Ukraine War Relief Visit #5: Hope, Inspiration and Joy
Hope, Inspiration and Joy
By Dan Gilbert
First Presbyterian Church, Columbus, GA
The Outreach Foundation team is in Eastern Europe visiting war-affected Ukrainians and the partners providing care to them. We are now in Lithuania spending time with City Church and LCC International University.
We are taking a break from our questions to share hope, inspiration, and joy – the fruit of God’s work through the church in this place. Our day began with a delicious brunch at the home of LCC International University’s president, Dr. Marlene Wall. Thirty-one years ago, she received a phone call to teach English here. Her “yes” then has stitched her into this University’s mosaic that now includes 850 students from over 50 countries. Joining us for breakfast were three of her students who shared their stories with us.
“Mehrdad,” a student from Iran, explained how in his search for a university, he was looking for freedom from life in Iran and found LCC. Despite being told it was Christian and he would need to take Bible, he agreed even as he worried that once again he simply was trading one religious oppression for another. Yet to his surprise, he is most excited about his Bible class! He is free to ask questions of his professors and he has discovered a God who wants people to be free and to know love. It has completely flipped his perspective! The trip blogs from The Outreach Foundation’s recent Diaspora visit (from October 23-November 1) will provide a good example of what Amir is experiencing.
Two Ukrainian students, Sophia and Ivan, told of their life at LCC as they deal with the struggles of war. Sophia’s grandparents fled to Lithuania, but she lost contact with them. To her surprise, they live just 3o minutes from Klaipeda! She says God showed her that he wants to bless her with safety and family. This is a God I can like. To stay in touch with family in Ukraine, she has to rely on the sporadic electrical power there and this concerns her.
Sadly, but understandably, Ivan carries guilt. He is 19 years old yet unlike his friends, he is not fighting for his country. Education is one of the valid excuses to not be in the army, and his family forbids him to return. We could see the conflict in him. Like Amir, they are excited about their Bible class, and they learn about a personal Savior. The Bible has come alive! How inspiring it is to see some of the differences God is making in the lives of these young people through LCC.
Our team then headed to “City Church Hotel” where over 50 Ukrainian war-affected families live. The hotel is filled to capacity, and they are anticipating many more to come ahead of winter in Ukraine. For Jill and Susan, it was a great reunion, and they were applauded for their return. City Church is doing well with the families in their care. They have seen people come to Christ, learn about kindness, and experience hope and joy. We were entertained by their music and poetry which was beautiful, but it brought tears to everyone as they sang of their homeland. Just to touch the walls of our homes. There was a significant pause, and then the tears morphed into dancing among the elderly women. We took lots of pictures and shared hopes to see them again one day...in Ukraine!
One of the families integrating into Lithuania is Marina, with her mother and grandmother. She invited our team to her new apartment where we ate even more food and heard more stories. Marina is a professional artist and professor of fine arts from Odessa. Her husband helps orphans in Lviv. There are so many more orphans now because of this war. She thanked our team and Pastor Saul for the help to move into the apartment, take language classes, and teach at Klaipeda University. It was wonderful to see her transition and her excitement about the ability to move forward!
Today we saw a church that triumphs through the challenges of war. The church in this region did not begin with the war and it will remain after the war is done. Her witness persists in this season in large part because of what God planted here 30 years ago. What a privilege to be part of their story and to make their story part of ours.
