Ukraine Prayer # 423

Ira Kapitonova
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
and righteous altogether.
Psalm 19:9

We had a slow family morning, enjoying every minute of Saturday. Just as we were ready to leave home for errands, the sirens went off. All of the territory of Ukraine was under the threat of ballistic missiles. We postponed our plans and settled on our hallway floor. The air raid warning lasted for over two hours. Even though we felt rather cozy and enjoyed each other's company, it was easy to get restless and start complaining about the floor being too hard, the air raid lasting too long, or our plans being messed up.
 
However, when I started grumbling, I immediately felt convicted in my heart. In my selfishness, I took our safety for granted. What felt like an inconvenience to me can be a dream of people living close to the frontline, residents of Kherson or Nikopol district, Kharkiv or Sumy region, and all those surviving in the active combat zone. How easy it is to blur the lines between necessity and privilege! Every day we can spend in our home with our loved ones in relative safety is a privilege bought at a high price someone else is ready to pay. The least we can do is not take it for granted.
 
That is certainly a lesson for us all. We can’t take peace for granted. It is paid for by a heavy price in Ukraine and around the world. Pray for peace. Our own and the wars that are going on in the world today. Pray for Ukraine.
Al Akimoff and The Slavic Ministries Team

Today's picture — the evacuation train that brought people out of the city of Irpin (swarmed with Russian soldiers) in the early days of the invasion. It was shelled during one of its trips, yet it wasn't stopped. The train car is on display now for the Ukrainian Railway Workers' Day.
The photo was posted by the Ukrainian Railway Company Ukrzaliznytsia.