Stopping for the sake of moving: Evangelists from different regions of Ukraine met in Zakarpattia

Christ is the Answer (CITA) missionaries and staff, pastors, bishops in IDP status and from the frontline areas of Ukraine and their families gathered for rest, spiritual formation and fellowship in the village of Polyana in Transcarpathia for the eighth CITA missionary conference. They stopped their activities for four days – from October 15 to 19 – in order to continue to move forward and preach the Gospel in renewed vigor.     

Kharkiv, Kupiansk, Pokrovsk, Sloviansk, Luhansk, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Mykolaiv, Kyiv and Rivne. This was the geography of the participants, some of whom had been internally displaced in western Ukraine a week before the missionary conference, and some of whom had come from the front lines and felt the difference.

Bishop Viktor Klets from Sumy recalled being asked when was the last time he slept peacefully: When was the last time you slept well? He replied: “Tonight”, because he was no longer in Sumy.

A family of ministers from Kharkiv who “live with the CABs” (guided aerial bombs) shared that every night they thank God for another day and for waking up in the morning.    

“There were no sirens or disturbing drones, no explosions. Even the reflexes developed during the war have receded: at home, when someone slams a door, you think of an explosion, but it’s peaceful here,” said Gennady Androsov, a minister from Myrhorod.

Among the participants were the wife of a pastor from Kupiansk who was killed by a Russian missile, a pastor from Luhansk region who was taken out to be executed by Russian soldiers and miraculously survived by the grace of God – there were two misfires.

Taras Sen, director of the Christ is the Answer ministry, opened the conference, and Bishop Oleksiy Demydovych continued his opening remarks:  

“At missionary conferences, another layer of Christianity gathers – the crazy ones for Christ’s sake. At such conferences we receive an impulse for further work on the Gospel, for which we need to hear what the Lord wants from us”. 

Oleksiy Demydovych spoke with inspiration to all the IDP ministers, reminding them that they are “not scattered, but sown”.  

Bishop Anatoliy Bezkrovnyi, who lived and served in Pokrovsk for a long time, shared his opinion that the Church goes through different periods, and in difficult times like war, it multiplies: 

“For us it is not clear why everything happened this way. But many people have told us that if it were not for the war, they would not have come to church. Let’s trust in the Lord and continue to preach pure evangelical teaching”. 

He recalled the internal tasks of the Church: the development of human relationships with God, spiritual growth – transformation into the image of Christ, His nature and character, and the development of relationships among brothers and sisters. He also emphasized that the external mission of the Church – preaching the Gospel – should not be less important than solving internal problems. 

Ruslan Kukharchuk, head of the public movement “All Together!” and a media expert, explained to the participants the content and essence of two state legal documents, which are “a serious basis for missionary and social activity”. 

Ministers do not need to apologize to representatives of secular institutions for their Christian faith, because according to these legal acts Ukraine is officially considered Christian. Among them is the Presidential Decree No. 423/2021 “On the Day of Ukrainian Statehood”.

As part of the conference, a family meeting was held in the atmosphere of a romantic evening with candles and flowers on the tables, where Bishop Oleksiy Demydovych addressed the topic “Pain in a minister’s family”. 

“The greatest achievement of the Apostle Paul was not the number of churches he opened, but the fact that he kept his faith. Even though there was a lot of pain. Keep the faith so you don’t get cold, so you don’t get cruel. That’s the point. There is no ministry without pain. Pain makes us soft and responsive. Our Shepherd on Calvary is an example for us.” 

The speaker shared his own innermost experience of going through difficult trials with children. Other ministers also shared about their pain. All together they prayed for God’s help in difficult circumstances that arise on the way of serving God.  

As usual, in addition to the sermons, the schedule of the retreat included excursions. 

The participants visited the Arpad Line Bunker, built by the Hungarian army during World War II. 

The next day the participants took the ski lifts to the local mountain Hemba (almost 1.5 km high), which offers a picturesque view.

We had a delicious lunch near the Shypit waterfall: the Ministry’s missionaries cooked delicious field porridge and warmed everyone up with lemon tea.   

The conference also included speeches about the importance of rest for a minister, about perseverance in achieving goals, about the need to leave the old so that God can give new opportunities. 

Taras Sen spoke about the Ministry’s efforts in Ukraine and abroad, particularly in Ethiopia, India, and Latin and South America. 

CITA missionary teams from the Western, Southern and Eastern regions of Ukraine also presented evangelistic projects they are implementing in the cities and villages where they serve.  

Traditionally, at the end of the conference, we prayed for God’s power and healing. Before that, Taras Sen emphasized that there are many people today who need supernatural power to heal their souls and bodies: the Gospel must be accompanied by deliverance from all demonic influence.

Every year in the fall, Christ is the Answer Ministry holds a mission conference for the team and invited guests. This year was the eighth. 

CITA Ministry Press Center.