Prayer and Support in Ukraine
In response to the war in Ukraine, we are seeing the worldwide body of Christ step up in prayer and in acts of compassion that bear witness to the way of Jesus in the face of evil. Read about how ABC connections are caring for refugees, encouraging Ukranian church leaders, and how we can be involved in prayer and support.
At First Baptist Church:
We will be taking a special collection for One Great Hour of Sharing – Ukraine on Sunday, March 27. – Checks can be made out to OGHS-Ukraine. To give online through the church, click
here, and select OGHS/Ukraine from the ‘Fund’ dropdown menu.
Ukrainian Refugees Begin Arriving
in Hungary
Global Servants Amanda and Jon Good
Monday night [February 28] was our first opportunity to help with the thousands of refugees pouring into Hungary. Our Szappanos church family quickly responded. The first group of sixteen came early in the day. Some of our team was in the church kitchen preparing food for our weekly Monday night Bible study and gladly shared our meal with the arriving refugees.
The second group of twenty-three arrived after Bible study, and we helped transform the large fellowship room into a space for sleeping [pictured above]. When the church reached capacity, there were two families that needed a place to sleep. We were glad to offer the space here in our home. They were exhausted when they arrived after driving through two countries to reach our place in Debrecen.
The next morning, we fixed some breakfast and had an opportunity to share with them. Imagine our shock as these young families described driving through Ukraine seeing missiles flying over their vehicles. One of the families is deeply involved in their Christian church in Kyiv. The father shared that they had just purchased a home close to their church. We have learned that this is common in Eastern Europe. Families will often choose where to live based on where their church family is located. We were saddened to hear that they had to leave it all behind. The two families had just met each other at the border, and the Christian family went out of their way to assist the other family in hope that they could share the love of Jesus. Our whole family was amazed and encouraged that even in the midst of worldwide crisis, these Christians wanted to share the life-changing hope of Jesus.
Our son said on the way to school this morning, “I better keep my room cleaned up, in case we get to help more people.” Please continue to pray, and know that Christ is at work! You are making a difference in this crisis.
We are so grateful that the Lord called us and that you sent us.
From Becky & Larry Stanton
Update from our Ukrainian Partners
Charles Jones, International Ministries Senior Area Director for Europe, Middle East and Liberia
“As you may already know, in response to the events unfolding in Ukraine, International Ministries sent an initial grant of $15,000 for our Ukrainian Baptist partners to help supply basic provisions like food, shelter, medicine, and hygiene items. We thank you that your ongoing and generous response to our call for further donations has so far provided more than $52,000 in additional funding. Our thanks as well to the Christian Community Credit Union (CCCU) for giving a gift of $5,000 this week to provide Ukrainian women and children with relief.
The office of the Baptist Union of Ukraine has been relocated to Western Ukraine, nearer to the Polish border. Leaders and staff meet there three times a day—at 9:00AM, 1:00 and 5:00PM—for prayer and coordination. The Union president’s prayer request was for good coordination as they try to provide evacuation and humanitarian aid to people coming through or trapped—since bridges around major cities, including the capital Kyiv, have been strategically blown up to slow the advance of Russian convoys. This also limits escape routes for Ukrainian civilians. The Baptist Union’s six regions in Western Ukraine (out of twenty-five regions in the country) are seeking to serve over one million internally displaced people (IDPs) coming through. He asked for prayers for safe travels for the drivers and vehicles bringing IDPs from their towns and then returning with goods and supplies.
Our global servants in Hungary—Amanda and Jon Good, Carmella Jones, and Becky and Larry Stanton—are directly engaged in helping to provide relief for Ukrainian refugees. The Goods share a story in the journal post below, and we will share further updates as we have them through IM’s social media.
The work being done by our regional partner (the European Baptist Federation) in collaboration with national partners (Baptist Unions in Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Romania, and other European countries) and the local efforts by our global servants in Hungary can only be sustained with your generosity. You can give a gift online or by check so that relief efforts through our global servants and partners can continue. Checks should be mailed directly to International Ministries (please designate your contribution “OGHS-Ukraine Relief” in the memo line).
While our financial support will provide for physical needs, the need for prayer is paramount. Will you pray alongside our brothers and sisters? Here are some of the requests they have provided: 1) pray that the war will be stopped; 2) pray for God’s comfort for those who have lost family and their homes; 3) pray that Ukrainian Baptists are able to help those who are running from the war, particularly as it is still winter; 4) pray for a stable channel of cash flow to Ukraine so that humanitarian needs can be sustainably met; 5) pray that the power of the Holy Spirit will continue working within every Ukrainian Baptist pastor; and 6) pray for the churches in areas surrounded by Russian soldiers—for the pastors and those who have stayed, that their hearts would remain open to surrounding people with Christian love and care.
I ask that you would pray for protection and provision for those who suffer, and for peace to be restored. And for our Baptist sisters and brothers and all peace-loving people in Russia, that God will give them courage to pursue peace.
Charles H. Jones
For other updates from American Baptist International Ministries, their website is here: https://www.internationalministries.org/
