The Power of Prayer
By Nettie, a SEND worker in Russia
Yulia and I have been friends for many years. Although we didn’t see each other very often, I’ve always been encouraged by her strong faith. Her testimony ( which you can watch here) is powerful evidence of the miraculous ways God brings people to himself.
After her conversion, Yulia lived with a single missionary friend, growing in her faith and serving God in the local church. She loves to sing and help lead worship in church services.
After her conversion, Yulia lived with a single missionary friend, growing in her faith and serving God in the local church. She loves to sing and help lead worship in church services.
Eventually, she married Taras, a missionary from Ukraine, and they had two children. About five years ago, when the youngest child was only a year old, Taras died unexpectedly in their home of an asthma attack. His death happened right before Yulia’s eyes.
But God has provided for Yulia and her children. Many people from all over the world collected funds and bought Yulia an apartment, since they had no home of their won. A couple of years ago, she was able to purchase a car.
This summer, I got sick with COVID and Yulia got sick around the same time. Through church prayer chat groups, I learned that her situation was rather serious. She has a heart condition, and after about a week of being sick, she was moved to the ICU and possibly would not survive. We also learned that her kids had tested positive for COVID, but were living at home alone.
Our church community was shocked by this and concerned that these children could become orphans. We rallied to find a way to help them. One woman from the church took food to the kids every day and God protected her from catching COVID.
A man from the church organized a Zoom prayer meeting, bringing together believers from different churches to pray for Yulia. That Zoom meeting happened on Sunday evening.
The next day, we received news that Yulia’s condition was starting to stabilize. Over the next couple of days, she slowly improved, until she finally was able to leave ICU and be placed in recovery.
Looking back, we realized that her condition started to get better after the prayer meeting took place. We believe God used the unified prayer for Yulia to bring her back to health.
Once I started to feel better from COVID, God laid it on my heart to go stay with the kids at night. At first, I just spent the nights with them, and as time went on, I was staying with them during the days too. The oldest daughter, Esther (11 years), enjoys doing puzzles, so our evening tradition was to work on a 1,000-piece puzzle together. We were able to finish it before Yulia came home.
I had the privilege of picking up Yulia from the hospital to bring her home. It was a tear-filled car ride as she shared how thankful she was to God for sparing her life and sparing her children from becoming orphans.
We are filled with thanks to God for His mercy and healing touch on her body. It was so encouraging to hear about how the body of Christ came together to encourage and help Yulia and her children, from praying faithfully for her, to buying the kids fun gifts, to bringing food and necessities to Yulia in the hospital, to giving money to help cover expenses for things like food and medicine.
Yulia and I have met several times since she came home and she is doing so much better. She shared with me that she wants more than ever for her life to be devoted fully to serving God and living for Him. I feel privileged to get to have participated in a small way in Yulia’s story. I’m learning more and more that prayer is so important. We often feel so helpless in knowing how to help ease someone’s pain or knowing what to do in our own trials. But in our helplessness, we can turn to the Almighty God who hears us and acts on our prayers. Please praise God with me for saving Yulia’s life! Praise Him that He hears the prayers of the afflicted, the hurt, the sick, the lonely. He hears and He acts in ways we don’t always see.
Additional Posts
Choosing a Missions Organization: Why SEND International Stands Out “Why should I be a missionary through SEND International?” Jenna, a new missionary in Eastern Europe, shared with us what she appreciates about working with SEND. The highlights for her are: - Devotion to prayer - Diligence in communication - Commitment to development - Intentionality in accountability Prayer “Back in September of 2022, the Lord reconnected me with SEND after I had met them a year prior at the Moody Bible Institute. However, before he would sign me up for anything, my Missions Coach encouraged me to pray. He said something to the effect of, "I know that you've been praying on your own for a long time. But as the Church, we are not called to walk alone. So, you and I won't talk for about a month unless you have questions. I want you to go pray with 5 or 6 others from your church about where God is calling you." That October, more than 10 friends prayed with me and we saw God answer as He directed me to Romania. From February 2024 to November 2025, I had the pleasure of being a part of team meetings in Romania with my SEND colleagues. Our meetings were four hours long, two for prayer and two for business. This has been the minimum for our team. There are also prayer meetings with the local churches we partner with, among smaller groups within our team, of course prayer with many of you across the pond, including those at our US office. The organization was built, has been sustained, and continues to run on prayer. This is my favorite thing about SEND. Communication As I mentioned above, we have a two hour block for business / ministry details in each of our meetings. This provides consistency across our team which works alongside three different churches and in a variety of ministries. It also helps us to communicate about the need for change or growth, alongside what is working well. In addition, my team director also meets with each of us, allowing us to communicate needs, considerations, and prayer requests. I've also enjoyed getting to work with SEND workers outside of my immediate region . We receive emails with the minutes from the Europe leadership team, Friday communications from our international director, and information regarding projects that affect our work among the unreached. In December of 2024, our international director at the time wrote a note to my parents for the first Christmas that I was gone. If nothing else had convinced my mom yet, this did. He took the time to care for me, but also to care well for the parents that were sending me (What it meant to my dad and mom for him to do this well has been one of the greatest ways I've been supported.). I also have some pretty wonderful regional directors. These people have prayed alongside us (while also serving in their own countries of service), they have taken time to come visit and encourage our team, and they have also taken the time to encourage the people in our churches. Development SEND has provided much in the area of development and care (spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally). At our regional conference (every three years), there have been medical check ups available, counseling options, and time for connecting with others on the field with similar experience. At our conference last October, I connected with a missionary who served overseas for many years, and is now serving on the administrative side of SEND. She has met with me since then for mentorship and has also invested much of her time recently in preparing a retreat for the singles across Europe. Accountability Over the years I have read and heard amazing stories of how God has worked through missionaries. God has done great things and great things He is still doing! However, people who have committed their lives to the Lord in this way are not “super Christians”. We are still humans with the same struggle against flesh that others have . A major challenge is in being isolated -- living in areas with little to no presence of other believers to sharpen them can cause many difficulties. SEND has been a great resource in this area too. Through my team, I have an accountability partner that I meet with monthly. When my regional director came to visit, he and his wife spent a day with me and asked intentional questions about how I lead, handle conflict, and how I am growing in general as a Christian. In addition, my teammates share their wisdom with me on a regular basis. These things and more have assured me that SEND International is a highly valuable organization and I'm excited to partner with them in service to, for, and with our great God! Interested in being sent by SEND?
Learn about the spiritual harmony in Vietnam & how missionaries engage with college students. Join us in sharing the gospel!
Explore Georgia's spiritual heritage and the impact of SEND International's mission. Join us in fostering authentic relationships today!
