Two Years of Conflict

Two years ago, Ukraine was invaded by Russian forces. Since then, the United Nations has reported that over 10,000 civilians have died and almost 20,000 have been injured. According to data released this past September by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), over 3.6 million Ukrainians are still internally displaced, and as reported by UNHCR this month, more than 6.4 million refugees have remained outside of Ukraine since the start of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

You’ve Provided Nearly $1 Million in Relief

For over 700 days, Ukrainians have lived under the threat of physical violence. Many have lived without the security of a safe place to stay while also enduring hardships such as bombings, power outages, a lack of food, water, and other day-to-day necessities, as well as countless other difficulties. Throughout these past two years, your compassion and generosity have sent nearly $1 million in relief to meet the needs created by this conflict. Your partnership has enabled CAMA to partner with aXcess and come alongside local pastors as the church in Ukraine has faithfully worked to bind up the brokenhearted and point those in desperate need of hope to the good news.

Making Aid Accessible Alongside Eternal Hope

Because of you, both hope and help have become accessible in and around Kyiv as well as throughout Ukraine. The relief that you’ve equipped the local church to distribute these past two years has helped make it possible for believers to reach the physical and spiritual needs of the lost, the broken, and the suffering—to demonstrate Christ’s compassion in both word and deed. In response, people are turning to the Lord in their time of need. The network of churches that The Alliance has partnered with in Ukraine has grown to nearly 30 churches. Church plants have continued to sprout up throughout the country despite the ongoing conflict, and established churches have continued to grow and have had to find bigger spaces to meet to accommodate everyone gathering to hear the good news. New churches have begun their own ministries to better come alongside couples, women, and children, and places that have been made hard-to-reach due to the fighting have continued to be able to receive much-needed aid.

Because of your partnership, the local church has been able to make evangelism trips in places such as the Kherson, Odessa, Kharkiv, and Donetsk regions to serve people in need. An orphanage in Chernihiv was able to receive much-needed repairs for a roof and mold damage project through a partnership with Abundance International, Inc. Approximately four tons of aid were delivered to war zones in Ukraine this past September. CAMA’s aXcess partners in Ukraine shared, “Three trips were made to the east with humanitarian supplies including building materials to help repair houses so people could survive the winter in them. Our teams have come under much enemy fire during these trips, but God has protected.”

A Report from the Field

In the midst of great loss and tragedy, the light of the gospel is shining through. We’d like to share parts of a report one of CAMA’s key partners sent in about a trip made this past October by local church leaders to the south of Ukraine:

We went to Odessa, and the situation in the city is tense. It is often bombarded with rockets. We saw buildings and churches destroyed by missiles. But people continue to live in the city. Closer to lunch, people gathered right in the city’s center. There were many people, the weather was warm, and people were hungry for bread and for heaven. We preached, fellowshipped, handed out boxes of food, and blessed people in the name of Jesus Christ.

We later arrived in the village of Luch to find joyful and radiant people. They have been through a lot of trouble, but they are surprisingly kind and positive. A group of villagers lived in a bomb shelter for several months, but they did not get embittered and waited for the Ukrainian soldiers. Now they are restoring their houses and apartments little by little. We held a small service for them where we preached the gospel, sang two songs about God, prayed together to our Father, and distributed aid—food, hygiene products, bedding, and more.

The next day, we visited the orphanage. We donated groceries, boxes of fruit, and a large charging station for their home of 18 children—for when the lights go out. After that, we drove to a nursing home. There is a Bible study at that home, and there is already a group of people there who believe. A service is held there every week. Here we also preached, talked about God, sang, and gave lots of fruit to everyone. It was a joy for them!

Sunday morning, there were baptisms in the Black Sea. Three young men were baptized that morning in the sea! Such a vivid experience! It was very beautiful—the morning and the waves of the sea. Oh, the grace of God!

We Are So Grateful for You

Check out the video above to see how you’ve extended hope across Ukraine. This is just a glimpse of the impact your compassion has had throughout this conflict. Thank you for all that you’ve done to demonstrate Christ’s love in Ukraine.

As we anxiously wait for the day when the fighting will cease, will you pray with us? Pray for an end to the invasion. Pray that as aid distributions continue, people would keep coming to church and turning to Christ. Pray that the Lord would grant the local churches wisdom on how He’d have them specifically come alongside those in need through their ministries. Pray for the safety and protection of the teams that are continuing to go out into dangerous areas to distribute aid.

“In the darkness, the light shines the very brightest,” said one of CAMA’s aXcess partners. “In the hardest places, we see the biggest God.” As we look to the future and for further opportunities to share Christ’s compassion, please pray that the Lord would continue to shine His light in Ukraine.