Greetings in Christ. The war started in Ukraine on February 24th. We have all seen the pictures and devastation of what has been happening in Ukraine. I heard recently on a mission Zoom call from MissioNexus that there are 1 to 1.5 million believers in Ukraine. Ukraine has been the largest missionary sending country in Europe. There are 13,000 evangelical churches there. A ReachGlobal staff worker told us on another Zoom call that 100,000 to 150,000 of the early refugees leaving Ukraine were Evangelical Christians. One-half of the people leaving Ukraine are children. So, what can we do?
PRAY! Jamie Hejl has been a ReachGlobal missionary in Ukraine since 2007. Here are some recent prayer requests that she sent out. These are from Pastor Eric & Jean W & Jamie:
That we would pray
Yes – pray for more prayers to be lifted up, that God would give physical and spiritual protection to believers. Jamie is getting tons of message from believers and unbelievers alike asking for prayer – pray that together we would answer their cries. Unbelievers are terrified and asking believers what to do – there is tremendous opportunity.
God would empower believers to be lighthouses of hope
Ask God to empower people in Ukraine to seek and hold onto God’s Word – that people would find encouragement and truth. Pray that believers and churches would become lighthouses and share the gospel as well as the hope Jesus gives with others.
People would help each other
Resources are scarce, people are afraid, marshal law has been called for Ukraine. Each of the 24 oblasts (regions) of Ukraine determine responses for their population. The president has been rallying the country to defend their homeland. If you don’t have food or money in your home, you don’t have it and have very few ways to get it. Everything will be done through relationships with others – pray for opportunities to share resources and help one another.
GIVE! ReachGlobal Crisis Response has set up a special Ukraine fund seeking $3 Million to help. So far, they have reached their initial goal of $500,000. Praise God! They are working out of Budapest, Hungary. They’re asking everyone to give through Crisis Response to keep it one voice/one place, but that will be worked out through a variety of ministries. Some people have been making trips to the border to bring refugees to housing, others are spending time with refugees in trauma care conversations, and others are simply playing with kids while others help their parents get logistics worked out. We’re still exploring how our partners are responding and we hope to come alongside them to support their efforts.
Blessings,
Steve Austvold