(gentle music)

- Well, for many children

here in the UnitedStates, summer means days

filled with swimming, hiking, friendship.

- In one part of the world though,

this time of year bringswith it a tradition

of a boot camp with the dangerous message.

Chris Mitchell shows us howyoung men in the Gaza Strip

spend their summer vacation.

- [Chris] They call themthe Pioneers of Liberation

in the Sword of Jerusalem summer camps

run by Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

These videos posted by MEMRI,

the Middle East Media Research Institute,

show what the youth ofGaza are doing this summer.

(boy speaking Arabic)

- [Interpreter] We did notcome here to enjoy ourselves

or to play or anything like that.

We came with our souls,our blood, our martyrs,

and our wounded to sacrificeourselves for Palestine

and for our people.

- [Chris] This promotionalvideo urges students,

from primary school,high school, and college,

to participate.

In the camp, targetpractice involves AK-47s,

anti-tank weapons, and video simulations.

(man speaking Arabic)

- [Interpreter] So that inthe next phase, Allah willing,

these boys will be able toconfront the plundering enemy

and disfigure its face in the next war.

- [Chris] In May, Hamas and Islamic Jihad

called the 11-day war withIsrael the Sword of Jerusalem.

Their goal, preparing the nextgeneration for the next war.

(man speaking Arabic)

- [Interpreter] We say to the enemy:

These children picked up these weapons

and we trained them how to use them

as well as how to take security measures

so that they follow in thefootsteps of their fathers

and take up arms, Allah willing.

(boy speaking Arabic)

- [Interpreter] I choseto spend my vacation

in the Pioneers of Liberation summer camp

in order to continuethe path of my father,

the martyred commander,Walid Shamaleh Abu Bilal,

and in order to strengthenour determination

and to liberate Jerusalem, Allah willing.

- [Chris] These young menand boys learn anti-Semitism

at an early age.

(boy speaking Arabic)

- [Interpreter] We asked Hitler

why he left some of you alive.

He did so in order to showus how wicked you are.

We will come to you from under the ground

and hammer fear into yourhearts, and above the ground,

we will tear your bodiesapart with our rockets.

Scram into the shelters, you mice,

you sons of Jewish women.

- [Chris] MEMRI has beenmonitoring these summer camps

for 10 years.

- [Yael] The videos and imagesfrom those camps illustrate

and reflect the way Hamas is operating

and deepening its control.

In 10, 15 years from now,the kids will be adults

or parents and maybeeven officials in Gaza

and decision-makers, sothe extremism in Gaza

will be even worse.

- And Gordon, all this meansthat the battle for Jerusalem

will continue for many years to come.

- Chris, incredibly shocking video,

and it looks like there'sa whole generation

that's being raised to be terrorists.

What does this mean for prospects of peace

for the people of Gaza?

- Well, Gordon, it doesn't bode well

for the prospects of peace, you know,

and it probably means, in a few years,

some of these kids may befiring rockets into Israel,

they may be hiding in terror tunnels,

trying to infiltrate into Israeli towns.

And you know, Gordon, the Bible's right.

It says, "Train up a childin the way that he should go

and when he's old, hewill not depart from it."

And as this lady from MEMRI said,

many of these kids mightbe the decision-makers

inside Gaza in a few years.

And you know, she also made the point

that some of these kids haveonly known Hamas ideology.

Hamas took over theGaza Strip back in 2007,

so 13, 14-year-old kids,that's all they've known

and they've been indoctrinatedwith jihad war with Israel.

And the numbers are staggering.

I mean, I saw one number upto 70,000 kids in these camps.

And then after the summercamps, they go to UNRWA schools

with curriculum that praises terrorists.

We've talked about that many times.

And then, in addition, the leaders,

the guys that they presumably look up to,

they're going to other nations

preaching jihad against Jerusalem.

So the battle for Jerusalem,right behind me, Gordon,

still goes on and peace seemsto be as elusive as ever.

- Well, the international community

has spoken out against child soldiers

in Africa and Southeast Asia, other areas.

Is the international community

saying anything about these camps?

- Gordon, very little,

and I haven't been ableto find anything online,

and I've searched for that.

Very little as well inthe media and academia.

This contrasts with thecondemnation that Israel had by many

in the media, in academia,in other countries,

that was condemned duringthe May war that was started

by Hamas when it startedfiring rockets into Israel.

In fact, right up here to Jerusalem.

And yet, it seems likethese camps are a violation

of international law.

If you look at UNICEF, that'sthe UN agency for children,

it says that recruitment of children

is a violation ofinternational humanitarian law.

In 2002, the UN protocolon the rights of the child

they'd said you can'trecruit children under 18

and recruiting children under15 is defined as a war crime.

And you saw those kids in that video.

They're just young boys, in fact.

So many of those, that couldbe defined as a war crime.

Now, Hamas, it says thatit's using these children

to defend against the Zionist entity.

But according to international law,

these are child soldiers,

so you would think that these camps

and these kids would qualify.

And what they're doing,

indoctrinating the next generation

of the Gazan youth to hate Israel.

The goal, to capture Jerusalemthat's right behind me.

And I would just add, Gordon,

that, you know, back in 2005,

Israel unilaterally withdrewfrom the Gaza Strip.

At the time, there were21 Jewish communities

inside Gaza Strip, about8,500 Jewish people,

and at that time, the government said,

"We're gonna unilaterallywithdraw from Gaza

because we want this tobe a peaceful settlement,"

with, at that time, thePalestinian Authority.

And I remember very vividly, Gordon,

there was a spokesmanfor those communities

and he said, "Listen, don't pull us out

because we're the finger in the dyke

against this terrorism."

And what has happened about 16 years later

is almost, next month, is that Hamas,

or Gaza Strip has really come Hamas-stan,

and really, terror iscoming over the borders

in the terms of rocketsand terror tunnels.

- Well, the Palestinianselected them as their government

back in the Bush administration.

There was a lot of hope, democracy,

Arab Spring, all of that.

They would see a way to peace,

but no, they elected terrorists.

Now all those Jewishcommunities are out of Gaza.

It's completely ethnically cleansed

that you can't find any Jewishperson inside Gaza anymore.

Final question.

Who's paying for these camps?

Where's the money coming from?

- Well, you know, during the May war,

we found out that a lot of the funding

of Hamas and Islamic Jihadwas coming from Iran.

So that would be probably

one of the biggest contributors to this.

Qatar is another one

that probably gives about $30million per month to Hamas.

So those two are the people funding this.

And, you know, just connectingsome of the dots, Gordon,

if the US does lift sanctionson Iran, give them more money,

you would see that some of that money

would undoubtedly go toHamas in the Gaza Strip

so they'd continue its war against Israel.

- And they've continued itand they've got fire balloons

just in the past 24 hours

so it just doesn't ever seem to end.

Well, Chris, thanks for the insight.

Thanks for this, I've gottasay it, it's a shocking report

of how young boys are beingtrained today in Gaza.

You can always get thelatest news on Israel

by downloading the CBN News Channel app.

Terry.

- Well, up next,

he's one of the hottest newnames in Christian music.

He was also once laid outon the floor in handcuffs.

Billy Ballenger talksabout taking the wrong path

in his life.

So what wake-up call rescued him?

Find out after this.

(dramatic music)

The theft of a nine-millimeterhandgun and stash of cash.

That's what brought a SWAT team

to Billy Ballenger's front door.

Billy eventually servedtwo years in prison.

So how did he wind up oneof the hottest new names

in Christian music?

Billy explains in this tell all interview

with CBNs Will Dawson.

♪ I know ♪

- [Will] Winter Jam is the country's

largest Christian music tour.

In 2020, it was recording artist

Billy Ballenger's big break.

- [Announcer] Billy Ballenger, everybody!

- [Will] His single, "Tree and the Nails,"

is his first hit.

♪ You call me chosen ♪

♪ You call me loved ♪

♪ You don't see broken ♪

♪ You see more ♪

- "Tree and the Nails,"it's such a powerful song.

- Thank you.

I just feel...

I mean, that's a true honor

to get to be able topresent a song like that.

So many times, we feel like we're broken,

we've missed it, we've messed up.

But I think what's importantabout that song is,

is that we get to talkabout what Jesus did,

not when we failed.

- When you think aboutfailure in your life,

looking back, it's a different story.

- [Billy] Yeah.

That was rough. Mymemory of that was rough.

- [Will] Billy wasraised in a broken home,

and as a teenager, began running away.

- I just felt like I was runningaway to freedom each time.

But then you'd get there

and the grass wasn't greeneron the other side, you know.

I just wanted, as a kid, you know,

I just wanted to have some peace.

- [Will] Billy was placedin a residential facility,

and for a while, things began looking up.

That's when he met Jodie.

- We were in choir together.

Like the boys wanted to see the girls,

the girls wanted to see the boys,

and choir was a place to do that.

- [Will] The couple'srelationship grew quickly.

When they were 17, Billy andJodie left the group home

and Jodie became pregnant.

Though they were married shortly after,

the Ballengers fell into the wrong crowd

and began selling drugs.

- I had great opportunitiesin front of me.

I just chose, for whateverreason, to take the wrong path

and it cost me dearly.

- Billy and Jodie wereinvolved in the theft

of a nine-millimeter handgun and cash.

They stashed the money at their home

before a SWAT team busted down their door.

You're laying on the floor in handcuffs.

- Yeah.- And your daughter

and Jodie are in the next room.

What's going through your mind?

- That is the moment where you think,

"How could I think Iwould never get caught?"

You know, that's that momentyou have a wake-up call.

- I was just thinking, "Oh my goodness,"

like, "It's all caught up to me.

This has all caught up tous and what do we do now?"

- [Will] The couple was arrested

and their daughter wastaken into foster care.

While on bond, Billy gota job in construction.

His boss, a Christian, invitedthe young couple to church.

- I remember showing up thatnight with the best I had,

a pair of old work pants,a ripped-up Nike T-shirt.

I did leave my hat in the car.

Came in and I was gonna hide in the back

'cause I felt like needleswere sticking in my body

all over when I walked in.

And then just before we went to trial,

one night at a service there,they did an altar call.

I knew I'd hit rock bottomand I was like, "I need God."

- [Will] Billy and Jodiecommitted their lives to God,

but still had to face trial.

They were both sentencedto six years in prison.

- I was just heartbroken.

You just feel like, "My wife,

I can't hold her, I can't be with her.

What have I done?"

You want to put everything in rewind,

you know, reverse and redoeverything, but you can't.

- [Will] Billy faithfullysent Jodie letters,

telling her about his love forGod and a desire to change.

- He changed so much that I'm like,

"Wow, he has, like, really changed."

It was like a brand new man.

I mean, he was not thatold person whatsoever.

- And I credit the Word of God to that

because I was justsaturating myself with it.

It changed me.

I didn't change me.

It changed the way I thought.

It changed everything I did.

And I said, "I'm notgonna be violent no more.

I'm not gonna party no more.

I'm not interested in the drugs anymore."

I just wanted my family back.

- [Will] After the Ballengersserved two years in prison,

the state board of appealsgranted them a hearing.

- They brought me and mywife back to that same judge

and she looked at us and she said,

"We have decided to suspendthe rest of your sentence,"

and we went home that day.

- [Will] Billy and Jodie werereunited with their daughter

and resolved to live for God.

- When I got out of prison,

I started going to the nursing homes

with my church and preaching.

Had so much Word in me,

I'd just go somewhereand explode, you know?

But then I joined the praise team

and then that desire started to come.

And then when I would sing,

somebody would say,"There's something there."

- [Will] Over the years,Billy recorded seven albums,

and in 2020, joined the Winter Jam lineup.

Today, the Ballengers travel the country

sharing their story of God's grace,

told best through hissong, "Tree and the Nails."

♪ The tree and the nails ♪

- You know, the music becomesa vehicle for the message.

God has truly redeemed us.

It isn't like He justredeemed us to go to heaven.

It's the fact that He caresabout our entire life.

It really is true.

It doesn't matter how broken it was.

If you're still breathing,you still got a chance.

That's what that song does.

It's saying right now is your moment.

That's what that song says to me.

And I pray that's what that song says

to the people that hear it.

- You know, that should bethe message for you right now

if you've been listening to Billy's story

and going, "Wow, wow!"

180-degree turn.

Wow.

That can happen for you too.

As Billy said,

it doesn't matter whereyou've been, what you've done.

Today can be your moment.

It was for him.

You know, the Word of God changes us.

I hear so many stories evenof young people who grew up,

grew up in the church, grewup knowing what it meant

to invite Jesus into your heart,

but they just startedmaking wrong choices.

You know, the thing about wrong choices

is one wrong choice leadsto another wrong choice

leads to another wrong choice.

But you can change that.

God can change that in you,and it is never too late.

Doesn't matter where you'vebeen, what you've done.

He waits.

He waits for you.

You know, His arms areoutstretched on the cross

for all of us and his armsare outstretched to you today.

Come home to the heart of God.

Stop the things you've beendoing that haven't worked.

Isn't it amazing how wecan see the choices we make

fail us again and again and again

and we just keep doingstuff we shouldn't be doing?

Stop today.

Listen, it begins like this.

You know you've made poor choices.

You know Jesus loves youand has sacrificed His life

to cover everything you've done.

So you invite Him into your mess.

That's truly it.

Amazing, isn't it, that Hewants to come into that,

but he's waited for you.

So you simply say: Jesus,come into my heart.

I am a sinner and I need youto be the savior of my soul.

I don't deserve it. Iget that, completely.

I'm asking you because ofyour mercy and your grace

and your unbelievable love forpeople who are lost like me.

I'm giving you my life, thegood, the bad, and the ugly,

every choice I've made that has caused me

to fall deeper into the pit.

Today, will you reach down into the pit,

lift me up, and set my feet

on the rock of your salvation, Jesus?

Change me.

I want to think differently.

I want to act differently.

I want to belong to you.

I want to make decisionsthat lead to eternal life

and that lead to a deep,personal relationship with you.

Have all of me and teach me your ways.

Fill me with your Holy Spirit today.

I am sorry for every sin I've committed,

every choice I've madethat's been against you.

I'm asking for a new beginning,

and I am asking in your name.

Amen.

That's the deal, andyou've just received it.

What do you do now?

You know, you need tounderstand who Jesus is

and how deep His love is, andwe want to help you with that.

We've got a packet thatwe'd like to send to you

filled with wonderful information.

There it is.

How do you get it?

You get it by calling thattoll-free number, 1-800-700-7000.

No other commitment than tosay, "I prayed the prayer

and I'd like that free packet."

A new day. Begin yours now.

Still ahead, dealing withdeath, illness, and isolation.

This healthcare worker wastraumatized by the pandemic.

So what happened when shecouldn't sleep for days?

And how was she healed in an instant?

That's coming up right after this.

(dramatic music)

- Sleepless nights and endless days.

Healthcare worker JenniferWaldo was fading fast.

Fear, anxiety consumed her

and she saw no end to the suffering.

She cried out to Godand she got an answer.

Take a look.

- [Narrator] When certifiedmedical assistant Jennifer Waldo

started working with Alzheimer's

and dementia patients in 2016,

she knew it was whereshe was supposed to be.

- But it was veryencouraging to go to work

and to feel like you'remaking a difference

in the lives of people.

- [Narrator] While the job didhave its moments of stress,

COVID took it to another levelfor her and her patients.

- There were some thatwere afraid of COVID.

There were some that I saw pass away.

It made me feel like therewas just not much I could do

to help them.

- [Narrator] Like millions of people,

she felt it at home too.

- COVID was very challenging

because we were all very isolated

for a very long time, feeling very lonely.

- [Narrator] Through even thedarkest times of the pandemic,

Jennifer was able to managethe stress and loneliness.

Then in January of 2021,it all caught up with her

as she started feeling anxious and afraid.

- The conversations I had with myself

was, "Is this gonna last forever?

What am I gonna do?

And what would happen tome if I would get COVID?"

- [Narrator] Making it worse,

she started suffering from insomnia,

which affected her at work and home.

- I was having some hard time at work

concentrating on my work duties.

I did get so tired

that I just couldn'tcope anymore with things.

- [Narrator] Jennifer took her fears

and sleepless nights to God.

- Crying out in desperation of "Lord,

let me get some sleep."

- [Narrator] Then onJanuary 20th of that year,

Jennifer, a regularviewer of "The 700 Club,"

tuned into the showjust as Gordon and Wendy

were giving words ofknowledge through prayer.

It was then she heard Wendy.

- Someone, you're saying whereyou have not slept in days,

and God is healing you rightnow from that severe insomnia.

- I just felt all the anxietyand restlessness leave,

all that just totally gone.

And then I was just laughingand I have the joy of the Lord.

I became very happy.

- [Narrator] That night,for the first time in weeks.

- And I was able to rest well

and it was very restful sleep.

- [Narrator] Jennifer isgrateful for God healing her

and restoring her joy at work and in life.

- It made me feel very special and loved

by my Heavenly Father.

I don't struggle withfear and anxiety anymore.

My job is secure and I'm happy,

not worried about the bills,

not worried about my independence.

I've really moved forward

in knowing that God's goteverything under control.

- And He's got everythingconcerning you under control.

When you have the revelationthat the God of the universe

can number the hairs on your head,

that He cares so much for you,He wants to provide for you,

He wants to be your all in all.

He wants to be your God.

That's an incredible thought.

He wants to do that.

He wants you to recognizethat you are His child,

that He breathed lifeinto you, and He did that

so that you could havea relationship with Him.

It's incredible. It's incredible.

It's the best news anyone's ever heard,

that God cares, He hears, He understands.

He wants to provide. He wants to deliver.

He wants to save. He wants to heal.

That is all His will towards you.

And what a great salvation this is.

All we have to do is believe it.

Now, Terry and I are going to pray.

Before we pray, we've gotsome other testimonies.

Here's one that's come in from YouTube:

The Lord healed me from bipolar disorder

after suffering for 27 years,

I felt like I was going to die.

Back in 2017, I tried togo to a mental hospital,

but it wasn't successful.

And then I heard a still small voice say,

"King Asa was sick andhe never sought the Lord,

but physicians, and he died."

I answered, "But Lord, youknow I've prayed many times,"

and then I heard, "Pray again."

I did and immediately feltthe dark cloud rolled away.

Since then, I've beenhealed of bipolar disorder.

Thank you, Jesus.

- [Terry] Wow, that's amazing.

Well, this is Ronald on Instagram.

He said, "I was watching yourshow and I heard Gordon say,

'Ronald, God is healingyou of prostate cancer.'

I claimed it and now cancer free.

Praise the Lord!"

- Pray again. Isn't that a wonderful?

The Lord said, "Pray again."

That's why Jesus taughtus this wonderful parable

about the importune widowthat knocked on the door

of the unrighteous judge.

She kept knocking becauseshe knew the answer

was on the other side of that door.

So He says, "Seek and you'll find;

ask and it'll be given to you;

knock and it will be open."

We don't have an unrighteous judge.

We have a very righteous one

who wants to give Hisrighteousness to you.

So let's receive that.

Come boldly to the throne ofgrace and get our requests.

All we have to do is make them known.

Let's pray.

Lord, we lift every need to you,

people that are suffering with insomnia,

with bipolar disorder, with cancer,

with stroke, paralysis.

Lord, whatever the need,

you are the answer.

You are Almighty God.

With you, nothing is impossible.

So we rely on you.

We rely on your promises.

We rely on the one that you sent for us.

Now, in the authority given to us

as believers in JesusChrist, by that authority,

we say out loud, behealed and be made whole.

By the stripes of JesusChrist, I am healed.

I am set free.

I am the righteousness of Christ.

He wants to give this to me.

I receive it now in Jesus' name.

Terry, God's given you-

- Yeah, there someone, you have been,

you've had COVID and have hada fairly good bout with it,

but it's left you with somekind of a coating in your lungs.

You don't have pneumonia,

it's not tumors, anything like that,

but it does affect your breathing

and you feel so discouraged.

God's healing that for you right now.

It is gone in Jesus' name.

Begin to celebrate thatand breathe freely.

- There's someone, you've been suffering

with allergic reactions.

You can't find the source of it.

God's healing your immune system.

You're not going to havethat reaction anymore.

Receive it now in Jesus' name.

Amen.

If you've been healed, let us know.

Give us a call, 1-800-700-7000.

Know, therefore, thatthe Lord your God is God;

He is the faithful God,keeping His covenant

to a thousand generations.