A Place of Hope

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him." (Psalm 62:5 NIV)

One of the most profound impressions American volunteers take away from their first trip to Ukraine is the hopelessness that seems to be etched upon the faces of many Ukrainians. While the store shelves and auto showrooms are full of new and shiny goods, the vast majority of middle-aged and older Ukrainians spend their days counting each kopek (penny) trying to put food on their tables.

This past week our team had the privilage of spending 2 days with the "Women of Hope" vision team. This group of 15 women from all over the U.S. arrived in eastern Europe over a week ago, divided into 3 teams, then headed out to explore the possibilities for future ministry in the IMB region of Central and Eastern Europe.

Each time we are blessed with volunteers, I get to see the city of Kharkov, and the people of Ukraine, with "fresh eyes." These 2 days were no different! In fact, perhaps they were even more revealing because we had more time of dialogue with the team than usual as we drove across the city, praying in strategic locations of new church starts.

On Tuesday afternoon we visited the only crisis pregnancy center in the city of Kharkov. This beautiful group of women shared their stories with us, and their vision for ministry to the women of Kharkov. The Kharkov Pregnancy Assistance Center is located just across the street from a major hospital, and just up the street from the Kharkov Polytechnical University - with 15,000 students!

Lena, the center director, was one of the women responsible for starting the clinic 5 years ago. She shared that the "official" statistic for abortions in Kharkov is 21,000 per year, with the actual rate being as much as 4 times higher. Only abortions performed in government run hospitals are reported, while those done in private clinics or offices are not required to keep records. Hence the huge discrepancy in numbers. Abortion is still an accepted and inexpensive form of birth control, and even preferred by many women who are "health-conscious" about ingesting hormones for birth control.

Throughout our time at the center, I was reminded of the roots of communism and the teachings of atheism that continue to permeate this land! Many of the young women seeking abortions today have a worldview that says there is no God, a worldview formed by parents raised in a culture that planted the same belief. Step by step, woman by woman, this relatively small center is chipping away at that root, and lives are being changed.

The Women of Hope volunteers shared their lives with women believers in the largest Baptist church in the city, as well as with a small group of believers and non-believers in one of the new church starts on the southern edge of the city. In both instances the Ukrainian women soaked up every word shared, and received encouragement from the love of Christ flowing from the volunteers to their hearts. And in both places, the hope of Christ was evident on the faces of the women who have chosen to believe....hope for this day, for tomorrow, for eternity!