The shelling and bombing of major cities have resulted in tragic casualties, some of whom had remained in, or returned to the conflict zones to help and minister to those trapped by the war. Accounts of believers’ sacrificial service have come to us from reliable sources in the country.
One young man, 26-year-old Anatolii, a member of Irpen Bible Church, had taken his wife out of danger to a safe place, and had then returned to the city to help others.
He was assisting a mother and two children to get to safety across a dangerous broken bridge to catch a bus which would carry them away from the danger area.
Tragically a Russian mine exploded nearby, and he and the mother and children were blown up and killed. Anatolii and his wife were active and faithful members of the Irpen church.
In the besieged city of Mariupol, five Christian brothers who left the basement of the church building in which many were sheltering, to bring help and relief to these desperate people, were themselves killed by the Russian invaders.
The bombs and shells do not differentiate between military personnel and those who risk their lives to help others.
How to give help and support in such dreadful circumstances is a difficult and dangerous challenge. Believers throughout the country have rallied to the calls from their leaders to give themselves wholeheartedly to sheltering and supporting the refugee victims of the war.
Praise God for the wisdom and foresight given to men such as Pastors Igor Bandura and Roman Vecherkovsky, whose tireless work in co-ordinating relief efforts, and evacuation and transport of refugees, has resulted in many rescued from critical circumstances and delivered to safer areas.
The churches of Christ near to the borders in neighbouring countries have responded in an amazing way to refugees’ needs. As the crisis began and developed, they prepared their buildings, halls, and other suitable rooms to receive and care for those who arrived virtually empty-handed, with only a minimum of possessions which they were able to hurriedly pack and carry with them.
SGA has channelled substantial funds to the ‘front lines’ of the relief effort, through its network of trusted church leaders and friends in Romania, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Moldova. We have also been able to transfer funds into Ukraine itself where denominational and church leaders have organized its distribution to the most needed regions. After aid reached him, Pastor Oleh from Kyiv wrote:
‘We are thankful for this help. We were able to give out more than 300 food parcels to people here, telling them the Gospel and encouraging them to pray.’
Other reports from this city, however, are disturbing. The house of one of the pastors was burned out. Thousands of private houses and apartment buildings have been destroyed, including many schools, kindergartens, hospitals, and social institutions. The challenge of ministering to people’s needs in these circumstances is immense.
Pastor Igor Bandura, a Vice President of the Ukrainian Baptist Union explains something of their strategy, and the increasing difficulties they face. They have to work within the country itself, and across the various borders through which hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled.
Our team is located in Lviv near the western borders, and we coordinate all
our humanitarian assistance from here… We created seven regional logistics centres to help people, to provide housing, to work with refugees… and to distribute humanitarian aid.
Many cities are surrounded by the (Russian) army and problems have started with food and basic needs… Christians who are staying in the cities, stay mainly in church basements. Churches were prepared for this, so they had enough water and food and basic stuff. But now there is a lack of water and food. So we are near to a humanitarian crisis. Now our main task is to bring money and goods to these churches, because otherwise people will starve to death.
Despite the chaos of this war situation, SGA continues to care for its supported missionaries and their families.
There are 35 missionary families living and witnessing in different regions of the country, who are supported in their ministry through SGA’s Leadership Support programme. That regular support continues, for our faithful brothers and sisters have not abandoned their work.
Some have been forced out of their cities and villages, but continue to minister in other locations. Others have stayed their ground and bring God’s Word and Christian love to those in desperate circumstances. All of them need our prayers for protection, provision, and ultimately deliverance from this dreadful war.