alleged police brutality. It led to greater uncertainty and fear among Ukrainians.
At our meetings, we shifted our planned
topics to include discussions of what it
means to follow God in the midst of political turmoil and uncertainty. We sought to
use Psalms 46 and 91 to help our Ukrainian
friends focus on God, even when the economic and political structures seemed to
be collapsing around them. We prayed a lot
more, both individually and in our groups.
The political uncertainty came to a
head in late January when the government
passed laws attempting to stop the protests—laws that protestors saw as a violation of their rights for free expression.
Rioting broke out among some of the
fringe factions of the protest movement.
They shot fireworks at the police and threw
Molotov cocktails. They burned buses, and
the police fought back. Protestors also took
over government buildings in Kiev and in
other regional city centers.
Although the riots were isolated, it still
surprised us when we read about it. Ukraine
didn’t seem like a country primed for revolution. Were we about to get caught up in a
civil war?
This brought us to our knees. We were
helpless to do anything to change the situation in this country we love. But God could.
So we prayed. And we invited people
around the world to pray.
Many Ukrainians turned to God during
this time as well. Even among the protestors, there were prayer movements in
which priests and pastors were invited to
lead public prayers in Kiev’s central square.
Tents were set up on the square to provide
ongoing prayer throughout the crisis.
The situation climaxed in late February
when more than 70 protestors were killed
over a two-day period.
But in a miraculous turn of events, the
shootings stopped, and the president abandoned his post and was soon impeached
by the parliament. Leaders sympathetic to
the protest movement took control, and a
move toward Europe and a more Westernstyle democracy began.
The violence lessened. God had answered prayer!
At the time of this writing, threats still
remain, with a small-scale war occurring
in a couple of Ukraine’s eastern provinces
as some there want to separate and join
Russia. But many, if not most, Ukrainians
are pleased with the Ukrainian government
and are hopeful for the future.
23
photos page 22, top: Protestors stand against
police in Kiev’s Independence Square. bottom:
Molotov cocktail photo page 23: Many Ukrainians
united in prayer in the midst of chaos.