By Mario Aguilar
Executive Director, Ministry Development
Life has always been difficult in the rural village of Uşurei in northern Moldova. With a population of less than 10,000 people, families survive primarily on agriculture, and as is the case in most developing countries, their young people leave Uşurei seeking a better life and future.
Ivan pastors the Evangelical Baptist Church of Uşurei, a small church a few hours from the border of Moldova and Ukraine.
“God called me to serve Him from the moment He saved me,” said Pastor Ivan. “Despite the challenges, the people of Uşurei need the gospel and our church.”
The congregation has faced many challenges, including the harsh reality of a lack of jobs for the younger generation. Most young people in the church move to the capital city of Chişinau or leave the country altogether to find the opportunities that Uşurei cannot offer. “Our most earnest prayer is for leaders that will continue to care for our community,” said Ivan.
On February 24, 2022, Pastor Ivan and the church in Uşurei were confronted with another trial. Over 10,000 Ukrainians—primarily women and children—were crossing the border of Ukraine every 24 hours, seeking shelter in Moldova. The war between Ukraine and Russia was causing an unprecedented migration into the little town of Uşurei.
We had no beds; we only had a few mattresses, but we set them up in our sanctuary. Our place of worship became a shelter for women and children escaping the horrors of war. Our deacons left for the border of Moldova and Ukraine the second day after the war exploded.
Partnership with Children’s Hunger Fund in the Conflict
In partnership with the ministry of Mission Eurasia, CHF sought to respond to the refugee crisis created by the war in Ukraine. CHF distributed over $1 million in resources to churches responding to this critical need in Romania, Poland, and Moldova. Pastor Ivan’s was one of those churches.
We knew we had to help. We arranged logistics with a network of churches in the area, and your resources helped us send a team of our men to the border. For four months, we served families crossing the border, providing cooked meals, packed lunches, water, and other supplies for the journey for those on their way to Western Europe.
But not all people had a place to go. Many in Ukraine left their homes, escaping the bombings and armed combat without a plan or a destination. Pastor Ivan and his congregation also helped refugees find shelter in Moldova.
“It was a difficult time, but God provided,” said Pastor Ivan. “People were crossing the border at one, two, or three in the morning without a place to go. In the freezing cold and icy roads, babies, young children, and frightened women found themselves in a foreign country walking for days to reach our country.”
The Light of Christ’s Church
One day, Pastor Ivan received a call at 1a.m. from one of his deacons who told him about a mother and her three children who just crossed the border, were in need of shelter, and didn’t know what to do or where to go. Despite the late hour, they were headed Ivan’s way.
Our town has no streetlights, and there was no way to identify our church at that time of day. So, my wife and I decided to put up the Christmas lights in the church. I called my deacon back and said to tell them to look for the building with the Christmas lights. The only light in the darkness of that night was the light coming from our church
After several months of doing this work, churches in Ukraine knew about the work of Uşurei Baptist Church. As they helped people on the Ukraine side to flee, Ukrainian churches encouraged their people by saying, “Don’t be afraid; there is a church in Moldova that will help you when you get there. If you cross late at night, look for the place with the Christmas lights.”
A Testimony to Follow
In 2 Corinthians 8:1-5, Paul describes the profound generosity of the church in Macedonia. He writes, “We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia,for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints—and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.”
CHF is seeking to launch Moldova as its 33rd Mercy Network country with 10 churches partnering in the Food Pak ministry. What we saw in Moldova was not a people who try to protect the little resources they have, but rather men and women willing to generously, sacrificially, and selflessly give of themselves to help the suffering of those ravaged by the effects of war.
What Paul said of the Macedonians, we can also say of the church in Moldova. The grace of God has been given amongst them. Despite their afflictions, they gave in abundance of joy. Regardless of their poverty they gave in a wealth of generosity beyond their means, not grudgingly, but giving themselves to Christ first.
It is a profound honor to partner with such churches—brothers and sisters who understand the grace of God in Christ and are moved to mercy because they have received mercy.
You can support the ministry in Moldova or any of the countries where we partner with a gift today. Just one dollar can provide four meals and an opportunity for the local church to share the hope of the gospel with a family in need.
