A BRIEF HISTORY OF HORIZONS

In 1990, Georges Houssney launched Horizons International just a few years after moving to the United States with his family to work among international students, to better answer his clear calling from the Lord to reach Muslims with the gospel, and expand his ministry to carry out the Great Commission, both locally and globally.

With a shoestring budget and a small group of volunteers, Georges began taking international trips, planting ministry centers and churches, and laying a solid foundation of values and strategy among the board members, and the growing number of supporters and staff.

Georges’ highly relational work among international students led to the development of Horizons’ International Student Ministry, providing a family-like space for international students and new converts, and offering discipleship and training to help them confidently live out their faith on their return to their home countries.

Seeing an opportunity to help American Christians learn more about the culture and beliefs of Muslims around the world, and how to effectively share the gospel with them, Georges wrote and publishing articles in a small magazine called ReachOut to the Muslim World. At one point it reached a circulation of 40,000 copies per issue, and was, at its time, one of the only publications available that provided a Christian perspective on Islam and how to reach Muslims. Much of these groundbreaking and engaging articles became the source material for the Engaging Islam curriculum.

Horizons also launched church-planting movements in Iraq and Kosovo. Two churches and two ministry centers were established among the Kurds in Northern Iraq, while a Bible translation in the Bahdini dialect was also completed, leading to hundreds of Kurds becoming saved, and many more discipled. In Kosovo, over 60 churches were planted among Albanian Muslims, leading to over 15,000 professions of faith.

Under Georges’ leadership, Horizons transformed from a small family non-profit to a global missions organization, and in August 2000 moved to a 24,000 sq.ft. operational base and training center for ministry to Muslims, located near the University of Colorado campus in Boulder, Colorado, while the ministry also expanded into several locations across the U.S.

Through the Lord’s blessing, Horizons’ third decade was a season of explosive growth and increased fruitfulness. The staff team grew to 135 people, while the budget increased to more than $4M, expanding Horizons’ capacity, enabling new and comprehensive strategies which in turn have made an amazing impact on many lives. Horizons began seeing an unprecedented number of new ministry leaders rising up from among the new believers it discipled.

Over the next two decades, Horizons ministries developed around the world, partnering with diverse churches and Christian communities. In Kosovo, this led to the formation of Messiah Evangelical Fellowship (MEF), one of the nation’s largest evangelical churches, while the Zambian Soap Company, a non-profit that provides jobs and supports missional work in a small Christian community, was launched in Zambia. 

In Dearborn, Michigan, staff members held Engaging Islam training seminars and launched outreach events in heavily Arab neighborhoods, sharing the gospel and seeing a growing number of new believers from Muslim backgrounds.

In 2012 the Nabaa Center, Horizons’ first evangelism and discipleship center in Beirut, was established, and since then, Horizons has seen over 2,500 confessions of faith in Christ by Muslims in Lebanon, including many refugees. The following years saw the dynamic growth of Horizons in Lebanon, establishing numerous new ministry centers and projects. 

Training Initiatives – Equipping the Global Church for Effective Ministry

As its training initiatives continue to grow, Horizons has become firmly established as a trusted source for biblical training in ministry to Muslims for thousands of people globally. Through an unwavering commitment to God’s Word and a solid track record of effective ministry among Muslims, Horizons gained a remarkable reputation within the Great Commission community as a credible guiding voice for Christians as they reach out to Muslims.

Where we are today: A New Antioch

In recent years, Horizons’ center of gravity shifted from Boulder to Beirut, where many new projects were developed, including the Middle East Center for World Missions (MEC), the hub of ministry for the MENA region, providing media, training, facilitating church partnerships, the School of Hope, missions, and ministry centers across Lebanon. 

These diverse and quickly growing ministry initiatives have converged into a revival that resembles Antioch in the book of Acts, which replaced Jerusalem as the center for world missions of the early Church. Two striking similarities between Antioch and Beirut are freedom of religion and a great number of new believers from other backgrounds (Gentile/Muslim). Witnessing what the Lord has done has expanded and solidified our vision for Lebanon’s potential as a powerful hub for missions throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

For this reason, in 2019, Horizons established the Middle East Center for World Missions. The MEC’s mission is to equip the Church in the MENA Region to grow and to send out indigenous missionaries to effectively make disciples for Christ, in their region and globally.

Today, Horizons has nine ministry centers throughout the Middle East and over 130 staff in Lebanon, Hong Kong, Zambia, South Africa, and numerous other countries, all serving together to make an impact for God’s kingdom and reach people with the gospel.

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