Ukraine Update: ‘Everyone Is Emotionally Shattered’
TWR Ukraine is in need of our prayers as the war becomes more and more difficult for the team. [Image by TWR Ukraine]
On July 8, a Kyiv children’s hospital was shelled as Russia launched massive missile strikes across Ukraine. The tragedies of war continue to mount as tensions escalate and Ukrainians face immense suffering.
TWR Ukraine Director Alexander Chmut gave the following update:
“We were in the office at the time of the shelling because it was a working day. I don't remember such large-scale shelling of a city in broad daylight. There were five to six hits; more than 30 people were killed in Kyiv alone, among them children. There were children being treated for cancer, as well as those on dialysis. Naturally, after such an incident, everyone is emotionally shattered: it is difficult to cope with the feelings. There are times when it becomes very hard, and we lose heart.”
The team tries to stay encouraged, but after 2½ years of war, living with death, destruction and terrible injuries has become part of their daily lives. Today, almost all TWR Ukraine’s programs are about war and how to heal from deep emotional pain.
At the time of writing, the TWR Ukraine office continues to operate normally. A diesel generator helps in the studio during power outages.
Talk-show programs are very popular with TWR Ukraine’s audience.
“These are stories of real people who have experienced various tragedies or accidents and how God brought them through and helped them cope,” Chmut explained. “We also have programs on podcasts, Live On and How You Made It, which are all about grief, worry and a ray of hope that God will help. My Monday with Chmut program continues to be relevant too.”
Stories of Survival
Chmut relayed two specific stories of God’s miracles. One is about a girl who was interviewed for the team’s program called Speak:
“At the time of the bombing of the children's hospital, there was a girl on dialysis with her parents by her side. When the [air raid] alarm started, the girl’s mother was taken to the basement, but the girl stayed behind because it was impossible to disconnect from the drugs so quickly. This room was directly hit by a missile. The mother got out of the destroyed cellar and ran to the place where the daughter was, where everything was destroyed, and the doctor was lying dead. But the girl was saved at the last moment. She survived, although she was wounded. This is God's miracle.”
The other story is about a wounded soldier:
“Recently I visited a wounded military man in the hospital. He was an orphan, brought up in the family of a pastor in a family-type home. He believed and was baptized, but then he walked away from God. Six months ago, he was fighting in the war, and in June he was badly wounded by a drone strike, injuring his face and arm. He miraculously survived, though he was bleeding as he came out of his position. When he was brought to the hospital, he only had one liter of blood left.
“He said that when he was losing strength, he wanted to commit suicide, but every time someone came up behind him, lifted him up and pushed him forward. He knows who it was. He's having a complicated operation today and he wrote to me to pray for him.”
Thank you for praying and for giving to support our ministries in this region of the world. You can give to our crisis fund here.
Specific Prayer Needs:
- One of TWR Ukraine’s staff members will likely be drafted into the military on July 19. Please pray that if it is God’s will, this team member will not be drafted so that he can continue to serve in the ministry.
- Almost all the men on the TWR Ukraine team are of draft age, so pray that they will not be drafted.
- One of Chmut’s good friends went missing three weeks ago. This friend managed to report that he was wounded and put on a tourniquet but then the connection was lost. He has a wife and children. Pray that he is still alive.
- Pray for the safety of the entire TWR Ukraine team in these very difficult times of war.
