Ukraine War Relief Visit #4: Questions
Questions
By Stephanie Olivero
San Diego, CA
On Friday, November 4, The Outreach Foundation’s team traveled from Warsaw, Poland, to Klaipeda, Lithuania. There we are spending the remainder of our visit with Pastor Saulius Karosas of City Church. It has been a difficult transition because the images and words we experienced at the border persist. Today’s blog reflects the struggle and questions each of us has.
Susan and I have spent our nights reflecting on the stories we heard and now carry with us. We wrestled with the fact that the tragedy these people are facing is beyond anything we can comprehend. One of the stories that touched us was hearing about Dr. Ivan Rusyn, who has been serving the Ukrainians in his hometown of Buccha, where hundreds of bodies were discovered in mass graves. Despite having buried several of his friends, he continues to go into the forest closer to the front lines of the war and serve communion to the soldiers while Russian missiles fly overhead. This could be our final communion together, an eerie awareness in that space. In spite of this, we see his steadfast resolve to stay faithful to God during this senseless war.
Later that evening, we gathered for dessert at Pastor Saul's house where he and his wife Sanna are hosting a Ukrainian student who has also been impacted by the war. She shared how difficult it was to have her father fighting in the war and her mother choosing to stay in Ukraine to support him. Her grandmother's health issues complicate the situation since she is unable to leave the country. Communication remains hard for them due to long power outages and intermittent internet. One woman waits a week between news from her parents back home.
In hearing these stories, several questions pushed their way to the surface like permafrost in an Alaskan forest. Some include:
- Would the medical supplies we brought make a difference or even a dent?
- Is our being here having any impact?
- How much can one person take and remain faithful to God?
- Will we keep Ukrainians in the front of our minds when we return home?
- How could people not want to come and embrace these people, to listen to their stories?
We wrestled with these questions and concluded there’s really only one option – live in obedience to God. For us, that obedience meant saying “yes” to showing up, being present, listening to the stories, and sharing the burdens. Sometimes that sharing was in dancing with them, other times it meant an embrace, a picture taken, shedding tears. It meant bringing the requested medical supplies. Most importantly, sharing their burdens meant lifting new friends up in prayer and reminding them that they are not alone. We did this so often, I’ve lost count now. Their burdens are keeping us up well into the morning and we get so tired. Suddenly a thought pierced our memory. Ah yes, this is what Jesus wanted from his friends, too, when he was alone in that Garden. “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch” (Mk 14:34). Sharing the burden. When you are here, there is no doubt that it weighs heavy on everyone around you. This war is making an impact on everyone here.
Tom had told us that the donations we brought were good, but they weren’t the main thing. We felt such urgency about all that! Upon giving the donations to Dr. Rusyn, the look on his face was all the confirmation that we needed to know that while the supplies do matter, being here matters even more. He thanked us with such emotion. Thank you for all you have done. Thank you for coming. Ivan is just one of the heroes who have changed our hearts forever.
We don't have the answers to why this is happening but we know God is faithful. We see these people as heroes, growing in their faith and hopeful in spite of it all. We see God helping them to rise up out of discouragement and walk in faith as they put on the full armor of God every day, and we will continue to lift them up in prayer.
