A Crimean Tatar pauses to pray. The man, who wished to remain unidentified, is a church planter to his own people in Crimea. (Photo by Chris Carter, IMB)

Ukraine (BP/MNN) — Stakes in Ukraine are even higher now. The Crimean parliament voted to hold a referendum in 10 days to give the people of the region a vote on whether or not to join the Russian federation and to nationalize state industries.

The United States condemned the move, calling it a violation of the Ukrainian constitution. President Obama called for international monitors to be allowed in to Ukraine to ensure the rights of the people. Russia says it will wait to make any decision on the move until after the referendum.

Despite all of the uncertainty, ministry continues in full force, says Shannon Ford, a missionary with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board. “The response from the churches has been fantastic,” Ford says from Kiev. “It really has been a time for prayer: not simply saying we’re going to pray, but actually going and being seen and guiding other people to pray,” even in the far east, near the Russian border.

Is the church unified? Ford says, “In this past few weeks, we’ve honestly seen a greater unification of the different evangelicals, and they’re standing alongside the Orthodox and Greek Catholic churches in support of the people and their spiritual needs.”

What does unity look like? “They’ve basically stood before the people and called people to pray. There is a depth of hunger for connecting with God and understanding the situation. The other side of that is the sheer number of Bibles and New Testaments that have been distributed.”

Ford describes the distributions: “Literally, as soon as you open up cases of Bibles, people begin walking by and begin talking to those who are with the Bibles, answering questions, asking to pray with them. We haven’t seen anything like this since the early 90s.”

According to the Baptist Press, even though talks of secession in Crimea are taking place, IMB work in the region continues. “The churches are still active. One of my good friends is a Ukrainian brother. It’s been fun to watch him post pictures of prayer walking, pictures of [him] and others talking to people that are milling around or just standing around to see what might happen,” says Ford.

People of faith are regarded highly today, Ford says. “Those who are known as believers are actually being sought out and are actually being listened to. It’s a neat thing to see.”

Ford told the Baptist Press that he doesn’t downplay the dangers facing Ukraine from both inside and out, or the agony the nation has experienced in recent months as protesters battled police and blood flowed before the government changed hands. He has served there for more than 15 years and feels the pain of Ukrainians more than most foreigners.

What Christians have been able to do in the last few months, in Ford’s view, is an outward sign of the maturing of evangelical work since Ukraine gained independence from the dissolving Soviet Union.

At the moment, however, the crisis at home demands the full attention of Ukrainian Baptists, PB reports. One of them is Oleksandr Turchynov, who was voted interim national president by the Ukrainian Parliament until new elections take place in May. He took office after President Viktor Yanukovych was removed Feb. 23 and later fled to Russia. (Russia’s incursion into Crimea followed within a week.)

Turchynov “has been a lay preacher in one of our Baptist churches, and he has brought a demeanor of trust and respect to the acting government,” Ford said. “So it’s really been a great time for the churches to be doing what we ought to be doing. They’ve not hidden. They’ve actually activated and gotten more visible during this time of stress and tension.”

Now, as divisions increase between ethnic Ukrainians in the western part of the country and ethnic Russians in the east, Christians are focusing on bringing people together.

“Unity is the word that keeps being used,” Ford reported. “The [Baptist] brothers and sisters in eastern Ukraine mostly use Russian. Many of them have Russian heritage. But they are the first ones to speak up and say, ‘There’s no tension between us and the Ukrainian speakers.’ Those in western Ukraine, even in a city that is very nationalistic and Ukrainian in language and culture, declared a ‘Russian language only’ day. They actually took to the streets and used Russian to show we’re one country. Language is not the thing that divides us.”

Unless circumstances force a change in plans, Baptists and mission workers anticipate a full schedule of summer camps, evangelistic outreach events, and other ministries this year. In fact, Ford hopes Southern Baptist volunteers come to work alongside them.

“It may sound like a fool’s errand, but we still think you can come and serve because we’re still here, and we’d like you to come and join us,” he said. He also challenged Southern Baptists to use the current situation as a way to reach out to ethnic Ukrainians and Russians in American communities.

Ford said he and other IMB workers have been overwhelmed and greatly encouraged by the many e-mails and social media posts from Southern Baptists expressing concern and promising prayer.

“It’s kind of strange. We’re in a sense of alert, but we’re also very much at ease,” he said. “Our #1 prayer is not necessarily for our safety, even though we of course want that for ourselves and for our people. Our #1 prayer is that we make use of this opportunity to be purveyors of the Gospel light. There’s just a lot of opportunity, and I’d hate for us to miss it.”

(Thanks to Baptist Press and Erich Bridges for contributing to this story.)

Moeller explains, "We are rejoicing that there are increased freedoms (and of course more challenges) in the South, but we have to ask the question: What about the Christians in the North?"

Christians have already been fleeing back to the South for fear of what is to come in the North. Open Doors reports that although many Christians are said to have returned to the South voluntarily, some observers have pointed out that they had departed because they could not be assured of their safety.

"The biggest challenge that they're facing right now is a decree from President Bashir that he is going to strengthen Sharia law after the secession is finalized," cautions Moeller.

Historically, the extension of Islamic law into society has never been a good thing for Christians. Sharia law varies in its strictness, depending on the interpretations of Islamic law, but in the past it has meant making Christians second-class citizens or, in some cases, even issuing their expulsion.

Concern over the possibility of such allegations surround the country's history with Sharia law, as well. Sudan was initially governed under Sharia rule in 1983, a decision which helped propel the nation into a decades-long civil war.

If conditions indeed heat up for Northern believers, Moeller says they still will likely have the freedom to leave the country. But a mass exodus of Christians is not necessarily a good thing, says Moeller. The church needs to be protected so Christ's light can reign even in the midst of difficulties.

There is a small but strong church in North Sudan that continues to grow, and Moeller says, "This is not a historical or political analysis, but we know the end of the story. As believers, we know that Jesus has said He will build His church, and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it."

The road ahead will be difficult for believers in the North, but the church has a history of extreme growth under fire. Pray for Christ-followers to stand firm in the North.

"Those Christians are bracing for an onslaught of new repression, but pray that they would be able to stand strong and continue to provide the light of Jesus Christ into their communities."

South Sudan has big expectations to fill as its birth is the
culmination of a six-year peace process ending a brutal civil war. However, the new nation is wrestling with
extreme poverty, inadequate infrastructure, conflict and other economic
woes. 

On Monday, lawmakers formed a caretaker government and announced a new currency. Lorella Rouster with Every Child Ministries (ECM) says these
are all great steps forward, but there's an absence that's too glaring to
ignore. "I don't see the attention of the world to help them."

South Sudan's struggles are similar to those of Northern
Uganda. When Northern Uganda came to the
world's consciousness, they got help. But aid groups offering to help this
newest fledgling nation get on its feet have not been overloud. Despite the veneer of new, it's still a
rural Third World country that lacks basic health, education, and roads, not to
mention hotels, airports and internet access.  

Rouster says this is where they can be helpful. They're an agency dedicated to showing the love of Jesus through mercy ministries to homeless street children,
through seeking to release and retrain slave children, and through medical and
rehabilitation ministries to the sick and handicapped.

Foresight and planning allowed ECM to be strategically
placed. "I was there just a few days before Independence, training church and
orphanage workers in Southern Sudan in more effective ways of children's
ministry,"says Rouster.

Government reports show that those who fled North from the
South are now returning home in droves. Agencies and ministries in the South are bracing for an influx of people
who need their services and compassion. Rouster says, "The churches really need to reach out to the new
generation that is coming up if there is to be any hope of the future. To do
that, they need to make the training fun and exciting and not just sitting there
listening to another sermon. So we believe that it can have a very positive
impact."

Sudan ranks 154 out of 169 on the United Nation's Human
Development Index. South Sudan's
challenges will be converting its vast natural resources into support that keeps
its people alive.

Rouster explains that
while the oil is in the South, there is little else right now. "Prices are very high in Southern Sudan.
Living is very hard, and rain is needed too for the crops. If the rain does not
come, the prices will be way too high for the average person."

South Sudan, or "New Sudan" as it's sometimes referenced,
teeters on the edge of being the next failed state if the new government can't
keep social, economic and political pressures under control. As if to acknowledge the formidability of its
task, the ministers of the Southern Sudanese government–with hands on Bibles–were sworn in to their
caretaker role for the new Republic of South Sudan.

Rouster commented, "I think it's a question of whether they
can continue to develop the integrity in their new government in such a way
that God can bless their country. That's what we're praying for, and that's
what Christians are praying for in Sudan: not only that there'll be peace, but 
[also] that their new government will really seek the Lord."

ECM is celebrating South Sudan's "new beginning" by sharing
the Gospel with the next generation. Says Rouster, "We
would like people to pray that people would use the teaching that we have given
them and be effective in reaching the new generation. The techniques that we've given are good for
large groups, so I think that's good for the influx of new children."

"Pray that the leaders will remain strong," says Rouster. The days ahead will be taxing, but exhilarating.  As ECM's Sudan presence grows, keep
praying "that they'll be up to the
challenge, that they will have great vision. The churches in Southern Sudan
have been growing at a tremendous rate, but that also leaves a big leadership
gap, so pray that strong leaders will rise up."

However, the fact is that land, oil and tribes just don't
mix well, whatever the government promises. In the days preceding the secession, Lee DeYoung with Words of Hope says, "Ethnic clashes have been reported among
Southern Sudanese in States of Warrap, Jonglei 
and Lakes. In Lakes State,
fighting has erupted between two different tribes of Dinkas: Dinka-Gok of Cueibet, and Dinka Agar of Rumbek."

Humanitarian needs arising from fighting and other violence
remain dire in the transitional border regions. Tens of thousands have been displaced at the
same time thousands are returning home from the North.

In a step toward making a new start and stopping the cycle
of violence, communities have been
encouraging peaceful reconciliation with
the tribal youth. DeYoung says their
broadcasting partners have been doing the same thing. "Our programs for the last year and a half
have been striving to encourage peace and reconciliation among south Sudanese
Christians. That has certainly been the
consistent message of our denominational 
partners on the ground there as well."

Dinka-language production had been based at the Lokichoggio
Ministry Center at the Kenya-Sudan border, where Nuer-language production
continues. Since most Christian Dinkas are Anglican, Words of Hope has a Dinka
production team in consultation with Anglican partners in Uganda. Rumbek, a
town in the heart of Dinka territory, has been chosen for the Dinka production
base.

DeYoung says churches throughout the country have been
holding daily prayer vigils since last week. With church leaders demonstrating such unity, it seems clear they're
intent on leading by example."The
overwhelming majority of southern
Sudanese profess to be Christian. On the basis of our common brother and
sisterhood in Christ, we've been seeking to encourage a sense that would
counterbalance the ethnic rivalries."

The challenges facing this fledgling nation are huge. There are still border and trade issues to be
settled as well as the division of the natural resources.Developing an infrastructure is another huge
problem in a country that will be one of the poorest in the world. Conflict follows poverty, or in this case, it
might just share the ride.

Still, DeYoung says optimism and hope are carried in the
voices of their partners. The Gospel has
made a huge difference in the areas they cover. Pray that they'll continue to be part of the peace solution. "While
no one can be certain, our Sudanese colleagues are cautiously hopeful that the
violence that has flared up recently might subside after independence becomes
official and people are then fully governed by their own South Sudan
administration."

This week, the government is
charging dozens of people with treason, which provokes those who are already
agitated about the issue.

Rioters were calling for
restoration of the 1964 Barotse agreement that granted autonomy from the rest
of the country. However, the Zambian
government refused the request, saying there can't be a state within a
state.  

While the violence has subsided,
the tensions are high. In the midst of it, stands the work of Kids Alive
International. Matt Parker  with Kids Alive says, "We
actually work with about 500 children in Mongu. We have several homes; we have
a couple of schools that we operate. It's actually a very tense time. Our children and staff have been safe,
but again, we're monitoring the situation." 

The government has cracked down
in the meantime. According to news
reports, they've arrested over 130 protestors, charged dozens with treason,
forbidden large gatherings, and shut down a regional radio station accused of
stirring discontent.

Although instability is frequently disruptive to ministries,
the longstanding political friction hasn't hampered their growth. In fact, Parker says, "We've just,
over the past year, begun construction of a Children's Village in Mongu, which
will have six or seven children's homes, a school, and community programs." Kids Alive opened their first Home on the site in 2010 for older boys, and they are putting
finishing touches on a second Home for the older girls.

With such a large
presence and reputation in the area, "This will give us opportunities to share
Christ's love. As I said, we have a big presence in Mongu. We have a lot of
relationships with people in the community so it gives us a good opportunity to
give hope."

Kids Alive recently bought new land for the Emmanuel School
and had a donation of extra land to extend the Jerusalem School. Plans are in the works to construct modern school
facilities that will enable the students to have a better future.   

"Pray that we would be
effective witnesses for Christ in that community, and that through our work,
through our witness, many other people would come to know Him." Pray, too, for safety for the team, and for wisdom
as they monitor the developments in Zambia.  

Click here for details
of Kids Alive's Zambia programs.

There are pros and cons to both sides, but for one ministry, a country split could mean disaster.

"We have four projects in Khartoum, the capital city of Sudan: three homes and a school. People are very concerned about the situation," explains Matt Parker with Kids Alive International. "There's concern about the possibility of violent demonstrations, even a concern about the possibility of a return to civil war in the country."

Some of those fears have indeed been realized. Clashes at the north-south border resulted in the deaths of at least 30 people on Sunday, Day One of the referendum votes. The Associated Press reports 20 policemen killed in the violence.

An even more pressing issue for Kids Alive, however, is the ministry's presence in North Sudan.

"People are not sure how the government in North Sudan is going to respond if there is a separation. There are a lot of practical issues that are unclear. There's actually a lot of people in the north of Sudan who come from the South that are now fleeing back to the South," says Parker.

While many other ministry partners to Mission Network News are working faithfully in southern Sudan–an area generally open to the Gospel, Kids Alive works mainly in the North. The North is notoriously Muslim and drenched in Sharia law. Kids Alive's presence there has been transformative in the lives of many, but Parker fears that if the country splits, disdain for western ministries will only grow.

"There's a lot of fear among the staff and children as to what the future holds. I think it is going to be increasingly difficult for Christian organizations to be working in the north in the future," explains Parker.

If antagonism toward western ministries ramps up as suspected, Kids Alive may need to migrate with the rest of the frightened Sudanese fleeing to the South.

"We would like to continue working in North Sudan as long as we can. We have kids there that we love, that we want to continue to care for and support. So as long as we can, we will be in North Sudan caring for those kids."

If the ministry does need to relocate, however, options are at least available in the South. Parker says already southern leaders have asked the ministry to help them address the growing issue of street children. The ministry is looking to develop their work in the South regardless, but hopefully not as a result of pressure to leave the North.

Your prayers are coveted during this tense and uncertain time for Sudan.

"The southern Sudan people are very eager to declare their voice, and it's almost certain that that will be a pretty unanimous decision to separate," confirms Sudan Unit Leader Phil Byler with Africa Inland Mission.

Secession from the North is a long-held dream of the South. Now that the possibility for change has finally arrived, the atmosphere in South Sudan is one of excitement.

"I would describe it as cautious optimism, but also a real sense of accomplishment," says Byler. "It's almost like a big holiday coming up."

The caution comes from a long history of war. Sudan has been known by its violent civil war perhaps more than by anything else. The North has claimed that they will accept whatever comes of the referendum, but a vote to split could easily reignite militant behavior.

Byler says many in the South have contingency plans in case war does break out. For the most part though, Byler says people are fairly certain any violence would be at the border, not all over the region.

Nevertheless, threat of war would indeed bode poorly for ministry in the region. Byler says AIM's work would be pushed to the fringes of the country, even out of it, if violence were to erupt. The proclamation of the Gospel would be significantly hindered.

On the other hand, if the referendum ends peacefully, AIM is prepared to begin recruiting more missionaries. Five tribes–one of them of substantial size–surrounding the area in which AIM works are unreached. If the referendum goes smoothly, the ministry plans to gear up to bring more missionaries to Sudan.

With that in mind, the most coveted prayers for the referendum are not that the country will finally split, but that whatever happens, it will happen peacefully. "We just hope and pray for the peace of Sudan so that the Gospel and the church can continue to press forward," reflects Byler.

The referendum vote will take place this Sunday, January 9, 2011. Over these next few days, pray for a peaceful end of this violent chapter in Sudan's history. Pray that ministry would be able to go forward, and that the Lord would do a mighty work in Sudan.