One of our Project70 missionaries, Sylvester Torbiczuk, a former student of Ruptawa Mission School, is serving the Lord in Zamość, about 50km from the Ukrainian border. His whole congregation is involved in efforts to assist refugees fleeing from the current war situation in Ukraine.
Over the past weeks the church has worked tirelessly, day and night, for hours at a time, to provide vital assistance to those in need of support. Sylvester receives hundreds of phone calls every day from people requesting help, and also from those offering to assist in some way. Through the refugee ministry, he has seen God answer prayer in wonderful ways. The congregation has become more unified as they have served together, and the church is now able to provide assistance for up to 50 people at a time. In addition to his responsibilities as project coordinator, Sylvester also travels regularly to the Polish-Ukrainian border to deliver vital food supplies and bring back refugees in need of shelter. Please pray for wisdom and strength as he organizes this vital ministry.
Just before the war began, Lena, a Moldovan Christian lady, came to the church for the first time. She had lived in Poland for 6 years, and had sadly lost her husband to Covid-19 a year earlier. One week after the war began in February, the first Ukrainian refugees arrived at the church. Moved by the overwhelming need around her, Lena decided to stay and help with the refugee ministry, where she has since been serving as an interpreter and cook, as well as providing general assistance to the team there.
Apart from the ongoing refugee ministry, Sylvester writes of further encouragements within the church. The congregation is currently planning for a baptismal service in June, when they hope to baptize at least three people. Just two weeks ago, at the church prayer meeting, one man gave his life to Christ after attending the church for about a month. His wife is a believer and has been attending the church for some time. Praise God that He continues to work in the midst of great hardship.
Sylvester writes:
“After much prayer and fasting over the last several months, we are seeing God answer prayer. In February, we held a camp for children, where we looked at how our good God works in a powerful way. The children opened up, talked about their problems, and became very close to the leaders and the church. We want to continue these children’s meetings to keep this bond between the church leaders and young people. After camp ended on the Sunday, we had such a sense of God’s presence. It is difficult to explain, but many people prayed, and everyone was moved to tears. Just two days after the camp ended, the first family from Ukraine arrived, needing help. We still feel the impact of that week, even now.”
Pray for Sylvester and the ongoing ministries at the church in Zamość.