Today [24th February] is the 1st anniversary of the war in Ukraine. Many of us can clearly remember where we were at that very time, as the shocking scenes of the violent invasion flashed across our screens. Horrendous stories began to emerge.
For more than 20 years Slavic Gospel Association has worked closely with ‘The Ukrainian Baptist Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians’, enjoying a precious relationship and partnering with them in their vision of church planting.
The statistics which follow will help outline the extent of this denomination’s expansion as God has blessed their efforts over the years.
There are at this time 1985 ordained pastors, 115 missionary pastors, and 45 church planters. Praise God for 150 new groups which have emerged and will develop into new churches. In some of these groups there is one person responsible for the ministry while in others there is a team ministry. We are thankful that 40 couples have started to open ‘New Hope Centres’ for non-churched people. While this is all happening within the borders of Ukraine, 24 people have gone out as foreign missionaries.
Unfortunately, there have also been setbacks. Due to the ravages of war some congregations have dispersed to safety, and 225 pastors have been displaced with a reduced salary or none at all. 97 of these have left the country.
Sadly, in some regions, a number of churches have been forced to close. As requested by the denominational leaders, SGA agreed to support an extra 108 pastors, 78 of whom are displaced pastors. This is in addition to the 35 who already receive long term support from us.
Recently the Mission received a request to support another 5 Ukrainian church planters long-term. We trust that we will be able to response positively. Thank you for your support and encouragement.
Ukrainian churches have opened their doors to be centres of ‘Help and Hope”, where people from the community can gather in a warm place, receive a hot meal, practical help, and share and pray. This has developed because funds have been provided for generators which are the key to establish such centres.
These are wonderful places in which communities, across the country, whose infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed can gather and receive very necessary practical help.