War Relief Updates - October 24, 2025

Thank you for your concern and for praying for Ukraine and the Ukrainian People

1. For a long while, the church in Bilogorodka, Ukraine, has prepared special food as a ministry to soldiers and others in need in the eastern battle zones. However, in seeking other ways to serve both the Lord and fellow countrymen, this congregation sought out refugees living in the capital city, Kyiv. They discovered a whole group of refugees from the obliterated city of Bakhmut. The church formulated a plan to reach out to this group in several ways at once. They organized an event in their church where they would tell people about God, distribute Gospels, provide directions to church, distribute aid, and inform them about employment opportunities. That church’s auditorium can comfortably seat 100 people, and 90 refugees responded to the invitation. These were people who knew nothing at all about God or the church. Believers sang, preached, and provided aid. Now they are hoping at least some of these refugees will come to church. One church member says, “Thank God that even in this way we can serve people and testify to God’s love.”

2. The eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy faces incredibly difficult circumstances. Because it sits right on the Russian border, missiles and drones appear without warning. There’s no time to shoot them down. People constantly suffer. Many have fled the city. One time, after several days of continuous shelling, the chief of police went to the church and urged, “Do something for us and our children. Hold an event so we can be in the church and calm down a little. We feel something here; it makes us feel better.” The church has a basement, so they began organizing special evangelistic meetings for unbelievers seeking shelter. During such meetings, people who carry weapons and serve on the front lines, where life is grimly arduous, simply weep and repent. Many attend the meetings, and they send their children to children’s and youth clubs. Praise be to God, who works even in such difficult situations.

3. In addition to speaking, teaching, and singing in American churches, the Buyko family helped tremendously in preparing all the aid YOU provided for ministry outreach in Ukraine. Before they head home, they wanted to say a few words of appreciation to all of you for caring, praying, and sharing. To let you see and hear about some of the Lord’s blessings, we offer this video, “More Aid Is on the Way!”

https://vimeo.com/user37287229/on-the-way

4. When Vitaly Bilyak left his home in Ukraine, he intended to travel to the U.S. to speak in churches for BIEM. But when military agents stopped him at the border and suddenly inducted him into the army, those plans evaporated. In this video, Vitaly gives a glimpse into his life as he now serves both God and his country from inside a military base.

https://vimeo.com/user37287229/god-country

Sam Slobodian
President, BIEM

October Video Update

Dear Pastors and Friends,

As you can probably imagine, as a Christian mission BIEM receives many requests for various kinds of help. Occasionally, local citizens of Indiana stumble across our phone number online and call requesting a place to live. When that happens, it’s clear the callers don’t realize BIEM is a Christian ministry in operation to evangelize and plant churches on the other side of the world. Instead, we refer those callers to one of the shelters or missions better suited to help them.

However, sometimes we receive questions about problems that truly do concern ministry in Eastern Europe, and—although the request is unexpected—we really can help! In our video for October, one of our Seminary students shares about the acoustics in his home church in Odesa. Their building is a good, solid structure, but the acoustics made listening to sermons and their church orchestra both difficult and unpleasant. The congregation wanted to know, “Is there any way BIEM can help?” There was. We invite you to view this story in a video we’re calling “Sound Matters.”

Here’s the link: https://vimeo.com/user37287229/acoustics

Blessings!
Sam & Amy Slobodian

BIEMs of Light: October 2025

Praises – Rejoice with us!

• If all goes as planned, on October 2 we expect to receive the Buyko family at our BIEM headquarters. They will spend a month with us—speaking and singing in churches, helping to process the donated clothing and other goods in our warehouse, then assisting with the paperwork.

• In September, 46 students attended our Seminary session in Ukraine. This good number is encouraging, considering numerous recent aerial attacks. Praise God, although the air-raid sirens blared in nearby Kyiv, our seminary classes in Bilogorodka were undisturbed.

• After almost a year in Armenia, our church planters there rejoice in God’s working: “We host an international Bible study. Some nights you hear Armenian, Russian, Iranian, Filipino, and English flying around all at once. Google Translate gets quite a workout! But it feels like a glimpse of heaven—people from every tribe and tongue worshiping together…. One Armenian woman shared, “I never used to talk with people from other nationalities. But now I’m learning how to love them.”

• BIEM’s calendars for 2026 are now printed and look great! Praise the Lord for friends with expertise in design and printing who make these possible. This month, friends on our mailing list should receive one in the mail. (If you’re not on our mailing list but want to be, please let us know!)

Prayer – Pray with us!

• October 18 is our next container-loading day. Please pray for donations of much-needed items such as lightly used clothes & shoes, walkers, wheelchairs, canes, and household items, plus funds to ship them. Also, pray for volunteers as we load these items to bless Ukrainians in the name of Christ!

• Update on Vitaly Bilyak: We requested prayer for our missionary-church planter Vitaly, who was conscripted into the Ukrainian military. Legal efforts to reverse his conscription have not yet yielded results. Meanwhile, Vitaly has had wonderful opportunities to give spiritual counsel to evangelize and even to conduct services in a tent! Please uphold him in prayer.

• Please pray for BIEM’s new missionary, Dana Keller, who continues to raise support to minister among orphans in Ukraine. (Due to the war, there are a lot!) To contact her write to danakellerru@gmail.com.

• Please pray for Aygerim, a girl in Central Asia who trusted Christ at camp 8 years ago as a 12 year old. She has endured much persecution. Her mother asked her to come visit. When she did, her mom had an imam waiting to force her back into Islam. Details are unclear, but she has not slept for a week, was not eating, and is a wreck. She’s in the hospital now. Pray that she will recover in all ways.

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March Video Update

Dear Pastors and Friends,

Although the war in Eastern and Southeastern Ukraine continues to wipe out businesses, homes, and lives, for the March video we want to turn your attention elsewhere, to something more uplifting. Years ago, the mayor of a town in Ukraine visited the church where BIEM’s Anatoly Kosyanchuk preaches. At the conclusion of the service, that mayor approached Anatoly with an unexpected proposal: “If you start another Baptist church on the opposite side of town, I’ll give you the land to build on!” 

In the years following that surprise offer, God has taken the Second Baptist Church in Bilogorodka from a mere idea, to an empty plot of ground, to a construction project, to a thriving congregation. Now the Lord has blessed that growing group of believers with an ordination service—one assistant pastor and four deacons! Two of those deacons are neighbors who live within eyesight of the church. Both were unsaved when the church’s construction began. But through this ministry, God has drawn them and other residents of that neighborhood to Himself!

Our latest issue of our Challenger newsletter features an article about this same special ordination service. But for our March video, we decided to let Pastor Buyko and his new assistant pastor, Roman, tell more about God’s blessing that day. You can view that video here:

https://vimeo.com/user37287229/morehands

Thank you for your prayers!

Blessings to you!

Sam & Amy Slobodian

BIEMs of Light: September 2022

Praises – Rejoice with us!

• Our new missionaries in Ukraine, the Koops, operated a 3-day children’s camp in Druzhba, which they have targeted for a new church. The first day, 65 attended; the 2nd day up to 85, and the third day over 100 participated, including about 20 mothers who were asking, “Where is the church?” When those moms heard that church services will be starting soon, some replied they will come.

• Praise God, attacks from Russia on Ukraine’s Independence Day were not as bad as some feared. Although Russian rockets and missiles hit 58 cities and communities on that day, the next day there was only one. Since then, it seems things have died down.

• In Ukraine, the Slobodians report a wonderful baptism at the new church in Bilogorodka. Nine adults were baptized. Praise God for souls being accepting Christ in this time of war. Previously, the Russian army had come within a few miles of Bilogorodka, which is in the Bucha area.

• Praise God for a fruitful trip Vitaly Bilyak took to the military front in Donbas area with a trailer full of aid. He and those with him helped civilians, wounded ones in a hospital, plus soldier friends for whom he brought much-needed supplies and requested items. Vitaly plans two more such trips in September. Pray for safety. His videos from the front include sounds of artillery and explosions.

Prayer - Pray with us!

• Sources predict that the next week will be an especially dangerous time for the military cities of Desna and Goncharovsk, where BIEM missionaries have planted two churches. Both towns have already suffered attacks by missiles, rockets, and planes. More attacks are expected. Please pray for our missionaries, the churches, and the community, that lives would be spared.

• Pasha Usach conducted a special one-day event for mothers and wives who had lost sons and husbands in the war. Over 50 attended. The event was a huge blessing and provided a wonderful opportunity to share the Gospel, so much so that Pavel is planning another such an event. Pray that God will use these outreaches to draw souls to Christ, the source of the greatest comfort.

• Plans are underway to bring the Buyko family to the United States, where they will visit churches for one month. Sophia and the three girls have already received visas; now we are working on getting the special permission needed for Eugene to temporarily exit Ukraine during wartime. Please pray that this permission will be granted, just as it was for Vitaly Yurchenko.

• Some of our contacts are witnessing of Christ to Muslims in Afghanistan. Please pray for God to open eyes and illumine hearts with the Gospel.

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BIEMs of Light: August 2022

Praises – Rejoice with us!

• Praise God, our personnel in Ukraine have received another 40-ft. container of humanitarian aid from us here in the United States! This is the 7th container our dedicated Ukrainians are distributing to needy places. This one went to the city administration of a region that contains several settlements that were occupied by Russian forces, so these goods will reach some of the neediest recipients.

• BIEM president Sam Slobodian heads back to Ukraine on August 2. The main focus of this trip will be humanitarian aid, but praise the Lord, he will also participate in a baptism and an ordination!

• Today BIEM personnel drove another 5 tons of food from Poland into Ukraine, this time for the Kharkiv region. We praise God for thoughtful donors and for those driving and distributing.

• So far, we are receiving reports of young people coming to Christ in BIEM-sponsored camps in Estonia, Ukraine, and Russia. Although the Lord touches hearts in a special way through such camps every summer, we never take that blessing for granted. To God be the glory!

Prayer - Pray with us!

• Despite the war in Ukraine, one of our seminary graduates is deeply burdened for a particular district in a large city in Western Ukraine that has been flooded with refugees. Many of them plan to stay. This brother has recruited others to help start a new church, and they are praying and fasting every Friday for God’s direction and provision for that goal. Please join them in praying.

• A pastor named Aleksander emailed us today from the Intensive Care section of a hospital in central Russia. He has a weak heart, and their summer camps and other ministries may have taxed him too much. Let’s uphold this worthy servant of the Lord with our prayers.

• In Central Asia, the manager of our Christian shelter for hurting women is named Julie. She is a big blessing—talented, yet with a servant’s heart and love for Jesus. She devotes herself to running the shelter and ministering to these women and their children. It’s a big job. Please pray for her.

• In another nation of Central Asia, one church recently baptized 9 former Muslims who had put their faith in Christ. Please pray that more hearts in those regions will soften and consider their need of the Savior.

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