Sunday Night Update
It’s Sunday night in Ukraine, and they are in their 5th night of the war. The fighting is now in the city of Kyiv, but they continue to provide stiff resistance, and the city has not fallen. We are grateful we can still communicate with several on our staff multiple times a day. However, most have now gone 48–72 hours with little to no sleep. They cannot sustain this pace without harm to themselves.
We believe all our staff is still safe, either in the city because they could not leave or in their families’ villages outside of Kyiv. I asked Serhiy if they had food, and he said, “no, we don’t have food, but we have bread, and that’s all we need in the bomb shelters. What we really need is medicine for both of our kids who are violently ill from the stress and fear.” My heart cries out for mercy at these words and what they are going through.
One of our previous singers wrote to me at 3:30 AM in Kyiv via Messenger, “please pray my brother who is in the city, in the fighting.” According to her responses, as of the start of this fifth night, he was still ok. She nor her parents had slept in over two days. Another wrote, “how can this be real in the 21st century, and now Putin is threatening us with nuclear bombs. How can we withstand this horror?”
Most of our people share their profound thanks for the sanctions on Russia but are still so disappointed the West is not doing more with a sense of greater urgency. Their friends and family are dying defending Kyiv, and they continue to plead for much more ammo, weapons, no fly zone over Ukraine, and greater sanctions. They believe this is a fight for Europe and for democracy and the right to self-govern everywhere in the world.
I have already contacted our senator and will continue to reach out to our government. We cannot end up on the wrong side of history or with regrets at our “measured responses.” We must be all in!
How can you help?
Pray.
Here are some specific prayer points:
Strength and protection of our widows, orphans, staff, and singers.
Our 110 homebound widows who cannot flee to safety and shelter without direct aid.
Food, water, and electricity are not cut off or withheld from them.
Protection for our men conscripted into the military to protect their family and city. They do not even have weapons available to defend themselves, including our Pastor Ruslan.
Lines of communication stay open so we can know how to pray and how to encourage.
Wisdom for all of us leading Music Mission Kiev, to know how best to respond in ways that actually help.
Give.
Second, you can give! We need your financial support to enable us to respond to every need. We already know medicine and food will be a huge necessity. There are going to be internally displaced people/refugees. This has not happened since 1941, so we truly have no understanding of the various needs that may present themselves.
Please give now, and we will place your gift “Where Needed Most” as we prepare for unprecedented humanitarian aid.
Checks can be mailed to:
Music Mission Kiev
PO Box 161849
Altamonte Springs, FL 32716
Write/Call.
Last but not least, you can write or call your senator and ask them to respond to president Zelenskyy’s request for help.
Isaiah 26:3-4 says, “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are unwavering because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.”
God is our Hope in this desperate time of war.
Thank you for your love and concern for Ukraine. Thank you for your prayers and generosity in helping restore Ukraine.