ERDO

People still live on the frontlines of the war in Ukraine. The lonely, the sick and elderly, even children, survive daily in dangerous conditions of active war. They live without clean water, communications, medical care or grocery stores. Still, they live.

One of ERDO’s partners, Pastor Vadim from Good News Church in Poltava, visits families on the frontlines, bringing them food, water and medicine.

To get to them, he crosses a deep river—a strategic area in the conflict—where the original bridge was destroyed by missiles. Locals built a primitive metal structure in its place, and Pastor Vadim says you must cross it with fervent prayer! It can be dangerous.

The land beyond the bridge is covered in craters and churned black earth. It is here he finds families in need of food and hope.

He always shares the gospel after distributing supplies, focusing on the love of Christ and reminding each family that “God has not abandoned you.” But sometimes it’s hard for people to believe.

Oksana’s Story

At one food distribution point, Pastor Vadim set up a makeshift church service in a field. Oksana sat on a stool listening. She did not look up once, but Pastor Vadim saw a tear roll down her face as he mentioned the love of God.

“I’m a believer, but it’s been difficult for me to approach God for a long time. Only ashes are left of my soul,” Oksana told the pastor after his service. She pointed to the field around them and said, “We’re standing, right here, on the spot where our house used to be.”

Pastor Vadim didn’t say a word as he looked around. All he could see were traces of a few walls and a burned-out truck frame.

Oksana and her husband were farmers. They raised and sold livestock, eventually building their own home. When the war began, they sheltered on the other side of town with their children. Their land was bombed and their animals killed. They could never return home.

“I told her that I could only imagine her pain and despair,” Pastor Vadim said, “Then, I told her that God was not responsible for the evil she was facing. People give orders and press buttons, but the powers of darkness … are influencing people’s minds, inclining them to murder, madness and destruction.”

“I assured Oksana that God loves her and is already working to restore her heart and her soul. I told her that God is strong enough to restore her and even return her losses! Finally, she prayed with me, and together we thanked God that she and her family were still alive.”

A month later, Pastor Vadim and Oksana met again. She was smiling this time and told Pastor Vadim that God had healed her heart and given her hope for the future. Even though she is still living through war, danger and an incredible lack of resources, she has something inside her heart that no one can take away—the love of Jesus Christ.

Responding to Needs in Ukraine

Since the war began in Ukraine, the country has experienced a severe humanitarian crisis. Almost six million people have become refugees in surrounding nations, while 3.7 million people have lost their homes and live displaced within Ukraine.[1] Most are in safer areas of the country, but some, like Oksana, still live in regions of extreme danger.

Now, three years into the war, one-third of the population in frontline regions struggles     to find enough food to eat.[2]

ERDO is partnering with global worker Ed Dickson and his network of churches in Ukraine to feed and care for hungry families. In 2025, we delivered food and medical assistance to over 900 families each month for six months, helping a total of 5,400 families, or 16,000 people.

Our partners living through this emergency are extremely grateful for Canadian support, saying, “We will never forget those who supported us when we needed it most.”

Where Are You, God?

One day, Pastor Vadim and his team distributed groceries and medical supplies to 100 families living on the frontlines. They still had enough food for 30 more families, so they kept driving, past where their navigation systems would work or where there was cellphone reception.

The team made a wrong turn and became lost, driving past severely damaged buildings and people looking through their fences with fear.

They found a small group of people standing at a bus stop. It was a small area with limited data coverage, so people gathered to access the Internet or call family members. Pastor Vadim and his team stopped, telling the families to round up their neighbours so they could hand out food and share the gospel message.

They had two bags of groceries left when Pastor Vadim saw a woman walking slowly toward him with a child. He met her on the road and said, “God loves you! These two packages are for you.” She replied, “I know.”

Pastor Vadim was very surprised by her answer, but she explained. “I was just in the garden desperately searching for food, and I asked God, ‘Where are You?’ and then you showed up!”

Her family had been living on the frontlines for so long that her husband recently had a heart attack. His body couldn’t handle the stress any longer. Now they’d run out of food. She said, “I know God sent you because I dared to ask Him, ‘Lord, where are you?’”

Then she said, “Are you Vadim?” The woman had attended Bible school with Pastor Vadim’s wife in 1992, and she recognized him all these years later. God not only answered her question, but He sent a familiar face to supply her needs in her day of desperation.

As believers, we know that God does not abandon us to our circumstances. We know that when we cry out for help, God always answers.

Today, you can be the answer to a family in need, crying out for help in desperate circumstances. Today, we can stand with our church partners in Ukraine and reach families living in conflict areas in severe need. Find out how you can help provide tangible support at https://erdo.ca/crises/war-in-ukraine.

Alicia Kolenda is the marketing and communications manager at ERDO (Emergency Relief and Development Overseas). This article appeared in the January/February/March 2026 issue of testimony/Enrich, a quarterly publication of The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. © 2026 The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Photo above: Pastor Sergey assisting with aid on the frontlines in Ukraine. Photo below: Pastor Vadim and the people he serves in Ukraine. Photos © ERDO.