Lutsk, Ukraine
- Timothy & Rhoda Sloan
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
It is now 24 years since Rhoda and I made Lutsk our home. God put us here, and it is here we will remain until He calls us Home. We were here during the protest movement in 2005 and Russia’s annexation of some Ukrainian territory in the East and South in 2014. Rhoda and I were in Lutsk on February 24th 2022, when the missiles arrived. We decided that day that God had put us here, and that only He could call us away. We were so encouraged to read 2Tim.1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” We have lived these past 4 years with the believers in Lutsk, trying to help them in every way possible.
The war has affected the assembly, with 4 brethren serving in the military. 2 are stationed in Lutsk, but 2 are near the front line. Do pray for Sasha and Kostja. Both these brethren are married with 2 children, and Sasha and Kostya are greatly missed in the assembly and at home. 5 sisters and their children have left Ukraine and now live in Slovakia, Italy, Germany, and Denmark. 7 teenagers left us and live in France and Poland.
Our numbers may be smaller, but our workload has increased immensely. We do enjoy large numbers at all assembly meetings. We have a Thursday evening Gospel meeting, and weekly we have over 300 in attendance. Sunday school and our Youth meeting have over 70 in each, and a good number of people sit in the back to observe the Lord’s supper. We continue to look to the Lord for blessing in salvation. In July, we take 110 young people to a rented camp outside of Lutsk and have a Gospel meeting each morning and evening.
Lutsk Christian publication center carries the largest stock of assembly literature in the country. All that we print, we distribute without any cost. Recently, we have translated and printed ‘The Persecutor’ book and David McKillen’s book ‘Essential Questions for End Times’. Calendars, Gospel tracts, and invitations are a vital part of the work, because to sow you must have seed!
Ukraine Child Care (UCC) which commenced in April 2004 still continues today after 22 years. Every day, street children and children from needy homes gather at the hall for 10 minutes singing, 10 minutes learning a Bible verse, 20 minutes of a Bible story, and 20 minutes for a hot meal. God has truly blessed this work.
In 2023, the Lord enabled us to open a children’s home for Ukrainian orphans, and what a privilege and challenge this is. We are continually cast upon the Lord to provide, and we have proved that our God never fails. In a month, the home provides 9,000 meals and uses 1,225 packs of bread, 33,814 fluid ounces of milk, 2,000 eggs, and 310lbs of meat. Every month, there are shoes and clothes to buy, health clinics and dentists to visit – in other words, we need to supply everything you would do for your kid, only on a massive scale. These orphans have lost their parents due to the war and have experienced unbelievable pain in their young lives. Every time the sirens sound, and the children have to go to the basement, we turn up the music to drown out the drones and missiles flying overhead. The children are traumatized, and we need to protect them as best as possible.
Every child attends a 1-hour Bible lesson each day, and it is so encouraging to see the children read and learn their Bible verses as well as sing the choruses we sing.
Rhoda and I really do appreciate your continued prayers..
Written by Timothy & Rhoda Sloan
sloanukraine@hotmail.com
