My heart has been breaking for the people of Ukraine as they face unimaginable pain in the wake of invasion. OneHope has been serving the Church in Ukraine for more than 30 years. Having friends and ministry partners in the country, I’m receiving first-hand accounts of the daily bombings, displaced civilians, and vulnerable children throughout the region. This painful reality is hard to grasp, but I know that even in these arduous circumstances, God is at work and, as believers, we have a role to play too.
In any crisis situation, we’re called to pray fervently. Prayer is always our first response. We are already hearing stories of God moving in miraculous ways. I recently received this testimony of the power of prayer from a pastor in Lviv: “Please tell your people, because of their prayers, God really fights our battles. The rockets disappear in the air without reaching our homes and no one knows where they go. Enemy tanks run out of fuel, Russian troops get lost and ask our locals for food and for directions – that is definitely God because we are dealing with the second strongest army in the world.”
We also have a responsibility to equip the Church. Beyond prayer, our ministry response shifts in light of the needs of the Church in that region. How we responded to the crisis in Afghanistan was different than how we’re moving forward in Eastern Europe. The Church in the surrounding countries has the capacity and infrastructure to support in-person ministry right now, when the need is great.
Our local church partners in Ukraine and other countries are serving the most vulnerable. They’re assisting with evacuation efforts, housing, food, holding church services, and distributing Scripture engagement materials to children as they cross borders. For those in hiding, they can access the message of the Gospel through the Bible App for Kids, What If It’s True?, or other digital programs.
This is the time to join together and do everything we can to help the Church in Ukraine and surrounding countries mobilize in the region. By coming together to empower the local churches in Ukraine and surrounding countries, we can bring aid to those suffering in the midst of the turmoil. Please continue to pray, and if you feel led to aid our ministry efforts in Ukraine and countries accepting refugees, you can give by clicking this link.
