Despite the challenges and darkness that continue from the ongoing war, the Lord continues to work in people’s hearts in Ukraine and the surrounding nations. The Ukraine Crisis Fund supports many individuals affected by the war, especially through the care of local churches.
One of these local churches is Crossroads Baptist Church in Odesa (leadership team pictured below) where Pastors Konstantin and Dima along with ABWE missionary Holly Friesen serve.
Thank you for your generosity which allows for continued ministry in a country that desperately needs the hope of the gospel.
By the grace of God, every week, on Thursdays and Fridays, prayer hours are held at the church. This time is spent with non-believers, many who are internally displaced or people who find themselves in difficult life situations. These days provide opportunities to share the Gospel with people, pray for them, and support and encourage them. After preaching the Word of God, hot lunches are shared with everyone, and there is a time for drinking tea and spending time in informal communication. Food assistance is also provided as they are able. People come for help, and when they hear the Gospel, words of consolation and hope, it changes their lives. Many have already made the choice to follow the Lord.
Dina is 87 years old and came to the church to receive a food packet, but now she visits regularly. She is a lonely woman, who has difficulty seeing and hearing, but is very hungry to hear the Word of God. In church, at all the services, she sits in the first row to listen carefully. She was given an audio player, so she could listen to the Bible at home. Grandma Dina really loves the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ and can practically recite it by heart.
Ludmila is a resident of the Luzanovka region of Odesa, where the church started its ministry, and is almost 70 years old. The church is located just a few steps away from her home. Ludmila has a disabled husband, who is bedridden. When the war began, she felt a tremendous weight of stress on her life. As a result, she did not eat for several days and did not know how to continue living.
One day she was going to the pharmacy and passed by the church, heard the singing, and decided to stop by. She liked the Christian songs, commenting: “In church my soul becomes lighter and warmer.” She came the next day and the day after, and then began to come again and again, every day. On the fourth day, she agreed to share a hot meal with those at the church. A few days later, she smiled for the first time. That’s how those her friendship with those at the church began. Ludmila was very attentive to the Word of God, which she absorbed daily. The Lord touched her heart, and she decided to give her life to the Lord. She was baptized and became a member of the church. She continues to grow spiritually and, whenever possible, to serve God through serving people. All glory to God!
The Ukraine Crisis Fund has helped come alongside this local church which is providing not only physical food and care but also spiritual food, hope, and life to many.
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