Thank you for your concern and for praying for Ukraine and the Ukrainian People
Dear Friends of BIEM,
1. Praise God for those who are being saved during the war in Ukraine. Brother Sasha shared with us the story of Tolik, who lives near the church in Smolin. Many church members had witnessed to him in the past, but because following Christ would require leaving his lucrative (but illegal) fishing business, he resisted. The war changed all that. So, Tolik has received Christ and no longer conducts illegal activities. Please pray for Tolik to grow in his new Christian life and that he would find an honest source of income.
2. Brother Igor shares a wonderful story about something that happened while distributing War Relief near Desna. His group was visiting the home of an elderly lady needing aid when her son Ruslan, a major in the Ukrainian army, showed up drunk. Ruslan has a long history of battling alcoholism and in the past had been a devoted member of the Communist Party. He was so touched by the church showing compassion to his mother that he grabbed the Christian literature from the box of aid for his mother and declared, “These are good people. Maybe they can help me with my alcohol problem.” The whole family began to attend the church in Desna. Ruslan trusted Christ and is growing in the Lord. Praise God!
3. Despite the Ukrainian military making significant progress in pushing Russian troops farther east, Russian President Putin continues to bomb all over Ukraine so that no one is safe. For example, this just in from one of our missionaries in Bila Tserkov: “At around 2 a.m., Russian drones dropped 6 bombs on our city. Apparently, they were grouped in an area between my home and the large park in which I often take long walks. Their target was a military installation in that part of the city. The news here says that while 1 person (just one!) was injured in this attack, no one died. That is remarkable evidence, once again, of God's mercy and grace toward us! Thank you, sincerely, for your prayers on our behalf.
4. So far, three of our BIEM church planters have received special permission to travel to the United States to speak in churches that are interested in hearing directly from national pastors who are not only in the middle of the conflict in Ukraine but who are also instrumental in distributing aid connected with sharing the Gospel. Vitaly Yurchenko was first, followed by Vitaly Bilyak. With us now is Eugene Buyko and his family, except for their 19-year-old son who had to remain in Ukraine. Igor Fomichov might be the 4th since he is in the process of applying for the same exception. Please pray that he can receive this special permission.
5. Some friends ask about churches inside Russia. The churches with which BIEM has connections continue to serve the Lord during this time of war. As usual, BIEM helped to sponsor evangelistic children’s summer camps in several locations inside Russia. We want souls there to come to Christ. For their part, our brethren in Russia express sorrow concerning the war and pray for peace to be restored. The believers there with whom BIEM has connections are historically pacifists. Even in Soviet times, they were persecuted for not bearing arms or not swearing to defend the USSR. When possible, many opt for alternative service. The war does affect them economically. The Russian economy is shrinking, making it difficult or not possible to purchase things they could get before the invasion. Though due to sanctions we must be creative yet legal, we continue to find ways to get funds to our supported nationals in Russia.
Sam Slobodian
President - BIEM