The eyes of the church and the world have been on Ukraine for nearly three years now, as the war between Russia and Ukraine has taken a significant toll on society, infrastructures, and the sense of well-being and safety of those affected by the war's atrocities. 

Learning to live in the ever-changing realities of a war zone has not been easy for anyone. Nazarenes have seen their congregations dispersed, properties damaged, and lives fractured by the unsettling regularity of air raid alarms and uncertainty of tomorrow. Pastors and members alike have needed to move, leaving the churches with a skeleton congregation trying to serve as long as they can stay.

Yet, while all of these have been true, there has grown a new sense of urgency and responsiveness to God’s calling upon this war generation to lead the churches and love the remaining people. Many of these young adults have begun to study for the ministry through the network of European Nazarene College (EuNC) and its learning centers, one of which embraces Ukraine and Moldova.

During the war, as the Ukraine-Moldova District lost all its trained pastors and was left with only one ordained minister, the church remained steadfast in its mission to minister during unimaginable difficulties. Starting last year with just nine students, God has blessed the learning center abundantly. Today, 22 students courageously serve the Lord in the most challenging circumstances while pursuing their studies at EuNC. They are being shaped as Christlike disciples, ready to minister wherever they are—whatever ministry entails.

In response to this challenging season, the Ukraine-Moldova District contacted EuNC for a partnership. Through prayerful discussions, a bold decision was made to introduce a new language for theological education: Ukrainian. This marked a significant step toward equipping more people for ministry by providing education in their heart language alongside the existing language support in the learning center.

Education has always been a key focus of the Church of the Nazarene in Ukraine, as it has been throughout the countries of the former Soviet Union, called the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). Despite the many challenges faced in this region—lack of electricity, occasional lack of internet connection, and heavy workloads at their home churches—God is blessing those who are studying his Word together and learning the “ins and outs” of ministry through the asynchronous distance learning platforms of EuNC.

Pastors and youth representatives from all the Nazarene churches in Ukraine got together for the first district youth conference since before the pandemic. They talked about what it means to be called by God, how to nurture that calling, and how to be involved in God’s mission in the church.

One participant reflected: “Gathering together for worship provides a whole new level of value when things are hard. Standing next to each other, singing praise to God amid war, is a feeling that fills one with hope that we’ll get through with his help, despite the air raid alarms that unsettle with a feeling of panic. In Odesa, Ukraine, those eerie sounds can be heard quite often. Yet, here was where God met with his people, revealing his work and offering hope to the people.”

Zee Gimon, EuNC Learning Centre administrator, shared her reaction to the gathering.

“One of the things that warmed my heart, as a learning center administrator, was that it was also the first offline gathering of the EuNC students from Ukraine in a long time. Of our 22 current students who joined in 2023 and 2024, 12 made it to the conference. And now, to see them all interacting in real life, meeting those they have talked to during the forum or online via Zoom, is great. We are witnessing God’s provision, calling, and faithfulness.”

Theological education is vital now that many churches need strong leaders to guide people through this desert of war, and EuNC staff is doing their best to provide the “tools” and “maps” for them.

This is a powerful reminder that God’s light shines through his people even in the darkest moments.
--This story originally appeared in the 29 January edition of the NMI Central newsletter