Introduction – For full article go to What We Do in Ukraine.
UK assembly workers’ involvement in service for the Lord in what is now West Ukraine has a long history. In the pre-war days, when it was the Ukrainian Area of East Poland or Greater Hungary, the Hines, MacGregors, Griffiths and Schneidrooks worked there. During our recent visits, we have met
with several older believers who remember those workers and hold them in high esteem. They also speak very highly of Fred and Ruth Kelling (GLO) who visited Transcarpathia, particularly Khust in the last years of communism and were a great source of support. In recent times Paul and Sally Thomas visited the area until Sally’s illness made it impossible. More recently I responded to the call from believers in the Volyn, Ternopol and Cherkassy Regions to lead discipleship and teaching programmes and Mark Davies (GLO) and others have agreed to partner in this work. We are doing this under the guidance and leadership of church leaders in the areas we work.
We are indirectly building on the foundations laid in the past. The fruit of these earlier ministries among the Ukrainian people was considerable and the leaders of the ministries we are working with today came to Christ under the ministry of those led to Christ as part of the partnership in service of Ukrainian and UK servants of God. It is a joy for the Philadelphia Trust/ GLO bible teaching partnership to lead a consecutive bible teaching and discipleship programmes in a number of areas for those, who in recent years have come to faith.
The three provinces in the North West of Ukraine, L’viv, Volyn and Rivine are known as the “beloved strip of Ukraine.” They have seen great blessing over the past 20 years, many have come to Christ and the influence of these regions on the Gospel is enormous not only in Ukraine but further afield in Russian speaking areas such as Russia itself, Kazakhstan and Georgia. West Ukrainians do not speak Russian as their mother tongue but are normally bilingual in Ukrainian and Russian.
In addition to the bible teaching programme we regularly observe many significant outreach opportunities there and help with some of them. Especially those involving the teaching of English and the use of professional skills and competences.