Stories from the Field

Varya came to Transnistria from Kherson, Ukraine. When the war began, her husband went to war to defend Ukraine. After eight months of war, Varya received a letter saying that her husband was dead. A year later, her son was taken to war. "It is not possible to describe life in fear,” Varya says. “When you shudder at a phone call. Fear of getting a message - YOUR SON DIED defending Ukraine – it paralyzes your life. You constantly think about it, cry...War is scary!"

After three months, Varya received a message about the death of her son in the war. In one and a half years of war, Varya lost both her husband and son. She began questioning, “How do I go on living?”  “Does it make sense to continue living?” Varya’s life stopped. For the next five to six months, Varya did not leave her house. She cried, as life seemed to lose all meaning.

Strong shelling of the city of Kharkov, Ukraine, began. Constant explosions, water problems, food shortages, and a lack of light caused people to leave. Varya's friend said that she would leave for Moldova and suggested that Varya go with her. "I didn't care where I went, and I packed my bags,” Varya told us. “I closed my flat and we left. All my possessions were in a small suitcase." Varya and her friend arrived in Transnistria. After just 3 weeks, Varya's friend decided to leave for Germany. Varya remained in Transnistria—a new city, no friends, no work, and a huge void in the soul and pain in the heart.

Some other refugees in the area invited Varya to meetings with Church Without Walls, where Ukrainian refugees gather to paint pictures. Feeling alone in an unfamiliar city, she decided to go.

“I remember when I came to the meeting for the first time, I felt warmth,” Varya recalls. “Someone came up to me and started asking questions. I sat down at a table and we began painting. Someone on stage spoke about God, His love, the amazing plan He has for every person's life, and how Jesus is with us in the most difficult situations of life. I did not believe it was true. God took my husband and son from me. God took my house. God allowed the war in Ukraine to begin. God doesn't love me,” Varya thought. “My emotions were so strong that I left the premises of the church. Tears choked me. I went home and cried, wondering, “Why did this happen to me? It's more than my strength can handle.” Varya thought, “I don't want to hear anything about God. God is not real. If there is a God, He is cruel for taking my husband and son.”

Varya went on to tell us that for the next two weeks, she did not go to the meetings.  But then, “My money was running out,” she said. “I couldn't get a job. I needed help. I knew that the Church Without Walls helped refugees from Ukraine. I went to the meeting again because I needed money and food. I began to go regularly.” After meeting with refugees, Varya said she walked around the city for another hour talking to herself. “I thought about and analyzed what I heard about God at these meetings and wondered, ‘What if God exists?’ ‘Or maybe it's true that God loves me?’” These questions were in my head, Varya shared.

“I began to look forward to these meetings and was among the first to arrive in anticipation of talking about God again,” Varya expressed. Now, she attends church regularly and is thinking about baptism. God is working in her heart. Step by step, she is turning to God. Pray for her!

There are many like Varya whose hearts have become toughened because of the war in Ukraine. Yet, God loves them!

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Church Without Walls has worked to provide hope to refugee families. They are meeting the physical and spiritual needs of refugees through food packages, hygiene kits, Bible studies, emotional, and spiritual support.