Category: Ukraine

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,because the Lord has anointed meto bring good news to the poor;he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,to proclaim liberty to the captives,and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,and the day of vengeance of our God;to comfort all who mourn; – Isaiah 61:1-2 The past few weeks have moved quickly, with God working in many places. But we wanted to be sure to give the good news of all that has been happening. For some of it, we needed to wait to ensure safety. The biggest news is that the church members from Mariupol who were sheltering are safe.  ­ God worked to move them out of the church and the city that was under siege, through other churches, into Russia to the east. From there, they moved slowly across Russia, north of Ukraine, into Estonia, and are now headed to Sopot, Poland. God has worked through many different churches and individuals from the United States and Europe to make such an amazing thing happen. Tim Burow has gone to Poland to help settle the refugees from his former church in Mariupol. This group of refugees includes the preacher from Mariupol, Sasha, who was injured by a bullet early in March. Tatyana Burak, one of the members of the church in Mariupol who was also injured in that incident, is now in Lviv and has been interviewed on CNN about her experience there and the...

“We want you to know, brothers,  about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia” 2 Corinthians 8:1 Contributions from donors have given generously. SIBI is humbled and challenged by the trust over 1,000 brothers and sisters in Christ have placed in us. For the past month, we have been flooded with donations of love and support for the churches in Ukraine. Donations have come from all across the United States and around the world. One touching story comes from Barry Smith, who works with the Sudan Project. On a recent visit with 100 South Sudanese preachers from refugee camps in Uganda, they asked Barry about how the Lord’s church was responding to their brothers and sisters in Ukraine. When he told them about our efforts and how we are supporting the churches, they prayed. The prayer was in English, Arabic, and several dialects from South Sudan and lasted over an hour. Once the prayer was over, these refugees from South Sudan took a collection. Though they are refugees from one of the poorest countries in the world, they gave what amounted to $11 for Barry to give to support their brothers and sisters in Ukraine. And we have faith that God will take those $11 dollars and bring glory to His kingdom.  As we continue to distribute funds, we aim to keep the Ukrainian Christians and Ukrainian churches supplied not only with their own needs but with enough that they may continue to be light, to offer hope and refuge...

The reports that many of us see offer no hope. We cry out to God for help for so many. But God is working and bringing hope to many in Ukraine in small ways. God’s light is still shining even in what many see as the darkest moments we’ve ever witnessed. Our business office has been overwhelmed by the love and support that has come in. Over 900 churches and individuals have contributed to helping their suffering brothers and sisters. And we realize that there are 1,000’s more who are working with other trusted organizations to provide for those suffering from this crisis. Working with other churches like the Madison Church of Christ and the A&M Church of Christ, SIBI sent donated funds to help purchase vans for ministries in Ukraine. Working through Sasha Maliuga, one of these vans went to the Poznyaki church and is working to get people from Kyiv to Ternopil in Western Ukraine. Another group of men led by Dema Grishuk known as the Volunteer Brothers from Let’s Love bravely drive vans to take people out of dangerous places and get them to safety in Western Ukraine or the border where they can get help. They developed a network of churches and locations where people find refuge or stay on their way out of Ukraine. Artyom Kirilenko just recently joined the Volunteer Brothers and wrote,  “Today we took my family to Romania, they were very well received there, and after tomorrow they will go to the Czech Republic and will live there for now. I will be driving here with Grishuk’s group. I am very grateful to God that everything turned out...

God is Providing for His Church Through the generosity of almost 700 individuals and churches, SIBI is providing funds for the churches in Ukraine. Tim Burow asked Rob Hindman to coordinate SIBI’s distribution efforts. Rob and his family were missionaries in Kharkiv before the first invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2014. Rob communicates between churches, contacts in Ukraine, and contacts in Eastern Europe providing for refugees. If you know of a church that needs aid to help provide for the refugees, please get them in touch with Rob, at rob@robhindman.com or 775-223-0223. Refugees from the Ukrainian Bible Institute (UBI) received aid at the hands of the congregation in Sopot, Poland, to help them get settled. Brandon Price, director of UBI, and Molly Dawidow, an alumnus of Sunset and long-time missionary in Poland, have worked hard to meet the needs in Sopot. The church has transformed the basement of the church building to provide housing for almost 40 refugees and provide meals for 60 during the day. SIBI is also helping those in Ukraine. The church in Nikopol on the Dnieper River continues to meet and recently had a baptism. They have received funds to help provide for the needs and to pay for gas and electricity as the building serves as a shelter for some. Slava Krishnevskiy is distributing those funds as needed.  The congregation in Lviv has also received funds and is using them to provide for those moving from Eastern Ukraine to safer places in Eastern Europe. Stas Kuropyatnikov is communicating with Rob...

We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for our Ukrainian family. God’s people have donated over $250,000 through SIBI. We wanted to send this report to update you on how that money is being spent already to help. You can view our update from last week in case you missed that one. SIBI’s Plan Tim Burow has asked Rob Hindman, an alumnus of the school and former missionary to Kharkiv, to help coordinate getting the aid to the places that need it most. Rob has a three-fold purpose in assisting. 1 – We are helping people in the hardest-hit areas within Ukraine. This includes such cities as Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Mariupol. We will work through the churches there to feed, house, and provide medicines to our brethren and others in need of help. 2 – We are helping the churches in the western areas of Ukraine as they receive the flood of refugees from the eastern part of the country. They are housing, feeding, and caring for the sick from the east as well as their own. Many are just passing through on their way to the border, and they need lodging and care. They will also have to assist those who choose to live in their area. 3 – We are helping our brethren who have made their way into the nations that are on the border of Ukraine; such as Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and others. We have a wide network of churches and alumni from our schools in...

We have been blessed to be a conduit of God’s love to the church in Ukraine. Since Friday, God’s people have donated over $100,000. God has uniquely positioned SIBI with direct communication with preachers in Ukraine and also in multiple locations where families are fleeing in Eastern Europe. The money donated is already going to work to meet the needs of those who have been displaced by the violence.  On Monday, Brandon Price, the director of the Ukrainian Bible Institute, spoke about how we as the body of Christ can pray in the upcoming days. We have posted this video on YouTube and would encourage you to share it with others. The Arrival of First Refugees Brandon also shared this information to help us understand what things are like for them as they try to meet the needs of Christians caught in the conflict: Our first refugee arrived in Sopot this afternoon. Except it wasn’t a refugee. It was Tanya. Tanya from Kharkov. She’s not a refugee, is she? What in the world is going on here? Katie and I met her at the train station and exchanged long hugs and a few tears. It felt so natural to see her, and yet altogether out of place. Several others arrived this evening, two single mothers with their children. Everyone was exhausted and noticeably uncomfortable at first, but after a good meal together, our exhausted guests were able to relax. The adults visited, the kids played. It felt right despite all the wrongs happening. Friends worked all...

The Global Relief Ministry is currently receiving donations to assist in refugee efforts for the churches in Ukraine For 25 years, SIBI has been involved in training preachers and church leaders in the nation of Ukraine, first in Donetsk and more recently in Kyiv. War caused us to move the school in 2014 and now it has forced us to suspend operations once again. Our hearts ache for all of Ukraine and especially for our students, graduates, and brethren there. We pray for them as well as for those who have chosen the path which puts them in the way of harm. Please join us and pray for peace in Ukraine. With war, come refugees and transplanted training efforts. We at SIBI through our Global Relief Ministry will be receiving money that will be dedicated to helping in these two areas. The needs in the coming days and months are going to be overwhelming, but that must not cause us to look only to the limit of our resources but by faith to see what our God can do with our five loves and two fish. If you wish to join us in this, please see our website for ways to give to SIBI and designate funds in the memo to GRM. Again, pray for peace in Ukraine. Cover Ukraine with Love As winter approaches and the war continues, millions of Ukrainians are facing the cold without coats and blankets and possibly without heat. Sunset has arranged to send containers to Ukraine so the churches can help meet...

Normal is nice. There is a sense of security, stability and safety when things around us are normal. And the 14th annual graduation ceremony at the Ukrainian Bible Institute was a significant step in returning to normal for the students and staff. Graduation is always a special event because it represents a sense of accomplishment for the students and a time family and friends gather to applaud and congratulate their loved one, but this particular event was significant in a couple of ways.  First, this graduation had been postponed for some of the students due to the fighting in eastern Ukraine and their flight to safety in Kiev. Secondly, for the staff and faculty members who gave up their homes, left behind friends and family in Donetsk, this graduation marked a new beginning in the life of UBI. For people like Natasha Maluga and Ludmilla Haleeva it meant keeping their children safe, enrolling them in new schools, setting up new homes, setting up an office and starting a “new school.” They deserve our thanks and support. Fifty-two people were present for the ceremony and dinner as eight graduates received their diplomas. Among the eight graduates was our first student to have completed the entire program via the external learning program. We have been working for several years to develop a complete program for those wishing to study God’s word but unable to attend regular classes.  Your generous response to the challenge issued by Sunset made all this possible. With your help, the Bible institute relocated from...

(reprinted from the newsletter from Jay Don and Mary Lee Rogers, director of the Ukrainian Bible Institute) Greetings from Ukraine, What a WILD and WONDERFUL week we have just completed!!  God is doing amazing things in Kiev for UBI and we are so very thankful for that. August 1st we began our 16th year in Ukraine with UBI and what a beginning we had.  Natasha had been writing us before we left Canada that we were going to have at least 10 new students which was wonderful.  With the 12 we had that would about put us to our max, considering our building space and funds for scholarships is now so limited.  But~~~ when we arrived back to Kiev, she told us the number was up to 12 and we thought whoa, that is probably more than we can handle.  Well, opening day we had 5 more wanting to come so now we have an enrollment of 29 with one more coming first of September giving us a total of 30 students!!!!  We are literally crammed in like sardines and if you don’t get to chapel early you stand or sit in the hall!!! Great problems to have but a little overwhelming on how to handle them all.  We have 16 men and 14 ladies.  With our ladies growing from 1 to 14 our ladies classes are now back in action even if we did have to push one of the men’s classes to meet in our staff’s office! Saturday, August 8th Dave Phillips and Gabe...