'This is war'

By SEND workers in Ukraine

For many believers in war-torn eastern Ukraine, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that” is no longer just a Christian cliché. James’ advice has become a harsh reality.

Yelisey, a pastor from the Lugansk region, described the situation in a Ukrainian Baptist magazine:

“Try to imagine your city and your life when there is no water for a month. Imagine how you might do dishes. You cannot flush the toilet, wash your face, do the laundry. There is nothing to drink.

A church member holds a white flag as he delivers drinking water in the conflict zone.

“There is no electricity in the city. You can’t use any of your favorite appliances. During a sleepless night you flip a switch, but you can’t disperse the darkness in your room or in your soul.

“No gas. If you want to cook a meal, you have to leave your apartment building and look for wood to make a fire.

“Worst of all, you have no means of communication. Crouching behind walls shaking from explosions, you cannot call loved ones to say goodbye, and they cannot call you to find out if you are still alive. Basements, cold, dark and damp, are overfilled with scared people. Children are crying and women are hysterical.

“Leaving the basement is dangerous. The brave ones can expect a thousand pieces of shrapnel from exploding mines. Dead bodies are lying in the street. Elderly who are having a difficult time breathing can’t expect an ambulance to come. There is no medicine or food in the stores because they’ve been looted.

“This is horrible. This is war.”

Yelisey’s church was burned beyond use.

“It’s easy to love others when everybody is smiling,” he said. “But how do you love those who hate you?”

Yelisey's church was destroyed in a fire.

One day a group of armed men gathered outside his window, and Yelisey’s heart was gripped with fear and hatred.

“I understand that it’s wrong to hate, and I was praying that God would free me from those feelings and would teach me to love,” he said. “I came to understand that I have to look at all people, without exception, through God’s eyes. And in God’s eyes, all people are lost, dying sinners who need salvation.

“I remembered Philippians 2:5 — ‘Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.’ When this word was dissolved in my heart, I opened the door of my apartment.

“It was a warm evening and the sun was setting. I approached the armed men, those who rightfully deserve the judgment and wrath of God. After greeting them and introducing myself, I said, ‘Guys, you need to repent! You need to ask God for forgiveness of your sins.’ After these words, the hatred was gone and my heart was warm with feelings of compassion and pity for dying souls."