True Hope Ukraine

Hope Does Not Disappoint

God is constantly reminding me how important it is to bring hope to others.  Not long ago I received a phone call from a family I had never met that lived in a village a couple of hours from Krivoy Rog.  I honestly don’t know how they got my name and number, but they called to ask if I could come and visit and pray for their youngest son who is very sick.  Last week I went to visit them and when I arrived we sat down to talk and get to know one another.  They began to tell me their story. 

 Several years ago, the family really needed money and so the father decided to leave and go find work in Russia.  He was gone for quite some time, and they did not hear from him.  They were worried and had no idea what happened.  A family friend came to them and said he found out the father was in trouble – sick, living on the streets with no money or food.  So the family gave the friend what little money they had to bring to the father in Russia.  After that there was still no word from either the friend or the father.  Three years went by since the father had left and the entire family had given up hope.  They believed that he was either dead or had found another life for himself.  No one expected him to return except his daughter.  She prayed and hoped the entire time that her father was alive and would return. 
One day there was a knock at the door and there stood the father.  He was alive and well and had been working in an area where there was little to no opportunity for outside communication.  He had not left or forgotten about his family, but was working and saving to be able to come home to them.   With the money he earned they were able to remodel their small house and live for a while.  Now their son is sick and the doctors have no idea what to do with him.  They need a miracle.  I was interested to find out that although this family had called asking for prayer, they themselves were not believers.  We talked together and prayed and I believe that God is moving in their lives and in the life of their son.

 I wanted to share this story with you because the subject of hope is very important in my life.  It’s important because hope is the first step to faith.  Even when everyone else had given up, the daughter had hope that her father would return.  Hope is powerful, and how much more powerful is the hope we have in our good and faithful Father.   It is for this reason that we continue to minister and do what we do because the true hope that we have to give changes lives. 

 Ephesians 1:18, Romans 5:5
When you’re praying for the ministry here, please also remember to pray for this family.  That the hope they have will grow into a strong faith in God and that their son, Sergey, will be healed.