Ministering to the Ukrainian “Red Zone” Chaplains
Photos by Lloyd Pulley
“And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.” Genesis 45:7
Head chaplains Pavlo Tsarevskyi (left) and Vitaliy Smolin (right) share ways to pray for the Ukrainian people and support the ministry of the chaplaincy. Several U.S. Calvary Chapel pastors attended the fall 2022 conference in the Carpathian Mountains for Ukrainian military chaplains and their families hosted by Far Reaching Ministries.
Born in the Soviet Union, Vitaliy Smolin is a third-generation, born-again, evangelical Christian. His father was a Gideon brother and pastor. His grandfather spent seven years in a Siberian concentration camp because of his Christian testimony. A U.S. citizen raised outside Sacramento, CA, Vitaliy nearly died at the age of 26 and, as a result, dedicated his life to Christ.
In 2009, Vitaliy and his wife, Nataly, received the call to go to Ukraine, and by August of that same year, they had left everything they knew and moved their family of five across the globe to Ternopil.
“When the war broke out in 2014, Ukraine had [almost] no army,” Vitaliy stated. “It rose from necessity. We went to the war to serve the soldiers and helped them physically, mentally, and spiritually.” Through a series of divine appointments, Vitaliy was introduced to chaplains and chaplain training, and by 2019, Ukraine had an established law enforcement chaplaincy in place. Vitaliy now serves on the front lines of the war as a chaplain to the soldiers, protecting and providing for the people of Ukraine.
The Shaking of a Nation
…but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Hebrews 12:26-27
Lloyd Pulley (center), senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, NJ, expounds on the work God is doing through chaplains like Dima (left) and Pavlo (right). “This desperate time has opened doors for the Church to show the love of God to the refugees as well as set a course for the future of making new disciples born from seeing the examples being given by God’s people there,” Lloyd remarked.
Lloyd Pulley, the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, NJ, traveled to Ukraine along with three other Calvary pastors to connect with those daily serving on the front lines. “This is an enormous shaking for that nation,” Lloyd shared. “Before the war, pastors were comfortable in their religious duties. People were comfortable in the economy. But the political and religious worlds rarely converged, and religion had little effect on the average Ukrainian. It may be a religious culture, but it wasn’t really in their heart. And then came the war,” Lloyd continued. “God bridged the gap! The message of the Gospel began to reach the average Ukrainian and the hardened military and political leaders. They see God’s love in action through His people.”
Far Reaching Ministries (FRM) founder Wes Bentley (left), David Mercer, and Pavlo Tsarevskyi, along with Pavlo's family, hold the chaplains’ flag with logo unique to Ukraine. David noted, “Numerous chaplains reported that on many occasions, they were the only ones going into towns near the front lines when cars were lined up for miles trying to get out.”
David Mercer, senior pastor of CC Flathead Valley in Kalispell, MT, added, “No matter what your political position is regarding Russia’s full-scale invasion, which started in February 2022, millions of Ukrainians are in desperate need of help. Through the service of the chaplains, local churches, and other ministries, food, medicine, transportation, encouragement, and the Gospel [are] being provided on a tremendous scale. The tonnage of aid going east and the transportation of refugees to the west is truly remarkable. Numerous chaplains reported that on many occasions, they were the only ones going into towns near the front lines when cars were lined up for miles trying to get out. Many of these chaplains would go into the [war’s] ‘red zone’, the last mile to the active front line, to help people to safety. There were so many, they stopped counting at 700 people [that they helped].”
The FRM team and CC pastors board their designated van to make the 10-hour journey from Hungary to the retreat center in the mountains of Bukovel, Ukraine.
Ministering to the Weary
What brought the small team of CC pastors to Ukraine was a conference hosted by Far Reaching Ministries in the mountains of Bukovel from October 27 through November 4, 2022 for the military chaplains and their families.
The conference aimed to provide a place of rest to those engaged in active rescue and humanitarian duty during the ongoing war. “I’m not sure at first the chaplains believed we had anything to offer,” Wes Bentley, founder of Far Reaching Ministries, stated. “But when they discovered our own war experience, realizing we had a lot more than they did, they began to embrace us. We had a lot of issues to deal with, including forgiving the Russians. And I told them that even though great trauma has been brought to their people, they needed to represent the Lord the way He wants to be represented. Forgiving someone doesn’t mean you have warm feelings for them, but it means you pray for them and that God would get ahold of them.”
Pastor Roger Ulman (right) and missionary translator David Snead share an encouraging message with conference attendees. Military chaplain Maksym Svitlyi expressed, “I thank God for the chaplains’ conference. God restored my heart. I realized there are things more enduring than human evil. There is Christ’s mercy!”
Roger Ulman, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Kalamazoo Valley in Michigan, said, “We brought them encouragement that they are not alone. They have heart[s] of a lion, and they will surely fight to the end. We heard of a lot of missile strikes, and so in that stress, we were able to bless them with Bible teaching and encouragement.”
Maksym Svitlyi expressed, “The conference was the ‘first breath of fresh air,’ after many months of exhaustion in an attempt to ‘save the world.’” Maksym serves as a military chaplain on the war front. “The time [at the conference] was an opportunity to pay attention to my wife, to distract myself from the suffering caused by war. Before going to the conference, I already felt that this hell would never end. The only way out is to pass from earthly to eternal life.”
Maksym continued, “But I thank God for the chaplains’ conference. God restored my heart. I realized there are things more enduring than human evil. There is Christ’s mercy! God ministered to us through the group, and our hearts were lifted to the heavens!”
Chaplains and their wives listen intently during one of the conference sessions. Many families found relief from heavy burdens they have been carrying since the beginning of the war.
Many chaplain families shared stories of trauma to which the pastors were able to minister, and many more shared sentiments of gratitude for the opportunity Far Reaching Ministries had provided for them.
“One of the things I found incredible is that the Ukrainian chaplains were not just praying for the war to end; they were praying for opportunities to be bold witnesses of Christ,” James Class, associate pastor at Calvary Chapel Santee, CA, shared.
Pastor George Markey of CC Kyiv, Ukraine, and his wife Sharon examine the significance of discipleship with the chaplains.
An Effective Door
“I truly believe we may be able to see a new work of God among the people of Ukraine,” Lloyd noted.
“This desperate time has opened doors for the Church to show the love of God to the refugees as well as set a course for the future of making new disciples born from seeing the examples being given by God’s people there,” Lloyd shared.
For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. 1 Corinthians 16:9
A chaplain prays with a Ukrainian pastor and his wife. “… The Ukrainian chaplains were not just praying for the war to end; they were praying for opportunities to be bold witnesses of Christ,” shared James Class, associate pastor at Calvary Chapel Santee, CA.
“I think it’s opening a great door,” Wes Bentley said. “What’s happening is a lot of the Russian Orthodox on their front lawns waving incense and making the sign of the cross are being ministered to. It’s been very effective in reaching people for the Gospel, and people are getting saved.”
David Mercer added, “Over and over, we heard how the Ukrainian people are more open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ than they have ever seen before. There is a great and effective door that is open and opening wider every day. The Church should consider how they can walk through that door in these Last Days. Should the Lord tarry, the opportunities to serve and love others, support local churches, and share the life-giving Gospel of Jesus are endless.”
(Left to right) Vicky Bentley, Wes Bentley, and Luke Beebe from FRM discuss future ministry plans with chaplains Pavlo Tsarevskyi and Vitaliy Smolin. Wes stated, “I’m not sure at first the chaplains believed we had anything to offer. But when they discovered our own war experience, realizing we had a lot more than they did, they began to embrace us.”
Far Reaching Ministries has several ways to assist in helping Ukrainians, including building temporary homes using 20-foot containers.
Learn more about Far Reaching Ministries at frmusa.org
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