As we begin another week of facing the chaos happening all over the world, I am driven to my knees in prayer. I have never felt so out of control of what is happening around me as I have these last few weeks, really, the last few years! Yet I know God is in control and I rest in that fact. That truth is what makes me so aware that I need to be praying for God’s strength through these times. The changes we have seen over the last few years and the possibilities that come out of this current Ukrainian/Russian crisis force me to acknowledge God’s hand in our world today and how through it, he is leading us to his kingdom. I am not making any prophecy about time frame, but we must see how quickly our world can change and the end times may come!

How do we respond to these events in our country and to the crises in the world? We need to be careful not to fall into the trap of haters or blamers who spew harmful speech at those we do not know. We need to be sharing the truths we have from God’s Word that teach us to be ready for Jesus Christ’s return. We need to be examples to a hurting world of how to love our neighbors next door and around the world. I see a big difference in how we are facing current crises and the attacks of September 11. On the days following September 11, church doors were open 24/7 because people wanted to come to the Lord’s house. We are not seeing that today because we have lost that safe place of the Lord’s house! We need to reclaim that in our lives and in the life of the church family.

We need to be praying for one another and for those who are in harms ways. Below is a prayer call from “Send International” on how we can pray for the people during the Ukrainian/Russian crisis.

• Ask God to redeem this situation by drawing many people to himself. May Ukrainians and Russians discover that Jesus is the only true source of peace, safety, comfort, truth and freedom.
• Pray that Ukrainians ultimately would hope not in governments, elections or diplomacy, but in Jesus Christ.
• Ask God to deliver Ukraine from evil. May he have mercy and heal this land. May he give Ukraine peace and the chance to develop as a nation that values truth, justice and freedom, all rooted in the goodness of God.
• Pray for a culture in which political disagreements don’t lead to hatred or violence.
• The conflict between Ukraine and Russia can spill over into personal conflict within families, especially when family members live on opposite sides of the border and are influenced by different sides of the “information war.” Pray for unity and a love for one another that supersedes the problems between the countries.
• Ask God to bless soldiers’ wives and children with peace and safety while their husbands and fathers are gone.
• Pray for the various world leaders involved in diplomacy over Ukraine. 
• Pray that the evangelical church will remain united, even as it faces difficult questions, such as how involved believers ought to be in politics or in armed conflict.
• In the past few years, the Ukrainian evangelical church has become much more passionate about sending its own cross-cultural workers to reach the lost. Pray that this conflict will not dissuade Ukrainians from taking the gospel message to Russia and to other lands.
• Pray for Christians in the military. This is a challenging time; ask God to guide them as their faith is being tested in new ways.
• Fears stemming from the conflict come up frequently in conversation. Pray that missionaries and other believers will have many opportunities to explain to their neighbors and friends the reason for the hope within them, even in this time of trial.