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After World War II my maternal family found themselves to be displaced persons, homeless, with only the clothing on their backs and a few meager lightweight possessions they could manage to carry such as some photographs. Their home was no more in their land of Lithuania, east on the shore of the Baltic Sea, next door neighbour to Latvia to the north, Poland to the south, and Belarus to the east and south. Tragically, my Grandfather was killed in this terrible war fighting against the insane killing machine of Adolf Hitler fed by Satan. My grandmother did her best to escape with 3 young children, 2 boys and 1 girl — my mother (middle child) who was born on December 26th of 1936. They came to the faraway foreign land of Australia by ship via Italy where my Grandmother (močiute) married a single man of the same nationality in order to gain passage on board bound for the land down under. Today this is known as a marriage of convenience and without it both could not leave Europe. Grandmother had a choice — America or Australia — the greater distance won. To say that they were all very grateful to flee and resettle thousands of miles away is a huge understatement, and so they assimilated quickly into a new life full of peace and productiveness, adopting a strange new language of English without my Grandmother ever being able to lose her thick accent until they all eventually died. Both uncles as well as my mother succumbed to the dreaded disease of cancer in the prime of their life all before their mother and step-father, Mum being the youngest at 36 years. The full extent of what they went through will only be known after they are resurrected by God. I imagine it will be a volatile cocktail mixture of horror, sadness, despair, and finally relief, listening to their recounting of their traumatic experiences.
Lithuania has much in common with the people of the Ukraine. For example, did you know that the Russian Empire annexed a sizeable chunk of Lithuania's territory during 1772-1795? This brings to mind a more recent annexure of parts of the Ukraine due to Russian invasion in 2014 when the Crimean Peninsula was subsequently taken from the Ukraine. Historical facts are fascinating to discover about how and why geographical borders in Europe changed throughout the centuries leading up to our present day times. Lithuania was once the largest country in Europe during the 14th century, as present-day Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia were territories of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Fast forward to the 20th century and according to Wikipedia "As World War I ended, Lithuania's Act of Independence was signed on 16 February 1918, founding the modern Republic of Lithuania. In World War II, Lithuania was occupied first by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany. Towards the end of the war in 1944, when the Germans were retreating, the Soviet Union reoccupied Lithuania". The Russians have a lot to answer for it would seem, and to see what has been going on since February 24 one month ago when war officially began is a living nightmare. Weeks prior to this the people were asked why are they not fleeing to safety as they still went about their daily lives working, shopping and their usual routines — listening to their responses revealed that they did not believe Russia's leader, President Vladimir Putin, would actually do what he said, especially now in the 21st century when we are meant to be "more civilised" meaning anti-war with faded memories from the war about 80 years ago. Some who are still alive after experiencing firsthand the nightmare of WWII say it is exactly like looking at the same black and white images but now they are in colour (on Television). The invasion and occupation of their beloved homeland is real, and now they know Putin meant what he said. Some believe that World War III is here.
My Grandmother told me few things about the war, one of which was that there were some who fled from their towns and villages on foot, riding bicycles, or with their horse and cart to warn others along the way but the people could not accept the warnings. Their eyes did not see the chaos and confusion yet, therefore, because all looked peaceful "in their neck of the woods" they did not heed the warnings (without TV, mobile phones, and electronic devices the dissemination of news was much slower back then when they relied on word of mouth or radios). From the time of the 1960s as a little girl this warning has stayed with me throughout my life for some reason, like a photographic memory encased in a silver locket placed next to my heart ready to be opened at any time. Perhaps it was her unusually serious tone delivered in urgency, almost like a spy could be listening while my Grandmother stood there with her eyes looking at me and yet right through me. It was a chilling moment in time and I did not know what to say or how to respond but I listened. Warnings are important and are to be heeded when they are genuine. The other curious comment she made with such emphasis that led me to think she was deeply troubled was "Don't let anybody ever tell you that the Hitler war never happened!" These words with the benefit of hindsight, now reveal to be quite prophetic in nature.
God warns His people in the Bible that we have a small window of opportunity to flee once the abomination of desolation is set up as exactly 30 days (one month) later The Great Tribulation begins (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21, Daniel 12). This is preceded by the 70 weeks prophecy in Daniel 9:27 where we are alerted that all will not be as it seems with promises being broken midway through their term. The point being, we are given plenty of adequate warning to get ready for what is ahead of us as much intrigue and deception will play out. Will we heed these warnings to flee when all around us wherever we look may seem relatively normal, quiet and at peace? Once again, I am reminded of what God says in scripture from Matthew 24:19-20 as the news shows us many images over the past month of people in the Ukraine making their escape by fleeing to safety. Mothers holding babies recently born, some heavily pregnant while others give birth in war torn hospitals, battling wintry conditions with snow and icy winds, trees dark and bereft of any colour for the vegetation is dormant revealing how harsh the climate is despite transitioning into the northern hemisphere season of Spring. Reports of people dying from exposure in sub zero temperatures is just so awfully sad to bear when they were warm and safe in their homes only a few weeks ago before bombs started dropping and missiles started flying.
What are we to make of all this? What is really going on behind the scenes? Is it because of pride and power that Vladimir Putin may fancy himself as a Czar desiring Russia to be what it once was? Will he stop if he conquers Ukrainian territory or will he keep going? War is brutal, lies are told, promises are not kept, deception and confusion abound. Who can the people trust? The Ukrainians have their President Volodymyr Zelenskyy consciously opting to stay and fight with his people for which he is held in high esteem. He has global approval and respect for his bravery with countries near and far willing to help in whatever capacity offered. We see him amongst his people handing out medals to soldiers, flowers to women confined to hospital beds, young men taking selfies with their beloved President while they recuperate with brutal injuries from frontline warfare. They are a loyal, tough bunch deeply patriotic and keen to serve. One young man of 25 years delayed the invasion by hampering Russian soldier's efforts when a bridge was blown up by giving his life to the cause and for his family to be able to have time to escape. Ukrainians are shown to be actively praying to God in faith that He will intervene and stop this war. God has allowed this to happen and for reasons we can only imagine. We will not know fully what is going on behind the scenes now, but one day all will be made transparently plain. There is plenty to sift through for now as there is propaganda much like there was in war time during the 20th century. The big difference is we are able to see and hear much more of it as conditions unfold due to the speed of technology.
We are to stay strong and close to God in prayerful unification for those who are in danger and we need to be diligent in this bearing in mind many cannot help in any other way due to their situation in life with finances. Prayer is the greatest treasure we have and we must not grow weary in giving our thoughts and words to God for others who are frightened, sad and scared even to escape their dire situation. Images of a frail, elderly lady sitting in a small room by her heater while her building had been significantly destroyed was tragic to see, and then there was footage of a young child crying bitterly while crossing the border by himself clutching with his hands a toy and some sweet treats in a cone — this was too much to bear. This brought back further memories buried deep in my mind which had been lying dormant for decades. When children begin school over there in Europe they are given treats/lollies/candy nestled inside a cone-shaped paper container to acknowledge this milestone, celebrating that they are about to go on an enjoyable journey of discovery in learning which is meant to be a very good thing. My Grandmother deftly made one for me back in the 60s and it was a very special memory. Imagine this poor, lonely, confused child holding onto something that is associated with good times, now in the worst of times.
Strengthening ourselves in the LORD, we must take heart and remember God's words in Isaiah 13:11 which speak quite clearly to His people in our time today as we see many things transpire and prophecies come to pass “I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible". We will be vindicated, all those who suffer now at the hands of the haughty wielding power in pride and arrogance. We will continue to prepare for the return of our Saviour Jesus Christ to rule over all peoples with the help of His elect, the firstfruits who remain spiritually strong and steadfast while humbly praying, bearing in mind words from Revelation 22:20-21. As Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong would say "we have read the end of the book, and we win". We absolutely know that God will see us through the present day evils and torment — just hold on tight! Cling to God and His promises. Meanwhile, further riveting information is provided below to timely sermons about Russia in Prophecy by Mario Seiglie https://youtu.be/KdnIp0Z11AY. From Steve Buchanan who discusses politics, human relationships in government, the divine rights of kings held by checks and balances from God's prophets in this well researched and fascinating sermon explaining what happens when tyrannical rulers listen to God's prophets and the dire consequences when they don't: https://www.ucg.org/sermons/my-friends-the-prophets. Finally, the link below provides news about war in the Ukraine, the Ukraine Emergency Fund set up by LifeNets, and reliable information to keep you up-to-date: https://lifenets.org/category/ukraine-war.