Russia (MNN) — After a direct phone call between the presidents of the United States and of Russia this week, the potential for a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire is still uncertain.
You might be following the conflict from only one side, so what is the perspective of believers in Russia?
“They are the story behind the story,” says Eric Mock with Slavic Gospel Association, “because the headlines are ‘What [are] Putin and Trump doing?’ The war [and] everything that’s going on, that saturates the headlines, and we miss these faithful believers … who through brutal winters are visiting orphanages, who are visiting communities, who now are preparing for summer camps.”
SGA supports the quiet ministries of hundreds of churches seeking to share Christ, not only in Russia but across Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and elsewhere.
“I wish that people would understand there’s a difference between the overall picture of a country and the people that are actually in these cities and villages,” Mock says.
Of believers in Russia, Mock says, “It’s amazing to serve churches that do so much, to meet pastors that study through the night to be sure that they can minister in three or four churches, to [meet people willing to] be in communities where they don’t want them there.”
For example, some areas of Russia have a strong presence of shamanism or of Islam, which are resistant to the gospel. Please pray for believers in Russia serving the Lord in these remote, unseen places.
“Regardless of your political views, regardless of your views on leadership of other countries, we labor under the kingdom of heaven,” says Mock.
Read inspiring stories of these men and women by visiting www.sga.org and scrolling to the bottom of their homepage. The stories you’ll find can stir you to press harder after God’s Kingdom wherever He’s placed you.
“Wherever you are, be the ambassador of Christ that God has raised you up to be.”
Header photo is a stock image courtesy of Aliaksei Lepik via Pexels.
