Christian Love in Action

October 2026

Dear friends, The Russian military has hit Ukraine and our region of Kharkiv very hard in Septmber. According to the UN’s human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine, sadly, there have been at least 200 civilians killed and another 1,200 injured in the first three weeks of this month - with our city of Kharkiv being a central target. The populace has had to endure a devastating wave of guided glide bombs, kamikaze drones, and heavy missile strikes. On the day of me writing this prayer letter, an apartment building in our city was hit and injured 29 people with 10 of the casualties being children. My apologies, but I am so tired of this war and how it is devestating children’s lives; please pray for these little souls!

In this letter, I am highlighting a ministry that I have not reported in for a long time, which is Living Hope Evangelical Community Church – Kharkov. We have partnered with them for over two decades, but since the war began in 2014, we have primarily helped them in ministering to war refugees that fled the heaviest impacted conflict zones. In the last couple of years, our board recoginized that the war has caused devestating PTSD and trauma for veterans and their families. Living Hope has been on the cutting edge of providing Christian counseling services to people in the community that have been emotionally devastated and trying to navigate their trauma, while expressing the love of Christ.

Ukraine is unlike America in many ways, but one difference is that our country seems to have unlimited opportunities and resources for counseling services. In Ukraine, counseling services are virtually non-existent, at least in our area of four million people. And if these services do exist, they are secular in nature and cost prohibitive for the vast majority of the population. Our board has been very concerned about the long term affects of this war and its impact on the family. In some small way, we are supporting this very important counseling programs through Living Hope.

For about two years, the church’s counseling program has been called the Living Hope Crisis Center. They have multiple programs with a variety of participants. It is pretty fluid with people coming and going regularly, but with more awareness will come greater need for help. The church is offering programs like the following:  “Your Identity in God” (29 participants), “Building Healthy Relationships” (36 participants), A Support Group “Building Healthy Relationships” (22 participants), Regular meetings/trainings with the pastoral caregivers’ community (once every two weeks), Regular training meetings “Practical Issues of Pastoral Care,” A Christmas celebration, consistent meetings with returning veterans (many participants), Individual counseling (including families of military personnel with many participants), development of a “Gratitude Journal” (materials for group sessions), and visits to elderly people (families of military personnel who need attention). Also, in 2025, one of the Crisis Center leaders began writing and defending a bachelor’s thesis in pastoral care: “Dopamine-Dependent Behavior.” As you can see the church is engaged in a wide range of activities.

Here is one testimony on how you are blessing others through this ministry.

“Hi, my name is Yulia and I am a mother of two teenagers and I am sad to report that my husband has been missing in action for over three years and there is still no word about his condition or whereabouts. I cannot express the grief and sadness that we have experienced with believing he is dead. While my children and I are dealing with immense grief, there was some good to it … I came to know God, gave my life to him, and accepted Jesus as my personal Savior. I originally came to the pastoral care taining, so I could help many other hurting families, like mine. Living Hope helped me launch a course for women whose loved ones are missing. It has really helped my own personal healing and helped me on my journey too. I am so thankful to now be part of the Restoration Team in Living Hope’s Crisis Center. Thank you for everything you are doing to partner with us!”

Some of the participants, like Yulia,want the tools and resources to help their loved one’s upon their return home. One of these individuals is Svitlana who has a son serving in the war. She is very concerned about how the war has impacted him and how he has changed. Svitlana and many like her have expressed deep gratitude of what they are learning and it is helping them feel more prepared on the realities of war and the reunion of the family. Here is what she wrote about herself:

“Hello, my name is Svitlana and I am 55 years old. I have a degree in civil engineering. I am a widow and my son serves in the military, but I live near my daughter-in-law and grandson. I have been a Christian for over 20 years. Before the war, God reveled to me that I would be used to help many other people be comforted. I had no idea of the events that were about to unfold in Ukraine, but the Holy Spirit pressed upon me 2 Cor. 1:3-4, which states, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

Looking back, I have embraced this Scripture as one of my life verses and now I am very active in helping many families process their grief and trauma and more prepared when my son returns home. During the first two years of the war, I was involved in delivering humanitarian aid through our church, where Slavic Christian Ministries helped us in amazing ways. But now I have transitioned to encouraging and counseling people in the name of Jesus, while also trying to share to Good News. I am thankful God is using me to bless many people and that your ministry is partnering with our church and Crisis Center; thank you so much!”

Anastasiia Haidabrus, who is the Restoration Center’s Coordinator, wanted me to also convey to you that there are plans for new courses and projects in the future. The Crisis Center will continue to train, develop, and support lay leaders who can be pastoral caregivers. The vision and mission is to provide on-going group and individual counseling for people facing crisis at all levels, and to development and create supportive resources. She also thanks you for your prayer and financial support!

Dear friends, this prayer letter was to introduce you to work that you have been supporting for a couple of years now. Next month, I will be sharing a few more testimonies from this Crisis Center and also preparing you for our Christmas outreach that will be here before we know it. Thank you for helping support Living Hope; you are helping our brothers and sisters minister to many who desperately need help for many years to come. Thank you so much!

In Jesus’ love,

Ron