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Ukraine

A GROWING GOSPEL IN THE MIDST OF WAR

Mission Eurasia works in Ukraine and the other countries of Eurasia to train and equip young Christian leaders for effective ministry.

Ukraine—the heart of the Slavic world and the heart of Mission Eurasia’s vision—is the birthplace of our School Without Walls (SWW) program, which remains our largest and most diverse ministry program. It is also the birthplace of Mission Eurasia’s president Sergey Rakhuba, and formerly the home to our field ministry headquarters. Sadly, the headquarters were destroyed by Russian forces in 2022.

Ukraine has a turbulent history with Russia, namely being exploited as the Soviet Union’s breadbasket and losing millions of lives to forced famine and World War II. Though independent since the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has continued to deal with corruption and manifestations of Russian conquest. In February 2022, Russia launched an all-out invasion into Ukraine after nearly a decade of military occupation in and around Donetsk and Luhansk, as well as annexing Crimea in 2014. More than 21 million Ukrainians have been displaced and face serious food shortages. As of June 2023, almost 25,000 civilian casualties have been reported.

In spite of these hardships, our colleagues are serving on the front lines to meet people’s physical, mental, and spiritual needs. In addition to humanitarian aid that has included more than 350,000 iCare Food Packages, medical assistance, shelter, and trauma counseling, millions of Bibles and portions of Scripture have been distributed, and thousands of children and adults have come to Christ.In 2023, you also continued supporting our thriving School Without Walls (SWW) ministry training for 100 enrolled leaders, who all graduated from the full two-year program. Please pray for the hearts of future students, as well as for staffing for eight new planned SWW training centers. Additionally, please pray that Ukraine persists as a religiously free nation amid pressure against the Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox Church and promotion of the native Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”

Psalm 16:8

Prayer Requests

  • Please pray for the war in Ukraine to end. Pray that no more lives would be lost, that peace would be restored, and that God’s mercy and healing would be poured out on the people.
  • Please pray for our iCare teams who are working daily to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of Ukrainian refugees and the displaced. Pray for provision, strength, refreshing, and wisdom as they continually pour into hurting, devastated people who have lost everything.
  • Please pray for the new SWW training centers that are being established. Please pray that SWW leaders will be trained and equipped to expand God’s Kingdom in this war-torn land.
  • Please pray that the hearts of many Ukrainian victims of the war would be open to the gospel. We specifically ask for prayer for the children who have been living through intense trauma. Pray they would experience emotional restoration and healing from the scars of war.
NATALIA’S STORY

NATALIA’S STORY

Natalia and her family visited Light of Life Church in Poltava to receive a food package. They had just moved to the city after evacuating from Rubizhne and were looking for some support. We had iCare food packages from Mission Eurasia and gladly gave them one, encouraged them, and prayed for them. 

We explained that God loved them and was taking care of them through us. We were so happy to see them in our church the following Sunday—and to see what God did in their hearts after that. Natalia shares her story: 

“I used to live in the city of Rubizhne,” Natalia said, “located in Luhansk Oblast, alongside my loving family—my husband and our two sons. However, our peaceful lives were shattered in 2014 when the war reached our doorstep. But with time, we got used to it. So, when we heard explosions on February 24, 2022, we thought it would pass and decided to wait. But our hope soon turned into despair. We escaped. 

“Now, we find ourselves renting a modest apartment in the peaceful city of Poltava. Our beloved city remains occupied by the enemy, so we can’t go back yet. Soon after we arrived in Poltava, we came across Light of Life Church. We really liked it and started attending it regularly. Our whole family came to the Lord there, and we constantly see how He takes wonderful love and care of us through His people. We are immensely grateful for your support. It’s a huge blessing for us.”

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