February 21, 2022

Proverbs 25:25, “As cold water to a weary soul, So is good news from a far country.”

Dear Friends,

We are alive and well in Ukraine. We are so grateful for all of you who have been praying for us, and we have been encouraged by many of you writing to tell us of your concern and how you are standing with us in prayer. Surely, through your intercession at the throne of grace we have been obtaining mercy and finding grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

It should come as no shock if I tell you that you can’t trust much of what you see or read in the media. There is so much that is hype and hyperbole and partial truths or outright lies that it is really hard to know what to believe. So let me give you my perspective.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is not imminent, it happened in 2014. Since that time there have been close to 40,000 casualties, with the number of Ukrainians killed at more than 14,000. Close to 2 million people have been displaced. Contrary to many reports, most people are not fleeing to Russia but are moving to the west to the capital city of Kiev and other cities or other European countries in many cases. The US State Department has been issuing Level 3 and Level 4 threat warnings for more than seven years now. What is happening now is not something new.

It is true that there has been a large Russian military build-up all around Ukraine – on the eastern border, on the northern border in Belarus, in the south in the Crimean Peninsula, and in the west in the Transnistria region. No one knows for sure if this has any real significance or if it is just grand theater being produced for Putin’s aggrandizement. It may be that he is doing a lot of posturing in order to achieve political goals that do not include a full-scale assault of Ukraine at all.

Let me tell you what I observe in Ukraine. In the Donbas region of southeastern Ukraine several cities are under the control of Russian separatists. There have been continuing skirmishes for years between these Russian-backed forces and the Ukrainian military, accounting for the casualties mentioned above. However, for the most part, Ukrainians are not living in fear of an all-out assault.

I have traveled to many place around the country, and except in that one region there is no indication of a country on the brink of war. And except in that region a person can travel freely by car or public transportation without being stopped at checkpoints. There are no soldiers or military vehicles along the way. I have flown domestically into and out of cities in Ukraine with no problems, no increased scrutiny at the airports.

In the capital city of Kiev the airports are open, with more concern about the Corona virus than a military invasion. There are no long lines at the airports with people frantically leaving the country. In fact, the last couple of times that we have flow into Ukraine recently, the incoming planes were full. Apparently people are not afraid to come here. There are no special forces at the airports or along the highways. Businesses are open and there is no evidence of panic buying. The shelves are fully stocked. There are no long lines at the gas stations. Churches are not overflowing with people cowering in fear because of a perception of imminent danger. People are not huddled in their homes and we hear little talk of war. By all appearances Ukraine does not look like a country that is unduly alarmed by all of the news coming out of the US and western Europe.

Obviously things could change rapidly. We have no way of knowing if they will. We receive notices from the US Embassy here, almost daily, warning us to leave the country immediately. I have even received telephone calls from the State Department in Washington to ask if we are still in Ukraine, and, if so, do we plan to evacuate. The last time they called I asked if they had some information that was different from what I could get from the media, and they said no. So I want to know what has changed in the past week or month or year?

There are some who are making decisions based more on fear than fact. KLM airline has suspended all of its flights in and out of Ukraine because their insurers have refused to cover any losses that might be sustained due to a war. This results in economic loss both for them and for Ukraine. Other companies headquartered in the West have also suspended working here. This has also had some impact on the economy here. As you have probably heard a couple of countries, including the US, have pulled their embassy staff out of the country. But the vast majority have not done so.

We are not oblivious to the potential danger, and we have considered what steps we might need to take in the event of war. We have some food stockpiled, some gasoline and a power generator. We know where the border crossings are should it be necessary to leave. But we have no plans at present to evacuate. In fact, we do not anticipate leaving unless forced to do so. Our thinking is this: what kind of example would we be, what testimony of faith in the Lord, if we tell our people to trust in the Lord and then we bail out at the first hint of trouble? This is our life, our ministry, our home – until the Lord moves us!

Please continue to pray for Ukraine, for its leaders to have wisdom, for its military to have courage, for its people to turn to the Lord in their hour of testing. Pray for us that we can continue to preach the gospel, to keep on training our Bible college students to prepare them for ministry. It is our privilege, our joy to serve the Lord here.

“I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust.” Psalm 91:2

Jim and Phyllis

January 2022

Dear Friends,

Thirty years ago on Christmas Day the Hammer and Sickle was lowered for the last time at the Kremlin in Moscow. The Communist Party was dead. Thirty years ago this month the Soviet Union was dissolved and the republics in the USSR became independent nations. This opened the door for Christians from the west to enter into those countries which had been denied access to the gospel of grace and Bible teaching for 70 years.

In 1993 my wife, Phyllis, and I went to the former Soviet Union as missionaries. We have done evangelism, planted churches, and started Bible schools. Our primary focus is to train pastors, teachers, evangelists, and missionaries. Since 1996 the work has been centered in Kiev, Ukraine. This has been a wonderful place for ministry, with great freedom to openly preach the gospel, plant churches, and to teach the Bible.

Ukraine has experienced great turmoil in the past 30 years with differing factions vying for power, with political and economic problems. In spite of all these things the country has prospered and enjoyed much liberty. However, since 2014 with the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych, the country has suffered some severe blows. Russia forcibly took over the Crimean peninsula with its highly valuable ports and naval base on the Black Sea. In addition to that, Russian-backed separatists, in armed conflict, took control of the Donbas region in eastern and southern Ukraine. The conflict has continued for seven years now, resulting in the death of thousands of Ukrainians, the exodus of more than a million people from that area, and much suffering for those still there.

Since last year tensions have escalated due to a large buildup of Russian troops along the northern and eastern borders of Ukraine. Only recently has this caught the attention of Europe and America. What does this portend? I don’t know. Will there be a Russian invasion? I don’t know. What I do know is this:

No matter what the situation in the world, our divine mandate has not changed. We are in this world at this time for God’s purposes, not our own. We have not been called to comfort or east, to success or prosperity, but to represent the Lord Jesus Christ. In an era of political chaos, economic instability, pandemic, paranoia and fear, we must keep our eye on God’s objective and press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ. There is but one question that must be answered: how can I please the Lord in this situation?

Therefore, we press on, that we may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus laid hold of us. Our hope, our confidence, our stability comes from knowing God and His Word. We cannot control conditions in the world, but we can trust in the God who is sovereign over all. Therefore, let us redouble our efforts to walk worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, to bear fruit, and to increase in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:10).

Our work here continues with the Bible college, church, and Bible conferences. We have a very busy schedule for this spring, not only in Kiev, but also in several other places in Ukraine where we are able to hold conferences and teach in other Bible schools. We also have trips planned for teaching in Armenia and Zambia in the next few months, and possibly Estonia if the Covid cops will allow us entry. We have not been vaccinated for the Covid virus, and will not do so. This presents problems for us in travel since some countries require a vaccination to enter. Even here in Ukraine it is necessary to have either proof of vaccination or a PCR to fly or even travel by train. It has been necessary to curtail a few teaching opportunities, but in spite of that we still have a full calendar.

We are so thankful for God’s abundant blessings to us in giving us the privilege of serving Him, continued health and strength, and faithful partners in ministry. Thank you so much for your prayers, your encouragement, your support. We praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for you. Please pray for our health, safety, and open doors for the ministry

By grace alone,

Jim Myers

September 2021

Dear Friends,

What a marvelous adventure this Christian life is. Of course, there are struggles, but, oh the joys that come to us in serving the Lord.

In July Phyllis and I returned to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where we had our first church ministry. Grace Bible Church was planted in 1971, and I had the privilege of being the founding pastor. The church had a Golden Anniversary celebration. A number of the charter members are still in the church, as well as some of their children and grandchildren. It was a great time of rejoicing in what the Lord has done in and through the ministry of that church. It has touched literally thousands of lives through various ministries over the years, and also produced a number of people who have gone into ministry. We are also rejoicing that the church has remained true to Word of God with a free grace gospel and emphasis on verse-by-verse Bible teaching. They have continued to grow under the ministry of Pastor Mark Goad, and just recently sold the building we met in for many years in order to put up a new structure, the old one being too small to accommodate the congregation.

Back in Kiev we are beginning our 29th year as missionaries in this part of the world. Word of God Church is doing well under its Ukrainian leadership, growing both in number and spiritual maturity. The Bible college is back in session. Although our enrollment is down this year, we still have a full schedule. It seems that a lot of people have gotten into the distance learning mode and do not want to leave home in order to study. Of course, we believe that face-to-face teaching is best, but we are in the process of developing online courses. This is a big undertaking, but it seems necessary at this point.

I just finished teaching a two-week module at Word of God Bible College on the subject of Soteriology (the doctrine of salvation) and will be teaching courses on Old Testament historical books (Joshua through Esther) and another course on the major prophets (Isaiah through Daniel). In addition to the college, I preach once and sometimes twice on Sundays, plus two online classes during the week. Other than that, I am free!

Many of the Covid-19 restrictions are still in effect, but people are becoming less fearful of becoming infected, and the government mandates are being eased. It is still necessary for Americans to get PCR tests before entering the country, but vaccination is not required. The vaccination papers are necessary in a number of European countries, and this makes for some frustrations. I had plans to go to Estonia to teach for a couple of weeks there, but they require vaccination papers, so I postponed the trip. I tested positive for Covid early this year, so, I assume, I am now immune and have no need for vaccination.

We are so thankful to the Lord for His mercy in giving us health and stamina, His grace in allowing us the privilege of serving Him here. We also praise the Lord for all of you who pray for us, encourage us, and support us. Thank you.

By grace alone,
Jim

December 2020

Dear Friends,

What a year this has been. I doubt anyone will forget 2020 with all of the tumultuous events, the chaos, confusion and panic: impeachment, riots, pandemic, and the election fiasco, lockdowns, quarantines, shuttered businesses, restrictions on church attendance, travel bans, etc., etc., etc.

What a great time to be alive! What a tremendous opportunity to manifest the grace of God, His provision to a lost world, and to give a reason for the hope that is in us. What a comfort to know that our sovereign Lord is ruling over all. The world is not spinning out of control but is moving in the exact direction that He has planned. In His book they all were written, the days fashioned for us when as yet there were none of them. He saw this year in eternity past and made perfect provision for His children to go through it with peace and joy, with confidence and assurance. He put you where you are at this very time for His own purposes. We have opportunity to shine as lights in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. We do not despair. We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair (2 Corinthians 4:8).

In the midst of everything we had to make many alterations to our usual way of doing things. We had to cancel our annual trips to Africa and South America. I was scheduled to teach for two weeks in Estonia, but that had to be postponed. I was planning on teaching a course in eastern Ukraine, but that was scrapped at the last minute due to the Covid-19 panic. For several months our church could not meet face-to-face because of government restrictions. So we held services at our house with 10-15 people in person and the rest joined us live stream on the Internet.

Because people were confined to their homes for weeks on end, we started having Bible classes online every night of the week. This has abated somewhat so that we now have livestream classes four times a week, but the church is now able to meet in our usual place on Sundays.

I have been teaching a group of 15–20 people on Sunday evenings in a town about an hour and a half from our home. We are hoping that this will develop into a local church there. I had an interesting experience there the first Sunday in December. There were two teenagers, a brother and sister who wanted to be baptized. The man at whose house we meet has a small above- ground swimming pool. Even though the temperature was only 15 degrees, we had the baptism outside. I was delighted to do this, of course, but this is not an experience I look forward to repeating with any regularity.

Classes at the college continue unabated, although it has been necessary to conduct some of them online. This has required us to do some juggling in schedules, though, due to the time difference between Ukraine and the US. American professors would start teaching at 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning, which is 4:00 or 5:00 in the afternoon here. So, the students here finish at 8:00 or 9:00 in the evening. But this was really a minor inconvenience.

As we come to the close of this memorable year, we give thanks to our loving Lord who has enabled us to carry on the work. We have been blessed with good health and abundant provision. We also give thanks to all of you who have been so faithful in supporting us in prayer and with your financial support.

We do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:9-10).

All by grace,
Jim