This article originally appeared on nogreaterjoy.org
No Greater Joy Ministries is now raising funds for a new printing of Good and Evil in Ukrainian! Learn more about our vision in this article, or jump straight to the donation page using the button below. Thank you for your support! 💙💛
Our team of four barely fit into a mid-size Ford van, which we had packed from floor to ceiling with supplies: bread, aid boxes, rice, and cases of the Bible comic book Good and Evil. After hours of travel from L’viv in the west, passing through Zhytomyr and Kyiv in the north, we entered the flat, open plains of Ukraine’s southern regions. Gone were the urban centers and smooth highways; in their place, we found a scene reminiscent of some dystopian Hollywood movie. Like a forsaken river of dust and exposed rock, the road meandered endlessly through vast fields that held an invisible but deadly secret: Russian land mines. We gazed out the windows, occasionally catching sight of burned-out vehicles and abandoned fortifications.
I’ve served as a missionary in Ukraine for nearly a quarter century, but there were things I saw on that trip for the very first time. They were things no one should have to see, but they are a daily reality for tens of thousands of Ukrainians.
Early on the second day of our trip, we rolled into a small village where I was met with a sight that brought both joy and sadness. A crowd of about 50 people waited for us in the cold, clustered together by the side of the road. The meeting had been arranged in advance, and the people came with expectation. Their village lay in ruins, the work of a cruel army that invaded their land and took their liberty. This was one of Ukraine’s many deoccupied zones.
I eased the van to a stop and turned off the engine. As we stepped out into the sharp winter sun, I walked directly towards the crowd, raised both arms in a friendly gesture, and in my most cheerful Texas English, I exclaimed, “Helloooo, everybody!” A few chuckles rippled through the crowd, along with a few nervous glances.
Our Ukrainian guide, Oleksandr, introduced our team, and we took turns addressing the people and sharing briefly about our families and backgrounds. One of the other Americans on the team preached a short Gospel message while I translated it into Ukrainian. The people listened attentively. When the message had ended, Oleksandr explained how we would distribute the aid. We opened the back and side doors of the van, and the people queued up. As they made their way from one side of the van around to the other, they each received bread, rice, aid boxes filled with non-perishables, and, as supplies allowed, copies of Good and Evil.
And then it was over. We found ourselves back in the van, inching our way towards the next village, where the scene we had just witnessed repeated itself all over again.
Over the past three years of war in this country, thousands of Ukrainians have heard the Gospel through the Good and Evil book. But thousands more are still waiting to hear. Sadly, during our trip, we gave away the last of our supplies.
When we did our previous printing of Good and Evil in 2022, we also launched a distributor program, extending our reach by partnering with local missionaries, churches, schools, and individuals across Ukraine. The program grew into an extensive network of enthusiastic laborers who took Good and Evil to the far corners of this war-torn land. After our supplies ran out, we were forced to shut down the program due to a lack of inventory.
But the fields of Ukraine are white unto harvest, our distributor network is ready, and the need is great. This year, in 2025, we want to return to the deoccupied zones and do more to bring the light of Christ to those people. We can go anytime, but our work will be so much more effective if we can bring along our favorite little missionaries-in-a-box: the Good and Evil book.
Right now, No Greater Joy is raising funds to do a new printing of the Ukrainian edition of Good and Evil. We have already contacted the same Christian printer who has done all of our previous printings, and he is ready to go. If you are willing, this is an exciting and strategic opportunity to give to the advancement of the Gospel. Sadly, the future of Ukraine remains unclear. The liberated villages we visited may once again fall under Russian occupation, trapping their inhabitants behind a new Iron Curtain. For now, the way is open, and we plan to march forward with whatever resources God provides. Please help us to bring the Light of Christ to these precious Ukrainian people before the curtain closes.
“For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.” (1 Corinthians 16:9)
“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)
