God’s design: refugees coming to faith in Ukraine

Air raid sirens go off so frequently in Kyiv that most people ignore them now. While so many still feel the traumatic effects of those first few hectic months of war in Ukraine, a sense of uneasy normalcy has settled over the nation. Piles of rubble  and the threat of strikes are constant reminders of the conflict, yet life still goes on between the bullet-damaged buildings and burnt-out cars. It’s in these spaces where Ukrainian Christians are at work – determined to bring light where there is darkness.

When war first broke out, the Ukrainian Baptist Union (UBU) and the European Baptist Federation, both longstanding BMS World Mission partners, swiftly began their response. As refugees fled from the east of the country, many went on to other countries in Europe to find safety. But almost three years on, the UBU response is focusing more on those remaining in their communities and internally displaced people. People like Alona and Oleg.

Alona and Oleg are from Luhansk, a region that is currently occupied by Russia. Alona is a teacher and Oleg is a pastor and church planter. When the invasion first began, they fled with just a grab bag, leaving their home and everything else behind. Over 500 miles later, they arrived in Kyiv. With nowhere to go and no family with them, they didn’t know where to turn – until they found a local Baptist church that was offering support to displaced people.

At the peak of the war, churches in Kyiv were welcoming over 1,000 people a day seeking refuge. Not only did Alona and Oleg receive hot food and vital medicine – they found a community who could support them when they needed it most. And Oleg could see that people also needed a sign of hope during the horrors they were facing, so as soon as he could he began preaching and serving refugees in need, showing them that they had a God of peace and justice they could believe in.

But it would be two more years before they would see this small ministry come into fullness. In 2022, the owners of a casino nearby left the country – leaving an ideal space for Alona and Oleg to fully plant a new church. The bar has been repurposed into a kitchen, and there’s plenty of space for the congregation and children’s groups to share fellowship together. And their conviction of God’s plans and faithfulness for their community led to the ideal name: God’s Design Church.

The heart behind the church is to emulate the support Alona and Oleg received when they first arrived in Kyiv: “those who come to church come first because of humanitarian assistance,” says Oleg. Since the church’s official founding two years ago, 36 people have been baptised and they have 90 regular attendees on a Sunday. It’s a beautiful thing to behold, seeing how the Lord is at work and transforming lives in the mess of war – and, thanks to your support, it’s something we’re seeing across the whole of Ukraine.

Thanks to the generous gifts of BMS supporters, Baptist churches across Ukraine are receiving help and warmth this winter. You’re helping provide winter fuel to over 500 churches across the country to create crucial warm spaces for people facing a bitterly cold winter. You’re also making it possible for mobile kitchens to distribute hot meals to people living in some of the worst affected areas in eastern Ukraine. Thank you so much for remembering Ukraine – and let us pray that God’s love and peace will continue to be made known across this nation.