What´s Going on in Ukraine?
So, let´s jump straight in! We want to use this blog not only to keep you updated about ministry in Europe, but also as a place to educate you about life (geo political landscape, modern issues in ministry, culture) in Europe and share where we are in our own walk with the Lord, despite these things. We hope that as we walk our faith out more publicly, you will also be encouraged to draw nearer to the heart of the Father.
The biggest issue of the day, affecting the world, is the Russian war in Ukraine. Anyone not living under a rock has heard about the biggest military aggression, and the worst humanitarian/ refugee crisis in Europe, since World War 2. We want to start by telling you: no matter what you read on the internet or in the news, no matter what you hear when you listen to news or political commentaries, there are no winners in this situation. There is definitely a “bad guy”, but that “bad guy” does not represent his entire country, so jumping on the band wagon of anti-Russia sentiment is a horrible misplacement of frustration. And, regardless of what you´ve heard or believe about the Ukrainian government, nothing justifies what is happening there. The conflict in Ukraine has been brewing for years and is complex. A helpful, quick history lesson on this conflict and Putin´s ideations about restoring the Soviet Union can be found here (I know so many of you might not like Ben Shapiro, but this is a very succinct, well put together history lesson, without bias).
So now that we are all caught up on the history of the conflict, we can get into the current situation:
· On February 24, 2022, Russian launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine under the guise of a “special military operation” to liberate the population from Nazis, with the singular goal of neutralizing the military and installing a government sympathetic to Moscow.
· As of 14 March 2022 (local time), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded 1,834 civilian casualties in the country: 691 killed and 1,143 injured. This included: a total of 691 killed (135 men, 99 women, 7 girls, and 11 boys, as well as 30 children and 409 adults whose sex is yet unknown)
· The number of Russian soldiers killed in action (many not having been aware of what they would be asked to do in Ukraine) is impossible to tally. Some estimates are as high as 15,000 deceased since the beginning of the conflict on February 24.
· Officially, 2.8 million refugees have flooded into Europe since February 24, however the number may be higher, as some will have fled to family or friends throughout Europe, and not registered with organizations like the Red Cross. Most are women and children, because men between 18 and 60 are required to stay and fight.
o Most have found shelter in neighboring countries. Poland alone has taken in close to 2 million refugees, providing them with food, shelter, health insurance, and, in many cases, jobs. Slovakia and Moldova have also taken in a significant number of refugees, and most EU states are allowing refugees to come across their borders, visa free, and apply for assistance.
· Residents in occupied or heavily disputed territories like Irpen and Mariupol, who would like to evacuate, are trapped without food and water. Humanitarian efforts to bring relief have failed, because Russian forces in this area are aggressive and shoot to kill anyone trying to escape (including civilians). Contacts through Campus Crusade for Christ that we have in these areas have confirmed this, and have reported that many trapped civilians have begun dying from dehydration. Many of those casualties are children.
· Anti-war protests in Russia have been squelched by Police, and the punishment for any type of anti-war behavior is being punished with 15-year prison sentences. The natural response to this aggressively repressive behavior by the government is for normal people who desire peace to remain silent.
· Russia has also shut down social media and outside (western) media within the country. The result of this will be widespread pro-government propaganda within the country for the foreseeable future. Coupled with the sanctions placed by the western world, resulting in widespread distress among citizens, the result will likely be the alignment of public sentiment with the government, in opposition of western ideals (because the west will undoubtedly be seen as the aggressors who are responsible for recession in Russia).
· Europe stands perilously close to war, and as we all know, if Putin happens to become aggressive in Poland, Slovakia, or any of the several European nations surrounding Ukraine (several days ago a Russian missile landed a mere 20 km, or 12 miles, from the Polish border), then NATO will have no choice but to respond. The result would be WW3, and likely involve nuclear weapons.
We need to pray like never before. And I’m not saying that because war is now closer to me, geographically, than it’s ever been. It’s true- the border of Ukraine is closer than the distance between St. Louis and Denver. But we stand at the brink of the biggest crisis in our lifetimes. A resultant European war would actually become a world war, and we live in the time of nuclear, long-range weapons. Putin stands no chance against a nuclear west, however we can all agree that a nuclear war would be far too catastrophic and result in senseless loss of life. WE NEED TO PRAY. We need to pray for peace, for the swift and peaceful end to this. We need to pray for cool heads to prevail, and for truth to be evident. And we need to be praying that the Holy Spirit show each of us how we, personally, should be lovingly responding to this crisis.
Let´s be real…the last several years, we in the west have entered a time in history where everything is politicized and we are constantly looking to classify people into categories of right/ wrong, moral/ immoral, liberal/ conservative, worthy of…/ unworthy of… It´s tiring and it´s played out. I want for you to hear my heart through this rebuke (that I include myself in): it´s enough. It´s time to stop and set aside our own ideas of what is right and wrong, or how we think life should be. It´s time to step away from conspiracy theories and arguments about who we think should be president, or who and what is responsible for our current situations, or whether or not masks and vaccines work.
People- we are in a unique point in history, and the world is barrelling toward the end times. Wars, rumors of wars, distrust, confusion, catastrophe. I don´t know when the Lord will return, and neither do you. This isn´t a commentary on end times or what I personally believe those times will be like/ who they will involve as the main players. What I do know is that we in the body of Christ have allowed ourselves to be duped into following rabbit trails of confusion and chaos, in the name of “righteous politics”. We´ve placed hero status on political figures and chosen to give them our time and energy and attention, and we have completely forgotten to seek the heart of the Father in the midst of our current situations. I don´t, frankly, care whether you are a democrat or republican, pro- or anti- vaccine, “America first” or “world first”. If we count ourselves as children of God, our first concern shouldn’t be our own opinions or what we think the country/ world should be focusing on. Our first concern needs to be, “where is God in all of this?” “What does he think about…?”. If we aren´t taking all of these things (war, covid, humanitarian help, race issues, politics, etc) to God first, to understand His heart and what He thinks, then we need to feel rebuked and repent. When the end times come, confusion will be rampant. We need to practice being faithful followers of Christ RIGHT NOW. We need to faithfully pray, faithfully seek His heart, faithfully operate in discernment, and faithfully walk in obedience, no matter what. Why? Because when the time comes, and the enemy unleashes his full assault on the earth, we will need to know exactly how to remain level-headed, faithful followers of Christ, who know His voice and how to follow it.
So…is this blog post a commentary on the crisis in Ukraine? Yeah…kind of. We need to be aware of the current geo-political state of our world so that we know how to pray and react. We need a fuller picture of what is going on, beyond our own limited perspectives. But it’s also a broader commentary on how we as believers need to learn to respond in times of uncertainty and chaos. We need to be quick to pray and slow to speak our opinions. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to form our views and beliefs about situations, and learn to patiently wait for Him to give us the go-ahead to speak about them. We are praying for you in this time of uncertainty and chaos. We are praying you hear the voice of the Father clearly, that you would know how to respond. And we ask that you pray for us as we navigate this crisis and what it means for our family and ministry. It is arguably the most stressful and nerve-racking thing we have ever experienced. And we ask you to pray for our friends and ministry partners in Ukraine and Russia. Pray that they have peace and hear the Holy Spirit clearly, despite the terror and confusion. Pray for our ministry partners directly helping refugees in Poland and Slovakia…they are heroes and their work is exhausting. Pray for peace.
Much love, from Austria,
