Shoeboxes Provide Hope to Ukraine

By Angela Rice, Short-term Missions Coordinator

He is able. “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think” (Eph. 3:20 NLT).

I met some people recently who so motivated my heart and inspired me to be a better person. I had a hard time figuring out how to process the thought of living and serving during a war and how to describe these precious people. I finally came up with the word hero. These guys are heroes to me.

Webster defines a hero as “a person of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his or her brave deeds and noble qualities.”

Yes! That was good, but even greater is a hero of the faith — an everyday person who says yes to God and opens his or her heart and life to God, allowing God to do His work in and through them.

Let me introduce you to heroes of the faith that I met recently! I want you to pray for these guys. They desperately need your prayers.

We went on a mission trip in January to Poland to work with Ukrainian refugees. We asked if our Ukrainian pastors could come and spend time with our team. These pastors and their families are heroes. When the war started in Ukraine, no one really expected it. People began to panic and scatter. Many were crossing the borders. Several of our pastors started serving the long lines of hungry and cold people that were waiting to cross into other countries. They served in this way for months.

Each of these families had the option to leave Ukraine. They all are young and very smart. Most of them have young children, but they choose to stay.

I listened to a 13-year-old tell me about the bomb shelter at their school and what they do in the shelters at home, as if it were so normal… I have no experience with that. She was the sweetest young lady with the biggest smile. It is really cold in Ukraine during the winter. It never got above freezing when we were there. They talked about only having electricity for a few hours a day, and it is so cold!

As we returned from our trip, shoeboxes and supplies were sent into Ukraine and the pastors we met began to give them out. They went to four siblings that had watched as a Russian soldier kill their dad in their front yard. They were given to a group of children orphaned from the war, children at the pediatric hospital and the cancer hospital, children abandoned because parents couldn’t take care of them. Shoeboxes were given in churches, schools, hospitals and even to the soldiers at the front lines. And every time a shoebox was given, they received food and supplies, but the best part is that Jesus was shared.

Right now, in Ukraine, the church is where you go to get supplies. Churches are full. Many are coming to Christ during this tragedy. Praise God for that.

For over a year, these families have served the poor, heartbroken, cold and hungry people of Ukraine. I asked why they stayed, and the reply was this: “God’s plan for our lives has not changed just because war broke out. If anything, we are doing much more ministry than ever before. God gives us everything we need to minister. Many people are coming to Christ right now. The church is full every service.”

It is not at all because of these guys themselves — they are everyday people, just like you and me, who said “yes” to God and opened their hearts and lives to God, allowing Him to do His work in and through them. These friends are heroes of the faith.

They know they have what they need because of God.

He is able to give them comfort.

He is able to give them rest.

He is able to supply their needs.

And He is able to supply your needs also.

You can be a hero of the faith… have you ever considered that? Open your heart and your life to God and let him be in control. He is able.