With tears of joy, I sat with Jewish and Arab followers of Messiah Jesus. Deep hatred and pulsating animosity moved out of the hearts of these believers as the transforming presence of Jesus moved in. After seeing graphic depictions of the overwhelming anger these embittered enemies have held in their hearts for generations, it was hard to contain my tears as I sat in the same room, worshiping the one redeemer and Lord with them, a mixed ethnic and culturally diverse gathering. Christ had changed them, and I was able to see dramatic, powerful evidence of that transformation. They were brothers and sisters in Christ, and that identity was greater than the popular one dominated by hatred on the streets just outside the place where we were worshiping together.
A similar experience happened in Sarajevo. On Friday, driving through neighborhoods and villages destroyed in the Bosnian War between Croats and Serbs, I saw what once houses now in piles of rubble. Burned-out vehicles and the charred remains of homes set afire were everywhere. Whole large sections of cemeteries contained fresh graves of those who were afforded a decent burial. For others, their nameless bodies were bulldozed into mass graves, quickly covered to conceal evidence of likely expressions of genocide.
The next day, I stood on what was called “the green line” between the opposing forces in Sarajevo. There, a building stood as a witness to a greater power. Not identifiable as a church, it was being retrofitted to serve as a place of worship for new Christ-followers, Croatian and Serbian. The plan was for them to worship together, in a shared experience, to demonstrate the awesomeness of this higher power. Again the tears flowed freely as I stood in awe of this amazing God and his power to change the human heart, to replace hate with the very love of Christ. Deeply moved, the truth of “Greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world” reverberated within me that day.
So tragic and very sad. As hatred multiplies and grows, the news is devastating.
Tonight, as I lay my head on my pillow in relative comfort and safety, mothers and young wives and other family members in Russia are weeping because of news of a fallen son, husband, brother or father. Meanwhile Ukrainians are fleeing for their lives, with fathers kissing their wives and children goodbye at train stations and bus stops with no assurance of ever seeing one another again on this earth. Properties devastated, children and elderly dying, businesses destroyed, even hospitals and schools being hit. The Ukrainians are hurting and heartbroken.
There are passionate followers of Jesus, my brothers and sisters in Christ, on both sides of this sad and deeply troubling Russia – Ukraine equation. “Lord, change the hearts of those responsible or remove them” is my constant heart cry. I’m so grateful One Mission Society has a team on the ground in a neighboring country to help refugees. You and I can have a part now by going to https://onemissionsociety.org/Projects/detail/refugee-and-relief-fund to give, with the assurance that OMS is on the frontline of providing humanitarian assistance while being sensitive to the spiritual needs of those fleeing.
May God’s shalom, his peace enveloped in his love and justice, come. May we pray fervently for those of both countries. May our sovereign and just God take what is evil and use it for good. May there be multiplied multitudes of people who find Jesus in the midst of these days of tremendous fear and overwhelming loss. May we continue to invest well in both troubled nations, Russia and Ukraine, realizing we have brothers and sisters in Christ in both nations. And may a day come, hopefully soon, when Russians and Ukrainians … with many from both sides participating … worship together as a powerful demonstration of a higher power, of one who is greater!
Donate to help: https://onemissionsociety.org/Projects/detail/refugee-and-relief-fund
By Bob Fetherlin, Global President, One Mission Society
