From: Ira Kapitonova in Kyiv (Day 1162)
For the righteous will never be moved;
he will be remembered forever.
His heart is steady;
he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he gnashes his teeth and melts away;
the desire of the wicked will perish!
Psalm 112:6, 8, 10
Spring inevitably brings hope. The shock of last week’s horrific attacks wears off, and we slowly collect our feelings and thoughts. Life will overcome death. It is inevitable. Just as spring comes every year despite winter’s futile attempts to destroy it with frostbite.
I allow myself the luxury of not reading world news. It’s too easy to get upset, frustrated and hopeless because of things you can’t change. Instead, I choose to focus on God’s faithfulness and glimpses of His glory, which He allows me to see.
One of those moments happened today when Simeon Ewing (of Children’s Ministry Ukraine) and his friends visited our school. A bystander might have said there was nothing special in this visit. However, as our students got to meet the people who came to support Ukraine, as they talked to them and listened to their testimonies, as they received cards from the Scottish schoolchildren, and as we prayed together, my heart grew fuller and fuller. I understand what Paul meant when he wrote to Philemon that his kindness “refreshed the hearts of God’s people.”
Now, we have a flag of Scotland on a wall in my classroom to remember the support and prayers of our friends there, and we dream of having a flag wall one day to remember all the love and solidarity we received from so many people across the globe.
God is good.
This picture may lack artistic composition, but I want it to remind me of God’s goodness when days get tough.
Voice of Ukraine 