Training Team

  • Founder and President, Horizons International

    Georges Houssney was raised in the predominantly Muslim city of Tripoli, Lebanon. He came to faith in Jesus Christ as a teenager. Soon, God grew a deep love for Muslims in his heart, and he began to sense God’s call for full-time service among them.

    Well-known for his work supervising the translation and publication of the Bible into clear modern Arabic, Georges and his family moved from the Middle East to the United States in 1982 to minister to international students.

    Georges is passionate about reaching internationals here and abroad with the great news of salvation. He writes and lectures internationally about ministry to Muslims, and he strives to awaken a new generation who will proclaim the gospel boldly.

  • Founder, Hope for the Nations

    Barbara Yandell is an ordained minister, teacher, and international speaker. She calls both Austin, Texas, and Holland, Michigan, home. She attended Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in Christian Education and holds a Masters of Divinity. Barbara is working on a doctorate to mobilize the Church for evangelism to Muslims.

    She is the founder of Hope for the Nations, a college missions fellowship birthed by the Christian college revivals of 1996. She also started Legacy, a conference that aims to reclaim the legacy of Samuel Zwemer, the first modern missionary to the Arab World— himself the product of another college revival—the Student Volunteer Movement.

    She helped publish the Engage Muslims with Christ Course and workbook. Additionally, Barbara is a supporter of Horizons' refugee center in Beirut, Lebanon, and coordinates and teaches Perspectives on the World Christian Movement classes.

  • Executive Director, Horizons International

    Pierre Rashad Houssney is a Lebanese-American who grew up in the context of cross-cultural ministry among Muslims and international students. He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Northern Colorado and is fluent in English and Arabic.

    He has been in full-time ministry with Horizons International since 2006 and has been an active member of Horizons’ teaching staff and curriculum development team since 2002. Pierre is the Executive Director of Horizons International and lives in Beirut, Lebanon, with his wife, Gigi, and their three children.