War in E. Ukraine aids church planting in west

Thousands gathered on Kiev’s Independence Square to light candles and lay flowers during a memorial march and prayer service to remember those who gave their lives during a bloody revolution more than a year ago.

More than a year after the Euromaidan revolution on Kiev's Independence Square, thousands came to memorialize "The Heavenly Hundred" -- those who lost their lives during bloody protests in February 2014.

Much has changed in Ukraine during the past year. A new president is in office. War continues in the east between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian Army despite a recently negotiated cease-fire agreement.

But not all news coming out of Ukraine is bad, International Mission Board workers report. At the same time prayer services were being held for the fallen at the central square (also known as Maidan Nezalezhnosti), a new church was being birthed across town as 16 people gathered for worship in a former beauty salon.

Pastor Oleg, who leads the new congregation, is a church planter from the Luhansk region who has been forced to flee his home, and his church, due to the war. Keep reading

Photo credit: Marc Ira Hooks, Baptist Press