Putin is the only BRICS leader not to attend the summit in person because he is wanted for war crimes. Member nations see the BRICS coalition as a counterbalance to Western-dominated alliances.

Russia invaded Ukraine almost 18 months ago. The Kremlin portrays the decision as a defensive move against Western powers.

Today, “the situation on the ground is precarious, but it has been for some time,” Eric Mock of Slavic Gospel Association says.

“There’s a massive number of people displaced by this brutal conflict; thousands have no good drinking water anymore.”

SGA continually offers aid supplies and hope through a network of churches in Ukraine. More about that here.

“We’re bringing solar power backup systems [that allow] bomb shelters and churches on the front line to charge cell phones so [people] can stay in touch with those evacuating or providing water and food aid,” Mock says.

“Since the war began, over 16 million meals and over 1,800 tons of aid have been brought in.”

SGA-supported pastors say that aid distribution centers in Ukraine are now under attack. The latest bombing destroyed one center used by several churches, killing four and wounding 15 people.

“Pray that many people, in the middle of these desperate times, would turn to Christ,” Mock requests.

“When a crisis comes into a person’s life, they begin to recognize they’re not God, and they turn to Him for hope.”

Header image depicts aid distribution center in Ukraine destroyed by Russian bombs. (Photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association)

Normally, “May 9 [is] a commemorative day with military parades and [other celebrations]. It’s Victory Day – when the Nazis were defeated, and Europe was officially liberated,” Frank Stephenson, Communications Director for TransWorld Radio Europe, says.

Last week, Britain’s Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said Putin could use the occasion to mobilize reserve forces. U.S. officials echoed the warning on Tuesday, saying Russia may use May 9 to formalize and justify its actions.

Soldier examines an unexploded rocket in Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine.
(Wikimedia Commons)

Russia’s foreign minister says the anniversary will have no bearing on military operations in Ukraine. However, May 9 is significant to Russia because Soviet troops were the victors in World War II.

Typically, large parades and important speeches mark the occasion in Russia. “Of course, it (May 9) might have a different significance this year,” Stephenson notes.

Only the Lord knows what will happen on Monday. For the TWR Ukraine team, “it’s not going to be a different day. It’s just doing the best you can, serving your people, and sharing hope,” Stephenson says.

“For them, it’s just another day in the midst of this tragic and senseless war.”

Ask the Lord to protect believers as they continue work in Kyiv. Support their efforts here through TWR’s crisis fund.

“A few of the team members are back (in Kyiv) and can do programs. Alexander, the director of TWR Ukraine, is very dedicated to [making] sure the staff can do all they can to speak hope to Ukraine,” Stephenson says.

Praise God for maintaining TWR Ukraine’s studio facility during the Russian occupation.

“The condition (of the studio) is pretty good. It’s all in place, so we’re very thankful for that,” Stephenson says.

Header image depicts the 2020 Victory Day parade in Moscow, Russia. (Wikimedia Commons)

Newsweek reported May 9’s importance in late March, citing Ukrainian military officials. On Friday, The Moscow Times chronicled World War II victory parade rehearsals in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

“Things are escalating; there’s no question,” Greg Musselman with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada says.

“It doesn’t look like the Russians are backing down; things are getting tense.”

On Thursday, Russia’s boldest attack on Kyiv since forces withdrew weeks ago came barely an hour after Ukraine’s president held a news conference with the U.N. Secretary-General. The assault followed “warnings” from Russia to Western leaders.

NATO members will hold a series of joint military drills in the coming days to deter Russian aggression. U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said on Friday:

“The security of Europe has never been more important. These exercises will see our troops join forces with allies and partners across NATO and the Joint Expeditionary Force in a show of solidarity and strength in one of the largest shared deployments since the Cold War.”

Global response

As Russia’s eastern offensive gains momentum, Western nations rally support for Ukraine.

The United States is considering a $33 billion aid package, while the European Union’s plans for new pipelines will ease the region’s reliance on Russian gas. Canada labels Russian actions in Ukraine “genocide” and implements more sanctions on Russian officials.

(Photo courtesy of VOM Canada)

“There was total unity, which we don’t often see in our parliament; it’s been very divided,” Musselman says.

“We have seen the atrocities; we know what’s going on, and it needs to be classified that way (as genocide).”

Pray the Lord will help believers, church leaders, and Gospel workers on both sides of the conflict. “There’s the physical reality of war and destruction, but there’s also things going on in the spiritual realms,” Musselman notes.

“In Russia, they’re treating this as a holy war. But, there are Christians [in Russia] that love Jesus and disagree with what’s going on.”

In the header image, enlisted Russian Air Force troops march in the 2019 Moscow Victory Day Parade wearing a ceremonial version of the office uniform. Each year, Russia holds massive parades throughout the country on March 9 to celebrate Victory Day. (Wikimedia Commons)

Speaking to the United Nations Security Council yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “the massacre in our city of Bucha is only one of many examples of what [Russia has] been doing on our land for the past 41 days.”

Human Rights Watch documents abuses by Russian forces here.

Will supposed “global outrage” change anything on the ground? Western nations proposed further sanctions and sent dozens of Russian diplomats home. Equating Russia’s actions to war crimes, Zelensky urged the Security Council to immediate action:

“The United Nations Charter must be immediately restored and the system reformed so that the veto does not represent the right to die … Ukraine needs peace. Europe needs peace. The world needs peace.”

Read the full transcript here.

The latest developments are personal for Keys for Kids Ministries. Executive Director Greg Yoder received troubling news from partners in Ukraine. “I traveled to the region with Mission Eurasia and got to know many people there,” Yoder says.

“I just got a Facebook notification that one of their youth leaders was murdered in Bucha.”

Furthermore, “their headquarters in Irpine was destroyed. Gospels of John in their warehouse were taken out and burned,” Yoder says.

Reason to hope in Ukraine

Believers won’t give up hope because they see God’s timing in action. Last year, COVID restrictions kept Keys for Kids Ministries devotionals on the shelf. Now, the resources are leading people to Christ.

(Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids Ministries)

“We started, with our partners SEND International, to translate Keys for Kids and Unlocked into Russian and Ukrainian. Because of COVID, they couldn’t do much distribution. So all of the printed material had been sitting around until the war hit, and then pastors just gobbled them up,” Yoder says.

“The good news is thousands of people are coming to know Jesus Christ.”

Pray Keys for Kids will receive the funding it needs to print devotionals in Ukrainian and Russian.

“We have a request for 200,000 Keys for Kids and Unlocked devotionals to provide hope for families. We’re praying God will open the floodgates financially; that He will provide the means [to print this material],” Yoder says.

Help Keys for Kids ignite a passion for Christ in Ukrainian kids, teens, and families in this time of chaos.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the city of Bucha in the Kyiv region, where mass killings of civilians took place during the occupation by Russian troops. (Wikimedia Commons)

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says the call-up had nothing to do with the war in Ukraine. However, the British Ministry of Defense said Russian forces “suffering heavy losses have been forced to return to Belarus and Russia to reorganize and resupply.”

Meanwhile, thousands of ordinary Ukrainians – including staff from Trans World Radio’s independent local partner TWR-Ukraine — are doing whatever they can to help their country.

Ask God to protect the man in this photo, TWR-Ukraine’s director. He remains in danger, as he is conscripted to digging trenches by day and returning to the rest of his family in the evening.
(Photo, caption courtesy of TWR-Ukraine)

TWR-Ukraine has  “program producers in the country(…) and yet every day, they get programs to us so we can broadcast them to their countrymen,” TWR’s Jon Fugler says.

“It is amazing; these are my heroes. We’re grateful they can do this day after day.”

More Ukraine updates from TWR here.

TWR launches new online radio station

Over four million people have fled Ukraine to shelter in neighboring countries, surpassing the United Nations’ worst-case estimate. “They need encouragement, and they need hope,” Fugler says.

That’s precisely what TWR wants to provide through a brand new initiative. “One of the things we’re getting ready to launch in the next week to 10 days is a 24-hour online radio station,” Fugler says.

“It’s mainly music to provide the encouragement and hope centered in Jesus. We’ve got folks reading Bible verses of encouragement sprinkled in as well.”

Listen to the live stream here.

The ministry is also working on a content hub for Ukrainian and Russian speakers on its TWR360 platform. The hub isn’t finished yet, but when it’s complete, “native speakers can go right there, no matter where they are in the world, and find material – whatever they’re looking for, whatever they need during this time,” Fugler says.

Ask God to give TWR staff His peace and pray they can convey that peace to their listeners. Connect with TWR here if you’d like to support relief efforts in Ukraine.

Header image shows one of the Russian infantry vehicles demobilized by Ukrainian forces in Chernihiv Oblast on Mar. 28, 2022. Russian forces “suffering heavy losses have been forced to return to Belarus and Russia to reorganize and resupply,” according to the British Ministry of Defense. (Wikimedia Commons)  

“People in the MENA (Middle East/North Africa) have been facing [war and refugee crises] in the last 30 years regularly,” Fadi Sharaiha with MENA Leadership Center says.

“But what’s happening in Ukraine has so much exposure in the media, especially in the West. Meanwhile, people being killed in Syria or Iraq is some ‘other’ news, like helping rescue a cat from a tree,”

“What is happening (the world’s response to the Ukraine crisis) is causing the Christians in the MENA, especially the Christian minorities in Syria, Iraq, [to feel] ‘we have been left alone.’”

Media bias isn’t the only problem. According to Politico, more than 25 nations have joined in purchasing and delivering weapons to support Ukraine’s war effort. The United States sent $1 billion to Ukraine in early March, bringing the total to $2 billion since the start of the Biden administration.

“We just finished an eight-week course on understanding refugee ministry; the Holy Spirit led us to do this training before the Ukrainian situation [began].”
(Graphic courtesy of MLC)

“Life is not fair. But, as Christians, we are called to do justice. It’s traumatic; I feel [for the] Ukrainian immigrants, but at the same time, we (non-European immigrants) need not be discriminated against. An immigrant is an immigrant, regardless of their skin color.”

Pray the Lord will provide support for urgent needs in the MENA region. And praise God for His timing! Some MENA countries have begun to accept Ukraine refugees, and believers are ready to help them thanks to MLC.

“We just finished an eight-week course on understanding refugee ministry; the Holy Spirit led us to do this training before the Ukrainian situation [began],” Sharaiha says.

“Now they are more equipped, more ready, to do more in the MENA for the Kingdom [of God].”

Learn how you can help bridge leadership gaps and expand the capacity of Christian leaders throughout the MENA here.

Support of Ukraine isn’t bad, but the perceived bias of Western media and military leaves MENA Christians feeling isolated and less important.  (Photo courtesy of Mathias P.R. Reding/Unsplash)

The number of Ukrainian refugees entering Europe will hit seven million, the European Union predicts, creating the region’s worst refugee crisis since World War II. Brother Luis* oversees Christian Aid Mission’s work with ministry partners in the Middle East and Europe.

“[The] European Union is preparing for three years of this situation, but it’s very hard to predict,” Brother Luis says.

“The Syrian refugee crisis is 12 years old, and refugees are still there in all these countries, so very hard to tell (when the Ukraine crisis will end).”

Believers in Eastern Europe describe overwhelming needs. “The first countries receiving these refugees – Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Moldavia, Romania – were not typically receiving refugees before [now],” Brother Luis says.

You can help turn this crisis into an opportunity to share the Gospel with the people of Ukraine!
(Photo courtesy of Christian Aid Mission)

On average, one million refugees per week have crossed the border from Ukraine into a neighboring country since Russia’s invasion began. Most fled to Poland.

“Poland has already received over a million and a half [refugees],” Brother Luis says, describing how the influx stretches Poland to its breaking point. “Poland now is screaming, ‘Western Europe, please open the way for us to send you refugees because we cannot handle this anymore!”

Find your place in the story

Indigenous ministries in Eastern and Western Europe provide physical aid and the hope of Christ to Ukraine refugees. You can help through Christian Aid Mission. “The Body of Christ [is] meeting the need and thus showing God’s love and mercy,” Brother Luis says.

“We need to be praying for them: for strength, provision, protection; and then help them meet the need,” he adds.

“I’ve been receiving reports of how much [believers are] spending, and it’s astronomical. A church of 100 [members] is [providing shelter] for 500 people (refugees), and you need to feed them; they have other needs.”

Help turn this terrible crisis into an opportunity to reach the Ukrainian people with the hope of the Gospel.

*Pseudonym

In the header image, Ukrainian refugees offered meals, clothes, shelter in Kraków, Poland. (Wikimedia Commons)

International Media Ministries is resourcing Gospel workers in Eastern Europe as the region receives scores of refugees. IMM uses media to bring Jesus to every screen in various heart languages.

“Creating things in Ukrainian versus a Russian Ukrainian or an Eastern Russian kind of dialect is super important right now. We’re reaching out to partners and saying, ‘Who has Ukrainian voiceover people for us?’” IMM Executive Director Denise Godwin says.

“‘Let’s get some tools into the hands of people who are receiving refugees.’”

International Media Ministries uses media to bring Jesus to every screen in various heart languages.
(Photo courtesy of IMM)

As they search for voiceover talent to create videos in Ukrainian, IMM is releasing archived videos in Russian.

“International Media Ministries has a large library of items. We realized that we have some pieces in Russian we hadn’t finished, and so we’re working on getting those ready,” Godwin says.

“Probably this week, we’ll start getting those into the hands of workers.”

Pray IMM can create resources in Ukrainian. Pray refugees can meet believers and form a friendship that leads to faith conversations.

“It’s important to pray during times of disruption. People (refugees) who are running for their lives, there is a really important time where they’re seeking something new,” Godwin says.

“There are three- to six months where they are open to a whole new way of life. That is an important time for them to encounter Jesus Christ as Savior.”

In the header image, a man escapes with his cat following an attack on a housing unit in Kiev’s Podilskyi District. Ukraine’s Emergency service preliminarily reports one killed and 19 injured people. (Wikimedia Commons)

Civilians continue to pay the highest price in this war. The total death toll remains unknown, though Ukraine has said thousands of civilians have died. Rescue workers pulled survivors from the rubble of a Mariupol theatre on Thursday; it’s unclear how many remain in the theatre’s underground bomb shelter.

What if you couldn’t hear the air raid sirens or find information about evacuation routes? That’s precisely why Deaf Bridge is helping Deaf refugees escape Ukraine.

“We have nine vans going into various parts of Ukraine and bringing Deaf people out,” Deaf Bridge’s Stacey McKenzie says.

“Over 800 (Deaf) refugees have come through the Deaf center, not including ones who have passed through (crossed the border) on their own.”

Stacey McKenzie’s Deaf husband, Chris, began Deaf Bridge to train and equip Deaf church planters. More about Deaf Bridge here. When Russia invaded, friends in Ukraine started messaging Chris in the United States.

“People didn’t know where the bridges had been taken out. So we were looking at maps and helping them navigate [while we were in the States] because they weren’t getting radio messages or any other kind of instruction,” McKenzie says.

“They don’t know what the safe routes are, where the checkpoints are. We also heard about a family who had gone down into their own shelter and didn’t realize everyone else had left their building.”

“Thank you very much for your donations! Now people are getting help and we are getting more volunteers to drive vans to pick up Deaf people from the war zone.”
(Photo, caption courtesy of Deaf Bridge)

Today, Chris is leading efforts to bring Deaf refugees from Ukraine to Romania. “On the border in Romania, there’s a Deaf center in the refugee camps, so [they have] all the resources in a centralized location,” McKenzie says.

“We have a couple of people inside Ukraine who can communicate with the Deaf, and now the information’s flowing a little better. But… many people aren’t connected or are just reaching out for help. We’re trying to get to them as well.”

Donate to help Deaf refugees through Deaf Bridge.

“Gas and transportation are the biggest costs. We have nine vans and drivers, and the gas for those is very expensive,” McKenzie says.

“There are also (Deaf) people who don’t have access to food, or physically they’re not able to get out. We [are] delivering food and medications and whatever other resources are needed to those people throughout Ukraine.”

Header image courtesy of Deaf Bridge.

Orphans in Eastern Ukraine

“It’s a heartbreaking experience to sit down on the floor of one of the orphanages and have three little boys, probably ages three to four years old, begin to climb on you and talk to you and say, ‘will you be my daddy?’” Mock shares. “And my wife was there [and they asked] ‘will you be my mommy?’”

“We are thankful for each gift we receive for #SGAOrphansReborn ministries in the CIS.”
– Lana Yusov, SGA’s Children’s Ministries Administrator  (Photo/Caption Courtesy SGA)

For a lot of these kids, they’re orphaned because of poverty and war. In fact, 70 percent of the kids in orphanages in Eastern Ukraine have a living parent. However, these parents (and other relatives) can’t afford to take care of them.

After being left heartbroken and alone, these kids are desperate for a mother and father. What’s more, they’re desperate to know that there’s more to life than the struggle they’re facing.

In many of the villages Mock visited, Mock saw struggling single moms and children living in despair. Regardless of whether these kids are raised in their natural family or in an orphanage, life is difficult.

This is just one reason why SGA’s ministry, Orphans Reborn, is so important in Eastern Ukraine. Orphans Reborn helps provide local churches with the necessary funds to visit the children living in orphanages at least once a month. On these visits, churches bring emergency food, clothing, and Bibles.

While there, church members also build relationships with the children and teach them about Jesus and the Gospel. Through these relationships and by providing some physical needs, church members show these kids what it means to be loved and cared for spiritually and physically. The local churches represent Christ’s love to them.

How to Help

And while SGA can’t help these kids find parents, they can help share Christ’s love. Will you help? As SGA’s founder often said, much prayer-much power.

(Photo courtesy of SGA)

“Just pray for the eastern part of the country. Pray for the orphan children. Especially for me as a dad and a grandad, a grandfather, when I think of these children and what they have to live through, it is heartbreaking. So please, keep them in your prayers,” Mock asks.

Pray also for these kids to realize how precious and loved they are by God. Ask God to transform these orphans’ lives and for them to be brought into a family that loves them.

Will you also consider walking alongside these orphans by donating to SGA’s Orphans Reborn program or to the Crisis Evangelism Fund?

Learn more and donate to Orphans Reborn here!

Learn more and donate to the Crisis Evangelism Fund here!

*The Crisis Evangelism Fund helps provide local pastors and their churches with the resources needed to distribute important food aid, Bibles, Christian literature, and other essentials throughout Eastern Ukraine. Just $15 can provide a food pack (which includes flour, cooking oil, past, and other staples) and Christian literature.