with young people under pressure. She shares about growing up as a mixed‑race pastor’s kid in a mostly white English town, the intense expectation to be “perfect,” and how a mission trip to Kenya and reading the entire Bible at 16 transformed her from a double‑life teenager into someone deeply shaped by Scripture and the stories of the persecuted church.
That sense of call eventually took her to Bible college, then into serving persecuted Christians, and finally to Lebanon—alongside her husband Steve, who chose to share her calling even when it meant leaving an Oxford academic path. Carla explains what persecution looks like specifically for teenagers whose faith and ethnicity make them minorities, drawing on the book of Daniel and her work helping churches become the safest place for young people to return without shame.
She also describes life in Lebanon through revolution, economic collapse, the Beirut port blast, and the aftershocks of October 7 and the Gaza war, including the psychological warfare of sonic booms and the horrific “pager” explosions of 2024. Through it all, Carla’s love for Lebanon and its ancient Christian communities has deepened, as she continues to help young believers build resilient faith in one of the world’s most fragile contexts.
00:00 – Meeting Carla in Lebanon
01:00 – Growing up mixed‑race and a pastor’s kid
03:00 – Wrestling with church and finding faith
08:00 – Teenagers, smartphones, and anxiety
11:00 – Called to stand in vulnerable places
15:00 – Theology, Bible college, and unexpected detours
17:00 – Praying for the Middle East and a new job
18:00 – Meeting Steve and the call to Lebanon
20:00 – Engagement, marriage, and the big move
22:00 – Shared callings and marriage in the Middle East
23:00 – Building resilient young believers under pressure
25:00 – Daniel, empire, and identity
28:00 – Minority life in MENA education and culture
29:00 – Making church the safest place for youth
30:00 – Crises in Lebanon: revolution, collapse, and COVID
34:00 – Psychological warfare and sonic booms
31:00 – Surviving the Beirut explosion
32:00 – Economic collapse and the cost of staying
33:00 – October 7, Gaza, and Lebanon on edge
38:00 – Pager attacks and a week of horror
41:00 – Evacuation, waiting, and returning again
42:00 – Why we still love Lebanon
44:00 – Final reflections and hope for Lebanon
That sense of call eventually took her to Bible college, then into serving persecuted Christians, and finally to Lebanon—alongside her husband Steve, who chose to share her calling even when it meant leaving an Oxford academic path. Carla explains what persecution looks like specifically for teenagers whose faith and ethnicity make them minorities, drawing on the book of Daniel and her work helping churches become the safest place for young people to return without shame.
She also describes life in Lebanon through revolution, economic collapse, the Beirut port blast, and the aftershocks of October 7 and the Gaza war, including the psychological warfare of sonic booms and the horrific “pager” explosions of 2024. Through it all, Carla’s love for Lebanon and its ancient Christian communities has deepened, as she continues to help young believers build resilient faith in one of the world’s most fragile contexts.
00:00 – Meeting Carla in Lebanon
01:00 – Growing up mixed‑race and a pastor’s kid
03:00 – Wrestling with church and finding faith
08:00 – Teenagers, smartphones, and anxiety
11:00 – Called to stand in vulnerable places
15:00 – Theology, Bible college, and unexpected detours
17:00 – Praying for the Middle East and a new job
18:00 – Meeting Steve and the call to Lebanon
20:00 – Engagement, marriage, and the big move
22:00 – Shared callings and marriage in the Middle East
23:00 – Building resilient young believers under pressure
25:00 – Daniel, empire, and identity
28:00 – Minority life in MENA education and culture
29:00 – Making church the safest place for youth
30:00 – Crises in Lebanon: revolution, collapse, and COVID
34:00 – Psychological warfare and sonic booms
31:00 – Surviving the Beirut explosion
32:00 – Economic collapse and the cost of staying
33:00 – October 7, Gaza, and Lebanon on edge
38:00 – Pager attacks and a week of horror
41:00 – Evacuation, waiting, and returning again
42:00 – Why we still love Lebanon
44:00 – Final reflections and hope for Lebanon
