By Andy Baker
Yesterday my phone began to chime with messages from concerned individuals asking me how things were in Romania with the outbreak of the war in neighboring Ukraine. As you can imagine there is concern, and they have seen dramatic economic inflation in the last few months as Russia’s buildup was happening along the Ukrainian border. A colleague summed it up best when he said to me yesterday, “we are not afraid, but we have a lot of anxiety.”
It was just 35 years ago when President Reagan made his renowned speech at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, which included the famous line, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” But if you listen to just a few lines earlier, President Reagan said something striking, “We believe that freedom and security go together. The advance of liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace.” Ukraine was a free nation moving forward in liberty, yet today with a needless and horrific invasion by Russia, we in the West are seeing fleeing people, hiding masses, and needless death for no apparent reason other than a dictator who fears the new freedom of multiple nations that have surrounded his own.
My phone rang this past Friday around noon. It was our friend and colleague Mihai Micula calling from Romania. He said:
"We need help. We have received our first Ukrainian refugees, and our church is meeting daily to put together food bags and water to distribute to families that are crossing the border nearby. Can you do anything to help?"
He proceeded to tell me how he was personally housing three mothers and their eleven children. The fathers of these families had stayed behind to fight. He told me that in his entire life, he had never been moved to tears as he had been as these families shared their stories.
I received an email today encouraging people to give to those organizations that are on the ground helping with the present situation in Ukraine. Our team has asked for one thing, and that is that we PRAY. Please pray for peace and please pray for our team as they minister to those who are experiencing the most traumatic times of their lives. The Remember the Children team is 100% committed to helping the refugees entering Romania, and we are asking beyond your prayers that you give what you can to help those that we find in our care as they flee Ukraine. Thank you for your trust in our ministry, and thank you for caring for the people of Ukraine at this terrible time.
To support the care of Ukrainian refugees, please click the button below.
